Program Synopsis:
We have a dysfunctional government at the national, state and sometimes at the local level. We will take a look at how and why that dysfunction happens and then look at some reform ideas being proposed in Pennsylvania and in Bethlehem to increase the possibility and perception that government is working for We the People and not the special interests.
Program
* Welcome, Introductions and Handout sheet!
Rationale for this program: We the People want a 'Democracy with Fairness and Justice 4 All - How do we get there?' The recent March on Harrisburg in May and the recently proposed ethics board for the City of Bethlehem led to a slight change in our program.
* Quote - Justice Brandeis on Democracy and Extreme Economic Inequality
* Quote by Lawrence Lessig on Money in Politics
* Chart on economic equality - 1947 to 1979.
Why is extreme economic inequality a problem for democracy?
* Video - How wealth inequality is dangerous for America! (3)
* Video - The decline of American Democracy in one graph. (2)
What does extreme economic inequality have to do with this program?
* As the video points out, extreme economic inequality lead to political inequality and a dysfunctional democracy. Those in control for the past 40 years have cut taxes (mainly for the wealthy), claimed government is the problem, cut regulations on corporations, privatized the commons, and then claim we are broke to further cut programs for the 99%. We planned to show the movie 'We're Not Broke' tonight but changed our plan and ask you to use the link to watch it online at home.
If things are going to change, We the People are going to be the ones to do it!
* This is happening locally in the Lehigh Valley as you can see from the list of actions on the handout. Also, across Pennsylvania and the nation, many people have had an 'aha moment' and are getting involved. Tonight's program will focus on some of those things that are happening.
What can we do to fix our dysfunctional political system?
* Good Government Pa is a state-wide legislative advocacy group organized under the UUPLAN with a focus on 5 areas of political reform. We look at proposed good government legislation in Pennsylvania.
* Introduce March on Harrisburg member Alex Shepherd for overview of March on Harrisburg and how it got started.
* March on Harrisburg has 3 areas of focus related to getting money out of politics. (2)
* Video - Gerrymandering Explained (3)
* Video - Automatic Voter Registration (2)
* Video - Discuss Ban on gifts to legislators. (6)
* Discussion with March on Harrisburg member Alex Shepherd on what they are up to next and how we can help.
* Discussion of Bethlehem for Good Government members Barbara Diamond and Breena Holland about ethics in city government and their proposal for an ethics board for Bethlehem. Discuss article below on blueprint for fixing Citizens United.
Related Videos
* Video with Naomi Klein about her new book 'No Is Not Enough: Resisting the New Shock Politics and Winning the World We Need.'
* Video - We're Not Broke: The Corporate Tax Cheats of America (80)
* Video - TED talk on 'This is what democracy looks like!' with Anthony Romero (13)
* Video - Bob Herbert's Op-Ed TV: Les Leopold on the Causes of Runaway Inequality. (26)
* Video - Affluence and Influence: Economic Inequality and Political Power in America (48)
* Video - Does the government represent the people? (6)
* Video - Wealthiest One Percent, Come Home - a TED Talk by Chuck Collins (12)
* Video - Richard Wilkinson on how economic inequality harms societies. (17)
* Video - Joseph Stiglitz on The Costs of Inequality. (16)
* Video - What is Government Ethics? (5)
* Video - Government Ethics (5)
* Video - Wealth Inequality Explained in 2 Minutes
Stay Informed and Get Involved
* Article - The Supreme Court Supplied a Blueprint to Overcome "Citizens United" - We Just Need to Use It
* Video on Gerrymandering
* Video on Automatic Voter Registration
* Article - Ban on gifts to legislators
* Here - Tell Pa State Legislators to Ban Gifts
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June 2016 - Bill Nye's Global Meltdown
Film Synopsis: - In this episode of National Geographic Explorer, Bill Nye experiences the five stages of climate grief - from denial to acceptance - and along the way, he'll explore what's gone wrong with our planet and how we can start to turn things around.
Film Website: - HERE! Film Trailer: - HERE!
Program:
* Welcome, Announcements and Introductions!
* Video - Polar bears discussing Climate Change - HERE! (2)
* DVD - Bill Nye's Global Meltdown - (44)
* Discussion of issues and how to proceed with solutions!
* Take Action: Tell President Obama no new offshore drilling - HERE!
* Take Action: Tell Justice Dept. to investigate Exxon - HERE!
* Take Action: Fix our economic and political systems - HERE!
