ReWired for Change Founder Sonja Sohn will be on C-SPAN’s Q & A on March 25!

Greetings to all RWFC Supporters and New Friends! 

Thanks so much for your interest and support. We have been moved by the hearts and gratitude of all those we have touched and the graciousness of our partners, since our work began in Baltimore back in 2009. We have come through our first 2 years none the worse for the wear – with smiles on our faces, joy in our hearts and sleeves still rolled up. We may have hit a few bumps along the way – but we are happy with our progress thus far, though far from satisfied with the state of things as they are in the communities we serve.

At ReWired For Change, we work with the community in our efforts to nurture and transform the minds of high-risk youth and the community as a whole. This year, we are focusing much more of our effort on galvanizing the strength in underserved communities by developing ways to empower the many leaders and community residents who are willing to work hard to improve their quality of life with little, no or quickly vanishing resources.

Although we believe policy change is crucial, we know that a community without a strong identity – that has been heavily affected by a legacy of inequality, violence and poverty – cannot successfully transform itself through policy change alone. This year, we will be putting much of our effort into inspiring underserved community members to stand up, demand and work for community healing and transformation in their own backyards. We believe taking personal responsibility for one’s community is an essential tool for lasting, sustainable community change. With your support, we can assist those without access to the tools necessary to facilitate such a shift, in developing the skills needed to access resources and create a change that lasts – regardless of the political climate.

Once again, we appreciate your interest and support and encourage you to invest your time and energy in the most valuable resource on the planet — people. Whether you choose to support our organization or some other — it’s the investment that counts. When one human being is lifted, so are we all — choose to spread the love today!

ReWired for Change is pleased to inform our supporters of our newest endeavor: The Wakeup Call – A National Conversation and Forum for Community Healing and Empowerment. We are developing this exciting new community empowerment and awareness campaign with Baltimore based non-profit, “Why Murder?” The Wake Up Call will be a series of day long workshops and panels that will be presented by Founding Members, Wire cast and social justice experts whose aim is to inspire and support local/regional non-profit social justice organizations in mobilizing their communities to participate in the much needed transformation of underserved communities and the nation as whole. Why Murder?’s Donnie Andrews, otherwise known as “the real Omar,” was inspired to begin this effort by the various presentations he and our Founding Members participated in at Harvard over the last couple years. We are super excited to get this project off the ground during this most important election year. 

We must all participate in the healing and growth of our communities by doing more than voting — the future on our youth and our nation demands that we stop being dictated to and told what is best for us and begin working together on our own creative solutions for improving the quality of life in our neighborhoods and towns. We are looking to work with groups who can assist community residents in identifying issues they care about and finding an avenue through which they can work for policy change and community healing.

Stay tuned for more details as our work on this initiative unfolds!

Watch the news segment, or listen to her entire testimony before the task force here.

ReWired for Change Founder and CEO Sonja Sohn, fellow RWFC founders and cast members from “The Wire”, and two inspirations for this critically acclaimed HBO TV series served on the panel addressing Urban Problems Up-Close and Personal at Harvard’s Advanced Leadership Initiative’s Revitalizing Cities Think Tank, April 28, 2011