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Dear EARN Community,
As we approach the end of 2024 and gear up for the challenging months ahead, I want to take a moment to celebrate just a few of our successes from this past year. Proactive campaigns across the country ensured greater safety for youth in the workforce. Voters passed progressive measures at the ballot box in November, including higher minimum wages and guaranteed paid leave. More people were members of unions this year than the year before, and support for unions is at its highest level in decades with large shares of workers, particularly young workers curious about, and wanting to form, unions. The network had myriad other victories too, enough that I can’t list them all. They don’t go unnoticed; each one helps to advance racial, gender, and economic justice across the country. Thank you for everything you’ve done to make these successes happen.
On a personal note, I consider joining EPI’s staff in August as a significant win. Though I love running R code and building charts as much as the next research assistant, it’s EPI’s connection to, and support of EARN partners’ work, that sustains for me a deeper, emotional commitment to this work.
The solidarity that you, our EARN partners, have built across communities and regions is both incredible and palpable for someone coming into this network.
A few weeks ago, I participated in the EARN directors’ post-election strategy session and it was eye-opening to hear local perspectives from across the country. For example, a few people living in states with friendlier governments shared ideas on how to keep pushing pro-worker policies forward and help their legislatures cement protections likely to be rolled back at a federal level. On the flip side, folks from states like Texas pointed out that they’ve long been operating in a hostile policy landscape that looks a lot like where we’re headed as a country—they know this fight and have crucial knowledge to share with the rest of us. I was struck by how much we will need both of these perspectives to keep moving forward in the years to come.
I’ve been passionate about social justice and progressive change since I was quite young, but I spent many years unsure of how to use that energy in a way that felt enjoyable, sustainable, and effective. A lot of that uncertainty disappeared when I started doing policy research—I loved how deeply it encouraged me to think about issues (and I relished how little volunteer wrangling it required!). Joining the EARN team feels like the last piece of the puzzle. As a part of this network, I get to contribute my individual strengths to a coordinated, strategic group that is doing real, tangible work, and is so much more powerful than the sum of its parts.
Though last month’s election brought me immense heartache and fear for what lies ahead, I know—we all know—that there is significant potential for positive change at the state and local level. As you and your organizations prepare for 2025, EPI and EARN are here to support you. Whether it’s with a data question you need answered, a funding pitch you want us to make, or a campaign idea you need support on, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Thank you for all the work you’ve done this past year and thank you for making me feel so welcome as a new member of EARN. I am honored to be fighting this fight with you all.
In solidarity,
Emma Cohn
State Policy Research Assistant
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