Dear ,

This week, November 14 –20, is International Living Wage Week. VICPP’s Living Wage Certification Program is supporting efforts to bring attention to the need for living wages to lift families out of poverty. 

What is a living wage? One that accounts for the necessary costs of living that impact individuals and families such as transportation, child care, rent, and food costs. Fair wages are not just necessary for families to live well in the present but are a building block for generational wealth and ensuring every family can thrive in the long term.

VICPP currently has four local certification committees in Richmond, Northern Virginia, Harrisonburg, and Charlottesville. We are also very excited to be partnering with the national living wage certification program — Living Wage For Us — in shifting our methodology and wage calculations to more closely match global standards in the coming year. We anticipate this will lead toward joint national-local certification options.

There is an event happening tomorrow that we invite you to join:

• Advancing the Living Wage Movement — Learn about becoming more involved in the living wage movement. 
  When: Thursday, Nov. 17, from 6 - 7 p.m. ET 
  CLICK HERE to register.   

If your business wants to be certified, you can easily apply online at: www.livingwagevirginia.org.

If you or your congregation are interested in supporting a living wage program in your area, email VICPP Economic Justice Program Manager, Jase Hatcher, at: jase@virginiainterfaithcenter.org

Don’t forget, your congregation can get certified, too!

 


Sincerely,

Kim Bobo
Executive Director

We are bringing back our Social Media Team this year. We are asking for volunteers who will agree to post daily (Monday through Friday) during the General Assembly using a draft posting we will send you. This is very effective so rally up everyone you can and sign up! A massive thank you to those of you who have already signed up! If you can help with the Social Media Team, email Director of Communications, Ayesha Taylor, at: AyeshaGT@virginiainterfaithcenter.org
You can also click the button below to do so.

Join VICPP at the General Assembly to advocate social justice on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2023! We're so excited to be back in-person for our flagship advocacy day in 2023! 
 
Register before December 31 to receive early bird pricing ($30)! The price for tickets purchased after January 1, 2023 will automatically go up to $40.

Questions? Email: AyeshaGT@virginiainterfaithcenter.org

Click the button below for event info and to register!

Students of Virginia -- Join us to learn the legislative process in Virginia and how to advocate with your elected representatives! Come into Richmond Thursday evening (Feb. 2) for dinner with legislators, an overview of how to lobby, and a social time. Friday morning (Feb. 3), we will start the day with an opportunity to meet with your representatives in the General Assembly. Afterwards, we will have lunch and workshops on how to bring advocacy to campus, and standing up for justice in various spheres. Keep an eye out for workshop registrations coming soon! 

* Bonus: We're working with some universities for professors to offer class credit when you attend this event! Check with your professor to find out if you qualify*

Questions? Email VICPP New Leadership Development Organizer Dr. Terri Erwin at: Terri@virginiainterfaithcenter.org

Click the button below for event info and to register!

This week, VICPP staff at Richmond headquarters welcomed back our colleague, your Faith Organizer, Sheila. She left the office just two days before her nuptials as Miss Herlihy, and returned as Mrs. Hennessee. The ceremony itself, held at Sacred Heart Parish (Jesuit Church) in Richmond, was (almost) as lovely as the happy couple. If you've had the pleasure of interacting with Sheila, you know what a wonderful person she is. Her colleagues share that sentiment! So as our wedding gift to her, we assumed the role of a bridal entourage, which included serving staff, bartenders, wedding-favor-makers, beauticians, and selfie-takers. It was fun all around! You could say we put the V.I.P. in VICPP. 

Check out some fun photos of Sheila and Zach's big day, including some we snapped of just a few of the VICPP crew!

Please join us in congratulating the newlyweds!

Yesterday, students, faculty and staff at Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS) experienced solitary confinement right on campus thanks to a virtual reality simulation hosted by student leaders, with assistance from Rev. Canon Altagracia Perez-Bullard, Director of Contextual Ministry and Assistant Professor of Practical Theology. Dimensions of solitary confinement cell footprints were mapped out on the floor to illustrate the stark quarters of Virginians isolated 23 hours daily in spaces that measure only six by nine feet -- about the size of a parking lot space. Virtual reality goggles allowed participants to immerse themselves in a disturbing 3D reality that belied the euphemism, "restorative housing," used in Virginia to refer to the practice of isolation in confinement. The United Nations recognizes the use of extended isolation as a form of torture. Nonetheless, Virginia has no policy to limit solitary confinement of incarcerated individuals, though damaging mental health impacts are well-researched. VTS seminarians were interested to learn about the bill(s) promoted by VICPP that would limit solitary confinement to only 15 days in a 60-day period. Many expressed a desire to support the effort by joining VICPP's Student Day of Action on February 3, 2023. The seminary is generously providing transportation for a delegation of seminarians and faculty to participate in the lobby day and workshops in Richmond.

This prison is such a mess! Virginia can do better. We urge Secretary of Homeland Security Bob Mosier and Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) Director Harold Clarke to cancel the contract with The GEO Group and return management of this prison to the Department of Corrections. Click the button below to use our simple automated system to email VADOC Director Clarke. Use our template message or write your own.

Please join us for the 13th Virginia Immigrant Advocates Summit, hosted by the Virginia Coalition for Latino Organizations (VACOLAO), with VICPP as one of the co-sponsors! 

This year, the summit will be a two-day virtual event that will allow attendees to participate while also engaging with speakers on important topics for immigrant communities in Virginia.

We will be discussing 2022 legislative wins and current policy advocacy goals for the upcoming 2023 Virginia General Assembly. The summit will be fully available in both English and Spanish, and will take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on both Friday, Nov 18 and Saturday, Nov 19.

VICPP Faith Organizer, Sheila Herlihy, will be on a panel on Friday morning!

For any questions, please email: vacolao@gmail.com

Click the button below to register!

VICPP's Annual Meeting provides an opportunity to review the organization's accomplishments, its finances, its staff and board members, and its future directions. All members are invited to participate. The meeting will be held virtually, via Zoom, so people from all over the Commonwealth can participate.

For a more comprehensive list of upcoming events, please click the button below to check out the VICPP Events webpage.