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Follow the Money, Close the Floodgates

11/16/2010 Nativegrl77

Renew today
to help close the floodgates!

Fighting for better judges and against the Corporate Court
Undoing Citizens United
Exposing the interests behind the spending

Support the work of People For the American Way today to help take our democracy back for the People.

The story of this past election is one of unprecedented, unrestricted and undisclosed spending by wealthy corporate interests and their shadowy right-wing front groups.

We cannot allow that to be the story of future elections. PFAW is leading the movement to take our democracy back for the people. But we need your help.

Please renew your membership with a donation today to help us make sure there are rules about corporate spending in elections … and that corporations play by them.

Many of the same newly elected members of Congress who have been bought and paid for by corporate interests share an extreme right-wing agenda to roll back decades of progressive gains in civil rights, religious liberty, women’s rights, LGBT equality and more. This is the result of the reckless judicial activism by the Roberts Supreme Court in its 5-4 Citizens United v. FEC ruling, which overturned long-settled campaign finance law.

That decision opened the floodgates for unlimited corporate spending to influence our elections. And it set the foundation for an unholy alliance between far-right Tea Party candidates and powerful corporations that swept a tidal wave of radical Right Wing politicians into office.

Carmen, there is a solution … one that includes undoing Citizens United with a constitutional amendment and changing the balance on the Supreme Court. PFAW is leading the charge on both of those efforts. But the solution begins with passing the DISCLOSE Act, and we have only a limited window of opportunity to do it.

Your renewal will help People For the American Way work with our allies who are still in control of Congress to pass the DISCLOSE ACT.

Americans deserve to know who is behind the mountains of mysterious cash and the often-misleading TV ads that dominate the airwaves in an election year. This election showed that knowing who is behind the spending makes a huge difference. When voters know the agendas behind the messages, they are much more likely to reject them.

The DISCLOSE Act is the first big step in stopping corporations from drowning out the voice of the average voter. We must get it passed and signed into law in the next few weeks, before the Tea Party-dominated Republican majority — the very people who benefited from undisclosed corporate money — takes over the House in January.

Please renew your membership with a contribution right now to help us win this fight.

PFAW has released a series of reports documenting what happened during this election cycle with corporate spending and exposing the sources of the money where we can, and we’ll be issuing a final report within the next few days. We’ve identified the scope of the threat … winning this critical battle on the DISCLOSE Act is the first step toward solving the problem.

Carmen, this is a battle for the soul of our nation and democracy itself, and I need YOU in the fight.

Please renew your membership with People For the American Way now.

Thank you,

Michael Keegan, President

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Tell Congress: Help Jobless Workers Not Millionaires

11/16/2010 Nativegrl77


	Congress: Stand Up for Struggling Women and Families



	Your Members of Congress need to hear that they should extend unemployment benefits and let tax cuts for millionaires expire.

	Call 1-866-606-1189 today!

It’s hard to believe — but Congress is considering cutting taxes for the rich at the same time they discontinue unemployment insurance benefits for the millions of people who are out of work!

The emergency unemployment insurance program expires at the end of November. If Congress fails to extend it, this lifeline will be cut for 2 million workers in December alone. And, because these families won’t have income to spend in their communities to support their families, more jobs will be lost.

Yet, some of the same Members of Congress who are saying that they can’t afford to extend emergency unemployment benefits for another year insist on extending tax breaks for millionaires.

Will you stand up for your neighbor and call your Members of Congress? Calling is easy to do.

Call 1-866-606-1189
Tell the operator who answers the phone the name of your Member of Congress. (Not sure? Look it up here.)
Once you are connected to the office of your Member of Congress, tell the staff person who answers:
- Your name, that you are a constituent from (city, state).
- Stand up for struggling families by extending unemployment benefits for a year and allowing the tax provisions that only benefit the wealthiest two percent of households to expire on schedule.
- Thank you.
Hang up and ask your friends or coworkers to make a call as well. (To reach all three of your Members of Congress, you will have to dial 3 times. Thanks for your support and for making this extra effort.)

The Bush-era tax cuts and recent improvements in tax credits for working families will expire on December 31 unless Congress acts to renew them. Tax breaks for millionaires are also set to expire this year. Congress should extend tax benefits for middle- and lower-income families and not waste $700 billion giving tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans.

We have a limited amount of time to take action. Please take a stand for justice by calling 1-866-606-1189 today.

Thank you for your continued support.

Sincerely,

Joan Entmacher
Vice President, Family Economic Security
National Women’s Law Center

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Free Sex Trafficking Victim Sara Kruzan

11/16/2010 Nativegrl77

November 08 – November 15

TOP ACTIONS THIS WEEK

Help Stop Wage Theft – Workers Should Get the Pay They’ve Earned

by Interfaith Worker Justice

Sign the Petition »

Help the Final Push to Repeal “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” Before Anti-Equality Lawmakers Take Control

by Human Rights Campaign

Sign the Petition »

Tell Boehner: We’re Watching You. Don’t Attack Our Right to Choose.

by NARAL Pro-Choice America

Sign the Petition »

THIS WEEK on CHANGE.ORG

Free Sex Trafficking Victim Sara Kruzan

Plus: Deporting Disabled Children • Police Threaten Rape Victim • Halliburton Fracking Controversy • Fighting Racist Mascots • Recovering from Wrongful Imprisonment

At Change.org, we encounter a lot of stories of tragedy, injustice and triumph. None is more heart-wrenching than the story of Sara Kruzan.

