Weekly Justice Highlights

Good News: On November 8, Ohioans overwhelmingly voted to repeal Senate Bill 5—Gov. John Kasich’s attack on middle-class jobs that was designed to destroy collective bargaining rights in Ohio. Also, this past week the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stayed the execution of Hank Skinner pending resolution of DNA testing.

Care of Earth: Urge Senators to reject Senator Rand Paul’s resolution that would not only permanently block an important life-saving clean air rule, it could potentially prevent EPA from ever issuing a similar rule again.  (Act as soon as possible; vote is likely today)

Care of Earth: President Obama recently announced that he will be making the final decision on the Keystone XL Pipeline. Individuals are invited to join fourteen Senators and Representatives calling for an investigation into the process to make sure the State Department is held accountable. 

In the Spirit of St. Vincent: The Super Committee on Deficit Reduction has a deadline of November 23, U.S. citizens are urged to express their Super Citizen attire and make some noise through the following actions: Send NETWORK’s “Proclamation in Honor of the American People”  and/or write a letter to the editor of a local newspaper with writing tips.  The U.S. Catholic Bishops also have messages for editing to Senators on the Super Committee and to Representatives on the Super Committee.  

Wanted! Lobbyists for those who sit outside the banquet of Lazarus: The Vincentian Family invites you to their capwiz for working legislative issues.

On November 20, people of faith from around the U.S. will unite in a national “Super Vigil” to ask God to move the hearts of policy makers and encourage the U.S. Congress and the Obama Administration to draft a fair budget that does not place undue burden on those living in poverty “while shielding the wealthiest from any additional sacrifice.”   

U.S. citizens are invited to urge Senators NOT to cut international poverty programs. (Scroll down for action)

Tipping Point: The End of Oil is a powerful new documentary by Clearwater Media. It introduces stories of real people whose health and way of life have been tragically upended by the “biggest construction project on the planet.” Included in the movie are the indigenous people of Fort Chipewyan who live downstream from Tar Sands and have been dying in disproportionate numbers from rare forms of cancer. This seems pertinent given the current nature of the Keystone XL pipeline.

Annie Leonard (author of The Story of Stuff) is out with another story entitled, “The Story of Broke.” The script and movie are located here.

The National Farm Worker Ministry has a well-done 2-minute video on farm workers.

A new journal, Thinking Nature, publishes essays that address various philosophical and ecological approaches to inquiring into the concepts of nature. It is an open access journal edited by Timothy Morton and Ben Woodard.