McDonald’s advertises heavily to Black and brown communities and relies on them to make billions. McDonald's makes deals with Black and brown celebrities and tweets about standing with Black lives. They try to co-opt Black and brown cultures and movements to sell burgers, but it's clear what the company says in private. McDonald's: if you really want to stand with Black and brown communities, prove it. Not with words or slogans, but by taking action to lift up Black and brown workers and our communities. McDonald’s Black and brown workers have been speaking out about racial discrimination at the company’s stores nationwide. They say that they have been called “ghetto,” “lazy,” “smelly,” and told they “shouldn’t even exist.” They claim that they have faced targeted retaliation for raising the alarm about racism in the workplace. They have long been paid starvation wages and dismissed in their demands for $15/hr. McDonald’s could be a leader by paying living wages and working with communities to end violence, poverty, and despair. Instead, they just try to shift blame.

Facebook’s longstanding track record of unethical and potentially illegal behavior deserves criminal sanction. It's important for federal law enforcement to demonstrate that no one, no matter how powerful, is above the law.

Calle 24 Latino Cultural District was formed because of the displacement of 8 thousand (and counting) Latinx community members and gentrification of the neighborhood. We formed to protect and stabilize our cultural assets which include all our cultural events that generate revenue for artists, businesses, the Mission, and the city as a whole. The Mission has the highest number of cultural events in the city that use 24th St. The Covid-19 epidemic has hurt the Latinx community at much higher levels than others and this barricade will further hurt our small businesses, artist, and community during this important recovery. This is not just a physical barrier but a psychological one that has triggered the trauma of displacement. Let’s help Carnaval SF stay on its historic route, and ask the MTA to remove the barricade they placed against our events, economy, and community. Please sign this petition and share it with all your contacts, friends, and neighbors. Si Se Puede! Calle 24 Latino Cultural District ¿Por qué esta petición es importante? El Distrito Cultural Latino Calle 24 se formó como reacción al desplazamiento de 8 mil (y contando) miembros de la comunidad Latinx y la gentrificación del vecindario. Nos formamos para proteger y estabilizar nuestros activos culturales, que incluyen nuestros eventos culturales que generan ingresos para los artistas, las empresas, la Misión y la ciudad en general. La Misión tiene el mayor número de eventos culturales en la ciudad que utilizan la calle 24. La COVID-19 ha dañado a la comunidad Latinx en niveles más profundos que a otras y esta barricada dañará aún más a nuestros pequeños negocios, artistas y comunidad durante esta necesaria recuperación. Esta no es solo una barrera física sino psicológica que ha desencadenado el trauma del desplazamiento. Ayudemos al Carnaval SF a mantenerse en su ruta histórica y pidamos a la MTA que elimine la barricada que fue colocada y que atenta contra nuestros eventos, la economía y nuestra comunidad. Firme esta petición y compártala con todos sus contactos, amigos y vecinos. ¡Sí se puede! Calle 24 Distrito Cultural Latino

Our kids deserve to play.

The Rolling Stone article points out that Lauren Boebert and/or her staff were involved in the planning conversations, according to key witnesses, of the January 6th insurrection and attack on the U.S. Capitol. The reason it is important for individuals who believe in Democracy to sign our petition to demand that GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert is that by sending a message that the citizens of our country will not stand by and let far right extremists like Lauren Boebert destroy our nation and precious Democracy.

May 1st used to be just another day in the years and life of our family. May 1st is now cemented forever as a death date for our daughter, granddaughter, niece, son, grandson, nephew, cousin and friend. The events of May 1st have forever changed the course of our family’s lives, hearts, souls and existence as whole individuals. Losing such bright, creative, clever and intelligent people with so much promise and so many gifts to offer this world, at such a young age, instills daily hurt in our hearts and aches in our stomachs. Flashes of Lendon and Kalen’s face and scenes of that last day come and go in and out of our minds uncontrolled and without our permission. Witnessing the despair and emptiness within Lendon and Kalen’s parents is a constant gut wrenching reminder that many lives, as we knew them are gone. Instead of looking forward to limitless possibilities of the coming years, we now are subjected to endless anxiety, heartbreak, and grief. Help us with our campaign to receive #justiceforlendonandkalen!!

Steven Donziger is a human rights attorney who won a massive settlement for people in Ecuador who were victims of oil pollution by Chevron. In response, Chevron—with the assistance of Federalist Society judges—have sought to as Chris Hedges wrote, "come after him, weaponizing litigation to destroy him economically, professionally, and personally." Donziger's case was prosecuted by a "private prosecutor" because the government refused to take the case against him. The "prosecutors" were the law firm Seward & Kissel, a private firm with previous ties to Chevron. His only offense was an alleged misdemeanor criminal contempt that would have warranted a jury trial under normal circumstances & if the sentence exceeded six months. While Donziger awaited judgement, he has been subject to an unduly harsh two years of house arrest and potentially tens of millions in legal fees. An independent panel of human rights experts at the United Nations have argued his house arrest violates international law. Amnesty International has also called for Donziger's release. On Wednesday, October 27, Donziger surrendered himself to federal authorities to begin a six month prison sentence. We are calling for an immediate review of Donziger's case by the DOJ & for his swift release.

