Courage Campaign

Campaigns

• SIGN THE PETITION: No national security briefings for Donald Trump

  Donald Trump just asked Vladimir Putin, Russia's dangerous dictator, to commit espionage on Secretary Hillary Clinton and publicize state secrets that could threaten the security of the United States. Trump’s unprecedented request is not only dangerous, it may also violate federal law. What’s even more horrifying is that, as the Republican Nominee for President, Trump is scheduled to start receiving classified national security briefings as early as tomorrow. Donald Trump is a very real, dangerous, and serious threat to our national security. And he should not be let within 10 feet of any classified security information. We must join together and raise a massive outcry NOW before it’s too late!

  3 of 100 Signatures

  Created by Laura Leavitt, Courage Campaign Super PAC
• California Republican Assembly leader must resign over offensive rape comments.

  On Friday, March 1, Celeste Greig, head of the California Republican Assembly, told the media that pregnancies by rape are rare "because it's an act of violence, because the body is traumatized." Ironically, she said this while criticizing former Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin for his comments last fall about "legitimate rape." I started this petition because I am disgusted by scientifically illiterate Republican leaders attempting to defend rape related anti-choice policies. These uneducated and fanatical politicians attempt to minimize the horrific consequences of rape in order to pursue a twisted political agenda and in so doing degrade women. Everyone is welcome to their own opinion, but not to their own facts. Rapes cause pregnancy. Celeste Greig (and other factually challenged politicians) need to resign from their high profile political positions so policy can be made based on science, not ideology.

  30,158 of 35,000 Signatures

  Created by Sarah Callahan
• No pay for Congress during the shutdown

  Since October 1st, hundreds of thousands of middle-class federal employees have been furloughed due to irresponsible members of Congress who refuse to govern for the well-being of the American people. The GOP-controlled House of Representatives decided to shut down the government rather than pass a spending bill that funds the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as “Obamacare.” Not only has the President’s signature healthcare law been upheld by the Supreme Court, but it was a major issue in the last presidential election when Republicans were soundly defeated. These Republican members of Congress -- including California’s own House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy -- are putting the extreme and ideological demands of a small minority over the health of the American economy. And now, federal employees, veterans, and hard-working families will be the ones that have to pay the price. That is unfair and morally reprehensible. Congress should take responsibility for their own inaction and lose their paychecks until they come to a resolution. Every day this drags on, the more damage it does to everyday Americans and our nation’s fragile economy.

  459,240 of 500,000 Signatures

  Created by Laura Leavitt, Courage Campaign
• Tell California legislators: Women deserve equal pay NOW!

  It's shameful that in 2015, women make 78 cents for every dollar a man earns. And that wage disparity is even higher among minority groups. Latinas make $0.54 and black women make $0.64 for every dollar a white man makes. Over a 40-year career, the average woman loses out on $431,000 -- and that number is nearly doubled for women of color. These wage gaps represent more than short-term losses. It represents a lifetime of being devalued in the workplace. It's past the time for all that to change! Equal pay for women is the right thing for our economy, for California, and for our nation. Senate Bill 358 will address this wage inequality by strengthening protections against pay discrimination for women and stopping retaliation against workers who make inquiries about pay. If we can pass SB 358 in California, we can serve as a model for the nation and urge other states and the U.S. Congress to pass similar legislation. JOIN US and help drive the movement for equal pay forward by signing our petition today!

  5,312 of 6,000 Signatures

  Created by Laura Leavitt
• Demand Nestlé immediately stop bottling precious water from California during drought!

  While the entire state is urged to conserve water and is potentially facing mandatory water usage restrictions, Nestlé is bottling the scarce resource straight from the heart of California’s drought and selling it for profit -- according to a recent Desert Sun report. Since Nestlé’s bottling plant -- which extracts water for its Arrowhead and Pure Life brands -- is located on the Morongo Band of Mission Indians’ reservation, it is exempt from oversight by local water agencies and is able to keep information about its groundwater levels and usage confidential. Therefore, it’s impossible to know just how much of the limited resource the plant is extracting to export and sell elsewhere. And to top it off, the bottling plant is located in one of the most drought-stricken areas of the state. With a recent report showing that California only has enough water to last the state one more year, we must put an end to this madness at Nestlé before it’s too late. Join us!

  30,600 of 35,000 Signatures

  Created by Laura Leavitt, Courage Campaign
• Tell the CA Legislature: "End Tax Exempt Status for Anti-Gay Boy Scouts of America"

  Please join me in asking the California Legislature to pass SB 323, ending tax breaks for youth groups like Boy Scouts of America that discriminate against members based on their sexual orientation. I grew up in the Boy Scout tradition. I started out as a Cub Scout, transitioned through Webelos, and ended my Boy Scout journey as a Life Scout, one rank below Eagle. My closest friends were other scouts. Scouting stands for the finest qualities of humanity: self-reliance, creativity, and an appreciation of nature. Most of all, we were taught how to act as responsible, respectful citizens. This is why the Boy Scouts’ continued policy of excluding members based on their sexual orientation is so upsetting to me. It flies in the face of the very values that the scouting tradition professes to teach. As a straight ally, I can't sit idle while the current leaders of the Boy Scouts disgrace this once-proud American institution with their personal bigotry. Boy Scouts of America needs to do the right thing and change their policy to allow openly gay members. Right now, SB 323, sponsored by Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Los Angeles) aims to give the Boy Scouts a nudge in the right direction by eliminating tax exemptions for groups that practice discrimination. Please ask the California Legislature to help pass SB 323. California should lead on this issue if Congress won’t. Ending this tax break is the right thing to do, for the Boy Scouts and any other youth group in California which discriminates against members based on sexual orientation.

