The name "Washington Redskins" is racially derogatory and has no place in today's culture. For decades, Native Americans have asked the team to choose a different name, and in recent years the movement has gained momentum as major media outlets like the San Francisco Chronicle and Slate Magazine have decided to stop using the term, as has award-winning Sports Illustrated NFL writer Peter King. This week, the Major League Baseball team, Cleveland Indians, announced that they will remove their own racially derogatory logo from it's uniform. The professional football team in Washington must recognize: it's time to change the name.

Recent news reports say President Obama is once again willing to sacrifice Social Security in the next round of budget negotiations with the Republicans, which may be just six weeks away. California voters, we can’t let that so-called “grand bargain” happen. It’s not a bargain, it’s a betrayal–a betrayal of Americans who’ve worked hard all their lives and paid into Social Security. The good news is that Social Security champions like Senator Tom Harkin not only have said “No!” to cuts, they’ve put forward a common sense plan to strengthen Social Security. But before Sen. Harkin’s “Strengthening Social Security Act of 2013" can get to a vote, it needs more co-sponsors. That’s where you come in: Sign this petition urging our Senators Boxer and Feinstein to co-sponsor Sen. Harkin’s bill. The more Senators that co-sponsor the Harkin bill, the louder and clearer the message is to the media, Senate and House Republicans, and President Obama: “Social Security cuts are off the table. Period. End of story.” Like millions of hardworking Americans, I worked and paid into Social Security for nearly 60 years, and my employers paid too. Join me in urging Senators Boxer and Feinstein to co-sponsor the Harkin bill. You’ll be taking an important step for keeping America’s promise to pay the benefits we earned, including cost-of-living raises which really keep up with inflation. You'll be saying "No" to "Chained CPI," which would cost the average retiree almost $100 a month after ten years.

We want to know who gave KIUC permission to Harass and Threaten its Membership? And we want it to Stop!

Inadequate state funding has caused children in our public schools to face unprecedented cuts to educational programs and increases in class sizes. Higher education has become less affordable and less accessible for college students as state funding for PASSHE universities has been slashed. We need Governor Corbett to make investing in public education his top priority to ensure a bright future in Pennsylvania for us all.

Maximus coffee workers have been on strike in Houston since October 10th because company bosses have proposed to cut workers salaries by up to 50%, increase the employee cost of company health care plans and stop company contributions to retirement plans. We must put pressure on Maximus management to bargain fairly with UFCW so that workers can return to work as quickly as possible with a living wage and decent benefits. This would be a good outcome for the workers, the community as well as the company. It would be beneficial for the workers because when workers wages are cut, communities suffer because workers cannot continue to contribute to the community as they had before. it would be beneficial to the company because trained and experienced workers would continue to produce quality products instead of the inferior products produced by scabs or disgruntled, underpaid, overstressed workers. Boycott Maximus coffee and the companies that distribute their products which includes: Beaumont Coffee, Boston Best Products, Cafe D’Irio coffee, Cloverleaf Coffee, Folgers Coffee Products, Maxwell House Coffee Collections, Maxwell House Coffee Singles, Maxwell House De-Cafe coffee, Maxwell House Filter Packs, Maxwell House Instant Coffee, Maxwell House International Café, Nestle Coffee Products, Sanka Instant Coffee

Every 9 seconds a Woman is Assaulted in the United States, while more than 1.3 Million Women are victims of Domestic Violence annually. There are 21 National Football League Teams which have at least 1 player on their roster who has been charged with assault or domestic violence related charges. The National Football League should bring awareness to Domestic Violence during October which is the National Domestic Violence Awareness Month observance which will send a message to men and women that we need to bring awareness, education and prevention of Domestic Violence.

I am a teacher at a MCPS. I am very familiar with the amount of capital and human resources administering the Maryland State Assessment requires. Even though MD is switching over to the Common Core State Standards, which will be assessed by PARCC, the state is planning to administer the MSA this year. Our testing coordinators have literally been told the scores won't be looked at or matter. If this is the case, it is an irresponsible waste of taxpayer money and instructional time to administer this test.