Unsafe situation for pets in Santa Fe, New Mexico

It's estimated that 47% of ALL U.S. homes have visible dampness and mold. People spend 90% of their time indoors, yet a lack of emphasis is put on indoor air quality and how that affects our health every day. The recent peer-reviewed medical journal “A Comprehensive Review of Mold Research Literature From 2011 – 2018” published in Internal Medicine Review concluded that 112 of 114 (98.2%) of epidemiological articles published between 2011 and 2018 supported the proposition that inhaled mold, mold fragments, toxins and various pathogenic inflammagen, or other components of the air in water-damaged buildings (WDB), cause single and multi-system illness in humans. Symptoms include chronic and daily manifestations of fatigue, pain, nonrestorative sleep, cognitive deficits, neuropathic pains, gastrointestinal issues, musculoskeletal compromise, post-exertional malaise, dermatological, ophthalmic, endocrine, and other chronic multisystem symptoms for those suffering. These studies included 273,000 subjects from over 30 countries and 5 continents! The time for adequate funding for research and awareness on this overlooked public health issue is long overdue.

Active or Proposed Barging Sites along the Monongahela, Allegheny, and Ohio rivers: Monongahela River Mile 96.7, Star City near Morgantown, WV River Mile 43.5, Speers, near Belle Vernon, PA; Allegheny River Mile 29.6, Freeport, PA; Ohio River Mile 93.5, Comtech Industries Terminal at Bellaire, OH; River Mile 123.1, Hannibal, OH and offloading at River Mile 160, Enlink Midstream/Belles Run Terminal, Newport, OH and River Mile 173, Deep Rock Disposal Terminal, Marietta, OH. These sites would put the public's drinking water at risk of toxic fracking wastewater contamination. The exact composition of the wastewater is extremely difficult to obtain due to the fractured permitting process that allows the fracking industry to claim their chemical slurry as proprietary making it is near impossible to assess the full extent of the risks of barging the fracking wastewaters. Nevertheless, we do know some of the wastewater’s composition, including highly toxic metals, such as arsenic and barium, and volatile compounds, such as hydrogen sulfide and benzene. These components are known to cause serious health problems, including cancers and death. Moreover, these wastewaters often contain toxic levels of salt and the radioactive human carcinogen radium. In fact, some samples from the Marcellus Shale show levels of radium 3,600 times higher than EPA’s drinking water standard. Because of the known and unknown elements of the fracking wastewater, the primary concern of transporting produced water by barges are spills - both periodic spills that are likely to occur and catastrophic spills that could potentially occur. Spills can occur directly from the barges as well as at the loading and unloading facilities. Spills can occur due to inadequate equipment, human error, and uncontrollable external forces, such as extreme weather conditions. According to a PSE report released in August 2021, rising water levels during high rainfall or snowmelt events obscures riverbanks and disturbs or moves river sediments, altering the riverbed and challenging the river’s navigability. Furthermore, the report found that these events can create water currents that can pull vessels off course and/or throw debris into the vessel’s path, further increasing the risk of a toxic spill into the drinking water for millions of people, many of which are already facing inequitable living conditions, risking their long-term health and life expectancy. The USACE estimates that up to 50% more water could flow through the Ohio River watershed within this century due to climate change. PSE’s report also examined the USCG’s database on inland accidents and found that serious accidents are on the rise. The USCG defines serious accidents as incidents involving death or serious injury, excessive property damage, or a discharge of hazardous materials. In 2010, about 8% of incidents were serious. By 2018, serious incidents accounted for 12% of all accidents. Furthermore, when a spill does occur, it is unclear who is responsible for accident management and spill mitigation—especially since the contents of each barge are not disclosed. Fracking wastewater carried on barges is considered a hazardous material by the USCG even though it is exempted as a hazardous material by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. Because this contradicts hazardous designation along with the undisclosed nature of the produced wastewater, holding polluters accountable will be challenging and at the costs of the local residents - from their taxpaying pockets and their long-term health. We do not want ANY oil and gas waste being transported along the Monongahela, Allegheny, and Ohio Rivers. Our towns and cities along these rivers get our drinking water from aquifers that are highly susceptible to river contamination, and we want to assure safe drinking water for current and future generations. We urge the United States Coast Guard and the United States Army Corps of Engineers to deny any authorizations. We ask you to deny and revoke any and all authorizations that might allow the transport of any fracking waste on our waters. To do otherwise demonstrates a callous disregard for protecting the public’s health and safety — a duty which you’ve solemnly sworn to uphold. In doing so, we thank you for protecting the health and safety of the residents that depend on these three rivers for their drinking water and recreation. For a full report on the known and expected impacts of barging fracking wastewater, see Rossi and Dominic DiGiulio (2021) https://bit.ly/3z8elyP.

President Biden has nominated Jessica Rosenworcel as permanent FCC Chair and nominated Gigi Sohn as the 5th commissioner on the FCC. Both have a long record of fighting for the public interest, as opposed to the interests of giant corporations like Comcast, Verizon, and AT&T. The FCC has a long list of initiatives that can help ensure an open internet for everyone. It includes helping to ensure reliable, affordable high-speed broadband for all homes and effectively closing the digital divide -- which we've seen is more important than ever, with people working from home and relying on internet for everything from school to accessing medical services. And it includes restoring net neutrality rules dismantled by the Trump administration. Rosenworcel is already on the FCC, but her term expires in early 2022 unless she is reconfirmed. And there has been a vacancy in the fifth seat on the commission since the beginning of the year. The FCC can't move crucial work forward without these appointees being quickly confirmed. Congress has a limited number of days in session left this year. Will you help urge a speedy confirmation process?

Afghanistan is facing an existential economic crisis that’s shuttering banks, leaving civil servants without pay and increasing prices of basic food items like cooking oil and flour for Afghan families. UN officials are warning that food in the country could run out this month and millions could starve this winter. One million Afghan children could die of malnutrition in this man-made disaster. Doctors have not been paid for months and hospitals across the country are on the verge of total collapse. With no access to the Afghan people’s own money or financial capital, more Afghans are on the brink of a devastating economic crisis that will only further increase an already deepening humanitarian crisis.