WHAT WE DO
Faith in Action Bay Area is a federation of PICO California, a network of faith-based non-profits organizing in communities across the state to create a California where everyone belongs and thrives.
Our leaders can often be found in the offices of our elected state officials, urging them to lead boldly in areas of housing justice, police accountability, criminal justice reform, and immigrant dignity. On a state level, our leaders have pushed hard to secure statewide rent caps and eviction bans, so that California’s families can live with dignity and remain safe in their homes. Throughout 2018 and 2019, Faith in Action Bay Area leaders made frequent trips to Sacramento in a “Freedom Bus” to support AB 392, which requires police to use de-escalation tactics before resorting to use-of-force. In 2020, faith-based federations successfully lobbied the state to create emergency fund for undocumented immigrants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
STATEWIDE
This county’s current reality is one of extreme housing costs that are causing enormous human suffering and making countless San Franciscans live in fear of losing their homes and being forced out of the city they love. The amount of affordable housing in San Francisco does not come close to meeting the need, and what we call “affordable” housing is not actually affordable for the people who need it the most. Meanwhile, over 60,000 housing units sit empty, many being used as investment properties by speculators cashing in on our high land values. For more on the history behind this reality, please see our “Reclaiming the Soul of San Francisco” publication.
In 2022, our low-income immigrant leaders teamed up with people of faith and goodwill from across the city to help write Proposition M, the Empty Homes Tax. After a six-month strategic campaign in which we communicated with 60,000 voters, primarily in low-income and working-class neighborhoods, Prop M won on the November 2022 ballot with nearly 55% of the vote. This new tax will allow real estate speculators to pay their fair share while investing tens of millions of dollars annually in housing assistance for low-income seniors and families.
SAN FRANCISCO COUNTY
Faith in Action Bay Area has always demonstrated great care and initiative in advancing the dignity of undocumented families in San Mateo County. In 2017, we created a county-wide Rapid Response line in order to offer support for those encountering immigration enforcement. Through the line, we are able to activate hundreds of volunteers to act as moral witnesses when ICE is present in our communities and to connect those in removal proceedings with legal help. In 2018, our clergy and lay leaders successfully petitioned the Board of Supervisors to create deportation defense fund for San Mateo County residents in removal proceedings.
Our organization has long been at the forefront of the struggle for housing justice in the county. Our leaders know what it is like to pay soaring Bay Area rents, live overcrowded housing, and work multiple jobs in order to support their families. And they are serious about doing what it takes to make sure that San Mateo County families can live free from the constant threat of eviction, whether it is by fighting for months to cancel the eviction of dozens of families in an apartment complex or successfully lobbying the city councils of Daly City, San Mateo, and Redwood City to enact rent caps and moratoriums on evictions.