Demand Progress

Campaigns

• Sign the petition: Stop Line 3!

  The US Department of Homeland Security sent a low-flying helicopter to aggressively scatter those protesting Line 3 in Minnesota — a massive proposed oil pipeline that would infringe upon Indigenous treaty rights and bulldoze hundreds of critical waterways used by the local Ojibwe people. It’s no surprise that law enforcement is taking such extreme and dangerous measures to protect Big Oil. Indigenous people have long been criminalized for protesting construction projects that threaten their basic needs and fighting for future generations to be able to exercise their basic rights. President Biden has the executive authority to put an immediate end to Line 3 construction — after all, he cancelled the Keystone XL pipeline during his first week in office.1 We need you to raise your voice and tell him that he must do the same with Line 3. Sign the petition: Biden must use his executive authority to halt Line 3 construction immediately! Indigenous people have a right to clean water, as well as a right to protest — and Big Oil is threatening both. Following the helicopter incident, the Homeland Security task force claimed that they were only trying to send a dispersal message, and that kicking up debris in an attempt to terrorize protestors was unintentional. But US law enforcement has long used helicopters as a scare tactic. A year ago, under Trump, an army helicopter was flown over a Black Lives Matter protest in DC, an act that was later deemed a misuse of a military aircraft. The helicopter at Line 3 was a terrifying 20 feet off the ground — a violation of the Code of Federal Regulations.2 It’s totally unacceptable that the Biden administration would use such aggressive tactics to intimidate those fighting for their basic rights but not intervene on behalf of them. Canadian energy firm Enbridge plans to bulldoze beneath previously undisturbed, sacred sections of the Ojibwe watershed. If built, Line 3 would ship 760,000 barrels of oil each day, carrying bitumen, a heavy oil that sinks in water and therefore nearly impossible to clean up.3 Biden could swiftly direct the Army Corps of Engineers to revoke the project’s water crossing permit, effectively stopping construction immediately. He pledged to make fighting for environmental justice a top priority — which is why we need to demand that he take action, right now. Tell Biden: Stop Line 3 construction now! Sources: 1. Star Tribune, "Next up for Biden: Stop Line 3," January 27, 2021. 2. The Intercept, "Low-flying DHS helicopoter showers anti-pipeline protestors with debris," June 8, 2021. 3. Al Jazeera, "‘Reclaiming the land’: Indigenous fight against Line 3 ramps up," June 12, 2021.

  1 of 100 Signatures

  Created by Demand Progress
• Save the internet: Overturn the FCC's repeal of Net Neutrality!

  July 2018 update: The FCC's repeal of net neutrality went into effect on June 11th. Now it's even more important to get lawmakers to act. Senators passed a resolution to save net neutrality via the Congressional Review Act. It's up to our congressional representatives to do the same. ------- On December 14, the Federal Communications Commission repealed net neutrality, handing control of the internet to Big Telecom. The repeal of net neutrality gives monopolistic internet providers like Verizon, Comcast, and AT&T the power to block, censor, and slow down your favorite sites on the web. 83% of Americans support net neutrality protections. Congress, as the oversight body for the FCC, can overturn this massive giveaway to the telecom industry. Since the FCC voted to end net neutrality, 20 senators have already pledged to reverse the FCC's vote, and we can convince others to join us. We need to build on this momentum -- tell your member of Congress to support the resolution to restore net neutrality now!

  108,757 of 200,000 Signatures

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  Appoint a fifth FCC commissioner and restore net neutrality!

  The fate of the open internet is in the hands of two Trump appointees -- unless Joe Biden acts now. Ajit Pai, who as Federal Communications Commission chair under Donald Trump led the repeal of net neutrality, resigned from the FCC when Joe Biden became president. Nearly half a year later, the fifth FCC seat remains empty. Meanwhile, two of Trump's appointees are still on the FCC. With a 2-2 deadlock, they can continue to block key priorities until the vacancy is filled. In order to reinstate net neutrality and protect internet users from corporate control, we need President Biden to fill the fifth seat.

