Weekly Justice Highlights

Mixed News: The U.S. Senate voted to extend unemployment insurance for more than 2 million people. Other benefits like extended COBRA subsidies, TANF Emergency Funds, jobs programs, and the Housing Trust Fund are still in limbo as senators complain that there is no money to pay for these things.
Two bills can help this situation. Call or write senators asking to sign on as co-sponsors of
S. 3533, the Responsible Estate Tax Act, introduced by Sens. Sanders, Sherrod Brown, Franken, Harkin, and Whitehouse – Act here

S. 3500, the Local Jobs for America Act, introduced by Sens. Sherrod Brown, Begich and Franken. Act here

Right to Water: As early as the last week of July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly may be voting on a Resolution to support the Human Right to Water and Sanitation. However, the UK, USA, Australia, and Canada are blocking this resolution. Visit http://www.blueplanetproject.net/ to urge ambassadors from as many countries as you wish to support the right to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation as a universal human right.

Immigration: Urge U.S. legislators to pass the DREAM Act as a step toward comprehensive immigration reform here.

Other Potential Actions:
Nurserymen’s exchange is one of the nation’s largest wholesalers of nursery plants. In July, nearly half of their employees were laid off after working decades with the company. The company wanted to hire out of town labor contractor workers so they could pay cheap wages and no benefits with the option later of rehiring with payment of minimum wage and no benefits. Act to hold corporations accountable here

As people of faith, we are called to stand by those suffering from the oil disaster. Call or email U.S. Senators and Representatives urging them to work with stakeholders, hold responsible parties accountable, ensure help reaches those in need, commit to long-term recovery and take steps to prevent future disasters here

Urge U.S. Senators to support the START Treaty that brings us one step closer to a world free of nuclear weapons here (Senate action pending, act this week)

Support the International Violence Against Women Act here

Write the EPA expressing your concern to the proposed Solid Waste Definition Rule that will allow untold numbers of facilities across the United States to burn scrap plastics, used chemicals, and other industrial wastes without emission controls, air monitoring, or reporting requirements here

On July 29 (New AZ law (SB1070) takes effect), individuals and groups around the United States will be praying and participating in acts of resistance to show support for the Immigrants and the need for comprehensive reform of U.S. immigration laws. A prayer service from the Interfaith Worker Justice is located at http://www.iwj.org/doc/rem_immigrant.pdf

Quarterly Summary of Accomplishments on Legislation

Chevron: At the annual meeting, shareholders representing approximately 160 million shares voted in favor of a shareholder proposal to help reduce instability and insecurity in oil-rich countries through a transparent and accountable payment disclosure policy in all countries where Chevron operates. This is an opportunity for Chevron to promote the rights of citizens by providing them with vital information about revenues coming into their countries.

Clean Air Act


In June, U.S. Senators voted down a blatant attempt to weaken the Clean Air Act. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) led the failed legislative effort to keep the EPA from regulating greenhouse gases, and while she failed, more such attacks are anticipated.

Health Care Reform: President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law on March 23, 2010. The new law significantly reforms health care policy in the United States.

Human Trafficking: Christian Brothers Investment Services (CBIS) sent a letter to hotels to encourage action on human trafficking in advance of The World Cup. More than 300 faith-based organizations and investors including SCN Leadership, joined together to raise our voices against exploitation of children. Responses were received from Accor, Carlson, and Intercontinental hotels.

Holy Land: We urged Congress and President Obama to exercise strong leadership for Holy Land peace. In a positive development, the U.S. is now brokering “proximity” or indirect talks between Israelis and Palestinians, but we need to continue supporting strong U.S. leadership.

India: Regarding Bt Brinjal, although the Minister of Environment and Forest (MoEF), Jairam Ramesh has deferred introduction of Bt brinjal indefinitely until “independent tests prove it safe”, the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) is trying other ways to push the introduction forward. The GEAC decided to prepare a background paper on concerns over food safety of Bt Brinjal. A panel with 5-6 independent scientists will be formed to look into the concerns and question their scientific validity.

Valley Fill Permits

The Obama Administration has stopped the rubber-stamping of valley fill permits associated with mountaintop removal mining. The decision by the Army Corps of Engineers to suspend the Nationwide 21 permitting process is a step in the right direction. This action means that permits will go through a more extensive review and directly impacted Appalachian communities will have a chance to express their concerns. This change is not permanent and will be under consideration again in 2012, and the Army Corps could retract that suspension before then.

Weekly Justice Highlights

Milestone for Women: On 2 July, in a historic moment, the UN General Assembly voted unanimously for the establishment of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and Empowerment, to be known as “UN Women.” The resolution that establishes the new entity is part of a larger resolution on System-wide Coherence (A/64/L.56) and is the result of years of negotiations between UN Member States and active advocacy of women’s groups and civil society.

In the Spirit of St. Vincent: Ask President Obama to deliver a plan that spells out how we can achieve the poverty-fighting Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2010 at http://one.org/us/actnow/2015/

Empowering Women: Despite Iran signing a United Nation convention that requires the death penalty only be used for the “most serious crimes” and despite Iranian Parliament passing a law banning stoning last year, stoning for adultery still continues. Sign a petition to stop stoning at http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_stoning/?vl

Other Potential Actions:
Urge the United States to strength its support of the International Criminal Court in bringing Darfuri war crimes suspects to justice by clicking here (Act this week)

Protect communities from Coal Ash by contacting Administrator Lisa Jackson of the Environmental Protection Agency urging her to adopt enforceable federal safeguards, not suggested guidelines for states, to protect our communities by clicking here (Act this week)

The Appalachia Restoration Act (S 696) would sharply curtail mountaintop removal in the United States and protect the valleys, streams and communities that are being devastated by this destructive form of mining. Urge Senators to co-sponsor this legislation at http://www.ilovemountains.org/write-your-senators/ (Act this week)

Contact U.S. Representatives urging them to pass the Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act (H.R. 5504) to improve the quality of food and meet the needs of all children at http://capwiz.com/networklobby/issues/alert/?alertid=15238256 (Act this week)

Urge Ayatollah Sayed Ali Khamenei and Ayatollah Sadeqh Larijani to halt the imminent executions of two Iranian women whose legal rights were violated and to commute their death sentences by clicking here (Act this week)

On July 15, the Senate plans to vote on the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. This financial reform bill takes some key steps toward breaking the control that Wall Street has over our country – urge Senators to support this bill at http://afl.salsalabs.com/o/4023/c/33/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=401 (Act before July 15)

Louisville: A Community Gathering of Mourning and Loss in response to the Gulf Coast Oil Disaster is planned for July 26 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the First Unitarian Church (4th and York Street). This gathering will include the chance to share with others, music, and deep ecology processes. The event is hosted by Cultivating Connections. Donations are requested.

Ways to Take A Stand

Sometimes it's difficult to take a stand. However, those who are part of the SCN Family are called to do that every day. The mission statement calls the SCN Family to work for justice in solidarity with oppressed peoples, especially the economically poor and women, and to care for the earth.

Here are some of the things you can do:

• Participate in fundraising projects, charity-sponsored walks, food collections, and clothing drives. Click here for a list of the SCN Family fundraising projects.
• Volunteer your time. Our director of lay mission volunteer programs can connect you with an opportunity to serve with and learn from the poor in ways that are right for you. Click here to learn more about volunteering with the SCN Family.
• Have a garage sale and donate proceeds to the charity of your choice.
• Check out opportunities to participate in advocacy and systemic change from the SCN Office of Global Ministries. It is likely that your concerns are also our concerns. The Office of Global Ministries looks at poverty, justice and peace issues worldwide, keeping tabs on policies and providing updates and ideas for you to consider.

Action Alert July 2010

Migration of Creation and the Call to Responsible Stewardship

As a global community, many of us have continued to hear and read about the on-going events related to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and ongoing oil being released into the Gulf of Mexico extending into other parts of the United States and beyond. This is certainly not the first tragic event related to the extraction of resources, nor will it be the last. While this unfortunate series of events began with the loss of human life, it is now including the loss of wildlife and the migration of God’s creation to more nurturing areas of life whenever possible. One might say this is typical the world over where extraction occurs.

The oil spill has caught nesting birds and has stretched into many wildlife refuge areas where thousands of birds stop during migration. Is the migration of non-persons equally important and/or more/less significant than the migration of persons? While the answer to this question differs from person to person, as followers of Christ, we are called to be responsible stewards of all life no matter where we reside. Pope Benedict XVI states in his World Peace Day message in January 2010, “Protecting the natural environment in order to build a world of peace is thus a duty incumbent upon each and all.” Additionally, this message emphasizes the fact that humans can no longer afford to be indifferent about what we are doing to Earth (our home). Individuals are invited to critique environmental policies and reduce, reuse and recycle as much as possible.

Now is the time to renew a promise made to “care of Earth” that the SCN Family commits to in the mission statement and 2008 General Assembly Directives. After all, not one of us in the global community is “oil free.” Each of us has use of oil and products of oil on a daily basis such as the fuel used in vehicles for transportation, heating fuel, curtains, detergents, plant fertilizers, plastics of all types, pain relievers, penicillin, clothes, ink dyes in pens, camera film, shoes, CD’s and cassettes, tires, asphalt, roofing, food additives to prolong shelf life, candles, milk cartons, polishes, crayons, deodorant, and the list goes on. Additionally, the St. Francis Pledge calls us to pray, learn, assess, act, and advocate to “care for creation and to share Earth’s resources in solidarity.”

So, what are the practicalities in what seems like an “ocean of bad news?”

• Live simply and resist consumerism as much as possible to reduce dependence on “oil products.”
• Look for environmentally sensitive specifications on goods and services we purchase.
• Examine environmental policies and advocate for policies that protect all creation.
• Support those directly affected in any way through prayer and monetary support.
• Eliminate, whenever possible, products that are only good for one-time use.
• Nurture the adaptation of alternative energy and fuels.
• Hold governments and corporations accountable in caring for Earth.
• Conduct a periodic environmental audit both personally and as a group.
• Challenge groups to deepen their ecological commitment to more sustainable living.

Reflection/Action: “The environment is God's gift to everyone, and in our use of it we have a responsibility towards the poor, towards future generations and towards humanity as a whole." Charity in Truth by Pope Benedict XVI, paragraph 48

Reflecting on the above practicalities, what recent sacrifice have I made to reduce my use of oil and the petrochemicals that are derived from oil remembering that no effort is too small and all efforts are important to future generations and the human family?

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Purchasing a product that contains a fair trade logo (pictures of some of these) means that:

• Forced and exploitative child labor is prohibited (thus avoiding further exploitation of trafficked children)
• Guaranteed set prices that provide a living wage for those who have produced them (thus empowering women and others to dignified work)
• Sustainable farming is promoted (thus promoting care of Earth)

Additionally, the winds of change are stirring individuals and groups to purchase more local. According to Stacy Mitchell in an article from YES! Magazine, “there are now 5,274 active farmers markets in the United States. … Food co-ops and neighborhood greengrocers are likewise on the rise. … Neighborhood hardware stores are on the rise. …Driving in the U.S. is down in the last two years. … Local business alliances have now formed in over 130 cities and collectively count some 30,000 businesses as members. … Corporations desperately want to turn the local economy movement into nothing more than a cheap marketing trick they can appropriate for their own ends.” Buyer beware!

Action: Look for these labels (personally and corporately) and shop with local merchants whom you can ask about where their products come from.

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Responsible Estate Tax in the United States

A century ago this summer, Theodore Roosevelt called on Congress to address the dangerous concentration of wealth and power by instituting a “graduated inheritance tax.” On June 24, members of the U.S. Senate introduced legislation to establish a progressive estate tax with graduated rates. The legislation would:

• Exempt the first $3.5 million of wealth in an estate from federal taxation ($7 million for couples)
• Institute a progressive graduated rate structure so that the super wealthy pay more
• Include a billionaire’s surtax of 10 percent
• Closes all of the Estate and Gift Tax Loopholes requested in FY 2011 budget by Obama
• Protects family farmers by allowing them to lower value of farmland by up to #3 million for estate tax purposes
• Benefits farmers and landowners by providing estate tax relief for conservation easements

Revenue potential ranges from $25 to $40 billion/year. The estate tax, as Bill Gates Sr. has written, “is a means by which wealthy people pay back the society and the commonwealth that has made their wealth possible.” According to Wealth for the Common Good, “eliminating the estate tax — or gutting it with irresponsible reforms — would shift our nation’s revenue obligations onto lower-income taxpayers and future generations. This legislation would exempt over 99.75 percent of Americans from paying any estate tax whatsoever, while ensuring that the wealthiest Americans in our country pay their fair share.” The non-partisan Tax Policy Center estimates that “only 80 small businesses and farm estates throughout the country paid an estate tax in 2009- representing 0.003 percent of all estates.”

