Tag Archives: Los Angeles

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

The White House


whitehouselogoNew Commitments to Improve College Opportunity

Following a meeting with community college leaders on Tuesday, the Administration announced several developments in our efforts to expand college opportunity for all.

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What You Missed: A Field Trip to the White House Kitchen Garden

Yesterday, White House Executive Chef Cris Comerford took Maker Camp campers on a virtual field trip of the White House Kitchen Garden, and answered questions about what it’s like to cook for the First Family and for special guests of the White House.

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Giving America a Raise: A Progress Report

A new White House report released on Tuesday looks at the progress businesses and communities are making in raising the minimum wage for millions of workers. In fact, since the President first called for a minimum wage increase in 2013, 13 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws to increase their minimum wage, which will benefit about 7 million workers.

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Chart of the Week: Job Openings Hit a 13-Year High This Summer

American business owners advertised 4.67 million jobs in June, the highest number of openings since February 2001 — a clear signal that the economy is strengthening.

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Here’s How Cell Phone Unlocking Became Legal

On Friday, August 1, President Obama signed a bill into law that again made it legal for consumers to unlock their cell phones. It marked the very first time a We the People petition led to a legislative fix.

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The President Gives an Update on Iraq and the Situation in Ferguson, Missouri

Yesterday, President Obama updated the nation on two issues that he’s been monitoring closely over the past several days — America’s military operations in Iraq, and the situation in Ferguson, Missouri.

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~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Victory! End female genital mutilation in the US … Jaha Dukureh via Change.org


In June a petition was presented … If you click on the links you can read the complete article on how this petition helped make change in July. ~Nativegrl77

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Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is not a faraway practice — it happens even in the United States. Please join me in calling on President Obama to conduct a study on the state of FGM in America so that no other girls are subjected to this atrocity.

Warning: This email is about Female Genital Mutilation and may be upsetting for some readers.

When I was a baby in Gambia, I was subjected to a practice known as Female Genital Mutilation, or FGM. My genitals were cut and sewn shut. The sutures had to be reopened when I was 15 and forced into an arranged marriage in America. I escaped that marriage, and now I’m fighting to make sure that no other little girl ever has to experience the horror of FGM.

FGM is a terrifyingly common practice — the World Health Organization estimates that more than 125 million women alive today have been cut. The experience is devastatingly painful, not just when it happens but for years afterward. The physical and emotional scars last for life.

The US has strong laws on the books to stop FGM, but those laws aren’t being enforced. We know that people are breaking the law to cut girls in America or illegally take them to be cut in other countries, but we don’t know how widespread the problem is or what concrete steps can be taken to solve it.

I started a petition on Change.org calling on President Obama and the Deparment of Health and Human Services to conduct a study about the current state of FGM in America so that steps can be taken to stop this atrocity. Please click here to sign my petition.

In some ways, I’m lucky that I was only a baby when I was cut. Some girls are much older. They’re told they’re going on vacation to visit relatives, but really, they’re being taken away to be attacked and mutilated by their own families.

I have an amazing daughter of my own, and I cannot stand by while this happens to beautiful little girls just like her. Just like it happened to me.

I know that public pressure from petitions works to highlight the issue of FGM — just recently, a petition in the United Kingdom prompted their Minister of Education to issue warnings about FGM to schools all over the country. I know that with similar pressure in the US, we can tackle this horrible problem here and make sure we’re protecting little girls across America.

Please sign my petition calling on President Obama and HHS to conduct a study about FGM in America so that the laws preventing it can actually be enforced.

Thank you for standing with women like me.

Jaha Dukureh
Atlanta, Georgia
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Mayors for #theAmericanJOBsACT ~~ PASS IT NOW

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Phil Gordon, the mayor of Phoenix, Arizona believes the American Jobs Act should be passed,

“We can’t afford to keep waiting. And the politics that are being played
not only in Washington, DC, but across the country are just devastating our
nation, our cities. And it’s important not only to put people back to work but
to train them for the 21st century.”

He is pleading with Congress – Republicans and Democrats – to pass the
American Jobs Act “right away.”

“Arizona has been hit—one of the two or three hardest states—in Phoenix in
particular—with housing, lack of conventions, tourism, lack of jobs,” Gordon
explains.  “It’s time to stop talking about it, it’s time to move forward.
There’s plenty of time for everybody to do politics afterwards. But right now,
in Phoenix, we have a lot of people out of work. We have a lot of children that
are now homeless with their moms and dads that shouldn’t be.”

Kansas City Mayor Sly James Supports the American Jobs Act

The American Job Act will help James answer the one question he says the residents of his Missouri city
ask any time he leaves the office, “’Mayor, where can I get a job? Mayor can you
help me get a job? Mayor can you help my brother or my mother get a job?”’Jobs
are at the forefront of people’s minds.”

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer Supports the American Jobs Act 

There’s a real sense of urgency right now. A lot of people have been out of
work for a long period of time. Their savings are gone or practically gone. So
they see where they thought they were going to be fitting in the American dream,
and saying, “that may not happen to me anymore right now.” And so there’s this
feeling of hopelessness that we’ve got to address, we can’t wait until the next
election cycle. This is something the American people need today.

America’s Mayors Are in Sync: Congress Must Work on a Bipartisan Basis to put
America Back on Track

Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa of Los Angeles, California says that the residents
of his city are united in their message to him, and to elected officials in
Washington: “Job #1 is to create the jobs they need going into the future.”

Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory Supports the American Jobs Act 

Mayor Mark Mallory said that he — and the citizens of his city — are “very
excited” about the possibility of the Jobs Act because the President’s plan will
enable Cincinnati to keep firefighters and police officers on the
job.Mallory specifically refers to the provisions in the Act that provide funds for
infrastructure, and says Cincinnati’s “very large, very old” Brent
Spence Bridge needs to be replaced.

Mayor of Denver: American Jobs Act an “Opportunity for all Elected Officials to
Put Aside Differences”

Mayor Michael Hancock of Denver, Colorado says there is no more important
initiative that any elected official can be focused on than “trying to get
America back to work, right now.” Hancock believes that “this Job Act is an opportunity for all elected
officials at every level but particularly here in Washington, in Congress and
the White House, to finally put aside our differences and stand again for the
people of America and begin to put them to work.”

Mayor Rawlings-Blake of Baltimore Supports the American Jobs Act 

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake says the country needs the American Jobs Act in order to “grow
out of this great recession.”  As an older city, Baltimore has tremendous
infrastructure needs and its mayor believes the $50
billion investment in rebuilding that is a core component of the Jobs Act
will make the streets and schools of her city “safer for generations to come.”
Rawlings-Blake also applauds the Jobs Act’s focus on offering relief to small
business owners, who she says are the “backbone” of Baltimore’s economy

Governor John Kitzhaber of Oregon says that in his state,


“the American Jobs Act
will translate into almost
9,000 jobs for vital transportation, school infrastructure projects for idol
construction workers, funding for our schools and incentives for small
businesses to put people back to work.”

Most importantly. says Kitzhaber, the jobs that are
created will be “good middle income family wage jobs,” which will create a
significant economic ripple across the state. “In an economic crisis we need to
be investing in the economy–we need to be investing in job creation and I think
the American Jobs Act is exactly
what we need at the right time and certainly for Oregon and I think for
America.”

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

a message from VP Joe Biden


The White House, Washington

Hey, everyone —

During his State of the Union address, the President asked me to lead an across-the-board review of our nation’s job-training programs.

It’s a top priority for the President, and it is absolutely critical to our economy’s success.

So earlier today, I put forward a roadmap for how the United States can keep and maintain the highest-skilled workforce in the world.

I’ve met with business leaders, community college presidents, governors and mayors, and most importantly, hard-working Americans who were hit hard by the Great Recession, but who are doing everything they can to learn new skills to find a decent, good-paying middle-class job.

And there was a clear consensus: We must rethink how we train today’s workers so that our programs are job-driven, teaching real skills that employers need.

We’ve heard from businesses that many jobs in today’s brightest sectors go unfilled because there simply aren’t enough people with the skills to do them. That’s not good for businesses, it’s not good for workers, and it’s not good for this country.

Some of our country’s businesses, community colleges, and state and local training programs — often supported with federal dollars — have found ways to successfully prepare Americans for these jobs. We need to make sure our entire system is learning from them.

Find out why training programs matter for middle-class Americans — and which ones around the country are working best.

We’re taking steps to improve that training, directing federal agencies to make current programs that serve more than 21 million Americans smarter, and holding training programs that use public funds accountable for making a difference.

This isn’t the only step we’re taking to make sure Americans have the skills they need, either. Today, I joined President Obama as he signed the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act into law. It connects more ready-to-work Americans with ready-to-be-filled jobs. And it builds on bipartisan efforts in Congress to improve business engagement and accountability. While there’s still more to do, it’s another important step in getting Americans working.

Thanks,

Vice President Joe Biden

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

SBA Admin ~~ Maria Contreras -Sweet


SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet

SBA Administrator: My 100-Day Progress Report

SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet has been on the job for 100 days! Check out her progress report to learn about the work she’s done and the insights she’s gained since being sworn in this April.

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Free Affordable Care Act 101 webinar covering healthcare reform and your small business hosted by SBA and Small Business Majority. Click to RSVP today

Affordable Care Act 101 Webinars

SBA and Small Business Majority will continue to host free Affordable Care Act 101 weekly webinars so small business owners can learn the basics of the Affordable Care Act and how they can enroll in health insurance marketplaces.

In addition, Spanish-speaking small employers throughout the country can join representatives from SBA, HHS and Small Business Majority for ACA 101 webinars in Spanish. Below are the registration links for the upcoming Spanish-language webinars, which will be held every other Tuesday throughout the summer and fall. SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet will kick off the first webinar on July 22.

SBA & AARP Webinar: Q&A Session to Help You Start Your Business—Ask the Experts!

This is your chance to get your small business questions answered by those in the know! Join AARP and SBA on Tuesday, August 12 at 2pm ET to ask about developing your business plan, securing financing, accounting, marketing, bookkeeping and more.

> Submit questions and register now

 

Employee Fraud: What You Can Do About It

Employees are one of your biggest assets, even though they don’t appear on your balance sheet. They help you operate your business and are the faces of your company brand. But employees can also be a big liability if they steal from you. Here’s what you can do to protect yourself.

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2014 National Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week Conference

Register now for the nation’s premier event for minority businesses, taking place July 31-August 1 at the Washington Hilton in Washington, DC. Join America’s most diverse entrepreneurs, business owners and executives to capitalize on actionable opportunities for business growth by:

  • Networking with decision makers from multinational corporations, government representatives and leading entrepreneurs.
  • Accessing information from industry experts about business expansion through capital, contracts, and new markets.
  • Engaging in one-on-one meetings at our business-to-business matchmaking sessions with agency representatives to expand your network and identify opportunities.

> Read more and register

 

Webinar: Overview of the 8(a) Business Development Program

Interested in the 8(a) Business Development Program? Join our webinar and knowledgeable panelists to make sure you are getting the most out of the benefits of the program. Ask questions and learn how to take your business to the next level on July 23 at 2pm ET.

> Click to register

8(a) Graphic

ChallengeHer — Opportunities & Access to Federal Contracts for Women-Owned Small Businesses

If you’re a woman-owned small business looking to contract with the federal government and seeking assistance on how to navigate in the federal procurement arena, we have good news that can help!

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Upcoming ChallengeHER Events: