Who We Are

ITR is a multiracial, multicultural, intergenerational alliance of alliances representing over 200 organizations and affiliates in over 50 states, provinces, territories and Native lands on Turtle Island; and is led by women, gender non-conforming people, people of color, Black and Indigenous Peoples. It is an outcome of years of organizing and relationship building across the membership of Climate Justice Alliance, Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, Indigenous Environmental Network and Right to the City Alliance. Our four alliances are led by communities on the frontlines fighting for racial, housing and climate justice, and Indigenous sovereignty.

Our work centers the leadership and power of frontline communities—especially women, gender non-conforming people, Indigenous Peoples, and Black, Latinx, Asian, Arab, Immigrant and Muslim communities. We support cross-alliance member convenings; show up in rapid response at strategic direct actions; develop narrative power through aligning many voices in support of struggles across issues; and elevate the leadership of the radical grassroots organizing sector in United Front spaces in order to build the Bigger We.

Our Principles

  • Rooted in frontline community wisdom, place-based solutions, translocal organizing and deep democracy;
  • Toward regenerative economies and healthy communities driven by the inherent rights of Nature—Mother Earth, grassroots feminism, and political transformation;
  • Against the violence of the extractive economy, colonization, white supremacy and patriarchy.

The communities represented by the It Takes Roots alliances—often near toxic, polluting industries such as oil refineries, fracking wells, coal mines, power plants, and pipelines; rails, ports, and other major transportation corridors; landfills and incinerators; and industrial agriculture—are experimenting with broader strategies to defend the earth, build place-based power, and advance transition toward healthy, just, regenerative economies and communities.

Our Sister Alliances

IEN brings a strong framework of environmental justice, indigenous sovereignty and treaty rights.

 

 

CJA brings strategies for a Just Transition and reinvestment to a regenerative economy.

 

RTTC brings deep experience in housing & land rights and in coordinating translocal actions

 

GGJ brings connections with global movements and grassroots feminism and gender justice.

Our Collective Membership

Check out this interactive map to see which member organizations are in your region (note: we are still adding organizations & affiliates to the map):

Our History

The It Takes Roots collaboration between grassroots social movements began during the organizing for the Peoples Climate March in 2014, and continued through international climate justice mobilizations to Paris COP21 and Morocco COP22, as well as a People’s Caravan during the 2016 elections from the Republican National Convention to the Democratic National Convention, the Inauguration of Trump in 2017 and the Global Climate Action Summit in 2018.

Strategic Interventions

In January of 2020, It Takes Roots held its first leadership council in Phoenix, where ITR member leaders pushed the alliance to orient towards engaging with the Green New Deal as the main point of ITR’s intervention, as well as supporting the formation of a Black Leadership Caucus and developing a joint organizing school in the future.

The Current Moment

At the start of the COVID pandemic, ITR held an all-member virtual convening where we fleshed out our commitment to the Green New Deal work, building political alignment, inter-alliance connection, as well as defining our work around renewed #CancelRent initiatives, the upcoming elections and the People’s Bailout. With in-person mobilizing limited, ITR supported member- and ally-led actions around Juneteenth in the midst of the historic Black uprising and pivoted to scenario planning in a Disrupt and Defend framework around the elections and the defeat of neo-fascism. Frontline communities – including ITR members – were crucial in the Left constellation to score one defeat of neo-fascism at the polls.

Now is a time to build the cross-sector alignment, progressive unity, and strong base of community support that is needed to shift power, build our organizations, gather popular momentum and confront the challenges of the foreseeable future. Our members are leaning into their strength and long time experience of grassroots organizing and base-building to build up our community power.