Police brutality against African Americans in the United States of America has gone beyond reproof. It is beyond time for there to be sensible legislation that affords African Americans the same rights and privileges that American citizenship offers other Americans. We have witnessed: Little to no repercussions for police officers’ blatant murder of African Americans; Perjury in court and/or to grand jury, where officers grandstand on their “fear” of African American citizens they are called upon and paid with taxpayer dollars to protect and serve; A lack of de-escalation techniques employed when interacting with African Americans; No repercussions for individuals who fraudulently call police on African Americans that lead to the harassment and, in most instances, murder of our beloved people. This is highly unacceptable and intolerable. We believe that, in every instance, life should be preserved, which is in accordance with our right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” as dictated in the Declaration of Independence and our 14th Amendment right to “due process under the law.” In cases regarding African Americans, we are rarely afforded that constitutional right. We believe that the colors of our skin should not be weaponized against us and should not come with an automatic guilty verdict. The legal right to “equal protection of the laws” is also a right that is afforded to us under the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. However, in cases regarding African Americans, we are rarely afforded that constitutional right.

First Class Mail continues to provide an affordable and secure method of communication for millions of Americans. The Delivering for America Plan diverts resources and equipment away from letter processing to prioritize package services. This betrays the mission of the Postal Service to be a vehicle for communication that binds the nation together chasing profits for the private companies that are proposed to handle mail in the expanded implementation of Surface Transfer Centers. Diverting mail outside the Postal network is already creating service delays and increasing the incidents of lost mail as the Postal Service no longer maintains custody of mail throughout the delivery process. Individuals, small businesses, and local governments rely on First Class Mail to exchange information and ideas, receive remittance payments, or issue legal notices. Allowing Postmaster General DeJoy to bull doze the implementation of these changes past the public will forever alter the network that has been built to provide the excellence that has become synonymous with First Class. Do not settle for adequate when the opportunity for excellence is still attainable. Demand more!

To the All Creatures Animal Hospital (ACAH) community of pet parents, rescue organizations, and those who value the role of the local veterinarian in their community, We are veterinary support staff at ACAH. But we are also all pet parents and members of the community. When we walk through the door of our local veterinary hospital seeking care for our furry, feathered, and scaled family members, we also want to see familiar faces who we know we can trust. We feel relief knowing dedicated veterinary staff are only a phone call away when our pets are in need, no matter the species. We understand and appreciate that work requires skills and knowledge and we all want to be assured that the most qualified individuals are caring for our pets. The veterinary profession is rewarding and challenging. For many of us, this is our dream career. We are here because we love helping animals, and providing support to the people who love and care for them. Unfortunately, our profession has long been plagued with burn-out, compassion fatigue, and other systemic issues. The average length of time a veterinary support staff member stays in the field is only 3-5 years. These receptionists, kennel staff, veterinary assistants, and licensed veterinary technicians have valuable on-the-job training and/or traditional education. Many of these highly skilled and educated individuals are forced to choose between their own mental and physical health and doing the job they love. The ongoing loss of such knowledge, and the constant retraining of new staff, leads to a decline in the quality of patient care and a further increase in burn-out for those who remain. We are working to change this trend. We know that patient care is at its best when devoted and skilled individuals are at the forefront, and that can only happen when we are supported by industry leadership with the tools we need to be successful, including: - Fair pay and compensation - Decent and affordable healthcare - Adequate sick leave and paid time off to care for ourselves and our families - Mental health support - Assurances that our own beloved pets will receive quality care - Sustainable staffing and scheduling - Improved staff retention programs - Robust safety measures to protect staff from workplace hazards (including safe COVID protocols) Since the purchase of our beloved hospital, ACAH, by the Cara Corporation in May of 2020, these resources have been cut, threatened, or simply not provided at all. The corporation promised these things and more (most of which we had before the purchase, under our previous ownership). The intention was for ACAH to continue to provide high quality care to its patients as well as open opportunities for employee growth and even better patient care. We are devastated that this has become our reality instead. As the staff of ACAH, we are the bridge between the Cara Corporation and our patients. We are fighting for our rights and to continue our ability to give the high quality care you and your pets deserve. In addition to staff support, we were promised that the Cara Corporation shared the values that we hold dear. The staff and our patients were never supposed to become just numbers: those we serve were to remain the highest priority. After many attempts to discuss our concerns with the Cara Corporation were ignored, we have decided to partner with the National Veterinary Professionals Union and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union to organize our hospital so that the Cara Corporation will be required to negotiate over these issues. Our goal in this fight is to retain our autonomy, to maintain our vision of animal healthcare, and to care for the health of our families. Unionizing will give us the right to be involved in policy, ensuring that conditions remain fair to all involved and that patient care - not just profit - is central to the hospital’s mission. Our goal is to feel safe and heard and to have a stable environment where we can give you - our clients and our patients - everything we have. We will protect our patients and their care from becoming the bottom line. We will retain our authenticity. We will stop the disintegration of our caring staff. The Cara Corporation rejected our request to voluntarily recognize our union and we will soon be holding a union election (with the National Labor Relations Board) secure our union and solidarity to fight for each other. The Cara Corporation is fighting our right to organize by hiring a notorious union-busting law firm, wasting valuable resources that could be spent ensuring the best care possible for your pets. These actions are disrespectful to us and our vision, and also to YOU, the pet parent. Please show the ACAH staff how important we are to you and to our community. Your signature will strengthen our resolve, giving us a strong foundation on which to stand and fight together for what is important. All Creatures Animal Hospital is not a place, it is its people, and the clients and patients we serve are our hearts. Thank you for your support.

