Jackson Free Press

An employee of the Mississippi Workers' center for Human Rights invited me the attend a convention in Birmingham this past Saturday called Equal Voice for America's Families, which was sponsored by the Marguerite Casey Foundation. The convention took place simultaneously in Birmingham, Los Angeles and Chicago with a satellite feed connecting all three locations. A total of about 15,000 families participated in the event overall.

The objective of the event was to empower low-income families to mobilize and effect change in their communities and in Washington. Whether it is having town hall meetings to address violence in their communities or writing their congressman about healthcare and employment, the point was to let the families know that they have power to take action. In other words, change starts with us. Here's a link to the National Family Platform, which says, "The Equal Voice for America's Families campaign calls for the country to adopt a national family platform that addresses the challenges families face comprehensively, not issue by issue."

I had a lot more to say, but I got logged out and lost everything I typed before. Therefore, I'll sum up the atmosphere of the event in these words: Energy. Excitement. Chanting. Mariachi band. Sweet Honey in the Rock. Hot Latino band. Native American prayers and dances. All colors. All ages. All worth it.