The members of tomorrow’s workforce are in today’s classrooms. Unless we are honest about addressing the compounding effects of this pandemic on our most vulnerable students, we will almost certainly see an already unacceptable achievement gap widen significantly due to this pandemic. We are unwilling to allow that to happen and insist that our federal elected leaders step up to support our students and schools in the way they have stepped up to support America’s business sector. Lack of action will do irreparable damage to generations of kids and have long term adverse consequences on the US economy, creating a lack of access to a skilled workforce far into the future. The situation is especially dire given that upcoming state budget shortfalls will squeeze already tight education budgets. This crisis has not created systemic inequities but has merely exposed them, and Americans have become painfully aware of the enormous role the public school system plays as the center and foundation of our communities. In this time of international fear and anxiety, homes have become schools, and the already unimaginable odds against students & families have exponentially compounded. Now more than ever, students who receive free and reduced lunch, students with disabilities, English language learners, undocumented students, indigenous students, abused or neglected students, unhoused students, incarcerated students, and all of their families need advocates who demand access to the tools necessary for learning. Recently Congress passed the CARES Act, an unprecedented $2.2 trillion economic recovery package. While it includes $13.2 billion in aid for K-12 education, it is not nearly enough to meet the magnitude of the challenges our districts, teachers, students, and families are facing. In service of over 30 million students experiencing poverty and hardship, we request an additional $200 billion federal investment in America’s public schools for the following critical needs: 1) A commitment of $15 billion to provide free broadband access and a laptop to every student in America who needs one, and $8 billion for retraining. Leaders cannot depend on a patchwork solution to meet this need. Now that access to broadband and technology are human rights, our government should guarantee this to every student in America so they can continue learning at home. However, access to the internet and a computer are baseline needs. Many students were already struggling to learn at school; expecting them to learn at home without support is irresponsible. Districts need significant funding to retrain teaching and non-teaching staff to provide desperately needed one-on-one tutoring to support students who are struggling, their caregivers who are learning to be teachers, and teachers who are learning to teach online, so online learning is effective. 2) Once social distancing is lifted, $140 billion for school districts to increase time-in-school by extending the school day and year for the 2020-2021 school year. Students will lose an estimated 3-6 months of critical learning time. For those who are already not prepared for college or career, or in danger of not graduating, this regression will become the tipping point that can result in thousands of additional students dropping out of school or graduating unprepared. With additional funding and the option to extend the school day by at least two hours, districts could accomplish two goals. Students will have the extended learning time that they need, and schools will offer after-hour child care at a time when millions of American families will need it most. 3) $30 billion for a tele-mental health counselor and tele-doctor for every vulnerable student. Every student should receive a tele-counselor and tele-medicine doctor to discuss their mental and physical health needs, and to address additional trauma they may be experiencing due to the pandemic or other life circumstances. This will be especially true for marginalized students and Black communities, who are disproportionately impacted by the infection and death rates. 4) A commitment of $6 billion to ensure every student has housing during this pandemic by providing funding for every school district in America to establish a supportive housing department that connects homeless students and families to housing opportunities and ensures every student has an effective place to learn during this crisis. We are elected school board members from urban, suburban and rural America and our message is clear for President Trump, Speaker Pelosi, and Majority Leader McConnell: While you are throwing trillions of dollars at America’s economic crisis today, please have the foresight to invest in America’s tomorrow through its children. We implore you to invest in students and public schools, and meet the gravity of the moment with the extraordinary leadership America’s learners deserve.

On April 14th, the Trump administration announced that it would cut funding to the World Health Organization (WHO). This is a horrible move: The WHO coordinates initiatives to improve the health of communities around the world. President Trump is criticizing the WHO in order to distract the U.S. public from his own profound failure to address the Coronavirus pandemic. President Trump has repeatedly disregarded the advice and counsel of public health experts. The United States now has more infections and deaths than any other country on the planet. Tens of thousands of people in the U.S. have died. By cutting funding to the WHO, we're putting millions of people worldwide at risk to contract this deadly disease. And as long as health resources are underfunded, this Coronavirus will continue to spread, and our country and its people will remain in grave danger. Instead of spending vast amounts of money on wars and weapons for dictators, we should invest in the WHO and ensure our national security by protecting the health of all people. Tell the Trump administration and leaders in the US Congress: Restore full funding to the WHO now!

Now is the absolutely wrong time to end funding for this vital organization! “In health emergencies, the World Health Organization works to identify mitigate and manage risks. They support the development of tools necessary to mitigate the outbreak. They detect and respond to acute health emergencies. They support the delivery of essential health services in fragile settings.

This week millions of Americans should be getting their stimulus checks in their bank accounts. But some may never see that money -- because the Trump Administration is allowing big banks to take it away. Congress excluded government debt from the stimulus checks, but did not explicitly ban private debt collectors and banks from seizing an individual's stimulus money and applying it to existing debts. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Sherrod Brown asked the Treasury Department to write rules banning banks and debt collectors from taking the stimulus checks away from Americans. The American Prospect revealed that the Treasury Department is telling banks they can seize those checks. We cannot allow Wall Street and the big banks to undermine these desperately needed economic stimulus funds. This money is designed to help people pay their rent and put food on the table. We have to stop the banks from taking that money away from people who need it.

With our nation facing a devastating health and financial crisis, we need, in the Office of The Vice President, a woman whose intelligence, tenacity, and integrity is beyond reproach; a woman broadly respected by the Democratic Party; a woman FEARED by the usual suspects, who are already using this crisis for their own enrichment and to further dismantle the laws and regulations which protect: the working class, our most vulnerable citizens, the environment, and everyone’s right to be heard and represented. Elizabeth Ann Warren has the intelligence, heart, and grit we trust and need, at this pivotal moment in our nation’s history. No other Vice-Presidential choice will do! Joe, No matter how high we rise, our time on this Earth is limited, yet the touches of our lives may reach distant generations. The future’s faces will smile more, or less, depending upon the choices you will make as our President. Please help end the stark division in which children smile more, and which smile less. We live in an age of miracles. We can all live happier and healthier lives, and have more cherished moments, with those we love, but we need partnerships of equality and equity to arrive there. That is what we are asking Joe. Stand beside Elizabeth, and together, help heal a nation, and lead the way to more meaningful and rewarding lives for all. God bless you, Sir, the undersigned

Gov. Edwards is pushing a political agenda that goes directly against the guidelines of medical professionals. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, along with several other medical organizations, issued a statement calling abortion "...an essential component of comprehensive health care" and that the "...consequences of being unable to obtain an abortion profoundly impact a person’s life, health, and well-being." People choose to have an abortion for a myriad of reasons, all of which are valid. At a time of great financial and employment uncertainty, forcing people to continue unwanted pregnancies is a gross violations of their rights. Abortion clinics in Louisiana are open and we need to pressure Gov. Edwards to make sure they stay that way.

We are currently living through a global pandemic. The CDC recommends avoiding large gatherings and staying physically distanced from each other. These social distancing guidelines would be undermined if voters gather in crowds at polling locations to vote. As of the time that I am writing this petition(4/14/20), Rhode Island currently has 2,976 total confirmed cases of covid-19 and 73 confirmed deaths. These numbers have been retrieved from https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/. Our social distancing efforts would be undermined by holding elections as normal and forcing people into groups in confined spaces such as polling locations. In addition the votes that would be collected if the voting was held as normal would be significantly depressed as many polling workers/ volunteers and voters would opt to stay at home versus risking their lives or the lives of their loved ones to have a say in the democratic process. This is unacceptable when we have an alternative solution that will allow Rhode Islanders to vote while allowing them to stay safe at home.

The article states, "The amount of waste is staggering. The nation’s largest dairy cooperative, Dairy Farmers of America, estimates that farmers are dumping as many as 3.7 million gallons of milk each day. A single chicken processor is smashing 750,000 unhatched eggs every week. And the costs of harvesting, processing and then transporting produce and milk to food banks or other areas of need would put further financial strain on farms that have seen half their paying customers disappear. Exporting much of the excess food is not feasible either, farmers say, because many international customers are also struggling through the pandemic and recent currency fluctuations make exports unprofitable." We need to stand together during this pandemic and make sure food gets to the millions of hungry citizens in our country. We need to support our farmers! Tell the Federal Government to stop this waste and give back to the hungry while supporting our farmers.

