The Comfort Homes project is fully supported by the Anchorage community, the VA, the Federal Surplus program, AmVets, ACEH, HHND, Anchorage Chamber of Commerce, and several Legion Posts in Anchorage as a housing project for veterans and other seniors who have served our nation the best they could in their prime but need our help now. Most of these are on a fixed income and could use a little help given the aftermath of COVID-19 and the continuing inflation. Housing these struggling seniors and Veterans should be a top priority for Anchorage which has the highest number of veterans per capita in the USA. The Revive Alaska Food Pantry is the only permanent food pantry serving South and soon Midtown Anchorage in collaboration with the Food Bank of Alaska (AFB). Also, RACS Food Pantry is the only major outlet in South Anchorage for the Food Bank of Alaska to distribute the federal TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program for low-income Americans) as well as the federal CSFP Commodity Supplemental Food Program for low-income seniors. Currently, RACS and AFB in negotiations for the expansion of the RACS Food Pantry to a major AFB Agency Partner this 2022 summer to meet the increasing needs of Anchorage residents in South and Midtown Anchorage. This newly relocated and expanded RACS Food Pantry will help put food on the table of many anchorage residents suffering from the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the rising inflation.

Think back to when you were 18, 19, even 21, did you have need for a automatic rifle? Or even a handgun? So, why would we sell guns to 18 year olds? With no training, little background info, and zero questioning, we let a child buy weapons that kill. Are you comfortable with this? Please help raise this ridiculous legal age limit to something other than 18.

Please help by signing this petition. We want to ensure that our unhoused citizens maintain their right to employment and resources essential for their survival and path to recovery. This petition will be presented to the Wausau City Council. By agreeing on the basic human rights of our unhoused, we can begin to work together to help.

How is it that we are in this position again? Mass shooting after mass shooting and now back again at a grade school. The American people should not have to fear for their lives every time they see a movie, go to church, shop for groceries or drop their child off at school. Countries all over the world have taken a stand against gun violence by implementing stricter laws and regulations, resulting in near-immediate results. We demand stricter gun control now. Thoughts and prayers do not cut it anymore.

Under SB 964, the California Community Colleges, California State University, and University of California systems would be required to develop accelerated programs for social work degrees, such as allowing students to combine their last one or two years of undergraduate study with their graduate work to complete both programs more quickly. Senate Bill 964 by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) would offer $37,000 in stipends to students pursuing a master’s degree in social work who go on to work in behavioral health at a public agency while creating a state fund to increase pay and provide bonuses for licensed professionals already working in the field. We must urgently restore and revitalize the behavioral health workforce. Our most vulnerable will receive the aid they need with a rejuvenated workforce treated equitably and representing all Californians.

Bills 597 & 598 would cut all funding to community based behavioral health care systems in Michigan. These bills would privatize the Medicaid Mental Health services by giving full financial control and oversight to for-profit insurance companies. These bills would eliminate public accountabily, transparency (e.g., not be subject to comply with the Freedom of Information Act) and the ability to collaborate with community partners such as law enforcement, hospitals, schools, courts, housing and more. Over 62 Michigan counties have already passed resolutions opposing these bills and the Wayne County Commission is in direct opposition as well. Sign the petition to help us put a stop to SB 597 and 598 today! Bill 597: http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2021-SB-0597 Bill 598: http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2021-SB-0598"

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. On behalf of all student athletes and students, we hope that you will take this time as an opportunity to invest in their mental health. The Mental Health Reform Act embedded in the 21st Century Cures Act includes funding to promote integrated physical and mental health care. A policy requiring student athletes to speak with a mental health professional at least once during their sport’s season. Just as students are required to have annual physicals and dental check up requirements for player eligibility. We are asking you to work on creating a mental health component to add those requirements. In addition, athletes experience emotional trauma from being out of the game due to an injury. If an injury occurs that causes an athlete to be out at least 3-4 months, speaking with a mental health professional prior to returning to play would be just as beneficial. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. I am asking policy-makers to support a student athlete mental health initiative.

