Cunningham, James V.

Jim Cunningham was born in Chicago where he did political and neighborhood development organizing in the 1950s, before moving to Pittsburgh whose neighborhood people were in 1959 beginning to participate in the city's renewal effort. As an organizer for ACTION-Housing he assisted neighborhood people to build organizations that gave them a voice in decisions which affected their lives. Pittsburgh issues then as now were race, jobs and who makes the public decisions that impact on families and small communities. After working for seven years with residents and their allies he began to teach comm...