THE WARMTH OF OTHER SUNS, By Isabel Wilkerson

“THE WARMTH OF OTHER SUNS” provides an excellent commentary on the epic story of “America’s  African American Great Migration” from the South to the North and West between 1915 - 1975.  It is told through the true stories of four individuals who made the journey.  Herself a child of the migration, Pulitzer Prize winning author,  Isabel Wilkerson, tells how individuals responded to the Jim Crow  south, where despite their emancipation following the Civil War,  black people were valued primarily for their labor and compensated as the white land owners saw fit.  Their children were allowed to attend schools only when they were not needed for field work and every aspect of their lives was segregated.  If they expressed any resentment, they could be beaten, or lynched.  Isabel, whose own family had been part of the great migration, tells their  story with graceful imagery and humanity. “It was during World War I that a silent pilgrimage took its first steps within the borders of this country.  The fever rose without warning or notice or much in the way of understanding by those outside its reach.  It would not end until the 1970’s and would set into motion changes in the North and South that no one, not even the people doing the leaving, could have imagined at the start of it or dreamed could take a lifetime to play out.

“     Their decisions were separate.  joining a road already plied decades before by people as discontented as themselves.  A thousand hurts and killed wishes led to a final determination by each fed-up individual on the verge of departure, which, added to millions of others, made  what could be called migration. It would become perhaps the biggest underreported story of the twentieth century.  It was vast.  It was leaderless.  It crept along so many thousands of currents over so long a stretch of time as to make it difficult for the press truly to capture while it was happening.”

On April 28, 1917, an editorial in the Cleveland Advocate wrote  “There is no mistaking what is going on; it is a regular exodus.  It is without head, tail, or leadership.  Its greatest factor is momentum.  People are leaving their homes and everything about them, under cover of night as though they were going on a day’s journey – leaving forever. 

Breaking Away   “I was leaving without a question,  without a single backward glance. The face of the South that I had known was hostile and forbidding and yet out of all the conflicts and the curses, the tension and the terror, I had somehow gotten the idea that life could be different.  I was now running more away from something than toward something.  My mood was I’ve got to get away; I can’t stay here. “    Richard Wright, “Black Boy”

“THE ALTERNATIVE” by Mauricio Miller

 Book Review by George Johnson, Rose City Presbyterian Church Do you ask why poverty is still prominent for the past several decades?  Not enough money or is the plan seriously flawed?  What can/should be done today?  The book “The Alternative” as the title suggests, proposes a new approach to eliminating poverty.  According to the author most of what we, the well-intended, know about poverty is wrong. Social programs should invest in the strengths of the poor and not be simply charities.

The author, Mauricio Miller, entered US as a young boy with his mother and sister as an emigrant from Mexico.  His mother wanted an education and better life for her children.  His life in poverty and the sacrifices his single mother made for her family make for thoughtful reading. His family, as with others in in poverty, lived in a social network of community interactions.  Learning to be resourceful and working together they survived.  He learned that it does not take talent to live with resources, but living in poverty --- every day presents a new learning experience in survival. The prevailing thought by many in social work is that people in poverty make poor decisions, thus, continuing poverty.  Miller takes serious issue with that concept - they know what is best for them, but have insufficient resources or opportunities to live out their dreams.  They feel obligated to follow the social workers instructions or suggestions rather than follow their own solutions.

He entered University of California, Berkeley, as an engineering student.  Living and interacting with students from the elite, money class was an enlightening experience opening a new understanding of life that he never knew existed.  He hoped to graduate and get a job.  Affluent classmates considered those basic components of life expected entitlements, primarily through family connections.  He did graduate, get a job, and was drafted to serve in Vietnam.

Mauricio Miller was not satisfied with life and distraught after the suicide of his mother.  She was unable to maintain the stresses and abuses as a single mother and felt unsuccessful in giving her children what she wanted for them.  (Reader can learn about his sister who did not follow his path.) He wanted to be more involved with people and helping the under privileged. After a few years he headed a social service NGO.  It was “successful” with nationwide recognition.  He was invited by President Clinton to the 1999 State of the Union address.

But he was not satisfied.  He felt hypocritical and that advancements of his clients were minimal; thus the program was not justified.  He calculated that clients would be better off if he gave them directly the money he received for the projects.  What to do?  At that time, by serendipity (or God’s providence), Governor Jerry Brown contacted him and asked what California could propose to a national poverty grant announcement.  His thoughts went back to his mother.  She was extremely resourceful and also talented as a seamstress.  What could she have accomplished if she had access to even small financial resources?  She and other immigrants were extremely resourceful, relied on each other, and shared what they had.  Would not these basic concepts be the basis for a new approach?  Would not learning what they need to survive be valuable - a bottom up rather than a top down approach - in social service?  Would not those in poverty know better about living in poverty than those with post-graduate degrees from prestigious universities?  Governor Brown was impressed, took his advice, and was awarded the grant.

The last portion of the book describes development and principles of his “alternative” approach.  It grew into what is called today the “Family Independence Initiative” (FII).  It began in Oakland, and has expanded into several cities (https://www.fii.org/   https://www.uptogether.org/) including Portland by partnering with the Multnomah Idea Lab (https://multco.us/dchs/mil).  The basic principle is that clients are in charge. They are paid to work together and develop their own plans, and in doing so they “educate’ the social workers. Program resources go to clients with much less to social workers. The purpose of this review is not to explain in detail or defend the FII.  Readers are encouraged to access the internet sites to learn and understand.

