• Washington University: Cut Ties with Peabody Coal
    UPDATE: We are currently in Day 9 of our sit-in at Washington University. I’ve learned many things in my four years at Washington University in St. Louis--not all of them in the classroom. For example, before I became a student at Wash U, I had never heard of Peabody Energy, the world’s largest private sector coal corporation. In St. Louis, Peabody ingratiates itself to the local community by posing as a benefactor of the arts, charitable corporate ‘citizen,’ and hero tackling “energy poverty.” It all sounds pretty good until you realize that Peabody Energy is the world’s largest private sector coal corporation whose business model propagates climate change and destroys communities. Peabody’s list of crimes is a veritable laundry list of social and environmental injustices: the destruction of mountains in West Virginia, the forced relocation of Navajo and Hopi Indian tribes in Black Mesa, Arizona, being a major supporter of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which have been strong advocates of controversial legislation like “Stand Your Ground” laws, the destruction of Rocky Branch, Illinois through aggressive mining and logging, and the distortion of democracy here in St. Louis by striking down a city-wide ballot initiative. Peabody CEO Greg Boyce also holds one more distinction: member of the Washington University Board of Trustees. Since Boyce was placed on the board in 2009, students have been actively organizing against Peabody Energy’s presence on campus. We have demanded that Boyce be removed from the Board of Trustees and that the University change the name of the “Consortium for Clean Coal Utilization,” a research entity to which Peabody and Arch Coal donated $5,000,000. We have met with the Chancellor -- multiple times. We have dropped banners at coal events, peacefully disrupted speeches by Greg Boyce on campus, marched through campus and taken our demands to Peabody’s headquarters. We have protested with residents from Black Mesa, collected signatures for the Take Back St. Louis ballot initiative and rallied with the United Mine Workers in their fight against Peabody. But, five years later, Boyce is still on the board, the name of the Clean Coal Consortium remains unchanged, and Chancellor Wrighton continues to stand behind Peabody Energy. Indeed, just this week he emailed us saying, “your opinion that peabody energy behaves in an ‘irresponsible and unjust manner’ is not one that I share.” The Administration has successfully used a “deny by delay” process by holding town hall meetings and developing task forces around renewable energy and energy efficiency while ignoring the role that coal plays on the campus. Thus, like many campus divestment campaigns across the country, we are at a crossroads. We’ve decided that it’s time to escalate to let Chancellor Wrighton and Greg Boyce know that we’re running out of time and we’re not going to back down. We are engaging in a sit-in of our admissions office to tell Chancellor Wrighton that our university can no longer legitimize destructive fossil fuel corporations. By having Greg Boyce on the Board of Trustees and hosting the “Consortium for Clean Coal Utilization,” the University is propagating the lie that coal is clean. But people who live in the communities where Peabody mines, including Black Mesa and Rocky Branch, know that coal is never clean. Escalating on campus is scary. We know it is going to be divisive. We know our Chancellor fundamentally disagrees with us. But not escalating is even scarier. Not escalating means Peabody continues to destroy communities and our climate. And that’s a risk we cannot take. Let Wash U know that you stand with us by signing our petition.
    194 of 200 Signatures
    Created by Caroline Burney, Students Against Peabody
  • "Keep Horses and Carriages Within Central Park !"
    I want to support this concept : "One such visionary is Mindy Levine, the wife of the New York Yankees president, Randy L. Levine. Her proposal is that the horse-drawn carriage business could coexist with riding stables and therapeutic riding facilities — all within the setting of Central Park itself. This would also provide access to equine-assisted therapy for children with autism and for the rehabilitation of troubled teenagers." quote from Liam Neeson NYT Op-Ed.
    28 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Vicki Khuzami
  • INVESTIGATE #SOUTHPHILLYMAFIABURIALSITE
    MAFIA CONFESSED #SOUTHPHILLYMAFIABURIALSITE ALSO SEE REPORTS: PINTEREST/SAVESTATEOFPA ACCOUNTABILITY FOR MAFIA PAY-OFFS & MURDERS!
    61 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Richard Mills
  • UL Athletics: Start recycling at Cards games
    As a UL student and Cardinal fan it is embarassing that our school's athletics department sends so many recyclables to the landfill.
    752 of 800 Signatures
    Created by Tim Darst
  • USDA: Extend Marketing Regulations on School Grounds to After-School Hours
    The USDA's new proposed guidelines to the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (Section 204) provide a CRUCIAL opportunity to protect children from being preyed upon in their schools by the food industry. Food marketing in schools has been linked to the rise of childhood obesity, and the current proposed USDA guidelines, while an important first step, only address regulating marketing on school grounds during school hours. If we do not act now, food companies will continue to undermine parents and school administrators in their efforts to provide a healthy environment for children to learn. Sign this petition by April 28th, and tell the USDA you demand that regulations on marketing extend to after-school hours.
