We believe in a broad definition of community that includes community members who are houseless, incarcerated and/or undocumented. When we say “our Community” we are referring to New Britain and the surrounding towns, loosely defined.

We believe in prioritizing care for the most marginalized members of our community. We believe in the equitable distribution of resources to this end.

We believe that decision-making should not be concentrated in the hands of a few. People in positions of power should be actively engaging with community members and ensuring the decision-making process is accessible to all community members.

We believe education in our community goes both ways. Community members must educate and listen to one another.

We believe in holding community members who cause harm to others accountable for their actions.

We believe that white supremacy and systemic racism are deeply imbricated in almost every local, state and federal institution.

We believe that you cannot separate racism from classism and sexism. We believe that eradicating racism also requires us to eradicate sexism, classism, transphobia, homophobia and all other forms of oppression.

We believe that poverty is not a crime or an individual failure. It is the intentional outcome of a system that prioritizes money and profit over human beings. We must invest in our social infrastructure and divest from institutions that criminalize poor people and people of color.