99Rise was a program that was incubated and birthed from the Center for the Working Poor. At first, as a baby, it was very dependent on the Center for the Working Poor, Paul Engler, as it primary organizer. In the … Continue reading
The Center for the Working Poor, (aka the Burning Bush Community), continues to share in the wonderful mix of serving the poor, communal living, prayer and meditation, and nonviolent movement organizing that distinguishes our beautiful home. In addition to delivering … Continue reading
On a crisp October morning, a group of high school students taped one dollar bills over their mouths as they approached the Lower Manhattan offices of JP Morgan Chase. Danielle Raskin, a 17-year-old senior at Eleanor Roosevelt High, was among … Continue reading
By Isabelle Nastasia The impact of the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision Citizens United v. the Federal Election Commission allowing unlimited and anonymous campaign spending has been profound and could yet be decisive in this election. With an estimated $9.8 billion … Continue reading
By Andrew Blankstein and Mark Boster Five people affiliated with a group that is demanding banks to be transparent about their campaign contributions to the 2012 presidential candidates were arrested Thursday morning during a protest outside a downtown bank branch, … Continue reading
High school students staged a small sit-in to demand the bank reveal political expenditures BY NATASHA LENNARD The entire 60 floors of JPMorgan Chase’s downtown New York office building were temporarily blocked off Wednesday so that three high-schoolers could be … Continue reading
2020 Center Update: Surrender and Become Attentive
December 17th, 2020
“To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, And a time to die …” — Ecclesiastes 3:1 “Surrender to what is dying, and become attentive to what is emerging.” — … Continue reading
Monasticism, Indigenous Cultures, Burning Man, and/or Kingdom of God?: My trip to Taize.
December 27th, 2019
After being invited to Barcelona, Spain this fall for a chaotic tour of book talks, TV appearances, and radio interviews, I needed a place to recover from all the activity. And one of the greatest realizations of my life has … Continue reading
Are We Cells in a Mystical Body? Center Update 2018
December 24th, 2018
As many of you know, I am a social justice geek. I compulsively read and think about social movements, and have been doing this for a long time, and am now considered a specialist in the field commonly referred to … Continue reading
January 18th, 2018
The election of Trump was like somebody threw a political bomb into the middle of a crowded room. For undocumented people, it meant fear of losing DACA and being deported. For labor unions and the working poor, it meant losing … Continue reading
CENTER UPDATE 2016: STILL OTHER SEEDS FELL ON GOOD SOIL
January 9th, 2017
Many have asked how I am feeling after Trump was elected to President of the US. The largest natural disaster in my lifetime just hit my community. It reminds me of both the day after my father died in my … Continue reading
Plan For the Revolution, But Keep Everyone Washing the Dishes: A New Year’s Update
December 31st, 2014
Dear Friends, I started the Center for the Working Poor in 2006. I donated all my money and my car, and slept on the floor of my shared, cramped apartment with our first full time volunteer, Clayton Perry. We ate … Continue reading
Christmas Update From Paul Engler & The Center
December 17th, 2012
The Center for the Working Poor, (aka the Burning Bush Community), continues to share in the wonderful mix of serving the poor, communal living, prayer and meditation, and nonviolent movement organizing that distinguishes our beautiful home. In addition to delivering … Continue reading
A Moment of Hope for a New Movement: Update from the Center for the Working Poor
December 15th, 2011
By Paul Engler Every once in a while, a rare and special moment comes when you realize that you are doing more than turning out for just another protest. Instead, you realize that you are in the middle of true … Continue reading
