What motivates me to be an activist comes from my family. It comes from being a witness to the Civil Rights Movement when I was a child. My parents would sit for hours talking about the issues, explaining the importance of Martin Luther King, Jr., and The Civil Rights Movement. They would vow to fight against Barry Goldwater for President and his “Go Back to Africa” campaign. My Godmother, who was also my Great Aunt, founded the NAACP chapter in my hometown of Oroville, CA.where she also worked as a poll worker every election. It was the many Black churches preaching about and raising money for the Civil Rights movement. It was singing “We Shall Overcome” at every Sunday morning church service. It was being taught by example the importance of being aware of the issues and being involved in the community.

I come from a family of activists. At the height of the movement, after the footage of protestors being knocked down with water from fire hoses, members of my hometown community became outraged. Most of the African American elders in my community migrated from the south, and like the south, through the churches the adults came together and organized a march in solidarity with Dr. King and all the people protesting in the south. My father had learned the sheriff’s department might harm us if we marched, but being who he was, he wasn’t going to let that deter us. He instead informed all the pastors, congregations, and community members what he learned and since the adults planned to bring their children they decided we would instead march in the middle of the night.

One night my six siblings and I were awoken out of our sleep. While my mother dressed my younger siblings, we older ones were told to, “Get up, and put our clothes on. We’re going out.” My parents explained to us where we were going and why during the car ride to the rendezvous point the march would start from. Signs were put in our hands to carry as we quietly marched down the street on the south side of Oroville in the middle of the night with a large number of people from our community, all carrying signs calling for equal rights, the end of Jim Crow and the nationwide legalization of voting for all citizens. It’s an experience that profoundly touched me, that I still carry in the inner sanctum of my soul. My parents, elders and youthful experiences taught me the importance of standing up for what’s right and what I believe in.

A few years later, during the Civil Rights era, my uncle, with my aunt who was also his wife, as his campaign manager, ran for mayor in Berkeley, CA. My dad wanted two of my six siblings and I to experience the inner workings of a political campaign, so he took us out of school for two weeks and sent us to stay with our aunt and uncle in Berkeley. We along with our Berkeley cousins worked tirelessly knocking on doors, passing out flyers, door jamming, calling people and stuffing envelopes. Election night we experienced history when my uncle won and became the first African-American mayor of Berkeley.

When Obama was running back in 2008, in honor of my father who had passed away in 2001, I wanted to help elect him. So I joined the campaign as a volunteer and did some phone banking and texting, but when he won, I felt like we had finally made it so I started to get complacent in my activism compared to before his tenure. As time went by I noticed the disrespectful things being done and said about him and his family. Things we would never see or hear about his predecessors, but when Donald Trump won in 2016 my blood boiled. When I saw the youth walk out of their classes the day after the election chanting “not my president”, I was right there with them in spirit. He isn’t nor will he ever be president for all Americans. He’s the president for his base and his base only, and that’s not right. When he won, I joined the resistance. I joined MoveOn.

As a MoveOn member, I’ve been signing and sharing petitions with my community on social platforms, been a MoveOn Moderator, and I’ve been on MoveOn’s Support Team. Most recently for this election cycle, I’m a Vote Mobilizer where I assemble a team of people to make sure they have plans to vote and can get other people to make plans to vote. I’ve also been following up with people who signed up to be Vote Mobilizers to make sure they’re getting their team ready. Those conversations happen over text, but it’s never just a ‘yes, I’m ready’ or ‘no, I’m still getting ready’ kind of conversations. These interactions are a little more involved. People will respond and tell me that they have been laid off, furloughed, now rely on food banks, or about to be evicted. You have to listen to people because they are hurting, they are scared, and they need someone to talk to.

The fear and desperation people feel is a direct result of this administration, which is why I am supporting Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Joe Biden has the experience and knowledge to get our country back on track. He has the compassion to understand how people feel and what people are going through because he’s been there. He knows what it’s like to live in the lower income part of town. When Joe says, “I want to restore the soul of our nation. Heal the soul of our nation,” I know that’s what we need. We need healing.

