Community Members and Faith Leaders
Prayed for Citizenship at Sen. Klobuchar’s office

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – On Sunday, May 19, 60 ISAIAH faith leaders and clergy joined DREAM Act students and Chaska area community members at Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s office in Minneapolis to pray, offer testimony and urge her to publically support fair and inclusive immigration policies that will establish a direct roadmap to citizenship for 11 million aspiring Americans.

“Prayer is one of the most powerful tools we have as people of faith to lift up just policies and the people who can bring them about,” said Rev. Paul Slack, pastor at New Creation Church and President of ISAIAH. “These prayer vigils are an opportunity to witness to the pain and suffering that our broken immigration system has caused in our community and to lift up our lawmakers in prayer. We are praying that they will have the courage to do the right thing and support those who live, work and worship with them.”

Faith leaders delivered more than 200 letters from local congregations to Sen. Klobuchar’s office staff. During the vigil, community members spoke of the need to be able to apply for protected status and family reunification, and the need to allow those who have reached the appropriate status to work, drive and travel.

“As a person of faith, I believe the best thing to keep our country safe is loving our neighbor and keeping families together.  Sen. Klobuchar, you need to work to amend the immigration bill to allow aspiring Americans to become citizens and keep family reunification at the center through a family-based visa system,” said community member, Grecia Lozano Fuentes.

The Campaign for Citizenship, an initiative of ISAIAH and the PICO National Network, plans to host prayer vigils in the Twin Cities and across the country until a roadmap for citizenship becomes a reality for all aspiring Americans.

The bill is now headed to Governor Dayton’s desk and it will soon become law.

There are families all across the state who will benefit from this legislation.

Thanks to the unprecedented work of ISAIAH leaders and coalition partners, Minnesota now joins California as the only other state in the country that has a strong and robust law that levels the playing field in the foreclosure struggle and affords Minnesota homeowners protections against egregious actions by big banks and predatory lenders.

This legislation will protect consumers facing foreclosure in the following ways:

• It requires loan servicers to communicate ALL options to homeowners.
• It requires loan servicers to offer loan modifications to all eligible homeowners.
• It bans “dual tracking,” preventing servicers from foreclosing without a clear yes or no on loan modification.
• It requires servicers to assist homeowners in submitting documentation regarding the foreclosure process.
• It allows homeowners to take the servicer to court to stop foreclosure if the servicer fails to comply with any aspect of the law. Lawyer’s fees and court costs would be covered should the homeowner prove their case. This is commonly referred to as “private right of action.”

ISAIAH and its coalition partners Jewish Community Action, Minnesotans for a Fair Economy and Neighborhoods Organizing for Change engaged thousands of people and worked tirelessly to make this victory possible.

Through years of work and development,  the coalition began this session with the courage to go against all odds and attempt to pass a Homeowners’ Bill of Rights. At many points during this legislative session, the bill was declared all but dead but the coalition persevered.

People of faith and other activists visited and called legislators in large numbers and asked them to vote for the bill. They testified at committee hearings. They participated in vigils at the Capitol and in local communities. And they prayed for our leaders to find the courage to put people first.

ST. PAUL (May 16, 2013) — On Thursday evening the Minnesota State Senate passed the Minnesota Homeowners’ Bill of Rights (S.F. 1276), authored by Senator Patricia Torres Ray, with broad bipartisan support. The final vote tally of 61-1 shows the strength of the legislation, which will curb foreclosures throughout the state and offer specific tools to Minnesotans facing foreclosure.

The bill now heads to the Minnesota House of Representatives for an expected hearing and vote Saturday. The House companion bill is H.F. 1377, authored by Representative Melissa Hortman.

This legislation is aimed at protecting consumers facing foreclosure in the following ways:

• Requiring loan servicers to communicate ALL options to homeowners.

• Requiring loan servicers to offer loan modifications to all eligible homeowners.

• Banning “dual tracking,” preventing servicers from foreclosing without a clear yes or no on loan modification.

• Requiring servicers to assist homeowners in submitting documentation regarding the foreclosure process.

• Allowing homeowners to take the servicer to court to stop foreclosure if the servicer fails to comply with any aspect of the law. Lawyer’s fees and court costs would be covered should the homeowner prove their case. This is commonly referred to as “private right of action.”

