At one point in his life, Andrew Olivas weighed 412 pounds. His journey to physical fitness began when his father became severely ill. His dad was diagnosed with an abscess in the brain, and the left side of his body was paralyzed. Andrew’s parents divorced when he was three years old. He decided he was…
Maria Rojas stood on the sidewalk, hugging her three children, Rudy, 20, Steven, 17, and Stephanie, 16, as tears streamed down her cheeks. “They are tears of joy,” she said. After a long and arduous journey, Maria’s unwavering determination finally bore fruit. She received her United States residency card, a testament to her resilience and…
By Julie Jung, Operations and Finance Director At Inclusive Action, we’re proud to have a diverse and inclusive team. For us, this means our board and staff reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and share cultural experiences with community members to ensure our services meet their needs. For example, our team is nearly…
By Nicole Anand, Deputy Director A Seat at the Table is a Learning Journey September marked one year of service on the US Treasury Committee for Racial Equity (TACRE) in my two-year term. This seat at the table gives economic justice advocates and community lenders, like us at Inclusive Action, the opportunity to advocate for…
By Chih Wei Hsu, Research Associate Suehiro, a restaurant and community hub in Little Tokyo, was forced out of a Los Angeles neighborhood after 50 years of service. Suehiro is not alone. Super Pan, a Mexican bakery in Virgil Village, said goodbye to its customers after 20 years of baking delicious sweet bread. If you…
By Estefanía Lopez Perez, Senior Policy Associate Yumabeli, a street vendor, shares a public comment at the Kenneth Hall of Administration on January 30th, 2024. Inside the Kenneth Hall of Administration on January 30, a group of over 50 street vendors sat across the Board of Supervisors to participate in the public hearing on a…
By Chih-Wei Hsu, research associate What would it mean for a society if community members collectively owned real estate instead of individuals owning land? Empowerment. Self-Determination. Racial and economic justice. Equity. That is what community-owned land would achieve. The National Equitable Recovery Alliance, known as NERA, held the first webinar on community ownership and stewardship…
By Sharon Senko, Underwriting and Technical Assistance Associate Taraneh Lipscomb felt that she just existed and did not live. “I was tired of trading my time for money,” she told me. Taraneh worked as a mental health therapist for many years, and she burned out when the COVID pandemic took over our lives. But the…
By Andrea Avila, Acting Lending Director & Maribel Garcia, Lending Director Inclusive Action began its microlending journey in 2016 after repeatedly hearing from street vendors that they had no access to affordable capital. Street vendors had their equipment confiscated or stolen, and faced financial challenges when trying to replace their equipment. It was then that…
By Luis Moran, Technical Assistant I started the year like I ended in 2023: talking to small businesses about opportunities and challenges. My first appointment was with an entrepreneur named Oscar, who told a story of a catastrophe that fell upon his business last month. For Oscar, the I-10 freeway fire in Los Angeles was…