Action: Urge U.S. Senators to co-sponsor and support this legislation.

Oil Legislative Information

No New Drilling Act of 2010: This bill would permanently protect much of our oceans, beaches and coastal economies from the harmful impacts of offshore drilling. This act bans new leasing. http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h5248/show

The Clean Coasts & Efficient Cars Act: This bill would place a permanent moratorium on most offshore drilling and boost fuel-economy standards from 35 mpg to 55 mpg by 2030. The Moratorium would cover the Atlantic, Pacific, Central and Eastern Gulf but not Alaska or the Western Gulf. http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=A90354DF-2892-4EF7-8BAF-F8899521CCA1

Big Oil Bailout Prevention Liability Act (S.3305): This bill would amend the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to increase the liability of the party responsible for an offshore facility, except a deepwater port, from which oil is discharged into or upon navigable waters or adjoining shorelines to the total of all discharge removal costs plus $10 billion (currently, $75 million) for each incident. Note: Senator Menendez’ unlimited liability Act went forward, but was blocked by Sen. Murkowski, though the White House has spoken about its import. Counterpart: Rep. Grijalva's Bill is in the House. http://menendez.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/?id=c9ca441f-ddac-4ebb-ad3a-b044cb3c79f8

Close Big Oil Tax Loopholes Act: This bill which would crack down on a series of loopholes that amount to over $20 billion for Big Oil. It would recoup royalties that oil companies avoided paying for oil and gas production on public lands, prevent oil companies from manipulating the rules on foreign taxes to avoid paying full corporate taxes in the U.S. and end a number of tax deductions. http://menendez.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/?id=fdd03312-20d3-418d-bbcf-00f24edff261

The American Power Act: Among many other things, this climate bill creates new incentives for expanding offshore oil drilling. http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-s1733/show Climate Reality Check will be releasing a Report Card on the Act at http://climaterealitycheck.org

A Prayer For Healing of the Gulf of Mexico

Opening: O Great Spirit, Your sacred Gulf water and abundant forms of life sustained by it are now devastated by a massive oil spill that began April 20th. You established with Noah and all generations a new covenant with the earth and every living creature on it to never be destroyed again. Grant us wisdom to understand and mourn this wound to the Gulf today and for subsequent generations to come; we pray for the grace to live by Your covenant with the one creation that is the source of all life.

We pray:

That all oil leaks are closed and sealed and oil flow into the Gulf is stopped.

All: Great Spirit, Help Us find a way to restore beauty to Your Handiwork.

That the oil that has spilled into the Gulf, wetlands, rivers, and land be cleaned up.

All: Great Spirit, Help us to listen anew to creation’s music.

We mourn the loss of people and all forms of life destroyed by the oil spill.

All: Great Spirit, Grant us Wisdom to live in harmony with your creation.

We pray for healing of the entire Gulf region ecosphere, that the smallest and largest forms of life may find healing from the oil and chemicals dumped into the Gulf.

All: Great Spirit, Help us to find ways to refresh Your Gulf, bayous, rivers, and lands.

We mourn the loss of a way of life for all fishing people; may all who find their livelihood through fishing find the comfort and economic support they now need.

All: Great Spirit, Renew in us a humble gratitude for the fragility of the global biosphere.

That our nation and world find new ways to humbly reverence the one Mother earth and all forms of life that are nurtured by it—that we may find renewable forms of energy that sustain all forms of life.

All: Great Spirit, Grant us grace to wonder at the wonder of it all!

Closing: (Psalm 96)

Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;

let the sea and what fills it resound;

let the plains be joyful and all that is in them;

Then let all the trees of the forest rejoice before the Lord who comes,

who governs the earth

To govern the world with justice and the peoples with faithfulness.

In Wonder of One Mother Earth, We pray, Amen!

Alex Mikulich, Research Fellow, Jesuit Social Research Institute

(Inspired by, and adapted from, the First American “O Great Spirit” Prayer)