Addiction is a brain disease, not a choice. Individuals in Connecticut with Substance Use Disorders are overdosing on heroin and fentanyl at alarming rates. In March, 2022, Connecticut received approximately $95 million from the Purdue Pharma and the Sackler Family settlement, yet addiction treatment is still not readily available. The agreement authorizes Connecticut to use a portion of the settlement funds to establish an Opioid Survivors Trust to directly aid survivors and victims of the opioid epidemic. WHERE ARE THE SETTLEMENT FUNDS? CONNECTICUT NEEDS TO IMPROVE ACCESS TO ADDICTION TREATMENT NOW!

Black Californians are about three times more likely to be seriously injured, shot, or killed by the police relative to their share of the state’s population (Public Policy Institute of California, October 2021). California has already implemented many reforms through state legislation, including requiring local law enforcement agencies to report incidents of serious use of force, permitting public access to law enforcement records for certain misconduct and use-of-force incidents, and establishing an independent board and data collection effort aimed at reducing racial disparities in police encounters (Public Policy Institute of California, October 2021). Although these efforts may be valiant, there is still room for continued change in decreasing the amount of deaths due to excessive force and police brutality. Through the passage of Assembly-Bill 89, California police officers will be required to be trained at a state standard. Along with this, officers will be required to obtain either an associates or a bachelors degree. These changes will allow police officers across the state to be held to a higher standard and training program as well as increasing education has shown that it can decrease excessive use of force. T

Justice Gorsuch should hold no influential office in the Colonial Williamsburg organization as long as he pursues overturning Roe and Casey. His actions are egregiously uncompassionate, harmful, and inconsistent with the values and mission of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. As the organization stands to have "the future learn from the past", it must acknowledge that this decision is legally, intellectually, and socially regressive and would be desultory for the health, safety, and well being for a large portion of the American public. Colonial Williamsburg should stand against such behavior and expel Justice Gorsuch from its ranks.

After George Floyd’s murder in 2020, there was a national cry to end racist policing. Though the national outrage has fizzled, police brutality remains far too common. In 2022, Orlando Taylor was killed by Springfield Police and Miguel Estrella was killed by Pittsfield Police, both during calls for a person in mental distress. Policing is not the solution to public safety. Advocates in Amherst have continued to call for defunding the Amherst Police Department. A promising, BIPOC-led envisioning of an alternative safety department has been implemented. However, the funding proposed is inadequate. The FY23 budget proposes only $621,520 in funding for CRESS, or $2,117,780 less than CSWG’s recommendation. There FY23 budget allocates $0 to a BIPOC cultural center, $407,690 less than CSWG’s recommendation. The FY23 budget allocates $500,000 to the youth empowerment center, above what was recommended— but it provides no clear plan as to what this money will support. The FY23 budget proposes $175,257 to the DEI office, $52,390 less than CSWG’s recommendation. These proposed programs will help create community safety in a responsive, anti-racist manner. They should be fully funded with money redirected from the police budget. The demand is still DEFUND THE POLICE.

I implore all Americans to stand up, be heard & do something to help better your life & the lives of all those around you! If we don’t speak up NOW, there will never be change… We have the power to change the world, right the wrongs, unlock the chains of injustice & demand a better quality of life! Change starts with you! Your voice matters! You CAN make a difference! Stand with me in pleading… no, DEMANDING more from our government! We demand more assistance to climb our way out of poverty! We demand our government to respect & hear the people! We demand a better quality of life for our children! And lastly, we demand action from our government! If change doesn’t happen NOW, I fear those people who feel frustrated & unheard will begin to revolt. We do NOT need a revolution, we need a resolution… When parents go hungry so their children do not, you know there is something inherently wrong with the system. When the people are scared to seek medical help because of the outrageously high costs, there is something inherently wrong with the system. When a parent has to choose between working just to pay daycare or staying home to raise their children and not being able to pay rent, there is something inherently wrong with the system. We are not asking for a handout, we are asking for a leg up! I implore you to take these words seriously. For if you don’t, the people may rise up to seek justice themselves. We will no longer stand by and go unheard and unseen. We will shout from the rooftops until change happens! I will stand up for what is right, even if I have to stand alone…