“What Can We Do?”

After the heartbreaking 2016 election, residents of Maplewood, South Orange, and neighboring communities were searching for answers to that question.

Eight years later, SOMA Action still has your back.

 

A few dozen people came together to create SOMA Action, looking for ways to channel our communities’ concern into effective action.

Since then, we’ve become a force for progressive change in SOMA and across New Jersey.

 

Explore below to learn more about SOMA Action’s approach, leadership, and accomplishments.

About Our Work

Learn about how we drive progressive change

Board of Trustees

Meet our Executive Committee and Trustees

What We’ve Done

Read about a few of our key accomplishments

2020 Year in Review

A look back at highlights of this historic year

 About Our Work

SOMA Action’s mission is to drive progressive change. We believe change will happen through:

  • Changing structures to open democracy for all

  • Creating a just and equitable society and government at all levels

  • Motivating climate justice

  • Building a more educated, informed and politically active community

Our work is focused in three areas:

  • We educate and inform the following communities:

    SOMA Action Trustees, Committee Chairs and members

    Residents of South Orange, Maplewood and surrounding communities

    Elected and appointed officials and candidates for office

  • We mobilize community members to advocate for progressive change through:

    Organizing and attending protests

    Calling and writing elected officials

    Holding educational events

    Creating and supporting programs

    Amplifying actions of ally groups

  • We push for more progressive representation at every level of government through:

    Making the voting process more fair and accessible

    GOTV efforts

    Voter guides

    Endorsing of candidates

    Holding elected officials accountable

Board of Trustees

 

SOMA Action Trustee Meeting, January 2021

Executive Committee

Erika Malinoski  Co-President

Allison Posner  Co-President

Teddy Ames  Treasurer

Tara Mallon   Secretary

Stanley Varon At Large

Barbara Velazquez At Large

Kyle Younger At Large

Trustees

Sean Bailey

Natalie Cox Crandall

Lisa Davis

Jeremy Dobrish

Laura Farmer

Joann Gaughran

Holly Gauthier

Amy Higer

Jessica James

Karen Kanan Corrêa

Stephanie Lawson-Muhammad

Becky Morrison

Ritu Pancholy

Geneva Paul

What We’ve Done

Some examples of SOMA Action’s key activities and accomplishments:

  • Issued candidate questionnaires and voter guides for municipal, state legislature, congressional and Board of Education elections

  • Sponsored roundtable discussions for municipal elections in which candidates meet in small groups with residents

  • Briefed Essex County Freeholders on voting machine technology, leading to the county’s purchase of hand-written paper ballots with optical scanners

  • Worked with other progressive groups to end the “County Line” ballot design and implement fair, office block ballots that don’t unfairly advantage party endorsed candidates.

  • Helped defeat multiple fossil fuel projects, including proposed pipelines through the Pinelands and Raritan Bay, as part of the EmpowerNJ coalition

  • Led the effort to help South Orange become a Sanctuary Town and worked with Maplewood police on shaping similar immigrant-friendly policies

  • Organized hundreds of volunteers to canvass in nearby Congressional races and State Legislature races

  • Organized numerous rallies and marches including a sister march of the DC March for Racial Justice, a “Stop the Bans” rally against abortion bans, “Tesla Takedown” protests, and a “Hands Off!” march opposing Donald Trump and Elon Musk.

  • Stood up against violent acts of Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, organizing vigils in solidarity with victims of the Pittsburgh and New Zealand shootings

  • Marched against the Essex County’s contract with ICE, and sent dozens of members to speak against the contract at Freeholders meetings