Social Justice Center opens in Bend

It’s not everyday you see a building shared between unions, non-profits and the private sector, but a new building in Central Oregon is trying to make it happen.

It’s called the Social Justice Center, and it just opened up Friday night at 155 NW Irving Avenue in Bend.

The goal is to create a center that any non-profit can come in and use for free.

The building offers a space for any non-profits in Central Oregon to work from, hold meetings, make copies and also have informal get-togethers.

“If you are a non-profit, a church group, a community organization, and you need a space to have your board meetings, your monthly meetings, your weekly meetings, come use our space for free,” said Yaju Dharmarajah, council representative for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

“We would love to have you be part of this growing coalition,” he said Saturday.

Some of the unions in the building represent state, county and city employees, as well as grocery store employees.

The private sector spaces include attorneys who work on immigration issues.

And the non-profit space includes the Human Dignity Coalition, which works on behalf of the LGBTA community.