A father, a mentor, and an innovator - Jordan Ricks' story is one of resilience and the fight for justice. In 2019, he turned to the Vestavia Police Department for help during a car trouble, only to face a harrowing ordeal: he was subjected to a brutal beating, rendered unconscious by a taser, and wrongfully arrested. The trauma from this incident left him scarred, haunted by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Fast forward to 2021, and Jordan Ricks found himself a victim of racial profiling once again by the Vestavia Police Department. The deep-seated PTSD, stemming from the 2019 incident, resurfaced and tragically led him to flee, resulting in the accidental death of Robyn Herring-Naftel. Despite the circumstances, he took responsibility for his actions and pleaded guilty to Reckless Manslaughter. Remarkably, the forensic psychologist who diagnosed him with PTSD was silenced and barred from testifying during the trial. Alabama's stance on PTSD as "Diminished Capacity" denied him the chance to present his diagnosis as a valid defense. Currently serving a 17-year sentence, Jordan Ricks has been incarcerated for only 2.5 years. His record stands devoid of prior convictions, while his contributions as a respected mentor, coach, and teacher have made him a pillar within his community. Notably, he engaged in the Black Technology Mentorship program based in Silicon Valley, both as a mentor and mentee. He tirelessly advocated for greater representation of Black voices and minds in the rapidly evolving technology sector. Jordan Ricks' quest for justice and a reduced sentence is a plea for a fair chance at redemption. His story underscores the importance of signatures to bring him back to court, a chance to be heard anew. Let us rally behind this cause, helping him gather as many signatures as possible. In doing so, we contribute to a larger movement for justice and compassion. Sign the petition today to stand for the rights of a father, a mentor, and an innovator who seeks a chance to rebuild his life and continue making a positive impact on the world.

Antonio Robinson is well known in his community. He is a licensed Barber, owns his own moving company and started investing in property. Each year he gives back to families by giving out free cuts and backpacks at the start of the school year. He is a dedicated father to all his children and is very active in their lives, school, and other activities. Antonio is a black male that grew up in Monroe NC. He was taken from his parents at a young age and went from foster home to foster home. He went back to school to get his GED and then went on to college. He is a licensed barber and master educator. I am fighting for justice for Antonio because the system is not treating him fairly. I have done my research and pulled all other persons in jail with him that are of a different race and have the same or higher charges but their bonds are way lower. Also Antonio’s charges have been dismissed but they still have him under a 1.5 million dollar bond.

Trader Joe's is a company that carefully cultivates a progressive reputation. But over the past few years, we have seen the company culture shift from a workplace with incredible pay, benefits, and atmosphere, to a company with increasing turnover, declining benefits, and stagnating wages. The pandemic put those changes into stark relief as “essential” workers everywhere were asked to risk their health in order to keep the economy going. These two factors—the company’s internal changes and the pandemic—made it clear that we needed to have a say in our workplace, and that a union was the only answer to that need. A union could also bring Trader Joe’s back into alignment with its own core values, the values that had made it a great place to work and shop in the first place. Even though we have won elections in four stores, Trader Joe’s continues to union bust and refuse to bargain in good faith. Recently, Trader Joe’s fired Steve Andrade, one of the crew members in Hadley, MA for completely frivolous reasons. In his termination paperwork, management claimed that a power tool belonged to Steve, and its presence in the store created a safety issue serious enough to warrant firing him. The catch? This tool didn’t even belong to Steve. In fact, the tool was at the store long before Steve started working in Hadley nine years ago. Since we won our first union election, we’ve heard from hundreds of crew members across the country eager to unionize their stores, and we are helping many of them organize right now. But instead of allowing the free and fair elections they promised their workers, or bargaining in good faith, Trader Joe’s has hired a union-busting law firm and is fighting us every step of the way. Trader Joe’s has fired union supporters, threatened and coerced workers, and continues to drag their feet at the bargaining table. We can only win when we stand together in solidarity. Can you take a moment to sign our petition to demand that Trader Joe’s stop union-busting and reinstate workers fired for organizing?

More than half of US states are almost certain or likely to ban abortion now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe v Wade. Several states already have abortion bans on the books, which are now put in motion with the federal government no longer protecting reproductive rights. With new and proposed abortion bans, tens of millions of people have lost access to this fundamental healthcare. We need to ensure that our Congressman does everything he can to preserve women's rights to bodily autonomy.

Did you know? UPS CEO Carol Tome made $19 million last year. A part-time worker who would have to work for 1347 years at $15.50 to earn that much! UPS made over $26.2 billion in profits during the last years of the COVID pandemic at the expense of more than half of UPS’s 350,000 employees, who make poverty wages as part-time workers. UPS, the largest trucking company in the U.S., pays part-timers just $15.50 an hour to do back-breaking working loading and unloading trucks and sorting packages. These jobs come with a lot of pressure, back-breaking work, harassment, surveillance, and getting injured on the job is always a looming possibility. UPS workers, and all workers, deserve better pay and safer working conditions.Workers' lives and livelihoods are not a game. This is why UPS customers, workers and the public are uniting to make UPS deliver for working families.

