In this issue:
Virginia Supreme Court – Cuccinelli vs. UVA climate change case
Sierra Club seeks meeting hosts for offshore wind power presentation
Income inequality facts and figures
More attacks on reproductive health care access
Available internships and externships
Petitions: big oil tax breaks, birth control co-pays, IRS interrogations after abortion, offshore wind farms, discrimination in the workplace, attacks on Planned Parenthood
Calendar of Events
ARTICLES OF INTEREST:
The Virginia Supreme Court will rehear Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli’s appeal in the University of Virginia climate change research case. Cuccinelli is appealing to compel UVA to surrender documents related to former UVA professor Michael Mann on the grounds that the professor fraudulently applied for grants for climate change research. Cuccinelli is a climate-change skeptic.
http://acluva.org/7482/groups-…
TAKE ACTION:
Get Onboard and Make Change Happen:
Find when and where your local Democratic Committee meets this month.
http://www.vademocrats.org/gol…
Host a Meeting:
The Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club is seeking hosts for their Virginia Offshore Wind Road Show. A trained Sierra Club presenter will come to your community group, church, classroom, club meeting or anywhere you can gather a group, and give a 20 – 45 minute presentation on offshore wind power.
For more information, or to sign up to host, contact Eileen Levandoski at eileen.levandoski@sierraclub.org.
Calling All Writers:
The Virginia League for Planned Parenthood is looking for volunteers to write letters to the editor on the recent federal attacks on family planning funding. Contact Courtney at Courtney.Jones@ppfa.org for sample letters to get you started.
TOOLS:
Facts and Figures – Rachel Maddow clip (aired May 3) emphasizing the income inequality in the USA since 9-11 (begin watching clip at the 10:18 marker).
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26…
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
The Virginia League for Planned Parenthood is seeking a qualified individual for a Fundraising and Development internship. This individual will assist the development department with fundraising and various administrative tasks. To see the full job description, please email ppav@ppfa.org.
Virginia Organizing is offering paid summer externships to engage community members on the issue of Social Security.
http://www.virginia-organizing…
Download the application
http://www.virginia-organizing…
and send your resume and completed application to Kevin Simowitz at kevin@virginia-organizing.org.
Virginia Sierra Club is accepting applications for their summer internship program. Work with experienced advocates to develop and implement campaigns to protect Virginia’s environment and promote clean energy this summer. Contact Mary.Rafferty@SierraClub.org.
PETITIONS:
Speak out against BP’s tax write-off of the Gulf spill.
http://www.virginia-organizing…
Tell Dominion Virginia Power to support offshore wind farms.
http://action.sierraclub.org/s…
Make prescription birth control available to every woman without co-pays to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies.
http://www.plannedparenthoodac…
Stop H. R. 3 which will subject women, even survivors of rape and incest, to IRS interrogations after having an abortion.
http://pol.moveon.org/noaudits…
Urge Governor McDonnell to reject any legislation that targets Planned Parenthood.
www.ppaction.org/states
Support changing Virginia’s laws to protect gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender employees from discrimination in the workplace.
http://equalityfederation.sals…
CALENDAR OF EVENTS:
Please submit your organization’s events toActionUpdate@me.com for consideration for inclusion.
Wednesday, May 11, 6 – 7:30 p.m.
Planned Parenthood Volunteer Training
New outreach community education program: Birth Control Matters!
VLPP, 201 N. Hamilton Street, Richmond 23221
This training will teach you more about Planned Parenthood and our preventive health care services, our local outreach efforts and the campaign to include basic birth control under the preventive care umbrella in the federal Affordable Care Act.
Following the training, we will offer fun upcoming events for you to sign up to volunteer for. We prefer a commitment to volunteer 2-3 hours per month, if possible. Register at http://www.ppaction.org/site/C…
Saturday, May 21, 2 – 4 p.m.
ACLU of Virginia Annual Membership Meeting and Reception
Speaker: Elizabeth Nash, Public Policy Associate at Guttmacher Institute: “Emerging Threats to Reproductive Rights in Virginia and Beyond”
Richmond Friends Meetinghouse
4500 Kensington Avenue
(Entrance to Commonwealth Avenue)
Richmond
RSVP to 804.644.8080 or acluva@acluva.org
Saturday, May 28, 2 – 4 p.m.
Rally Against Citizens United
GMU School of Public Policy, ARL Founder’s Hall
3351 Fairfax Drive, Arlington 22226
Campaign to End Corporate Dominance of Our Democracy
Speakers include Congressman Jim Moran, documentarian and Coffee Party co-founder Eric Byler, and representatives from AFL-CIO, People For The American Way, and Public Citizen.
RSVP at ameritruth@aol.com.
http://www.pdamerica.org/event…
Wednesday, June 1, noon
Hope In The Cities Brown Bag Lunch Conversation
2201 West Broad Street, Suite 200, Richmond 23220
Hope In The Cities is an interracial, multi-faith network committed to building relationships of trust across the world’s divides.
http://www.hopeinthecities.org/
For more information contact Katie at 804.358.1764 or hopeinthcities@us.iofc.org
Saturday, June 4, 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Energize Virginia: A Citizen’s Summit on Offshore Wind Power
CenterStage, 600 E. Grace Street, Richmond 23219
Rising temperatures. Extreme weather. Mountain top removal. Mercury-contaminated seafood. And our governor and electric utilities are stuck in a 20th century mindset promoting fossil fuels. What can a concerned Virginian like you do about it?
Join us for Virginia’s first ever, inspiring, history[making citizens’ conference on offshore wind energy. You will meet energized activists from across the state, hear visionaries speak about bringing clean energy and green jobs to Virginia, and learn how we can work together to bring ocean-based wind turbines to Virginia.
Speakers include Senator Donald McEachin, Atlantic Wind Connection President and cEO Bob Mitchell, Terry mcAuliffe, and Former Admiral and Delegate Joe Bouchard. Tickets ($15, or $10 for students) include coffee and lunch.
Sponsored by: Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Virginia Interfaith Power & Light, the Sierra Club Virginia Chapter, Green Jobs Alliance, Southern Environmental Law Center and Virginia Conservation Network.
Register at http://energizevirginia-eivtef…
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