Category Archives: ~ Culture & History

a reminder and repost

Every working mom should get paid enough to care for herself and her family.

But research has shown that working mothers are offered lower starting salaries than women who don’t have children — while working fathers are actually recommended for significantly higher pay than men without kids.

It’s outrageous double standards like this that contribute to the gender wage gap. Mothers who work outside the home full time, year round typically make only 70 cents for every dollar paid to fathers — and things are even worse for mothers of color and single moms.

Every working mom should get paid enough to care for herself and her family.

Support Fair Pay for Working MothersTell Congress to co-sponsor the Paycheck Fairness Act and support equal pay for all women — including working moms.

Take Action

The Paycheck Fairness Act would help end wage discrimination by closing loopholes in the Equal Pay Act. It would make it harder for employers to pay women less for the same work, prohibit retaliation against employees who talk about their pay, and require that employers who break the law fairly compensate the women they’ve discriminated against.

In this tough economy, more and more families are counting on women’s earnings. Yet pay discrimination undermines women’s ability to provide for themselves and their families.

Tell Congress: Support equal pay by co-sponsoring the Paycheck Fairness Act.

Thank you for all you do for women and their families.

Sincerely,
Fatima Goss Graves
Vice President for Education and Employment
National Women’s Law Center

P.S. To see how working mothers in your state fare, check out our interactive map..

~ Culture & History, ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

President Obama: “We are horrified over these events”

07/11/2016 Nativegrl77

Last night 7/7/2016, law enforcement officers in Dallas, Texas who were keeping people safe during a peaceful protest were targeted and attacked.

This morning, President Obama offered a statement on these tragic attacks and made it clear that we as a nation stand united with the people and the police department in Dallas.

“I speak for every single American when I say that we are horrified over these events, and that we stand united with the people and the police department in Dallas … Let’s be clear: There is no possible justification for these kinds of attacks or any violence against law enforcement. The FBI is already in touch with the Dallas police, and anyone involved in these senseless murders will be held fully accountable. Justice will be done.”

Watch the President’s statement, or read it below.

With your understanding, I want to begin with a few words about the situation back in the United States, specifically the situation in Dallas, Texas.

My team has been keeping me updated throughout the morning of the evening in Dallas. I spoke this morning with Mayor Rawlings of Dallas to convey the deepest condolences of the American people. I told him that the federal government will provide whatever assistance Dallas may need as it deals with this tremendous tragedy.

We still don’t know all the facts. What we do know is that there has been a vicious, calculated and despicable attack on law enforcement. Police in Dallas were on duty, doing their jobs, keeping people safe during peaceful protests. These law enforcement officers were targeted, and nearly a dozen officers were shot. Five were killed. Other officers and at least one civilian were wounded — some are in serious condition, and we are praying for their recovery.

As I told Mayor Rawlings, I believe that I speak for every single American when I say that we are horrified over these events, and that we stand united with the people and the police department in Dallas. According to police, there are multiple suspects. We will learn more, undoubtedly, about their twisted motivations. But let’s be clear: There is no possible justification for these kinds of attacks or any violence against law enforcement. The FBI is already in touch with the Dallas police, and anyone involved in these senseless murders will be held fully accountable. Justice will be done.

I will have more to say about this as the facts become more clear. For now, let me just say that even as yesterday I spoke about our need to be concerned, as all Americans, about racial disparities in our criminal justice system, I also said yesterday that our police have an extraordinarily difficult job and the vast majority of them do their job in outstanding fashion. I also indicated the degree to which we need to be supportive of those officers who do their job each and every day, protecting us and protecting our communities.

Today is a wrenching reminder of the sacrifices that they make for us. We also know that when people are armed with powerful weapons, unfortunately it makes attacks like these more deadly and more tragic. And in the days ahead, we’re going to have to consider those realities as well.

In the meantime, today our focus is on the victims and their families. They are heartbroken. The entire city of Dallas is grieving. Police across America, which is a tight-knit family, feels this loss to their core. And we’re grieving with them. I’d ask all Americans to say a prayer for these officers and their families. Keep them in your thoughts. And as a nation, let’s remember to express our profound gratitude to our men and women in blue — not just today, but every day.

Watch the President’s statement here.

