Oral Histories

Mariana Davenport

   October 15, 2023

   

Field Organizer, Columbus, 1981-1983; Field Organizer and Head Organizer, Pittsburgh, 1983-1987; ACORN Schools Office Liaison, Brooklyn, 1997-2010

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1. October 15, 2023 Interviewed by Cate Poe
2. October 15, 2023 Interviewed by Cate Poe

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Mariana Davenport joined the staff of Ohio ACORN in 1981, having been recruited by Cate Poe (who conducted this interview). The heart of her interview is about ACORN´s Pittsburgh, PA City Council re-districting campaign, a broad alliance with both legislative and electoral components. In addition, Davenport describes her initial experiences as a neighborhood organizer in Columbus Ohio — doorknocking, her arrest on ACORN´s homesteading campaign, and her participation in Washington DC and Ohio tent cities. She also mentions her subsequent experience running New York ACORN´s Schools Office, the shutdown of ACORN, and her return to New York Communities for Change (NYCC), for which she still works.