I, like so many, cannot sit this election cycle out. I will vote because so many people gave their lives for our right to vote. I vote because it’s my voice. I think about all my ancestors who could not vote. I vote because we must.

– – –

MoveOn members and Vote Mobilizers like Queen want to make sure that we can remove Donald Trump from office. Vote Mobilizers are building teams of at least 10 eligible voters across battleground states to make sure people have plans to get out the vote in November. Together, we’ll create a better tomorrow.

The post MoveOn Member Stories: Why I, a child of the Civil Rights Era, am voting in 2020 appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

MoveOn members and the broader Resistance movement have been on the march this summer, repeatedly taking to the streets and the ballot box to defend the most vulnerable and building around a shared vision of our country: one where everyone can thrive and where all of us can live with honor and dignity.

Here’s just some of what we’ve done together in the past few months:

We stood together and took to the streets to say #FamiliesBelongTogether.

In a ground-shaking day of national action that became one of the biggest protests of the Trump era, MoveOn members helped lead the charge on Families Belong Together, a day of coordinated protest against family separation and family detention that saw hundreds of thousands of people rally at more than 750 events across the country, in big cities and in small towns, and in more than a dozen countries around the world.

From wall-to-wall coverage on MSNBC and CNN and the front page of The New York Times to small-town newspapers and local television stations from coast to coast, the moral and values message of the day was far-reaching.

MoveOn Civic Action and more than 180 organizations came together to pull off this inspiring mobilization, and we stood united across lines of ethnicity, race, national origin, and language.

This crisis is not over, as the Trump administration has repeatedly missed court-mandated deadlines to reunite families, so in the days and weeks ahead, we’ll continue to demand accountability from this administration to ensure that every single family is reunited and this inhumane policy comes to an end. We’ll organize more in-person and other actions to create pressure to reunite families, to close family prisons, and to end indefinite detention.

We continue to defend Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s attack on our elections.

In partnership with other progressive organizations, thousands of MoveOn members helped showcase a national outcry against Trump and his associates’ chaos, corruption, and attacks on the rule of law through nearly 200 “Confront Corruption: Demand Democracy” vigils on July 18, which drew coverage from MSNBC, Fox, NBC, and many others. We also teamed up with legendary filmmaker and actor Rob Reiner on the eve of Trump’s disgraceful meeting with Putin to demand that Trump meet with special counsel Robert Mueller and tell the truth about a possible conspiracy with Russia to win the presidency, as well as obstruction of justice to cover it up.

It’s more important than ever that we continue to defend Mueller’s investigation, which has produced 36 indictments, including charges against 13 Russian agents for cyberattacks. Our Nobody Is Above the Law rapid-response network continues to be engaged and is ready to launch more than 900 events with 375,000 confirmed participants if either Mueller or Rosenstein is fired or if Donald Trump moves to stop the investigation in another way. Our SMS program has also driven thousands of calls to Senate offices, demanding action to protect the investigation.

We’re elevating the voices of Black women leaders.

We launched “In Formation: Black Women Building the Progressive Future,” a six-part video series featuring five visionary Black women examining the roles of race, gender, and religion in America and the progressive movement. Videos in the series—featuring luminaries such as Alicia Garza, co-creator of Black Lives Matter and Black Futures Lab, our own Karine Jean-Pierre, and Heather McGhee, distinguished senior fellow at Demos—have already been viewed more than two million times.

This work is being done through our innovative internal video team, affectionately called our “Video Lab,” which has been making powerful, engaging, and viral videos to support our mission for the past two years.

We are fighting to save the Supreme Court and stop Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation.

Putting Brett Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court will cement into place the worst of Donald Trump’s legacy for generations to come—and could prevent full accountability for Trump’s obstruction of justice and corruption. The Court affects everything we believe in, including reproductive rights, health care, LGBTQ equality, affirmative action, voting rights, and so much more. And Congress should not confirm any lifetime appointments by Trump while his team is under criminal investigation.

We can win this incredibly important fight if we mobilize as intensely as we did in the fight to defend health care. Already, MoveOn members have made more than 13,000 phone calls to their senators. More than 400,000 people tuned in to a livestream rally in Washington condemning Kavanaugh’s nomination. On August 26, MoveOn members will be joining NARAL for a national day of action to demand that our representatives act now to protect our rights and freedoms by refusing Kavanaugh’s nomination.

We’re endorsing a new generation of progressive leaders—to end GOP control of Congress and move the Democratic Party forward.

Last month, MoveOn Political Action announced the first wave of federal endorsements by MoveOn members as part of our effort to end Republican control of the House this November. Each of these candidates, including Colin Allred (TX-32), Andy Kim (NJ-3), Jess King (PA-11), Mike Levin (CA-49), and Lauren Underwood (IL-14), are running strong campaigns committed to fighting for progressive values in Washington, such as health care for all, protections for Dreamers, and an economy that works for everyone, instead of a wealthy few.

And MoveOn member-endorsed Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) won a primary against a long-entrenched incumbent in a safe Democratic district in New York City. This stunning upset shows the potential in this political moment to move forward inspiring new candidates with a clear and compelling vision of economic, racial, and social justice. She’s now poised to be the youngest woman ever to serve in the U.S. House.

MoveOn members vote on all our endorsements—and we work to boost all the candidates who win our endorsement. Right now we’re on a path to make more than 100 federal endorsements in the 2018 midterm election cycle and 100 endorsements for state and local races, including 29 who have won Democratic primary elections.

Already, together MoveOn members have contributed over $2 million directly to candidates this cycle and have sent more than 3 million text messages in support of those candidates.

We’re gearing up to Resist & Win this summer.

This summer, we’re training a new generation of organizers through our Resist & Win mass training and mobilization program. Fellow MoveOn members around the country are taking part in a four-week digital summer camp that launched on July 8 that provides tools and resources for Volunteer Waves—grassroots voter contact events—to support MoveOn member-endorsed candidates and get-out-the-vote work this fall.

And after Election Day, when those endorsed candidates become our next elected officials, Resist & Win Leaders will work to hold those representatives accountable to the bold progressive vision we need to ensure that America is a place where everyone can thrive.

Thank you so much for all you’re doing to power and participate in MoveOn’s work. Our collective grit, discipline, strategy, heart, and nimbleness inspire us every day—and our work together is essential to help end this era of acute crisis and turn a corner toward the beautiful vision we hold in our hearts.

The post You’ve Done Amazing Work appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

The tragic shooting and death of Philando Castile by a police officer last summer shocked the Twin Cities and millions of people across the country, and was yet another painful reminder that our nation’s criminal justice system remains profoundly unjust and must be reformed. The lives of people of color, and Black men in particular, remain at disproportionate risk from police violence.

This acquittal is unfortunately unsurprising given that law enforcement officers are almost never convicted in such situations, even in the face of substantial evidence indicating criminal wrongdoing. But that doesn’t make it easy, or right. Our hearts go out to the Castile family and all of Philando Castile’s loved ones.

This acquittal should serve as a call to action and challenge all of us to redouble our commitment to reform. As MoveOn members help fuel a broader Resistance Movement, we have a responsibility to do more than block a reactionary white nationalist agenda. It isn’t enough to stop things from getting worse; we must make them better. All of us must help confront and abolish the systemic racism that plagues our criminal justice system—and our nation’s past and present—and to stand for the principle that Black lives matter.

###

The post MoveOn calls for criminal justice reform after acquittal of police officer who killed Philando Castile appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

By now you’ve probably seen the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. Created by three Black women in response to the killing of Trayvon Martin—and now the subsequent high-profile killings of other unarmed Black Americans at the hands of law enforcement—it is a hashtag often used after statements that expose the oppression and violence that Black Americans still face today as a result of systemic and institutionalized racism. You’ve also probably seen #AllLivesMatter.

Since the rampant police killings of unarmed Black Americans have become more exposed in the mainstream press, people have taken to social media to voice their outrage. But there have also been folks who have spent more time attacking the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter than attacking the reasons we have to use it.

Let me be clear: Saying that “all lives matter” immediately after saying “Black lives matter” minimizes and discredits the unique and distinct challenges that Black Americans are facing in this country today—and it needs to stop!

Of course, we know that all lives SHOULD matter, but it doesn’t mean that all lives are treated equally in this country. Pretending that racism doesn’t exist does not make it so, and that’s exactly what #AllLivesMatter does.

#BlackLivesMatter is not a competition to declare whose life matters most; it’s a reminder of the ways that Black lives are still often treated as if they matter less.

The comic above seems kind of silly right? You wouldn’t spray water on a building that isn’t on fire while you watch one burn down next to it. But that is EXACTLY what people are doing when they discredit the movement for Black lives and the reasons that we fight.

And the reasons are clear. Black Americans are more than twice as likely to be unarmed when killed during encounters with police as white people, according to a Guardian investigation. It’s statistics like that which show the need for hashtags like #BlackLivesMatter. But the truth is that the systemic racism that Blacks face is not only an issue of life and death. It’s the fact that a résumé with the name David is more likely to be picked for a job interview than one with the name Dante. It’s the fact that 1 in 3 Black men can expect to go to prison in their lifetime and that a report by the Department of Justice also found that Blacks and Latinos were approximately three times more likely to be searched during a traffic stop than white motorists. It’s the fact that Blacks are twice as likely to be arrested and almost four times as likely to experience the use of force during encounters with the police. It’s the fact that 27.4% of Blacks live in poverty.

The reality is this: We are NOT a post-racial society. Discrimination based on skin color still exists. We have come a long way and we have a lot to celebrate, but we can’t forget that the journey to where we are now didn’t happen because we silenced those being oppressed. It happened because those voices got so loud that people couldn’t help but listen. When we say that #BlackLivesMatter, we are fighting for our LIVES. We are fighting for our FREEDOM. We are making our voices known. Please don’t try to silence us–instead, help us create a society where all lives truly do matter.

The post Of course #AllLivesMatter, But Here’s Why You Need To Stop Saying It To Me appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

Just short of the Edmund Pettus Bridge—named after a 19th century Grand Dragon of the Alabama Ku Klux Klan—the marchers were blocked by Alabama state troopers and local police, who ordered them to turn around. When the protesters refused, the officers responded with acts of terror—shooting tear gas into the crowd and beating the nonviolent protesters with billy clubs—fifty people had to be hospitalized.

The peaceful protest on that day 50 years ago, and the civil rights activism that followed, helped propel some of the most important civil rights advances of our time—including the Voting Rights Act. The phrase “Selma is now,” from the award-winning song “Glory” (made for the acclaimed movie “Selma”), has become a popular rallying cry of civil rights activists today.

The civil rights continues today—manifested most recently by the #BlackLivesMatter movement. We see those struggles in the deaths of Black people like Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Mike Brown, and far too many others, who died at the hands of systemic racism and police militarization. We see those struggles in the cells of our prison system—which is the largest in human history—incarcerating our own citizens at a higher rate and in great number than other country, a disproportionate of whom are people of color. We see those struggles in rising income inequality in a system that’s rigged against everyday people, with people of color bearing the heaviest burden.

And then there’s the places we don’t see those struggles, because we aren’t paying enough attention.

In 2013, the Supreme Court dealt a devastating blow to the Voting Rights Act—which President Reagan called the crown jewel of civil rights legislation—gutting a system that had been in place for 48 years. The law was not only written to end existing voter discrimination but also to stop new methods of disenfranchisement that might come in the future. It required jurisdictions with a history of voter discrimination to submit changes in their election rules to federal authorities for review—seems pretty reasonable, right?

Voter disenfranchisement continues in this country because the most important pieces of the Voting Rights Act don’t. 34 states have passed Republican-backed “Voter ID” laws, designed to keep minorities and the poor from exercising their right to vote. One such state is Texas. When Texas first passed a law to require voters to show a certain ID to vote, it was blocked under the Voting Rights Act. As soon as the Voting Rights Act’s pre-clearance procedure was overturned, the  new law went right back into effect—disenfranchising an estimated 600,000 Black and Latino Texas voters without the proper ID to vote.

I sat with pride as I watched my president, joined by lawmakers, civil rights activists, and my fellow Americans, march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma this weekend. It is so important that we honor the brave people who suffered and often died for us to have the equality that we do in this country today. But as long as the Voting Rights Act remains critically-wounded, we are not truly honoring those leaders. We have made great strides as a country, and we continue to, but we must not give up the fight. It’s up to us to call on Congress and demand that they make the necessary amendments to the Voting Rights Act to protect every American’s right to participate in our democracy, will you become a MoveOn member, if you’re not yet a member, and commit to being a part of the work ahead? 

Selma is now. 

—Ben O. and the rest of the team.

Share this graphic on Facebook, Twitter, or by email today with the hashtag #Selmaisnow

The post “Selma is Now”: 50 Years After Bloody Sunday There is Still Work to Be Done appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

Hundreds of thousands of ‪MoveOn‬ members across the country have taken part in the ‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬ movement: signing petitions calling for justice for the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown and criminal justice reform, making phone calls to President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder, and joining local events sparked by the tragic events in Ferguson, MO this summer.

We asked why MoveOn members like you are taking part. Here are some of the reasons: 

Are you taking action to say #BlackLivesMatter? We want to hear why. We’ll use your words to amplify the many reasons MoveOn members are standing up and demanding justice for Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and other unarmed Black Americans killed by police. Take this quick survey to share your story now.

The post Why we’re taking action on #BlackLivesMatter appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

This moment—sparked by the failure of grand juries in St. Louis and Staten Island to indict the police officers responsible for the deaths of Mike Brown and Eric Garner—is historic.

Hundreds of thousands of people across the country are taking action at all levels—filling the streets with songs, chants, and solidarity; staging powerful “die-ins” and walkouts; and adding their names to calls for justice.

As local communities continue pushing for much-needed reforms to our criminal justice system—a system that puts communities of color at far greater risk of harassment and life-altering confrontations and ensuing consequences—MoveOn members are joining our friends at ColorOfChange to demand justice for Eric Garner and Mike Brown.

President Obama and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder have the power to move forward much-needed reforms to end discriminatory police violence and prosecute Officer Darren Wilson and Officer Daniel Pantaleo.

It will take all of us to build the pressure necessary to spur federal action.

Can you call President Obama and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder right now?

Here’s where to call:

President Barack Obama:
202-456-1111

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder:
202-353-1555

You can say:

“Under federal law, you have the power to seek justice for Mike Brown and Eric Garner. But don’t stop there. We also need lasting federal reforms now.”

After you call, let us know how it went by taking this quick survey.

The post Raise your voice for Mike Brown and Eric Garner appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

Eric Garner’s last words ring as a call to all of us—to pay attention and to act. Please share this with five friends who might not be fully aware of the protests that have erupted across the country, led by young people of color crying out for justice.

LISTEN TO ERIC GARNER’S LAST WORDS

Transcript: Get away [garbled] for what? Every time you see me, you want to mess with me. I’m tired of it. It stops today. Why would you…? Everyone standing here will tell you I didn’t do nothing. I did not sell nothing. Because everytime you see me, you want to harass me. You want to stop me [garbled] Selling cigarettes. I’m minding my business, officer, I’m minding my business. Please just leave me alone. I told you the last time, please just leave me alone. please please, don’t touch me. Do not touch me. [garbled] I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe.

Source: http://www.hiaw.org/garner/

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READ MORE ABOUT THE ISSUE

Do you have a powerful article or video to share? Tweet at @MoveOn. We’ll monitor Twitter and retweet more articles and videos to amplify the work being done for progressive change.

• “No Such Thing As Racial Profiling,” The New Yorker
• “The Ugly Idea That Killed Eric Garner,” ColorLines
• “It Wasn’t Just the Chokehold,” The New York Times
• “My Vassar College Faculty ID Makes Everything OK,” Gawker
• “How To Teach Kids About What’s Happening In Ferguson,” The Atlantic

WATCH THESE IMPORTANT VIDEOS

Ta-Nehisi Coates on All In with Chris Hayes

Dr. Eleanor Holmes Norton speaking to the House of Representatives

Jon Stewart on Eric Garner

TAKE ACTION NOW

• Add your name: Justice For Mike Brown
• Start your own petition
• Plan or attend an event with Ferguson Action
• Consider joining Showing Up For Racial Justice as an ally

The post Eric Garner’s Last Words appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

Is that check still bouncing 50 years later?

