We know that young people are the future and our conversation with Hairo Cortes, Founder and Executive Director of Chispa, only further emphasizes how important it is to center our organizing strategies around the leadership of young people. In this feature in our Black Love Rising series, Hairo talks about a different side of Orange County and the work he’s doing at his organization to create a political home for young Latinos and immigrant communities so they can get their voices heard and effect real change in a region that hasn’t always represented their interests

We’re honored to have spent time in conversation with Maru Mora Villalpando, Founder of La Resistencia, one of Tides Advocacy’s grantee partners. Based in Tacoma, Washington, this nonprofit organization is doing incredibly important work to empower those impacted by the immigration enforcement system and end the unjust treatment of undocumented immigrants in this country.

For our latest #BlackLoveRising feature, we spoke with Resha Thomas, Program Director at Texas Black Action Fund, a project of Tides Advocacy, on what inspires her work and the challenges and opportunities that come with building Black civic engagement in the great state of Texas.

Lead Locally joined Tides Advocacy in 2016 to engage and organize around local elections that don’t get very much attention or resources in areas where pollution impacts will be disproportionately felt by low-income communities and communities of color. Their community organizing is stopping fossil fuel projects before they get started. "No one else offers the kind and level of support that Tides Advocacy does around c4 and electoral work.”

There are only three states with a law restricting former felons’ right to vote, and in Florida, the problem is at its worst. In 2017, Tides Advocacy partnered with the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition to get the Voting Restoration Amendment (Amendment 4) on the ballot. They are now inspiring a movement of thousands locally and nationally.

The environmental movement has historically been white-led and is only now starting to address racial justice in its work. Tides Advocacy provided multi-year seed funding, strategic support, and fiscal sponsorship to create CEJA Action, which works with community-based environmental justice groups to increase their electoral power. CEJA Action is now a strong presence in Sacramento, taking positions on state measures and helping elect environmental justice champions into office.