The Battle for What's Possible
One of the greatest difficulties for progressive organizations is the growing dominance of conservative ideology. Conservative ideas not only dominate the rhetoric of political campaigns but also establish the terrain of every issue that confronts us. On everything from housing policy, immigration, crime and education, to issues of racial justice, the moral and political norm is set by Right Wing radicals who control the airwaves and other means of communication. If we are serious about improving the lives of our peoples and building power, we MUST win the battle for ideas. We can not just accept the rules dictated by powerful interests. WE must define what is possible and then make justice happen on our own terms.

To that end, the Center has consistently stepped up to the challenge to defend and expand the rights of poor and working class people. Grassroots democracy is not a given, it must be achieved through courage and initiative. The following are campaigns taken on by the Center that, often in the face of great odds, sought to exert the rights, voice, and perspectives of grassroots women and men in major issues facing the county, country and hemisphere:

Root Cause
2003-Together with LIFFT, the Coalition of Imokalee Workers, and Power U Center for Social Change, the Center sponsored a grassroots mobilization against the FTAA Ministerial in Miami. African, Asian, and Latin American leaders from throughout the country and the hemisphere joined together in this historic effort. The mobilization included three significant pieces: a 34 mile march from Broward County to barricades of the Ministerial, a Community Impact Report, and a Tribunal where the hemisphere's people put the FTAA on trial. 

Take Back the Vote
2004-A voter defense and education campaign, that defended the rights of African-Americans and Haitians in Miami. The campaign successfully forced county government to allow the first-ever independent international election observers on U.S. soil during a presidential election. Grassroots leaders and allies also defended polling places through direct patrolling and through the use of creative street theater that educated voters about the history of disenfranchisement.

TBV Continued 2008 - During the presidential primaries MWC lead a 2 week voter mobilization effort. We targeted occasional voters in the African-American and Latino communities. This effort will continue through the 2008 presidential election, and will become a permanent project around election times.   

RENT
2005-MWC launched RENT (Regional Equity for Neighborhoods and Tenants) as a public education campaign addressing the rapid destruction of historically Black and latino neighborhoods due to gentrification. RENT was successful in sparking a public debate on development to include the voices of low-income people. RENT organized community residents and allies to speak out. RENT, coupled with an aggressive media campaign, forced gentrification to the front page of the county discourse.