Child care facilities remain on the brink of closure! Please tell Colorado to give their child care facilities the funds Congress allocated for them. Please ask the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Child Care to provide better oversight of these funds. Please ask the General Accountability Office to investigate misappropriation of these public funds.

Amazon knew exactly what a unionization win by its Bessemer workers would mean: It would have paved the way for more organizing across the country and built power for the working class, who have been exploited to enrich the ultra wealthy time and time again. It’s why Amazon used every union-busting tactic in the book (and even pioneered new ones!) to stop the organizing effort. To prevent a few thousand workers from unionizing, one of the richest companies in the world: hired a Koch-backed anti-union consultant, sent up to 5 harassment texts a day to workers, forced employees to watch anti-union videos, changed the stoplight by the warehouse so organizers couldn’t hand out union flyers to drivers, offered $2,000 severance checks for workers to quit, retaliated against pro-union workers, collaborated with the USPS to put up a fake dropbox for the union votes—and more. These union-busting intimidation tactics aren’t isolated to Amazon—giant corporations have used these and more throughout history to fight back against working people organizing for living wages and better working conditions. If the PRO Act were law right now, Amazon wouldn’t have been allowed to engage in these sorts of repressive anti-organizing tactics, and would be held accountable for union-busting. But since it isn’t, there’s a real risk that other corporations will see what Amazon did in Bessemer and replicate it around the country. Thanks to union members who fought and died to build power for the working class, some workers have weekends off, an 8 hour work day is the norm instead of 12, and kids aren’t forced to work. Unions are good for workers: They protect workers from exploitation, they bring fairness into the workplace, they allow employees to have a say in the workplace policies that affect them, and they win fair wages and protections for all workers, including working mothers, Black, brown and disabled workers, as well as undocumented immigrant workers who are especially at risk for facing exploitation and unsafe working conditions on the job. Giant corporations and the ultra-wealthy, like Jeff Bezos, know that a unified working class will hold them accountable for their anti-worker tactics, abuses, exploitation, and greed. That’s why we need the PRO Act, which would allow the National Labor Relations Board to impose monetary penalties against employers who violate workers' rights, empower collective action and worker strikes, ensure that employees are not misclassified as independent contractors, and eliminate “right-to-work” laws, a relic of the Jim Crow era designed specifically to separate workers and undercut collective bargaining rights. Every Senator who cares about protecting working people from exploitation and intimidation by corporations like Amazon needs to co-sponsor the PRO Act immediately, so we don’t see a repeat of the shameful behavior by Amazon anywhere in the country ever again.

