People Before Profit blog

Judge upholds extreme parts of Alabama anti-immigrant law

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 16:30:00 +0000

A coalition of civil and immigrant rights group filed an emergency motion Sept. 29 appealing the ruling by a federal judge in Alabama the day before that upholds the most egregious provisions of HB 56, considered the most extreme anti-immigrant state law to date.

U.S. District Judge Sharon Blackburn on Wednesday upheld major provisions of the draconian measure authorizing state law enforcement to question and detain, without bond, people they "suspect" may be an undocumented immigrant.

Alabama's Republican Gov. Robert Bentley signed the law in June.

Another provision of the new law, which takes effect immediately, requires Alabama's public schools to verify the legal status of children.

The Justice Department, civil rights groups and some of Alabama's churches sued the state to block the law from taking effect. A motion has been filed to temporarily block the law while the ruling is brought before the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

"Today is a dark day for Alabama," said Mary Bauer, legal director with the Southern Poverty Law Center, in a statement. "This decision not only places Alabama on the wrong side of history but also demonstrates that the rights and freedoms so fundamental to our nation and its history can be manipulated by hate and political agendas - at least for a time."

Alabama's Gov. Bentley and fellow GOP lawmakers hailed the ruling and intend to enforce the provisions upheld. Alabama is the fifth state to enact anti-immigrant legislation inspired by Arizona's SB 1070. Federal judges have previously blocked key parts of immigration laws, similar to Alabama's, passed in Georgia, Utah, Indiana and Arizona. At least 17 other states have considered such measures this year.

The Latino population in Alabama grew by 145 percent to about 185,600 over the past decade. Although Latinos represent 4 percent of the states population, some counties north of Alabama have large Spanish-speaking communities and schools where most of the students are Latino.

After Republicans in Alabama took over the statehouse in Montgomery last year, cracking down on undocumented immigrants became a major driving force.

Janet Murguía, president and CEO of the National Council of La Raza, expressed outrage over the ruling.

"Allowing these provisions to go into law will wreak havoc on the people of Alabama, not just Latinos," she said. "By failing to stop the law's clearly unconstitutional directive to force teachers and schools to ascertain their students' immigration status - a complete violation of a decades-old Supreme Court decision - and allowing the 'papers please' aspect of the law, which legalizes and legitimizes racial profiling, Judge Blackburn's decision endangers the civil rights and public safety of every Alabamian and the education of every child in the state."

Wade Henderson, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, added the law "is designed to do nothing more than terrorize the state's Latino community and destroy families and businesses." He notes, "The only possible result of HB 56 is a permanent underclass in Alabama that would be further driven into the shadows of society."

Henderson emphasized, "This is a law that clearly harkens back to the segregationist creed of 'state's rights' by preempting the federal government's authority over immigration enforcement. We commend the many civil rights organizations and the U.S. Department of Justice for challenging this law and we urge them to continue to fight it through the appellate process. For the good of Alabama and our nation, this outrageous ruling cannot - and should not - be allowed to stand."

However Blackburn did block several sections of the new law, including parts that barred undocumented immigrants from seeking work or enrolling in public colleges. She also stopped the state from making it a crime to harbor, transport or shield undocumented residents, a provision specifically challenged by some churches.

Meanwhile, as the 2012 presidential election nears, many GOP candidates and conservatives are calling for a hard line on addressing the nation's estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants. They also criticize the Obama administration for suing Arizona and Alabama.

During a roundtable with Latino reporters this week, Obama said Arizona, the first GOP-dominated state to enact an anti-immigrant law, created "a great danger that naturalized citizens, individuals with Latino surnames, potentially could be vulnerable to questioning; the laws could be potentially abused in ways that were not fair to Latino citizens in Arizona."

Obama added, "We can't have a patchwork of 50 states with 50 different immigration laws."

Despite Obama's continued support for federal comprehensive immigration reform, most Republicans, including those who at one time supported bipartisan efforts, have now recanted and are opposed to any reform in Congress.

But back in Alabama, Isabel Rubio, executive director of the Hispanic Interest Coalition, said in a statement, "Not only will we appeal the court's decision, we will also mobilize and organize Alabamians to repeal this law and stand up for immigrant justice."

Photo: UAB student Meagan Griffin, right, and others march during a student immigration rally protesting the HB 56 near campus in Birmingham, Ala., September 28. (AP Photo/The Birmingham News, Tamika Moore)

Unions joining Wall Street protests

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 15:40:00 +0000

NEW YORK - Major labor unions are joining the Occupy Wall Street protests here, now in their 14th day.

Despite inclement weather, the number of overnight "occupiers" has grown by a third, from 200 on the first night, Sept. 17, to over 300 the last few nights.

Yesterday, the Transport Workers Union, Local 100, which represents 38,000 MTA workers, voted to support the protesters with both money and marchers. Union members are joining the closing bell march today.

The national union, which represents 200,000 transit workers in 22 states., has given "Occupy Wall Street" its official endorsement.

John Samuelsen, Local 100's president, said higher taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers would help reduce some of the unemployment New Yorkers have suffered in the last few years. "The Wall Street protests are bringing attention to the great injustice that the wealthiest New Yorkers have received a tax break while working families in New York are suffering," he said.

The union plans to send a large contingent of demonstrators on Wednesday to march from City Hall to Zucotti Park, where hundreds are camping out around the clock.

Among the other unions that plan to participate are the United Federation of teachers, the Communication Workers of America and the Service Employees International Union.

Observers note that the pepper spraying incident where police attacked demonstrators last Saturday may actually have helped increase support for the demonstrations, which continue to grow in size and breadth.

At first, the New York City Police Department said the police had acted appropriately. Now, after considerable criticism, the department's internal affairs division has launched an investigation. Despite Mayor Bloomberg's comment that "the protesters may have overstayed their welcome," police have not moved to bar them from sleeping in Zucotti Park, with Police Commisioner Ray Kelly reportedly saying an agreement with the city requires the park to be open 24 hours a day.

Video showing the pepper spray attacks went viral last weekend. Another video that has gone viral is one showing the wealthy patrons at Harry Cipriani, sipping champagne on a balcony while they mock the demonstrators below.

TWU spokesman Jim Gannon, said his union's executive board voted unanimously to back the protests and confirmed plans for the union to march on Wednesday.

"It's pretty courageous, what they are doing," said Gannon, "and its brought a new focus to what we've been saying all along. While Wall Street and the banks and the corporations are the ones who caused the mess that's flowed down into the states and cities, it seems there's no shared sacrifice.

"It's the workers having to sacrifice while the wealthy get away scot-free. It's kind of a natural alliance with the young people and students - they're voicing our message, why not join them? On many levels our workers feel an affinity with the kids. They just seem to be hanging out there getting the crap beaten out of them, and maybe union support will help them a little bit."

Samuelson said, "We plan to be down there from now on. Previously, it was rank and filers, but now we'll have a coordinated presence from the Transport Union. One of the things that drew this to my attention is that no one can get away from the fact that the richest have received a tax break while they keep trying to squeeze concessions from public workers. These folks down at Wall street are singing the same tune we are."

Photo: The number sleeping over during the Occupy Wall Street protest grew to more than 300 on the 13th night. Bud Korotzer / NLN

Bankers, bankers, you can't hide! We can see your greedy side!

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 15:21:00 +0000

SAN FRANCISCO - Hundreds of marchers surged through this city's financial district Sept. 29 just as the evening commute hour was beginning. They wound their way from one bank to another, demanding that the nation's banking giants stop home foreclosures and other practices that gouge ordinary people, and be held accountable for the devastation of millions of lives.

As marchers massed in front of 555 California St., the financial district tower housing Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and other financial giants, San Francisco Supervisor and mayoral candidate John Avalos launched the action by calling for the city to establish a publicly-owned bank.

"This building right here is a symbol of incredible greed and wealth that is accumulated into fewer and fewer hands in this country," Avalos told the crowd. "And how did they get wealthy? They took our tax dollars - they got bailed out. And what are they doing with that money now? They're firing thousands of workers across the nation.

"Is that how we wanted our tax dollars used?"

The crowd thundered back, "No! No!"

The march was the high point of a week of actions spearheaded by the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) and joined by many unions and community organizations. Hotel workers, service workers, Verizon workers expressing solidarity with beleaguered East Coast colleagues - all were there with tee-shirts and signs.

In earlier actions, demonstrators in Oakland, across the bay, urged people to take their money out of the big banks, held a vigil at an auction of foreclosed homes, and planned a "community cleanup" for Oct. 5, to "take the blight back to its owners, the banks." They called on executives meeting in San Francisco to "Keep us safe at home."

In the crowd was Sharee Wright, a student at San Jose City College and an ACCE staff member. "The banks need to pay their fair share. They should be doing much more for the city," she said. "The money they're taking could be used for city services, programs for kids. We see the results of the budget crisis, on the streets, and with the rise in crime. It's heartbreaking."

Nearby, holding a handmade sign reading, "How bad do things have to get? Wake up! Stop corporate greed!" was Judith Isles of nearby Pleasant Hill. "I think there's too much hardship and poverty," she said. "It will just keep getting worse until we realize that it's in our ability to stop it, and not keep putting money into corporations."

At a Chase branch on the city's main thoroughfare, Market St., several marchers slipped past startled security guards and held a sit-in in the lobby for over an hour. They were ultimately arrested; all were later released.

Outside, Jose Vega, who has fought a long battle to stay in his foreclosed home, said Chase gave him "a phony modification" that is letting him remain in the home with his children, as a renter for the next five years. But he said the home's value has shrunk by $250,000 while his loan has gone up by $66,000.

"We have to be able to get our homes at market rate," he said. "I spoke up, but millions don't speak up," he said. "I won't stand for it; I owe it to my children."

Later, as the three-hour-long march wound up near San Francisco Bay, Vega took the bullhorn to tell his fellow marchers, "Today is the day we made history!"

Photo by Marilyn Bachtel/PW

700 at rural forum demand jobs, Social Security, Medicare for all

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 10:26:00 +0000

SEQUIM, Wa. - More than 700 people packed the auditorium of Sequim High School Sept. 27 and applauded angry blasts at Wall Street greed and demands for green jobs, peace and Medicare for all.

It was one of hundreds of meetings organized by MoveOn across the nation this past week in support of activist Van Jones' "Contract for the American Dream" campaign. But Clallam County MoveOn preferred to call their event the "American Awakening" and spent four months organizing and publicizing the event.

MoveOn councils in Jefferson County, Kitsap County and Whidbey Island joined in the effort and brought hundreds of people to help fill the auditorium of this rural high school.

Economist David Korten, publisher of Yes magazine, based on Bainbridge Island, blasted Wall Street as a "job killer" and scorned tea party Republicans in Congress who block tax increases on corporations and the wealthy on specious grounds that tax cuts for the rich "creates jobs."

Korten urged support for MoveOn's "contract," which identifies 10 "most critical steps": invest in America's infrastructure, create 21st century energy jobs, fully fund public education, provide Medicare for all, make work pay, secure Social Security, return to fairer tax rates, end foreign wars, tax Wall Street speculation and strengthen democracy.

"This is economics we can all understand," Korten said, adding that "footloose, publicly traded corporations" are reaping record profits while destroying millions of jobs and pushing millions into poverty.

"Medicare is a threat to Wall Street insurance corporations," Korten said. "It couldn't be any simpler than that."

He called for a "single-payer solution" with Medicare for everyone, funded from a single insurance pool run by the state.

Sharing the platform was Port Townsend family physician Kathleen Ottaway, regional AFL-CIO executive board member Robby Stern and Dorothea Hover-Kramer, Clallam County MoveOn council leader.

Dr. Ottaway drew an ovation when she mentioned she is a member of "Mad as Hell Doctors," who filled this same auditorium two years ago in a rally demanding "Medicare for All" single-payer health care. She blasted the for-profit health care system in which 50,000 people die annually because they lack health insurance. Hover-Kramer, a psychologist and author, told the crowd that economic inequality, financial risk-taking and corporate destruction of the environment were not in the spirit of the American dream.

"People are waking up," she said, citing the movement that began in Wisconsin last spring when the labor movement and other progressives fought back against Republican Gov. Scott Walker's union busting agenda.

Stern praised activist government employees and young people who are occupying Wall Street today. He asked audience members to join an organization for change. "It's going to take something real big to turn this around . . . to take away the power of Wall Street."

He said Social Security has not contributed a single penny to the nation's nearly $15 trillion deficit. "But it's under attack," he said, adding that Social Security needs to be defended so it can be passed on to the children of the future.

The program ended with more than 20 audience members lining up to have their remarks video-recorded for a MoveOn presentation to the so-called supercommittee, which includes Washington's Democratic Sen. Patty Murray, which by Nov. 23 must draft a proposal for at least $1.5 trillion in deficit-reduction measures over 10 years or face mandatory across-the-board cuts.

Clallam MoveOn coordinator Bill Kildall was elated at the turnout and the spirit of fight back in the crowd.

"Everyone in our MoveOn council contributed to the success of this meeting," said Kildall, a retired public high school administrator. "We've closed ranks in four counties in western Washington. We have become a key force for bringing about progressive change. We are going to present the testimony from this meeting to Senator Murray and the supercommittee demanding that they shift the emphasis to taxing the wealthy, supporting the needs of the 98 percent, not the wealthy two percent. This is the strength and unity of 700 people speaking with one voice."

Civil rights, labor groups to hold jobs march Oct. 15

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 10:04:00 +0000

Energized by President Obama's bold call for passage of the American Jobs Act, civil rights and labor groups are calling for a national march in Washington, D.C., on October 15 to support it. The following day Obama will deliver remarks at the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial.

Both events were rescheduled after Hurricane Irene forced postponement of the previous August dates.

Speaking at a press conference announcing the event, Rev. Al Sharpton said, "We will bring forth the masses who have not been heard in the midst of the jobs debate. As the president fights for a jobs act, as supercommittees meet, they need to hear marching feet. This is to send a message to Congress."

The National Action Network along with the NAACP and several labor unions including the National Education Association and the Communications Workers of America are key organizers of the event.

The march will begin at the Lincoln Memorial.

At a recent meeting of the Congressional Black Caucus, President Obama called on supporters to put on their marching shoes to press for passage of jobs legislation and increased revenue to pay for it.

Republicans in Congress are staunchly opposing the new legislation and demands that the rich pay their fair share in taxes.

Economists, however, have recently said that the Obama proposal could help boost the economy next year. Bloomberg News writes, "The legislation, submitted to Congress this month, would increase gross domestic product by 0.6 percent next year and add or keep 275,000 workers on payrolls, the median estimates in the survey of 34 economists showed. The program would also lower the jobless rate by 0.2 percentage point in 2012, economists said."

The plan would prevent "a contraction of the economy in the first quarter" of next year, said John Herrmann, a senior fixed-income strategist at State Street Global Markets LLC in Boston, who participated in the survey. "It leads to more retention of workers than net new hires."

While the official unemployment rate hovers at just over 9 percent, more realistic estimates put it at 16 percent of the workforce, with rates double that in African American and Latino communities.

The AFL-CIO has called for a week of action for jobs from October 11 to October 15.

Speaking in Minneapolis at the Next Up summit of young workers, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis urged initiatives to help pass the American Jobs Act: "Labor Secretary Hilda Solis described how she learned the importance of collective bargaining from her father, a steward for the Teamsters and talked about her dedication to create good jobs and help pass President Obama's American Jobs Act. By the time Barack Obama got to office, Solis said, the nation had lost 4 million jobs. But instead, Republicans in Congress want to gut the budget and kill even more jobs."

Photo: Wisconsin AFL-CIO // CC 2.0

Occupation of Wall Street nears third week (with video)

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 16:40:00 +0000

As the Occupy Wall Street protest nears its third week this Saturday, demonstrators continue their marching, picketing, and numerous acts of civil disobedience.

The popular filmmaker Michael Moore was with a crowd of thousands at the protests on Wednesday night.

Some of the countless videos posted online after last Saturday's attempted march on Manhattan's Union Square show police attacking peaceful demonstrators and using pepper spray and mass arrests to try to squash the protests.

In one particularly frightening video, shown on some major television networks, several women are cordoned off into an orange holding pen as one white-shirted policeman walks over to them, sprays a can of mace into their faces and then makes a calm about-face and walks away as they fall, screaming, to the ground, writhing in pain.

Protesters numbered 5,000 on Saturday and the numbers grew even larger by the time the rally with Michael Moore took place Wednesday night.

A journalist arrested has told how he was thrown against a wall, handcuffed, and spent eight hours in a police cell, despite having a badge identifying him as a professional reporter.

John Farley, an editor for MetroFocus, public TV station WNET's news magazine, was documenting last Saturday's demonstration when he was roped into a large net and restrained with plastic zip-ties.

"Protesters were marching along the sidewalk in unison, chanting. There was no sense of chaos," he wrote. "However, the stream of protesters did disrupt traffic. As more people spilled into the street, police demanded that they stay on the sidewalk. But as people seemed to be retreating from harm's way, police began pushing the protesters. I saw police use large nets to corral people en masse. I watched as police pepper sprayed several young women in the face.

"When I saw the young women get pepper sprayed, I ran over to interview them. While holding a microphone and wearing a badge identifying myself as an employee of WNET - New York Public Media, I found myself suddenly roped into one of the large nets."

While a majority of the protesters are under 30, among them are some older demonstrators, including seniors. They carry signs demanding curbs on Wall Street, demands for finance reform, job programs for youth, no cuts to Social Security, an end to the death penalty, and even generic posters like one for "Peace and Love." The variety of slogans has been used by some commentators to write the protesters off as disgruntled youth with no particular focus, except, perhaps fighting with the police. (story continues after video)

Right-wing bloggers blame the demonstrators for the police attacks and like the crowd at the tea party Republican debates who clapped for the death penalty in Texas, they cheer on the cops and write things like, "Keep spraying those dirty hippies."

The people in their 20's who are occupying Wall Street may not come from large, recognizable organizations that we see at many other demonstrations. That doesn't mean that they, or their cause, is "out of focus," or somehow "illegitimate."

People in their age group have had their futures already taken away from them by the very financiers they protest against. What does seem illegitimate or out of place to many is the questioning of their right to protest, not the protests themselves.

The Wall Street financiers are terribly afraid of the coming of a day when the majority of people in their 20s rise up against them.

Many of the youth out at these protests are disgusted with the status quo and many, if they could, would re-make our society to be more people-friendly. And, there is a lot that can stand some overhauling - health insurance companies, foreclosures on people's homes, unemployment, militarism and war, a political system that allows corporations to purchase lawmakers, corporate greed, wealth gaps - to name only a few. The "Wall Street Occupation" reflects what is happening today - more and more young people stepping up to say they reject all of these bad things about our society and they want something better.

Youth taking to the streets to protest the deeds of this nation's financiers constitutes a welcome addition to the big fightback going on in America today. Wall Street had better get used to it.

Photo: Making cardboard signs on the pavement of Zuccotti Park near Wall Street, Sept. 26. Louis Lanzano/AP

Colorado cantaloupes: a deadly listeria outbreak

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 15:28:00 +0000

Contaminated cantaloupes have resulted in a listeria outbreak in the U.S., which has poisoned 72 people and taken 16 lives, according to a report by the Chicago Sun-Times and the Center for Disease Control.

The death toll from the infected fruit has spanned across 18 states, and according to Dr. Robert Tauxe, the number of people who could fall ill, or even die, may grow in the weeks to come. This is because listeria - unlike e. coli poisoning or swine flu, is not only more deadly, but takes a while for its symptoms to show up.

"That long incubation period is a real problem," Tauxe remarked. "People who ate a contaminated food two weeks ago or even a week ago could still be falling sick weeks later."

Specifically, listeria poses the largest threat to the elderly, pregnant women and those with low immune systems, the report elaborated.

The source of the outbreak is Jensen Farms, in Holly, Colo., where the cantaloupes were produced.

According to CBS, CDC Director Thomas Frieden said, "If it's not [from] Jensen Farms, it's okay to eat. But if you can't confirm it's not from [there], then it's best to throw it out."

Jensen Farms noted that it shipped out over 300,000 cases of the tainted fruit, each of which contained anywhere from five to 15 of the melons.

Often carried by animals, listeria bacteria is typically found in damp or muddy locations, and Sherri McGarry, a senior advisor in the FDA's office of foods, said that the farm's water supply and potential animal intrusion are being investigated as likely sources.

The fact that melons are the food items infected has come as a surprise, sources say, as the most commonly listeria-plagued foods in the past have been deli meats and soft cheeses. For example, in 1998, 22 people died after eating contaminated hot dogs by Bil Mar Foods. Prior to that, the report continued, in 1985, a listeria outbreak linked to Mexican soft cheese claimed 52 lives.

In recent years, however, the CDC noted, produce-related listeria illnesses have been on the rise; it was found in sprouts in 2009, and in celery in 2010.

The Sun-Times noted that one of the victims so far has been William Thomas Beach, 87, who collapsed at his Oklahoma home and subsequently died on Sept. 1. Debbie Frederick, Beach's daughter, said her family learned that his death was directly due to Jensen Farms' infected fruit.

"First you just kind of go into shock," said Frederick. "Then it settles in that he would still be alive if this hadn't happened. It's a life, for what?"

Listeria symptoms include fever and muscle aches, and a variety of other gastrointestinal issues. Victims sometimes become fatigued, and are unable to speak.

As of now, roughly 1 to 4 million pieces of cantaloupe need to be recalled.

Photo: Toby Hudson/Wikipedia

35 states get an F on teaching civil rights

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 14:01:00 +0000

When it comes to teaching civil rights, schools in the South have a more rigorous approach than nearly every other region of the country according to a new study by the Southern Poverty Law Center. Southern schools earn a grade of C or better says the survey, "Teaching the Movement: The State of Civil Rights Education in 2011."

Eight southern states received an A, B or C - relatively weighty grades when compared to the rest of the country.

Sixteen states have no requirements at all when it comes to teaching civil rights history, the study found.

The authors of "Teaching the Movement" compared the requirements in state standards to a body of knowledge that reflects what civil rights historians and educators consider core information about the civil rights movement, and assigned A to F grades accordingly.

Some 35 states received an F when curriculums were graded according to these standards. Two states, Arizona and Arkansas, and Washington D.C. scored a grade D.

According to the New York Times, "Alabama, Florida and New York were given A grades. Those states require relatively detailed teaching about the decade and a half of historic events, roughly bookended by the Supreme Court's 1954 school desegregation ruling and the April 1968 assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the enactment of the federal Civil Rights Act a week later."

Civil rights leader Julian Bond, who wrote the preface to the study, cautions that even those states that did better have a ways to go. "The civil rights movement is given short shrift in the educational standards that guide what students learn," Bond says. "Although Southern states generally do a better job teaching the movement than the rest of the country, they have little to brag about."

Part of the problem may be generally low standards for teaching history. "Over the past decade, students have performed worse on federal history tests administered by the Department of Education than on tests in any other subject. On the history test last year, only 12 percent of high school seniors showed proficiency, writes the Times.

Countrywide only 2 percent of students could accurately answer questions about Brown v. Board of Education, the landmark school desegregation case.

Civil rights history that preceded Brown v. Board is likely to be given even shorter shift, including the founding of the NAACP and its predecessor the Niagara Movement, the Garvey phenomena and the historic movements of the 1930s and 1940s against segregation and discrimination in the North, East and Midwest.

The study's authors point out that civil rights history is indispensable to a well rounded education: "Students must learn about the civil rights movement. More than an essential chapter in our nation's history, it educates us about the possibilities of civic engagement while warning us about the kinds of resistance that stand in the way of change."

While important for minority students, they argue it is equally important for white students as well: "It helps students in the now-tenuous demographic majority to understand current cultural conflicts, political controversies and economic inequalities. When students learn about the civil rights movement, they learn about the democratic responsibility of individuals to oppose oppression."

Photo: tedeytan // CC 2.0

Activists rally outside Ohio Governor Kasich’s energy summit

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 16:34:00 +0000

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Protesting plans for massive use of "fracking" to extract natural gas from Ohio shale beds, 70 environmental activists rallied outside the Ohio State University Student Union, where Republican Gov. John Kasich held an energy summit last Wednesday.

At the summit Kasich promoted plans for extensive use of the controversial new process in which high volumes of chemicals, water and sand are forced under extremely high pressure into horizontally drilled holes to fracture shale beds and extract embedded oil and gas.

The protesters presented State Senator Mike Skindell with 2,000 signed postcards calling for a moratorium on fracking in the Marcellus and Utica shale beds underlying most of the state until results of a federal EPA study on water safety are released next year.

Earlier this month, Skindell introduced SB 213, a bill calling for the moratorium and he urged pressure on state legislators to support the measure.

Oil and gas companies are salivating at the unprecedented profits to be made.

"The size of the economic prize is about $500 billion," Aubrey McClendon, chairman and CEO of Chesapeake Energy of Oklahoma, told the Columbus Dispatch. His company has already spent $2 billion to lease 1.25 million acres in Ohio.

"This will be the biggest thing in the state of Ohio since maybe the plow," he said. "This will be truly, truly extraordinary."

But at the rally Warren Taylor, owner of Snowville Creamery in Meigs County, the seat of strip mining in Ohio, voiced concerns that fracking waste could threaten the water supply needed for his cows.

Michele Aini of Broadview Heights and mother of a 5 year old, expressed alarm that there was little she could do about the influx of gas wells into her residential neighborhood. A law passed in 2004 took zoning control over oil and gas drilling from local communities and gave it to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Gas and oil wells now can be drilled anywhere as long as there is a 20 acre minimum space and can be as close as 150 feet from a home, school or playground.

Tish O'Dell, also of Broadview Heights, said the community is installing gas detectors and holding practice drills in the event of a gas well explosion.

The rally was sponsored by the Ohio Sierra Club, Buckeye Forest Council and Living Simply.

Photo: Cheryl Johncox of Buckeye Forest Council

ICE still targeting DREAM youth despite new Obama policy

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 16:24:00 +0000

Matias Ramos, 25, was about to board a plane during a domestic flight last year when immigration officials in Minneapolis detained him for 12 hours.

Ramos, originally from Argentina, was brought to the U.S. with his parents as a teenager without documents. He grew up in Orange County, Calif., and graduated from UCLA as a political science major. For the last two and a half years Ramos has been working in Washington D.C. with the Institute for Policy Studies.

A staunch advocate for immigration reform and the federal DREAM Act, Ramos helped co-found United We Dream, a national immigrant youth advocacy network.

After Ramos was detained last year he was ordered deported but given a one-year extension.

Now that year has passed, and over the last three weeks things have taken a turn for the worse.

Ramos says he was put under intense supervision, had an electronic monitoring device attached to his bottom leg and given 14 days to leave the country.

Wearing the ankle bracelet made him feel dehumanized, he said.

A public campaign was activated to halt Ramos' deportation and supporters gathered over 6,000 signatures in the span of less than 48 hours. After 10 days, the electronic shackle was removed and Ramos was eventually granted a further six-month stay on his deportation order. However he still faces deportation.

"Matias is a DREAM Act eligible student and has been very successful working in Washington D.C.," said Jennifer Angarita, the immigration training coordinator with the AFL-CIO.

In August, the Obama administration announced it would suspend deportation proceeding against thousands of undocumented immigrants who pose no serious threat to national security or public safety.

That's why its very problematic the Department of Homeland Security ordered Ramos to be deported, says Angarita, especially since the new federal immigration guidelines issued by the Obama administration aim to focus on the most dangerous criminals, not youth like Ramos.

Under the new policy DREAM students, military families, victims of crime and many other individuals who pose no threat to public safety may receive a reprieve from immigration removal.

"It's outrageous that a student leader like Ramos was targeted by ICE," Angarita said.

"His story really highlights the injustice of the current broken immigration system. We're talking about youth who are American in every aspect of the meaning but unfortunately remain undocumented. Why are immigration officials focusing their resources on some one like Ramos."

Angarita continued, "Imagine a young person with no criminal record being shackled and forced to plug his leg into the wall for several hours each day."

Ramos's case is a perfect example of young people nationwide getting trapped in the current immigration system.

The DREAM Act, legislation that has been stalled in Congress for a decade, would allow millions of undocumented youth who came to the U.S. as children and graduated from high school with the opportunity to attend college or serve in the armed forces.

It is common sense legislation that has bipartisan support and allows undocumented youth to earn their citizenship, notes Angarita.

"It also strengthens our economy. Do we want a second class generation living in the shadows or do we want an educated and talented workforce to help America compete globally," she asked. "Comprehensive immigration reform and passing the DREAM Act carries far reaching humanitarian, economic and social implications."

But with every day that passes without the DREAM Act or federal immigration reform, the future of Ramos and millions of students like him are at risk, Angarita added.

"Their talents and contributions will continue to go to waste and it's clearly not right," she said.

Photo: Matias Ramos, center, from his Facebook page.

Gettin’ fired up and ready to go: Obama speaks at the Black Caucus

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 16:09:00 +0000

"If asking a billionaire to pay the same tax rate as a janitor makes me a warrior for the working class, I wear that with a badge of honor." (President Barack Obama)

President Obama's statement was part of a fighting speech made Sept. 24 at the Annual Phoenix Award Dinner at the Congressional Black Caucus Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C.

This was a different Obama than the one seen during the debt ceiling debate.

The media likes to talk about the Obama of 2008 with his inspirational speeches that united and motivated millions. At the CBC dinner it was evident that he still has that charisma and self confidence, but most importantly, he has made a big change in his political line. He has gone from an accommodator to more of a fighter, more of a proud "warrior for the working class."

The CBC responded in kind: They are rallying behind the president and his American Jobs
Act. It is the approach they have been calling for.

CBC members represent 25 million voters. Over the decades they have earned the title of "The Conscience of the Congress." It was evident at the legislative conference that the CBC and its constituencies are getting fired up and ready to go in the fight for jobs and to defeat the Republicans in the next election.

While there are still criticisms, the progressive people assembled at the conference felt that with the new changes Obama's chances of rallying his base are good.

The fact is that the Congressional Black Caucus has played a tremendous role in bringing Obama to a better position on jobs and the fight against racism. Their recent job fairs and public hearings have played a huge role in this regard.

One Congressperson at the conference said that a Republican colleague approached her after seeing the long lines at one of the CBC's job fairs and public hearing and said, "I didn't know things were that bad".

The legislative conference featured a half-day forum sponsored by the CBC's Jobs Commission. A jobs fair was also was held.

The theme of the town hall meeting this year was "Economic Opportunity and Jobs."

After words of welcome, Rep. Donald Payne, the current head of the CBC Foundation, reminded everyone that the night before, despite a weak case and a worldwide protest, Troy Davis was executed.

Rep. Payne called it "unconscionable and wrong."

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II, the current chair of the Black Congressional Caucus and one of the six panelist pointed out, "This is one of the most unique moments in history. 2,980,000 African Americans are without work. The country may be in a recession, but we are in a depression".

Dr. Julianne Malveaux, an economist and president of Spellman College, was also on the panel and said the overall unemployment rate is really 16 percent, 29 percent for African Americans and 32 percent for black men."

Other speakers talked about the extraordinarily high unemployment of black youth, which exceeds 50 percent in some communities. In Detroit the overall rate is 45 percent.

The session was chaired by former Labor Secretary Alexi Herman and included Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif.; Marc Morial, National Urban League; Bill Lucy, head of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists; and Robert L. Johnson, the African American businessman who started the BET Network.

Morial told the town hall audience, "I want to take my suit off and we ought to be marching in the streets right now."

In her remarks Rep. Waters, one of the most progressive voices in Congress, referred to the bankers on Wall St. as "gangsters who created the sub prime loan scandal. They have money, because we bailed them out."

She continued, "We need to organize, the Democratic Party needs to organize and show some leadership. We must also reach out to the white poor and unemployed."

Bill Lucy spoke about how African Americans should not support the efforts of conservative elements to pit black against Latino and immigrant workers. He also pointed out that Dr. King was pro-union and understood that African Americans are majority working people. "Absent the trade union movement, Lucy said, the minimum wage might become the maximum wage."

Bill Lucy pointed out that Lyndon Johnson said the Civil Rights bill would not pass, but after John Lewis was beaten on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, the pressure was so great that President Johnson changed his mind. "That's when he made his 'We Shall Overcome' speech. The Civil Rights Act passed."

Obama's address at the awards dinner was a great speech overall. It was not a speech critical of the CBC; rather it was a call to struggle in the best traditions of the African American people. The audience understood Obama's appeal to march and gave the president a prolonged standing ovation.

Ahead for all progressive forces is a hard struggle to push for the best jobs legislation possible in Congress and on the streets. Such pressure can keep the Republican/tea party/Libertarian Axis on the defensive and create the conditions for a new Congress and a renewed and reelected Obama.

For this to happen President Obama must keep wearing that working-class warrior badge of honor.

Jesse Jackson calls for White House commission on poverty

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 13:57:00 +0000

Calling Appalachia "ground zero" in the fight against poverty, Jesse Jackson called for a new federal commission to fight poverty.

Recalling the Great Society and War on Poverty waged by the Johnson administration, Jackson, speaking in at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, said, "Only the president has the platform to ignite this debate and Congress has the moral burden to close ranks behind his leadership and lift millions out of the sinking sand of poverty."

A recent study by the Census Bureau shows a dramatic rise in poverty, with some 46 million now living below the poverty line - an almost 30-year high.

According to the Census Bureau's report, the number of people who lacked health insurance has risen to nearly 50 million, an increase due mainly to unemployment. Health insurance premiums have risen 9 percent in the last year alone.

African Americans and Latinos have the largest percentage of Americans living in poverty - nearly one in three - the child poverty rates even higher.

Jackson chose Ohio University to issue his call, because it there that President Lyndon Johnson declared his "War on Poverty" in the 1960s.

While the Great Recession is the most recent cause of increased poverty, Jackson pointed to the larger systemic problem as well. "Twenty-five million people are in need of full-time work ... A good many of the poor have jobs, but receive too little pay to lift their family up from poverty. But poverty was rising even before the latest economic collapse; the middle class has been losing ground for more than 30 years."

"Poor people are invisible in our nation's capital," he continued. "Republicans defend the affluent, calling them 'job creators,' Democrats champion the middle class and [the] boldest stand with 'working families.' The poor go without mention," he said.

The majority of families in poverty however are the working poor.

Jackson however focused the lion's share of his criticism on the GOP: "You never hear these guys in Congress arguing for poor people. They're arguing for tax cuts, they're arguing for war, they're arguing for wealth. You would not think that there are poor people in their districts, and yet their people are facing the need for public housing and public transportation."

Tavis Smiley and Cornell West recently concluded a poverty tour calling for renewed attention to poor and working Americans. The tour stirred controversy for criticizing President Obama for not forthrightly addressing their problems. Jackson did not join the tour.

The Obama administration, however, argues that many of its initiatives, particularly the new health care law, assist the poorest Americans.

President Obama's new jobs bill would provide employment to 2 million persons now looking for work.

Many believe a federal jobs program would be the most effective anti-poverty program.

The AFL-CIO has called for a week of action October 10 to 16 to campaign for jobs. A teach-in featuring the campaign will be held at American University on October 12.

Photo: Jesse Jackson in an earlier stock photo. TBenZ // CC 2.0

Missouri workers: Christie's plan "sick and wrong"

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 10:23:00 +0000

ST. LOUIS - "New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is in there right now, getting $10,000 a plate to transform America. But the vision he has is sick and wrong," Richard Von Glahn, organizing director Missouri State Workers' Union (CWA-MSWU) Local 6355, told union and community activist as they rallied outside of the Ritz Carlton here September 26.

"In just two years he has restricted or eliminated the right to collectively bargain for over 750,000 New Jersey workers," Von Glahn added. "Police officers, firefighters, teachers, social workers - the folks that help keep us safe, that help keep our country strong, Chris Christie says we don't deserve rights on the job."

"Is that the America you know and love?"

In late June Christie, a Republican, threw union contracts out the window and enacted law forcing unions to pay more into their pension and health care benefits packages. Unions says that the law violates the state and U.S. constitution, and have sued the governor in an attempt to stop its enactment.

According to unions, the law deprives workers of their due process rights by suspending pension adjustments, unilaterally increasing employees' contributions, underfunding pensions and delegating to pension committees the undemocratic authority to reduce pension benefits and change eligibility requirements.

In short, Governor Chris Christie, like Governor Scott Walker in Wisconsin, has attempted to eliminate collective bargaining for public-sector workers.

According to Barbara Keshishian, president of the New Jersey Education Association, this law "illegally takes away benefits that school employees and others have already earned through their service to the people of New Jersey."

The law would especially hurt current and future retirees by raising the retirement age from 62 to 65, by freezing the annual cost-of-living adjustment and by forcing workers to pay 3-to-30 percent of their health care premiums.

Governor Christie claims that cuts to public-sector union pension and health care benefits are necessary due to the struggling economy and budget deficit. He also claims that the overhaul will restore the state pension system to 80 percent of funding in 30 years. It is currently at 62 percent of funding.

However, many doubt his attempts to balance the budget are sincere, as he has also eliminated taxes on the rich and wealthy.

"Christie eliminated a tax on millionaires that 74 percent of New Jersey residents supported. And at the same time he eliminated the earned-income tax credit that helped the working-poor. He has raised tuition. He has increased the cost of public transportation," Von Glahn continued.

"Chris Christie is literally taking from the poor to give to the rich."

"Is that the America we know and love?"

According to the Von Glahn, the millionaire's tax affected 16,000 New Jersey residents. "By eliminating it," Von Glahn added, "Christie raised taxes on over 600,000 workers and seniors."

"He has forced budget cuts on local communities and on school districts that have had to respond by laying off teachers and support personnel. He has forced the lay-offs of social workers. People my union represents. People who keep kids safe," Von Glahn added.

"Is that the America we know and love?"

Many right-wing republican funders are urging the New Jersey governor to consider throwing his hat in the 2012 presidential ring. People like David and Charles Koch, billionaire conservatives who have bank-rolled anti-union, pro-tea party efforts all of the country, are solidly behind Christie.

If they get there way, public-sector unions won't have any rights anywhere in the country, which is why union members and activists from the Service Employees International Union, Missouri National Education Association, the State Workers' Union, the Communication Workers' Union, Unite Here and Jobs with Justice gave Chris Christie a nice "Show-Me-State" welcome, and collectively said: "You're not welcome here!"

Photo: Tony Pecinovsky/PW

Dear Speaker Boehner: Really, who's waging class warfare?

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 17:24:00 +0000

Dear Speaker Boehner,

When you were asked about President Obama's plan to reduce the national debt by over three trillion dollars in the next ten years with half of that money to come from higher taxes on the very rich, you said "I don't think I would describe class warfare as leadership." In addition, you added "I don't believe it makes any sense to tax the very people that we expect to invest in our economy, help grow our economy, and to create jobs in America." You sound perfectly content with the fact that Warren Buffett pays less in federal taxes than does his secretary.

I find your argument twists and distorts reality. You raise the question of "class warfare" to divert attention from the serious problems our country faces, while your comment hides the fact that the Republican Party has been carrying on "class warfare" against the working class for a very long time. Let me explain, but first some background information.

Under our Constitutional system, a political party is supposed to represent the interests of the people. There are, however, some observers who raise the legitimate concern about those classes that the Republican Party actually represents. Let me give you an example. If one looks into the contributors to your 2010 re-election campaign, one finds that your major donors consisted of financial services, insurance, energy, and investment corporations. Hardly small business or worker-oriented interests by anyone's measurement.

Along the same lines, those who contributed to the campaign of your second-in-command, Eric Cantor-the House Majority Leader-were remarkably similar. They included tobacco corporations, financial institutions, and investment services businesses. Again, no sign of any significant contributions from groups representing the working class.

Indeed, when one adds up all of the contributions from large corporations to all your Republican colleagues in Congress the total runs into the millions of dollars. One has to ask, "who do you represent-your constituents or the large corporations?"

You could respond by saying that corporations have rights. As you may know, one of your party's presidential contenders, Mitt Romney even says that they are "people." You would probably say that you also listen to your constituents, the "little guy." That might sound plausible until you take into account your party's tax and health care policies.

If one were to look at the tax rate on the wealthiest Americans in 1940, one would see that they paid at a rate of 68% on the part of their income over $250,000. That figure rose to 89% in the early 1960s. In the years since 1980, however, a time period of thirty-one years (of which your party has held the presidency for twenty of those years), the rate has dropped from 70% to 33%. If that is not a tax policy that favors the rich, then I do not know what is.

At the same time one must also look at the Republican Party's opposition to a federal health care system for all. According to Pat Wechsler of bloomberg.com:

" Unemployment and rising expenses caused 9 million Americans to lose health insurance during the past two years, according to researchers backed by a group advocating access to health care.

Losses of coverage helped swell the ranks of uninsured adults in the U.S. to 52 million in 2010, according to a study released . . . by the Commonwealth Fund, a New York-based foundation that says it backs research aimed at expanding and improving care. An additional 73 million adults had difficulties paying for health care and 75 million deferred treatment because they couldn't afford it, researchers said."

If you add up the total number of people who either lost insurance, had difficulty paying for their care, or who deferred health care, we are talking about nearly half of the population of the United States. In light of these numbers, I ask, "Where is the Republican Party?" If you represent the people, then I would assume that you would never tolerate the situation outlined above. Yet, not a peep. To me, this inaction is class warfare on the poor and working people.

These are but two examples of Republican double-speak (or in some cases not speaking at all). There is much more that I could outline, but it would take much more than a letter to do it. Among the other areas that need to be addressed are: extension of unemployment benefits to those whose payments have run out; the right of workers to organize into unions; an increase in the minimum wage; and strengthening of social security, Medicare, and Medicaid. You get the idea.

In the future, if you want to discuss those issues that affect the working and poor people of the United States, stick to the issues and do not raise irrelevant issues and use scare tactics. Our country needs serious discussion on how to solve its major problems.

Sincerely yours,

David Cavendish

Photo: John Bachtell/PW

Forgive student loans and save the economy

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 16:15:00 +0000

When the first economic meltdown hit in 2008, speculation and sub-prime loan debt were to blame. Now, with $900 billion in student loans, Americans are beginning to ask the question, is the student debt crisis next?

Students attend institutes of higher learning with the general understanding that making the commitment is going to ensure they have a productive future and more stability in the job market.

Unfortunately with college graduate unemployment the highest it has been in 40 years, the idea of a safe future for any American seems like a distant fantasy.

The Project on Student Debt estimates the average debt for 2009 bachelor's degree recipients at $24,000, and with students graduating $100,000 in debt and even more in some cases the prospects for home ownership and making a comfortable life for one's self becomes next to impossible.

Recently however there is now a call for one solution to both our almost trillion-dollar student debt, and America's floundering economy. Petitions are circulating the Internet addressing House of Representatives Bill 365, which uses student loan forgiveness as a means of economic stimulus. And so far the bill has been sponsored by House giants like Representatives Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, Keith Ellison of Minnesota John Conyers of Michigan, and Elijah Cummings of Maryland.

Hundreds of thousands of Americans have signed the petitions and the argument to forgive student debt seems to have some real weight. In one of the petitions that has almost half of a million signatures so far, Robert Applebaum the petitions creator, stated, "Forgiving student loan debt would have an immediate stimulating effect on the economy. Responsible people who did nothing other than pursue a higher education would have hundreds, if not thousands of extra dollars per month to spend, fueling the economy now."

He goes on to make the obvious argument that "As consumer spending increases, businesses will begin to hire, jobs will be created and a new era of innovation, entrepreneurship and prosperity will be ushered in for all."

HR 365 was introduced by Michigan Democratic Rep. Hansen Clarke in a YouTube video posted on the representative's page, he said "We need to cut, cap, and forgive student loan debt," and that "That is the true debt that is burdening American families. We cut student loan debt we'll have a freer more prosperous country."

With debt and the economy being such buzz words in the media and the youth vote being so important in the 2008 election cycle, this bill just might strike a chord with Americans and with the dedicated work of student and labor organizations, this bill just might have a real chance of passing, but to win such a bill will require enormous pressure from below. More people than ever are being weighed down by student loan debt, the voices of the millions who are affected by it have the ability to put the pressure on Congress and the president to make that debt a thing of the past.

Photo: Butch Dill/AP

Progressive Democrat vies to take back Kennedy seat

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 15:27:00 +0000

WORCESTER, Mass. - Many here and around the commonwealth were unhappy to see Republican Scott Brown win the late Ted Kennedy's Senate seat in 2010. Now they are throwing themselves into the campaign to elect former Assistant to the President Elizabeth Warren, who announced Sept. 14 she would run for Kennedy's seat.

While many Democrats veered right after the Republican Party swept the 2010 congressional elections, Warren has continued to tack left. In many ways, she seems the polar opposite of the tea party movement.

Announcing her candidacy, Warren said, "Middle-class families have been chipped at, hacked at, squeezed and hammered for a generation now. And I don't think Washington gets it. Washington is rigged for big corporations that hire armies of lobbyists."

"A big company like GE pays nothing in taxes," she continued, "and we're asking college students to take on more debt to get an education? We're telling seniors they may need to learn to live on less? It isn't right."

Liberals seem to have found a candidate they can support fully. This morning, former Sen. Russ Feingold endorsed Warren and sent an email to members of his Progressives United organization. "In 2005," he wrote, "she stood up against the Wall Street wish list of a bankruptcy bill - a huge corporate giveaway I opposed in the Senate. And after the big banks drove us into a recession, Elizabeth proposed a new Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, and then fought tirelessly to make sure the Obama administration created it."

Warren was featured prominently in Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story. In it, she condemned laws that, she said, benefit Wall Street at the expense of working Americans. "The rules have not been written for ordinary families, for the people who do the work. We have to rewrite those rules."

"I grew up poor in Oklahoma," she continued, "and I got a lot of family who really worked hard. They played by the rules. They did their best, and they got sucked in like lots of other people on this."

Warren actually did grow up poor. To help her family's financial situation, the young Elizabeth found her first job when she was only nine years old, working as a babysitter. When she was 13, she took a job at her aunt's restaurant waiting tables.

Labor is enthusiastic about Warren, so much so that the Massachusetts Nurses Association gave her their endorsement in August, the first time they ever pulled for a candidate who had not even announced their intention to run.

According to MNA President Donny Kelly-Williams, speaking through a press release, "Even though she is not yet an official candidate, the MNA Board has taken the unprecedented step of voting to support her."

"Her dedication to the nation's middle class, which she has demonstrated through her work as a faithful consumer advocate both locally and nationally, reflects one of the MNA's key goals: Restoring a basic standard of living for working people by creating financial remedies that hold Wall Street accountable while protecting those who live and work on Main Street USA," Kelly-Williams, who is also a registered nurse, continued.

The rest of labor seems enthusiastic and ready to support Warren as well. For example, the Greater Boston Labor Council asked her to speak at the annual Boston Labor Day parade, and her speech to their breakfast is on the group's homepage.

Warren has served in official capacities numerous times, most recently as Assistant to the President and Special Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Before that, she was in charge of Congressional oversight of the Troubled Assets Relief Program.

"I've stood up to some pretty powerful interests," she said in a campaign message. "Those interests are going to line up against this campaign, and that's why I need you."

Photo: David Shankbone // CC 2.0

Baltimore town hall demands jobs, funding communities, return of troops

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 14:23:00 +0000

BALTIMORE -- Speakers at a town hall meeting here Sept. 26 demanded that Congress "bring the troops, bring the war dollars home" and use the trillions in revenues to create jobs, fund education, healthcare, and other vital needs.

A meeting room at the Cathedral of the Incarnation was filled to near-capacity for this second town hall meeting sponsored by the Fund Our Communities Coalition that unites 50 progressive organizations in Maryland. Jean Athey, leader of Montgomery County Peace Action, told the crowd that more than 400 people jammed a meeting hall for the first town hall meeting in Silverspring, Md., Sept. 20.

The peace movement, she said, has been demanding reduction in federal spending for war and weapons with the funds transferred to vital human needs programs "and we're not making much progress."

She added, "We need to grow, reach out. We have 50 groups in our coalition. That's not enough. We need 200 organizations in this coalition."

The Fund Our Communities coalition played a major role in pushing the "Bring the Troops, Bring the War Dollars Home" resolution through the annual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors here last summer. Now the coalition is exerting pressure on elected officials to follow through on the resolution.

Charlie Cooper, an organizer of the meeting, referred to a Fund Our Communities petition addressed to Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), a member of the Super-Committee charged with slashing the federal budget by over one trillion dollars by Nov. 15 or face mandatory across-the-board cuts.

Cooper warned that time is short to exert pressure on the Super-Committee.

"Create jobs, get people back to work," Cooper said, reading from the petition. "End the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, bring the troops and war dollars home, no cuts to Social Security. Tax the rich! Medicare for all!"

He added, "That's our message. It's our job to deliver that message." The crowd erupted in applause.

Someone in the crowd criticized President Obama for failure to prosecute President Bush and Vice President Cheney for "war crimes" and continuing some of the illegal anti-terrorism policies of Bush and Cheney.

Cooper said he has no objection to criticizing Obama. But at the same time, he stressed, the movement must support Obama's $450 billion jobs bill that faces a wall of resistance from the corporate Republican majority in the House.

Sue Fothergill, executive director of the Baltimore Education Coalition, also urged support of Obama's jobs bill pointing out that it contains $100 billion for public schools including $585 million for new construction and repairs to Maryland schools. "Our goal is to increase the resources for Baltimore City schools to close the gap," she said.

Max Obuszewski, who moderated the meeting, recalled the decades of struggle against war and militarism in Maryland including Baltimore Jobs with Peace, and the "Save Our Cities" march from Baltimore to D.C. in the mid-1990s. "We want to develop an action strategy that actually reduces military spending," he said.

Jim Baldridge, a member of the Baltimore chapter of Veterans for Peace, urged the crowd to board buses Oct. 15 for the AFL-CIO-sponsored march and rally for jobs that had been postponed because of Hurricane Irene. He also urged the crowd to support Green Party candidate, Bill Barry, in his race for a seat on the Baltimore City Council.

Kostis Papadantonakis, a retired economics professor at Essex Community College, said more than half a century of Cold War military boondoggling "hollowed out" the U.S. economy, wrecking manufacturing, public education and the nation's infrastructure to fatten profits of transnational banks and corporations.

"What if the money were to come back here?" he asked. "We could invest in our infrastructure, create millions of good jobs here in America, rebuild our educational system, save our environment, and make our economy more competitive internationally."

Jacob George told the meeting he served three tours of duty in Afghanistan nine years ago and is now a leader of Veterans for Peace. He returned to Afghanistan last summer and met with Afghanis struggling for peace. He went to an IDP (internally displaced person) camp where 10,000 people barely survive in tents through Kabul's frigid winters. It is located just outside the enormous walls of a U.S. military base. "The construction of that wall cost so much it would have paid for a home for every homeless person in that camp," George said. He urged a "movement of solidarity between the U.S. and Afghan people."

After patient death, nurses urge end to lockout

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 12:53:00 +0000

OAKLAND, Calif. - After a patient died at a Sutter Health hospital Sept. 24 while under the care of strike replacement nurses, the California Nurses Association called on the hospital chain to immediately end its lockout of thousands of nurses following a one-day strike last week.

The patient, identified by the coroner's office as Judith Ming, a 66-year-old Oakland resident, was being treated for cancer. She was reportedly given a "non-prescribed dosage" of a medication.

Just hours before her death, the nurses' union, the California Nurses Association-National Nurses United, called on the state Department of Public Health to investigate reports that replacement nurses used during the lockout lacked "the appropriate clinical competencies and certifications that are necessary for patient care."

Nurses from Sutter Health facilities around northern California, and the independent Children's Memorial Hospital, held the one-day strike Sept. 22 to protest the hospitals' demands in contract talks for a long list of takeaways, some of which would cut nurses' ability to advocate for safer patient care, especially safe staffing levels. They were joined by Kaiser Permanente nurses who struck in solidarity with other Kaiser health workers fighting demands for benefit cuts.

All in all, some 23,000 nurses were involved.

The Kaiser nurses returned to their jobs the next morning, but Sutter barred its nurses from their jobs, claiming it had to sign a longer contract with its replacement nurses and could not afford to pay for duplicate staffing. Sutter nurses are slated to return Sept. 27.

The nurses say despite $3.7 billion in profits in the last five years, Sutter is demanding givebacks that would limit their ability to advocate for their patients, force them to work while sick, and slash their health coverage and retiree benefits.

They are also protesting closures and service cuts at Sutter Health facilities in northern California, several of which affect already underserved areas.

After Ming's death, the union's executive director, RoseAnn DeMoro, told the San Francisco Chronicle, "An incident like this is chilling and strikes right to our nurses' concern about their ability to advocate for their patients. It was irresponsible to lock out those nurses."

DeMoro called on Sutter CEO Pat Fry to end "this disgraceful and dangerous lockout" immediately and return to the bargaining table to discuss patient safety issues which she said are "at the heart of the nurses' concerns with Sutter."

During the strike, CNA maintained a patient care task force at every hospital, consisting of nurses on strike who were available to help with genuine patient emergencies.

On the first day of the lockout, a registered nurse at Alta Bates reportedly did return to work after the hospital sent an urgent notice to CNA that it needed a nurse it had locked out who has special competency in caring for patients undergoing certain complex procedures.

Photo: Marilyn Bechtel/PW

Jamey Rodemeyer, 14: another victim of anti-gay bullying

Mon, 26 Sep 2011 16:08:00 +0000

On Monday Americans were reminded of the terrible impact of bullying when 14-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer took his own life after being incessantly bullied by classmates. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth all across America face daily taunts and threats in their schools and in church, and this had led to the tragic consequences that we have all seen.

Jamey was a 14-year-old high school student in New York who often blogged about his experiences being bullied at school. In fact, according to his parents, Jamey had been bullied since the 5th grade, both at school, and online. His mother stated that he had begun questioning his sexuality, which led to students making malicious comments toward him. However, in the past year the attacks began to increase in intensity and in vehemence: Jeremy began receiving vile comments on his Formspring account, a blog that allows anonymous postings, such as: "Jaime is stupid, gay, fat and ugly. He must die!" and "I wouldn't care if you died. No one would. So just do it :) It would make everyone way more happier!"

Unfortunately, Jamey's story is not a rarity: he is only the latest in a tragic string of suicides among bullied LGBT youth. Last year we learned about: Tyler Clementi (age 19), Billy Lucas (age 15), Seth Walsh (age 13), Asher Brown (age 13), Raymond Chase (age 19), and Cody Barker (age 17) who are just a few of the many LGBT teens who committed suicide after incessant bullying and torment from their peers.

Anti-LGBT bullying in this nation is unfortunately at epidemic levels among teens. According to GlSEN, 9 in 10 LGBT students report being bullied at school due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. This ranges from slurs to threats, to actual beatings. Even more startling, LGBT youth are 300 times more likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual peers. Clearly there is a problem, and it is absolutely shameful that it has taken this long for America to realize it.

Thankfully, there are many advocates pushing for LGBT-inclusive anti-bullying protections. Both Illinois and New Jersey have passed tough new anti-bulling laws with specific protections for LGBT youth, with many other states looking into such measures. President Obama held an anti-bullying conference in March, and the Federal government has an anti-bulling website. Many school districts adopted newer measures to more adequately address bullying as well. Groups such as GLSEN have stepped in to help with LGBT-bullying education.

However, currently less than a quarter of all states have LGBT-inclusive anti-bullying policies, and many states have policies that demand that teachers remain neutral on LGBT issues- effectively tying their hands.

Outside of schools, there have been many efforts made by celebrities and philanthropists to combat this problem. The Trevor Project, a 24-hour nonprofit LGBTQ suicide-prevention hotline created in 1998, has recently been endorsed and supported by several celebrities including Daniel Radcliffe in order to raise awareness. Seattle Stranger Columnist Dan Savage created the It Gets Better Project, which features powerful videos from individuals and celebrities all sharing stories about how life gets better after high school, and that if they hold on, they will see it. These often emotional videos have been made by everyone from Hollywood celebrities, to sports teams, to politicians (no Republicans though.)

The article continues after the video below.

Not surprisingly, the pro-gay-bullying lobby has decried those anti-bullying measures as part of the "gay agenda." These organizations claim that educating students on LGBT bullying and working to prevent it will amount to gay sex being taught in schools as well as a moral decline. Many are even pushing back against the notion that anti-LGBT is a problem. Maggie Gallagher, former spokeswoman for the virulently anti-gay National Organization for Marriage (NOM) claimed that, "Nothing in the press accounts suggest the kids [who committed suicide] who did this were motivated by homophobia." Robert Newman, the head of the California Christian Coalition founded by Pat Robertson, claimed that bullying is not a problem in schools, and that being bullied is simply "part of the maturation process...there's no reason to have a special bill for say three percent of the population, period."

Dan Savage claims that these religious/political organizations have blood on their hands. He is especially accusatory of religious leaders who use anti-gay rhetoric in their sermons. "The problem is that kids are being exposed to this rhetoric, and then they go to the school and there's this gay kid," Savage said. "And how are they going to treat this gay kid who they've been told is trying to destroy their family? They're going to abuse him."

It would seem that many Americans agree with Savage: A Public Religion Research Institute Poll found that about 40 percent of Americans feel that churches spread negative messages about the LGBT community and two-thirds felt that these messages were at least partly to blame in LGBT suicides. Additionally, it has been found that youth living in more conservative areas were much more likely to commit suicide.

Imagine how hard it is for LGBT teens, who facing bullying in school, turn on the news and see that many of our nation's leaders are actually anti-gay bullies too. Try to step in their shoes when they see modern-day Crusades against gays and lesbians. Wonder how they feel when they read about North Carolina and Minnesota trying to change their state constitution for the express purpose of prohibiting gays from marrying. Imagine how they feel when they see an openly-gay soldier in Iraq loudly booed. Now wonder why so many teens don't believe it when we say It Gets Better.

It is time for America to grow up. These tragedies, the result of religious and political prejudice, are a shame to our country and to our humanity. In order to keep a tragedy like Jamey's from happening again, let's try having freedom and justice for all including for the LGBT community.

If you (or anyone you know) are thinking about taking your own life, know that you are not alone and that there are people you can help. Call the Trevor Project anytime at (866) 488 7386.

Update 9/27/11: Tthe vile nature of Jamey's bullying is more hateful than appears and goes beyond his tragic suicide. His parents told the hosts of the Today Show on Tuesday that they let their daughter attend a homecoming event that Jamey was looking forward to. When a song came on dedicated to Jamey, his bullies chanted "You're better off dead, we're glad you're dead." The school district has yet to comment on the matter, and it seems they have neglected to deal with a problem that is obviously entrenched and likely is affecting other youths besides Jamey.

As Google+ grows, Facebook unveils some pluses of its own

Mon, 26 Sep 2011 15:28:00 +0000

The war goes on: amidst the rise of Google+, Facebook is bringing changes set to revolutionize its site. In a bold move, Facebook's new Timelines will challenge Google's appealing design. The question is - which of the two networks will be the victor?

For months now, the two giants have been vying for the spotlight, with Facebook competitively adding features to ensure the loyalty of its users, while Google+ offered the benefit of integrating Google search and Gmail into its interface.

This drove home the point that Facebook has had - comparatively - a lack of interconnectivity, reported Mail & Guardian. However, it has made an unprecedented attempt to remedy this problem.

Vint Cerf, Google's Vice President, recently said that Facebook risked following the path of websites like AOL, the business model that became irrelevant in the eyes of the public. He suggested that in the wake of Google+'s popularity, Facebook would not last long.

But that prospect changed on Thursday, during the F8 developer's conference in San Francisco, MSN revealed. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg announced revisions of a considerable magnitude, which, as Yahoo News divulged, are:

Timelines:

A more minimalist, blog-like approach to a user's page, this will have the aesthetic appeal of a magazine cover, with a banner (of the user's choice) at the top, and areas like one's recent activity, current music, and personal info in neat, easy-on-the-eyes sections. It's called a timeline because stories on your wall would be organized by date and year. For example, a friend could see a user's status updates and activities from 2008 with a single click.

Apps:

Cerf, the report continued, theorized that Facebook's habit of allowing people to only connect with users and outlets on its own site would eventually drive them away. Zuckerberg must have been listening. Cooperating with sites like Netflix, Spotify, and Hulu, among many others, interconnectivity will now be fully realized on a Facebook profile, with users being allowed to share and stream any music, shows, books, and films they happen to be viewing with friends. This would be located right below the informational sections of one's profile.

A third change was one that arrived prior to the F8 conference - the News Ticker, which displays friends' status updates that are thought to be less important or urgent, at a glance, one scrolling by after the other. Meanwhile, the more significant updates will stay in the main News Feed, with users having the new option of "unsubscribing" from a person if they do not want to view his or her updates.

These changes are set to go live on September 29^th, and users will gradually - over the course of a few weeks - see the changes implemented on their profiles. Whether or not the reaction will be positive remains to be seen - as it stands now, many users are already complaining about the drastic change to a site they felt comfortable with. Others look upon the idea with cautious optimism.

But as everything in daily life becomes more intertwined with the Internet (whether it's Facebook, Google+, or Twitter), what do these new features - as well as the advanced level of interconnectivity - mean for the progressive movement?

As a network meant to bring people together, many believe Facebook poses new and alternative methods of organizing positive collective political action. And during a time when the networking platform is being used by the Right Wing to draw in potential voters for Presidential candidates, progressives ought to utilize social media to fight back.

A shining example of the benefit of social networks came in July, when Twitter became a platform on which people could directly ask President Obama their questions - over 70,000 people tweeted questions and comments during that event.

Despite how the future may have looked for Facebook before Thursday, it seems that, with its new advancements, it is marching forward now.

Meanwhile, Google+ saw an uptick in usership once more, after it went public this week. Small upgrades to the site - including a search feature and an enhanced group chat (called a "Hangout") came two days ago.

However, while the general consensus seems to be that Google+ could pose a challenge to Zuckerberg's network giant, it is not yet known how it will fare after the results of Facebook's "enhancements" are fully realized.

Snapshot taken directly from Facebook's Timeline page