Economic Justice

El Centro Hispano: Empowering A Growing Latinx Community

info@paulimurraycenter.org — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 18:52:15 +0000

El Centro Hispano: Empowering A Growing Latinx Community info@paulimurr… Mon, 03/29/2021 - 14:52

El Centro Hispano (ECH) was founded in 1992 to advocate for and address the needs of Durham’s growing Latinx and Hispanic community. By 1997, ECH became an independent nonprofit, and in 2000, it was a partner in the opening of the first Latino Community Credit Union (LCCU) in the state. ECH has grown over the past 30 years from serving 200 people to serving thousands. It is now the largest grassroots Latinx organization in the state, with branches in Durham, Carrboro, and Raleigh, North Carolina.

El Centro Hispano has four focus areas. The first is education, which includes literacy and ESL classes for Spanish-speaking adults who want to complete elementary or secondary schooling. The second is economic development, best represented by ECH’s partnership with the LCCU, which has become known as one of the most influential and reliable financial resources for Durham’s Latinx community by empowering individuals and equipping them with the knowledge to make their own financial decisions. The third focus area is health and well-being, which includes ECH’s annual health fair, which provides health screenings and educational sessions, including support groups for Latinx members of the LGBTQ community across North Carolina. And the fourth area is community engagement and advocacy, which ECH encourages through leadership development programs in order to empower Latinx adults and teens to be change-makers in the larger community.

When asked about the impact that El Centro Hispano has had on her life, Jovita Leyva Espinoza said, “I feel secure, with better self-esteem. I know that I can pursue difficult goals and reach them. I am raising three children as a single mom, and showing them that despite our age or our life circumstances we can reach our goals. I feel like a new person, I see my future differently, and I know that it is never too late to learn.”

Sources:

https://elcentronc.org/about-us/

https://sites.duke.edu/latinosindurham/2015/01/05/el-centro-hispano/

https://blog.bcbsnc.com/2017/05/el-centro-hispano-invigorated-durham-25-years/

Location Coordinates

POINT (-78.927822638454 35.989192430309)

Tags:

Latino/a community

Education

Economic Justice

Healthcare

Community Organizing

2000 Chapel Hill Road, Suite 26A, Durham, NC 27707

Sara Heilman

Mechanics & Farmers Bank

info@paulimurraycenter.org — Mon, 15 Mar 2021 10:51:47 +0000

Mechanics & Farmers Bank info@paulimurr… Mon, 03/15/2021 - 06:51

Mechanics and Farmers (M&F) Bank was established in 1907 to advance African American progress and build economic power. It is located in a National Historic Landmark building on Parrish Street, once known as Durham’s Black Wall Street. Its founders—R.B. Fitzgerald, J.A. Dodson, J.R. Hawkins, John Merrick, Aaron M. Moore, W.G. Pearson, James E. Shepard, G.W. Stephens, and Stanford L. Warren— were all prominent community leaders who knew that access to capital was central to their efforts to build successful businesses and community institutions such as schools, hospitals and libraries.

M&F is the second oldest Black bank in the US, having survived the Great Depression without closing. In addition to supporting business interests, M&F made major investments in real estate mortgages, making home ownership more accessible for African Americans in the area and contributing to the establishment of middle class communities.

Above all, M&F Bank proved to non-believers that African Americans with access to opportunity can be successful in the economic world. They proved themselves as businessmen who could withstand racism, banking crises, and all other obstacles that came their way. Mechanics and Farmers Bank provides the story of a fight for equality, respect, and freedom. As Durham historian, William Boyd eloquently declared, “the American dollar knows no race and no creed.”

Location Coordinates

POINT (-78.90078 35.99614)

Tags:

Economic Justice

Civil Rights

116 W Parrish St.
Durham, NC 27701

Barbara Lau

Move Your Money – Occupy Durham Campaign 2011

balau — Thu, 05 May 2016 20:52:51 +0000

Move Your Money – Occupy Durham Campaign 2011 balau Thu, 05/05/2016 - 16:52

On October 9, 2011, Occupy protests were taking place in over 95 cities across the world. In mid-October, the movement found its way to Durham, North Carolina, a city that in recent years had had to battle against social economic disparity and gentrification. Occupy Durham has devoted the last three months to fighting for financial freedom through a series of initiatives, one being the Move Your Money campaign. On November 22, I had the pleasure of chatting with Aurelia D'Antonio, organizer of the Durham Move Your Money Campaign at Francesca's, a locally owned coffee shop. Aurelia is a Ph.D. student at Duke University and a budding social activist. Follow us as Aurelia takes us on a journey through her experiences of Occupy movement.

