People losing jobs cannot work

For many years, Bassett Park has served as a seasonal homeless shelter, contained within the gymnasium. To that end, our community has cohabitated with the homeless population on park grounds. The elderly, children and adults alike have enjoyed the activities at the park in conjunction with the operation of a homeless shelter. We are NOT calling for a complete removal of the homeless shelter. We understand that given the current pandemic, these are unprecedented times and call for drastic measures. Nonetheless, we demand that all measures taken to transform Bassett Park from a center of recreation to a complete homeless shelter, consider the cost to the community. We demand that our representatives ensure that ALL communities, despite their median incomes, take their fair share of the homeless population and work to provide services to this vulnerable community. We will not allow the complete disintegration of our neighborhood, nor will we stand for the complete erasure of our presence from our community recreation center.

We cannot return to normal. Addressing the depth of the crises that have been revealed in this pandemic means enacting universal health care, expanding social welfare programs, ensuring access to water and sanitation, cash assistance to poor and low income families, good jobs, living wages and an annual income and protecting our democracy. It means ensuring that our abundant national resources are used for the general welfare, instead of war, walls, and the wealthy. We also call on you to immediately enact our Moral Policy Agenda to Heal America: The Poor People's Jubilee Platform to fully address the COVID-19 outbreak and the underlying crises of poverty and inequality that made so many vulnerable right now. Read more here: bit.ly/ppcjubilee WE DEMAND THAT YOU INCLUDE: 1. Immediate, comprehensive and permanent paid sick leave for 100% of employees for this pandemic. Paid sick leave must become standard across all sectors of the labor market. 2. Immediate health care for all, including 100% free COVID-19 testing, treatment and quality care to all, regardless of income, age, disability, citizenship or any other factor, and including the uninsured. 3. A permanent guaranteed and adequate annual income/universal income, including rapid, direct payments to all low-wage and temporary workers for the duration of this crisis. This also includes living wages and hazard pay. 4. A national moratorium on evictions, tax foreclosures, rent hikes, and a national rent freeze. This includes an immediate halt to encampment sweeps and towing vehicles of unhoused communities. Federal resources must be directed to local and state governments towards opening and preparing vacant and habitable buildings, properties and warehouses to house and provide adequate care for all people who are homeless, including ensuring education, food assistance and health care for homeless children and provisions for medical testing, treatment and respite for the homeless. 5. Jubilee and debt forgiveness for medical debt, student debt, water, utilities and other forms of household debt. 6. Protections for our democracy and the right to vote with expanded opportunities to vote during this crisis, including the full funding of the U.S. Postal Service protection of vote by mail in every state, and an expanded census to ensure every person is accounted for. WE ALSO DEMAND: 1. A national moratorium on water and utility shut-offs, a waiver of all late-payment charges, and reinstitution of any services that have already been cut off due to nonpayment, including access to cellular and internet service. We demand policies that establish affordability-based plans for water and other utility services. 2. Expansion of resources and funding for FEMA and the EPA to ensure access to emergency care and clean air, water and land for all. 3. Ending work requirements on all federal benefits, including SNAP and Medicaid. 4. Resources to keep all rural hospitals and community health centers open, and an infusion of resources to Indian Health Services. 5. Permanent protections for social security, Medicare and Medicaid. 6. Emergency OSHA standards for health care workers, first responders and anyone else in frontline positions. 7. Protections for people in mental health facilities, prisons and juvenile detention centers, especially supplies, personnel, testing and treatment. This includes the release of all at risk populations and non-violent offenders and detainees. 8. Suspension of all CBP and ICE enforcement and ensuring all emergency provisions are made available to immigrants, including undocumented people. 9. Increased support for public schools to provide continuous, equitable and quality remote learning access for the duration of any school closures, including for children with disabilities, and for schools to continue to provide social services for qualifying children and families. 10. Lifting all military and economic sanctions, ending unnecessary military operations overseas and bringing our troops home. 11. Measures to ensure that nobody — no individual or corporation or financial interest — profits off this public health crisis by making vaccines and treatments affordable and/or free for those who cannot afford the costs. We also call on you to immediately enact the demands of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival. Read them here: bit.ly/PPCDemands Before COVID-19, nearly 700 people died everyday because of poverty and inequality in this country. The frontlines of this pandemic will be the poor and dispossessed - those who do not have access to healthcare, housing, water, decent wages, stable work or child care - and those who are continuing to work in this crisis, meeting our health care and other needs. It should not have taken a pandemic to raise these resources. In June 2019, we presented a Poor People’s Moral Budget to the House Budget Committee, showing that we can meet these needs for this entire country. If you had taken up this Moral Budget, we would have already moved towards infusing more than $1.2 trillion into the economy to invest in health care, good jobs, living wages, housing, water and sanitation services and more. This is not the time for trickle-down solutions. We know that when you lift from the bottom, everybody rises. There are concrete solutions to this immediate crisis and the longer term illnesses we have been battling for months, years and decades before. We will continue to organize and build power until you meet these demands. Many millions of us have been hurting for far too long. We will not be silent anymore. Rev. Dr. William Barber, II Co-Chair, The Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival and President, Repairers of the Breach Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis, Co-Chair, The Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival and Director, Kairos Center for Religions, Rights and Social Justice

People’s lives are at risk!!

