Given that I’ll probably have to move to Blacksburg (I’d say it’s a better than even bet; I’ve gotten no response from my inquiry to UVa admissions sent 14 days ago), I figure that I’d better get cranking on all of the stuff that I wanted to get done on City Council. After all, if I think my ideas are so hot, and I really want them put into place, then I should work to make them happen rather than sit on them for the next two years.
To that end, I’ve decided to take one of my planned campaign schticks and pass it on to Council. Since I ran a year ago, I’ve been thinking about low-cost ways of making Charlottesville a better place. I’ve got ten ideas for $10,000 or less (each), and I even came up with an obnoxious running-for-campaign name, “Ten for Ten.” There are five Council meetings between now and the end of July (well, four, minus tonight’s) and, if I have to move, I imagine it’ll be around August 1st. So if I give two ideas each meeting, that ought to do it. So, here are tonight’s.
Microgrants for Social Change1
I should like to see small grants made available to citizens of Charlottesville for the purpose of effecting social change. These grants should not exceed $100 each, and should be made available to citizens under the age of 21. $100 may not sound like much, but an innovative mind without significant income can make it go a long way. For example, a 14-year-old girl who feels that her neighborhood’s woes are not being adequately addressed by the city or the local media could request $60 to make several hundred photocopies of her own community newsletter. Or a 17-year-old boy who would like to start a neighborhood vegetable garden for his younger peers could request $100 for supplies. These grants should be provided with as little hassle as possible — no paperwork involved — and reviewed and provided on the spot by a thoughtful, accessible administrator. I estimate an annual cost of under $5,000, although that would vary, depending on the program’s success.
Sustaining Grants for Social Change
I should like to see a sizable grant made available once annually for the purpose of sustaining a social activist for a period of weeks or months, such that they could devote themselves wholly to their work in that period. For example, a public housing activist may find that she does not have nearly enough time to dedicate to her work — between working 40 hour weeks and having a family to care for, only a weekend here and a weekend there may be available. She could apply for a grant of $8,000 — the same as two months’ income — to allow her to work on public housing issues full-time for that period. This should require an extensive review and application process. i suggest that the harsh glare of the inevitable media spotlight would be enough to ensure that the receiver of the grant did not waste their time.
1In the interest of giving credit where credit is due, this idea comes from William Upski Wimsatt’s “No More Prisons,” which I read about a year and a half ago.