* Take Action: Convert to Clean Renewable Energy like Ethical Electric!
* What's Possible - HERE (4)
Related Films:
* Bill Nye on '5 Things You Need to Know About Climate Change' - HERE! (1)
* Bill Nye on 'Why you should care about climate change' - HERE! (4)
* What YOU Can Do About Climate Change - HERE! (10)
* Climate Change 101 with Bill Nye the Science Guy - HERE! (4)
* TED Talk with Al Gore: The Case for Optimism on Climate Change - HERE! (25)
* Climate Change - Do The Math - HERE! (44) - HERE! (11)
* Video - Discussion of Ethical Action for a Planet in Peril - HERE! (6)
Stay Informed, Get Involved and Take Action:
* Article - What Is Our Moral Obligation In The Face Of Climate Change - HERE!
* Article - Food and Water Watch on Climate Change - HERE!
* Article - 'Energy Revolution': Nearly 100% Renewable Is Doable, says Report - HERE!
* Article - Food and Water Watch on Financialization of Nature - HERE!
* Article - Six Ballot Initiatives to Watch in 2016 - HERE!
* Book - Moral Ground: Ethical Action for a Planet in Peril - HERE!
* List of Environmental Organizations (Local, State, National) - HERE!
June 2015- Broken on All Sides
Program Synopsis: This film project began as a way to explore, educate about, and advocate change around the over-crowding of the Philadelphia county jail system. The documentary has come to focus on mass incarceration across the nation and the intersection of race and poverty within criminal justice.
Film Website: - Broken On All Sides - HERE and Trailer - HERE!
Program:
* Welcome and Introductions!
* Statistics on Incarceration in the US and other countries:
a. How do we compare to other countries? - HERE! America has 5% of the world's
population, but 25% of the world's prison population.
b. Has it always been that way? HERE! In 1970, the US had 250,000 inmates, but today
has 2,400,000. An increase of 800%.
* Mass Incarceration in America - HERE! (4)
* Feature DVD - "Broken On All Sides: Race, Mass Incarceration and New Visions for
Criminal Justice in the U.S. (68)
* Discuss 'Demands for a more just society' action ideas from film website - HERE!
* Song - Man in Black - HERE! (2+)
Related Videos:
* Bill Moyers interview with Michelle Alexander - HERE! (57)
* Bill Moyers on School-to-Prison Pipeline Problem - HERE! (3)
* Bryan Stevenson on Evening the Odds in American Justice - HERE! (30)
* TED Talk about Dog Whistle Politics - HERE! (18)
* ACLU Prison Profiteers Videos - HERE!
* Stunning American Prison Population Statistics - HERE! (7)
* Beyond Bars Project Videos from Brave New Films - HERE!
* The Case for Sentencing Reform - HERE! (5)
* Corporations Profit from Mass Incarceration - HERE! (7)
* FCNL on How Congress Can End Mass Incarceration - HERE (53)
Facts and figures on incarceration in America:
* America has 5 % of the world's population, but 25% of the world's prison population.
* In 1970, the US had 250,00 inmates, but today has 2,400,000. An increase of 800%.
* US spends $50 billion each year on incarceration.
* For every 2 white inmates, there are 11 black inmates.
* Prison sentences are nearly 20% longer for black inmates than whites with similar crimes.
* Nearly 6 million Americans can not vote due to a felony.
* Fact Sheets from FAMM - HERE!
Stay Informed, Get Involved, and Take Action on this issue!
Stay Informed: Articles and Books
* Article - With 2.3 Million People Incarcerated in the US, Prisons are Big Business - HERE!
* Article - The Prison State of America - HERE!
* Article - Skyrocketing Prison Population Devastating US Society - HERE!
* Article - How Private Companies Make Billions Off U.S. Prison System - HERE!
* Article - Restorative Justice - HERE!
* Article - Guilty of Being Poor - HERE!
* Infographics - The Growth of Incarceration in America - HERE and HERE!
* Film website informational resources - HERE!
* FCNL Newsletter Issue on Mass Incarceration - HERE!
* Mass Incarceration Study Guide - HERE!
* Book - The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness -
Click HERE for info on book!
Click HERE for Bill Moyers interview with Michelle Alexander.
* Book - Dog Whistle Politics: How Coded Racial Appeals Have Reinvented
Racism and Wrecked The Middle Class by Ian Lopez - HERE!
* Occucard on Prison Industrial Complex - HERE!
Get Involved: Websites of groups that are active on this issue!
