Residents deserve credit for investment, too

A Jan. 31 story in The Bee, “Climate Grant Given to Fresno,” states that “the allocation of half of the state’s available Transformative Climate Communities funds to Fresno reflects the Strategic Growth Council’s recognition that portions of the city are among the most economically challenged communities in California.”

Yes, the Strategic Growth Council recognizes the needs of our city, but the council didn’t come to this conclusion on its own. Hundreds of residents in southwest Fresno led the council to this decision. Advocates, residents and youth came together to clarify the history of the City of Fresno and its relationship with southwest Fresno and what we want for our community.

This was a long process that allowed the “elephant in the room” named social and racial injustice, to be at the center of every community engagement with our city officials. The southwest Fresno community has been fighting for reinvestment for years and has longed to be connected to the rest of Fresno.

West Fresno is on the rise, and while we appreciate the vote by the Strategic Growth Council, our neighborhoods will thrive as our voices grow louder and our city officials listen.

This story was originally published February 4, 2018 at 4:03 PM with the headline "Residents deserve credit for investment, too."