Nathan Bedford Forrest was a lieutenant general in the Confederate Army, and was the 1st Grand Wizard of the Klu Klux Klan. There are some apologists who argue that when the Klan started to become violent, Nathan Bedford Forrest distanced himself from the Klan. This image can easily be debunked, using the writings of the acclaimed historical non-fiction writer Andrew Ward:  "In the spring of 1867, Forrest and his dragoons launched a campaign of midnight parades; 'ghost' masquerades; and 'whipping' and even 'killing Negro voters and white Republicans, to scare blacks off voting and running for office." The ROTC building on MTSU's campus (Forrest Hall) is named after him. There is no reason or explanation on why MTSU continues to honor this man that is in any way justifiable. Help us to ensure that the memory of this hateful man be washed off of MTSU's Campus. We call on President Sidney A. McPhee, the State Legislature, the Board Of Regents, the SGA, and the Department of the Army to support our campaign and help to promote true diversity on MTSU's campus.  For any group interested in sponsoring our campaign, which is an extension Black Lives Matter, please contact us at the following email:  [email protected]

In today's world, fast, affordable and reliable broadband internet access is crucial to the economic and educational well-being of communities. Internet access is no longer a luxury; it is a necessary utility in the same way that electric power became in an earlier day. The TN laws that prevent municipalities from building effective broadband networks need to be repealed. My son and I, along with many others, have been badly affected by the monopolistic situation that has resulted from these restrictive laws. Young people in school, professionals working from home, farmers in rural areas, all have been cut off from pursuing their education and careers. Time for a change! See http://21stcenturycitizens.org/ for more information.

On Saturday, June 27 at 4AM Gaza time, international peace advocates aboard the Freedom Flotilla III announced their departure from European ports to the port of Gaza via international waters to protest the illegal blockade of 1.8 million human beings in Gaza. [1] Former US Army Col. Ann Wright and USS Liberty veteran Joe Meadors are on board. [2] The UN recently called for the end of the Gaza blockade. [3] Retired IDF Major General Shlomo Gazit, who was head of IDF military intelligence, has called on the Netanyahu government to leave the flotilla activists alone. [4] Haaretz – the “New York Times of Israel” – has defended the right of Knesset Member Basel Ghattas to participate in the flotilla as a nonviolent political protest against the Gaza blockade. [5] Urge Secretary Kerry to stand with General Gazit and Haaretz and press Netanyahu to let the flotilla pass from international waters to Gaza unmolested, by signing our petition. You can follow the flotilla on twitter on #FreedomFlotillaIII and @GazaFFlotilla. References: 1. https://www.freedomflotilla.org/coalition-statements/19-freedom-flotilla-iii-sets-sail-nextportgaza 2. https://ff3.freedomflotilla.org/sailors-to-gaza/ 3. http://www.defensenews.com/story/breaking-news/2015/06/22/un-gaza-war-report-skewers-israel-on-targeting-ops/29109875/ 4. http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-1.662626 5. http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/1.662903

SB 3 will increase the minimum wage in California to $13 by July 1, 2017 [$11 on January 1, 2016]. This bill also includes an innovative provision which adjusts the minimum wage indexed to inflation beginning January 1, 2019. SB 3 (Leno) is currently in the Labor and Employment Committee and has a hearing on July 8th.

Gregg Abbott is disgracing Texas. He is a bigot. He is a moron. He needs to go.

This week marks the two-year anniversary of Shelby v. Holder, the Supreme Court decision which gutted core components of the Voting Rights Act (VRA) of 1965. The Shelby case is devastating because for the last half century, the VRA has protected the right to vote for millions of Americans. Unless Congress updates the Voting Rights Act, the federal government will be powerless to stop racially discriminatory election procedures from going into effect. Congress has been unwilling to restore the critical protections of the VRA for two years -- however the need for voting rights protections has skyrocketed. In 2014, 21 states had new voting restrictions in place, followed by 17 states introducing 40 new voting restrictions in 2015. The 2016 election will be the first in 50 years where voters will not have the full protections of the VRA, which makes fixing the Voting Rights Act an urgent priority. The Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2015 (VRAA), a bill just introduced in Congress by Sen. Patrick Leahy and Rep. John Lewis, will restore key voting rights protections. Most importantly, the VRAA will modernize the preclearance found in the original Voting Rights Act of 1965 and protect against voting changes that may be harmful or discriminatory. Republican and Democratic administrations and Congresses alike have reauthorized the Voting Rights Act in full for decades, and there is no reason why we cannot all work together to restore the Voting Rights Act today.