My name is Beth, I live in Ventnor, New Jersey, and I saw the impact of Superstorm Sandy first hand. My house had to be taken down, and I am still not home after 9 years. Very little has changed in Washington, but the climate crisis keeps getting worse. Just look at the heat waves and fires already spreading across much of the U.S. this summer. Our government is still doing too little about the rising sea levels, urgent need to cut pollution, and need to invest in renewable energy. I am genuinely frightened for the planet my grandchildren will inherit. Now, in the middle of a pandemic with our country facing several crises at once, it is clear that Congress must act. I and all signing this petition are calling on Congress to do just that—to act now, with urgency, to create good, union jobs, from clean energy jobs to jobs in the care sector to manufacturing jobs—and to ensure that all of those jobs do their part to reduce the fossil fuel pollution causing climate change. I and those signing this petition also call on Congress to make sure these investments include those who often have been excluded in the past—communities that have lost manufacturing jobs, low-income communities, communities of color, communities facing environmental harm, and fossil fuel communities impacted by the clean energy transition. Prior to Sandy I was like many others. I didn’t understand the reality of climate change until I experienced it. In the same way, how many people thought much about the impacts of a pandemic before Covid hit? Now I understand that this could be the new norm, dangerous pandemics and life-threatening climate disasters that could ruin our communities, unless we reimagine and recreate our economy and build a clean energy future. We need Congress to take action immediately to put Americans back to work in clean energy and care jobs! As an Independent that voted Republican in the past, many might have preconceived notions about what I stand for. But in reality, I believe we must have a country that works for everybody. Right now, I know that we need to come together for this transformational change and recovery. We need to stand together even if we don’t always agree. We need to find common ground especially when it comes to saving our communities, building a clean energy future and protecting our planet. We need to make sure we’re being equitable and everyone is included. And we need to ensure the money is spent wisely, with strong oversight to prevent waste. This goal is bigger than a political divide. This is the moment where we have to take immediate action to create jobs and reimagine the economy in a way that enables all of us to get back on our feet and is sustainable for the earth. Congress must be bold and act now!!

Dr. Birx shared on CNN that in her estimation only 100,000 people should have died from this virus. If things had been mitigated properly 100s of thousands of lives could have been saved. The American People deserved to know the truth during the pandemic and STILL deserve to know the truth now. He caused unneeded hardship, emotional toll, debt and death to people unnecessarily.

We all know that corporations give to both sides of the aisle. It's how they get legislation that's favorable to what they want to do in business. It's been like that for decades, and until we pass legislation to get rid of dark money, it will stay that way. But now Mitch McConnell says corporations must stay out of politics. Well, staying out of politics means no more corporate contributions to politicians then. Since Mitch doesn't want corporations sticking their noses in politics, Mitch has to give back ALL the money he has taken from them. After all, we wouldn't want him to get any more corrupted than he already is, right?

A state political party should be sent a very clear message that abusing government power to suppress votes will not be tolerated by businesses because supporting unethical state legislatures economically funds corrupt government and it will not and should not be tolerated. The legislatures and ELECTED representatives should be held responsible for driving businesses out of state. Businesses should only support states economically that support democracy not actively suppress it. Because that is what is truly at stake.

Amazon thinks it can get away with anything. Now the tech giant is forcing delivery drivers to either agree to intrusive surveillance in their vans, or lose their jobs.1 New reporting shows Amazon often forces drivers to choose between keeping their jobs and using the bathroom.2 Rather than solve this dilemma, Amazon wants to install artificial intelligence cameras and force drivers to submit biometric data in order to stay employed. Agree to constantly be spied on by your company or get fired: How can that possibly be a legal workplace standard? Congress can’t let Amazon mistreat their workers. Sign the petition: Tell Congress to protect delivery drivers and investigate Amazon labor practices! This isn’t just micro-management, it’s a dangerous pattern for Amazon. Amazon uses their vast tech resources to spy on workers and push their productivity to the physical brink, all in the name of profit. In Amazon warehouses, algorithms like Rate and ToT (time off task) have contributed to so many workplace accidents and injuries that working at Amazon is considered one of the most dangerous jobs in the US.3 But whenever workers stand up for themselves against Amazon, the tech giant fires back with fury. Amazon hired a Koch-backed anti-union consultant to try to stop workers in Alabama from organizing a union.4 They force employees into “classes” where pro-union workers are intimidated and threatened with pay cuts if they continue to form a union. Amazon thinks that just because they’re rich and large that means they’re in charge, and that they can treat their employees however they want. They think no one is strong enough to stop them. But they’re wrong. Congress can regulate how Amazon operates and treats their workers. They could do it now, if you speak up. Sign the petition: Tell Congress to protect delivery drivers and investigate Amazon labor practices! Sources: 1. The Verge, “Amazon delivery drivers have to consent to AI surveillance in their vans or lose their jobs,” March 24, 2021. 2. The Intercept, “Documents Show Amazon Is Aware Drivers Pee In Bottles And Even Defecate En Route, Despite Company Denial,” March 25, 2021. 3. Futurism, “After Deaths, Amazon Lands on List of Most Dangerous Employers,” October 18, 2019. 4. The Intercept, “Amazon Hired Koch-backed Anti-union Consultant To Fight Alabama Warehouse Organizing,” February 10, 2021.

