Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category

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drink to progress, green your ride, and rethink “support our troops” (and vets)

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

Hey Tractivists,

It’s been a hell of a week, and it’s barely half over!

Come out at Traction HQ tomorrow night and toast to progress!  Then stick around for the film The Good Soldier, hosted by Tractivist and young veteran Jeremy B., and a conversation about U.S. military actions and policies that will change how you think about supporting the troops.  RSVPs appreciated to soldier@getTraction.org and you can report for duty at 7pm @ 1018 Broad St.

Recent news round-up and linkfest…

Health Insurance Reform passes!
Thanks to the efforts of millions of us, President Obama signed a bill yesterday that…
- extends health insurance to more than 32 million people
- allows you to stay on your parents’ insurance until the age of 27
- bans discrimination based on pre-existing conditions
- and it saves money over the long-term: it’ll cut more than a trillion dollars from the deficit over 20 years.
For many progressives, it stopped short in several key ways — and the reproductive rights sacrifices went too far — but there’s a chance we’ll make it stronger before it’s finally final.  And there’s no denying that it’s a good step in the right direction and a historic achievement!

In scary news… the Tea Partiers are getting incredibly nasty, harassing members of Congress (like civil rights hero John Lewis and Barney Frank) using the N-word, the F-word and even spitting.  This Brave New Foundation video will frighten you, but you should see it.  This John Nichols column from The Nation provides historical perspective on right-wing opposition (Conservatives railed against Social Security too.), although I doubt it was quite this hateful.  And the Wake County school board ended Wake’s model diversity policy (again by a 5-4 vote).  Let there be no doubt — local elections matter!

Now for the kind of activism we LIKE to see…
Last weekend, 200,000 people marched for Comprehensive Immigration Reform!  Check out SEIU’s great 2-minute video.  And you may have missed some incredibly brave direct action for equality, with Lt. Dan Choi handcuffing himself to the White House gate to protest Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, and bi-coastal sit-ins at Nancy Pelosi’s offices to demand passage of the Employee Non-Discrimination Act.

Last thing: mark your calendars for Green My Ride on Sunday afternoon April 11th.  You’ll learn many ways to shrink your carbon tireprint, including how to:
* change your own oil
* improve your gas mileage
* improve the performance and efficiency of your air conditioning
* switch to motor oils that don’t need to be changed often or are made from soy (not petroleum)
* and much more
Space is limited. Write greenmyride@getTraction.org for more info and/or to reserve your spot.

Keep Hope Alive, Lanya

P.S. Upcoming Traction events:
Thurs 3/25: ReelPolitik presents: The Good Soldier  soldier@getTraction.org
Sun 4/11: Learn to shrink your car’s carbon tireprint: greenmyride@getTraction.org
Sat 4/17: Trip to new civil rights museum in Greensboro: gbo@getTraction.org
Sun 4/25: Another freezer party (aka the potluck that keeps on giving): freezer@getTraction.org
plus Spring means the Traction Outdoors group is back!  Write outdoors@getTraction.org to be in the loop on hikes, swims, berry-pickings and more.

Posted in Civil Rights, Events, Health Care, Peace, Politics, Walk the Talk | No Comments »

bus rides, “neighborhood schools” and what really matters

Monday, March 15th, 2010

Tractivists:

I grew up in one of the poorest counties and school districts in the State. During my years in the Robeson County public schools, several poor school districts were embroiled in a decade-long court battle against the State – the Leandro case, which established the right to a sound, basic education for every child in NC.

I recently relocated from the Triangle back to Robeson County. Since being home, I have become increasingly frustrated by the blatant bigotry propelling the Wake County School Board debate.  The actions of a well-financed group of parents are threatening Wake’s diversity policy, which has been heralded as a “beacon of hope” for failing school districts.

My frustration spurs primarily from the weak one-legged concern raised by the “neighborhood schools” proponents – long bus rides. The anti-diversity crowd has pointed to the most extreme cases of bussing.  The truth is, the vast majority of Wake County students attend a school within ten miles of their home.

The selfish and short-sighted “neighborhood schools” supporters threaten access to equitable education for every child and the future of our communities.  That’s why the Wake Superintendent submitted his resignation and the NAACP-NC filed a complaint with the schools’ accrediting body.  “Neighborhood schools” will inevitably lead to “tri-segregated” schools: with high concentrations of poor students, students of color and students with disabilities.

