I accept that we're in uncharted waters, economically. I also understand that the county is faced with some very difficult work in the days ahead. But proposing cuts to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund is very "thinkable," and it is one of the reasons IMPACT is so important.
We're all trying to cope with uncertainty these days, and it is certainly pushing us out of our comfort zones to contemplate job loss (our own or our neighbor's), high mortgages and rent, the increasing cost of health care. The list is long. But it's our responsibility to think - think long and hard - about what kind of world we want to create out of this fiscal ruin.
Do we want a return to the policies and attitudes that deny basic human rights of affordable shelter and reasonable access to health care, or basic services and safety, to people in Charlottesville and Albemarle County?
The possibility that we will retreat to the self-preservation bunker is very "thinkable." We need to be brave, to trust in God's abundance, and to continue to press forward to build the foundations of a community where justice is not only "thinkable," but essential.
A reminder - and this is going to be in a large font:
IMPACT Annual Assembly
Tomorrow night - October 19
6:30pm
St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church
Tomorrow night - October 19
6:30pm
St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church
We'll be choosing an issue to focus on for the year, in addition to pre-school education. Please come and let your voice be heard as part of this important process!
I found this quote interesting on a number of levels:
See you tomorrow night!When I feed the poor they call me a saint. When I ask why so many people are poor they call me a communist.
- Dom Helder Câmara, late archbishop of the Brazilian diocese of Olinda and Recife. Wednesday, Oct. 13 was the 10th anniversary of his death. (Source: Guardian)
