Tag Archives: black

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Brandi Collins, ColorOfChange.org


Congress is trying to sneak a bill past the American public that would allow the warrantless surveillance of everyone’s phone and Internet use. But if enough people call them out, we can stop them.

Rep. John Lewis

Tell Congress: No Patriot Act, No USA Freedom Act

Take Action

 

Congress will vote to expand the government’s domestic surveillance authority, which can and will be used by law enforcement against Black communities.

Last week Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) made clear why we must act to stop this legislation, “reading the FBI file on [the] SCLC & myself, I am more convinced than ever that we cannot allow government surveillance.” He and other members of the Congressional Black Caucus are fighting back against the USA Freedom Act, and all efforts to renew the domestic spying provisions of the Patriot Act.1

Rep. Lewis and the CBC need our help to block this disastrous domestic spying bill. Will you add your voice to this fight?

Tell Congress: Oppose the USA FREEDOM Act, which would reauthorize the PATRIOT Act.

After the events of 9/11, Congress rushed to pass the Uniting (and) Strengthening America (by) Providing Appropriate Tools (to) Intercept (and) Obstruct Terrorism Act (USA PATRIOT Act), which gave the U.S government far reaching and unconstitutional powers to spy on American citizens. Disguised as a reform bill, the USA Freedom Act — an extension of the PATRIOT Act — grants greater abilities than ever for the government to spy on civil rights organizers, teachers, construction workers, fast food workers, you and me.2

This legislation has not “strengthened and united” our communities, instead it has made us all targets.

Since our inception, ColorOfChange has called for an end to racist practices by our government and corporations. Since 9/11, the PATRIOT Act has been used as an excuse to indiscriminately target, round up and incarcerate our Arab and Muslim brothers and sisters. There has also been a sharp increase in hate crimes against Black and brown folks who fit a certain profile. Let’s be clear — racial profiling in any form by our government is a danger to all of our communities, regardless of whether we ourselves are in the line of fire.

Tell Congress: Oppose the USA FREEDOM Act, which would reauthorize the PATRIOT Act. Click here to send a message to Congress.

Just last week a federal court ruled that the government’s domestic phone-spying program— known as Section 2153— under the PATRIOT Act is illegal.4

Now Congress is trying to pass a bill — the deceptively named USA Freedom Act — to create new legal loopholes to allow government agencies to continue their mass surveillance programs, while appearing on the surface to be a surveillance reform bill. Don’t be fooled. This bill is designed to appease the public while cementing the government’s surveillance authority for years to come.

We need to oppose this bill and all other methods by which Congress might extend Section 215.

Fortunately, we have a real chance to make sure that Section 215 is never again used to spy on innocent Americans. If we block the USA Freedom Act from passing in the Senate this week, this dangerous provision of the Patriot Act will expire on June 1st. Our community can make this happen. The bill only has the slimmest of majorities supporting final passage.5 If we all raise our voices and call on Congress we can stop it.

Tell Congress: Oppose the USA FREEDOM Act today.

Intelligence and law enforcement agencies have already proven with the existing law that they will exploit every loophole they can find to spy on hundreds of millions of people who are suspected of no wrongdoing. This new law will create even more loopholes that will allow them to spy not just on our phone call data but our Skype, Google Hangout and Snapchat data. Pretty much all data related to our smartphone activity will be fair game to be spied on.6

Stopping this dragnet mass surveillance is not just about protecting our privacy from the government, but it’s a crucial racial justice issue.

To protect the civil liberties of Black and brown communities throughout the country, we need to tell Congress that we know that this bill is nothing more than a Trojan horse.

SEND CONGRESS A MESSAGE: We do not stand for mass surveillance in our communities.

Thanks and Peace,

–Brandi, Rashad, Arisha, Dallas, Evan and the rest of the ColorOfChange team.
May 21, 2015

Help support our work. ColorOfChange.org is powered by YOU—your energy and dollars. We take no money from lobbyists or large corporations that don’t share our values, and our tiny staff ensures your contributions go a long way.

References

1. “Critics blast NSA phone records bill as ‘fake reform’,” Computerworld, 5-15-2015
http://act.colorofchange.org/go/4813?t=9&akid=4382.1174326.LMEC_c

2. “Here’s What’s Wrong With the USA Freedom Act,” The Nation, 5-6-2015
http://act.colorofchange.org/go/4814?t=11&akid=4382.1174326.LMEC_c

3. “Verizon forced to hand over telephone data – full court ruling,” The Guardian, 6-5-2013
http://act.colorofchange.org/go/4815?t=13&akid=4382.1174326.LMEC_c

4. “N.S.A. Collection of Bulk Call Data Is Ruled Illegal,” The New York Times, 5-8-2015
http://act.colorofchange.org/go/4816?t=15&akid=4382.1174326.LMEC_c

5. “Patriot Act on life support,” The Hill, 5-17-2015
http://act.colorofchange.org/go/4817?t=17&akid=4382.1174326.LMEC_c

6. “Congress’s Orwellian spying “reforms”: Why the government wants to outsource its surveillance to your Internet provider,” Salon, 4-30-2015
http://act.colorofchange.org/go/4818?t=19&akid=4382.1174326.LMEC_c

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Rashad Robinson, ColorOfChange.org … bill o’reilly


We all know Bill O’Reilly has built a career by making false claims about parental violence and neglect, and it’s impact on Black families.

