The proposed change in hours will force pedestrians and joggers off the safe zoo paths onto the streets. The change in hours will have a direct negative impact on working professionals, women, senior citizens, and school-age children. It is now possible to enjoy the zoo before and after work. With new hours most professionals will be unable to enjoy the zoo at any time during the week. Women are primary users of the zoo as a safe and secure place to exercise. Changing zoo hours will force women to choose between unsafe paths in Rock Creek or not exercising at all. Senior Citizens are able to walk in a pedestrian-friendly environment. School-age children are able to enjoy the zoo after school hours. The change in open hours would make all these activities impossible.

Trump's xenophobic remarks about Muslims and his campaign to bar all Muslims from entering America.

Wheaton College in Illinois put political science professor Dr. Larycia Hawkins on leave for wearing a hijab, WGN News reports. [1] Dr. Hawkins, who is Christian and has taught at Wheaton College since 2007, was wearing the headscarf to show solidarity for Muslim women in America. Wheaton College has claimed that it is not punishing Dr. Hawkins for wearing the hijab, but for failure to "faithfully represent the college’s evangelical Statement of Faith,” [2] because she wrote on her Facebook page that Christians and Muslims worship the same God. Regardless of what one thinks of this theological question, it's obvious that Dr. Hawkins' intentions were humane and that punishing her for this act of solidarity is unjust. Urge President Ryken to reflect on and rethink the college's position by signing our petition. 1. http://wgntv.com/2015/12/16/wheaton-college-professor-put-on-leave-for-wearing-hijab/ 2. http://www.christianitytoday.com/gleanings/2015/december/wheaton-college-hijab-professor-same-god-larycia-hawkins.html

El Super managers unsuccessfully encouraged workers to decertify their union in 2014. A year after El Super workers voted to remain united as union members, they still do not have a contract from El Super. Following a federal court injunction—requiring El Super to rehire an unfairly fired union activist—the company promised to return to negotiations, but still has not done so. Members of the community have been boycotting El Super until they agree to negotiate with their employees. El Super’s practices not only hurt the company’s employees and their communities but also the industry. Please demand that El Super negotiate a fair union contract for workers.

The rising tide of hateful rhetoric and violence aimed at our Muslim and Arab community members, at refugees fleeing violence, at immigrants, and at people of color in our communities is dangerous. We believe this inflammatory fear mongering must be met head-on with clear statements of principle from lawmakers in Washington, D.C.

To save an entertainment medium from vanishing.

Many cities across the country and our own state have changed local laws and ordinances to allow for the raising of a small flock of hens. It is time for Cicero, NY to join this movement. With proper education and a little research it is very easy to raise chickens in an urban setting without fear of noise, smell or disease. At the same time you can provide your family with a very healthy choice in home grown eggs. Factory farming is failing us in many ways. This will relieve the pressure on factory farming, while giving residents the right to provide a much more humane, and safe environment for backyard chickens. Let's join cities like New York, Baltimore, Rockville, Silver Spring, Bethesda, Potomac, and many more to put food production into the hands of city residents.

Starting in 2016, persons between the ages of 18-49 in the state of Tennessee that are not working, in a specific school, or volunteering are not eligible for food stamps except for three months in a three-year cycle. Legislators did not fully comprehend or take into consideration the following: Tennessee has limited mass transit. Most of the state has no public transportation. Farms and farmers that work for no pay to produce crops are not considered working. In fact, farmers work harder to supply local grocery stores with produce, meat, and products all year round. Farming is not work. Jobs are not readily available as this is a right to work state which means they have a right not to hire you as well. You must have transportation to get anywhere and not all families or individuals have personal transportation or access to transportation. Those with health problems are not exempt. Many people have health issues and this state does not consider that. Family members that are caretakers are not exempt. Many people depend on family members for care from feeding and bathing to medication home dialysis administration. Care taking is a full time job. WIA programs are not always available or accessible. Certain schools at certain times have WIA classes. Not all locations are accessible and many are far from residences at unreasonable distances with no guarantee that the sacrifice and hardship will get you a job. Volunteering requires transportation and a compatible organization. Based on volunteering for religious organizations, not all religious affiliations have open volunteering opportunities. Some are closed. You need transportation to accomplish all these things. Yet Tennessee has no mass transit infrastructure except in major cities such as Knoxville, Chattanooga, Nashville, and Memphis. All other locations are rural with no access. It is fact that those people in the age bracket, which is a good population of the state, will go hungry and food banks depleted based on current criteria for SNAP benefits. They will be the only place for individuals and young families to eat and get a week's worth of goods per month. We the people of the state of Tennessee demand that this unjust, unfair criteria be repealed immediately and the legislators stop harming the population of our state.

Our Granny Peace Brigade Philadelphia circulated a similar petition to celebrate International Human Rights Day on December 10th. I wanted to share this with you.

CPHS volunteers have witnessed animal abuse and neglect at this particular shelter. It was brought to the attention of the Shelter Director, the Board President, Board Secretary and Humane Officer, without resolution. Some of the concerns include an employee who mishandled a dog by removing the dog by lifting her in the air and dragging her and calling her derogatory names. Volunteers have brought to the attention of staff and veterinarians the lack of appropriate follow-up care on animals. Dogs are also forced to hold their bowels and bladder in excess of 15 plus hours a day. There is also a lack of thorough home inspections and background checks for potential pet owners. This has resulted in some animals being adopted by people who previously did not care adequately for their pets. The grounds of this facility are also filthy. The laws must be changed to protect these innocent animals.

There is a rising tide of hateful rhetoric and violence aimed at our Muslim and Arab community members, at refugees fleeing violence, at immigrants and at people of color in our communities. This swell of hate and fear permeating our national dialogue is dangerous. We believe it must be met head-on with clear statements of principle from local business owners because we are leaders in our communities.

Since the illegal takeover of power from the then democratically elected government of Sir Dawda Jawara on July 22, 1992 by President Yahya Jammeh, The Gambia has known anything but peace -- Gambia was regarded as "the smiling coast of Africa" by the international community. Therefore, the recent announcement by Jammeh to turn this once beacon of freedom into an Islamic State is a continuation of the abuse of the constitution that has been his Modus Operandi from the onset. What makes this move more alarming than the pervasive killings, disappearances, and tortures of the citizens for all these years is that it is an attempt to change the very character and history of The Gambia. Sharia could become the law of the land, the already traumatized Christian and other religious minorities could be pushed further into isolation, the country’s pariah State status will be further worsened. All these circumstances will only allow for far worse human rights abuses than we have already witnessed, and the country can erupt into a violence that could threaten the entire sub-region. In light of these potential dire consequences, We the citizens and friends of The Gambia, hereby make the following declarations: -Because this action is unconstitutional, it will not be done in our name -Because this could encourage Boko Haram and ISIS type organizations to use Gambia as a base, we are totally opposed to it -Because Gambia is a Secular State, any religious interference into state matters will compromise the core principle of Separation of Church/Mosque and State that this country was founded on -Because this action will only worsen the human rights abuses that have been pervasive in this country, it cannot be accepted -Because the minority Christians and people of other faiths will see it as an effort to further isolate them, it will only divide our people. That makes it unacceptable -Because President Yahya Jammeh's pronouncement is unconstitutional and does not represent the core values of Gambians who have inter-generational relations between Christians, Muslims and Pagans, this will breed divisiveness within those sects.