At the core of progressivism, is helping others. Especially the poor. That's what ACORN, the greatest grassroots organization for urban renewal, does.
And if there is one thing the progressive movement needs to grow, it's grassroots organizing. We need to enfranchise and empower the working class to take back this country, make decisions for itself and helps its lot. That's what ACORN does.
That's why the conservatives, starting with the 2008 election, are out to destroy ACORN, and today, spineless Senate Dems dealt it a crippling blow.
Via Reuters:
A poverty-rights group that has drawn the ire of conservatives suffered another setback in Washington on Monday when the U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly to deny it access to federal housing funds.
The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, which helps poor people fight foreclosures and fix tax problems, has received more than $53 million in U.S. funds since 1994, but conservatives' charges of widespread fraud have begun to impact its reputation in the capital.
Last week, the U.S. Census Bureau told the group it did not want its help boosting participation in next year's census.
The Senate measure, which passed 83 to 7 in the Democratic-led chamber, was included in a must-pass spending bill that funds housing and transportation programs for the fiscal year that starts October 1.
There have been a few isolated incidents, including in my hometown of Brooklyn, of some ACORN activists misbehaving. It happens in every organization, company, group of people. Those people were kicked out.
But the right wing has demogogued this thing to death, Glenn Beck'd it, and now they're losing crucial funding to do the work that Democrats say they are for (but are too corporate-money greedy to actually help achieve on a broader scale).
When will they learn that this is only feeding the beast, that conservatives will see Democrats as spineless and go after them time and time again to destroy progressive infrastructure, both in social work and GOTV.
Soon, corporate money will be awash over campaign ads, but we won't see the most important grassroots progressive organization helping out real people. Disgraceful.