Sara, who was once her elementary school’s student body president, met the man who would become her pimp when she was just 11. After acting as the father figure she never had for two years, he raped Sara at age 13 and trafficked her into the commercial sex trade.

For the next 3 years, from 6pm to 6am, strangers would pay Sara’s pimp to rape her and other adolescent girls he recruited and preyed upon.

Finally, physically and psychologically traumatized, Sara snapped. She shot and killed her pimp.

Her punishment? Life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The sentence was handed down by a judge in 1994 against the recommendation of the California Youth Authority, and before there was much awareness about the violence of child trafficking or an appreciation for the trauma of adolescent sexual and physical abuse.

The sentence was extreme and unjust. And it can now be overturned by one man: California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Governor Schwarzenegger is leaving office at the end of the year, and will soon be considering clemency petitions. In response, there is a grassroots movement building to call on Governor Schwarzenegger to commute Sara’s sentence to time served.

Join the movement to ask Governor Schwarzenegger to free Sara Kruzan now.

Tragically, the sexual exploitation Sara suffered is not unique. But what makes her case especially poignant is not just the injustice of her life sentence, but her response.

Rather than descend in hopelessness, Sara has found redemption in jail and become an inspiration to all those around her. She has graduated from high school, is on her way to completing her college degree, and started the prison’s Committee for Youth to serve as a mentor to younger women. She was recently voted “Woman of the Year” at her prison.

However, without intervention from Governor Schwarzenegger, Sara will likely die in prison.

Don’t let this happen. Sara has more than paid her debt to society with 16 years of incarceration. It’s time to set her free.

Call on Governor Schwarzenegger to free Sara Kruzan now.

For more information on Sara’s case, click here. And for more news and opportunities for action from this week in change, see the summaries from your favorite causes below.

Deporting Disabled Children in IMMIGRANT RIGHTS

Hee Chun Kang’s parents are legal permanent residents who came to the United States when their son was 10. But he and his brother face deportation to Korea because of the snail’s pace of the immigration system: by the time the Kang parents received green cards, their children had turned 21 and aged-out of the family petition. Hee Chun also has Down syndrome, so he needs the support of his family looking after him, something he can’t get in Korea. Taxpayer dollars should not be spent on tearing children in need from their parents. Read more »

Police Threaten Rape Victim in WOMEN’S RIGHTS

A South Carolina woman who reported being raped by a Marion police officer was subject to another assault when the officers who responded to her call threatened to put her in jail if she didn’t recant her story. Instead, they forced her to write the following: “Though I didn’t agree or consent to it (it) was not rape.” Non-consensual sex is rape – there’s no getting around it. And while the accused rapist has thankfully been sent on leave, the two officers who threatened to throw the victim in jail are sitting pretty. These officers need to be suspended for gross police misconduct pending investigation before they harass any other victims. Read more »

Halliburton Fracking Controversy in ENVIRONMENT

To help the EPA complete the first-ever federal health and safety study of the dangerous gas drilling practice called “fracking,” 8 of 9 gas companies have voluntarily complied with a request to disclose their chemical brews. These formulas are a secret in the first place because Dick Cheney pushed through a provision called the “Halliburton loophole” in 2005. Take a wild guess which of the nine companies now won’t pony up the data. Halliburton wants us to trust it with our health. Will we say yes? Read more »

Fighting Racist Mascots in EDUCATION

The University of Illinois retired Chief Illiniwek, the college’s costumed, dancing Native American mascot, in 2007 after pressure from the NCAA. But more than three years later, his ghost remains on campus. The administration has not named a new mascot and students still stage unofficial “chief” rallies, resurrecting a caricature that Native American groups have found offensive, racist and misleading. A coalition of student and community groups is pushing for a new mascot, saying this will help heal racial tensions and allow the campus to move on. Read more »

Recovering from Wrongful Imprisonment in CRIMINAL JUSTICE

Gloria Killian spent more than 16 years behind bars for a murder she didn’t commit, a victim of prosecutorial misconduct and admittedly false testimony from a man who had struck a deal with the state for a shorter sentence. Her conviction overturned in 2002, Killian has gone on to campaign on behalf of other women unjustly imprisoned. But her activism is not a choice, she tells Change.org. “I’m compelled to do it,” she says. “If I don’t use my experience to help the women that I left behind, then that means my life was destroyed for no reason, and I’m not about to let that happen.” Read more »

Have a great week,

– The Change.org Team

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Stop the next corporate media takeover

11/16/2010 Nativegrl77

Can you call Sen. Cantwell? Tell her: “Fight hard to make sure the Local Community Radio Act passes Congress this month.”

