Domestic (In)justice Activism Opportunities

  • Support Mama’s Bail Out Day This Mother’s Day via @NationalBailOut #FreeBlackMamas #EndMoneyBail

    MAMAS_FACT2.1-300x300.jpg

    For those of you not living the day to day oppression of black people in America, it’s possible you didn’t notice right away that The Movement for Black Lives has almost entirely dropped from the mainstream media headlines since November. 

    There is no question that this is a direct casualty of the election of Donald Trump. Maybe things will change as Jeff Sessions begins flexing his Attorney General powers, but it’s important to remember that nothing has changed for black people in America since November. Unarmed black people of all ages and walks of life are still dying at the hands of police and the police are still getting away with it. 

    So if you have found yourself unengaged from the movement, your first action is to jump back in. Visit the websites and social media pages of organizations like Advancement Project, Alliance for Educational Justice, Color of Change, Dream Defenders, Law for Black Lives, and of course, The Movement for Black Lives. 

    Your next action is to get involved this week with Mama’s Bail Out Day, leading up to and happening on Mother’s Day, this Sunday, May 14th. The day is organized by National Bail Out, a partnership with Color of Change and The Movement for Black Lives, with the goal of reuniting families, resisting mass incarceration and ending the cash bail system once and for all. 

    The idea is simple: Local and national organizations participating in National Mama’s Bail Out Day are raising money to pay the bail of as many incarcerated mothers as possible, in all of their varieties - queer, trans, young, elder, and immigrant - and give them an opportunity to spend Mother’s Day with their families. Additionally, the organizations plan to build community through gatherings that highlight the impact of inhumane and destructive bail practices on our communities, particularly communities of color.  

    Why the focus on mothers? Women held in local jails represent the fastest growing group of incarcerated people in the United States. Since 1970, the number of women in US jails has increased by 14 times. Nearly 80% of women in jails are mothers and nearly half are in local jails for crimes they haven’t been convicted of. According to National Bail Out, we spend $9 billion on pre-trial incarceration in this country and the results are devastating. Even a few days in jail can catastrophically impact a woman’s family and community by putting her job, housing and even the custody of her children at risk. But if she can’t pay bail, she has no way out.

    The idea of paying bail to release these women comes from the tradition of enslaved black people who used their collective resources to purchase each other’s freedom before slavery was abolished. The National Bail Out website states, “Until we abolish bail and mass incarceration, we’re gonna free ourselves.”

    The more money National Bail Out can raise, the more women can be brought home for Mother’s Day and reengage with their communities. Visit NoMoreMoneyBail.org to donate and find the cities and organizations taking part in this action. You can also follow the movement on Twitter @NationalBailOut and engage with the hashtags #EndMoneyBail and #FreeBlackMamas.

    So, if resisting the devastating impacts of mass incarceration and bail practices on people of color is important to you, be sure to hit the share buttons to spread the word about Supporting Mama’s Bail Out Day This Mother’s Day via social media so that others in your network can spread the word too.

     

    TAKE ACTION 

    Support Mama's Bail Out Day this Mother's Day via @NationalBailOut 

    Engage online with the hashtags #FreeBlackMamas and #EndMoneyBail

    EDUCATE YOURSELF

    Locked Up for Being Poor (New York Times)

    Federal judge: Harris Co. bail system unfair to poor, low-level defendants (Houston Chronicle)

    Black Is the New Black: Number of African-American Women in Prison Is Rising (BET, 2014)

    Incarcerated Women and Girls (The Sentencing Project)

     

    Posted May 9, 2017; Written by Best of the Left Communications Director, Amanda Hoffman

     

    Hear this segment in the context of Best of the Left #1102: Racism built a system we all suffer under

     

     

  • Tell Your Senators: Expose Jeff Sessions’ Anti-Civil Rights & Anti-Privacy History via @ACLU

    Screen_Shot_2017-01-06_at_7.36.28_PM.pngJeff Sessions has been around for a long time. In the 1980s, Reagan tapped Sessions for a judgeship, but the Republican Congress at the time rejected him due to his long history of racist comments and questions surrounding his unfounded prosecution of a black civil rights activist for voter fraud. Yea, he was too racist for 1980s Republicans. 

    Since then, Sessions has only revealed more about himself that proves he is in no way fit to fairly uphold the law or the constitution of this country. In fact, he has really gone out of his way to target or offend nearly everyone, while advocating for authoritarianism at every turn. 

    Here are just some of his views: He is opposed to key provisions of the voting rights act. He is anti bi-partisan sentencing reform, pro police militarization and thinks America is experiencing an all time crime high, despite all evidence to the contrary. He is pro boarder wall and the National Immigration Forum said, “Sessions is opposed to immigration as we know it. Full stop.” He is anti marijuana, and only disavowed the KKK when he learned its members smoked. He is anti-LGBT rights and has actively tried to protect discrimination against LGBT people. He is anti-abortion, voted against the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act and said that calling Trump’s comments about grabbing women by the genitals sexual assault was “a stretch.” He believes Islam is a “toxic ideology” and a “threat” and supports Trump’s proposed ban on immigration from Muslim countries. Oh, and he is also pro-torture. 

    And then, as if all of that wasn’t enough, there are his feelings about privacy. Even though many of his Republican colleagues supported it, Jeff Sessions fought against the bi-partisan bill to end the bulk collection of phone records. According to the ACLU, he has repeatedly pushed for greater surveillance authorities than law enforcement and intelligence agencies have even asked for. And when it comes to end-to-end encryption, Sessions is perhaps one of the fiercest critics out there - strongly backing the FBI in its case against Apple to force them to create back door access to the iPhone. 

    But despite all of this, on January 10th Sessions will yet again sit in front of members of Congress at his confirmation hearing - this time as Trump’s pick for Attorney General, the most powerful law enforcement office in the land. You can make sure every single bit of his dirty, anti-civil rights and anti-privacy laundry is exposed during this hearing by calling your Senators today, and often, to tell them how you feel about Sessions’ record, and to demand that the Senate Judiciary Committee leave no stone unturned when questioning Sessions at his hearing. Go to ACLU.org to read about Sessions record issue by issue, and then go to Senate.gov to find out how to reach your senator. 

    So if stopping a racist man with a long, documented history of fighting against your rights from becoming Attorney General is important to you, then be sure to hit the share buttons to spread the word about Telling Your Senators to Expose Jeff Sessions’ Anti-Civil Rights and Anti-Privacy History via social media so that others in your network can take action too.

    Stand up. Fight back. There is no time to lose.

     

     

    TAKE ACTION

    Call your Senators today and tell them why you oppose Jeff Sessions for Attorney General

    Read ACLU’s “The Confirmation Sessions” for Jeff Sessions history, issue-by-issue 

    Call Senate Judiciary Committee Members who will question Sessions on January 10th.  

    EDUCATE YOURSELF

    ACLU's "The Confirmation Sessions" (ACLU)

    Corporate Accountability Blunders Taint Sessions Record (Public Citizen)

    Trump and Sessions: Great for the Private Prison Industry, Terrible for Civil Rights (ACLU Blog)

    Jeff Sessions’ Nomination as Attorney General Alarms Civil Libertarians (Wired) 

    Trump’s attorney general pick could restart the encryption fight (The Verge)

    Trump's pick for attorney general: 'Good people don't smoke marijuana' (The Washington Post)

     

    Posted January 6, 20167; Written by Best of the Left Communications Director, Amanda Hoffman


    Hear this segment in the context of Best of the Left Edition #1069: Trump and our National Security State (Civil Rights)

  • Support Prison Strikers by Joining Actions Around the Country

    Its_Going_Down_Prison_Strike.jpgAs you’ve heard today, the largest prison strike in history is happening right now. And if you’re listening to this wondering why you haven’t heard much of anything about it, you’re not alone. The mainstream media is hardly covering it.

    For the last month, inmates at prisons around the US refused to show up for their prison mandated jobs, where they make pennies by the hour - or in some states nothing - at the benefit of major companies like McDonalds and Wal-Mart. They have nothing in the way of worker’s rights or worker protections or the ability to form unions….and our 13th amendment says that’s okay. 

    FreeAlabamaMovement.wordpress.com is the website run by the inmates at the Alabama prison spearheading this aptly named “Freedom Movement.” The site’s announcement of the strike proclaimed, “In one voice, rising from the cells of long term solitary confinement, echoed in the dormitories and cell blocks from Virginia to Oregon, we prisoners across the United States vow to finally end slavery in 2016.”

    These inmates are striking in the face of retaliation. We already know that some have been put in isolation for their actions, but a few have been able to bravely speak to reporters via contraband phones. But while the rest of the media largely ignores the strike and prison wardens deny that anything serious is going on, calls for more public support are surfacing. 

    ItsGoingDown.org is a citizen-driven, repository of news and analysis on all kinds of acts of rebellion and revolt in North America. A post on this site is calling for a resurgence of actions in our communities October 15th to 22nd to show support for the inmates and amplify their message. You can find an action near you at the bottom of that post, or create an action and submit it to ItsGoingDown.org to be posted. 

    The New Yorker is one of the few major publications talking about the strike. In their article, an Alabama inmate said, “I want to clarify that it is not ‘slave-like conditions’ in prison labor—this is actually institutional slavery. Slavery was always about exploiting the labor of lower-class people in this country.”

    From private prisons, to the school to prison pipeline, to the rights of prisoners and former prisoners, to criminal justice reform, we have a long way to go when it comes to upending our state of incarceration rooted in America’s institutional racism. So make these issues part of your theory of change by getting involved in the long term with organizations like The Advancement Project, the ACLU, the Brennan Center for Justice, Fair Vote, the Southern Poverty Law Center and other organizations working to achieve racial justice. 

    As Nelson Mandela once said, “No one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails. A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.” So if you want to work toward a society we can all be proud of, then be sure to hit the share buttons to spread the word about supporting prison strikers by joining actions around the country via social media so that others in your network can take action too. 

    TAKE ACTION

    Read the call to action post on ItsGoingDown.org and find an event near you at the bottom of the post.

    Create your own local action to support the prison strikes and submit it to be posted by emailing info@itsgoingdown.org. 

    EDUCATE YOURSELF

    Why Prisoners Across the Country Have Gone on Strike (via Mother Jones)

    "We're Freedom Fighters": The Story of the Nationwide Prison Labor Strike (via truthout)

    The biggest national prison strike in American history is happening now (via Daily Kos)

    Meet the inmate who launched a massive prison strike from his jail cell (via Vice)

    A National Strike Against "Prison Slavery" (via The New Yorker)

    DOJ Launches Investigation of Alabama Mens' Prison (via AL.com) 

    Free Alabama Movement  (website of the inmates spearheading the strike in Alabama)

    IWW Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee (unrecognized union for incarcerated prison workers)

     

    Posted October 7, 2016 * Written by Best of the Left Communications Director, Amanda Hoffman. 

     

    Hear the segment in the context of Best of the Left Edition #1048: Slavery in America is alive and well (prison labor) 

  • End the Culture of Warrior Policing via @ACLU

    We don’t need to tell you that the news has been awful. Everywhere you look are stories and videos of death and injustice. And we get that you may sometimes feel like you just want to just shut it all out. But we’re asking you today to allow yourself to get enraged by the news and to channel that rage toward making our broken and racist systems finally work for all. 

    According to the ACLU, a typical police cadet spends just eight hours on de-escalation training…just eight hours. That is not enough to counter inherent racial bias that leads to profiling and fear, and is sadly contradictory to the increasing militarization of our police departments. This conversation isn’t about “bad apples,” this is about a terrifying lack of emphasis on “protect and serve” and the deeply rooted racism at the core of those charged with keeping our communities safe. 

    Right now in Congress, there is a bill called the Preventing Tragedies Between Police and Communities Act of 2016. If passed, the Preventing Tragedies bill would require police to be trained on de-escalation techniques that focus on preserving life. The legislation builds upon Police Executive Research Forum guiding principles on use of force and its belief that “the preservation of life has always been at the heart of American policing.”

    To show your support of this bill, take a second to sign the ACLU petition “End the Culture of Warrior Policing." 

    The ACLU also recently sent a letter to Congress urging them to pass the Preventing Tragedies bill as well as the following bills when they return from recess:

    - The Law Enforcement Trust and Integrity Act (H.R. 2875, S. 2168), sponsored by Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), provides law enforcement with resources for accreditation, best practices, training, and other resources to increase trust between police and community. The bill also mandates data collection on use of force and other police-community encounters, so the public can begin to knowwhat policing looks like in this country.

    - The End Racial Profiling Act (H.R. 1933, S. 1056), also introduced by Rep. Conyers and Sen. Cardin, prohibits federal, state, and local law enforcement from engaging in racial profiling and other biased policing. The bill would help law enforcement meet this mandate through training, funding, and data collection. As the Department of Justice formally acknowledged at the end of June, “most people experience some degree of unconscious bias.” Implicit and explicit biases have no place in policing.

    - The Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act (H.R. 1232, S. 1441), offered by Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), would prohibit the transfer of some of the most dangerous  military weapons from the federal government to state and local law enforcement. Tanks, grenades, bayonets, and other weapons of war have no business in our communities.      

    - The Police CAMERA Act (H.R. 1680, S. 877) is sponsored by Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Fla.) and Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and provides federal resources to state and local law enforcement so they can develop safe and effective body-worn camera programs that also protect civilians’ privacy rights. Communities and law enforcement agree that cameras can be a part of the solution, but they must be implemented the right way.

    …and…

    - The DUE PROCESS Act (H.R. 5283, S. 3045) is a response to the controversial practice of civil asset forfeiture from Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). The bill levels the playing field for individuals who want to challenge law enforcement’s seizure of their property by providing access to counsel, an increased burden of proof for the government, and other procedural protections.

    We urge you to call and write to your legislators in the House and Senate to make sure they know you support the passage of these critical bills as well. 

    So, if making sure our police departments truly protect and serve all is important to you, be sure to hit the share buttons to spread the word about Ending the Culture of Warrior Policing via social media so that others in your network can get involved too. 

    Please know that signing a petition and calling your legislators is NOT ENOUGH. These are just two things in a long list of things that you can do to help fight for police reform and support our persecuted brothers and sisters of color. So get mad, get in the streets, fight with your racist relatives and friends, vote for candidates who support police reform, and challenge America’s systemic racism every damn day. Because your silence says more than you’ll ever know.

     

     

    TAKE ACTION 

    Sign the ACLU petition “End the Culture of Warrior Policing." 

    Call and write to your legislators in the House and Senate to make sure they know you support the passage of the total suite of policing reform bills listed above.

    EDUCATE YOURSELF

    ACLU Implores Congress Consider Taking Up Law Enforcement Reform Legislation (ACLU) 

    You Can Be Pro Cop and Pro Police Reform (Brennan Center for Justice)

    Showing Up for Racial Justice - Actions in Your Area (Showing Up for Racial Justice)

    10-Point Justice Plan: National Urban League Police Reform and Accountability Recommendations (National Urban League)

    Guiding Principles on Use of Force (Police Executive Research Forum)

     

    Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman.

     

    Hear the segment in the context of the show: 

    Best of the Left Edition #1030: "From Warriors to Guardians" (Police Reform)

  • White People: Get Mad, Get in the Streets for Black Lives via Organizations of the #BlackLives Movement

    In our activism segment for Best of the Left edition #1029: "You can't reignite a fire that never stops burning," you heard from those in the Movement for Black Lives what white teammates and co-conspirators need to do. Black people are taking risks every day to fight for their liberation. To truly be supporting this movement, white people need to ignore any hesitation stemming from their privilege and take risks too. If you are white and want to educate yourself and find out how you can join the fight to end oppression, here are some organizations in the Movement for Black Lives that you should be aware of and that can provide the resources you need to become part of the movement and get off the side-lines.

     

    SURJ - Showing Up for Racial Justice 

    SURJ is a national network of groups and individuals organizing white people for racial justice. You can find resources, actions and chapters and partner organizations in your area at showingupforracialjustice.org. 

     

    Advancement Project

    Advancement Project is a multi-racial civil rights organization founded by a team of veteran civil rights lawyers to develop and inspire community-based solutions based on the same high quality legal analysis and public education campaigns that produced the landmark civil rights victories of earlier eras. You can join campaigns, access resources and news around voting rights, the school to prison pipeline and more at advancementproject.org. 

     

    Hands Up United

    HandsUpUnited aims to fulfill the political void that remains from the historical archives of the Black Power Movement and strongly believes liberation for oppressed Black and Brown people will be achieved solely through self determination coupled with traditional and nontraditional means of political education. Their community programs include Books and Breakfast, the Tech Institute and food and clothing disbursement and oppression support groups. You can learn more at handsupunited.org.  

     

    Dream Defenders

    Dream Defenders is an uprising of communities in struggle, shifting culture through transformational organizing that believes the liberation necessitates the destruction of the political and economic systems of Capitalism and Imperialism, as well as Patriarchy. They also believe that nonviolent resistance is “the only morally and practically sound method open to oppressed people in their struggle for freedom” and are fundamentally committed to nonviolence as their means of struggle against a violent oppressor. You can learn more at dreamdefenders.org. 

     

    We Are Here Movement

    The We Are Here Movement’s Racial Justice in America Moonshot campaign is requesting a radical transformation in racial justice and equality with the push for $150 billion directed at poor communities over the next 10 years to provide access to equal education, healthcare, quality housing, training and jobs, nutrition and an overhaul of the Criminal Justice System. You can sign the petition at weareheremovement.com/moonshot.

     

    Million Hoodies Movement for Justice 

    Million Hoodies Movement for Justice is a racial justice membership organization confronting anti-black racism and systemic violence. Their mission is to build the next generation human rights leaders to end mass criminalization and gun violence through grassroots organizing, advocacy, and education. You can learn more at millionhoodies.net.

     

    TAKE ACTION

    Find Showing Up for Justice actions near you

    Sign the We Are Here Movement's Racial Justice Moonshot Petition 

    EDUCATE YOURSELF

    This is What White People Can Do to Support Black Lives Matter (Washington Post)

    Tim Wise Website (TimWise.com)

    It's Legal to Kill Black People (Hands Up United) 

    Rewire News - Racism (Rewire.com)

    11 Major Misconceptions About the Black Lives Matter Movement (Black Lives Matter)

    Only White People Can Save Themselves From Racism and White Supremacism (Washington Post) 

     

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