Dear Equiticity Family,
Like many across the U.S. and around the world, I have been watching the election results with our neighborhoods on my mind.
The Associated Press reports Democrats have won control of both the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate. Here in Illinois, news organizations have called Juliana Stratton’s election to the U.S. Senate, La Shawn Ford’s election to represent the 7th Congressional District in the U.S. House, and the reelections of both Governor JB Pritzker and Cook County President Toni Preckwinkle.
As the political landscape shifts, I keep thinking about the work ahead. Improving life outcomes in Black and Brown neighborhoods requires sustained community power, equitable public and private investment, and the resources to organize long after the votes are counted.
That is why I am asking you to invest in Equiticity’s Power + Equity Movement Infrastructure Fund.
When I talk about power, I mean residents having the ability to shape policies, set public priorities, direct resources, and build community ownership. I also mean our neighbors having the knowledge, relationships, and organizing strength to influence what gets built, who benefits, and how public institutions respond.
When I talk about racial equity, I mean transforming the distribution of power, resources, and opportunity to dismantle structural racism. This work requires transforming the systems that have concentrated investment in some neighborhoods while denying other communities the conditions we need to thrive.
These policy commitments and government operational practices must become real in everyday life.
A reliable bus helps a parent reach work and return home with time for their family. A safe walk connects a student to school. Affordable transportation makes healthcare reachable. Cleaner air, safer streets, and neighborhood investment expands the opportunities available to families and entire communities.
Our democracy grows stronger when Black and Brown residents have the power to shape these conditions and hold public institutions accountable for delivering equitable outcomes.
The months ahead will bring decisions about public budgets, transportation, environmental protections, and neighborhood investment. Our communities need the organizing strength to help set those priorities, influence those decisions, and ensure commitments become meaningful improvements in our lives.
At Equiticity, we mobilize, politicize, organize, conduct research, and advocate to operationalize racial equity, mobility justice, and environmental justice. Through Community Mobility Rituals, we bring neighbors together to walk, bike, and explore public transit, building relationships, confidence, and collective action. Through Neighborhood Mobility Models, including our work to develop neighborhood mobility hubs, we connect physical infrastructure with the social infrastructure that helps people increase their mobility and share in the future of transportation planning in our communities.
Our work brings transportation access and engagement into a larger commitment to community ownership of the transportation planning process.
This work depends on people. It depends on staff who maintain relationships, leaders who bring visions to life, organizers who listen and follow through, and an organization with the capacity to keep showing up.
Flexible funding sustains that foundation. It supports leadership, operations, organizing, research, advocacy, and long-term organizational capacity. It gives us room to respond when conditions change and to continue work whose value extends beyond a grant period or an election cycle.
Our immediate goal is to raise $150,000 by December 31, 2026, toward a cumulative stretch goal of $750,000 by April 2027.
Please make a contribution today to Equiticity's Power + Equity Movement Infrastructure Fund.
Give an amount that is meaningful and possible for you. Then invite someone who believes in this work to join you to grow your impact.
I believe deeply in our communities’ ability to shape a more just future. Your investment helps Equiticity build the capacity to pursue that future with the consistency, care, and determination it requires.
On a timely and related note, here are five opportunities to engage directly with our work:
Join The Seventh Annual Chicago Bike Collective Ride, scheduled for this coming Friday, November 6. Meet at 6pm at Soul Veg City, 205 E 75th St, Chicago. Ride starts at 7pm. RSVP here.
Attend ridehail driver and carshare user workshops in Chicago, scheduled for Thursday, November 12. The Ridehail Driver Workshop will be at 11am and the Carshare User Workshop will be at 6pm. Equiticity and Catalyst Mobility want to hear how ridehail and carshare services work for you, and how electric vehicles could fit in. Join a small group discussion at the Bronzeville Community Development Partnership, 2418 S Michigan Ave, and get paid $150 for your insights. Space is limited. Register here.
Share your carshare experience and shape the future of shared mobility in Chicago. Equiticity and Catalyst Mobility are working to better understand carshare experiences and identify opportunities to support the future of shared and electric transportation in Chicagoland. Share your thoughts and carshare experience in an online survey to have your insight included in this effort. The first 30 individuals to complete the survey will receive a $20 digital gift card by email. Take the survey here.
Attend the Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA) public budget meeting, scheduled for Thursday, November 12, with public comment expected around 4–6pm CT. Learn more here. Register here. Written comments are accepted through December 4 by sending an email to: communications@nita.illinois.gov. Also, see this Streetsblog Chicago article about Equiticity's calls for community decision-making, equity measures, and neighborhood mobility hubs at the Red Line Extension station and the potential Racine Green Line station.
Sign up for Equiticity text alerts. Add your cell phone number here to receive text alerts from Equiticity.
Thank you for riding with us and investing in the people who carry this movement forward.
Warm regards,
Oboi
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Olatunji Oboi Reed
President & CEO, Equiticity
773-916-6264 | @theycallmeOboi | oboi@equiticity.org
P.S. A major gift, a multiyear commitment, stock transfers, planned giving, endowments, hosting a fundraising salon, or an introduction to an aligned donor will make a meaningful difference at this pivotal time. Please reach me directly at 773-916-6264 or Oboi@equiticity.org to explore a deeper philanthropic partnership.
Contribute to Equiticity’s Power + Equity Movement Infrastructure Fund