Senator Maria Cantwell
Phone: 202-224-3441

Report your call

Dear MoveOn member,

We all know corporate interests spent hundreds of millions of dollars to buy this election.¹

But that’s not all: Many of the same corporations own our TV and radio airwaves, biasing our political debate in favor of corporate interests.²

Now, there’s a bill in Congress that could put media back in the hands of the Other 98% of us instead.³ Thousands of communities could get their own community-run radio stations—think youth, civic leaders, and local musicians on your FM dial, talking about the real issues facing our country.

The low-power FM radio bill has passed the House and has a bipartisan majority in the Senate, but corporate broadcasters are fighting to kill this bill.⁴ They’ve lined up a tiny group of politicians to block the bill. This week could be our last chance to win a huge victory for independent voices in the media.

Can you urge Sen. Cantwell to make sure the Local Community Radio Act passes before Congress goes home for the holidays?

Senator Maria Cantwell
Phone: 202-224-3441

Then, click here to let us know you called:

http://pol.moveon.org/call?tg=FSWA_2&cp_id=1482&id=25178-9640874-UQWhstx&t=2

Does radio matter? Yes. Twice as many people get their news from talk radio as from the TV evening news—on all three networks combined.⁵ That’s why lobbyists for corporate broadcasters are paying top dollar to protect their radio monopoly. But when communities run their own local radio stations, people can hear real debate on the issues that really matter.

With thousands of independent radio stations across the country, we can start building a shared understanding of the real solutions to our problems. We can start building a movement to stop corporate influence in our democracy. And then we can start rebuilding an economy that works for everyone.

Call Sen. Cantwell now, and ask her to fight hard for the Local Community Radio Act:

Senator Maria Cantwell
Phone: 202-224-3441

Help track our progress by letting us know you called—just click here:

http://pol.moveon.org/call?tg=FSWA_2&cp_id=1482&id=25178-9640874-UQWhstx&t=3

Thanks for all you do.

–Kat, Amy, Anna, Duncan, and the rest of the team

P.S. You can read more about low-power FM radio from our friends at Free Press by clicking here: http://www.freepress.net/lpfm

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

FW: Emergency Action on DISCLOSE Act

11/16/2010 Nativegrl77

Congress is convening today for its “lame duck” session to end the year. This could be our last chance for a long time to pass the DISCLOSE Act and pull back the curtain from the shady corporate spending that helped propel the Far Right into power in the election a few weeks ago.

Join the thousands of activists who have already signed our emergency petition to the Senate by adding your name now.

We need a full court press now to make sure the pressure’s on the Senate to bring up and pass the DISCLOSE Act. If you missed Diallo’s email from last week, please take a moment to read it now and sign the petition.

Thank you for your activism!

— Marge Baker, Executive Vice President

From: Diallo Brooks, People For the American Way
Sent: Thursday, November 11, 2010 5:51 PM
To: Marge Baker
Subject: Emergency Action on DISCLOSE Act

Dear Senator,

Please do all you can to pass the DISCLOSE Act now, and pull back the curtains to reveal the interests behind the spending. Americans have a right to know.

The window of opportunity for Congress to pass the DISCLOSE Act is shrinking fast.

On Monday, Congress convenes for a “lame duck” session to end the year… in January, the Tea Party-dominated Republican majority takes over in the House, comprised of many of the beneficiaries of this year’s runaway, undisclosed corporate spending.

PFAW is pulling out all the stops and will be putting as much pressure as we can on Congress to pass the DISCLOSE Act in this short session, before time runs out and the new House majority is seated.

Help build the centerpiece of our lobbying efforts. Sign our emergency petition to pass the DISCLOSE Act right now.

Earlier this year, Republican senators voted in lockstep to filibuster the DISCLOSE Act, with a handful of GOP senators from more liberal states hanging their objections on various provisions of the bill. This time around, Democrats will be offering a stripped-down version which will simply require the wealthy interests that bankroll the attack ads and directly support candidates to come out of hiding and reveal themselves.

As we saw in this past election, shadowy front groups with pleasant sounding names like “Commission on Hope, Growth and Opportunity,” the “Coalition to Protect Seniors,” and the “Center for Individual Freedom” are paying for endless ads on the public airwaves and not disclosing their donors. Voters have a right to know who is funding these messages.

It’s time to pull back the curtain from the corporate special interests like Big Oil and Big Insurance which are funding much of this activity and give Americans the information they deserve to make up their minds about issues and candidates.

Join our emergency petition to pass the DISCLOSE Act now and ask others to do the same.

It’s no wonder the Right wants to keep this information hidden from voters. We saw in the midterm elections that when voters know where the funding for campaign messages is coming from, they are more likely to see through misleading attacks and evaluate biased ads more reasonably.

This is a major all-hands-on-deck campaign we are waging, but making sure you are on board by adding your name to our emergency petition is the first critical step.

This is a fight we can win, but we don’t have much time. Please sign now and spread the word.

— Diallo Brooks, Director of Field Mobilization