Part of “I Have a Dream” was a cry for equal job opportunities for everyone, regardless of race. But decades later, the disparity between unemployment rates for African Americans and whites  doesn’t seem to have improved. Research by Robert W. Fairlie and William A. Sundstrom published in The American Economic Review [PDF] reveals the unemployment rate in 1960 was about 8% for black men and only 4% for white men:

Today, the unemployment rate for African Americans is still substantially higher than that of white people; at times it’s twice as high:

The graph is from an excellent CNN interview with civil rights activist Maya Wiley. “Despite the tremendous gains we’ve made,” Wiley says, “we haven’t completely finished cashing that check that Martin Luther King talked about — which means investing in the kind of opportunity that means we all get to feed our families.” The following graph from the Bureau of Labor Statistics breaks down unemployment rates by race even further:

Clearly the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. are just as important today as they were 50 years ago.

Found on CNN’s YouTube Channel.

The post The Disparity in Unemployment Rates Between African-Americans and Whites Remains Mostly Unchanged 50 Years Later appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

So Konaté started a MoveOn petition to stop the symbol of slavery and oppression from being displayed. “The Confederate flag is very inflammatory, and it’s hurting a lot of people that this is going up,” she says. “We’re dealing with individuals who, instead of learning from history, want to continue living it.”

Instead, she’s spreading peace. “We’re trying to proactively counter that message of hate by planning positive events to unite the community,” Konaté says. Ironically, the day the Confederate flag may go up is the same day as the Richmond Peace Festival. Konaté hopes Richmond and surrounding counties will focus on the festival, not the flag.

Kristen Schroeder Konaté

The fact that racism is still alive 50 years after “I Have a Dream” is not lost on Konaté. “I’m very humbled to get a snapshot of what civil rights activists actually went through in the time of Martin Luther King,” she says. “I’m getting a very, very small snapshot of the hate as a Caucasian, and I can’t even begin to imagine what Black Americans went though.”

Despite hate mail, Konaté is undaunted, encouraging others to start a petition if they’re considering it. “Do it! Take that step!” she says. “Yes, you’ll be swimming in a huge frying pan, but you’ll find a lot of people are behind you. That’s what I’ve found.”

Listening to her passion for peace and action, it’s surprising this is Konaté’s first petition. “I’ve been outspoken on issues before, but I’ve never started one,” she says. She went to www.MoveOn.org, “followed the instructions, started to circulate it, and it exploded.”

“Exploded” is the right word. The petition launched August 11, and more than 23,000 other MoveOn members have signed it since — a set of supporters Konaté is now organizing in other ways. The petition has garnered nationwide media attention and inspired others to start similar campaigns. “A petition signer [in Florida] emailed me and wanted to start her own petition, because there’s a large Confederate flag on Highway 75 bothering a lot of people,” says Konaté.

When asked what motivates her, Konaté answers, “I have two children. If I want to make the world a better place, this is how I can do it nonviolently. My children are biracial — my husband is from Ivory Coast, West Africa. I’m fighting for their future, not necessarily mine.”

While looking to the future, she’s also inspired by the past. “[My grandpa once] said, ‘Only a dead fish goes with the flow. Don’t ever be a dead fish, Kristen.’ I think I’ve taken that to heart.”

Join the 23,500 other people who have already signed Kristen’s petition:

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/say-no-to-the-i-95-confedera

The post MoveOn Member Rallies Thousands to Stand Up to Confederate Flag Group appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

Watch:

The speech was delivered 50 years ago today — August 28, 1963 — as part of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. It gave a powerful boost to the Civil Rights Movement and helped lead to passage of the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act.

Can’t watch video at work? Read the speech here. (PDF)

Found on Sullen Toys’ YouTube Channel.

The post ‘I Have a Dream’ Will Still Give You Chills, 50 Years Later appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

The post 1.7 Million Signatures Delivered to DOJ in Response to Trayvon Martin Murder appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

It started in the immediate aftermath of the decision. Within minutes, the NAACP launched a petition calling on the Department of Justice to open a civil rights case against Zimmerman. To date, more than 600,000 MoveOn members have signed, despite the largest attack ever on our website by malicious hackers. With those signatures and others gathered by the NAACP, more than 1 million people have added their names.

But that was just a preview of the action that was coming.

Last Tuesday, a youth-led activist group known as the Dream Defenders began a peaceful occupation of the Florida Capitol, what they called “Takeover Tuesday.” They’re still in the Capitol today, demanding that the governor call a special legislative session to pass “Trayvon’s Law,” which would address “stand your ground” vigilantism, racial profiling, and the school-to-prison pipeline. 28,000 MoveOn members have joined in calling for the law, and some have even joined the occupation.

This was all happening on the ground in Florida, the birthplace of the deadly legislation known as “stand your ground”—or, more accurately, “shoot first.” But on the Internet, a larger conversation was brewing about race in America, after a couple of friends started a blog called WeAreNotTrayvon that went viral. They provided a space for thousands of people to share their personal stories of race, privilege, and struggle. And when responses to the blog became so overwhelming that two people couldn’t possibly keep up, a group of MoveOn volunteers helped keep the momentum growing.

Then, this past Saturday, a massive day of rallies and vigils was orchestrated by the National Action Network and supported by MoveOn members. From New York to Los Angeles, and from Miami to Detroit, more than 7,500 MoveOn members joined tens of thousands of other progressives and faith leaders—and even Beyoncé and Jay-Z—in support of Trayvon Martin’s family, and in a resounding call for justice.

Coming just weeks after the Supreme Court dealt a serious blow to voting rights, and as the Republican House threatens the potential for immigration reform, this moment gave glimpses of a new civil rights movement.

But we’ve been around long enough to know that this energy could disappear with the next big media story—before we’ve even had a chance to take on the laws, policies, and mindsets that brought us here. Challenging those three things is something that has to happen at every level of government and society. That’s why right now is the time to launch a campaign in your community or state about a progressive issue that matters to you.

Chances are high that you live in a state that is either actively considering or has already enacted a “shoot first” law that needs to be overturned.¹ Maybe you’re ready to launch a statewide campaign, knowing that other MoveOn members will be here to support you. Or maybe the threat of austerity and slashing budgets is putting your local school district in jeopardy, and you need a base of fellow residents to help show your outrage and disapproval.

If there’s one thing this past week displayed, it is that millions of MoveOn members are as devoted as ever to the fight for justice. And that members are ready to help each other when it’s time to campaign for a progressive future.

Click here to start your campaign today and work with other MoveOn members who’ll help you win.

Sources:

1. “Does Your State Have A Shoot First Law?” Second Chance on Shoot First, accessed July 24, 2013
http://secondchancecampaign.org/laws/

The post A New Movement Moment; 7,500 MoveOn Members Take Part in Day of Action for Trayvon Martin’s Family appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

In the wake of the “not guilty” verdict for George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, one juror announced that she’d signed with Martin Literary Management to write a book detailing the trial. Progressives all over the country were outraged that jury members might profit from Zimmerman’s acquittal. That’s why MoveOn member Barbara Graham created a Petition to Martin Literary Management, asking them to take back the book deal. After the petition gathered more than 18,000 signatures, echoing the public outcry on social media, Sharlene Martin, the management company’s owner, wrote Barbara to let her know that she’d terminated the offer, admitting that she made a “grave error in judgment” when she agreed to represent the juror’s story.

The post VICTORY: No Book Deal for Zimmerman Juror appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

The post What Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Warned Us About Decades Ago appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

Found on Think Progress TP’s YouTube channel. Originally submitted by Angie A.

The post Guy Who Says Slavery Wouldn’t Have Happened If Everyone Had Guns Gets Checked appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.

Of course, now I think: Who knows? But today is the 49th anniversary of his speech, and I am glad that recordings like this exist for us to remember what he dreamed.

The post Martin Luther King Jr.’s Speech Still Sounds As Amazing 49 Years Later appeared first on MoveOn: People-Powered Progress.