We invite you to sign, as an individual or as an organization, a letter to Attorney General Dana Nessel. Please let Nomi Joyrich (nomijoyrich@gmail.com or 248-497-1226) know if you are willing to be a “featured signer.” If so, then send her your photo/name/title and/or your organizational logo. Feel free to pass this on to other people/groups who might be interested. It would be very helpful if you shared this message with your organization, your faith leaders and their social action committee.
Click for Sign On Letter: https://rocunited.org/michigan/time-to-care/organization/
Week of Action schedule and registration linksWeek of Action Resource Folder
(Week of Action schedule and registration links included)
Dear Paid Leave Ally,
Please sign your name or your organization onto the letter linked above to guarantee the right to earn paid sick time and a minimum wage increase for all Michigan workers. Attorney General Dana Nessel has the authority to right a wrong committed in 2018, which robbed Michigan workers of the ability to earn paid sick time immediately before a global pandemic.
Attempting to subvert the democratic process and prevent voters from approving PA-337 (MOFW) and PA-338 (MI Time To Care) in the 2018 general election, Michigan Republicans adopted these ballot measures into law before they could be approved by voters. Wildly popular, these bills were polling at 70% voter approval.
Republicans adopted these laws and then proceeded to gut them during their lame duck session. Under Article 2, Section 9 of the Michigan Constitution, the legislature may not adopt and amend ballot measures in the same legislative cycle. Their actions were an assault on workers and an attack on democracy. The blatant voter suppression being experienced in Georgia is nothing new to Michigan.
Michigan families and workers deserve paid sick leave and a minimum wage increase to at least $12/hr. Over 4 million new people entered poverty over the last year and over 95% of all U.S. counties can’t afford a one-bedroom rental on minimum wage.
Justice delayed is justice denied, and Attorney General Dana Nessel holds the power to deliver it for Michigan workers and mamas. Please join us in calling on Attorney General Nessel to take action.
In Solidarity,The MI Time To Care Coalition
The United Nations says Yemen is the site of world’s greatest humanitarian crisis: 5 million of 28 million Yemenis and 400,000 Yemeni children are in danger of starving. We must act now! One Yemeni child is starving to death every 75 seconds. Our country is contributing to this massive human tragedy by giving military aid to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Click HERE for a recent news article describing this humanitarian crisis and appeals from four U.N. organizations.
Yemen has been the site of a deadly civil war between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and Houthi rebels. By giving shipments of arms to these countries, the U.S. has blood on its hands. President Biden can demand that Saudi Arabia lift the blockade on the port of Hodeidah so that petroleum can become available to transport food and supplies to the rest of the country. About 30,000 Yemenis live in Michigan.
BACKGROUND: This Wednesday, March 24th, the Michigan GOP introduced a package of 39 bills that constitute an assault on democracy. These bills suppress the vote and make it harder to cast a ballot. It’s part of a national effort to suppress the vote based on “the big lie” that the 2020 Presidential election was “stolen”.
Coined as “protecting election integrity,” these bills aim to make it harder to vote. Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey has expressed support for this legislations. Republicans state that these bills “will ensure election integrity and restore trust in the election system.” Democrats claim that the bills “attempt to silence voters.” Click HERE for more information.
Among other things, these bills would eliminate drop boxes, require all absentee ballots to be delivered directly to clerks, and make it more difficult for a voter to have someone deliver their ballot for them. For a full list of the bills, click HERE and scroll down to Senate Bills 273-311. In the meantime, Secretary of State, Jocelyn Benson is working to advance legislation to increase access to voting. Benson’s Advance the Vote agenda can be found HERE.
The Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks, the Michigan League of Women Voters, the Promote the Vote Coalition and Secretary Benson have all denounced the 39-bill package. Benson states: “Many of the bills in this package will make it harder for citizens to vote. Rather than introducing bills based on disproven lies and copied from other states, lawmakers should be codifying what worked in 2020. Michigan voters demonstrated they want our elections to be accessible in 2018 when they enshrined new voting rights in our state constitution, and again in 2020 when millions exercised those new rights. Everything we do should be based on protecting the right to vote, and too many of these bills would do the opposite.”
It is tempting to not worry about these efforts and to feel safe thinking that Governor Whitmer will simply veto any voter suppression bills. And this may be true. However, some say that conservatives are likely to respond to vetoes by activating a network of petition circulators to collect enough signatures to put these issues on the ballot. Then the Senate could adopt the legislation into law and bypass the need for the Governor’s signature. It’s important our Senators hear from us now.
The Michigan Economic Justice Fellowship program, for the first time, is open to people throughout Michigan who want to develop their skills at doing justice work. The deadline for applying for a Fellowship, sponsored by the Economic Justice Alliance of Michigan, is March 28, 2021. The Fellowship is now open to people statewide because the training classes are being offered on-line instead in a face to face setting in Detroit. People who complete the nine month Fellowship will receive $1,500.
The Fellowship includes 30 (three-hour) on-line professional trainings on how to do justice work.Training sessions (held mostly on Saturdays) start on April 17th and run through mid December. Click HERE to see a training schedule.
Fellows also get 40 hours of Practicum work experience through the Michigan Unitarian Universalist Social Justice Network (MUUSJN) or four other non-profit EJAM partner organizations, including: The Restaurant Opportunity Center, Detroit People’s Platform, Mothering Justice, The Ezekiel Project (Saginaw).
With MUUSJN, a statewide social justice network, Fellows can have choices about the focus of their practicum field work: racism, environmental justice, LGBTQ+ rights, women’s and economic justice. People of color, women, people from LGBTQ+ communities and Unitarian Universalists are strongly encouraged to apply. For more information about MUUSJN Fellowships, email Randy Block, MUUSJN Director, at randyblock@yahoo.com. For further information or to complete an on-line Fellowship application, go to: www.mieconomicjustice.org
The COVID pandemic — and the economic and health crisis it triggered — is devastating families across the country. On February 26th, the U.S. House adopted a $1.9 trillion COVID relief package called the “American Rescue Plan”. Click HERE for details from a recent article in the Detroit Free Press that spells out how the plan includes billions in relief for Michigan:
Recently, the Senate parliamentarian ruled that a raise in the minimum wage could not be included in the Senate COVID relief bill under Senate “reconciliation” rules that would allow the relief bill to be adopted with only 51 votes. Some workers’ advocates say that the Senate should overrule the parliamentarian or abolish the filibuster rule that requires Senators to get at least 60 votes to adopt legislation. The federal minimum wage hasn’t been increased since 2009 while corporate CEO’s wages have risen big time. Low income workers have struggled to barely sustain themselves on a minimum wage. Even though Democrats like Senator Joe Manchin and Senator Krysten Sinema (AZ) have indicated they oppose a $15 federal minimum wage, the majority of Americans support it. A Reuter/Ipsos poll released on February 25th, indicated that a majority of Americans (59%) support a raise in the minimum wage over five years.
Americans also support the American Rescue Plan by 68% according to an Quinnipiac poll from February 2021. It’s urgent that the Senate adopts the American Rescue Plan adopted before March 14th when COVID unemployment benefits run out.
On Thursday February 25, the U. S. House of Representatives adopted the Equality Act (H.R. 5) on a vote of 224-206, including three Republicans. However, passage in the Senate faces an uphill battle. The Senate needs 60 votes to overcome a filibuster. This is separate from other state legislative efforts to amend the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to protect rights of people based on their sexual orientation or gender identify.
Take action this week by contacting your Senators by email or phone to support passage of The Equality Act. Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow supported the Equality Act last year. Thank them, in advance, for their support. Ask your family and friends in other states to contact their Senators as well. Just a few clicks will get it done.
For more information, contact Sharon Pedersen, MUUSJN Welcoming and LGBTQ+ Justice Organizer, sspedersen@sbcglobal.net, 517-740-2629
Thank you to OutCenter of Southwest Michigan, Inclusive Justice, and HRC for content information for this Action Alert.
On Thursday February 18, the Equality Act (H.R. 5) was introduced to provide enduring non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people in all aspects of life, including housing, credit, education, federally funded programs, public spaces, and jury service. A vote is expected as early as this coming week! All of Michigan Democratic Representatives were co-sponsors of this bill.
Why do we need it? Despite improved federal laws, discrimination continues to be a problem for LGBTQ+ people across the country. Nearly two-thirds of LGBTQ+ Americans report having experienced discrimination in their everyday lives. In 27 states, LGBTQ+ people are at risk of being fired, refused housing, denied a home loan, or being turned away from a business because of who they are.
Michigan Unitarian Universalist Social Justice Network (MUUSJN) has joined countless faith-based organizations and many national, regional, and local LGBTQ+ centers across the nation to support passing the Equality Act. The nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute found that national support for the Equality Act is around 83%! This is the strongest level of support the bill has ever seen.
For more information, contact Sharon Pedersen, MUUSJN Welcoming and LGBTQ+ Justice Organizer, sspedersen@sbcglobal.net, 517-740-2629.
Thank you to OutCenter of Southwest Michigan, Inclusive Justice, and HRC for content information for this Action Alert.
BACKGROUND:
The federal government, with bi-partisan support, allocated COVID relief funds in December 2020 that should now be available to help Michiganders deal with the pandemic and its impact. The Michigan legislature is responsible for allocating these funds. Currently, $2.1 billion dollars of these funds are designated for our schools, but are being withheld by the Republican controlled House of Representatives. They are making allocation of these funds contingent on stripping Governor Whitmer of some of her pandemic-related emergency powers. Specifically, they seek to remove the Governor’s ability to close in-person learning and sports activities and to grant this authority to local health departments.
This effort is being led by the Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Representative Thomas Albert (R). Albert represents the 86th State House District, which is east of Grand Rapids and encompasses Ionia, Belding and Lowell. As Chair of this important committee, Albert yields tremendous power in this matter.
WHAT ADVOCATES ARE SAYING:
Education groups across the state have blasted this move. Tina Kerr, head of the Michigan Association of Superintendents and Administrators stated: “The debate among adults about separation of powers and decision-making authority should not hold hostage these desperately needed funds for our schools and, ultimately, Michigan’s children”. Robert McCann, Executive Director of the K-12 Alliance — an organization representing school superintendents in Genesee, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair and Wayne counties stated: “The Michigan Legislature has only one job as it relates to this funding: allocate it. Holding critical school funding hostage as part of a political squabble goes beyond ugly partisan politics: It is immoral and fundamentally unacceptable … Students, teachers and staff have faced far too much during this pandemic to now have to worry about becoming pawns in a grossly miscalculated political stunt.” (Detroit Free Press) For more information, go to: https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2021/01/27/whitmer-school-funds-covid-michigan/4274515001/)
The federal COVID school funds will help with: before and after school activities; summer school for kids who’ve fallen behind on their learning; school transportation; and repair air ducts for better air flow.
ACTIONS:
You are invited to join the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the Poor People’s Campaign and the One For Wage Campaign in a “Raise the Wage Moral Monday” to urge people in Michigan to call their members of Congress, demanding that they support the “Raise the Wage Act of 2021” that would raise the federal minimum wage to $15/hour.
Join these organizations tomorrow (February 8th) at noon for Moral Monday on-line rally to raise the minimum wage. Click HERE to RSVP your place at the rally.
UPDATE: Last Thursday (February 4th) the Senate adopted an amendment to not raise the minimum wage during the pandemic. Bernie Sanders, the author of The Raise the Wage Act of 2021, stated that his bill would not have increased the bill during the pandemic but would have increased the wage in steps over five years. Both of Michigan’s Senators were co-sponsors of $15/wage bill during 2020, as were all of Michigan’s Democratic U.S. Representatives. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that whatever happens with the stimulus package that Democrats would not abandon the cause. However, Sen. Joe Manchin has said he will not support an increase to $15/hour but said he would support something “responsible and reasonable”. This means that citizen advocacy will be even more urgent.
MUUSJN has co-sponsored a forum on “Raising the Minimum Wage…A Reform Whose Time has Come” that will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, February 20th. You are invited to hear Jonathan Kinloch, the Political Director of the Michigan Service Employees International Union (SEIU), speak on this topic. There will be opportunities for questions. The Michigan SEIU, over the years, has taken the lead in the “Fight for 15” . Jonathan is a progressive member of the Wayne County Commission.
To register for this meeting, click HERE. Click HERE to join the zoom meeting or CALL: 1-646-558-8656; ID: 889 4551 3834
If you have further questions, don’t hesitate to call Randy Block at 248-224-572 (cell).
The Trump Administration was outrageous in the number of ways it attacked the dignity and the rights of people from LGBTIQ+ communities. For an extensive list from the Human Rights Commission (HRC), click HERE.
On January 20th, President Joe Biden signed an Executive Order on “Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation”.
The order says “Every person should be treated with respect and dignity and should be able to live without fear, no matter who they are or who they love”. The Executive Order says that every government department must adopt policies and regulations that protect LGBTQ people against discrimination. “Children should be able to learn without worrying whether they will be denied access to a bathroom, the locker room or school sports. Adults should be able to earn a living and pursue a vocation knowing that they will not be fired, demoted or mistreated because of whom they go home to or because how they dress does not conform to sex-based stereotypes. People should be able to access healthcare and secure a roof over their heads without being subjected to sex discrimination. All persons should receive equal treatment under law.” This Executive order confirms a Supreme Court Bostock ruling that laws that prohibit “discrimination based on sex prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation”. For more of the text of this Executive Order, click HERE.
Another Executive Order ended the Trump ban on transgender persons serving in the military. Much more action is needed by the Biden Administration during its first 100 days. For a list of 10 of these reforms, click HERE to see Lambda Legal’s “FIRST 100 DAYS CHECKLIST”.
One reform that faith groups can do is endorse the Equality Act. If passed, the Equality Act would amend the Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, public accommodations, public education, federal funding, credit, and the jury system.
Last year the Equality Act was adopted in the House but didn’t get out of the Senate. This year, it has a much better chances of being passed in the Senate. If you are connected to a religious organization, encourage that organization to sign this Equality Act Faith Endorsement. MUUSJN has taken this step.
In Michigan, the Fair and Equal ballot campaign would amend the Elliot Larsen Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination based gender identify, sexual orientation and gender expression. It would provide broader protections in areas of local employment, housing, education, and public accommodations and services. The campaign, under a very difficult COVID pandemic, managed to collect about 530,000 signatures. The campaign raised almost $3 million, mobilized support from many business leaders, and was endorsed by 21 mayors representing nearly 2 million Michigan citizens. Once the petitions have been certified by the Board of Canvassers, the Michigan legislature will have 40 days to either pass the legislation or or send the issue to voters in the fall of 2022. Trevor Thomas, Co-Chair of the campaign, has said we “urge the Michigan legislature to finally act so that all Michiganders will have a fair and equal chance to succeed”.
MUUSJN will inform its readers when the Board of Canvassers has approved this historical ballot proposal. This email describes reasons to hope for stronger rights for people from LGBTIQ+ communities. For more information, contact MUUSJN’s LGBTIQ+ Welcoming and Justice Organizer, Sharon Pedersen, at sspedersen@sbcglobal.net.
