The Weekly Wrap: Portland, Maine City Council Votes to Divest from Genocide

Welcome back to The Weekly Wrap, our Friday roundup of stories that explain the problems oppressing people in cities and elevate the solutions that bring us closer to economic, environmental and social justice.

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Portland, Maine Divests from Genocide

Portland, Maine’s city council has voted to divest from companies doing business with Israel amid the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the West Bank. The Maine Morning Star reports that the city council unanimously approved a resolution urging the city manager to cease investing in companies complicit in Israel’s violations of international law.

Also this week, an IDF sniper shot 26-year-old American citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi during an anti-settler protest in the illegally occupied West Bank. She is the third American citizen killed in the West Bank this year. The other two were two teenagers: 17-year-old Tawfic Abdel Jabbar and Mohammad Khdour, a 17-year-old shot in the head by an IDF sniper while sitting in his car. The United States has not opened an independent investigation into any of the killings.

Black Woman-Led Venture Capital Fund Forced to End Grant Program

A Black woman-led venture capital firm that sought to provide startup capital to Black women entrepreneurs has been forced to close its grant program in response to a lawsuit from a conservative nonprofit and subsequent ruling. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Fearless Fund will end a $20,000 small business grant contest for Black women in response to the American Alliance for Equal Rights lawsuit, which argued that the fund is discriminatory in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling ending affirmative action. The venture fund’s founder told the Journal-Constitution they preferred to settle rather than risk an appeal where the results could be applied nationwide.

In a LinkedIn post, Rachel J. Robasciotti, CEO and founder of Adasina Social Capital, writes, “While this legal case may have initially had a chilling effect for some justice and sustainability investors, it is important to note that investors can and must continue to boldly do the work of advancing racial equity and justice.”

$500 Million Green Bank Invests in Appalachian Green Projects

Grist reports that a $500 million fund from the Environmental Protection Agency will go toward community development financial institutions investing in solar and renewable energy initiatives. The Green Bank initiative will collaborate with 75 rural CDFIs, prioritizing the Appalachian region and other low-income areas and communities of color. Local governments have their own versions of Green Banks, including the New York Green Bank, which has invested $2 billion in clean energy across the state.

Gavin Newsom Vetoes Home Loans for Undocumented Californians

California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill that would have allowed undocumented immigrants to access the California Dream for All Program, which provides home down payment loans to low-income applicants, The Merced Focus reports. According to Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula, the bill’s sponsor, it sought to clarify the requirements of the Dream for All program, which were left ambiguous regarding citizenship.

Lahaina Fire Exacerbates Hawaii’s Water Wars

Mother Jones reports that last year’s wildfires in Lahaina exacerbated ongoing fights over who controls Maui’s water. A single company called East Maui Irrigation, co-owned by Mahi Pono and Alexander & Baldwin, has extracted most of the island’s water and provided jobs there for over a hundred years. A law passed before last year’s fires would have reduced the company’s water consumption. The state attempted to bypass this law after the fire but was shut down by the state’s Supreme Court. Mahi Pono is owned by the Canada Public Sector Pension Investment Board, which has been buying water rights across the globe.

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Curated by Deonna Anderson

MORE NEWS

• Here are some lessons from New York’s yearlong free bus pilot. The Nation

• These firms and advocates share a blueprint for building virtual power plants in every state. Canary Media

• One of the main priorities in rebuilding Ukraine will be designing for disability. The Architect’s Newspaper

• The city of Linhares in Brazil has granted legal rights to the waves at the mouth of the Dolce River. This is the first instance in which a government has conferred rights upon part of the ocean. Yale Environment 360

• These ​​architects are trying to coax downtowns acrosss the world back to life. New York Times

RESOURCES

• The NLIHC released its Fall 2024 issue of Tenant Talk, the organization’s semiannual newsletter designed to engage residents in housing advocacy. This issue features articles on the importance of elections in tenant communities. Download your copy here.

• Forecast Public Art recently published the latest issue of its digital publication, FORWARD. It was made in collaboration with New Monuments Taskforce and focuses on monuments and memorials. Peruse the issue here.

EVENTS (and there are plenty to share this week!)

• TODAY, September 13 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern: The Brookings Institution is hosting a screening of the film “Daughters” followed by a discussion about the power of parent-child bonds in the correctional system. Register to attend in person or virtually.

• September 17 at 10 a.m. Eastern: World Resources Institute is hosting a panel titled “Understanding the Role of Carbon Dioxide Removal in Long-term Climate Planning.” Claim your virtual seat here.

• September 17 at 1p.m. Eastern: Next City is hosting a conversation about the role and rights of immigrant workers in urban development. Speakers will explore the contributions and impact that immigrant workers make in building and fixing our cities, the biggest labor and human rights issues facing this workforce and the business structures unique to the building and construction industry that perpetuate these conditions. Join the conversation by registering today!

• September 24 at 4 p.m. Eastern: The Northern California Grantmakers is hosting a panel about advancing democracy and civil liberties amidst national backlash, especially against communities that are most marginalized. Click here to learn more and register.

• September 25 at 3 p.m. Eastern: The Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative is hosting a conversation about best practices for decreasing unsheltered homelessness with health, dignity, and civil rights in mind. Register here.