Tami Lunan is the Caring Economy Organizing Director at Ohio Organizing Collaborative.

She is a Jamaican-born, NYC-raised Cincinnatian with nearly a decade of experience in public policy, movement and community building, and LGBTQ+ and racial justice issues. She’s passionate about building political power in underserved communities.

Tami, you’re such a powerhouse organizer. Can you talk about what organizing means to you and why you do it?

Organizing gives us the ability to dismantle systems that regulate our lives. It means that every day people like a child care provider in a low-income neighborhood can build the power to reshape an industry that has consistently said you are not enough. We get to quiet the white noise distracting us from the things that matter to us.

Love that. Why do you organize around child care? Why should people care about it?

Early childhood education is the foundation of all education. When all children regardless of zip code have access to the same high quality foundation we, in turn, will have a better society. We can either pay for it now, or on the back end.

How has the Ohio Organizing Collaborative worked to build power effectively?

At the OOC we are building power by empowering those most affected by these issues. First, we learn about their experiences as experts on the issue of child care and then develop their leadership so they are able to lead the fights we are in today and the fights to come in the future. At the core of it, there is the understanding that what’s being experienced is intentional and that there is someone responsible. Inherently, we have the power. We have always had the power to change it when we work together. 

Learn more about the Ohio Organizing Collaborative and their work to build a child care system that works for Ohio child care providers, families, and kids by visiting ohorganizing.org.