The Coalition Against Poverty (CAP) is a non-profit, tax-exempt, grassroots organization based in Fall River, New Bedford and Brockton which seeks to seeks to empower and build leadership among low-income women - especially current and former welfare recipients and women of color.  We develop grass-roots leadership in the context of building effective grassroots campaigns to (1) restore state-wide cutbacks in health care, housing and welfare, and (2) provide for the basic economic needs of struggling working families, including health care, housing, welfare and education. 

Since our founding in 1994, we have succeeded in building a vibrant organization deeply rooted in low-income communities in Fall River, New Bedford, and most recently, Brockton.  We have played a leading role in building state-wide campaigns to reduce inequities of welfare reform, increase the minimum wage, prevent demolition of public housing, and stop budget cuts through closing unfair tax loopholes.   On each of these issues, we have shared responsibility for founding and leading state-wide organizations to coordinate these campaigns, as well as mobilizing our base in Fall River and New Bedford. 

In all of our campaigns, we pursue strategies that emphasize grassroots mobilization, recruitment and leadership development.  We do systematic door-to-door outreach in 26 major public and subsidized housing developments in Fall River, New Bedford, and Brockton, involving residents in making phone calls, writing letters or postcards and attending events, and recruiting the most interested residents as volunteers.    

In all of our work, we place a major emphasis in developing our emerging low-income leaders and strengthening our leadership core.  The main qualities and skills we seek to develop in our grass-roots leaders include recruiting and mentoring new volunteers, understanding public policy issues we are working on, meeting with legislators, public speaking, time management, thinking critically, and giving and receiving feedback.  We develop these qualities and skills through a combination of formal training, learning by doing, mentoring, involvement in the ongoing work and providing the instruction, support and feedback needed to do this work.