[act-ma] 2/26: Let Your State Legislators Know that Housing is a Human Right!

[kelly turley]

*Housing is a Human Right!*



Please join the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless for our Legislative
Action Day on Tuesday, February 26th, from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. at the
Massachusetts State House in Boston.



The Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless* *has been working for the past
twenty-five years as a key voice on a public policy level for families and
individuals in Massachusetts who are at-risk or experiencing *homelessness*.
For the past twelve years, MCH has held an annual Legislative Action Day at
the State House to engage our members and allies in educating their state
legislators about the needs of the Commonwealth's residents who are
experiencing housing crises.



The theme for this year's event is "Housing is a Human Right!"  We are
pleased to announce that we will be joined by Lieutenant Governor Tim
Murray, as well as Larry Cox, Executive Director of Amnesty International
USA, who will be providing the keynote address.  In the year ahead, Amnesty
International will be kicking off its Global Campaign for Human Dignity, an
economic/cultural/social rights campaign focused on poverty and human
rights. This campaign will highlight Amnesty's ongoing work to promote the
universal right to housing and freedom from poverty. The framework of the
human rights movement supports housing as a right for all, not a privilege
for a few.



As part of Legislative Action Day, we will host a panel discussion with key
members of the Massachusetts Commission to End Homelessness: Representative
Byron Rushing (Co-chair of the Commission), Tina Brooks, Undersecretary,
Department of Housing and Community Development (Co-chair of the
Commission), Joe Finn of the Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance
(Chair, work group on unaccompanied adults experiencing homelessness) and
Sue Beaton of One Family, Inc. (Chair, work group on families experiencing
homelessness). The panelists will outline their recommendations and the next
steps for the implementation of the state's five-year plan to reduce, and
ultimately end, homelessness within the Commonwealth. After their
presentations, the commission members also will dialogue with Legislative
Action Day participants about the work to end homelessness on the statewide
level.



Most importantly, there will be time after the panel discussion to meet with
legislators to advocate for improved access to affordable housing, services,
and programs for families and individuals at-risk or experiencing
homelessness in Massachusetts.



We hope you will be able to raise your voice and join us for this exciting
day!



For more information and to register for this event, please call Rebecca at
781-595-7570 x32 or go to http://mahomeless.org/Alerts/currentalert.html.
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