Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP) (Chicago)

The Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP) is a left-of-center community organizing group based in southwestern Chicago, Illinois. As of April 2024, SWOP has 43 member organizations, primarily consisting of schools, health centers, and religious organizations. ¹

SWOP has received funding from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, and the federal government.

Background

The Southwest Organizing Project was established in 1996 to engage in community organizing for five neighborhoods in Chicago: West Elsdon, West Lawn, Gage Park, Chicago Lawn, and Ashburn. The region’s population was predominantly white and Catholic until the early 1990s, when many inhabitants left, and immigrants moved in. Today, the region’s 40,000 residents are over 75% Latino and almost 17% Black, with over half of all households earning less than $50,000 per year. ^{2 3}

According to Southwest Organizing Project, the demographic transition, which was partially encouraged by racism, resulted in a breakdown of social networks that hindered the economic prosperity and safety of the region. Southwest Organizing Project was founded to “challenge the history of structural racism on the southwest side of Chicago.” Because “the responsibility of eradicating structural racism” shouldn’t be fully shouldered by racial minorities, SWOP builds connections across racial, ethnic, and religious communities. The first organization in SWOP’s coalition was the Southwest Catholic Cluster Project. ²

Activity

Digital Equity

The Southwest Organizing Project provides classes to encourage the use of computers and the internet to reduce the “digital divide” between low-income individuals and racial and ethnic minorities, and white and high-income Americans. SWOP’s Affordable Connectivity Program provides financial support to families to pay for internet access. ⁴

Healthcare

SWOP leads the Healthy Chicago Equity Zone campaign and the Southwest System of Care collaborative, both of which facilitate the distribution of government-provided health-care services to local residents. ⁵

Housing

SWOP works with United Power for Action and Justice and Brinshore Development on the Reclaiming Southwest Chicago Campaign to buy, repair, and swap local houses to keep control of the region’s housing in local hands. ⁶

In 2022, SWOP and Palenque LSNA joined a lawsuit by two Chicago residents against Cook County and Country Treasurer Maria Pappas (D). The suit alleges that the county’s annual delinquent tax sale, which auctions off homes that have fallen behind on paying property taxes, violates the civil rights of residents under the federal Fair Housing Act. ⁷

In 2008, SWOP and Action Now (formerly the Chicago chapter of ACORN) successfully supported an ordinance proposed by Chicago Councilor Pat Dowell (D) to raise fees on banks foreclosing on homes, including a requirement to post a $10,000 bond for every vacant home. ⁸

Immigration

SWOP provides information and legal services to immigrants. The New American Initiative finances SWOP’s services that support immigrants in earning their citizenship or applying for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status. ^{9 10}

Police in Schools

In the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, SWOP co-organized a protest with Voices of Youth in Chicago Education, Community Organizing and Family Issues POWER-PAC IL, the Westside Health Authority, the Chicago Freedom School, and the National Association of School Social Workers-IL to advocate for the removal of police officers from public schools. ¹¹

Leadership Development

Twice per year, SWOP provides leadership training seminars to develop local talent to engage in community organizing. ¹²

Leadership

Jeff Bartow has been the executive director of the Southwest Organizing Project since 2002. Earlier, he worked as executive director of the Interfaith Leadership Project of Cicero, Berwyn and Stickney. ¹³

Funding

In 2022, the Southwest Organizing Project earned $15,995,268 in revenue. ¹⁴

In 2022, SWOP received $1 million from the federal government to support its housing purchase and redevelopment efforts. The funding was the result of a bill sponsored by U.S. Representative Jesús “Chuy” Garcia (D-IL). ¹⁵

Since 1998, the Southwest Organizing Project has received 11 grants worth $2,898,500 from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. ¹⁶

SWOP has received funding from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. ¹⁷

Coalitions

The Southwest Organizing Project is a member of the following community organizing coalition groups: Communities Partnering 4 Peace, the Chicago Legal Protection Fund, Equal Voices, the Grassroots Alliance for Police Accountability, Grow Your Own Teachers, Healthy Illinois, Illinois Access to Justice, the Illinois Business Immigration Coalition, the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Protected By Faith, the Southwest Employment Collaborative, and United Power for Action and Justice. ¹⁸