Racial Slurs Have No Place in Football

The leaves are changing. The scent of pumpkin spice lattes is in the air. In short, it’s football season. And like millions of my fellow Americans, I love football. But I’m also American Indian. So for me, football season also means hearing a racial slur all the time. It’s used by sports teams around theContinue reading “Racial Slurs Have No Place in Football”

“While We Celebrate a $15 Minimum Wage, Let’s Remember It’s Not Enough”

There has been a lot of buzz around the Seattle City Council’s historic adoption of a $15 minimum wage, the highest in the nation. Now there’s also excitement over last week’s passage of a living wage ordinance by the King County Council that sets the same wage floor for county employees and contractors. Yes, $15Continue reading ““While We Celebrate a $15 Minimum Wage, Let’s Remember It’s Not Enough””

Graduates Struggle Under a Mountain of Debt

College is supposed to be the pathway to a better job and a better life, but for students across the country college is also the pathway to a life of debt. Since 2008, states across the country have decreased their investment in higher education, with every state except for Alaska and North Dakota providing lessContinue reading “Graduates Struggle Under a Mountain of Debt”

With the New Year comes a new Fiscal Showdown

On the first day of the 2013, Congress passed a legislative compromise to address the so-called ‘fiscal cliff,’ while setting the stage for Round 2 of an ongoing Fiscal Showdown.

Immigration Reform 2013: Looking Back, Moving Forward

In the late 1990s, many leaders and organizations including PCUN, CHIRLA, and our own NWFCO, among others, lay the foundation of our current movement and of what would eventually be known as the Fair Immigration Reform Movement. Almost fifteen years later, the immigrant rights movement has a chance to pass immigration reform in 2013.

What We Can’t Afford to Give Up in the Budget Fight

  A report released by AFL-CIO lays out the state-by-state impact of cutting Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare.

Does the U.S. Chamber of Commerce speak for small business? Maine small business owner says: “No!”

Melanie Collins, a small business owner and leader with the Maine Small Business Coalition, traveled to Washington, DC on October 19 to speak at a press conference outside the headquarters of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Her message was simple: “The U.S. Chamber of Commerce doesn’t speak for small business, and it doesn’t speak forContinue reading “Does the U.S. Chamber of Commerce speak for small business? Maine small business owner says: “No!””

When the Supremes Hit the Extremes What Happens?

Throughout most of our history the Supreme Court has been accorded a special place as a fair and impartial arbiter of legal issues. Sometimes the Court has failed in this role, but, for the most part it has been an important force in the unity of the nation because seemed to deserved respect. The currentContinue reading “When the Supremes Hit the Extremes What Happens?”

Medicaid and the Supreme Court Case

The case challenging the Affordable Care Act has a lot in it to think about. Much of the public debate and the stories in the press are about the requirement that everyone have insurance – the individual responsibility requirement. But there also is a challenge to the Medicaid expansion.

Disinfecting Banker’s Day on the Hill

This is part eleven in a series of posts that will explore some of the leading organizations from around the country that are engaged in unearthing and combating the influence of money in the political process. In February 2011, on “Bankers’ Day on the Hill,” grassroots organization Washington Community Action Network confronted corporate bank lobbyistsContinue reading “Disinfecting Banker’s Day on the Hill”