policies

Our Policy and Advocacy Mission
 

Alabama Institute of Social Justice works to achieve meaningful and sustainable systems change in support of under-resourced children and families in Alabama’s Black Belt. 

Through the advancement of a bold organizational policy agenda rooted in racial equity and social justice, we seek to go beyond adjustments to the status quo and instead drive transformational change in public policy, organizational culture, and the public narrative within government, businesses, and our communities.

AISJ engages in advocacy to address barriers to quality education and job opportunities and ensure a seamless transition for human success from birth to adulthood. Our work varies by issue but always centers on five core policy goals: Intentionality, Integrity, Inclusion, Investment, and Impact.

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Core Policy Goals

 

• Intentionality
  Establish clear and intentional commitments to racial equity and social justice as core principles and values of policymaking, legislation, and the regulatory process at all levels of government.

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• Integrity
  Ensure that policymaking includes communication with impacted communities is evidence-based, data-driven (both quantitative and qualitative), transparent, and includes communication with impacted communities. Establish policy-making processes that acknowledge and are honest about the historical and structural realities and impacts our communities have and continue to face, and what it will take to achieve transformative change.

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• Inclusion 
  Elevate and empower the individuals who are directly impacted by policy so that their communities are a core part of the policy and decision-making process from the beginning. Build a new approach among government agencies, policymakers, and organizations that goes beyond simply inviting affected stakeholders to the table and instead truly centers the experiences, needs, and desires of those directly impacted by policy. 

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• Investment 
  Increase and deepen investment in equity and social justice issues through commitments of time, resources, and state funding. Obtain measurable investment in addressing equity and social justice from the business and stakeholder communities within their organizational goals and outcomes.

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• Impact
  Support the creation of policies that have a large enough impact to create measurable gains in a real-world, positive, and timely way on the lives of those directly affected by an issue.

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