Alan Jenkins (former president) and Ellen Buchman (current president)

We Welcome a New President of the Organization

This month, we’re excited to announce that Ellen Buchman is the new president of our organization. Prior to joining The Opportunity Agenda, Buchman worked for 15 years with the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and joined The Opportunity Agenda as our first Vice President for Strategy and Program Impact in March 2018. Alan Jenkins writes, “Ellen’s social justice vision, her commitment to equity and inclusion, and the trust that she enjoys across diverse movements and sectors, are precisely the qualities that our organization needs at this critical moment in time.” Read more here.

Standing for Due Process Instead of Racial Profiling

We celebrate with advocates in North Carolina who last week convinced the state’s governor to veto the anti-immigrant bill, HB70. Despite this victory, local enforcement in other states and localities are continuing to collaborate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to attack immigrant families. The ACLU recently filed a new lawsuit against a parish sheriff’s office in Louisiana for unlawfully jailing a U.S. citizen for four days. And former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio announced that he’ll run again for office. To support the work of our partners fighting these policies across the country, we released messaging advice for Talking About Due Process and Racial Profiling this month.

Dreaming Beyond at the Creative Change Retreat

At the end of July, our annual Creative Change Retreat in Sundance, Utah was deeply inspiring. The brilliantly creative and soulful 2019 cohort shared innovative projects that illustrated the power of culture in these times. Exploring the theme Dream Beyond, we witnessed the seeding of big, bold ideas that rise to the challenges we face and invite us into the future we want. We thank the visionary leadership of all our 2019 Creative Change Retreat participants and welcome them into our Creative Change Network! See photos from the retreat and learn more here.

Partner News: Making a Splash This Fall

Many of our partners are making big plans for the fall. Suzan Shown Harjo will be honored by the Smithsonian next month. April Reign is working to make Sephora more inclusive. Beka Economopoulos and Jason Jones are building their team at The Natural History Museum. Read more here.

The Amp: Ahead of the Curve

In our weekly action alert, The Amp, we help you keep ahead of the curve by spotlighting what’s coming - not only in the news, but from your partners in racial and economic justice: i.e. the new "public charge" rule for immigrant families and the anniversaries of Hurricane Katrina, the Food Stamp Act, the eight-hour workday and more. September is both Hunger Action and National Recovery month. Read more here.

Image credits: Loris Guzzetta, Moms Rising via Twitter; Rachel Grow; The Natural History Museum; Shaina Lu via National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum