Friend,

All across the United States this week, thousands of Americans raised their voices for peace at #NoWarWithIran rallies.

Thank you for showing up to reaffirm that there are more of us who want peace than those who support endless, for-profit wars.

Together, we’re pushing for a better world. I wanted to take a moment to fill you in on how we’re addressing the threat of war and continuing to take on other systemic injustices.

Updates on Iran:

• On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a War Powers Resolution, which is nonbinding but sends a clear message that Donald Trump should wait for Congressional authorization before using military force against Iran. Our Constitution grants only Congress war-making powers, not the President.

• The House vote followed extremely disappointing and insufficient White House briefings to Congress about Trump’s initial act of aggression, killing Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.

• As political conditions keep changing and tensions are high, remember: It’s so important for us to stay loud and push for peace. We must continue to advocate for immediate de-escalation. A few ways to do so from home: Post on social media using the hashtag #NoWarWithIran, and share this petition now.

Environmental justice: We have the right to clean air and water

• On Friday, we secured an important step toward making marginalized communities across the country healthy and whole. The House passed an amendment I introduced to prioritize funding and resources to frontline communities in a bipartisan bill addressing widespread PFAS contamination in water and soil, including in #13thDistrictStrong.

• News outlets are shining a light on #13thDistrictStrong’s resilient residents―true heroes who have fought against corporate polluters for decades, and who deserve bold leadership at all levels of government:

• The Metro Times focused on the most polluted zip code in Michigan, where we hosted a hearing this past fall so Congressmembers could hear from people on the ground. In zip code 48217, dozens of industrial facilities are poisoning predominantly black residents, who face high rates of asthma, cancer, brain damage, heart and respiratory diseases, miscarriages, and more. The Guardian profiled some of the incredible local activists who are fighting this environmental racism.

• One recent incident exemplifies how corporations treat our community like a dumping ground: A dock collapsed at a former radioactive processing center into the Detroit River, near a drinking water intake site. Outrageously, Detroit Bulk Storage and Revere Dock LLC kept this from the public: We didn't find out about this until a week later, when Canadian journalists reported on it and warned of a possible uranium spill. I joined community leaders to put together a public townhall about the incident and requested immediate testing and cleanup.

• Update: The company missed the December 26 deadline to send government agencies a remediation plan to remove the collapsed dock (which must be careful to avoid disturbing toxic sediment), And the EPA just found unsafe levels of lead at the site. This is unacceptable, and we’re keeping the pressure on through national attention.

Immigration justice:

• This week, I spoke out about the Trump administration’s invasive, dehumanizing pilot program in Detroit to collect DNA samples from immigrants. Customs and Border Protection officers are gathering this biometric information from people who are in detention, including teenagers, whether or not they’ve committed a crime. The aim? To create a massive criminal database for the FBI. We cannot stay silent.

• This winter recess, I also visited the border community living in Tijuana and in San Diego. An interfaith group prayed together at Friendship Park on the U.S.-Mexico border, where families who’ve been separated can spend time together.

• I heard from courageous deported U.S. veterans who risked their lives to serve our country, only to be abandoned. To see firsthand what the wall has done to these veterans and families has reaffirmed my commitment to fighting against injustices that deny people their human dignity. (You can watch this video to learn more.)

Civil rights

• Late last month, my colleagues and I sent a letter to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), calling for a review of federally assisted housing’s use of dangerous, invasive facial recognition technology.

• We called attention to the technology’s inaccuracies, which disproportionately harm vulnerable communities already at risk for over-criminalization, including trans people, women, and people of color. Our group of U.S. Senators and Representatives set a January 24 deadline for HUD to send us answers. I’ll keep you posted about what we hear.

• This letter complements legislation I introduced last year with Rep. Yvette Clark and Rep. Ayanna Pressley, the No Biometric Barriers Act. Inspired by tenants’ rights activists, the bill would prohibit facial recognition technology from being used in federally assisted housing facilities.

Economic justice

• I joined Amo (“Uncle” in Arabic) Bernie Sanders to write an op-ed exposing the hypocrisy of Trump’s plan to take away nutrition benefits from 4 million hungry people, while handing our tax money and resources to billionaires and wealthy corporations. We wrote:

• “We must fight as hard as we can against the Trump administration’s savage attack on nutrition assistance. But we need to go beyond that. We must demand that the ultra-wealthy finally start paying their fair share so we can dramatically expand nutrition support.”

• Economic justice advocates from #13thDistrictStrong joined me in DC in December, including Michigan United, pictured below, and Mothering Justice, representing fierce mamas at a House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing on national paid family and medical leave.

• I’m continuing to push forward legislation to lift people out of poverty, including the BOOST Act, the PAID Act, and the Protecting Consumers from Market Manipulation Act. I'm proud to have crafted these policies hand in hand with #13thDistrictStrong residents.

With everything that’s going on, it’s understandable to feel overwhelmed and discouraged. But I’m continually inspired by you, and by all the resilient families fighting for justice in Michigan’s #13thDistrictStrong.

I hope you’re refueling with loved ones as we gear up for this year. Stay tuned.

In solidarity,

Rashida