~ Culture & History, ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

How Much Of The $889 Million Will Go To Suppress Voters

06/25/2016 Nativegrl77

We celebrate Black History Month and this year the 50th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 – which made disenfranchisement and discriminatory voting qualifications like literacy tests and poll taxes illegal.

But now, 50 years later, the same voting rights that so many fought for – and gave their lives for – are once again under attack by the Koch brothers and their allies.

The Kochs are shamelessly using their millions to support voter ID efforts, going as far as to fund an entire group, True the Vote, to focus on this issue.

We need you to sign the pledge to out vote the Koch brothers and the $889 million they recently announced they will spend in the 2016 election.

Brave New Films is more committed than ever to spread awareness of these modern-day voter suppression tactics – and the extremists pushing for them.

Help make sure the Koch brothers don’t take away your vote or anyone else’s in 2016!

Thank you for stepping up and being part of our modern-day civil rights fight,

Regina Clemente, Director of Campaigns
Brave New Films

Sign the Pledge Here!

~ Culture & History

President Obama:21st Century living & efforts to conserve outdoor spaces since 2010

06/20/2016 Nativegrl77 1 Comment

The White House.gov Blog …
Creating a 21st Century Strategy for America’s Outdoors

Posted by Jesse Lee on April 16, 2010 at 12:50 PM EDT

President Obama signed a Presidential Memorandum launching the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative today, which focuses on promoting community-level efforts to conserve outdoor spaces. As part of the initiative, members of the administration will host regional sessions with groups and individuals across the country to discuss ideas on how to protect America’s natural landscape and form a 21st century strategy conservation agenda.

The President said that the initiative is not a “big federal agenda being driven out of Washington,” but an effort to collect the best ideas on conservation that local communities support and reconnect Americans to the outdoors. He explained that the initiative will build on successful conservation efforts being lead by local and state governments, tribes, and private groups, while helping farmers, ranchers, and property owners to protect their lands. The outdoors initiative will also help families spend more time outdoors by building on the First Lady’s Let’s Move initiative.

America’s Great Outdoors Initiative will be lead by the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Chair of the Council of Environmental Quality. They will work in coordination with the Departments of Defense, Commerce, Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Labor, Transportation, Education, and the Office of Management and Budget.

President Barack Obama signs a presidential memorandum at the America’s Great Outdoors Conference at the Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C. Watching, from left, are Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality Nancy Sutley, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Assistant Secretary of the Army Jo-Ellen Darcy, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere Jane Lubchenco, and Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Dr. Dorothy Robyn. April 16, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)

The initiative follows a public lands bill that the President signed into law last year that designated 2 acres of wilderness, over 1,000 miles of wild and scenic rivers, and three national parks, marking the most significant lands bill in decades.

The President reflected on Theodore Roosevelt’s commitment to the outdoors and “legacy of conservation that still enhances our lives.”

[W]e are working faithfully to carry on the legacy of Teddy Roosevelt in the 21st century. But we also know that we must adapt our strategies to meet the new challenges of our time. Over the last century, our population grew from about 90 million to 300 million people, and as it did, we lost more and more of our natural landscape to development. Meanwhile, a host of other factors –- from a changing climate to new sources of pollution -– have put a growing strain on our wildlife and our waters and our lands.

So rising to meet these challenges is a task and an obligation, but it’s one that government cannot and should not meet alone. There are roughly 1,600 privately run land trusts in this country that have protected over 10 million acres through voluntary efforts. And by working with farmers and ranchers and landowners, the Department of Agriculture’s Conservation Reserve Program has protected over 30 million acres, and its Natural Resource Conservation Service -– a service that is 75 years old this year –- has protected almost 3 million more. So together, we are conserving our working lands in a way that preserves the environment and protects local communities.

President Obama followed in Roosevelt’s footsteps on a trip to Yellowstone National Park last summer, a longtime tradition of American Presidents. Watch footage of the First Family’s visit to Yellowstone.
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The President on Voting Rights for DC

Posted by Jesse Lee on April 16, 2010 at 12:07 PM EDT

The President gives his support to those rallying to give voting representation to residents of the Nation’s Capital:

On this occasion, we remember the day in 1862 when President Lincoln freed the enslaved people of Washington, DC – nine months before he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. I am proud that an original copy of that document now hangs in the Oval Office, and we remain forever grateful as a nation for the struggles and sacrifices of those Americans who made that emancipation possible.

