[ [link removed] ]A finger pressing the mute button on the radio that says America First
Legal. The text reads "Stop playing anti-trans and anti-immigrant ads."
The Color Of Change logo is at the top right.

John, 

Midterm elections are in progress and right-wingers are taking a page out
of their misinformation handbook to garner support for far-right
candidates who ultimately will harm Black people. America First Legal is
an organization launched and led by Stephen Miller, the former adviser who
shaped former President Trump’s racist, white nationalist anti-immigration
policies.^1-3 They have purchased more than $1.5 million in radio ads to
spew anti-trans and anti-immigrant misinformation specifically targeted to
mislead Black voters in Georgia. This is the same organization that
perverted Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s words to falsely argue that federal
aid to Black farmers is racism against white people, ultimately blocking
overdue federal aid designated to Black farmers.^4 Now hundreds of
thousands of America First Legal’s ad dollars have gone to iHeartMedia’s
radio stations. Join us in calling iHeartMedia in canceling this ad
buyout! 

[ [link removed] ]STOP PLAYING AMERICA FIRST LEGAL ADS

Attacks on transgender and gender non-conforming people and immigrants are
connected to the attacks on abortion rights and Black history, with all
being rooted in white supremacy. Black people wind up most harmed.
Organizations that uphold the white supremacist agenda are being
well-funded, attacking Black people through ads. Similar to America First
Legal, the Independent Women’s Forum receives millions of dollars in
corporate support and dark money, which it uses to support right-wing
lawmakers and groups and to spread anti-LGBTQ, anti-women and
anti-immigrant messaging.^5,6 The group's precursor helped run the
campaign against Anita Hill and her claims of sexual harassment in order
to aid the confirmation of Clarence Thomas to the U.S. Supreme Court.^7 In
recent times, the group has pushed for the overturning of Roe v Wade and
abortion rights.^8 These events ultimately have harmed Black people, who
experience higher rates of maternal mortality, miscarriage and
stillbirth.^9,10 With many states now outlawing or restricting abortion,
the invasion of privacy will further the overcriminalization and
disenfranchisement of Black communities.^11 The liberation of all our
communities is intertwined and we must resist all efforts to subjugate
anyone who is not a cisgender white man to strict gender norms and an
oppressive hierarchy.

Violence is not just physical. Transgender and gender non-conforming
people already face forms of structural violence — from a lack of a social
support systems to the inability to access proper medical care. This
increases the risk of many entering dangerous situations, such as becoming
homeless or criminalized.^12 Due to racism and sexism, Black trans women
and femmes are disproportionately victims of violence.^13 These anti-trans
ads are another act of violence that both fuels transphobic rhetoric and
leads to rising anti-trans policy and legislation. States such as Texas,
Florida, and Idaho have passed bills that further stigmatize transgender
and gender non-conforming people, including banning trans youth from
playing sports, restricting schools from teaching sexuality and gender,
allowing people and organizations to discriminate against LGBTQ people and
more.^14 We must prevent the amplification of anti-trans messaging across
all media.

[ [link removed] ]TELL IHEARTMEDIA TO STOP ANTI-TRANS VIOLENCE

Radio remains an influential channel for receiving information for a
majority of Americans, especially Black folks.^15 The right has used such
misinformation tactics in the past with the clear intention to dissuade,
discourage and mislead Black voters.^16 Let’s show them these ads won’t be
successful!

[ [link removed] ]NO HATEFUL MISINFORMATION ON THE RADIO

Until justice is real,

—The Color Of Change team

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

References: 

 1. Sara Dorn, “Ex-Trump aides behind scare ads attacking Democrats over
transgender issues and immigration,” Forbes, October 25, 2022,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
 2. ​​”American First Legal Foundation,” Influence Watch,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
 3. “Stephen Miller,” Southern Poverty Law Center, 
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
 4. Matt Stieb, “Stephen Miller cites MLK in lawsuit accusing government
of being racist to white people,” Intelligencer, April 27, 2021,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
 5. Julia Peck, Ansev Demirhan, and Alyssa Bowen, “Dark money ‘women’s
groups’ are using anti-trans scaremongering to oppose ERA,” March 22,
2022,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
 6. Sam Biddle, “How Amazon, Google, and Facebook Helped Fund the Campaign
to Overturn Roe,” The Intercept, October 1, 2022,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
 7. Ibid.
 8. Barbara Spindel, “Confirmation Bias,” Slate, April 7, 2016,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
 9. “Maternal Mortality Rates in the United States, 2020,” Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
10. Ashley Nellis, “The Color of Justice: Racial and Ethnic Disparity in
State Prisons,” The Sentencing Project, October 13, 2021,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]
11. Sarah Green Carmichael, “Criminalizing abortion will hurt Black women
most,” The Washington Post, June 26, 2022,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
12. “Dismantling a Culture of Violence,” Human Rights Foundation, October
2021,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
13. “Trans agenda for liberation: Pillar 1 Black Trans Women and Black
Trans Femmes: Leading & Living Fiercely,” Transgender Law Center,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
14. Anne Branigin and N. Kirkpatrick, “Anti-trans laws are on the rise.
Here’s a look at where—and what kind,” The Washington Post, October
14, 2022,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
15. “Audio and Podcasting Fact Sheet,” Pew Research Center, June 29, 2021,
[ [link removed] ][link removed] 
16. Renée DiRest, “The Misinformation Campaign Was Distinctly One-Sided,”
The Atlantic, March 15, 2021,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]



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