Families in Anaheim will have more affordable housing, thanks to an eight-year campaign by parents in two congregations working with the Orange County Congregation Community Organization (OCCCO).

When congregation members talked with other community residents, “we discovered many kids don’t have a place to do homework because there are two or three families in one apartment. But kids who have a place to do homework can achieve better in school,” says Anaheim father and long-time OCCCO member, Freddy Hernández. So residents successfully campaigned for Anaheim to commit to building more affordable housing.

Broad coalition: The two congregations—St. Boniface and Antonio de Padua Catholic Churches—reached out to Muslim, Unitarian, and Catholic congregations. “Faith traditions can work together [for] social justice,” says Hernández. “Our priority is our kids.” OCCCO also wrote a report with the Kennedy Commission, a housing policy group. The campaign worked with other organizations concerned about community development.

Meetings with officials: ‘We met with anyone who had to do with housing,” says OCCCO Community Organizer Kerry Gallagher—including city council members and staff at redevelopment and affordable housing agencies. Residents led meetings; OCCCO provided an organizer, transportation, and added credibility.

Voices from the community: “Everybody deserves a decent place to live,” says Anaheim mother Maria Mejia. She testified at a city council meeting about living in a  garage as a teenager and now struggling with housing in a mobile home park. Members delivered 1700 cards and a petition calling for more affordable housing to the city council, recalls Gallagher.

Shared vision: “City council members felt [OCCCO was] saying they weren’t doing a good job,” says Gallagher. “So we found ways to affirm them: ‘We appreciate all you’ve done for Anaheim, now let’s [work on affordable housing],’ and ‘We all have the same vision to make Anaheim a better place.’”

Affordable housing works: Campaign members found neighborhoods with affordable housing were safer for families. They compared the number of police calls over two weeks in an affordable neighborhood to one with slum housing. “It was nine [calls] versus 126!” adds Gallagher.

Community forum: Residents invited council members to address the community at a large forum, held after Mass at one of the congregations. People shared how affordable housing would help them be more successful.

More confidence: “It’s hard to talk about your personal life,” says Mejia. But she spoke out because the campaign “benefits other people. [And] now I can say I’m not too afraid to speak in public.”

Success—and continuing challenges: In October, the city unanimously passed a five-year plan to build more affordable housing. “OCCCO’s ability to mobilize the community was what really changed the atmosphere around affordable housing,” says Anaheim City Councilor Lorri Galloway.

But the state is raiding redevelopment funds to help cover the budget deficit, so the city will have to scale down the plan, says Galloway. The city is also getting “pushback” from people who don’t want affordable housing built in their neighborhood, says Gallagher.

For more information, contact OCCCO, 714-491-0771