What are we going to do about kids growing up in the projects whose lives are in danger every day? What are we going to do about a homeless person who gets off from his job at midnight? What kind of transportation is there for him?”

These are some of the questions Bill Barnes asks himself and voiced aloud to me in a recent interview. He finds his answers and the motivation for his life in several passages of scripture that speak to the responsibility of the people for the quality of life in the cities. Bill and many of the faith people in Nashville are practicing acts of justice by addressing the problems of their city.

Bill was the full-time lead organizer of Tying Nashville Together (TNT), the local affiliate of the National Industrial Area Foundation (NIAF) started six years ago in Nashville. Two years prior to ’93, the preliminary work of recruiting and organizing churches was done. One hundred house meetings were held in member congregations. House meetings discussed and selected priorities for the city. Five research action teams emerged to work on the problems of the elderly, crime, housing, public education, and jobs/transportation.

Currently, 51 churches from ll denominations and neighborhood groups are involved. Christians, Muslims, Jews, and Bahai meet together to share in the healing of God’s creation by addressing the health and needs of the weaker parts of Nashville. They acknowledge that a chain is as strong as its weakest link. The organization is not just concerned with service projects but with making systemic changes. By coming together as one, they are able to present a unique united front from local faith communities.

Education
Seven after-school centers were started in different low-income areas of the city. Each serves 60 neighborhood children between the hours of 3:00 and 6:00pm, the most dangerous time of day, when many children and youth are home alone. There is heavy academic emphasis in these centers. A public education summit built around minimum standards of excellence in all of the schools is planned for the spring.

Justice Centers
Seven neighborhood Justice Centers were started, providing mediation between offenders and victims, working out a system of reconciliation and restitution (and providing training for me-diators). These centers, as well as the after-school programs, are supported and paid for by the Metro Council and are recommended and ratified by the members of TNT. The board and staff continue to work closely with the Council at budget time to see that the programs are maintained or expanded.

Nursing Aides Pay
TNT worked to get improved salaries for nursing aides at Bordeaux Hospital, the city hospital. The fact that the aides are now paid $1800 more per year than before TNT’s intervention, has made Bordeaux the flagship hospital for nursing home aides and their pay in the city.

Other Progress
“Thirty-five thousand households in Nashville are household poor,” Bill continues. A Housing Action Team is forming a housing trust fund for the city that will provide resources for low-income home ownership.

TNT has conducted neigh-borhood audits. Over 100 people walked with clipboards through nine neighborhoods. Their checklist included, “Are sidewalks busted up? How many abandoned and condemned houses/crack houses are in the neighborhood?” They finished the audit with a list of 1100+ items to be fixed.

In a large mass meeting, these items were presented to the department heads of Metro government who pledged to handle them. Three months later, they met again and reported that 1000 items had been fixed and the rest were being worked on. This was verified by TNT teams who inspected the work of each department. Barnes expressed the hope that instead of TNT doing the audits in the future, neighborhood teams will be trained and guided to do their own.

Moving on from Here
Before the last election, research Action Teams created a TNT platform. Members did not back candidates; the platform was the candidate. The present mayor received a perfect score in supporting the platform. Other candidates scored high. Bill is pleased that a good relationship exists between Metro government and TNT. Both were lauded by the media for a good working relationship and good results.

Bill is no longer working full-time for TNT, nor is he the lead organizer. The present organizer and full-time staff person is Angela Cowser (assisted by three staff workers). But Bill continues to recruit more churches, secure committees for next year, and strengthen core teams, so they can carry out functions within their churches. He says, “The future impact of this interfaith organization is unlimited. TNT must continue to address the weak parts of the city for the sake of the whole.”