Israel Saldana and Michael Maldonado are two of many people who were either convicted when they were children, or who were given sentences way out of proportion to their crimes, or who are still in prison years after others with identical criminal histories have been released. They are two of the many who have grown and changed during their years in prison. Excessive sentences like theirs are part of the reason Wisconsin's prison racial disparities are, by many measures, worst in the nation.

The brutal monarchies of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates use their oil wealth to distract the world and sportswash their crimes: - Blockading, bombing, and starving thousands in Yemen. - Murdering Saudi dissident and journalist Jamal Khashoggi. - Jailing and torturing peaceful activists, including women’s rights activists. - Driving the climate crisis by exporting fossil fuels. The ten members of the PGA Tour policy board must reject the dictator cash of the rulers of Saudi Arabia and UAE. The PGA Tour must say no to the proposal to merge PGA Tour with the golf leagues of Saudi Arabia ("LIV") and the UAE ("DP World Tour").

Tragically, there is a pattern of abuse and killings of Indigenous women and a lack of accountability on the part of those in power to fully investigate, bring justice to families, and take the steps necessary to stop the violence. More concerted, proactive efforts are needed around the investigation into Mika's killing and the threats to Indigenous women overall. We need answers about the many inconsistencies in the investigation, and we need transparency because the Montana Highway Patrol and other local authorities seem unwilling to work with Mika's family and the community to do comprehensive casework. This is not unique in cases involving Indigenous women—which is why federal intervention is so critical and why law enforcement agencies must take threats against Indigenous women seriously when they occur. Mika, a member of the Blackfeet tribe, was also Diné (Navajo), Cree, and Klamath. She loved basketball, snowboarding, skateboarding, and running. Mika enjoyed spending time with her family, and she was an award-winning poet and videographer. Her inexplicable death is a tragedy for the community. I’m in close contact with Mika's loved ones, who are doing whatever they can to find answers, and they hope to bring awareness to the disproportionate violence enacted against Indigenous women—significantly higher than for other demographics—and the systemic failures that perpetuate it. Law enforcement officials and the public do not devote the scale of resources and attention to support Indigenous women that they should, even though each individual who is missing or murdered has a family who loves them and continues to grieve. Tell the Department of Justice to investigate the death of Mika Westwolf—and dedicate additional resources to missing and murdered Indigenous women (MMIW) cases. In addition to signing the petition, please participate in the awareness walks we are doing at the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana from June 13th-16th. More information can be found at MikaMatters.com

Parents have every right to dictate what their children may read. Parents do not have the right to dictate what OTHER parents' children may read. The Butt-Holdsworth Memorial Library is funded by the taxpayers, not a church or political party, and can therefore not be used to advance a religious or political agenda. Texas has been ground-zero when it comes to book challenges and bans, as well as escalating censorship against libraries and librarians. And it's playing out right here at Butt-Holdsworth Memorial Library. Last year the library had multiple law enforcement visits to investigate if the library was holding "illegal content" and attempts to censor library content continues.We, the undersigned residents of Kerr County, petition the Kerrville City Council to uphold the principles of intellectual freedom, diversity, and access to information within our community. We firmly believe in maintaining an environment where all books and resources remain freely accessible to all. We urge the Kerrville City Council to affirm its commitment to intellectual freedom by upholding the library's existing policies that protect the rights of individuals to access information without censorship or undue restriction.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced a new tax filing software that went live for 12 states in 2024. This question-based software will allow people to send their returns electronically to the government for free! If broadly available, this software would allow Americans to avoid profit-hungry companies that act as middlemen when we e-file our taxes. But the tax preparation lobby strongly opposed IRS free direct filing software, and it was difficult to even get the 12 states we had in 2024 in a pilot—so we need your help to demonstrate overwhelming support for the program! Image Credit: Orange County Register

The People's Hearing is a vital part of this year’s Pennsylvania Climate Convergence, taking place as our climate clock rapidly counts down. By the time we convene on October 2, there will be just five years left to avert the most catastrophic consequences of climate change. The urgency of this moment cannot be overstated. The impacts of climate change are not distant threats—they are here, affecting communities across our state. Pennsylvania's failure to take swift and aggressive action to transition away from fossil fuels perpetuates these problems. We urge you to act now, rejecting false climate solutions masquerading as progress. This hearing should not be necessary. If you had heeded the voices of countless Pennsylvanians who have called for climate action—those who have met with you, submitted comments to DEP dockets, testified at DEP public hearings, written letters, marched, rallied, protested, and even risked arrest—you would have already taken decisive climate action. Join us on October 2, 2023, and stand with the people of Pennsylvania in the fight against climate change.

Donald Trump is a twice-impeached former president, who has now been indicted by a jury of his peers in New York and in Miami. During Trump's two impeachment trials, GOP Senators who acted as the jury prevented Trump from being convicted and barred from future office because they were more interested in playing politics and holding onto power than in justice and accountability. Trump is facing very serious criminal charges—34 felony counts in New York, and seven federal felonies in Miami, reportedly including violations to the Espionage Act and Conspiracy. They could put him in prison for a long time. And we still are waiting for expected charges for attempting to sabotage the 2020 election and inciting insurrection. It is critical for the future of our democracy that Trump be held accountable for his actions. These juries cannot be allowed to treat him differently for the fact that he's rich, or a former president, or a contender to be our future president. He must be treated as if he is not above the law.