Beloved Richmond

By Jeff Ritterman

Together we can build the Beloved Community Dr. King dreamed of right here in Richmond.

"Dr. King's Beloved Community is a global vision in which all people can share in the wealth of the earth. In the Beloved Community poverty, hunger and homelessness will not be tolerated because international standards of human decency will not allow it. Racism and all forms of discrimination, bigotry and prejudice will be replaced by an all inclusive spirit of sisterhood and brotherhood."

It is up to us to begin building the Beloved Community in Richmond. We have the collective intelligence and talent to transform our city into the Beloved Community Dr. King called us all to dream of.

I know from my medical research that long and healthy lives depend most on a healthy environment; both the physical environment and the social environment. When we care about each other and trust each other, we live longer, healthier and happier lives.

Trust increases when wealth and income are shared more equally. This is why people in many developed countries live longer and healthier lives than we do in the U.S. We can increase the length of all of our lives and also increase our happiness by making sure everyone is doing well.

This means we must find ways to lessen the poverty and despair found in many of our neighborhoods. Here is what our Campaign for a Healthier Richmond proposes:

Work to pass Measure T, A Fair Share for Richmond. This upgrade of the manufacturing fee will bring in more than $20 million annually to the city's general fund. Most of this revenue will come from Chevron, a corporation which can easily afford this fee.

Use the funds from Measure T to recruit, train, employ and supervise Richmond's unemployed and underemployed in well-paying jobs which will improve our city such as:

a. Solar installation- RichmondBuild and Solar Richmond are already doing this. We can greatly expand this groundbreaking program. Imagine our homes, offices and businesses all obtaining electricity from the sun. Electricity bills would be lower and we would lessen the threat of global warming; b. Urban agriculture- Food is getting increasingly expensive as the cost of crude oil has risen. The future is uncertain. It would be wise for us to increase our local food supply. We already have people, including children, without adequate nutrition. By increasing our locally grown produce, we can lessen food insecurity, green our city and provide skilled employment to those now without a job.

These are just some of our ideas on how to create the Beloved Community of Dr. Martin Luther King's dream right here in Richmond.

Our campaign does not have all of the answers. The answers lie in the hearts and minds of Richmond's residents. Please join our Campaign for a Healthier Richmond and share your ideas with us. Together, we can make the Richmond Miracle!