Arizona Interfaith Network and their education coalition partners have halted the lowest so-called “flat tax” ever enacted by a state.  By demanding a referendum on Senate Bill 1828, the coalition stopped the destructive reworking of Arizona’s tax code that would have reduced revenue by over $1 billion annually, putting future generations of Arizonans at risk. Instead the tax cut proposal will be referred to the 2022 ballot.

National anti-tax groups see Arizona’s tax legislation as a path to replicate, as evidenced by op-eds by the likes of Grover Norquist touting Arizona as a “national model”. This puts AIN’s fight into a larger context of citizens demanding responsible stewardship and preservation of state budgets that should be put to work for the good of their state, even in the face of well-funded outside interest groups.

The utter lack of political will to invest in future generations has got to stop.

Rev. Jeff Procter Murphy, a leader with Valley Interfaith Project, said at the press conference, “This has got to stop – this utter lack of political will to invest in future generations has got to stop. For too long we have neglected our responsibility to future generations. …

"They’ve decided to radically restructure our tax code to reward the very wealthy on the backs of everyone else.  They did so on the narrowest of margins, and they thought we wouldn’t notice.  This is an affront to the voters of our state.  It’s an insult to our teachers, and it’s a direct attack on the very people that all of us, people of faith, are instructed to protect:  children, the vulnerable, those who live on the margins and who have suffered the most in this pandemic.”

[In photo, Rev. Jeff Procter Murphy; photo credit InvestInAZ Campaign video] 

Education Advocates File Signatures to Force Vote on Ducey’s Tax Cuts in 2022, Arizona Mirror [pdf]

School Advocates Turn in Petitions to Overturn Arizona's $1 Billion Tax Cut, The Arizona Republic [pdf]

Petitions Turned in, Apparently Will Force Public Vote on Arizona Tax Cut, Arizona Daily Star [pdf]

Foes of Massive Arizona Tax Cuts File to Block Them, Associated Press [pdf]

Tax Cut Likely to Go to Voters, Arizona Capitol Times [pdf]

IAF organizations across the country developed strategies to bring vaccines to the communities that were hardest hit by COVID-19 and had the least access to the vaccine. From registration events to vaccination clinics paired with neighborhood walks, IAF leaders showed that getting shots in arms requires organizing.

In one of the early campaigns, One LA-IAF leaders in Los Angeles organized the effort to vaccinate close to 900 senior citizens and essential workers in the hard-hit South LA community around St. Brigid Catholic Church.

"The issue is vaccine access," said Jim Mangia, President and CEO of St. John's Well Child and Family Center in an interview with ABC National News. "Most people in South LA have not had access to the vaccine. There's not hesitancy - people have questions of course, but people want to get vaccinated. The issue is that there was nowhere for them to go."

Nowhere to go, that is, until One LA leaders began organizing. After months of advocating for a more equitable vaccination campaign targeting hard-hit neighborhoods, One LA leaders secured a partnership with Supervisor Holly Mitchell and medical partner St. John's Well Child & Family Center to bring the vaccines to the neighborhood around St. Brigid Catholic Church.

"Unfortunately, it is one of the least vaccinated areas in Los Angeles," said Fr. Kenneth Keke, Pastor of St. Brigid Catholic Church. "One in five residents have had Covid-19, and only 1 in 18 have been vaccinated. We are going to change that. We don't want anybody left behind."

Over the course of four days, One LA leaders went door to door, passed out flyers and called 4,000 households. The targeted approach shielded the vaccine supply from out-of-the-area "vaccine chasers," but more importantly reached people who otherwise wouldn't be able to access the vaccine at all.

Meaghan Myrtle, a 90 year old resident of the neighborhood, had been trying for months to secure an appointment. Ms. Myrtle had no access to transportation or the internet. "This church called me back. Nobody else called me back."

[Photo credits: Top, One LA-IAF Vaccine event, Rafael Paz; Right top, Together New Orleans neighborhood outreach event, Bobbi-Jeanne Misick, New Orleans Public Radio, Right bottom, Fr. Kenneth Keke, St. Brigid Catholic Church, Los Angeles, NBC News]

One LA-IAF:

Group Gives Help to Vaccine Candidates, NBC 4 Los Angeles [video]

Fight for Vaccine Equity, ABC News National [video]

A Los Angeles Pilot Program Will Vaccinate Hundreds Within 2-Mile Radius of a Catholic Church, Religion News Service [pdf]

Hundreds of Vaccine Doses Administered in South LA After Volunteers Go Door to Door to Drive Up Interest, ABC7 Los Angeles [pdf]

Churches in LA's Working-Class Neighborhoods Urge: 'Bring the Vaccine to the People', Religion News Service [pdf]

Together Louisiana / Together New Orleans:

Together Louisiana Going Door-to-Door to Sway Residents to Get Vaccinated, WAFB 9 [pdf]

The Latest Phase of Covid-19 Vaccine Rollout Is Slow, Deliberate and on the Ground, New Orleans Public Radio [pdf]

Dallas Area Interfaith:

Many Faith Leaders in North Texas Embracing their Role in Vaccine Push, Dallas Morning News [pdf]

Some Churches Host Covid-19 Vaccination Clinics, Others Await, NBC-DFW [pdf]

The Metropolitan Organization Houston:

Changing Minds on the Vaccine, One by One, Houston Chronicle [pdf]  

Coalition Brings Vaccines to Beaumont Residents in At-Risk Areas, Beaumont Enterprise [pdf]

Organizations Team Up in Beaumont to Spread Word About Importance of Getting Covid Vaccine, FOX News [pdf]

Jornada de Vacunación en Ciudad con Gran Población Hispana, Telemundo [en español]

Putting Our Faith & Commitment to Democracy in Action, Southeast Texas Faith & Community Leaders

Valley Interfaith Project:

'It's an Act of Love': Volunteers Go Door-to-Door in Maryvale to Encourage Vaccination, Arizona Republic [pdf]

Invitan a la Comunidad a Vacunarse Contra el Coronavirus este 5 de Mayo en el Condado Maricopa, Univision [Video]

Through an intense mobilization campaign that engaged voters across the state, Valley Interfaith Project, with Pima County Interfaith, Northern Arizona Interfaith Council and a coalition of education allies, leveraged passage of Prop 208 which will restore millions of dollars to K-12 education funding.

[Excerpts from Jewish News below]

“Quality education is at the core of who the Jewish people are and how we have survived for thousands of years,” said Rabbi John Linder of Temple Solel, a member of the Arizona Interfaith Network Clergy Caucus. “And we look at quality education as reflecting the common good of the community.”

AIN was among five organizations that worked for the last four years to pass the Invest in Ed initiative. Other coalition organizations include the Arizona Center for Economic Progress, the Arizona Education Association, Children’s Action Alliance and Stand for Children.