Building People Power
for Thriving Communities
We organize with tenants, street vendors and transit riders in communities of color to create a solidarity economy, win community control of land & housing, and form dignified public systems that facilitate a culture of radical care in Boyle Heights, East LA and the greater Los Angeles Metropolitan area.
Street Vendor Justice
Toward a solidarity economy
An economy that works to support the needs and well-being of the community, not to increase profits for the wealthy class. Each person's work is recognized and respected as a natural act of sustainability and health, and we all benefit from the fruits of this labor.
Community Land & Housing Justice
Toward community control of land and housing
We all want to have a safe, healthy and stable home, and to have autonomy in that space. Community members know what they need, they are the ones that have to deal with the current conditions in their space, and therefore must have the power to make decisions collectively about how to care for the neighborhood and the land it occupies.
Transit Justice
Toward dignified public systems & spaces
We all deserve freedom of mobility – to get to work, to connect with the community, to enjoy public spaces. That is why we fight for a public transit system that is dignified, reliable, and accessible, and for public spaces that promote a culture of collective care.
Nurturing Transformation
Cultural Power
Embodying and re-membering interdependence
As members of immigrant communities of color, we have a wealth of diasporic cultural practices and traditions that formed before colonialism, and have persisted in spite of it ever since. Many of these practices facilitate interdependence and preserve cultural memory - something that directly opposes white supremacy, capitalism, patriarchy and many of the other oppressive systems that were born out of colonialism & US Imperialism.
By recognizing, learning about, investing in, and intentionally wielding our collective cultural power, we can challenge the systems that harm our communities, and sharpen our ability to self-govern in a way that promotes interdependence and care.
Narrative Power
Our stories for our futures
We have the power and responsibility to affect narratives about specific issues that impact us as well as influence a broader worldview. By engaging the lived experiences of our members in our narrative work, we can tell stories that build awareness & solidarity, shift public perception, and inform policies that impact our communities.
To transform our communities away from a culture of white-supremacist capitalist patriarchy & toward a culture of radical care and interdependence, it is imperative to amplify the lived experiences and expertise of those most marginalized by these systems.
Member Power
Our orientation to politics in practice
Our members are active in local, state-wide, and national coalitions that are at the forefront of transforming conditions for working class, immigrant, and communities of color. We prioritize the development of our base membership and member leaders through three important areas: political education, skills training, and participatory, democratic practice.
As our members learn to contextualize their experiences within historical, political, and cultural frameworks, they are better positioned to demand and implement change. Our Asamblea General, annual membership assembly, brings together members from across all three program areas to discuss, debate, and collectively decide the direction of our organization. Member Power is not only an important political pillar of our work, it is our orientation to politics in practice.
The same way we believe our power as individuals is amplified when we come together in collective action, our organizations’ power becomes stronger when we can form networks with varying assets, experiences, and perspectives that are committed to striving toward shared goals.
Movement Power
CPC is part of the following coalitions & alliances
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LA Street Vendor Coalition (local)
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ACT-LA (local)
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Right to the City Alliance (national)
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CA Street Vendor Coalition (state)
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Homes for All California (HFA) (state)