We, the Undersigned, are writing to you today because we are concerned about the message that the Director of the Williamson Museum is sending to our community and county with a planned Old South Ball -- A Civil War Soirée -- on January 30, 2016. We are a County and City that did not actually support the inclusion of Texas into the Confederate Union. To quote the Texas State Historical Society: Unionist sentiment was strong in the county, and a resolution denouncing secession was adopted by a Texas Constitutional Union party meeting in Round Rock in 1860. One of the county's delegates to the secession convention, Thomas Proctor Hughes, was among the eight who voted against the ordinance of secession. When the ordinance was referred to a statewide election, Williamson County was one of 19 counties to oppose it, rejecting secession by 480 votes to 349. We also have a long history of unfortunate incidents in the County of racially motivated harassment and killings. Though Mr. Moody did successfully prosecute the KKK for an incident involving a white man, the Klan did not disappear. Where they were a public organization before Mr. Moody, they became a wink and nod of an underground organization after Mr. Moody's successful prosecution. Further, a grand Southern Ball, with uniformed soldiers and ladies in grand antebellum dresses, does not in any way accurately reflect the period or time in Williamson County. Back in the 1860s a party would more likely have been a small dance in day clothes at someone's house. What is being created is a slaver's plantation ball with all the finery and trimmings and glory of the Deep South. Do we really want to aggrandize that, let alone distort local history? This is not an event that represents a living history of our community or county. There are many fine times and events that could be honored, times that do not smack of white privilege and one of the darkest times in American history. Perhaps we should glorify our resistance to Secession and slavery instead of celebrating the senseless death of hundreds of thousands of men, the destruction of the American Union, and the enslavement, oppression and murder of humans owned by wealthy Southern landowners. Hate should not be part of anyone's heritage. We should reconsider a grand Old South Ball. It sends the wrong message to the community and the world in times that are still troubled by racial strife and violence. Perhaps we could create an event that celebrates our unity and that respects our diversity, an event that would bring together all of Georgetown and Williamson County.

UPDATE 1/19/16: A couple weeks ago, Governor Snyder signed SB 13 into law (and also SB 571, which allows more dark money into Michigan elections). SB 13 removed straight ticket voting, so there will be much longer lines at crowded polling places on major elections. His comment during the bill signing was "To alleviate concerns that this change could lead to longer wait times for voters, I'm asking the Legislature to enact secured no-reason absentee voting." Since the Senate specifically refused a companion bill that would have expanded absentee voting, and forced the House to go along with it in a late night of sausage-making in Lansing, this seems unlikely (to put it mildly). Another black eye for Michigan. - This idea has been proposed before in Michigan and rejected by a vote of the people. But this time, the legislature has added an appropriation so it can't be overturned at the ballot box. It's opposed by local clerks and election officials from around the state, because they recognize -- both Democrats and Republicans -- that this will hurt Michigan voters. The legislature didn't listen, and now Governor Snyder is our last chance. The bill passed the Senate and the House late Wednesday night, and is on its way to Governor Snyder. He has not said yet whether he will veto it or sign it into law. Tell Snyder we want solutions that will help people to vote (such as no reason absentee, early voting, same day registration), NOT disenfranchise Michigan voters. More about the bill: http://michiganradio.org/post/local-clerks-blast-bill-eliminate-straight-ticket-voting-michigan http://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/16/lansing-ready-eliminate-straight-party-ticket-voting/77411352/

Trump has received 234 total network minutes compared to just 10 network minutes for Sanders. In giving Trump so much free air time, the networks are propping up his campaign and spreading his hate and bigotry.

Human rights attorney and advocate Waleed Abu al-Khair - a Nobel Peace Prize nominee - worked for the release of other Saudi human rights advocates from prison, including Raif Badawi, the blogger jailed and sentenced to 1,000 lashes. In retaliation for this advocacy, Saudi Arabia’s government sentenced Waleed to 15 years in jail. He has been beaten, deprived of sleep and moved from jail to jail. Amnesty International, calling Waleed a prisoner of conscience suffering purely for exercising his right to freedom of expression, has demanded that the Saudi government drop all charges against Waleed and free him from his unjust imprisonment. [1] Urge President Obama and Congress to press for Waleed's release by signing our petition. References: 1. http://www.write.amnestyusa.org/case/waleed/

The news media is completely obsessed with Donald Trump. This obsession is hurting our democracy and is rewarding Trump for extremism and bigotry. ABC, NBC, CBS and all the cable news channels are guilty of this. Consider the following... 1) Network news has covered Donald Trump more than the entire Democratic field combined. Notably, ABC World News devoted 81 minutes of coverage to Donald Trump. By contrast, they have only given about 20 seconds of coverage to Bernie Sanders over the entire year. 2) So far this year, Donald Trump has accounted for 27% of all campaign coverage on the nightly news programs. 3) CNN has mentioned Donald Trump more than the rest of the Republican field combined and about 1.5x more than the Democratic field combined. 4) MSNBC has mentioned Donald Trump 56,748 times. By contrast, MSNBC has mentioned the entire Democratic field combined 34,807 times. 5) Fox News has had Donald Trump on air 1,366 minutes since the beginning of his announcement. That's nearly 2.5 times more airtime than the candidate with the next most airtime. 6) Even worse, the news media goes out of their way to give Trump special privileges. They let him call in to shows at significantly higher rates than other candidates. This matters a lot because it enables Trump's consumption of airtime by allowing him to appear on multiple shows by phone without concern for scheduling conflicts and logistics. Not to mention, the constant breaking in to cover the same old stump speech that Trump has been giving for months. And those are just a few examples that illustrate how out of control this has gotten. This hurts our democracy by crowding out coverage of other important issues and other candidates. And all it really does is reward Donald Trump's extremism and bigotry. Enough is enough. It's time for the news media to stop their obsession with Trump.

The D.C. Fair Elections bill empowers city residents by providing a match of $5 for every $1 they contribute to qualified candidates who forgo large private donations from special interests in lieu of small contributions of $100 or less. As a result, candidates in Washington, D.C. can focus on their constituents, rather than those of lobbyists and wealthy donors. The high cost of campaigns keep good candidates from running, and shapes the policy agenda of those who get elected. Demos research shows the mostly white, older donor class is against hugely popular proposals to raise the minimum wage, enact debt-free college, and ensure all eligible citizens have the chance to vote. Public financing systems—like the one proposed in the D.C. Fair Elections bill—are exactly what’s needed to empower voters and good candidates alike.

My entire life, I've stood alongside people of different faith and ethnic backgrounds in the fight for justice, because I know that solidarity is the only way we'll all win. That's why I was appalled to learn about a Christian professor's suspension from Wheaton College for speaking out in support of Muslims. Dr. Larycia Hawkins is a political scientist who has taught at Wheaton College in Illinois since 2007. She wore a headscarf to class to show solidarity with Muslim-American women, who have faced increased hate crimes as Islamophobia has spiked this election season. Shortly thereafter, she was placed on leave. Dr. Hawkins had also posted on Facebook that Christians and Muslims worship the same God, which the college said failed to "faithfully represent the college's evangelical Statement of Faith." The college is entitled to stand by its theology, but Dr. Hawkins' was showing us the best of character. Her action was rooted in a concern for the people around her--even people with different beliefs--and a concern for justice. These aren't principles to be suspended for.

My friends, family and I have all lost loved ones to gun violence in the last 20 years. The experience is brutal and tragic for the victims, and emotionally devastating for the survivors. Currently our Congress restricts research of the causes of gun violence through specious language in the Dickey amendment. If Congress won't remove that rider, the only recourse we have is being brave enough to risk more funds being cut out of unconscionably cynical support of the gun lobby by our legislators. We say the risk is worth it. And if legislators cut funding, we will protest with new allies like cancer researchers and others who are being unnecessarily punished.

This petition is to give any and all Rhode Islanders the ability to state their support for getting this situation corrected - bullying in the workplace - in all types of workplaces, involving every race, gender, sexual orientation and state of ability. I and many friends, colleagues and people who know I support this issue have reported alarming instances of abuse in the workplace. The Healthy Workplace Bill would be a great step in the right direction since there is no law against bullying.

The Confederate Naval Jack flag hangs in Summerall Chapel-- a church-- on the campus of The Citadel. We, the members of the Take It Down Now Campaign are calling for its immediate removal. It has no business in a house of worship-- a sacred space. Further, we are also calling for the establishment of a Commission on Racial Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity to address the ideology of the flag and the way that it negatively influences the campus experience for African American cadets, others at the school, graduates, and the larger Charleston, S.C. community. #TakeItDownNow!

Honorable Senator and Congressman: As a constituent, I am writing to you about the troubling events unfolding in Haiti following the series of elections this year that have triggered waves of demonstrations and violence. Specifically, I write to ask your office to request that the Obama Administration communicate to Haitian President Michel Martelly and Prime Minister Evans Paul to permit independent observers (Haitians and International) to recount the votes and to stop the violence directed at peaceful protesters. Historically, the United States has always been the strongest supporter of Haiti as evidenced by the $33 million of taxpayers’ money elections spent by the U.S. State Department on Haiti’s election. Despite that expenditure, Catholic Bishops, Protestant pastors, human rights groups, thirty Haitian presidential candidates, Vodou organizations, and the private sectors have reported on the fraud and irregularities by the current Haitian Administration in this year’s elections. Notwithstanding Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit to Haiti in October and Under Secretary Kenneth Merten's visit in December Haitian elections officials rejected requests from the majority of Haitians to form an independent commission to verify the preliminary presidential and legislative election results. There are three critical examples of fraudulent activities that have been documented by national and international media. 1) An exit poll conducted by an independent Brazilian firm published on November 19 reported that Jovnel Moise, candidate backed by the current Haitian administration, came in fourth, not first, with 6 percent of the vote, not 34 percent as reported by the Provisional Electoral Council. 2) On November 24, officials announced that an audit of a sample of 78 tally sheets found fraud or irregularities in all 78 sheets. The Electoral Council discarded the 78 sheets, but refused further investigations. Meanwhile in note number 101, The Provisional Electoral Council admitted fraud and irregularities by stating in that note staff members involved in fraud and irregularities will be turned over to the Justice Department. 3) On November 30, 2015, a popular independent radio station, Radio Kiskeya, was fired upon overnight. To date, President Martelly’s Administration has not condemned that act of aggression on free speech and there have been no arrests. As a result of the irregularities and impunities, pro-democracy activists have engaged frequent and large demonstrations, shutting down major cities in Haiti almost daily. The police have responded with arrests, rubber bullets and even live ammunition fired at peaceful protestors. Meanwhile, regime supporters attacked peaceful protesters with rocks and machetes. During one of these protests, current Senator Stephen Benoit and former Senator Moise Jean-Charles, both opponents of the current administration, were shot with rubber bullets while participating in a peaceful protest. As a result of the escalating violence and unrests, there are increased concerns that there will be an influx of refugees to the USA. I look forward to your reply expressing your opinions, and your current stance on the issue. Thank you for your consideration of my opinion on this matter. I believe it is an important issue, and would like to see quick actions to this urgent matter. Sincerely,

As Governor Rauner continues to hold the state budget hostage to push his obsessive anti-union agenda, young people and their families are suffering. As a candidate, Rauner ran as the “Education Governor”, while Rauner the governor will allow more than 100,000 low-income students to fall through the cracks unless he takes action to pass a budget. In 2014, the Monetary Award Program (MAP) provided tuition assistance to 136,000 students attending Illinois colleges and universities. Without a budget to fund this essential program, these students’ educations are in jeopardy. More information ---> http://ow.ly/VZAJF