Governor Jay Inslee: COVID-19 (also known as coronavirus) has been classified as a global pandemic. Washington State already has 905 confirmed cases, including 48 deaths statewide. State and federal officials are encouraging people who feel sick to stay home, but many workers already struggle to make rent or mortgage payments. The choice to skip work for the sake of community health could leave them and their families unsheltered. In order to protect the health and housing security of our community, we, the undersigned, call on Governor Inslee to act now so workers won't have to make that choice. Specifically, we call for a suspension of all rent, mortgage, and utility payments for 2 full months to allow people to do what they need to in order to take care of themselves, their loved ones, and the community. The legacy of every public official currently serving will be determined in the next few months. It's time to act now, and choose the right side of history. Choose the people.

During the COVID-19 crisis, we all have a responsibility towards our communities to keep ourselves healthy and avoid situations that can spread the virus. As of March 17th, the state of Florida will close all bars, nightclubs and restaurants in order to help us uphold that responsibility. While this is a step in the right direction regarding public health, the effects of these sweeping business closures affect the livelihood of thousands of Florida residents that rely on front-of-house restaurant, club/bar work or tips to make ends meet. Without a plan in place to supplement the income of these workers, and with no guarantee that unemployment benefits will provide the relief people need in a city with one of the highest costs of living in the country, we demand a moratorium on rent collection NOW. Hard-working people are going to suffer at the expense of the greater good. While we don't deny the importance of instituting these closures, we would be ashamed and heartbroken to watch our government let people who rely on restaurant work, work in the entertainment industry (clubs/bars) face evictions, blows to their credit, or be backed into a corner financially through no fault of their own. As a full-time waitress in the nightlife industry this is my sole source of income. For so many of my friends and family in the industry, as well, tips are their MAIN source of income. Simply providing people with an unemployment payment or temporary paid leave at minimum wage would not be enough to cover their typical expenses. We need Miami and Florida as a whole to put a moratorium on rent NOW in order to preserve the livelihood of so many hardworking people both in the restaurant industry and in other affected industries during this time of crisis.

As a group, the working class of Citrus Heights have been financially crippled by the critical and necessary measures put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19. Though the federal or state government may eventually provide relief, the immediate conservation of our limited financial resources is necessary for our own and our family's health and well-being. Health and well-being is critical to maintain in order to fight the spread of COVID-19. If approved, the financial forgiveness may prevent added incidences of severe poverty or homelessness, conditions which are known to add to the spread COVID-19. Rentors, Lessors, banks and other relevant institutions can, as a class seek their own relief; the state and federal government is much more responsive and historically more likely to act on their behalf. We must protect our limited cash flow immediately. Protect hard working families, stave the spread of COVID-19.

As a group, the working class of Wisconsin has been Has been financially crippled by the critical and necessary measures to put in place to slow the spread of Covid-19. Though the federal or state government may eventually provide relief, the immediate conservation of our limited financial resources Is necessary for our own and our family’s health and well being. Lessors, lenders, banks, and other relevant institutions can, as a class, seek their own relief; the state and federal government is much more responsive and historically more likely to act on their behalf. We must protect our limited cash flow immediately. Thanks

Also against further paving are other locals and visitors to the mountain who appreciate walking or scenic driving on a dirt road along the northern edge of Fahnestock Park. We all admire our dirt roads and spend our money in town. We are concerned about the danger of more accidents from faster-driving on paved roads and the destruction of a cultural legacy of unpaved roads that brings tourists and investors to the Hudson Highlands. We very much hope you will respect the wishes of your constituents and do no more paving on East Mountain Road South. Thank you!

We need to reclaim our humanity, together, right now, once and for all in the history of our species! Universalist Emergency across the planet is being applied. The USA has the means and ability to show the planet how we begin the new world - we do not need another war against each other to come together against full economic collapse or even extinction. As our world is changing, the most creative thinkers on the planet are immediately influenced by this planetary crisis. It is now a revelation what humanity must do to handle the tidal wave of events to come and forever in the future. 10 years of this should help the whole species on every continent will have its’ first chance to design the world we all wanted as children and for our children. Allowing for these horrific world conditions to resonate psychologically, is horrific but with compassion through our very tight communication-information infrastructures of 2020, the economic relationships we have now, do not require us to repeat the history of the 1930's. I personally work in the corporate trade-show ballroom audio-video industry in Manhattan, NY, USA and all my part time scheduled work has been cancelled due to COVID19 terror. However, many people in my field have helped me draft this petition. We are the solution to this confusion: COVID-19 UNIVERSAL EMERGENCY [NOW] !