Marcus: How did you first learn about the Occupy Movement itself and what were your thoughts on the Durham Movement?

Aurelia: I remember the first day that it happened, like I remember reading it, reading about it and hilariously enough I was in New York at the time. And I didn't go. . . I believe the first Occupy Durham event was Saturday, October 2 and I wasn't able to go but that, that, that was the moment at which I started thinking about how I was going to participate in it. And I was having a conversation with a friend of mine about the fact that I thought that people in Durham would probably really jump at the idea of really investing their money locally. It just seems like, you know, it seemed obvious based on the degree to which the, the city, you know, the community of the City of Durham has embraced local food and local businesses and you know it just really is into keeping it in the city.

So it just seemed, it seemed like an obvious thing for us so I went to 2nd Occupy Durham General Assembly on October 9 and just started talking to people. . . That was the beginning of the Move Your Money committee was that Saturday October 9 and then, you know, we've been working together on a lot. We've had a rally, we brought in Self-Help and Property Latina and primarily those two to talk about the benefits of banking at a credit union. Just to get information out to people about the bad practices of the big banks. The other thing that we did was we put together a website, MoveMoneyDurham.org where all of that information about all the local credit unions is accessible to the public. . .

On November 12, we held a march on Wells Fargo, we met in the People's Plaza, formerly CCB Plaza and, you know, marched and chanted and had 9 people successfully close their bank accounts at Wells Fargo that day.

Marcus: How long are you personally willing to continue working for this financial freedom?

Aurelia: I don't know. I don't necessarily see it as something I put a time limit on. I just see it as something has, has entered into the way that I think about the world and the way that I interact with the world.

Date

Sun, 10/09/2011 - 12:00

Sat, 11/12/2011 - 12:00

Location Coordinates

POINT (-78.901838 35.996878)

Tags:

Economic Justice

Protest

201 Corcoran Street - Freedom Plaza

Marcus Benning

La Cooperativa Latina Credit Union - Financial Empowerment for Immigrants

balau — Thu, 05 May 2016 20:47:01 +0000

La Cooperativa Latina Credit Union - Financial Empowerment for Immigrants balau Thu, 05/05/2016 - 16:47

(text in English below)

Usando un banco por primera vez y tratando de comprender las finanzas en una economía compleja pueden ser un reto para cualquiera persona. Sin embargo, para los últimos inmigrantes Latinos que no pueden hablar inglés, a menudo es insuperable. En la década de mil novecientos noventa, Latinos comenzaron a emigrar a la zona de Durham en grandes cantidades. En el año 2000, 8.6% de la población era Latino. Muchos Latinos nunca en su vida habían usado un banco, porque venían de una economía basada en el dinero en efectivo y no podían confiar en los bancos. Después del día de pago, en Durham, muchos de los inmigrantes Latinos cobraban sus cheques y mantenían el dinero en sus bolsillos en lugar de ponerlos en un banco.

Como resulto, los delincuentes comenzaron a robar a los inmigrantes Latinos en un brote de robos. Muchos inmigrantes, por temor a los funcionarios de la policía e inmigración, no los informaron de los crímenes. En 1996, para responder a estos crímenes, un movimiento de nivel local fue creado por los líderes Latinos de Durham. Se reunieron en El Centro Hispano para encontrar una solución al problema.

La comunidad inmigrante no podría esperar y mirar más cuando sus vecinos fueron elegidos como víctimas en asesinatos, violaciones, y robos violentos. Crearon la Cooperativa Latina Credit Union (una Cooperativa de Ahorro y Crédito) en el año 2000 para ofrecer servicios financieros para los inmigrantes Latinos, y ofrece servicios financieros bilingües, mejores opciones de crédito y educación financiera para sus miembros.

La idea de una Cooperativa de Ahorro y Crédito es que todas las personas tienen el derecho fundamental a tener acceso a créditos y servicios financieros asequibles. La cooperativa intenta concentrarse en individuos que no tienen otras alternativas financieras viables, y su misión es ayudar a los miembros a ayudarse a sí mismos. Más del 75% de sus miembros nunca han tenido una cuenta bancaria antes.

