IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS OR WOULD LIKE TO RSVP:

Please call our office at 803-708-9097 or email us at morejusticecolumbia@gmail.com

WHAT TO EXPECT AT THE NEHEMIAH ACTION:

By committing to be present, you publicly demonstrate your concern for these problems. We ask that you arrive no later than 6:00 PM. When you arrive, please find a volunteer and check-in at the public official table because you will have an assigned seat. 

Please note that due to the full agenda we have that evening, we have a specific format very similar to Council’s public meetings. We ask that you respond to the question with a clear "Yes" or "No". You will then have the opportunity to explain your answer and our spokesperson for the evening will ask follow up questions for clarification. 

So often decisions that impact all of us, especially those of us who are most affected, are made by only a few people behind closed doors. At the Nehemiah Action, we open these conversations to the public to allow EVERYONE to have a seat at the table. This is democracy in action. 

To our leaders in the Midlands:

We hope this finds you well. We remind you that MORE Justice's annual Nehemiah Action Assembly is TWO WEEKS AWAY on Monday, April 27, 2026 at 6:00 PM at the Pastides Alumni Center (900 Senate Street). 

MORE Justice is a group of 25+ congregations who are diverse geographically, socioeconomically, racially, and in faith tradition. As the faith community, we are already involved in work to improve the lives of those in the Midlands. Food pantries, rental assistance, and helping people with emergent needs has been part of our call for many years. In addition, we have chosen to live out our faith call to address the root of the problems–systems that often perpetuate unfairness–together under the umbrella of MORE Justice. These members include your constituents who you represent and those who elect our local leaders into office. 

Our method for addressing these root systems is Direct Action: publicly addressing the tension that our community experiences. At the Nehemiah Action, hundreds of members of the greater Columbia area will gather in-person to share stories, present research on community problems, and take action on specific solutions to these issues. This year the primary focus areas that our members voted to prioritize are food insecurity and the affordable housing crisis (both locally and statewide).

 To be as transparent as possible, our program will list the public officials who met with MORE Justice as part of our research process, those who committed to attend the Nehemiah Action, and those who did not commit to attend. During the program, we will recognize all public officials present for prioritizing hearing directly from constituents about the problems that impact us most.