Supreme Court Rulings & Defending People’s Convention in DC
Katal Members and Staff at the People’s Convention, 7.9.2026
Last week, our members and staff attended Popular Democracy’s Until Freedom Rings People’s Convention outside of Washington, D.C. More than 1,500 organizers, leaders, and members from across the country gathered to learn, connect, and build collective power.
The goal of the convening was to “leave more connected, more prepared, and more determined to bring our neighbors, coworkers, friends, and families into action.” We got to connect with people doing great organizing work across the country. We participated in a Kingian Nonviolence training, election protection, learned new organizing tools to support our work, and more.
Right now, authoritarianism is threatening our democracy with efforts to sabotage our elections and assaults on birthright citizenship.
If you would like to join our efforts to defend democracy and protect the rights of all, please contact Yonah at yonah@katalcenter.org.
Good Trouble March & Rally this Friday, July 17th
Tomorrow, Friday, July 17th at 5:30 pm, we’re joining Hands Off NYC and the New York Immigration Coalition for a Good Trouble March and Rally.
The fight to protect voting rights never ends, and right now, we’re witnessing a Jim-Crow-era effort from politicians and their billionaire friends to restrict our freedoms, silence our voices, and consolidate power.
But in America, we choose our leaders. We will decide our future. The same spirit that fueled Selma, Montgomery, and the March on Washington lives on in our unified action. Here are the details for tomorrow:
- WHEN: 5:30 PM
- WHERE: Foley Square
- WHAT: March over the Brooklyn Bridge, then music in Cadman Plaza
- DEMANDS: Protect the Black vote, defend immigrant communities, free them all
We will rally, march, and end with a celebration of the diversity that makes New York City strong.
If you would like to join us tomorrow for the Good Trouble rally, please contact Yonah at yonah@katalcenter.org.
Shut Rikers Member Meetings
Katal Members, Interns, and Staff at Shut Rikers Meeting, 7.16.26
Last night, we held our monthly Shut Rikers Meeting at our office in downtown Brooklyn. In these meetings, our members come together with their neighbors to build community-based power to shut down the jail complex. We spend time powermapping the Mamdani administration, discussing the receiver’s recent report, and more.
Coming out of this meeting, we’re holding a Shut Rikers Phone Banking session on Thursday, July 30th at noon. We’ll be calling our neighbors to invite them to take action and join the fight.
To attend our next Shut Rikers meeting on Wednesday, August 19th from 6:00 – 7:30 pm, register here.
If you have any questions, please contact Melanie at Melanie@katalcenter.org.
#ShutRikers Canvassing at Libraries and Community Centers
Our interns canvassing libraries and community centers, July 6-9th, 2026
Last week, our interns, Mariamm and Salehmat, from the Social Change Fellows at the LDSJ at CUNY, canvassed libraries and community centers across the Bronx, Brooklyn, and upper Manhattan. They shared information about our Shut Rikers campaign, our upcoming member meeting, and ways community members can join our organizing efforts.
If you would like us to table at your community event, block party, or event this summer, please contact Lakenya at lakenya@katalcenter.org.
Quotes of the Week
“Lean into radical uncertainty, and have a bias toward action despite the information that you don’t know.” – Doran Schrantz, Minnesota organizer
“Our struggle is a struggle to redeem the soul of America. It’s not a struggle that lasts for a few days, a few weeks, a few months, or a few years. It is the struggle of a lifetime, more than one lifetime.” – John Lewis
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Katal develops intergenerational leadership and organizing capacity to build community-based power and win systemic change for equity, health, and justice.
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Email: info@katalcenter.org
Phone: 646.875.8822.