The Biden-Harris administration should be commended for its early focus on climate change, tribal sovereignty, and racial justice and equity, including its decision to stop the Keystone XL pipeline and nominate Rep. Deb Haaland to become Interior Secretary. We, the undersigned, respectfully urge President Biden and Vice President harris to reverse another harmful Trump Administration decision and immediately shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) during its court-ordered environmental review. When Trump took office four years ago, he stopped the environmental review of the pipeline and fast-tracked it, disregarding serious environmental risks and trampling over Native American treaty rights & tribal consultation. In March 2020, the U.S. District Court ruled in favor of Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and several other tribes that DAPL is operating without the proper permits and necessary environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act. In July, the Court ordered the pipeline shut down pending the environmental review. On January 27th this year, the U.S. Court of Appeals confirmed that the pipeline is operating illegally and gave the Biden-Harris Administration the authority to shut it down, and is asking the Biden-Harris Administration whether they intend to shut it down or allow it to operate illegally without a permit. We urge President Biden and Vice President harris to remedy this historic injustice and direct the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to immediately shut down the illegal Dakota Access Pipeline while the Environmental Impact Statement process is conducted, consistent with the D.C. District Court’s decision and order. Additionally, the U.S. Army Corps must ensure a robust environmental review with significant tribal consultation, tribal consent, and a thorough risk analysis. With real leadership, we have a momentous opportunity to protect our water and respect our environmental laws and the rights of Indigenous people. This is our moment. Mni Wiconi. Water is life.

The media and many irresponsible politicians are completely failing to meet this moment in history by focusing on a symptom of a global economic and health crisis -- families and unaccompanied minors at the U.S./Mexico border -- rather than its root causes. Recently asked by President Biden to lead "the administration’s efforts to deter migration to the southwestern border by working to improve conditions in Central America," Vice President Kamala Harris can help turn things around by -- among other things -- prioritizing COVID-19 vaccine access for Central America and other countries immigrants are currently fleeing from in this time of a global health and economic crisis. No matter how many oversimplified anecdotes journalists collect, or public officials that say it, pretending that people risk their lives and leave everything they know just because a President in a different country is a "nice guy" has to be one of the most ridiculous stories our pandemic has produced yet. To suggest that either talking tough, more enforcement, or the further criminalization of immigrants is a solution to this crisis is not just irresponsible (we now have decades of data that prove the opposite) -- it is also dangerous. This is dangerous not just for immigrants and their countries of origin, who bear the brunt of this harmful thinking, but really for all of us in the U.S. and around the world when our best shot at a better future right now is directing every spare resource we have towards stamping out COVID-19. With VP Kamala Harris leading these latest efforts, she has a real opportunity to help send this message, to save lives, and to economically assist Central America and the world by prioritizing vaccine access for all. If enough of us sign-on and share this, we'll help give her the support she needs to do so. With dueling health, economic, and climate crises -- vaccine access isn't the only thing Central America and immigrants need right now -- but it could be the beginning of the spark needed to start moving towards a world where people migrate out of want, and not out of need. That's our only chance at ever stopping the negative effects associated with immigration. Until then, we need to take this moment in history as another reminder that we can't wall off our problems. Viruses know no borders. We either liberate ourselves together or not at all. Any journalist or public official that thinks otherwise is failing all of us.