51 Justice United leaders heard reports from the Housing, Immigration, and Jobs Action Teams at the the recent Countywide Leaders Meeting on November 9. See below for brief summaries.

Teams will bring specific proposals for action to the next Justice United leaders meeting on February 1, 7:00 - 9:00 pm, at Hillsborough Presbyterian Church (102 W Tyron St).

Action Team Reports

On September 10 Justice United formed three action teams to conduct research and develop action proposals to resolve priority concerns around Housing, Immigration, and Jobs. The initial purpose of these Teams is to bring the organization to a point to decide whether to act or not.  

Housing Team
The Housing Action Team is focusing on the needs of very low income residents, with a special emphasis on shelter residents who are unable to graduate from the shelters due to the lack of affordable housing in Orange County.

Of particular interest is further exploring opportunities that include: fully funding the rapid rehousing program, and the creation of a master leasing program, through which a government or non-profit entity could bulk rent existing apartment stock and subsidize rents for low income residents.   

Immigration Team
The Immigration Team is pursuing research in two directions: the lack of bi-lingual non-teaching staff in Orange County Schools, and barriers preventing immigrant youth from accessing career or technical training.

Jobs Team 
The Jobs Team has framed their issue in two parts: increasing the amount of employers and jobs in Orange County, and increasing access to existing jobs for members of our communities who struggle to find good paying work.

Orange County ranks #9 in terms of job openings across North Carolina (over 31,000 job openings last year). The Team is now working to identify barriers to these jobs.