Here’s what we can do about it:

1) Speak up!  Tell the school board (and anyone else who will listen) that a diverse school system improves achievement and builds better citizens and communities. There’s a second (and final) vote next Tues, the 23rd, so contact them NOW. Learn more about educational policy at a forum this Saturday or online at Great Schools in Wake and enter the debate with facts and in the interests of equitable education for ALL. More education advocates are needed to counter the current anti-student agenda.

2) Vote in your local elections and tell others about the importance of these races. The low voter turnout in the Wake County school board elections gave conservatives a 5-4 majority now bent on dismantling decades of progress. Register now and vote in every single election to ensure the interests of all are protected.

Equitable education in Wake County (one of the fastest growing areas in the country) affects our state’s economy and therefore affects us all.  North Carolina cannot afford to create high-poverty schools in disadvantaged neighborhoods to benefit a few spoiled parents and their children.

So many children in this state face much harsher circumstances than simply a long ride home on the bus – including here in Robeson County where violent discipline (corporal punishment) still takes place in the schools.  It is time for us to put things in perspective and to fight for all children’s right to a sound basic education.

With love,

Beth Jacobs, J.D.
Fulltime righteous radical, founder of Brown Babies, Tractivist

P.S. Upcoming Traction events:
Thurs 3/25: ReelPolitik presents: The Good Soldier  soldier@getTraction.org
Sun 4/11: Green My Ride is back by popular demand: greenmyride@getTraction.org
Sat 4/17: Trip to new civil rights museum in Greensboro: gbo@getTraction.org
plus Spring means the Traction Outdoors group is back!  Write outdoors@getTraction.org to be in the loop on hikes, swims, berry-pickings, canoe outings and more.

Posted in Civil Rights, Education, Events, Parenting, Politics, Tractivists in Action, Walk the Talk | No Comments »

The Employee Free Choice Act : Why You Should Care and What You Can Do

Thursday, June 4th, 2009

While at the America’s Future Now conference, I attended a very moving panel on the Employee Free Choice Act and workers’ rights generally.
Larry Cohen of the Communications Workers of America union said that U.S. laws contain the worst repressions of workers’ rights in the democratic world. He and other speakers referred to the fight for workers’ rights as the major civil rights battle of our time.

As a progressive movement we have lots of reasons to care about the outcome of the EFCA and other labor battles. Wade Henderson of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights spoke about the many strong links between labor and the civil rights movement since the beginning. Union members not only earn higher wages, are more likely to have health care, and enjoy greater well-being at work, they also vote more progressively than non-union members and are active allies in many other progressive movements.

At Traction’s spring happy hour, MaryBe McMillan of the NC AFL-CIO asked us to take action on the Employee Free Choice Act by thanking Sen. Kay Hagan for her initial support of the bill. The message I got from the panel was that we need to KEEP talking to Sen. Hagan as well as our Representatives in the House to ask them to support (or continue to support) the EFCA. The AFL-CIO has one way to get in touch with your legislators here , or you can call or send a hand-written letter. Any way you do it, it’s important that we speak up now for labor rights.

Are you going to take action? Have you done it already? Let me know in a comment or email to cara@getTraction.org!

Posted in Civil Rights, Economic Justice, Politics, Tractivists in Action, Walk the Talk | No Comments »

Building the Progressive Majority : Blogging from the America’s Future Now Conference

Monday, June 1st, 2009

Talk at the first day of the America’s Future Now conference has centered on the issues of healthcare, the economy, and labor rights.  Highlights for me included speeches by Gov. Howard Dean, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis and William McNary calling for healthcare reform, and an innovative presentation about the need for public funding of elections.  

I want to share some hopeful news from a session I attended called “A New and Enduring Progressive Majority?” which featured speakers from Progressive Majority, Women’s Voices Women’s Vote, the Center for American Progress, Working America, and Democracia USA.  All the speakers agreed that the changes in the American voting population in the past decade have worked in favor of progressive change, and this trend is likely to continue–good news.  

Every speaker also talked about the role of young people in the future of the progressive movement.  Young people are overwhelmingly more progressive than older folks, so it’s going to be vital that we stay active and keep working to engage our peers–even better news!  I was proud to be representing an organization that’s working to do just that.   

One last stunning factoid from the session: by the year 2016 (not that far off!), the majority of voters will no longer be white Christians.  

More to come tomorrow about the progressive plan to move America forward and what Tractivists are going to need to do to help shape our future!

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Posted in Economic Justice, Fair Elections, Health Care, Politics, Uncategorized, Walk the Talk | No Comments »

Join the (Progressive) Revolution!

Wednesday, May 6th, 2009

Tractivists!

The month of May is full to the brim with opportunities to celebrate revolutions and revolutionary ideas. May 1st, or May Day, is International Workers’ Day, a time to honor workers and celebrate the achievements of working class movements (minimum wages, the 8-hour workday, paid sick leave—oops, NC is still working on that one). Cinco de Mayo, the Fifth of May, is a celebration of the Mexican movement against oppressive and unjust financial policies of European nations in the late 1860s, and today is symbolic of the power of people and communities to shape their own futures.

Progressive folks have been the heart and soul of so many of the revolutionary social and political movements in the US. Today, progressives (like me and you) still form the core of countless local and national movements based on the values of community, freedom, human rights, equality, and collective action.

How did I come to know all this? I spent last summer working at Progressive Strategies in Washington, DC with political strategist, blogger, and author Mike Lux. Mike is coming to Durham next week to meet Triangle progressives and talk about the past, present, and future of the progressive movement and his new book, The Progressive Revolution: How the Best in America Came to Be. The book is a real eye-opener as to the power we have as progressives to change things for the better. You’ve got two chances to meet Mike and get in on this important and exciting conversation:

Mike Lux and The Progressive Revolution

What: Book signing and discussion at The Regulator Bookshop
When: Wednesday, May 13th, 7 PM
Where: 720 Ninth St. Durham

What: Drinking Liberally
When: Thursday, May 14th, 8 PM
Where: Bull McCabe’s Irish Pub, 427 West Main St. Durham

RSVP for either or both: cara@getTraction.org or on the facebook event page here .

This May, don’t just celebrate, participate. Come out, pick up a signed copy of the book, grab a pint, and share ideas about how to keep the progressive revolution rolling in our nation and our state. Join the conversation (and the revolution)!

Cara Wittekind
Crayon artist, revolutionary, Tractivist

P.S.: VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY ALERT!
We also need one or two superstar revolutionaries to sell books at the Drinking Liberally event. I’ve got a free Traction tee for the first two takers, so act fast!

Posted in Events, Politics | No Comments »

Join Traction at HK on J 3

Thursday, February 12th, 2009

Hey Tractivists

If you’re not already planning to come out to HK on J 3 this Saturday, this video will change your mind.

It’ll be great if we have a large number of Tractivists come out to send the message that Traction (and young people in general) are standing up for progressive change in NC.  It’s also going to be a lot of fun and a chance to meet folks from progressive organizations from across the state.

So, get yourself to HK on J using one of these 3 easy options:

Carpool from Orange County

There’s an official group that is arranging bus seats and carpools leaving from University Mall: http://groups.google.com/group/HKonJ-OC/browse_thread/thread/c3b8a06a462c8b97/8d85edc04bfade69?show_docid=8d85edc04bfade69&pli=1

Or, email me ( cara@gettraction.org ) and we’ll meet up at Eastgate Shopping Center in Chapel Hill, near Trader Joe’s.  Email me ahead of time to let me know know if you can drive or if you’ll be riding with someone else.

Carpool from Durham

Meet at Traction office (1018 Broad St.) at 8:40 AM; leave 8:45.  Email me ( cara@gettraction.org ) ahead of time to let me know if you can drive or if you’ll be riding with someone else.

Meet up at Chavis Park in Raleigh

Look for the Traction crew (with Traction shirts and banner) on the playground side of the seating area.  If you can’t find us, call Cara on the Traction phone at 919-Traction (919-872-2846).

Email me ( cara@gettraction.org ) ASAP to let me know you’ll be there.

See you Saturday,

Cara

Posted in Civil Rights, Economic Justice, Education, Environment, Events, Fair Elections, Health Care, Peace, Politics, Tractivists in Action, Walk the Talk | No Comments »

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