Shelter is an essential of life. We recognize the right to shelter as basic to human dignity. The present housing crisis in Marin County effectively limits that right to the well-to-do, excluding from our midst the majority of the people who serve us: those who provide child care and elder care; our teachers and other public service employees; our seniors, our grown children, and young families.

A just society based on mutual respect must not exclude at night those who are part of our common life in the day. We must have housing for those who are a part of the fabric of our lives or our communities will not be sustainable. Therefore, policies protecting open space and agriculture must be paired with policies facilitating smart growth. Environmental protection and economic vitality should not be persued at the expense of social equity and the integrity of our community life.

We call on all the citizens of Marin County to join in this affirmation. United by common value commitments, let us together advocate for housing policies that affirm the ideal of justice. We call on our elected and appointed officials, as general plans for housing and land use are updated, to work with secular and faith communities to address these issues .