Dear John,

This week, we've been on the move. From D.C. to West Virginia, we've been amplifying the voices of poor and low-income people. On Monday, we released our Poor People's Pandemic Report: Mapping the Intersections of Poverty, Race and COVID-19.Now, we're in the midst of a more than 20-mile march from Harper's Ferry, WV, to Martinsburg, WV, speaking out against the cruel policies of Sen. Joe Manchin. And on Monday, the June 18 Mobilization Tour comes to New York City for a Moral March on Wall St.

The data we've collected and stories we have heard make it clearer than ever why we must gather together in Washington, D.C. for the Poor People's and Low Wage Workers Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls on June 18th, 2022.

Our groundbreaking pandemic report reveals that while the COVID-19 virus did not discriminate, our society and policies did. Especially after its initial phase, COVID-19 has been a "poor people's pandemic," with death rates in poor and low-wealth counties twice as high as wealthier counties and up to five times at different points in the pandemic.

In West Virginia, we have heard story after story of poor folks crying out for justice. At Tuesday's rally in Harper's Ferry, Katrina Fernandez, a resident of nearby Ranson, WV, spoke up about her environmental concerns about the Rockwool plant, which produces fiberglass insulation. Katrina testified that the plant is right across from her son's school. Later in the week, we saw it for ourselves; standing with our backs to the school, we could see the nearby Rockwool smokestack pumping out pollution into the air. 

We're closing out our time in West Virginia with a day of action on Saturday, April 9th. We’ll rally outside Sen. Joe Manchin's office in Martinsburg and demand he turn away from his policies of greed. Later in the day we’ll travel to the Grant Town Power Plant to stand with West Virginia Rising as we protest the dirty plant that receives coal waste from Enersystems, a company run by Manchin's son. And then back to the June 18 Mobilization Tour on Monday in New York City! 

Join us in Washington D.C. on June 18th for our Mass Poor People's & Low-Wage Workers' Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls! 

Somebody's been hurting our people and it's gone on far too long, and we won't be silent anymore!

Forward together, not one step back!

Rev. Dr. William Barber and Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis

Co-Chairs, Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival