The Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival has just wrapped up A Season of Nonviolent Moral Direct Action to Save Our Democracy, focused on four demands of U.S. Senators:1) End the filibuster NOW; 2) Pass ALL provisions of the For the People Act; 3) FULLY restore the 1965 Voting Rights Act; and 4) RAISE the federal minimum wage to $15/hr.
The Season was launched on July 12 with a massive national call-in to every U.S. Senator, combined with a live press conference in Washington, DC. The one-year anniversary of the death of John Lewis, on July 17, was marked with a Good Trouble Vigil for Democracy.
On July 19, the anniversary of the 1848 Women’s Convention at Seneca Falls, NY, a Moral Monday march and nonviolent direct action led by women from around the country was held in DC. Nearly 100 women were arrested symbolically blocking the Senate offices, including UFPJ National Co-convener, Jackie Cabasso.
On July 26, Moral Monday Actions, including nonviolent direct actions, were held in more than 40 states, calling on all Senators of both parties to meet the four demands. From July 28 – 31, a Moral Resurrection! Georgetown – Austin, Texas March for Democracy took place, culminating with a mass rally at the Texas State Capitol. On August 2, clergy and religious leaders and poor and low-wage workers came together in large numbers for a Moral Monday nonviolent direct action in DC, focused on the Senate.
On August 26, West Virginians, “from the hood to the holler” came together for a Mass Moral Motorcade on Manchin, to demand Senator Manchin have the moral courage to end the coward’s filibuster, pass all provisions of the For the People Act, fully restore the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and pass a $15/hour minimum federal wage. Failure to pass these laws has put the infrastructure of democracy and the lives of tens of millions of low-income workers at risk.
The Mass Moral Motorcade on Manchin gathered in Madison, West Virginia, the same mountains that one hundred years ago saw the largest multiracial labor uprising in history, where thousands of coal miners joined together to fight for dignity, respect, fair wages, and a union. The motorcade ended at the West Virginia State Capitol in Charleston. The Madison-to-Charleston Mass Moral Motorcade on Manchin built on West Virginia’s long history of resistance to greed and anti-democratic forces. In light of the surging Delta variant of COVID-19, participants stayed in their cars.
Senator Manchin is hiding behind the cowardly filibuster to appease the forces of the US Chamber of Commerce rather than the people of West Virginia, where 40% of its people are poor or low-income. Manchin has made a fortune off the coal industry in West Virginia, along with the rest of the top 1% in the state. From 1979 to 2012, income for the top 1% grew by 61%, while income for the bottom 99% actually fell 0.4%, according to the Economic Policy Institute. It’s time that Manchin stop protecting his pockets and the status quo under the disguise of “bi-partisianship” and take the moral stand to do what’s right by his state and our nation. Sign an Open Letter to Senator Manchin here.
The Season of Nonviolent Moral Direct Action to Save Our Democracy kicks off a campaign building toward a massive Moral March and Poor People’s & Low-Wage Workers Assembly on June 18, 2022, in Washington, D.C. Mark your calendar now!
United for Peace & Justice is proud to be a national partner with the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival. There are now active Poor People’s Campaign organizations in some 45 states. Join the Poor People’s Campaign and find your state committee here.
