A new message from your friends at People For the American Way.
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Dear friend of People For the American Way,

I’m old enough to remember our country’s bicentennial, and this month I’m
celebrating my own personal centennial. Sad to say, I think I’m in better
shape than the country right now. Let’s do something about that, shall we?

The 2016 election of former President Donald Trump has led to the outcome
we most feared: a Supreme Court firmly in the grip of the Far Right.

We are all experiencing just how devastating that can be, with recent
rulings abolishing the right to reproductive freedom and bodily autonomy,
dismantling separation of church and state, undermining voting rights, and
making it harder for public officials to tackle the climate crisis and gun
violence.

As discouraging as this moment may be, let us remember that this is not
the first time the Supreme Court has been an instrument of injustice.
Earlier generations of Americans strategized and organized to make our
courts and our country more just, and this is our time to do the same.

[ [link removed] ]To that end, I’m asking that you chip in as generously as you can,
whether with a monthly sustaining gift or a one-time donation, to defend
democracy and build a more just society by powering the work of our shared
project, People For the American Way. >>

Turning 100 with my health and wits mostly intact is a privilege. I chalk
my good fortune up to the fact that I have always had people around me to
love and laugh with—and that for many years I have been energized by being
part of the community of shared values and purpose that is People For the
American Way.

It is a glorious feeling when we can come together to celebrate our
victories – whether it’s winning confirmation of judges who believe in
justice for all – like our new Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson
– or using new technologies to help Black voters overcome voter
suppression tactics and exercise their right to vote, as People For does
with its Defend the Black Vote program.

But it is even more important to come together in the face of our defeats.
So our work is especially important right now, when our larger shared
project – the American democratic experiment – is looking a bit wobbly.

Back when I gathered civic, religious, business, and civil rights leaders
to join me in creating People For the American Way, I wanted to
demonstrate that love of country belonged to no one political party, that
people who disagreed on one political position or another could find
common ground in our commitment to our First Amendment freedoms and the
constitutional principle of equality under law for all Americans.

Watching the Jan. 6 hearings, I found myself getting a bit teary at the
courage and patriotism of the conservative Republican lawyers and White
House staff who saved our democracy by refusing to go along with Donald
Trump’s bullying and his illegal attempts to overturn the election.

They have given me hope that we can find unexpected partners in the urgent
work of resisting the rise of authoritarianism in our country.

Now, as white supremacists and Christian nationalists aggressively try to
make the country their own—and tell the rest of us that we aren’t real
Americans and don’t deserve the same rights and freedoms – the stakes
could not be higher.

I admit it is hard to see us sliding backward as I complete my first
century as an American. But I will never stop loving this country. And I
will never stop fighting for the ideals that inspire that love.

[ [link removed] ]Please join me in the effort with an urgent donation now >>

We have done so much good work together. And we have so much more to do.
Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty. Action is an antidote to
despair.

Let’s take strength from one another and find the determination to keep
going. We need each other. And our country needs us.

Thank you for everything,

Norman Lear
[3]Norman photo

[ [link removed] ]RENEW TODAY →

 

 

 

 


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crucial work. PFAW is able to win policy battles and elections, and
counter the Right's extremism and hate, because of dedicated
activists like you, and we're always eager to hear your thoughts.
Thanks for your support.

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