As a concerned parent of a student of Cedar Valley Middle school, I know that the rapid growth of our area has created many changes and hazards, one of them being the heavy increase in traffic and therefore deeming the "walk zone" for the school not being something that should be decided only based on geographical distance but also the safety of having to walk or ride a bicycle to school everyday. For this reason, in May 2015 I presented this request to the RRISD board. So far there has been no change on the bus service to our area or a formal response from any responsible authority. I hope that if we can get most parents who believe that we should have bus service in our area to sign this petition, we then will have a stronger case and voice to make a change happen.

The investigation of this case was tainted from the start. Sheriff Glenn Smith, who was fired from a previous job for alleged racism and police brutality, appointed an "independent" commission to review his department. This commission is headed by Paul Looney, an attorney with financial ties to the county's top elected official Carbet Duhon III, who would be responsible for payment to Sandra Bland's family if wrong doing was found. There is no chance for Justice here. Sandra and her family deserve better, please sign this petition and let our government know this is unacceptable.

Alabama just announced it would close 31 DMV offices throughout the state due to budget cuts. That leaves 29 counties in the state without a single DMV location -- and that's a huge problem for voters who live there. Alabama's 2011 voter ID law blocks voters from the polls if they can't present a government issued photo ID. Most folks use a driver's license -- but without an easily accessible DMV location, many citizens won't be able to get any of the identification they need to exercise their right to vote. Worse, these closures will hit poor Americans and communities of color the hardest -- 15 of the 29 counties left without a DMV are in Alabama's Black Belt, where voters have struggled under discriminatory voting practices for decades. Voter ID laws are already controversial for their disproportionate impact on poor voters and voters of color. Alabama's decision to make it even harder for those voters to comply with their voter ID law will only amplify those concerns -- and it could violate federal voting law too.

Verizon Wireless has plans to erect a huge mobile telecommunications facility on the roof of 12345 Ventura Court, a 51-foot tall building. The proposed project includes 12 cellular antennas, 50-foot, 9-inches in height on top of the building! This structure is adjacent to the LA River. This structure would be a terrible eyesore for everyone living on either side of the LA River in Studio City and is clearly in violation of several local Zoning and Community ordinances. This type of development is out of character for our neighborhood. It is crucial to demonstrate OPPOSITION to this project, if we are to have a chance of stopping it. Please sign and share this petition with your neighbors. Time is of the essence. There will be a public hearing on Monday, October 5 at 3:00pm. It's at Marvin Braude San Fernando Valley Constituent Services Center 6262 Van Nuys Bl., Room 1B Please attend and ask to be heard. REFERENCE: Case No. ZA 2014-1797(CUW)(SPP) CEQA NO. ENV 2014-1798-MND

Alabama just closed 31 drivers license bureaus in counties with the highest percentage of non-white voters. Every county with over 75% of registered voters that are African-American will have their DMV office closed. Alabama requires voters to have photo ID to vote, so this will disenfranchise the voters in those counties. The Justice Department can put a stop to this, they are the best hope for upholding the rights of all Alabama voters. Reference: http://www.al.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/09/alabama_sends_message_we_are_t.html UPDATE 12-9-15: Great news! The U.S. Department of Transportation has launched an investigation into the closure or reduction in services at 34 drivers' license office in Alabama, "as part of the agency's responsibilities under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to make sure federal dollars going to state and local governments are used in a non-discriminatory fashion". http://www.al.com/news/birmingham/index.ssf/2015/12/us_dot_launches_investigation.html UPDATE 10-16-15: Alabama Governor Bentley says drivers license tests will be offered 1 day a month in those counties that formerly had an office. It's a start, but as Rep. Sewell put it, it provides "only bare minimum access". Please keep contacting the DOJ to make this right. http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2015/10/gov_robert_bentley_says_licens.html UPDATE 10-13-15: Alabama Governor Bentley is considering a plan to open the 31 drivers license bureaus back up, but nothing is decided yet. Please keep the pressure on. http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2015/10/bentley_plan_would_reopen_clos.html UPDATE 10-5-15: The Anti-Defamation League and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund have asked the DOJ to investigate, as has Rep. Terri Sewell (who represents the Selma area of Alabama). "Dena Iverson, a spokeswoman for the Justice Department, confirmed that the department had received Sewell’s letter, declining to comment further." Please keep contacting the DOJ. http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/alabama-dmv-closings-draw-call-federal-voting-rights-probe

Planned Parenthood's Cecile Richards suffered the indignity of coming before Rep. Jason Chaffetz's Congressional committee supposedly to answer questions about Planned Parenthood. Instead, she was met with lies , unnecessary rudeness and continual interruptions. We demand that this man pay the price for being the GOP's whipping boy. Now it's time for Chaffetz to feel the heat of public opinion. Please sign!

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. As noted, the text of the petition should be modified to "Amelia Boynton Robinson" Bridge, who passed away in August 2015. "Amelia" is a much nicer sounding name than "Edmund." That she was beaten on this bridge by racists renders this an act of poetic justice.

People who responded to 9/11 have suffered since then with major illnesses including cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, post-traumatic stress disorder, and more. These heroes are entitled to care. On September 30, the bill to care and provide health care for these heroic people ran out. Please tell your Congresspeople to resign the bill. It's on their agendas but nothing is being done at their meetings concerning this major issue. The first responders should have immediate signatures on this bill. When they showed up immediately to volunteer, they didn't wait for a bill to be signed. Please sign.

(Mira este video para escuchar la historia de Rafael y firma la petición http://youtu.be/gR0lS_JS5d8) Rafael Gaytan, a loving father and a caring husband, is seeking to reunite with his family in the United States after leaving to Mexico in order to take care of his ailing sister and parents. His sister first left the convent to care for her parents and later was diagnosed with cancer, she unfortunately died once Rafael was there. Due to Rafael's undocumented status, he is now unable to return to his community, his U.S. citizen children, or his wife here in the United States. If DAPA wasn't stopped, Rafael could have traveled with a permit due to the emergency and come back to his family. As a family man, Rafael is the sole provider for his family in Florida. That is why we are asking that Rafael Gaytan is allowed to reunite with his wife and children and granted parole. We need your support in order to keep the Gaytan family together. Please sign this petition supporting Rafael, and asking that the Department of Homeland and Security allows him to reunite with his family.

Como empresarios de San Marcos, queremos incrementar el atractivo eco turistico de nuestra comunidad,limpiando el pueblo. Cuando las personas visitan nuestro pueblo, a menudo se dan cuenta de la abundancia de basura plástica en el suelo y la falta de recursos y servicios amientalmente amigables en nuestra comunidad y sus establecimientos. Creemos que al corregir estos problemas atraeremos más eco turismo, para así crear más empleos y recursos financieros localmente. Al firmar esta petición, nos comprometemos a seguir los principios empresariales de la Alianza Internacional de Basura Cero (ver http://zwia.org/standards/zw-business-principles/) para reducir la cantidad de basura que producimos. A través de esta peticion, también estamos pidiendole a la Municipalidad que establezca una meta Basura Cero para que de esta manera también se cree la infraestructura que necesitamos como comunidad para tener un mejor manejo de residuos, reciclaje y sistemas de re utilización para el beneficio de los negocios, las familias y sus hogares, y los turistas de San Marcos por igual. Definido por Alianza Internacional, Basura Cero es: “Basura Cero es una meta ética, económica, eficiente y visionaria, de guiar a las personas a cambiar sus vidas y hábitos al emular ciclos naturales sostenibles, donde todos aquellos materiales que descartamos puedan designarse y convertirse en recursos para otros. Basura Cero es un concepto y una política integral de manejo de residuos que apunta a reducir progresivamente el enterramiento y la incineración de residuos sólidos urbanos, hasta llegar a cero, adoptando una serie de medidas en cada etapa del circuito de los materiales: desde que se producen hasta que se consumen y desechan. Un plan de Basura Cero busca aplicar medidas en todo el circuito de los materiales, apuntando por un lado a reducir drásticamente la cantidad y toxicidad de los residuos que generamos y por otro a que todo lo que se deseche vuelva al circuito productivo o a la naturaleza de forma segura. Al implentar el Plan Basura Cero eliminaremos todas las descargas de desechos a la tierra, el agua y el aire, que son una amenza para la salud del planeta, los animals y los seres humanos. Una meta de reducción de basura municipal nos va a proeever de la infraestructura y el soporte que necesitamos para ganar reconocimiento internacional como Comunidad Basura Cero. Un reconocimiento de tal nivel nos va a permitir dar el ejemplo a otras comunidades alrededor del Lago, así como a todo el país. As San Marcos business owners, we want to increase our community's appeal to ecotourists by cleaning up our town. When visitors come to our community, they often notice the abundance of plastic trash on the ground and lack of earth-friendly items and services in our community and establishments. By correcting these problems, we believe we will attract more ecotourists, allowing us to create more jobs and economics for locals. By signing this petition, we are committing to follow Zero Waste International Alliance's business principles (see: http://zwia.org/standards/zw-business-principles/) to reduce the amount of trash we produce. Through this petition, we are also asking the municipality to set a Zero Waste goal, as well, so that the city will create the infrastructure we need as a community to have better waste disposal, recycling, and reuse systems for the benefit of San Marcos businesses, households, and travelers alike. Zero Waste, as defined by the Zero Waste international Alliance, means: “Zero Waste is a goal that is ethical, economical, efficient and visionary, to guide people in changing their lifestyles and practices to emulate sustainable natural cycles, where all discarded materials are designed to become resources for others to use. Zero Waste means designing and managing products and processes to systematically avoid and eliminate the volume and toxicity of waste and materials, conserve and recover all resources, and not burn or bury them. Implementing Zero Waste will eliminate all discharges to land, water or air that are a threat to planetary, human, animal or plant health.” A municipal waste reduction goal will give us the infrastructure and support we need to gain international recognition as a Zero Waste community. Such recognition will allow us to set an example for the rest of the lake communities and the country-at-large.

Seventy union workers at Clifford-Jacobs Forging in Champaign were locked out of their jobs when they reported to work Tuesday morning. [1] The company has demanded a wage freeze for four years, plus reduced company health insurance and pension contributions. Urge Clifford-Jacobs Forging to end its lockout of union employees, return to negotiations with its unions, and bargain in good faith by signing our petition. References: 1. http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2015-09-29/updated-clifford-jacobs-workers-locked-out.html

If a chemical is known to cause cancer, we should be alerted about it so we know the dangers of using any product that is made with that chemical. That's why California is moving to declare the chemical glyphosate - commonly sold as Monsanto's Roundup - as a carcinogen. Glyphosate has been called a "probable human carcinogen" by the World Health Organization's Agency for Research on Cancer. In light of this finding, and since hundreds of millions of pounds of this herbicide is used every year on crops across the country, it should absolutely be classified as cancer-causing and Monsanto should be required to label it as such.