WIN: Taking Action, Leading Change for a Better DC

by Anne Schwartz

WIN, the Washington Interfaith Network, has been incredibly busy over the past few months, racking up wins at the DC Council and laying the groundwork for future action. When Temple Sinai members show up on behalf of WIN, it shows that we are exercising our power to foster a more just, safe, and equitable city. Temple Sinai was the first Jewish congregation to join WIN in 2014, and Rabbi Goldstein is a member of WIN’s incoming Strategy Team.

Here’s just a sampling of WIN’s current campaigns. 

Black Homeownership

When Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the creation of the Black Homeownership Strike Force in June, it was a familiar tune for WIN which has been spearheading the Black Equity through Home Ownership (BETH) campaign.  BETH focuses on reducing the racial wealth gap in DC through capital fundraising, advocating for affordable housing, and raising awareness with local officials on behalf of residents who want to remain in the city. Additionally, BETH has created a fund for homes in need of repair. Our Sinai WIN team has supported BETH since its inception, most recently through Larry Mishel’s collaboration with other economic experts in WIN congregations, and through our organizing, along with four other WIN congregations in upper northwest DC, for affordable housing on public and private land in our neighborhoods.

WIN actions in 2023 will focus on holding the Mayor accountable for using city funds and policy actions to:

• improve access to public lands for development of homes for those with incomes between $50,000 and $80,000 (such as DC teachers, nurses and first responders);

• transform vacant homes and lots into safe affordable home ownership opportunities;

• create solutions to forgive or offset student loan debt for families with an intergenerational presence in the District;

• reduce red tape in the city’s Home Purchase Assistance Program;

• ensure access to funds, tax breaks, and other measures to help repair, rebuild and retain existing residences of Black homeowners;

• build environmentally safe and green housing; and

• also keep support realtors’ efforts to match existing homeowners who wish to sell their homes to qualified moderate income Black homebuyers.

The Mayor’s Strike Force will make its report in October, providing an additional opportunity for WIN to exercise its power.

Climate

Working with the Sierra Club, WIN volunteers fanned out across the District last winter, identifying over 400 hundred methane gas leaks that posed both immediate safety and long-term environmental concerns. Methane, a significant contributor to global warming, accounts for about one quarter of greenhouse gas emissions in DC. WIN is continuing to identify leaks in other neighborhoods. In addition, WIN is working in coalition with other groups to improve DC building codes and eliminate incentives for homeowners to purchase gas appliances. 

Public Safety

The April 2021 Police Reform Commission report set forth a series of concrete actions to reduce gun violence and improve public safety in DC. WIN is working to ensure that these reforms are fully funded and implemented including:

• increasing the number of violence interrupters;
• dispatching mental health providers in response to 911 calls involving people in crisis;
• investing in evidence based culturally competent behavioral health and wellness services; and
• using a public health approach to school safety that is relational, racially just, restorative, trauma responsive and trauma informed.

Sinai’s Gun Violence Prevention Group works with closely with public safety advocates in other WIN congregations.

For more information on how to get involved with Temple Sinai’s WIN work, email Anne Schwartz, core team lead.