NOVAS organized and hosted a free, community-centered training on narrative change with Opportunity Agenda—a national a social justice communication lab. Community members learned how to use values, affirmative stories, and a solutions-oriented approach to shift the narrative around the criminal legal system. Every story and experience is vital as we work together to end mass incarceration.

NOVAS hired local barber and artist Ronnie Dents to oversee the design and installation of community chalkboards in seven locations around the city. We used grant money to pay Black-owned local businesses suffering from pandemic losses to host the boards and grassroots community groups to monitor the boards for hate speech, as well as chalk and supplies. All came together to amplify the diversity of our voices in response to the question of “what makes me feel safe?”

With so much attention focused on the District Attorney race in the fall of 2020, NOVAS recognized a lack of information and attention on the judicial races. We organized and hosted a virtual town hall series, giving judicial candidates an opportunity to answer questions about their platforms and allowing residents to educate themselves on the candidates before voting. We brought in diverse moderators from local community-based organizations and media outlets, and produced the virtual events alongside nine organization co-sponsors.