Yet, according to multiple reports, Bill should probably be worrying about his own family. Details of his incredibly nasty divorce from ex-wife, Maureen McPhilmy, have gone very public, including a bitter custody battle and allegations of physical abuse in front of his children. 1

The situation is particularly appalling considering O’Reilly’s track record of viciously attacking Black families. Even if the domestic violence allegations are proven false, O’Reilly’s divorce saga still reflects that O’Reilly is hypocritical in his analysis of unmarried Black families. In the past year alone, he has accused Black communities of allowing 9-year olds to do drugs2 and embracing pathological patterns of violence, and even claimed that “the reason there is so much violence and chaos in the Black precincts is the disintegration of the African-American family.”3

With such an influential platform, O’Reilly’s relentless attacks, biases, and harmful mistruths about Black families cannot be tolerated. Over the coming weeks we will be talking to advertisers about their continued sponsorship of The O’Reilly Factor; if they don’t respond, we will begin naming those advertisers publicly. We need to know you’ll stand with us.

Click here to let us know you’ll stand with us and demand advertisers drop O’Reilly once and for all.

Check out our original email below.

Thanks,

Rashad

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

jimmy fallon and Michelle Obama


~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Nausea, nosebleeds, and chest pains


Tell BP: Oil Cleanup Workers Need Respirators and Safety Training

 a repost a reminder a warning

Tell BP: Protect Cleanup Workers in the Gulf of Mexico

Click here to sign the petition.

Nausea, vomiting, nosebleeds, headaches, and chest pain: these are just some of the identical symptoms reported by people working around BP’s oil in the Gulf Coast.1

More than 100 people in the Gulf have fallen ill from BP’s oil, and that doesn’t include untold numbers of workers hiding their symptoms for fear of being fired by BP.2

Yet despite clear evidence of illness from exposure to oil and dispersants, BP refuses to provide respirators to people cleaning up its disaster. Why? Because BP is afraid of the PR impact from images of people wearing this critical safety equipment in pictures and on TV.3 BP even threatened to fire workers who choose to wear their own.4

This is ridiculous. No amount of good PR images for BP is worth the health and lives of people battling BP’s oil in the Gulf Coast.

Sign our petition for BP to pay for proper safety equipment and respirators for cleanup workers. Click here to add your name:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

We’ll make sure that your petition also goes to key government decision makers on the oil disaster and worker safety so they can take steps to protect cleanup workers in the Gulf.

BP’s oil disaster isn’t the first time in recent history that workers responding to a hazardous emergency have had their lungs – and lives – put at risk.

Just like after 9/11, we’re already seeing cleanup workers with serious health problems after exposure to toxic chemicals without adequate protection. If the government properly enforced its safety standards after 9/11, every person at Ground Zero would have worn a respirator that could have protected their health and saved their lives.5

With workers’ rights advocacy group American Rights at Work, we’re launching this petition to key decision makers in the oil disaster for a simple idea: any worker who wants safety equipment like breathing respirators should get it, and BP should pick up the tab. We can’t afford to fail our nation’s workers in yet another disaster.

Join our call to make BP to pay for breathing respirators and other safety equipment for workers in the Gulf. Click here to sign our petition:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

Cleanup workers deserve the best protection possible from the nasty effects from BP’s oil. Paying for safety equipment for workers who want it is really the least BP should do for the people cleaning up its disaster.

The government agency responsible for overseeing worker safety – the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) – says that their tests showed respirators aren’t yet required for cleanup workers in the Gulf.6

While OSHA is still studying the air quality in the Gulf, it should be no coincidence that dozens of people working around BP’s oil disaster are falling ill with symptoms of chemical exposure to oil. Every worker needs access to the right respirators, training and safety equipment for protection from BP’s toxic stew in the Gulf.

In addition to sending our petition to BP, we’ll also send it to US Oil Disaster leader Thad Allen and government worker safety officials to make your voice heard by people who can make change happen. Click here to add your name to our call for BP to pay for respirators and safety equipment for cleanup workers:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

Thanks for all you do to take on BP in its disaster.

Michael Whitney
Firedoglake

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Do employees in Washington deserve the right to paid sick leave?


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Do employees in Washington deserve the right to paid sick leave?

Yes.

Do workers in Washington deserve the right to fair pay?

Yes.

Do we — right now — have the opportunity to lead the nation in creating an economy that works for all Washingtonians?

Yes.

This week, the Washington state House is hearing bills on both guaranteeing paid sick leave and raising the minimum wage.

Workers shouldn’t have to choose between their health — and their families’ health — and putting food on the table. That’s why guaranteeing that most employers provide paid sick leave is the right thing to do.

Raising the minimum wage is fair to workers, and it’ll boost our state’s economy as whole. When workers have more money to spend, local businesses across the state benefit. Raising the minimum wage to $12 an hour is not only fair — it’s smart.

While these two bills are being heard in the House, it’s critical that we build up public support for a Washington economy that works for all. Washington is the best place in the country to live and work. Let’s keep leading by supporting these two bills. Will you sign on today?

Join me in supporting a Washington that works for all, and sign on in support of paid sick leave and raising the minimum wage.

Along with improving our infrastructure, investing in education, and supporting an accessible healthcare system, guaranteeing paid sick leave and a fair minimum wage are essential to providing a Washington that works and provides opportunity for all.

Thank you for your commitment to creating a better Washington.

Very truly yours,

Jay Inslee