Americans from all walks of life are gathering in Washington today to remind members of Congress that although DC residents pay federal taxes and serve honorably in our armed services, they do not have a vote in Congress or full autonomy over local issues. And so I urge Congress to finally pass legislation that provides DC residents with voting representation and to take steps to improve the Home Rule Charter.

Learn more about Civil Rights

~ Culture & History, ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Snoqualmie Tribe says city is building on sacred ground … Snoqualmie Tribe promises to protect the land

06/17/2016 Nativegrl77

SnoqualmieTribe2 y

Seattle Times staff reporter

The city of Snoqualmie has started construction of a roundabout located near Snoqualmie Falls. The Snoqualmie Indian Tribe says that land is sacred.

The Snoqualmie Indian Tribe says Snoqualmie Falls is the birthplace of its people, a sacred spot where the mists carry prayers to ancestors. Tribal members believe the site is spiritually significant not only to Northwest Indians, but to all people.

As the city of Snoqualmie begins construction of the nearby Tokul Road roundabout, Snoqualmie tribal members say they want to continue protecting the falls, and the surrounding land, from further desecration.

The recent discovery of a prehistoric artifact supports their beliefs, the tribe says. The projectile point, which an independent archaeologist estimated to be 4,000 to 9,000 years old, was returned to the tribe last week.

“Something we have said all along is that for thousands of years, this place was sacred,” said Snoqualmie tribal council member Lois Sweet Dorman. “The ancient ones are speaking out to us.”

Archaeologists concluded the artifact was an “isolated find,” city officials said in a statement, and did not warrant stopping construction, which began in July.

The project, scheduled to be complete in May 2016, will include a new storm-drainage system, signs and roadway paving, according to the city. The roundabout, which slows traffic, will improve safety for the nearly 2 million people who visit Snoqualmie Falls each year. According to the city, the two intersections that will be eliminated do not meet current safety standards.

Plans for the project date back a decade. In 2007 the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe bought the nearby Salish Lodge and Spa, having outbid groups including the Snoqualmie Tribe. The Muckleshoot Tribe is helping fund the roundabout.

According to project documents, the roundabout could be the “gateway” feature welcoming visitors to the city. It is being designed in anticipation of further development nearby.

The tribe took out an ad in the Snoqualmie Valley Record in July with a photoshopped image of a bulldozer in a church, with the caption “bulldozers don’t belong here.” Under the image is a photo of the roundabout construction site and the caption “they don’t belong here either.”

City officials said in a statement Wednesday that the ad was the first time they heard from the tribe about the belief that the area is sacred.

“The city respects the tribe’s religious practices and beliefs,” they said in a statement. “From the city’s perspective, the tribe did not contend during either of the Army Corps of Engineers’ consultation processes that the roundabout site was a sacred site.”

The tribe has long opposed development at and around the falls, where a hydroelectric generating plant was built in 1898. In 2005, Puget Sound Energy was ordered to decrease the amount of water diverted to its two hydroelectric plants each May and June after a legal battle with the tribe. The tribe attempted to decommission the plants in 2008, but the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied the petition for further review of the plants’ operating license.

The roundabout project, Dorman said, is “yet another irresponsible development.”

“We still need places that we can go and be in awe of how majestic things were,” said Snoqualmie Chairwoman Carolyn Lubenau.

When construction was set to begin in 2012, the tribe asked the Army Corps of Engineers to suspend the city’s permit pending additional consultation. In January, the corps and the federal Advisory Council on Historic Preservation entered into an agreement with the city, which called for the city to hold public meetings with the tribe and spend funds for outreach and projects related to the cultural heritage of the area.

The tribe didn’t sign the agreement, however, “because we have always opposed the development of sacred land,” Lubenau said. She called the agreement a “nonstarter.”

Still, the corps released the city’s permit, which allowed roundabout construction to begin.

In March, Lubenau testified before the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies that the development plans threatened the tribe’s “use of the falls for cultural and spiritual needs and are deeply disrespectful of the sacred falls that form the very core of who we are as a people.” She asked that committee members partner with the tribe in preserving the falls and the area around the falls by helping them halt roundabout construction.

“We will do everything in our power to fight this development and protect our sacred Snoqualmie Falls,” she testified.

Information from The Seattle Times archives is included in this report. Paige Cornwell: 206-464-2530 or pcornwell@seattletimes.com