Kentuckians For The Commonwealth

Kentuckians For The Commonwealth
is a community of people, inspired by
a Vision, building New Power and
a better future for all of us. Together,
we organize for a fair economy, a
healthy environment, new safe energy
and an honest democracy. Join us.

We are Kentuckians: Meta Mendel-Reyes

Meta Mendel-Reyes is an Associate Professor of Peace and Social Justice Studies and General Studies at Berea College and a member of KFTC’s Steering Committee. She has been instrumental in racial justice work at KFTC and across the country and in fairness organizing in Berea.

How did you get involved with KFTC?

I have been a member almost since I moved down here, which would be 15 years ago, but I wasn’t very active until the last three or four years. I was focused on my job. Focused on issues on campus around discrimination, including discrimination around sexual orientation. I had been an organizer and began to miss being a part of the community. Organizing was how I really saw how people getting together could solve their problems.

I thought all the issues were really important, but when we started the fight for a fairness ordinance here in Berea, that’s when I got more involved. And I got involved partly because of the issue, but I also got involved because our chapter and organizer were just so good. Everybody had a voice. It just reminded me of why it was so important for people to be members, and active members, of organizations like KFTC.

Recent news from our blog

Which side?

Dear KFTC Friends, Family, and Community,

This will be my last month on the KFTC Staff.  This won’t be news to most of you – I announced my decision to the Steering Committee twenty months ago, and we’ve reported it in various ways all year.  But I wanted to take this opportunity to share a few reflections and appreciation before I step out.

On Friday night, to help kick off our annual meeting, a few of you organized a virtual celebration of KFTC, Jenny, and me that a couple months ago I had first tried to discourage, then accepted as inevitable, and now will cherish for the rest of my life.  The evening was filled with loving faces, kind words, photos, videos, original songs, much laughter Read more

Political education series applies abolitionist perspectives

Rooted in police and prison abolitionist ideas, webinars cultivate collective imagination …

Justice for Breonna Taylor: Amplifying and learning from the Louisville uprising

Racial justice uprisings, combined with a pandemic and elections, offer important lessons.

KFTC helped make an animated series premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival!

KFTC was part of a storytellers and organizers team who created MINE, an animated web series

KFTC Live: conversations among members working on the front lines

KFTC Live centers women/ Trans/ Femme and voices of color in the work of KFTC members …

Voting Rights work moves beyond legislature to field work

Strategy team sees need and opportunity to reach many more potential voters in 2021.

Exec Committee members reflect on organizational change

We're digging deep into our Organizational Change to create the organization we aspire to be.