In a major victory for criminal justice reform, the city of Atlanta has taken the next step toward closing the Atlanta City Detention Center (ACDC) and repurposing the facility for other uses that would benefit the community. The city will set up a community task force to study alternative uses for the jail, which will […]
My housing cooperative in New York City used to have a cooperative supermarket and credit union, which both closed decades ago. Here I explore their history to find out what happened with these organizations. In those years there was a network of food coops associated with housing coops in the city. Can we re-establish this […]
Our second year of operation was a busy one. We held a retreat in February in Atlanta to plan out the year. Soon afterwards, we released our report Cruel and Usual, in cooperation with the Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee (IWOC), about problems with food and health care quality in prisons. This research was based on […]
We want to make it a regular practice to support other groups in the solidarity economy. So at the end of 2018 we made a donation to Cooperation Jackson’s fundraising campaign to expand their Fannie Lou Hamer Community Land Trust and pilot their EcoVillage development. Cooperation Jackson is one of the most innovative and promising projects […]
Report released by Research|Action details history of city’s extra jail The Communities Over Cages: Close the Jail ATL Campaign met with consultants from Bloomberg and Associates, and representatives from the Mayor’s Office last week to discuss the closing of the Atlanta City Detention Center and repurposing into a Center for Wellness & Freedom. Read the […]
Research|Action has been researching the Atlanta City Detention Center to provide historical information in support of the “Close the Jail ATL: Communities Over Cages” campaign, led by Women on the Rise and the Racial Justice Action Center. The report features information on the construction, finances and history of the jail as well as past debates about […]
Research|Action is proud to join the U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives (USFWC). Founded in 2004, the USFWC is the national grassroots membership organization for worker cooperatives, with a mission to build a thriving cooperative movement of stable, empowering jobs through worker-ownership. The Federation has 200 business and organizational members representing 6,000 workers across the country. […]
Union or community organizing campaigns may find it essential to undertake comprehensive corporate research. This helps us better understand a company where workers are trying to organize or when community members are fighting for a community benefits agreement or other policy. Research|Action has members experienced in this research and has put together a training on […]
There is a community campaign fighting to close the Atlanta City Detention Center and use the facility for alternative purposes. The jail costs $33 million/year to operate but because of recent progressive changes in sentencing policy and policing strategy, it is largely empty on most days. It can house over 1,300 incarcerated people. Working with […]
The solidarity economy can be considered all the alternative entities that operate in the economy based on principles other than capitalist ownership and market competition. Examples include food cooperatives which are owned by the members who shop there and housing cooperatives which are owned and managed by the residents instead of a landlord. Also included […]