All Resources
Blog
Alabama Arise Action 2021 annual meeting
The Arise policy and campaign teams gave updates on criminal justice reform, voting rights, Medicaid expansion and other issue priorities during Alabama Arise Action's annual meeting last week. Sen. Kirk Hatcher, D-Montgomery, also called in to provide insight from the legislative side of the 2021 regular session. (Note: The video captions were generated live during [...]
Blog
Needed changes still possible as Alabama Legislature’s 2021 regular session winds down
The Alabama Legislature’s 2021 regular session has been a difficult one, to say the least. Public access remains limited, and lawmakers have advanced some of the most damaging bills in years. And many legislators have forced attention onto high-profile, controversial bills to foment conflict and remove focus from priorities that would benefit all Alabamians. But [...]
Blog
Arise legislative recap: April 19, 2021
We take a break from our usual legislative coverage this week as Arise's Pres Harris (and her nephew!) bring you all the details you need for the Alabama Arise Action spring membership meeting this Thursday. You can find more information and register at alariseaction.org.
Personal Stories
‘It’s time for someone to stick up for us’: Walker County’s need for Medicaid expansion
[caption id="attachment_5522" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Rev. Robin Hinkle is the rector at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Jasper. Her ministry has greatly scaled up food assistance to the community to help ease financial suffering during the COVID-19 recession. (Photo courtesy of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church)[/caption] Walker County has gained notoriety in recent years as one of [...]
Blog
You give me hope for a brighter future in Alabama: A farewell column from Brenda Boman, former Arise development director
[caption id="attachment_5486" align="alignleft" width="290"] Brenda Boman retired in January after 16 years as Alabama Arise's development director. We're grateful for her hard work to build our membership and strengthen our movement for change.[/caption] When I joined the Alabama Arise staff 16 years ago as its development director, I came to this work with little to [...]
Blog
Money matters: Budgets top priority for session; lawmakers also discussing Medicaid expansion, criminal justice reform, voting rights this year
As the Alabama Legislature approaches the 2021 regular session's final days, both state budgets are halfway to passage. The Education Trust Fund (ETF) budget has passed in the Senate and is in the House’s education budget committee. The General Fund (GF) budget, which funds all non-education services, has cleared the House and awaits Senate committee [...]
Blog
American Rescue Plan Act offers path to recovery
As vaccinations continue across Alabama, COVID-19’s viselike grip on our lives is loosening. The pandemic has caused immense physical, emotional and economic suffering, and those aftereffects will not fade quickly. But the American Rescue Plan Act – the federal relief package that President Joe Biden signed March 11 – includes many important policies to begin [...]
Blog
Arise legislative recap: April 10, 2021
Arise's Carol Gundlach provides an update on the lottery and medical marijuana bills moving through the Alabama Legislature and discusses how they could shape the policy landscape for Medicaid expansion and the grocery tax as the 2021 regular session nears its final days. (Correction: The lottery and medical marijuana bill debates were on Wednesday, not [...]
Blog
A healthier Alabama is just over the horizon
I am thrilled to report that Alabama is closer to expanding Medicaid today than we’ve ever been before! Thanks to your strong advocacy, our leaders are beginning to see the connections between the COVID-19 pandemic and unequal access to health care. They’re facing the fact that rural communities, primary care providers and everyday Alabamians are [...]
Newsletter
April 2021 newsletter
American Rescue Plan Act offers path to recovery By Chris Sanders, communications director As vaccinations continue across Alabama, COVID-19’s viselike grip on our lives is loosening. The pandemic has caused immense physical, emotional and economic suffering, and those aftereffects will not fade quickly. But the American Rescue Plan Act – the federal relief package that [...]