Hope And Inspiration, Even During Budget Season

As St. Anthony Foundation’s Advocacy Coordinator, the California state budget has been weighing heavy on my mind. The budget proposals released at the end of May were frightening, and signaled the possibility of the absolute devastation of California’s publicly-funded safety net. I’ve been talking about the budget almost nonstop since the proposals became public. I’ve also been helping our St. Anthony Foundation family get up to speed with all the news and start speaking out in order to help prevent the cuts.

Last Thursday’s (June 11, 2009) news that the California Budget Conference Committee had rejected some of the proposals that would hurt low-income Californians was hopeful. It is important to take a moment to be grateful that the elimination of the CalWORKs and Healthy Families programs are off the table (for now), but it’s also important to make sure that this small victory does not lull us into complacency. I am encouraging our St. Anthony Foundation advocates to use last Thursday’s news as an opportunity to enjoy feelings of hope and inspiration and to get recharged for the next stretch of difficult advocacy work that lies before us.

St. Anthony Foundation will be participating in California Church Impact’s Most Urgent Witness Rally in Sacramento next Tuesday, June 16. This rally will be an opportunity for advocates from around California to converge at the state Capitol and urge our legislators and Governor not to make budget decisions that will hurt the very people who need the most help right now: uninsured kids, low-income seniors and disabled people, working moms receiving CalWORKs, Medi-cal recipients, families experiencing domestic violence, frail elderly who need in-home care, and people living with AIDS who need assistance with life-saving medication. If you can’t join us in Sacramento, please consider calling or emailing your legislator and the Governor and telling them about your budget priorities.