Unfortunately, only 33% of construction equipment in Oregon meets the cleanest federal standards for diesel engines. Which means until our state passes regulations like California and Washington, the protection of the public from the most dangerous cancer causing air pollution, is in the hands of citizens and individual project managers. The World Health Organization says that exposure to diesel exhaust at ambient levels can cause cancer. Diesel is also known to increase the risk of heart attack, stroke, and cardiovascular disease; exacerbate asthma; and lead to low-weight and pre-term births. Oregon estimates that 460 deaths a year are attributed to diesel exhaust at an annual cost of $3.4 billion dollars. Off road engines, like construction equipment, account for nearly half of the 700 tons of diesel particulates emitted annually in the Portland Metro air shed. But the good news is there is a ready solution at hand. New technology reduces harmful emissions by over 90%. And across the country, municipalities and project leaders, like the executive director of environmental field compliance for Columbia University’s Manhattanville Development Group, are instituting Clean Diesel Contracting Policy to minimize the impact of construction on the daily life of the community and its workers. OHSU should commit first and foremost to not add to Oregon's diesel death toll by enacting a clean diesel contracting policy for the building of its new state of the art cancer center. We have the technology to prevent cancer before it starts. This saves lives and money. Oregon leaders who invested $200 million of public money, and all those 10,000 individuals who donated directly, should expect the project won't cause cancer in the workers that build it or in the community that surrounds it. When it comes to cancer, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. So please sign the petition and urge OHSU to set an example by committing to cancer free contracting.

The SEC is one of the financial watchdogs that was too often asleep at the switch in the years leading up to the disaster of 2008-09. It needed an injection of backbone then, and, sadly, it still does. The President will be announcing new nominees soon. Please join us in urging the White House to steer clear of “revolving door” corporate and Wall Street insiders, and find nominees who will help the SEC become the tough and effective rule-writer and watchdog that we need.

Although the Supreme Court has ruled in favor of marriage equality, current Michigan laws offer LGBT people no protection from workplace discrimination. LGBT couples who get married in Michigan can still be fired without legal recourse. Tell the Michigan Legislature to act immediately to amend the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to include workplace protections for the LGBT community.

Dear Rep Darren Jernigan: Please vote to discontinue issuing Tennessee license plates that display the Confederate battle flag. Today it is considered a symbol of hate to most Americans. It divides the people and it and other symbols of the Confederacy have no business being displayed on government issues in the 21st century. Time to move on! My name is Bernadette Killeen, I voted for you and I live in Hermitage. Thank you!

Pope Francis has bravely spoken the truth about climate change, and he deserves our strong support. However, he has yet to take a position against the Keystone XL pipeline, and our petition urges him to do so, which would be totally consistent with his encyclical.

The news is out - Chris Christie will announce his candidacy for President this coming Tuesday. But none of us are surprised. In reality, Chris Christie has been running for President for more than a year. In 2014, the Governor of New Jersey spent a total of 137 days out of the state, more than a third of the year. And the cost of his security detail to NJ taxpayers now well exceeds $1 million. New Jersey won't accept a Governor who refuses to make his job here at home a priority. And let's be real - running for President is no side-show. Chris Christie should resign the Governor's seat this Tuesday when he launches his official campaign for the Republican Presidential nomination. Christie simply cannot do his job as Governor while he's flying around the country running for President. And there's something else that is deeply disturbing about Chris Christie running for President while he's simultaneously charged with leading our state. Chris Christie is making urgent, critically important decisions that affect our state and our families based on what the conservative Republican primary voters in Iowa and South Carolina think and want. As long as our state is facing multiple crises - a lagging economy, billions in unfunded pension obligations, a depleted transportation trust fund with no money to repair crumbling bridges (to name a few) - we cannot accept a Governor who will not put New Jersey first. Will you add your voice to the chorus calling on Presidential Candidate Christie to resign? New Jersey deserves a Governor who puts the needs of New Jersey families first. Christie can't possibly run for President and continue on as Governor. He should resign this Tuesday