Update: The Essential Workers Bill of Rights is now part of the HEROES Act, which the House passed on May 15, 2020. Now it's up to the Senate to bring the HEROES Act to the floor for a debate and vote, to pass critical protections for essential workers and other urgent forms of pandemic relief. Essential workers are on the frontlines of this pandemic, and many are working in high-risk conditions without appropriate equipment, safety standards, or job protections. Workers who remain on the job without the ability to telework during this emergency include doctors, nurses, home care workers and other healthcare workers, grocery store and drug store employees, domestic workers, food service workers, federal, state, and municipal employees, janitorial staff, farm workers, delivery drivers, warehouse workers, transportation workers, and child care workers. These workers put their health on the line when they go to work every day. In New York City, 41 transit workers have died as of April 8, and reports of essential worker deaths are on the rise. There are grocery workers who are denied sick leave and whose companies won’t provide masks or allow masks to be worn in stores. And health care workers including medical technicians, orderlies, EMTs, nurses, doctors, hospital employees are working long hours to save lives while their own families are on the edge of health and financial disaster. The country has a moral responsibility to protect essential worker’s health, to create financial security for their loved ones, and to offer peace of mind during a time of heightened mortal and emotional stress. This includes policies like healthcare, paid sick leave, and workplace health standards to protect against more workers getting sick. We need hazard pay and childcare to properly compensate the risk workers are taking to benefit us, and enable them to keep coming to work. And we need to hold corporations who don’t follow these guidelines accountable because lives are on the line. Congress continues to debate more relief efforts as the coronavirus pandemic deepens the health and economic crisis hitting our nation. The next bill must meet the needs of people and our communities, with an essential worker bill of rights, and not provide more corporate bailout funds. Congress should ensure that any taxpayer dollars handed to corporations go to help workers, not wealthy CEOs, rich shareholders, or the President’s cronies. Congress should pass an Essential Workers Bill of Rights, including: 1. Health and safety protections 2. Robust premium compensation 3. Protections for collective bargaining agreements 4. Truly universal paid sick leave and family and medical leave 5. Protections for whistleblowers 6. An end to worker misclassification 7. Health care security 8. Support for child care 9. Treat workers as experts 10. Hold corporations accountable for meeting their responsibilities

The COVID-19 pandemic is tragically displaying the consequences of our world's broken relationship with wildlife and wild places. Experts believe that the current coronavirus likely originated with the close interaction with wildlife—that may have been illegally trafficked—in a live animal market in Wuhan, China. The disease may have originated in bats and moved to an intermediary host—possibly the highly endangered pangolin, the most trafficked mammal on earth—from which the disease jumped to humans. We have been here before. SARS, Ebola, and HIV all likely originated from the exploitation of wildlife, including threatened and endangered species. Now is the time to learn from our past actions. We must put an end to wildlife trafficking immediately. And, we must stop the unsustainable exploitation of wildlife more broadly. This is the second leading cause of the biodiversity crisis. The destruction of biodiversity, including the poaching and trafficking of wildlife, puts people in incredible danger in a variety of ways: it spreads disease, jeopardizes security, undermines the rule of law, and threatens local economies that depend on nature. This current situation helps to crystalize that good wildlife policy and conservation funding, including for enforcement, must be a very high priority to protect our health, communities, and future. Finally, it is essential to recognize that humans have all contributed to the biodiversity crisis we face, with a million species at risk of extinction in the near future. But this is no excuse for racial, ethnic, or other discrimination or retaliation. Cultures across the globe, including ours and yours, engage in some practices that are not compatible with protecting the diversity of life that exists on our planet and ourselves. And every culture has something to mend and contribute to global efforts to protect our gift of biodiversity that sustains us all. We applaud countries that have re-acknowledged the threats of wildlife trafficking by establishing and enforcing permanent bans on this illegal and deadly trade. Please join us in calling for the World Health Organization, UN and World Organization for Animal Health to take immediate action to close live wildlife markets and ban wildlife trafficking.

It is important because Wawa makes people happy

As an ordained clergy person and seminary professor, I am witness to the stories of many colleagues in ministry during the COVID-19 pandemic. Clergy of many faiths have shared stories of mourning that has been interrupted by isolation and disrupted by distancing. Clergy are doing their best to provide funerals when no one can gather, and comfort families who have had to let their loved one die alone. Still, it is becoming more clear all the time that our country as a whole will need an opportunity to grieve the losses we have all felt. We especially need to honor those whose lives were taken by the virus while they were serving the common good as doctors, nurses, first responders, and other public servants. We call upon congress to provide leadership, making time and space for the nation to grieve together when the time is right. We call upon congress to close all government offices on that day, and ask other institutions to close as well. Let us be a nation that mourns together, even as we affirm the value of serving the common good. (photo: Mark Zastrow - creative commons)