Grassroots Leadership Blog

ADVISORY: Growing Coalition Calls on Next Austin City Council to Stop Criminalizing Homelessness

December 12, 2018 by Chris Harris

For immediate release: December 12, 2018
Contact: Chris Harris, charris@grassrootsleadership.org, 512-897-0703

Recent pledges from re-elected council members and a trio of recent reports build momentum for repeal of Austin’s anti-homeless ordinances in 2019

WHAT: Press conference
WHO: Austin DSA, Grassroots Leadership, Gathering Ground Theatre, Mobile Loaves & Fishes, Texas Appleseed, Texas Fair Defense Project, The Challenger, Trinity Center, University United Methodist Church
WHEN:   Thursday, December 13 at 6pm
WHERE: Austin City Hall, 301 W. 2nd St., Austin, Texas Read more about ADVISORY: Growing Coalition Calls on Next Austin City Council to Stop Criminalizing Homelessness

We are proud to welcome Field Organizer Jennifer Pumphrey to the Grassroots Leadership team

November 8, 2018 by Cate Graziani

I’m happy to share the news that Jennifer Pumphrey has joined the Grassroots Leadership team as a field organizer in Austin.

Jennifer is starting from a place of deep knowledge about the local community, because she was born and raised in Austin, Texas.  Specifically, she grew up on the East Side, and saw first-hand the racial disparities, oppression, and gang violence in the community. This sparked an interest in Jennifer at a very young age in understanding and the need to fix our broken judicial system.

Then, Jennifer experienced that system herself for the first time in her late teens. “It was like adding fuel to the fire,” Jennifer said. Read more about We are proud to welcome Field Organizer Jennifer Pumphrey to the Grassroots Leadership team

Texas Advocates for Justice Welcomes Two News Amos Walker TAJ Fellows in Austin and Houston, Chantel Pridgon and Sybil Sybille

November 8, 2018 by Annette Price

Amos Walker TAJ Fellows Sybil Sybille (left) in Houston, and Chantel Pridgon (right) in Austin.

As TAJ’s membership, vision, and impact grows, so does our team. It’s my pleasure to introduce you to the next two Amos Walker TAJ Fellows,  Chantel Pridgon (of the Austin TAJ Chapter), and Sybil Sybille (of the Houston TAJ Chapter). This fellowship, which builds the leadership of formerly incarcerated people and their families, is named in memory of Amos Walker, a beloved TAJ member and community leader from Houston Read more about Texas Advocates for Justice Welcomes Two News Amos Walker TAJ Fellows in Austin and Houston, Chantel Pridgon and Sybil Sybille

Travis County wants to build a new jail, but we need care, not cages.

September 24, 2018 by Annette Price

It’s no secret that the United States has a mass incarceration problem. But, did you know Texas ranks as one of the top five states contributing to this problem? It is time for Texas and Travis County — a progressive community — to lead by example. Travis County continues to jail folks at an alarming rate for low-level drug possession, in fact these charges have increased by 90 percent in the last five years, while crime has decreased. Has it occurred to anyone that we are doing a disservice in our community by not taking a closer look at the root causes of criminal justice involvement? Read more about Travis County wants to build a new jail, but we need care, not cages.

Welcome David Johnson, our new Criminal Justice Organizer, to the Grassroots Team!

August 10, 2018 by Cate Graziani

David Johnson - Criminal Justice Organizer

We are pleased to welcome David Johnson to Grassroots Leadership as our new Criminal Justice Organizer. Through a two-year Peer Policy Fellowship from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, David will actively support our efforts to promote the effective treatment of mental illness and substance use as an alternative to their criminalization. Read more about Welcome David Johnson, our new Criminal Justice Organizer, to the Grassroots Team!

Welcoming Organizer Dianna Williams to the Grassroots Leadership Team

August 9, 2018 by Annette Price

Join me in welcoming Dianna Williams to our team. She is joining the Grassroots Leadership team as the organizer of the Texas Advocates for Justice (TAJ) chapter in Houston. 

Dianna Williams, was born in Cleveland, Texas, and moved to Houston at the age of five. Houston is her home. Dianna grew up in an inner-city neighborhood, Trinity Gardens, and attended public schools in northeast Houston. Read more about Welcoming Organizer Dianna Williams to the Grassroots Leadership Team

Austin Police say they “did a good job” after violent arrest of woman in crisis

July 24, 2018 by Cate Graziani

After she went missing Wednesday night, Silva’s parents called EMS to locate her and get her to treatment. Instead of EMS, three APD officers, including a mental health officer, responded to the call. Witnesses reported that she treated aggressively, and was tackled, hit in the back, and hogtied by police. She was then charged with felony assault on a public servant. Read more about Austin Police say they “did a good job” after violent arrest of woman in crisis

Letters from inside: As officials threaten them with transfers, 16 women detained in Hutto speak out

June 29, 2018 by Bethany N. Carson

Multiple women have reported that officials inside the detention center say they will send all those separated from their children to a military base somewhere in Texas.

A total of 20 letters were received by Grassroots Leadership organizers on Friday, illuminating the anguish of mothers who remain separated from the children they haven’t seen since asking for asylum at the southern border. Read more about Letters from inside: As officials threaten them with transfers, 16 women detained in Hutto speak out

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