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Dear friends and allies,
During this past week, we saw a number of actions fighting to ensure that our communities recover safely from the impact of COVID-19. From guaranteed housing stability to safe school reopening, universal child care to driver's licenses for all, unemployment to environmental justice — we must continue to take action through the end of the legislative session and beyond across all of these issues.
The communities affected by
going from in-person to remote ([link removed]) learning are the same communities that are at risk of losing their homes once the October 18 moratorium ends
([link removed]) . And while the Child Care is Essential Act
([link removed]) , passed by the U.S. House, would provide the much-needed $50 billion fund to bail out child care centers across the country, we know that there is still a long way for us to go.
We pledge to fight alongside our partners to offset the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensure a just recovery. This pandemic affects everyone, and we must stick together to rebuild our towns, our state, and our country.
You can help us continue the fight by sharing our Facebook ([link removed]) posts and by following and retweeting us on Twitter ([link removed]) . You can also receive regular updates from CLU by registering on our website ([link removed]) .
A Just Recovery from the COVID-19 Pandemic
[link removed]
Thanks to a recent grant from the Boston Resiliency Fund, local organizations across the City of Boston came together to assemble hundreds of wellness kits for communities directly affected by COVID-19.
Special thanks to our partners:
Alternatives for Community and Environment (ACE), Asian American Resource Workshop (AARW), Brazilian Worker Center, Center for Cooperative Development and Solidarity, Chinese Progressive Association, City Life / Vida Urbana, Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety & Health, New England United for Justice (NEU4J), and VietAID.
3 Actions to Affect Legislative Change
Email your State Representative to Co-Sponsor the Immigrant Driver’s License Amendment to the Police Reform Bill
Allowing Bay Staters to apply for driver's licenses regardless of their immigration status is a common-sense public policy that benefits everyone. The Drivers Families Forward coalition, therefore, asks you to send a letter to your lawmakers in the Massachusetts State Legislature to urge them to pass An Act Relative to Work and Family Mobility (H.3012/S.2641) this legislative session. This legislation would enable all qualified Massachusetts drivers, regardless of immigration status, to apply for a standard license that could only be used for driving, not for benefits, boarding a plane, or voting. Click here to email your state representative. ([link removed])
Tell State Legislatures: Massachusetts needs FULLY funded schools!
It’s undeniable that reopening Massachusetts’ public schools and colleges safely this fall will cost significantly more than in pre-COVID times. But due to uncertainty about the state’s commitment to funding public education, school districts all across the state are making budget cuts and laying off educators, and our public colleges are slashing their already-bare-bones budgets.
We can’t allow low-income students, students with disabilities, and English learners to fall behind while students in wealthy school districts move ahead, but that’s exactly what will happen if the state fails to act.
The federal HEROES Act, passed by the U.S. House in May, would provide Massachusetts with $1.5 billion in education funding. Senate Republicans are refusing to bring it to a vote.
Tell your elected state officials ([link removed]) to commit to fully funding public schools and colleges in Massachusetts, and ask Governor Charlie Baker to use his relationships with fellow Republicans to push for the passage of the HEROES Act.
Contact your legislators for the Guaranteed Housing Stability Act!
HELP WIN THE GUARANTEED HOUSING STABILITY ACT - HD.5166 in the Massachusetts State House. Tens of thousands of families across Massachusetts will be at risk of eviction when our state's eviction moratorium expires on August 18th. This bill will prevent a massive surge of unjust evictions and foreclosures due to COVID-related debt, prevent rent hikes and no-fault evictions as we recover from COVID-19, and help establish a Housing Stability & Recovery Fund to relieve small business owners. Here is how you can take action:
Call your legislators ([link removed])
Email your legislators ([link removed])
Call your legislators (Spanish) ([link removed])
Email your legislators (Spanish) ([link removed])
Pandemic Profiteer Watch
No Charity for Bigotry Teach In
Thursday, August 6th 6:30-8 P.M. - RSVP at bit.ly/nocharityteachin ([link removed])
Join the Unmasking Fidelity ([link removed]) campaign for a teach in and campaign refresher to discuss the roles that corporations, philanthropy and specifically Donor Advised Fund's play in perpetuating systems of violence. Members of our campaign recently released an op-ed ([link removed]) demanding that Fidelity Charitable stop facilitating funding to organized bigotry groups.
In February 2019, it came to light that Fidelity Charitable ([link removed]) , through their Donor-Advised Funds, approves millions of dollars in financial support to groups that promote anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim, and anti-LGBTQ+ views and practices. This campaign, led by Community Labor United (CLU) ([link removed]) , Muslim Justice League (MJL)
([link removed]) , Asian American Resource Workshop (AARW) ([link removed]) , Political Research Associates (PRA) ([link removed]) and Resource Generation (RG)
([link removed]) , finds this practice unacceptable, and demands that Fidelity Charitable follow the leadership of the over 80 impact-conscious corporations and foundations who have adopted a moral clause that filters out groups who are involved in organized bigotry and apply this policy immediately.
Thank you for reading and have a safe weekend!
In Solidarity,
Community Labor United
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