  297 of 300 Signatures

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  President Biden: Tell the DOJ to stop defending Donald Trump!

  Donald Trump has faced multiple accusations of sexual assault and misconduct. In 2019, E. Jean Carroll accused Trump of assaulting her. Trump’s response caused Carroll to sue him for defamation. Trump’s handpicked Attorney General Bill Barr claimed that Donald Trump was a federal employee so that the DOJ could take up his legal defense. President Biden’s Attorney General, Merrick Garland, should have dropped this defense and let Donald Trump fend for himself. Instead, the Garland and the DOJ just confirmed that they’re following Bill Barr’s flimsy reasoning and continuing to provide Donald Trump with legal defense. Donald Trump already has an army of lawyers. He doesn’t need Biden’s DOJ protecting him.

  542 of 600 Signatures

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  Stop giving weapons of war to local police!

  Police across America have been using weapons of war to attack peaceful protesters and journalists in the last few days. They got many of those from the federal government through the Pentagon's 1033 program, which gives military surplus to local law enforcement. After the Ferguson protests in 2014, progressives got President Obama to limit this program. But Trump reversed that order, and also scaled back the Department of Justice's investigations into police misconduct. There are a lot of things we need to do to end institutional racism and stop police brutality. One of those steps is demilitarizing the police. We're calling on Congress to end the 1033 program. Will you join the fight?

  8,091 of 9,000 Signatures

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  Tell Congress: Block DeVos from punishing schools that choose not to reopen!

  The last person you want making decisions for your children is Betsy DeVos. As Trump’s Education Secretary, DeVos has been a disaster from Day 1. But during the pandemic she’s only gotten worse. Secretary DeVos wants to hold federal school funding hostage to pressure schools to reopen in a couple of weeks, despite the nation still seeing spikes in COVID-19 cases.[1] Sign the petition: Tell Congress to block DeVos from using federal funds to pressure schools to reopen! Our nation’s schools are already massively underfunded. In a dangerous public health nightmare scenario like the coronavirus pandemic, the federal government should be funding schools to do whatever is necessary to protect students, teachers and staff, and slow the spread of the virus. Instead, if DeVos has her way, schools will have to reopen if they want federal funding that most districts desperately need. In short, DeVos wants to force cities and states to "re-open" - and doesn't seem to care if children, teachers, and school staff get sick or even die in the process. It’s worth remembering that DeVos has never once taught in a classroom, holds no degrees in education, and until Trump appointed her as Secretary of Education, had no government experience. DeVos is a right-wing billionaire donor whose pet project has been dismantling public education. Every year Trump has been in office, DeVos proposed massive budget cuts to the Department of Education. Now she’s only willing to put funds into schools if students, teachers, and school staff risk their health and their lives in the middle of an out-of-control pandemic. There’s not much time left to act before schools start in the fall. That’s why you need to tell Congress to stop DeVos immediately. Sign the petition: Tell Congress to block DeVos from using federal funds to pressure schools to reopen! [1] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/08/us/politics/trump-schools-reopening.html

  30,245 of 35,000 Signatures

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  Expand Medicare Now!

  Millions of Americans on Medicare lack coverage they need. From hearing aids to root canals to eyeglasses, elderly Americans are forced to pay out of pocket for essential medical care. The human costs are staggering. And now we have a shot to change things. Representative Pramila Jayapal and Senator Bernie Sanders are leading a new charge to expand Medicare -- by offering vision, dental, and hearing care for Medicare beneficiaries, and lowering the Medicare eligibility age. This is a critical first step towards Medicare for All and will help millions along the way. Can you help build support in Congress by sending your representative and Senators a message? Sign the petition and tell the President and Congress: Expand Medicare now!

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  Sign the petition: Tell Congress to protect Amazon delivery drivers!