All who are troubled by poverty and want to alleviate this injustice in our society should read this book.  Mauricio Miller describes the flaws in our social service network and how the strengths of the poor, not the weaknesses, should be emphasized. Importantly, the book provides the reader insight of how those around us in poverty view themselves.  What is the future for social programs?  What initiatives should we support, advocate and participate in?  What can we learn from the past?

Putting SOUL Into Business by Thomas Hering (Interfaith Alliance Co-Chair on Advocacy) and Mary Anne Harmer

“We wrote “Putting Soul Into Business” for one reason: hope. “Because we believe the Benefit Corporation is going to be a strong catalyst for a better world and for a better business by adopting and practicing the 3 P’s of People, Planet and Profit. “It is our intent in this book to not only show why you should embrace this entity for your business, but how to do it. Along the way you’ll read about companies both larger and small learning about their decisions to become a Benefit Corporation. We believe you will find the transcripts for their interviews with us inspiring. It certainly was the case for us as we talked to these forward-thinking yet humble leaders. “…It is our hope (operative word, here) you jump in and become part of this fast-growing movement and embrace what a short while ago seemed almost impossible: putting soul into business.

“Hope.  --  Hope for the environment. -- Hope for social justice. “Hope for business. -- And Hope for the world.

You see, we believe we are at that proverbial crossroad where there is no more time. Either we stay on the road we’ve been on or we choose to travel the path less followed.  We’ve seen the writing on the wall. Global warming. Hate crimes accelerating. Corporate greed spiraling upward. “The good news is that a new generation of enlightened humans are saying 'enough is enough.' And they are making their beliefs and opinions about the environment and social justice known to businesses with the most potent tool of capitalism: their pocketbooks .Here's what we write in the introduction of Putting Soul Into Business: How the Benefit Corporation is Transforming American Business for Good...

“A 2015 research study by Nielsen reports nearly 66 percent of global online consumers across 60 countries said they are willing to pay more for products and services by companies that are committed to positive social and environmental impact. These are convincing numbers all by themselves. But when you consider that the report also stated that the willingness to pay more is consistent across all income brackets, you have data that simply can't be ignored.

“In another 2015 report, this one conducted by Cone Communications which focused on Millennials in the U.S., research found that 70% are willing to pay more for products and services of companies with corporate social responsibility programs (CSR). 70%! The study also suggests that female Millennials appear to be the most loyal supporters of those companies with a willingness to:

“Buy a product with a social and/or environmental benefit, given the opportunity (90% versus  83% adult average) -- “Tell their friends and family about a company's CSR efforts (86% versus the 72% adult average); and, -- “Be more loyal to a company that supports a social or environmental issue (91% versus 87% adult average)

“All of which brings us back to hope and why we believe there is plenty of room for it in today's world.   Because we believe the Benefit Corporation is going to be a strong catalyst for growth by the companies who adopt and practice such contemporary thinking today and in the months and years ahead. “It's been said that "hope shines brightest in the darkest moments." Care to join us in leaving the darkness behind?“  If you'd like to see if your business is ready to become a benefit corporation, just take our free 12-question "sniff" test and find out right now.” ~benefitcorporationsforgood.com~

NEW BOOK "PUTTING SOUL INTO BUSINESS" by Interfaith Alliance on Poverty Advocacy Co-Chair, Tom Hering and Mary Anne Harmer Hering and

Putting Soul Into Business: The essential book for aspiring benefit corporations

---

We wrote “Putting Soul Into Business” for one reason: hope.

Because we believe the Benefit Corporation is going to be a strong catalyst for a better world and for a better business by adopting and practicing the 3 P’s of People, Planet and Profit.

It is our intent in this book to not only show why you should embrace this entity for your business, but how to do it. Along the way you’ll read about companies both larger and small learning about their decisions to become a Benefit Corporation. We believe you will find the transcripts for their interviews with us inspiring. It certainly was the case for us as we talked to these forward-thinking yet humble leaders.

After finishing the book, it is our hope (operative word, here) you jump in and become part of this fast-growing movement and embrace what a short while ago seemed almost impossible: putting soul into business.

GOOD BOOK READ: "NICKEL & DIMED" by Barbara Ehrenreich

  New York Times writer, Barbara Ehrenreich, traveled across the country working   at minimum wage jobs to learn first hand what it takes to survive with limited resources,  now revealed in her book, “Nickel and Dimed.”

''There are no secret economies that nourish the poor,'' Ehrenreich writes. ''On the contrary there are a host of special costs. If you can't put up the two months' rent you need to secure an apartment, you end up paying through the nose for a room by the week. If you have only a room, with a hot plate at best, you can't save by cooking up huge lentil stews that can be frozen for the week ahead. You eat fast food or the hot dogs and Styrofoam cups of soup that can be microwaved at a convenience store.' Without health insurance you risk a small cut becoming infected because you can afford neither a visit to the doctor nor antibiotics.

''Most civilized nations,'' Ehrenreich writes, ''compensate for the inadequacy of wages by providing relatively generous public services such as health insurance, free or subsidized child care, subsidized housing and effective public transportation. So what should we think about the fact that in America we are sending the poor out to make it on their own on little more than a quarter of a living wage?    Shame,” Ehrenreich suggests, “might be an appropriate response.”