  10,567 of 15,000 Signatures

  Created by Eddie Kurtz
• Tell the CA Legislature: Stand up to Big Soda!

  California is facing a massive health crisis. An estimated 14 percent of Californians have diabetes today, costing the state $24.5 billion in health and work-related costs. Overwhelming evidence from leading academic research institutions shows that liquid sugar is uniquely responsible. And, a whopping 65% of California teens consume a sugar sweetened beverage, such as soda, every day. The science is clear, and the health risks cannot be ignored any longer: we must act fast. One critical step forward is SB 203, a bill that will help families avoid diabetes by printing a clear and visible warning label on the front of all sugary drinks sold in the state. These labels will send a clear message about the very real dangers soda and sugary drinks pose to our health, and empower Californians to make informed decisions about the products they consume. Three Democrats who have taken money from industry groups that market sugary beverages blocked this critical bill last year by refusing to vote on it. They are threatening to block it again – we only need ONE of them to vote yes. We must join together to defeat Big Soda and their attempts to buy our legislators and stop all efforts to inform consumers and protect our kids. Sign the petition today!

  197 of 200 Signatures

  Created by Dr. Paul Song, Courage Campaign
• CA SENATE: Provide paid sick days to every CA worker to ensure healthy workplaces and healthy wor...

  Roughly 33% of California’s workforce, nearly 6 million California workers, cannot take an hour off of work to care for themselves or a loved one who is sick without putting their pay or job in jeopardy. Workers without paid sick days must either work while sick or forego wages -- losing three days of pay can equate to a whole month’s worth grocery bill for a low-income family. Public health is very much at risk when we force people to work while sick and expose customers, co-workers, and others to often very contagious illnesses. Additionally, the Institute for Women’s Policy Research shows that 1.3 million emergency room visits could be avoided if the patients had access to paid sick leave, giving them time to visit a doctor when they were sick. Research shows that sick workers are roughly half as productive as healthy workers—a disparity that dwarfs the cost of three sick days per year. More than $160 billion is lost annually in our national economy because of low productivity when workers show up to work sick. Nearly 23 percent of adults in the US report that they have lost a job or have been threatened with being fired for taking time off due to illness or to care for a sick family member. In the recently released “Shriver Report,” more than 90 percent of single women said paid sick day reform was the most important policy that their employer could adopt to improve their lives. Connecticut is currently the only state with a statewide law on sick days. The Center for Economic and Policy Research found 3 out of 4 employers in Connecticut said the law had a positive impact on business. Fifteen percent of employers said productivity increased and 30 percent said it resulted in increased morale. AB 1522 creates a new workplace standard similar to minimum wage or the 8-hour workday. AB 1522 allows workers to seek redress for being cheated out of the sick days they earn.

  3,696 of 4,000 Signatures

  Created by Eddie Kurtz, Courage Campaign Institute
• Tell Retailers: Don't separate workers from their families on Thanksgiving!

  Over the years, retail chains have opened earlier and earlier on “Black Friday" to help boost their profits. But last year, some retailers went to a whole new level and opened their doors on Thanksgiving Day! And this year, already a dozen retailers plan to be open -- forcing more and more workers to miss Thanksgiving dinner. Here’s the worst part: last year, retailers that opened on Thanksgiving didn’t even see a big increase in sales. And on top of that, most Americans opposed the idea and said they wouldn’t shop on Thanksgiving! That’s why over 17 other major retailers have rejected starting Black Friday on Thursday, and allow workers to stay home and enjoy time with their families. Costco put it best “our employees work especially hard during the holiday season and we simply believe that they deserve the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving with their families.” We must demand that greedy corporations follow the example of courageous retailers like Costco, Patagonia, REI, Barnes & Noble, Sur La Table, American Girl, Gamestop, Burlington, Dillard’s, DSW, Nordstrom, Patagonia, REI, T.J. Maxx, and Marshall’s by rejecting this disgusting new trend.

  123 of 200 Signatures

  Created by Eddie Kurtz, Courage Campaign
• Equal Pay for USA's Women's World Cup Champions!

  The USA’s National Women’s team just won their THIRD World Cup, but FIFA is still treating our champions as second-class citizens. The high-profile Women’s World Cup final match shattered television records with over 25 million viewers -- making it the most watched soccer game in U.S. history.(1) Yet, our world champions are being paid FORTY TIMES LESS than their male counterparts did for LOSING the World Cup last year during the first round ($576 million vs. $15 million)!(2) FIFA, which generates billions in revenue, also forced women — but not the men — to play this year’s World Cup on artificial turf. This not only increased the risk of injury, but also increased temperatures on the field by 20-30 degrees. During tournament, field temperatures reached 120 degrees.(3) It is no secret that gender-pay disparity runs rampant in the United States with women making 78 cents per dollar to men.(4) And this blatant pay discrimination by FIFA may be the most extreme case yet. It is time for FIFA’s executives to take a stand for equal pay, stop underscoring our heroic female leaders, and provide them with the same awards and privileges as men. Join me to stand alongside women and men all across the globe to right this injustice and ensure that our champions and all women receive equal pay. 1. http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/womens-world-cup-carli-lloyd-usa-win-soccer-ratings-1201534249/ 2. http://www.politico.eu/article/world-cup-women-pay-gap-gender-equality/ 3. http://thinkprogress.org/sports/2015/07/06/3677105/fifa-will-pay-us-womens-championship-team-4-times-less-mens-teams-lost-first-round/ and http://www.sportingnews.com/soccer/story/2015-06-03/womens-world-cup-turf-war-fifa-canada-artificial-turf-natural-grass 4. http://www.newrepublic.com/article/121530/women-color-make-far-less-78-cents-mans-dollar

  1,223 of 2,000 Signatures

  Created by Laura Leavitt, Courage Campaign