"The American Dream and Promise Act" would help immigrants, strengthens our economy, and keeps families together. For too long Dreamers have lived in a state of limbo with their legal status in jeopardy. It is time to protect DACA from future challenges against the administration and provide a path to citizenship.

In the Kentucky primary election that occurred yesterday, several hundred voters were locked out of the KY Expo Center right at 6 pm, barring them from their right to vote. The only reason they were allowed inside is because both US Senate Democratic Nominees, Amy McGrath and Charles Booker, filed injunctions with the Jefferson County Circuit Court to open the doors and allow those waiting in line outside to vote. Charles Booker filed a second injunction to keep the polls open until 9 pm, and was denied. Kentucky's current election law states that polls are to be closed at 6 pm with the precinct election sheriff identifying the last person in line to be the last voter. This early closing time prevents many working people from getting to their polling place in time, especially if they work far from their home precinct. Restricting voting hours to end at 6 pm is voter disenfranchisement, aimed specifically at working-class citizens and people of color, who are more likely to be working in the service industries where there is little flexibility to leave one's shift to go vote. In the case of this last primary election, there was only ONE polling place for all of Jefferson County/city of Louisville -- where there are nearly 1 million residents. At 6 pm the traffic to get into the KY Expo Center was nearly an hour long. Voters were parking and running up to the doors to make it in time, only to find they had been locked out. With the coronavirus crisis continuing indefinitely into the future, we can only assume that our state and county will choose to have a singular polling place for the November general election. We MUST URGE our KY state officials, Governor Andy Beshear, Secretary of State Michael Adams, KY Senate Majority Leader Damon Thayer, and KY House of Representatives David Osborne to EXTEND voting hours to at least 7 pm, if not until 9 pm. That last hour is critial in expanding access for voters who cannot leave work in time to get to their polling place.

All of us – teachers, parents, administration, other school employees and community, working together are needed to assure that our children and staff have a safe learning environment for the entire 2020-21 school year. The challenges are unprecedented. Our public schools need all stakeholders involved and working together like never before.

Small farmers in the USA are at a disadvantage in an international market. Our costs of labor,fertilizer, fuel, equipment, land, insurance, packaging, transportation etc. are much higher than less economically developed countries. Presently Ginger is imported from Peru at very low prices that we can not compete with (and maybe next year turmeric) I have crops waiting to be harvested, crops already washed and crops already packed that i can not sell because the market is flooded with very inexpensive Peru ginger. Farmers make up an important part of the fabric of our society and local economy. Reliable fresh organic produce is essential for happy healthy lives. The future of our planet requires locally sourced foods with less transportation costs and with sustainable inputs.In addition less infiltration of pathogens, diseases and pests from other lands that can affect everyone, not just farmers is vital.

The pressure of worrying about the impact of safety measures on potential test scores should not be a factor in making decisions about how and when to protect our kids from COVID-19 (or any transmissible disease). Our only concern should be the health of the students and of the community. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted classes for the majority of the Spring semester of the 2019-20 school year. Though our teachers, parents, and students worked very hard to implement effective online courses, we anticipate there will be extra work needed to catch students up. That alone will bring added stress to our classrooms in 2020-21, but it may also induce administrators and school board members to take unnecessary risks just to maintain acceptable test scores. That is unacceptable. However, we still consider it important to know how our students are learning and how much progress they have made. In Spring 2020, when STAAR testing was waived, the state of Texas still offered schools an optional End of Year (EOY) assessment, and will also offer a Beginning of Year (BOY) assessment in the fall. These exams were simply intended to help establish growth and gaps in our students' learning, and carry no penalties. We ask that the same optional EOY and BOY assessments be offered for the 2020-21 school year so all of us can gauge student progress. However, the STAAR test has no place in Texas schools for the next 12 months, and should be waived immediately.

Last year’s $746 billion Pentagon budget was the largest on record — and came at the expense of critical public health, education, and infrastructure spending. And while Congress still can’t agree on extending emergency assistance for families in the face of COVID-19, they’re gearing up to greenlight even more — three quarters of a TRILLION dollars — for the Pentagon this year. Money isn’t everything, but budgets are moral documents that reflect our priorities. And Congress’s priority appears to be funding redundant nuclear weapons, multi-billion dollar off-books spending accounts, and endless wars in the Middle East. No more. Congresswoman Barbara Lee has introduced bold new legislation calling for a $350 BILLION dollar cut to the Pentagon budget. It’s up to us to follow her lead and get Congress on board to shift astronomical funds away from the Pentagon and build true safety and security. Add your name to urge them to pass H. Res. 1003 NOW!

