Campaign for Guaranteed Income

RSVP: Unite. Fight. Win. Event

TL;DR: Together with Durham residents, partner organizations, and City Council members, we are exploring the possibility of adding up to $1,000,000 to Durham’s Guaranteed Income pilot program in this year’s bugdet!
Are you in? 

Get Involved!

Not sure? Read on to learn more about the campaign ⇓

Overview

We are fighting for a Durham where everybody can thrive. Where we all have the energy, time, and attention for activities beyond meeting our basic needs, for dreaming and visioning, and for our loved ones.

Currently, too many of us struggle to meet our basic needs as Durham grows rapidly and our wages don’t keep up with the increasing cost of living. Our state legislature doesn’t allow the city to pass a citywide living wage. The market economy we live in prioritizes profit over people. And all of these things are resulting in deepening economic and racial inequality.

While the federal and state governments fail to take care of the people, our City Council has some tools to do so. This year, we will be exploring the possibility of adding up to $1,000,000 to Durham’s Guaranteed Income (GI) pilot program. The pilot ran from February 2023 thru February 2024 and provided $600 per month to 109 formerly incarcerated Durhamites. Participants saw significant improvements in their quality of life, and none of the 109 participants reoffended during their year of receiving GI. 

If we succeed, not only will more of the most financially vulnerable people in Durham get a hand up this year, we will also grow our organized base of working class people of color in Durham’s low income neighborhoods (1000+ of whom we will be talking to during this campaign) to continue the fight for the expansion of GI to other groups.

Our fight for an economy that works for all of us doesn’t start or end with this budget cycle. But every budget is an opportunity to practice solidarity, win the changes that our communities deserve, and build power towards future fights at the city and state levels. Will you join us in the spring and summer of 2024 to fight for more funds for guaranteed income in Durham’s 2024-2025 budget?

There are many ways to get involved — pick as many as you like!

Unite. Fight. Win. Meetings

We will meet on the last Tuesday of every month at the Unite. Fight. Win. events to discuss the campaign’s progress, plan our next steps together, and strengthen our relationship with one another. 

RSVP for next meeting!

Canvassing Shifts

On Saturdays, we knock on doors! Join us for a canvassing shift as we talk to 1000+ Durhamites about Guaranteed Income, listen to their hopes and concerns, and invite them to join our campaign. 

Sign up for a shift!

Activation Shifts

On Tuesdays, we call and text people who have shown interest in the campaign, listen to why they care, and invite them into leadership and action. Join us on zoom wherever you are! 

Sign up for a shift!

Petition to City Council

Add your voice: Call on the City Council to add up to $1,000,000 to Durham’s successful guaranteed income program for formerly incarcerated people.

Sign the petition!

Politics Watch

Once a month, we send a Politics Watch email with a deep dive into the history, politics, and impact of Guaranteed Income in Durham. If you're curious about Durham's Guaranteed Income pilot program, these emails are for you!

Sign up for emails!

Politics Watch

City Budget Edition

The city budget is a crucial way our communities can get the care, justice, and security Durhamites need to thrive regardless of job status, race, gender, or faith.

How much do you know about Durham’s budget process? Do you know which services are prioritized to receive more money (from the city taxes that we pay) and how? Do you know what our City Council members are discussing right now as they work on the next budget?

Too many of us, especially working communities, have been made to think that the budget is too complicated for us to understand or have an opinion about.

The Politics Watch: City Budget Edition is a monthly email we send out with a breakdown of the budget process, summary of what’s being discussed in city council meetings, what community members are saying about those issues, and our analysis on the politics of the budget. As we learn together about what the city budget can pay for, we will collectively apply that knowledge to determine what needs more money and how we can advocate for it. 

Each month, we will be focusing on one issue:

[INSERT IMAGE]

To receive our monthly “Politics Watch: City Budget Edition” emails in your inbox:

Take Action!

Each budget cycle is a crucial opportunity to ......

RSVP to our next campaign meeting