Mary Ochs

Mary Ochs

Mary Ochs is a Los Angeles activist.

Background

“My father died when I was very young and my working class family slipped into poverty. When my mother asked for help for my brother people came and searched our house and asked all sorts of personal questions. I got angry and wondered why they assumed we were bad people. My mom’s face often had a look of helplessness and powerlessness. That look propelled me to want to do something. I developed a lot of empathy and rage about injustices especially as the Civil Rights Movement unfolded. Later, I stumbled upon organizing and knew I had found something that really made sense; it helped transform me and others.”

Mary Ochs has worked as a community organizer and founder/executive director of numerous grass roots, social justice organizations. She worked in the field for over 35 years. She first became involved with community organizing when she volunteered on a campaign to organize welfare recipients. In the recent past, Mary worked as a Field Organizer and as Organizing Director for the Center for Community Change (CCC), a national technical assistance organization to grassroots organizations social justice organizations.

While at CCC, Mary directed the campaign for comprehensive immigration reform, created the youth internship program, provided assistance to the National Campaign for Jobs & Income Support and helped many grassroots groups integrate electoral work into their organizing strategies. Prior to the post at the Center, Mary directed the Community Economic Development Program at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles. She launched the Foundation’s “Creating Capable Community Organizations” workshop series. She also provided customized organizational development assistance to hundreds of groups.

Mary has pioneered work that integrates organizing with economic development strategies. Mary left CCC at the end of 2005 in order to devote more time to directly working with grassroots groups and to mentoring newer organizers.

Mary Ochs lives in Los Angeles, CA. Consulting clients include Jobs with Justice (JWJ), 9to5, League of Young Voters, Urban Habitat, Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC), Working Partnerships USA.

RoadMap

Mary Ochs is a consultant with RoadMap, a Freedom Road Socialist Organization affiliated consultancy group .

Now What? Defying Trump and the Left's Way Forward

Now What? Defying Trump and the Left's Way Forward was a phone in webinar organized by Freedom Road Socialist Organization in the wake of the 2016 election.

Now what? We’re all asking ourselves that question in the wake of Trump’s victory. We’ve got urgent strategizing and work to do, together. Join Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson of the Movement for Black Lives and Freedom Road, Calvin Cheung-Miaw, Jodeen Olguin-Taylor of Mijente and WFP, Joe Schwartz of the Democratic Socialists of America, and Sendolo Diaminah of Freedom Road for a discussion of what happened, and what we should be doing to build mass defiance. And above all, how do we build the Left in this, which we know is the only solution to the crises we face?

This event will take place Tuesday November 15, 2016 at 9pm Eastern/8pm Central/6pm Pacific.

Those invited, on Facebook included Mary Ochs.