Category Archives: ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Another fossil fuel industry attack …


Write Congress Today! Tell your member of Congress: Don’t block vital standards for our health and environment—vote no on the Gasoline Regulations Act.

Here We Go Again—Another Fossil Fuel Industry Attack on Science

 

The House of Representatives will soon vote on yet another fossil fuel industry-backed bill, attacking clean air and public health. It is critical that we stand up for strong standards based on independent science, not false economic claims from big polluters.
The Gasoline Regulations Act (H.R. 4771) is an all-out attack on our clean air and public health. The bill would force the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to give undo weight to the industry’s economic claims when setting what should be, first and foremost, science-based standards that protect our health and environment.
The legislation delays standards that would save lives and save money by reducing sulfur in gasoline.
The bill also attacks standards that would limit ozone and other harmful air pollutants from power plants and global warming emissions from oil refineries. Some members of Congress may even attempt to amend the bill to prevent the EPA from moving forward with their historic draft standard to limit global warming pollution from new power plants.
Fossil fuel lobbyists and their allies in Congress are attacking the EPA with false claims about the impact that these proposed standards might have on gas prices. But we know that this bill will have no effect on fuel prices, but would have a lasting, negative impact on public health.
Congress needs to hear from Americans like you who support the EPA’s efforts to protect our health from dirty energy and dirty fuels.
Tell your member of Congress: Don’t block vital standards for our health and environment—vote no on the Gasoline Regulations Act.
Take Action Today!
Sincerely, Chrissy Elles Chrissy Elles Outreach Associate UCS Climate & Energy Program

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

Commemorate Title IX’s 40th year


National Women's Law Center
 
 
     
  Do you support Title IX?  
     
 

 
     
  Help make sure these Faces of Title IX are heard. Share today!  
     
 
       
 
     

“Come to the blacktop at my middle school and hang out for a couple of hours. You’ll get a sense of what 12-to-14-year olds like and how they act. For them this is the center of the world.”

Middle school teacher Sarah Egan takes us on her three year journey when she agrees to coach the girls’ basketball team. Most of the players had never picked up a basketball and early on, she considered it a success if they ran in the right direction. Her team lost every game in the first two seasons.

But despite these odds, they transform into a championship team. More importantly, as they support each other as a group, their spirits soar and they gain confidence both on the court and in the classroom.

Sarah’s is just one of nine stories at the heart of NWLC’s new online portal, FACES OF TITLE IX. These stories go beyond the statistics to show how the law has helped people — whether it’s a student facing bullying in school, a young woman pressured to leave school after becoming pregnant or a race official literally standing in a young woman’s way.

As we commemorate Title IX’s 40th year, we need your help to make sure these Faces of Title IX are seen and their stories read. We believe in the power of stories to transform the public dialogue. Please take a second to share these stories with your friends, family and colleagues:

Or, share your own Title IX story with us! And we’re not just talking about stories on athletics. Do you have a story about the science and technology fields, about school bullying and harassment, or about pregnant or parenting students? Or, can you talk about what life was like before Title IX?

These stories illustrate both the enormous progress we’ve made and the work that remains to reach the full promise of Title IX. Thank you for your help in spreading the word.

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

P.S. Check out the rest of Sarah’s story and NWLC’s new Title IX resources, including a new analysis that illustrates how many fewer opportunities girls have in high school sports.
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Beyond 16 and Pregnant … Fatima Goss Graves, National Women’s Law Center


National Women's Law Center
Do your elected officials support pregnant and parenting students in school?

                Send a copy of our groundbreaking report to your elected officials today.
Take Action