Dentro de cinco años de su creación, la cooperativa creció para servir más de 40,000 miembros en cinco diferentes ramas en Carolina del Norte. Se ha convertido en un modelo nacional y ahora es la Cooperativa de crédito que está creciendo más rápido del país, ofreciendo educación financiera y libertad a muchas poblaciones que no han recibidos servicios financieras en el pasado.

------

The English version of the audio for this point is located here.

Using a bank for the first time and trying to be financially literate in a complex economy can be a challenge for anyone. For recent Latino immigrants who might not speak English, however, it is often insurmountable. In the 1990s, Latinos began immigrating to the Durham area in large numbers. By 2000, 8.6% of the population was Hispanic. Many Latinos had never in their lives used a bank, because they came from a cash-based economy where banks could not be trusted.

After payday, many of them would cash their checks and keep the money in their pockets instead of putting them into savings. As a result, criminals began to target Latino immigrants as victims in an outbreak of robberies. Many immigrants, fearing the police and immigration officials, did not report the crimes. In 1996, in response to these crimes, a grassroots movement led by Latino leaders from Durham met at El Centro Hispano to find a solution.

The immigrant community would not stand by any longer and watch as their neighbors were targeted in violent robberies, rapes, and murders. They created the Latino Community Credit Union, or the LCCU, in 2000 to offer financial services for Latino immigrants, as well as immigrants from other areas.

The LCCU is owned by members, and it offers bilingual financial services, better credit options, and financial education to its members. The idea behind a credit union is that all people have the fundamental right to access loans and affordable financial services. The LCCU tries to focus on individuals who have no other viable financial alternatives, and their mission is to help members help themselves.

More than 75 percent of their members have never had a bank account before. Within five years of its creation, the LCCU grew to serve more than 40,000 owner-members at five different branches in North Carolina. It has become a national model and is the fastest growing credit union in the country, offering financial education and freedom to many underserved populations.

Date

Mon, 06/26/2000 - 12:00

Location Coordinates

POINT (-78.898674 39.9981)

Tags:

Latino/a community

Economic Justice

Immigrant Rights

100 West Morgan Street

Liz Hanah

Boycotts and Buying Power – Black Christmas Parade 1968

balau — Tue, 19 Apr 2016 16:00:00 +0000

Boycotts and Buying Power – Black Christmas Parade 1968 balau Tue, 04/19/2016 - 12:00

It was a little chilly, but a beautiful day, the morning of November 29th, 1968. Everyone was lined up on Fayetteville Street as the yearly Christmas Parade began. The high school band played all of the best Christmas carols and performers were festively dressed to the nines. Pretty cars with smiling people pulled elaborate floats slowly down the street, and kids with big, toothy smiles toppled over one another to catch the candy that was being tossed to the crowd. Something about this day though, was different than it had ever been.

The Selective Buying Campaign started in mid-July 1968, targeting white merchants in Downtown Durham. More than 29 businesses were put on the “do-not-patronize” list by The Black Solidarity Committee for Community Improvement until their 88 requests relating to welfare, public housing, and equal protection under the law were addressed. This parade turned out to be a monumental event for the movement.

Every year, a white Christmas parade was held in Downtown Durham, but this year, on the same day, there were two parades—one for whites on Main Street and one for blacks on Fayetteville Street. At the very end of the Fayetteville parade, a black Santa Claus was displayed atop a white float. Santa stood proud, symbolizing the unity of the black community under what the Civil Rights legacy tour calls Durham’s most successful boycott, while also serving as a reminder to avoid shopping in the white downtown business district that holiday season.

The large turnout and estimated $900,000 in losses incurred by the white businesses showed the inspiration surrounding what came to be known as the Black Christmas Parade. After this day, 14 more businesses were added to the “do-not-patronize” list, and once the holidays were over, six joint committees were created to address the 88 boycott requests. The downtown business boycott is remembered as the first demonstrations of strong unity within the black community for a common cause. That November, Black Santa brought hope and new promise for blacks in Durham. This gift became tangible on February 16th, 1969, when the campaign came to an official close. For the first time, blacks joined the job market of Downtown Durham, holding jobs as clerks, bank tellers and some even managers of department stores. The year of 1968, Durham’s black community called on Santa Claus to help them fulfill their Christmas wishes. And though not on Christmas Day, they were at least, in part, granted.

Date

Thu, 11/28/1968 - 12:00

Sun, 02/16/1969 - 12:00

Location Coordinates

POINT (-78.89655 35.98825)

Tags:

Civil Rights

Boycott

Economic Justice

Pettigrew and Fayetteville Streets

Lindsey Huth