BUILD

06/02/2026

Hundreds of immigrant families across Baltimore have shared the same concerns: fear, uncertainty, and difficulty accessing trusted legal and mental health support.

Rev. Cristina Paglinauan shares why BUILD and our allies are calling on Baltimore City Council to increase funding for the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MIMA) by $1.6 million—for a total budget of $5 million in the city budget.

Baltimore is strongest when every family has the support they need to thrive.

06/02/2026

The work of organizing starts with developing leaders.

Over the last 3 days, BUILD leaders joined leaders from across the region for ’s leadership & organizing training, including a session on congregational development.

Thank you to for hosting us!

05/28/2026

Good coverage of BUILD and our allies' budget ask from last week around immigrant services as it came up in the hearing yesterday for MIMA (Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs). Thank you to all the council members who asked about this important issue and see the need to connect more families to services.

Baltimore City Council members pushed for property tax relief, drilled down on city collections and asked for additional funding to support the city’s immigrants during the first day of budget hearings.

05/28/2026

Last week, BUILD leaders & testified about the importance of increasing resources for immigrant legal & mental health services in the city budget. Today, a team of BUILD leaders attended the budget hearing to see how the city council would address this critical need.

05/27/2026

Check out this post from our partners at Vera Institute of Justice!

05/27/2026

Thank you, Senator Shaneka Henson!

05/26/2026

Today, Maryland took a major step toward justice and second chances.

SB 937 — the Fair Chance Housing Act — has officially been signed into law by . 🎉✊🏠

Over the last few years, BUILD leaders listened to more than 1,000 people in Maryland with a record. We asked them what the biggest barriers were to getting back on their feet. Again and again, the answer came back: housing.

This law strikes a critical blow to that barrier.

We’re grateful to the BUILD leaders and our allies who organized, testified, traveled to Annapolis, shared their stories, and stayed in the fight for the long haul.

Thank you to the legislators, advocates, and partners who made this possible — including , , , , , , — and particularly to , , , , , and more.

The work continues — but today, we celebrate. ❤️

05/21/2026

These past two days, BUILD’s strategy team & staff traveled to NYC to visit our sister organizations — East Brooklyn Congregations, Queens Power, & The Bronx First! Very grateful!

We “went to the roof” to see the impact of sustained organizing over decades in Brooklyn. We heard about the work in Queens to set aside Creedmor as affordable housing. We visited our colleagues in the Bronx to hear about their work to build a new power organization there. We’re returning to Baltimore feeling refreshed and reflecting on our collective work.

05/15/2026

1,200 postcards. 60+ BUILD leaders. One clear message to Baltimore City Council: Invest $5 million in immigrant services.

After listening to hundreds across Baltimore, we heard the same thing again & again: people need support now—especially legal & mental health services.

The need is urgent. The City Council can act. This moment in our city demands it.

05/12/2026

Want to learn more about the importance of organizing in the transformation of Johnston Square? Join Terrell Williams, a former BUILD organizer, virtually as he shares some of his doctoral research on May 18th at 1pm. You can register for the webinar here: https://rwdfoundation-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/drotwnRIS8qCQCBdE7U5dw