* FCNL - HERE!
* The Sentencing Project - HERE and HERE!
* Decarcerate PA - HERE!
* NAACP -HERE!
* Color of Change - HERE!
* Urban League - HERE!
* ACLU - HERE!
* Witness to Innocence - HERE!
* Coalition for Public Safety: Advancing Criminal Justice Reform - HERE!
* Alliance for Justice - HERE!
* Beyond Bars Project - HERE!
* Prison Policy Initiative - HERE!
* Families Against Mandatory Minimums - HERE!
* Broken On All Sides website list of activist organizations - HERE!
* Important websites supporting the common good! - HERE!
Take Action: Things you can do!
* Tell Congress to oppose the SAFE Act - HERE!
* ACLU Cut Our Prison Population in Half Pledge - HERE!
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June 2014 - Michelle Alexander on Mass Incarceration
Program Synopsis
Bill Moyers interviews Michelle Alexander about the problem of mass incarceration in America. Michelle is the author of "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness." The statistics listed in the film notes and the videos about the 'Stunning American Prison Population Statistics and the School-to-Prison Pipeline' in the Program Video section indicates the extent of the problem. Also, the ACLU provides 6 videos about prison profiteers and response petitions in the next section and in the 'Legislation and Petitions' section.
Program Videos:
1. Bill Moyers program - HERE! (56)
2. Stunning American Prison Population Statistics - HERE! (7)
3. School-to-Prison Pipeline Problem - HERE! (3)
4. ACLU Prison Profiteers Videos and Petitions - HERE!
Related Videos:
1. Bryan Stevenson on Evening the Odds in American Justice - HERE! (30)
2. Interview with Eric Holder on Mass Incarceration - HERE!
3. TED Talk about Dog Whistle Politics - HERE!
4. The Race Forward - HERE!
Film Notes:
Facts and figures on incarceration in America (HERE):
* America has 5 % of the world' population, but 25% of the world's prison population.
* In 1970, the US had 250,00 inmates, but today has 2,400,000. An increase of 800%.
* US spends $50 billion each year on incarceration.
* For every 2 white inmates, there are 11 black inmates.
* Prison sentences are nearly 20% longer for black inmates than whites with similar crimes.
* Nearly 6 million Americans can not vote due to a felony.
Ideas to Stay Informed, Get Involved, and Take Action on this issue!
Stay Informed: Articles, Videos, and Books!
* Infographic - The Growth of Incarceration in America - HERE!
* Article - Three Ways to Fight Racism in 2014 - HERE!
* Article - A Racial Justice Bucket List for 2014 - HERE!
* Article - Skyrocketing Prison Population Devastating US Society - HERE!
* Article - How Private Companies Make Billions Off U.S. Prison System - HERE!
* Book - Dog Whistle Politics: How Coded Racial Appeals Have Reinvented
Racism and Wrecked The Middle Class by Ian Lopez - HERE!
* Book - The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
by Michelle Alexander - Click HERE for info.
* Book - Burning Down The House: The End of Juvenile Prison by Nell Bernstein - Click HERE for video interview and HERE for article.
* Book - The Divide: American Injustice in the Age of the Wealth Gap by Matt Taibbi - Click HERE for interview.
* Book - Angry White Men: American Masculinity a the End of an Era by Michael Kimmel - C-Span interview - HERE!
* Report - The Growth of Incarceration in the United States: Exploring Causes and Consequences - Click HERE!
*
Get Involved: Websites of groups that are active on this issue!
* Color Lines (Action Page) - HERE!
* Decarcerate PA - HERE!
* NAACP -HERE!
* Color of Change - HERE!
* Urban League - HERE!
* ACLU - HERE!
* Witness to Innocence - HERE!
* Alliance for Justice - HERE!
* Beyond Bars Project - HERE!
* Bill Moyers Website for this show - HERE!
Take Action: Things You Can Do Now!
1. Get involved with Amnesty International's 'End Capital Punishment' campaign. HERE!
2. Take Action Ideas from 'The New Jim Crow' book website - HERE!
Take Action: Legislation and Petitions You Can Support or Oppose!
1. Support the 'End Mass Incarceration' Petition - HERE!
2. ACLU Prison Profiteers Videos and Petitions - HERE!
Take Action: Monthly 'Fix Our Democracy Now' Ideas!
This month in the 'Fix Our Democracy Now' section is information about '7 Ways to Universal Voter Registration - HERE!
