Virginia Organizing Inc.

Overview

Virginia Organizing Inc., formerly known as the Virginia Organizing Project (VOP), is a non-partisan statewide grassroots organization in the state of Virginia. Founded in 1995, it is dedicated to challenging injustice by empowering people in local communities to address issues affecting their quality of life. The organization particularly encourages participation from those who have traditionally had little or no voice in society.

Mission and Activities

Virginia Organizing focuses on building a diverse grassroots base to achieve long-term social change. It employs a multi-issue, multi-constituency approach to community organizing. Key areas of focus include health care reform, economic justice, racial justice (such as combating discriminatory policing and the school-to-prison pipeline), women's issues, climate change, predatory lending, restoration of voting rights for former felons, immigration reform, and protecting Medicare and Social Security.

The organization uses various tools like door-to-door canvassing, phone banks, one-to-one conversations, and community meetings to identify and prioritize issues. It also organizes rallies and press conferences to mobilize public support for its causes.

History

Virginia Organizing was founded in Southwest Virginia, with its first chapter established in Lee County. The organization's inaugural campaigns included challenging the county jury selection process, resulting in the first African-American serving as jury commissioner. In the late 1990s, it supported the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender in Virginia's hate crime laws during the General Assembly.

Over the years, Virginia Organizing has achieved significant victories:

• Affordable Housing: In 2002, it successfully pushed the Virginia Housing Development Authority to approve over $339 million for low-income housing initiatives.
• Voting Rights: They helped simplify the voting restoration process for non-violent felons by reducing the application from thirteen pages to one.
• Health Care Reform: The organization played a critical role in the Medicaid expansion in Virginia, achieved in 2018 after years of advocacy.
• Environmental and Economic Justice: Virginia Organizing has actively campaigned against fracking and predatory lending practices.

Organizational Structure

Virginia Organizing operates through chapters across the state, each with issue-specific teams. These teams focus on topics such as affordable health care, immigration reform, economic justice, voting participation, environmental justice, and affordable housing. The organization conducts an annual power analysis to determine its priority issues.

Key Individuals

Notable figures include Del McWhorter, who serves as Chairperson, and Brian Johns as Executive Director.

Recognition

In 2009, Virginia Organizing received the Community Change Champion Award from the Center for Community Change for its deep commitment to low-income communities.

Core Values

The organization is guided by principles of justice, equity, and community empowerment. It believes in the importance of fair treatment for all individuals, regardless of race, class, gender, or immigration status, and advocates for policies that serve the needs of diverse communities in Virginia.

Non-Profit Status

Virginia Organizing Inc. is a registered 501(c)(3) organization, reflecting its non-partisan and charitable nature. Its EIN is 54-1674992.