Throughout the state, more than 150,000 Minnesota homeowners have lost their homes to foreclosure since 2006. In 2012, there were three times more foreclosures in Minnesota than in 2005, continuing to have a disastrous effect on Minnesota communities. These foreclosures can and should be avoided.

The campaign to pass the Minnesota Homeowners’ Bill of Rights has been led by leaders and members of ISAIAH, MN Neighborhoods Organizing for Change (NOC), Occupy Homes, CTUL, SEIU and Minnesotans for a Fair Economy.

250 community leaders, representing tens of thousands of Minnesotans, called on Legislators to pass a strong Homeowners’ Bill of Rights at a rally held at the Capitol rotunda on Wednesday, May 15.

Minnesota Legislators have a historic opportunity to pass a strong Homeowners’ Bill of Rights, which will provide a statewide solution to the statewide crisis of foreclosures. A majority of foreclosures are unnecessary, add significant costs to local governments and can be prevented through the comprehensive policy solution before the Minnesota House and Senate.

Rev. Slack and 25 clergy take a stand to do the right thing for homeowners and those facing foreclosure.

Rev. Paul Slack, President of ISAIAH and pastor of New Creation Church in Minneapolis, backed by 25 clergy members, urged legislators to pass a robust Homeowners’ Bill of Rights.  “Stopping foreclosures is critical for families and critical for people of faith.  We need to have the courage to require financial institutions to do the right thing.”

Mary Cathryn Ricker, an educator, told the crowd that 94,000 children have lost their homes since the beginning of the foreclosure crisis, negatively affecting their education and their futures.  A homeowner facing foreclosure talked about her paperwork continually being lost by the bank and how there is no recourse for her – the banks can do anything they please.

People cheered when homeowner Rose Mcgee announced that her home had just been saved from foreclosure. “This wouldn’t have happened without extraordinary community support, but there are thousands of other Minnesotans without that support system to tap into.  We need this bill.”

Chanting “Hear the bill now,” Pastor Slack led the crowd through the Capitol.  The  event ended with silent prayer at the doorway to the Senate Chambers.

More than 150,000 Minnesota homeowners have lost their homes to foreclosure since 2006.  Communities continue to be devastated by the foreclosure crisis.  In 2012 there were three times more foreclosures than in 2005.

The rally was sponsored by ISAIAH, MN Neighborhoods Organizing for Change (NOC), SEIU and Minnesotans for a Fair Economy.

Wallis, a nationally renowned public theologian, preacher and activist for justice and peace, is the founder of Sojourners, a nationwide network of progressive Christians, and is the editor of Sojourners magazine, covering faith, politics, and culture.

Wallis began by explaining how the title and inspiration for the book comes from a quote by Abraham Lincoln: “My concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side.” He draws on that inspiration to reflect on the common good outside of political labels. He believes that instead of money, power, and prestige, people of faith should be concerned about the biblical “least of these.” Wallis explores how Jesus’s agenda can serve the common good and what it takes to sustain a lifelong commitment to social justice.

In the midst of contentious national debates on gun control, immigration, budget deficits, and more, this book moves the conversations beyond current media and political warfare to bring together a divided country.

“Politicians are always testing to see which way the wind is blowing. The only way to effect change in our country is to change the wind. How do we become wind changers on the issues we care about?” said Wallis.

The Rev. Paul Slack, pastor at New Creation Church in North Minneapolis and President of ISAIAH and Peggy Flanagan, Organizer for Wellstone Action also spoke at the event and drew from their experiences and the work of their respective organizations to connect Jim’s national message about the common good to local work.

Flanagan began by quoting Paul Wellstone; “We all do better when we all do better.” She shared her experiences during the voter ID campaign in getting real people to tell real stories about how the amendment would negatively affect their lives. “Seeing a human face and hearing a human story has the power to change people’s hearts and minds.” She describes what she does as working to create a Minnesota where people have a commitment to each other and where we invest in each other’s lives and the common good.

Pastor Slack has currently been active in Faith in Minnesota’s Future, a legislative campaign led by ISAIAH, which is designed to urge legislators to act from a shared set of values to make choices that put people first in policy decisions. “What we’re working for in ISAIAH is for people to have a voice and have a say in public decisions. We want the lives of people to change. We want to close the racial education achievement gaps; give people access to transit and create healthier communities. It will take courage from our leaders. It will mean putting people as the center of their decisions instead of the next election.”