Our immigration policy is unfair and often devastating to the families of undocumented immigrants! My son's friend Ernesto, for instance, is now growing up in Oakland without his deported father in his life. But now we finally have a strong bipartisan supported bill that will strengthen our economy, keep families together, and offer a clear road-map to citizenship for nearly 11 million tax-paying, aspiring Americans! All we need now is for Democrats to start a discharge petition and introduce the bill for an up-or-down vote. As an American citizen, and the child of immigrant parents, I want legislators to stand up on the right side of history, and side with the majority of Americans, and finally make fair and just comprehensive immigration reform a reality!

Hypocrisy is unfashionable. Revlon--one of the biggest cosmetics manufacturers in the country--is running ads promoting their support for breast cancer awareness while selling products to women that actually contain cancer-causing chemicals! Revlon uses cancer-causing chemicals like parabens and formaldehyde-releasers, plus chemicals like octinoxate, linked to thyroid disruption and reproductive development problems, in their hair care products, makeup, and facial/hand creams. Revlon's major competitors--including brands like Cover Girl, Neutrogena, and Clean & Clear--are removing toxic chemicals from their products. Instead of doing the same, Revlon is pumping money into a big breast cancer awareness campaign called "Revlon Cares." The 1 in 8 women who will develop breast cancer deserve better. Tell Revlon to be part of the solution by removing toxic chemicals from their personal care products.

I was truly amazed at the uninformed comments by Sen. Durbin when discussing the financial state of Social Security. I had assumed he actually knew the bare facts and would act responsibly to ensure that the agreement made by the United States government to the workers in the United States would be honored by federal lawmakers. I'm grateful that I have a chance to express my feelings to this "Representative" who, in his arrogance, is overlaying his desires and wishes over his constituents and expecting them to suffer in silence. If enough of us speak up, hopefully a significant number of our "representatives" will listen and actually do their job

Unlike our neighboring states, PA, MD, NJ, and VA, in DE, convicted sex offenders who are classified as tier 1, are only made known to law enforcement. They are not put on the state sex offenders website. They are not prohibited from going to schools, parks, places of worship, or other places children gather. These offenders are considered "low risk "; however, I say to you, if there is ANY RISK to myself, my children, or yours, we have the right to know. There are MANY registered sex offenders on DE website, but this makes me wonder how many more offenders are living in our state that we are unaware of. Unfortunately it seems, DE does not take sex crimes seriously. This law needs to be changed to better protect our communities, but it's going to take us to do it.

What is petcoke? Petcoke is a byproduct being produced in massive amounts across the Indiana border at the BP oil refinery. Petcoke is the resultant of refining darker Canadian oil from tar sands. Due to environmental laws that are more strict in Indiana, BP is shipping the toxic waste to be stored on the Illinois side via barge. The petcoke is being stored at KCBX a company owned by Koch Industries. Apparently the guidelines in Illinois allow KCBX to store this material in the open air. On windy days, the air is filled with huge swirling clouds of black petcoke, coating everything in this heavily populated area. Prolonged exposure creates asthmatic symptoms in as little as 24 months. People are unable to open their windows or enjoy a picnic in their backyards. This has regional impacts. Think it doesn't affect you? Take another drink of water. The petcoke is being stored on the banks of the Calumet River, which is a direct tributary and directly adjacent to Lake Michigan. The piles have already reached 4 to 5 stories in height. Lake Michigan serves drinking water to over 8 million Chicagoans and citizens of outlying areas. This has global impacts. The petcoke is being stored on the southside of Chicago until it can be shipped to foreign countries with more lax environmental laws. China has been the largest importer of petcoke. The petcoke is being used as an alternative to coal. The problem is that petcoke burns three times dirtier than coal. The mayor of Detroit kicked petcoke out of their area with the pressure of the people, and its not allowed to be stored in this manner in Indiana. This problem will not go away on it's own. BP is set to triple their production this coming year. Why are we subject to this poison? Tell Mayor Rham Emanuel to remove those petcoke piles. Tell the Koch brothers that Lake Michigan is not their dumping ground. We all have the right to clean air and drinking water.