It's not just COVID and police brutality exposing racism in America. Black homeowners in Detroit are being overtaxed on top of these other injustices. We’ve all seen headlines about Detroit homeowners being overcharged $600 million dollars in property taxes. No community should be hit with such unjust bills and least of all a city with 40 percent of residents struggling in poverty. Detroit has one of the highest property tax foreclosure rates of any city since the Great Depression. A recent University of Chicago study shows that, even after Mayor Duggan tried to fix the problem, the City is still overcharging the lowest valued homes. These are deep, systemic problems that a task force should investigate, propose solutions to end the practice and help make the community whole. Governor Whitmer has proven that she can get the job done with COVID and is with us in the movement against police brutality. Now it's time to do the same for property tax injustice. We call on her to create a task force to investigate and stop unfair property tax practices and keep Detroit homeowners in their homes. Sources: https://harris.uchicago.edu/files/evalrespropertytaxasdetroit20162018.pdf https://scholarship.law.uci.edu/ucilr/vol9/iss4/3/ http://www.californialawreview.org/print/predatory-cities/#_ftn18 https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/11/opinion/coronavirus-cities-property-taxes.html

We have been closely following the development of a large encampment of unhoused people in Powderhorn Park, and the attempts by the Minneapolis Parks Board to deal with the situation. We support the Board Resolution 2020-253 passed at their meeting on June 17, 2020 in which the Board committed to allow the encampment to remain temporarily while working to find housing for the unhoused people there; and called on local and State government to increase funding to address this crisis. During the June 17 meeting, it was clear that the Park Board has no funding or expertise available to address the crisis presented by a large encampment of unhoused people during a pandemic and in the wake of an uprising centered just a few blocks away. David Hewitt, the Director of Hennepin County's Office to End Homelessness, testified that it will not be easy to find housing for the residents of the Powderhorn encampment, that the County's resources are already maxed out by the rapid adjustments that were made due to the pandemic, and that there is little or no capacity to address the needs of this encampment. Al Bangoura, Superintendent of Minneapolis Parks, stated that he is attempting to work closely with the Minnesota Interagency Council on Homelessness, but also stated that that no state or local government agency has committed any funds to assist the Park Board to keep the residents of the encampment safe or to find them appropriate housing. Parks Commissioner Lionel French stated that he believes Governor Walz needs to get involved, and we agree. We therefore are petitioning you for your intervention in this matter.

We know that COVID-19 viruses are transmitted via droplets produced when we sneeze, cough, sing, yell, or even when we're just talking. A simple cloth covering can significantly lessen the spread. It's a minor step we can all take to help protect our fellow Floridians.

America faces an emergency on three primary fronts: a public health pandemic, economic insecurities, and long-standing structural and institutional racism. Working families need job security, economic stability, and freedom from systematic oppression. That is, we must address the racial barriers from COVID-19 and the racial oppression that African Americans and people of color are facing. Furthermore, we must stress the importance of the HEROES Cares Act. So, please sign on and join us for this tel-town hall Wednesday, June 24th, at 6:30 pm, for the tel-town hall call-in number (866) 976-6355. Speakers for this event will be NC Senator Erica Smith-Ingram Dr. Michelle Laws- Department of Health and Human Services Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin Action NC member Tarsha Gunn

It is important that people recognize the black family as a Union just like they obviously do for the white families. It sends a message that the black family is non existent & we need to desperately change the narrative, because there are plenty of black family units of all structures. It also sends a message of acceptance which is important for our young children to see today. This has really been an issue for years I e been joking about it but it’s time to put my foot on the gas with Apple & get this done!! I know everyone won’t support & that’s okay but I also know plenty will!! So let’s do it let’s let it be known that we have family units that move forces!!

This racism has to stop, so many people have died, yet it continues, by police and private citizens. There has to be an end to this disgraceful behavior, and people of all races have to come together and stop this practice and behavior before it gets worse.