Have you ever seen MTV’s show “16 and Pregnant?” It tells the stories of girls trying to graduate from high school while juggling the responsibilities of parenthood. Their struggles aren’t glamorous or pretty — they’re real and heartbreaking. While some of the girls stay in school and graduate, many drop out. It shouldn’t have to be that way.
It may seem crazy, but Title IX — the federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in education — was enacted 40 years ago this month, yet schools still bar pregnant and parenting students from activities, discourage them from staying in school, push them into alternative programs and penalize them for pregnancy-related absences. All of that violates Title IX and increases the risk that students will drop out.
Today, the National Women’s Law Center is releasing a new report: A Pregnancy Test for Schools: The Impact of Education Laws on Pregnant and Parenting Students. This report ranks your state and shows how the vast majority of state education laws and policies fail to adequately support these students.
Send a copy of our groundbreaking report to your elected officials today. They need to know where your state stands and what pregnant and parenting students need to succeed.
So where does your state stand?
NWLC’s new report ranks all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico on the extent to which their laws and policies help pregnant and parenting students succeed. Some states have made great strides forward, but the majority of states have few or no laws, policies, or programs specifically designed to improve outcomes for these students. The report includes a toolkit for taking action in your community.
These policies matter because these students matter. Please make sure your elected officials get this report.
Thanks for helping to give pregnant and parenting students the support they need to graduate and succeed.
Sincerely,
Fatima Goss Graves Fatima Goss Graves Vice President for Education and Employment National Women’s Law Center   

P.S. Have you checked out FACES OF TITLE IX yet? This new online portal features nine diverse stories that put a human face on this groundbreaking law. Read our featured story about a 15-year-old “A” student who was isolated and ignored by teachers after she became pregnant.
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Five things you should know about mortgage relief


The White House Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Will you sharethis?We want to make sure you have all the information you need to understand President Obama’s proposal to cut through the red tape keeping millions of responsible homeowners from refinancingtheir mortgages.And we want to make sure your friends get the message, too.

So we’ve put together a list of five things that help to explain the President’s proposal and why it makes sense for the middle class. We just need you to share it.

SHARE ON FACEBOOK | SHARE ON TWITTER

Refi: 5 Things You Should Know

You don’t need to visit WhiteHouse.gov. You don’t even need to be on Facebook or Twitter. Sharing the message can be as simple as hitting the forward button and sending it to three friends.

But an image like this can be really powerful over social networks. You post it, and one of your friends picks it up and shares it with her followers. A couple folks who follow her decide to do the same, and pretty soon, the message is seen by people all over the country.

If Congress passes President Obama’s plan, millions of responsible people will get some important relief. But too many people don’t know what’s at stake. And that’s where you come in.

Share the message today:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/infographics/refi-five-things

Stay Connected
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Give Health Care to Firefighters Who Battle Wildfires …John Lauer, Denver, CO


Change.org
Firefighters save lives every year from wildfires, but the government won’t give their families health care.
Sign John’s Petition

Give Health Care to Firefighters Who Battle Wildfires

Started by: John Lauer, Denver, CO

Right now, wildfires are raging in New Mexico, Colorado and Arizona. And more are sure to come.

I’m a part of a hotshot crew of firefighters. We are on call to go anywhere, at any time to fight fires in our country. It’s intense work, but my crew is like my family and we are all committed to serving our communities.

Because wildfire is more common from May to October, most of us are seasonally employed. More than 90% of us return year after year and we often work the equivalent of a full year in 6-7 months. Despite this — and despite putting our lives on the line every day — we still don’t have the opportunity to buy into a government health care plan even at the most basic level.

This is because we are classified as temporary workers.

I have been a wildland firefighter for 6 years and I still don’t have health insurance, but I’m one of the lucky ones. Just in my own hotshot crew, I’ve seen the damage and suffering this lack of coverage can produce.

My godson, Rudy, was born prematurely. Rudy’s dad, a fellow firefighter, was stuck with $70,000 worth of hospital bills that he and his wife couldn’t pay back. All because the federal government won’t allow him to access health insurance. Another crew member’s child, who was born even more recently, required special attention in the hospital and his parents’ are now facing a $40,000 in medical bills.

Wildland firefighters face enormous risks in order to serve and protect our communities. In the past 12 years, 179 wildland firefighters have been killed in the line of duty, and the conditions of the firefighting environment have been linked to cancer and permanent lung damage.

We want federal legislation that gives us that option, but we know that Congress can be slow moving. That’s why we are asking President Obama to extend health coverage benefits to seasonal wildland firefighters.

Baby Rudy doesn’t deserve to be born into debt — his father is a hero.

Click here to sign my petition to make sure firefighters have health care.