  Amazon thinks it can get away with anything. Now the tech giant is forcing delivery drivers to either agree to intrusive surveillance in their vans, or lose their jobs.1 New reporting shows Amazon often forces drivers to choose between keeping their jobs and using the bathroom.2 Rather than solve this dilemma, Amazon wants to install artificial intelligence cameras and force drivers to submit biometric data in order to stay employed. Agree to constantly be spied on by your company or get fired: How can that possibly be a legal workplace standard? Congress can’t let Amazon mistreat their workers. Sign the petition: Tell Congress to protect delivery drivers and investigate Amazon labor practices! This isn’t just micro-management, it’s a dangerous pattern for Amazon. Amazon uses their vast tech resources to spy on workers and push their productivity to the physical brink, all in the name of profit. In Amazon warehouses, algorithms like Rate and ToT (time off task) have contributed to so many workplace accidents and injuries that working at Amazon is considered one of the most dangerous jobs in the US.3 But whenever workers stand up for themselves against Amazon, the tech giant fires back with fury. Amazon hired a Koch-backed anti-union consultant to try to stop workers in Alabama from organizing a union.4 They force employees into “classes” where pro-union workers are intimidated and threatened with pay cuts if they continue to form a union. Amazon thinks that just because they’re rich and large that means they’re in charge, and that they can treat their employees however they want. They think no one is strong enough to stop them. But they’re wrong. Congress can regulate how Amazon operates and treats their workers. They could do it now, if you speak up. Sign the petition: Tell Congress to protect delivery drivers and investigate Amazon labor practices! Sources: 1. The Verge, “Amazon delivery drivers have to consent to AI surveillance in their vans or lose their jobs,” March 24, 2021. 2. The Intercept, “Documents Show Amazon Is Aware Drivers Pee In Bottles And Even Defecate En Route, Despite Company Denial,” March 25, 2021. 3. Futurism, “After Deaths, Amazon Lands on List of Most Dangerous Employers,” October 18, 2019. 4. The Intercept, “Amazon Hired Koch-backed Anti-union Consultant To Fight Alabama Warehouse Organizing,” February 10, 2021.

  1,010 of 2,000 Signatures

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  Tell Biden: Pick Rep. Deb Haaland for Interior Secretary

  Joe Biden has a huge opportunity to choose a progressive champion on climate action and a Native American leader to a crucial Cabinet post: Representative Deb Haaland of New Mexico. Representative Haaland would be the first Native American Secretary of the Interior -- with the power to end fossil fuel extraction on public lands, return land to Indigenous stewardship, and start implementing a Green New Deal. The Department of the Interior oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and oversees oil and gas leases on federal land. It manages more than 500 million acres of American land, including the National Park System. Haaland has served as a tribal administrator, and in Congress serves as vice-chair of the Committee on Natural Resources -- experience that makes her ready to lead the Department of the Interior. The Department of the Interior has never had a Native American lead it. After centuries of oppression at the hands of the federal government, including the Department of the Interior, it’s long past time for an enrolled tribal member to lead this crucial agency. Over 150 tribal leaders, Democratic and Republican senators, and environmental groups have called for her to get the post. But the Biden transition team is hedging. Tell them to pick Rep. Deb Haaland for Interior Secretary!

  11 of 100 Signatures

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  Fix the Supreme Court and save abortion rights!

  The Supreme Court just agreed to hear a case that could lead to Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett overturning Roe v. Wade. Mississippi recently banned abortion in the first 15 weeks of a pregnancy. All lower courts have said it is unconstitutional. But now right-wing justices Kavanaugh and Barrett are eager to rule on this critical case. Kavanaugh and Barrett want to use this case and ones like it to overturn Roe v Wade, the landmark decision that protected abortion rights across America. Democratic politicians have spent years warning voters that this could happen. But so far, those politicians haven't taken all the steps needed to protect Roe v. Wade. The most important thing they can do right now is to fix the Supreme Court by adding two more seats. We need Senators to stop wasting time. Will you sign the petition and urge Congress to expand the Supreme Court and save our basic rights?

  308 of 400 Signatures

  Created by Demand Progress