This issue is about children. As a mother, the plight of the unaccompanied minors crossing our borders breaks my heart. But, the hostility and vitriol expressed towards them in response to news reports and on social media as well as the public display in Murietta, California is disgraceful. They are not political pawns. They are precious children and they need our help. I had never heard of Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins before reading about him in a magazine article yesterday. I was grateful to read that someone in political office is standing up for these children. I was inspired to write this Petition-my first, to hopefully encourage other politicians to do the same. Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins recently stood up to lead by example and help these children. As Judge Jenkins so eloquently stated in a recent article with Mother Jones Magazine: “We just need to get the will to recognize that these are children and not others. That these are children just like your children and my children, just like our ancestors when they came across as children, except these children came across without their parents. And they are scared, alone, and they need our help.” Read his interview here http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/07/texas-we-dont-turn-our-back-children Please show your support for what this issue is truly about, children who are suffering and in need of our help. Please support this petition to encourage Judge Clay Jenkins and others like him who bravely act against their political interests to do the right thing. Please sign this petition and help send a message to our representatives that AMERICA DOES NOT TURN ITS BACK ON CHILDREN. Thank you.

Our children, pets and our veterans suffering from PTSD should not be subjected to the noise associated with fireworks. As taxpayers, we have a right to enjoy our homes, breathe air not polluted with harmful metals contained in fireworks, and not worry about personal injury or property damage from the actions of a few.

Our country has departed from one of its bedrock principles: that America is a nation founded on second chances at opportunity. The U.S. has 5% of the world's total population, but 25% of the world's prison population is incarcerated within our borders -- the vast majority in prison for nonviolent offenses. That's not justice. I've introduced the REDEEM Act to remove some of the high barriers Americans convicted of nonviolent crimes face when trying to reenter society after serving their time. The bill will help them find a job, support their families, and -- most importantly for their communities -- keep from reoffending. The REDEEM Act provides a federal sealing pathway for nonviolent adult ex-offenders, automatically seals the records of nonviolent juvenile offenders, and lifts the lifetime ban on receiving federal benefits like pell grants. In short, the REDEEM Act introduces rehabilitation to a system focused too much on punishment alone. I'm standing up to say that rehabilitation isn't just better policy -- it's a moral imperative. Will you stand with me? Tell members of Congress: our justice system should rehabilitate, not just incarcerate.

Connecticut has one of the highest gasoline and diesel taxes in New England and has the ninth highest gasoline tax in the nation. Governor Malloy started off 2018 by announcing his plan to increase the gasoline and diesel tax by 7cpg, creating a new $3 tax on each tire sold in CT, in addition to funding the special transportation fund (STF) through implementing tolls. It's time to communicate to the state that we cannot afford any additional tax at the pump. Help rely this message by signing this petition to stop the gasoline tax increase and toll implementation.

Honeybees are vital to our food supply, representing 70% of pollination activity. Honeybees are in serious decline. Changing residential honey beekeeping to state jurisdiction will remove existing discrimination at the city level, which is prohibiting and limiting beekeeping. It will enable standardized rules to be implemented and will contribute to better management oversight. This is a necessary step in the fight to save our bees.

The Israeli military carried out a second night of airstrikes in Gaza July 8. As of Wednesday morning, July 9, at least 29 Palestinians had been killed since the airstrikes began July 7, including seven children under the age of 16. [1] At least two Israelis had been lightly wounded by rocket fire from Gaza, Haaretz reported. [2] The military conflict “showed no signs of abating,” according to a New York Times report on July 9. [3] From the past, we know how this ends. There will be a new ceasefire. The key question is how long it will take, how many people will be killed and injured, how much will be destroyed in the meantime. The United States can help save both Israeli and Palestinian lives by speaking out urgently in support of a ceasefire, and working vigorously with U.S. allies in the region that have good relations with both sides, such as Egypt and Jordan, to press for a ceasefire. The U.S. can help make the ceasefire last by pressing for an agreement that would permanently lift the blockade of Gaza. The State Department should also continue to press for an investigation of the beating in Israeli police custody of U.S. citizen Tarek Abu Khdeir. [4] Press the Obama Administration to engage vigorously and urgently by signing our petition. References: 1. “Seven children killed in Israeli airstrikes over Gaza,” Defence for Children International Palestine, 9 Jul 2014, http://www.dci-palestine.org/documents/eight-children-killed-israeli-airstrikes-over-gaza 2. “Live updates, July 7, 2014: Rockets bombard south, Hamas claims responsibility,” Haaretz, Jul. 8, 2014, http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.603472 3. “Dozens of Gaza Strikes by Israel as Hamas Extends Rockets’ Range,” Steven Erlanger and Isabel Kershner, New York Times, July 9, 2014, http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/10/world/middleeast/israel-and-hamas-exchange-fire.html 4. “State Dept. demands investigation into reports of teen's beating in Israel,” Kyle Balluck, The Hill, 7/06/14, http://thehill.com/policy/international/211380-us-demands-investigation-into-reports-of-teens-beating-in-israel

