Looking for Support in Hard Economic Times?

By Chuck Collins, OnTheCommons.org. Posted March 23, 2009.

Among the things “we can do together,” the clubs examine stories and examples of various economic and mutual aid activities. These have included teaming up to help each other weatherize their homes, helping each other rework their personal budgets and reduce debt, and forming food-buying clubs. Faith-based groups weave together reflection, prayer, and action.

“We can’t be a bank for each other,” said club participant Paul Monroe of Boston. “But there are so many things we can do to support one another and increase our economic security.”

One group, convened by a group of Haitian women in the Boston neighborhood of Dorchester, decided to push back against their credit card companies. “Everyone was paying really high fees,” observed Charlotte Desire, who coordinated the group. “One of our best moments was when everyone in our group called their credit card company and threatened to cut up their cards unless fees were waived and interest rates were cut.” Almost everyone in the group was able to save hundreds of dollars in interest payments and fees.

Gerald Taylor, a veteran congregation-based organizer in Charlotte, North Carolina, has led discussions with several groups about what a healthy and democratic debt system would require. “All our religious traditions have prohibitions on usury for a reason,” said Taylor. “So what would a fair and transparent credit system look like?”

“We are piloting about a dozen common security clubs in different places and with very different groups,” said Zaleska, describing the efforts in her region. “We’re testing out several different curricula. Some clubs are pressing members of Congress to reform the casino economy, stop foreclosures, and pass an economic stimulus package.”

Whatever shape or focus members choose to take, common security clubs are pushing against the social isolation that may accompany a recession or depression. “I see the hurt and anxiety in my congregation—and how people privatize their pain,” says Cecilia Kingman. “This is a chance for us to be real with each other.”

These clubs are also one of many building blocks that can move us toward a “solidarity economy” that affirms our true interconnection with one another. Coming together is a way to remind ourselves of the abundance we have, the wealth of our relationships and networks, and the mutuality of our economic security.

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Chuck Collins is an On the Commons Fellow and senior scholar at the Institute for Policy Studies, where he directs the Program on Inequality and the Common Good. He is co-author with Mary Wright of The Moral Measure of the Economy (Orbis, 2007).

This is an excerpt of an article that originally appeared in Sojourners magazine, February 2009. For information on how to start or join a common security club, see: hforumorganizing.org

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