I wanted to take a moment and circle back about a Facebook Live Groundwork hosted that put a spotlight on Massachusetts organizing and the importance of it.

Massachusetts is the home base of Groundwork. Those who live elsewhere may see a solidly blue state without much work to be done to further progressive values. But the truth is there is serious work to do here. Profound racial, social, and economic disparities persist across Massachusetts, despite its “progressive” reputation.

At Groundwork, we invest in long term, sustainable local community organizing no matter if your state is considered -- or viewed -- as blue, red, or purple.

We support community organizers, advocates, and activists in Massachusetts and across the country who are working year-round to build a just, free, and equitable future for all. You can be a part of that by contributing here.

Our guest Cheryl Clyburn Crawford from the organization MassVOTE said it best:

“One of the things we routinely hear at MassVOTE is that because Massachusetts is a blue state, that there's little reason to get involved in organizing things… There's no shortage of reasons to get organized and get active. Our urban populations are underserved, our Black and Brown, Hispanic, Chinese, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Haitian, and Cape Verdean populations are underserved. Our low income populations are underserved. The crisis has only underscored these disparities over the past year... According to research conducted by Harvard University, 37% of Massachusetts’s small businesses closed in 2020, more than one third. How many of those were minority owned, barber shops or restaurants or neighborhood spots? Far, far, too many.”

We aim to close the state's voter turnout gap to correct injustices like these. When voters do not have their voices heard, their interests go unaccounted for. We know how important organizing is because we organize every single day, whether it's to champion legislation or register voters or share information.

And so we know that work remains and to complete that work, we have no choice. We must organize.”

We must organize. At Groundwork, we’re looking to invest in hyperlocal efforts that build sustainable political infrastructure, engage and educate voters, and build power for the underrepresented and disenfranchised. We believe this is the single best investment the Democratic Party can make right now.

When you give to Groundwork, you power hyperlocal efforts through our upcoming grant program and enable my team to have the resources to research and identify the groups on the ground making an impact. Donate now.

But we are also about more than contributions. We need you to organize. And if you haven’t done that before or still are wrapping your mind around community organizing, that can be intimidating.

Another guest, Beth Huang, who runs the Mass Voter Table, had this perfect recommendation for you to get started:

“It's time to be a joiner. You are not alone in whatever is the local issue that is on your radar. Talk to your neighbors, talk to your coworkers.”

I’m eager to keep having conversations like this one. If you haven’t had a chance to watch our event this week, you can still catch it on my Facebook feed here.

Thanks for your support and let’s keep organizing!

Joe