NEIGHBORS: Niagara Organizing Alliance of Churches
By Michele Deluca/delucam@gnnewspaper.com
Who is listening to NOAH
Niagara Organizing Alliance for Hope (NOAH), is comprised of fourteen spiritual organizations--representing hundreds of area residents--determined to create change, starting with the issue of jobs. They recently met with political leaders from all over the Niagara Region who gave support to legislation requiring construction projects to hire 30 percent of their workers from the communities where the project is taking place.
The following politicians gave NOAH a public promise of support for the jobs initiative, including: Mayor Michael Tucker of the City of Lockport, Mayor Vincenzo V. Anello of Niagara Falls, NIagara Falls Councilman Charles Walker, Lawrence Soos, Mayor of North Tonawanda, Timothy Demler, Supervisor of the Town of Wheatfield; State Senators George Maziarz and Antoine Thompson; former Niagara County Legislature Chairman William Ross, Samuel Ferraro, head of the Niagara County Industrial Development Agency; Stephanie Cowart, director of the Niagara Falls Housing Authority; and Paul Parise of Niagara County’s WorkForce One Job Training Center. NOAH has also received word of support from Congresswoman Louise Slaughter.
It’s tempting to play devil’s advocate when talking to holy men who are leading a movement to create economic change.
Questions that spring to mind include these: What makes you think you can succeed where so many others have failed? And how will you get politicians to listen?
A Niagara region group of spiritual leaders on a mission to defeat hopelessness, recently faced off with area politicians. The good news is that the politicians are listening.
“In essence, we have more power than (politicians) do. They have political power, but we have people power,” said Rev. Rex Stewart of First Presbyterian Church in Youngstown, who is one of the leaders of coalition of churches that are battling against the issues destroy communities.
“We have a much higher calling,” added Bishop Stephan Booze, pastor of the Potter House Christian Community Church across the street from City Hall in Niagara Falls.
Rev. Stewart and Bishop Booze are co-leaders of the Niagara Organizing Alliance for Hope, or NOAH. Inspired, in part, by an increasingly powerful activist group called VOICE in the city of Buffalo, NOAH leaders understand they have to address one challenge at a time.
Over the past couple of years their organization has been quietly gathering the tools and people necessary to face off against a multi-headed monster of community evils from poverty and hunger to housing and jobs. Both men, and majority of the active leaders in NOAH, have attended a national leadership training program that empowers community leaders with change making behaviors.
And now, they and their colleagues are ready to walk their talk.
They have turned their attention to the issue of jobs. They have met with most of the politicians in the Niagara region to lobby for legislation to create jobs. As a result, at least one community---the town of Wheatfield--just recently passed a law requiring all new construction projects to employ thirty percent of their workforce from people in the town.
NOAH is encouraging other towns and cities to follow suit and it looks as if some may, including the city of Lockport. (Editor’s note: For a list of politicians who have given their commitment to the jobs initiative see the sidebar with this story).
“It’s amazing how much they are paying attention to us,” said Rev. Stewart of the local political leaders.
“I don’t think it’s that amazing,” interjected Bishop Booze. The hope is that politicians, who are sometimes bound by party loyalties, may find it easier to defer to men of faith, particularly those who stand with hundreds of like-minded voters behind them.
“When they see people, they see votes. The more people we can gather together to push for change, the more they will listen. They want to be re-elected,” said Rev. Stewart
NOAH leaders are aware that “faith based initiatives,” can be used by politicians for political gain. “That’s why its really important that we not ally with any one politician or party,” said Rev. Stewart.
The two men note that such organizing has historic role models in the church leaders who led the nation in both the abolition of slavery and the civil rights movement. And like their brethren before them, these holy men do not plan to back down.
“We can get into people’s faces. We’re learning how to do that,” said Rev. Stewart.
“Instead of people telling us what to do, we need to tell them what to do,” said Bishop Booze.
“Politicians come and go,” said the Bishop when asked about his group’s staying power and NOAH’s commitment to the Niagara Region. “We are not going away.”
