‘Grass-Roots Tactics in the Drug War’

I commend you on your front page coverage (July 17) regarding “Neighbors Fight Back: Grass-Roots Tactics in the Drug War.” As important as it is to report the national scope of the grass roots fighting back, I would like to point out the local grass-roots efforts that went unmentioned.

Our parish is developing a grass-roots community organization along with 15 other church-based communities in Orange County. On April 13 we received excellent coverage (locally) as 1,200 members gathered at Servite High School to address the mayors of Anaheim and Santa Ana regarding the drug epidemic in our communities and to ask them to implement the landlord law which expropriates property from landlords who permit illegal drug trafficking on their properties.

Both mayors agreed to do so and the Santa Ana police are now actively engaged in investigations of addresses given to the Santa Ana chief of police at a meeting held at our parish hall on June 21. All this has been the result of an eight-month anti-drug campaign led by the PICO (Pacific Institute of Community Organizing)-trained grass-roots leaders of the 15 member church-based organizations, Orange County Congregations Community Organization.

The article noted the actions taken by Oakland, which is also a church-based organization in the PICO family of organizations and which, along with San Jose and San Diego church-based organizations, has taken successful action to implement the landlord law as part of citywide anti-drug campaigns which addressed law enforcement, prevention programs and treatment, especially for juveniles.

It is to the credit of PICO-organized communities that such a relationship is in the offing and that rather than depend on isolated dramatic gestures that captivate the media, the communities are patiently doing their homework.

Our people are determined to restore a higher quality of life for everyone because they, as those cited in your article, are tired of the powerlessness, the isolation and the hopelessness in neighborhoods across the country.

In Orange County the “Grass-Roots Tactics of Neighbors Fighting Back” are alive and well. Ask anyone who has been involved how it feels to be a part of something that is succeeding because there is unity, discipline and hard work.

SR. M. CARMEN SARATI, CSJ

Staff Member,

St. Joseph Parish

Santa Ana