The number of birds in the United States and Canada has fallen by 29% since 1970. There are now nearly 3 billion fewer birds than there were just 50 years ago. Weakening the Migratory Bird Treaty Act is a callous move that will allow corporations to get away scot-free with killing birds, whether they're landing on polluted ponds left uncovered by the oil and gas industry or have their nest trees cut out from under them. We're in the middle of a wildlife extinction crisis. Birds need more protection, not less.

Inclusion We first urge you to approach the problems that face our country using an intersectional equity lens. Challenges compounded by race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, and ability are present at every level from health care to housing to climate change to education. Addressing these needs must be at the center, not the sidelines, of our government’s policy goals. We also point to Senator Warren’s—and Secretary Castro’s—practice of bringing activists with direct knowledge of and experience with these needs to the table. We ask that you not only follow that example and use these on-the-ground experts to help shape your policies, but also that you appoint them to key roles in your administration. Personnel is policy. Corruption Senator Warren framed her campaign around dismantling the corrupt channels that perpetuate structural inequity and prevent any meaningful reform. Your plan to establish the Commission on Federal Ethics aligns with Senator Warren’s proposed U.S. Office of Public Integrity, which would oversee efforts to restore transparency to our government. We ask that you go further: support a ban on professional lobbying by any former president, vice president, cabinet secretary, federal judge, or member of Congress. We ask also that you make passage of a constitutional amendment to limit campaign contributions—nullifying Citizens United—a top priority. We must have trust in our government, and that begins with ensuring our officials and elections cannot be bought. Immigration We applaud your commitment to a moratorium on deportations during your first 100 days as president, but further action is needed to eliminate the cruelty and abuse perpetrated in the name of immigration enforcement. We need comprehensive reform of our immigration justice system, and we must start with decriminalizing immigration. To prevent future abuses, we urge you to commit to the establishment of professional, independent Article I immigration courts, and to provide access to counsel in all immigration courts. You have condemned the horrific actions of the Trump administration at the border. We urge you to adopt Senator Warren’s plan for a Department of Justice task force to investigate and prosecute all reported crimes committed against detained immigrants. Student Loan Debt The rising cost of tuition across the country means that many students are crushed by student loan debt—and it’s impacting our entire economy. Black students are particularly affected: they are more likely to have federal student loans and owe more than their original debt 12 years after finishing college. We are supportive of public service, but strongly believe that across-the-board college loan debt reduction is the best approach, especially for those with increased barriers (poor and working-class students, students with family obligations, and working students). We ask you to adopt Senator Warren's approach and cancel student loan debt through executive action, immediately enabling 95% of student loan debt holders to pursue their dreams. Universal Child Care Universal child care is an investment in working parents. It provides millions of children with access to quality care and early learning. It also creates millions of well-paying jobs for child care workers and early education teachers, many of whom are women of color. Research shows that every dollar spent on quality early education saves seven dollars in the long run. We encourage you to adopt Senator Warren’s plan, which mandates that universal child care be free to any family that earns less than 200% of the federal poverty line. Crucially, the plan also establishes a partnership between the federal government and local providers to offer a network of early childhood options—including child care and preschool centers—to every family. Equality for Americans with Disabilities You have a strong history advocating for Americans with disabilities through your work on the ADA, the ADAAA, IDEA, and VAWA. It is critical that you collaborate with disability rights leaders and advocates moving forward to form a comprehensive disability rights plan. We ask that you use Senator Warren’s plan for Protecting the Rights and Equality of Americans With Disabilities as a model. This includes our ask that you to commit to combating discrimination in the labor market and workplace, ending the subminimum wage, fully funding the Office of Disability Employment Policy, improving SSI and SSDI programs, breaking down barriers to marriage, providing national paid family and medical leave, improving critical elements of the long-term services, and supporting coverage to enable the right to live in the community. We also urge you to protect the civil rights of all Americans with disabilities, including decriminalizing poverty, addressing language deprivation for Deaf and hard-of-hearing students, and enforcing the ADA everywhere that it is applicable. We urge you to work with the disability rights community to incorporate key priorities relating to employment, housing, opioid medications, disaster preparedness, healthcare, education, equity in criminal justice, deinstitutionalization, and other key civil rights issues into your platform. Wealth Tax These plans have a price tag. We believe in fiscal responsibility—every American should pay their fair share. We believe ultra-millionaires, who benefit most from our country’s infrastructure, should invest a little more in our country. Therefore, we ask you to adopt Senator Warren’s two cent wealth tax, which requires those Americans lucky enough to have vast fortunes to pay a two cent tax on every dollar of net worth above $50 million. Over 10 years, this tax will raise an estimated $3.75 trillion that we can reinvest in working families by supporting education, childcare, family leave, and more. --- We invite you to join us in signing this letter to Democratic presidential frontrunner Joe Biden.