PAULEY, FRANCES FREEBORN, 1905-2003.
Frances Freeborn Pauley papers > Georgia Poverty Rights Organization records > Allied organizations files

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Scope and Content Note

The effectiveness of the Georgia Poverty Rights Organization (GPRO) could be attributed in no small measure to Ms. Pauley's skill in coordinating the work of GPRO with that of other community action organizations across the state such as Christians Against Hunger in Georgia (CAHIG), Emmaus House, Public Assistance Coalition, and the Georgia Citizens Coalition on Hunger (GCCH). This subseries documents the activities of a number of these non-profit service organizations whose interests and goals paralleled those of GPR Frances Pauley served on the Board of Directors for many of these groups.

Other organizations represented in the Allied Organizations series are the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Georgia Homeless Resource Network, Georgia Interchurch Association, Georgia Rural Hunger Project, Georgia Statewide Coalition on Hunger and Homelessness (which merged with GCCH), Georgians Against Hunger (which became CAHIG), Governor's Homeless Study Commission, and Metro Fair Housing Services.

Frances Pauley's association with the ACLU spans some thirty years, beginning in the early sixties. Box 67 of this subseries includes materials dating primarily to her years of service as a board member from ca. 1973 until 1986 and includes minutes, reports of meetings and committees, information on conferences, policy statements, and clippings. Box 67, folder 10 contains a telephone survey which Pauley conducted for the ACLU as part of its litigation in the Atlanta school desegregation case. For related material, see boxes 22, 23, and 24 of the HEW series. See also box 63 of the Georgia Politics series for information concerning the ACLU and Georgia's sunshine laws.

Christians Against Hunger in Georgia (CAHIG), formerly Georgians Against Hunger, was formed in 1978 as a non-profit statewide organization of church leaders and members seeking to promote social welfare and to draw attention to the state's hunger problem. CAHIG, comprised of church leaders and lay members, worked to establish a statewide network to inform the religious community of public assistance issues, particularly in regards to the AFDC program. The group published a monthly newsletter, presented programs on the hunger problem to various other groups, participated in public hearings, and kept its membership abreast of current issues in the legislature. Together with the PAC and GPRO, CAHIG sponsored a program called Poor People's Day at the Capitol, an effort to bring poor people in to Atlanta to meet and talk with legislators about issues affecting them. CAHIG disbanded in December 1988, turning its activities over to the PAC.

Emmaus House, a social action community center in southwest Atlanta, was established in 1967 by the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta. In August 1970, a Poverty Rights Office (PRO) was formed by the Director of Emmaus House, Father Austin Ford, and volunteers at the center with the assistance of the Georgia Council on Human Relations and Frances Pauley. Welfare recipients were encouraged to contact volunteers at the office for information concerning welfare rights and services. Also, in 1970, the PRO office began printing a monthly newspaper called "The Poor People's Newspaper" which was mailed to welfare recipients free of charge to keep them abreast of the latest developments in housing, employment, and welfare benefits. Issues for the years 1970 through 1987 are to be found in box 70. For related materials on welfare, see subseries 8.3 of GPRO.

There is additional information in this subseries concerning the various activities Emmaus House sponsored for the years 1967-1987, including the Educational Council of Concerned Parents, Tenants United for Fairness (TUFF), and a children's program. The Concerned Parents group was organized in 1974 in response to the integration of the Atlanta Public Schools via court ordered busing. The meetings allowed parents a forum for discussing problems associated with their children and busing. TUFF was formed in 1969 as a type of union through which tenants of the public housing projects could voice grievances to the Atlanta Housing Authority.

The Emmaus House children's program formed a vital component of the work the center performed in the community. During the school year, children from ages 5 to 15 participated in after school and weekend educational and social programs as well as outings to art exhibits, concerts, and plays. These activities were expanded in the summer for an eight week full day program with morning classes and afternoon recreation. Special emphasis was placed on reading skills, African American culture, and political awareness.

In addition to her volunteer work as a welfare counselor at PRO, Pauley played a key role in raising funds for the various programs, and the newspaper, contacting individuals, churches, and foundations for financial assistance. These files include correspondence, minutes, reports, mailngs, and publications produced by the neighborhood center.

The Georgia Citizens' Coalition on Hunger (GCCH) was organized in 1974 to combat hunger and malnutrition in the state of Georgia. The primary objective was to strengthen and expand federal and state food programs so that more eligible people would be able to participate and the quality of the programs would be improved. The work of the Coalition involved outreach and community education with the Food Stamp Program, the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), the School Breakfast Program, and the Child Care Food Program (CCFP). The Coalition initiated a statewide food stamp outreach campaign from 1975 to 1976 to promote participation in the program. As part of this campaign, the Coalition operated a food stamp telephone hotline, involved the media in advertising the program, published a newsletter "Bread N' Better," canvassed neighborhoods, and made presentations to community groups. The Coalition organized the Georgia WIC campaign which increased the number of women and children receiving WIC using volunteer outreach. In 1976, the Coalition formed the Atlanta School Breakfast Committee to increase participation of Atlanta schools in the breakfast program. The Coalition established itself as a sponsor for family day care homes, assisting them in meeting state licensing requirements so that they could be subsidized by CCFP. These files include correspondence, meeting minutes, brochures, and administrative records dating primarily from 1974 to 1979 when Frances Pauley served on the Board of Directors as GPRO's representative.

The Public Assistance Coalition (PAC) was formed in 1978 to allow various groups throughout the state share information and plan strategy toward improving public assistance without losing their separate and unique group identities. The organization's membership included the ACLU, Christians Against Hunger in Georgia, Emmaus House, Georgia Citizens Coalition on Hunger and GPRO. As GPRO's representative, Frances Pauley served on the board as secretary treasurer. Like CAHIG, the Public Assistance Coalition focused its efforts initially on increasing benefit levels for the AFDC program, but later campaigned to increase appropriations for food stamps, Medicaid, social security, and emergency fuel assistance. The Coalition worked to disseminate accurate information about public assistance to its members, legislators, AFDC recipients, and the general public through press releases, brochures, public service announcements, speaker presentations, public meetings, workshops, and newsletters. The PAC was also involved in coordinating the Poor People's Day at the Capitol program. For related materials concerning Poor People's Day, see box 68.