Since coming to the U.S. in 2007 on a work visa, Gabino has worked hard to support both his family living in the U.S. and back home in Mexico. Gabino believes that hard work and the love of one's family are the keys to success in life. He planned to make a deeper commitment to his family this month by marrying the love of his life, Amelia, and continuing the support he provides to her and her children. The community of DeWitt is devastated by the news of Gabino's impending deportation. His neighbors and community volunteers have rallied together to support Gabino's family, fiancee, and stepchildren, but they cannot do this alone. They need your help to make sure that this family is not separated. Please sign this petition so that this family can have the wedding and bright future that it deserves!

Extreme weather events are occurring more often and with greater intensity. Storms, floods, heat waves, droughts, wildfires, sea-level rise and so on are already affecting the lives of millions across the globe. To protect ourselves now and the climatic conditions on which we all depend on to survive, our governments can and must stop global warming.

Soybean oil, cheap and used by most restaurants to fry and cook their otherwise soy-free meals in, or, mixed with other vegetable oils like canola is one of the most hidden and non-disclosed allergens that can prove very problematic to allergic individuals. Because soybean oil is often unremarked or non-disclosed to the waiters and restaurant staff and is considered a non-offensive agent, which is untrue, it should be eliminated from otherwise soy free foods, given that soy is one of the top 8 allergens.

I am six years old. I love eating healthy food. But occasionally I like to go to McDonald's. Once I found out McDonalds uses azodicarbonamide, I stopped eating there. (This was my own choice, not my mom's.) Please remove this ingredient from your food as I want to live a really long healthy life.

In 2012, the ability to repeat classes at community colleges was quietly taken away by the California legislature. Perhaps as an unintended consequence, seniors in the community can no longer benefit from physical and mental lifelong learning. We urge you immediately to restore this right to seniors in California's community colleges by exempting them from repeatability constraints.

We have an opportunity to save the Tongass rainforest—but we need your help now to tell agency officials to end destructive industrial-scale old-growth logging on the Tongass much more quickly than the Forest Service’s proposed 10-15 year timeline. The Tongass is one of the few old-growth temperate rainforests in the world and America’s largest national forest. Its towering stands of 700 year old trees provide vital habitat for bears, salmon, Sitka black-tailed deer, goshawks, and—importantly—the rare and dwindling Alexander Archipelago wolf. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently found that, because of excessive old-growth logging, this unique subspecies of wolf may warrant listing under the Endangered Species Act. At times, the Obama Administration has offered encouraging words about ending the large-scale destruction of this rainforest from old-growth logging. And in May 2014, the Administration announced it would be starting a process to amend the Tongass Forest Plan to phase out these devastating logging practices. Unfortunately, the U.S. Forest Service proposes taking far too long to complete that goal—another 10-15 years of industrial old-growth logging. Worse, the agency is set to increase old-growth timber sales on the Tongass in the meantime, with several big new sales in the worksgrowth timber sales on the Tongass in the meantime with several big new sales in the works—some of the largest the Tongass has seen in over two decades. The wolves and other species of the Tongass just can’t afford more habitat destruction. Take action now to protect the Tongass National Forest from destructive industrial-scale old-growth logging.