    69 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Campaign for Ad-Free Schools
  • Grant Mr. Winston Campbell (No. 01-A1-1110) Executive Clemency Parole .
    Mr. Winston Campbell , a great contributor to the Kingdom of God and the community, has been incarcerated at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility for more than 10 years now. Four years ago He applied for an immediate appearance before the board of parole for possible release. In February 2012 he received response that the application remains under review and that the application is receiving the careful attention it merits. The Church Ministry and The New York Communities need to be impacted by him. We need him out of Prison.
    37 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Veraline Wayland
  • Save My Organic Farm from extreme fossil fuel extraction which poisons the air, land, and water!
    Create awareness surrounding the effects this extreme fossil fuel extraction is having on agricultural land. Quality food can not be produced when VOC's like benzene, toluene, known carcinogens, neurotoxins, the very agents used to kill soldiers on the battle field and endocrine disruptors are vented off into the atmosphere and deposited on the nearby soil. Radioactive agents have been found in frack waste. Irradiating food for human consumption is ludicrous!Now lets talk about the water...
    86 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Maggie Henry
  • Stop passage of H.B. 7859, allowing the killing of otters.
    I am starting this petition to ask for support to defeat H.B. 7859, a proposed change in the law that protects otters from hunting and trapping.
    14 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Elizabeth O'Connell
  • Addressing Dyslexia in Alabama Public Schools
    We urge our Department of Education and our local policy-makers to address the following topics: 1. Establishing a universal definition and understanding of the term "dyslexia" within our state education code. 2. Mandating early screening and identification of at-risk students. 3. Mandating Alabama teacher certification and ongoing professional development to include training on dyslexia and appropriate intervention strategies. 4. Mandating the use of appropriate research based reading interventions for at-risk students in both general and special education programs. 5. Providing for access to assistive technology for all at-risk students in both general and special education programs. We call on Alabama policy-makers to support students with dyslexia. It is time for Alabama Public Schools to catch up with the science on reading and dyslexia. AL Residents (18+) ONLY Follow Us! www.facebook.com/DecodingDyslexiaALA twitter.com/DecodingAL google.com/+Decodingdyslexiaala www.decodingdyslexiaALA.com
    1,818 of 2,000 Signatures
    Created by Ramona P Rice
  • Save CSUSB Women's Water Polo
    Cal State San Bernardino is planning on cutting the women's water polo program after this year. The young women on the team deserve to continue to play. The school doesn't currently have a track so replacing the water polo program with track and field will cost millions of dollars and increase tuition for everyone. They already have everything they need to continue playing water polo. Save the women's water polo team.
    3,168 of 4,000 Signatures
    Created by Darrel Morris
  • Whistle Buoy at Cape Kiwanda
    To find an alternative to replacing the bell buoy at Cape Kiwanda wth a whistle buoy to one that would serve the main purpose of maritime safety without being an annoyance to the citizens of the community.
    245 of 300 Signatures
    Created by Richard Potempa
  • We're Halfway There. Tell Delaware's Senate to Expand Voting Rights
    America's elections are broken. Not only do people with the most money fund our system, but also the election process itself systematically raises barriers to participation. People of color, young people, and college students are less likely to be registered and therefore less likely to vote. That’s true here in Delaware just as it is in Georgia, Ohio, and North Carolina where burdensome ideological-driven restrictions are being implemented to prevent more people from voting. And the result is that our democratic system is more accountable to people with money than it is to the rest of us. However, we are fighting back and we are winning. Since last year, I’ve been working with a diverse and powerful coalition of community organizations, faith leaders, civil rights organizations, labor, and advocates in pushing for House Bill 105, Same Day Voter Registration (SDR) in Delaware. Same Day Registration allows individuals to register to vote and cast their ballot on the same day. Same Day Registration is one the most effective ways to increase participation in our democracy. Our coalition has organized community leaders and raised our voice in support of Same Day Registration. And we passed the first hurdle, getting the bill to pass the Delaware House. This was no easy task, despite the obvious democratic benefits that Same Day Registration could bring to Delaware, a few self-interested politicians were pushing to block Same Day Voter Registration. Now, that we've won in the House we're hearing many of the conservative talking points — that voting is a privilege that should be restricted to the few — rather than a right that we should be fighting to protect. I believe strongly in the right to vote and that is why I'm continuing the fight with my coalition partners to expand voting rights and strengthen our democracy in Delaware.
    392 of 400 Signatures
    Created by Apryl Walker