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Defend Equality to Defend Democracy – a town meeting

December 9, 2017 at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Eugene

View this event on youtube here

Presentations by:

After presentations, Oregon state Senator James Manning will facilitate a discussion among the panelists.

 

We the People Eugene have thought about many of the proposed amendments relating to campaign finance reform, and have come up with our preferred language. See Our preferred amendment language and the reasons for it
A 2015 article by Jamie Raskin posted on the website of People for the American Way is an outstanding discussion of Supreme Court decisions by the Robert’s court whose purpose is to legislate in favor of corporations, apparently because the court feels Congress is not sufficiently pro-corporate. See The Supreme Court in the Citizens United Era: A Century After the Lochner Era, the Roberts Court Imposes a Startling New Corporatism on America

Jamie Raskin is a senior fellow at People for the American Way Foundation. He is also a professor of constitutional law at American University Washington College of Law and a U.S. Representative from Maryland’s 8th Congressional District

 

We helped Melissa Wischerath organize a panel at the 2015 Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (PIELC) titled “Reclaiming the Promise of Home Rule to Protect the Environment”. See p. 20 of the 2015 PIELC Brochure.

HJM 6.  A coalition involving Oregon Move to Amend groups and others, including We the People Eugene, Oregonians for Restoring Constitutional Democracy (now renamed the Oregon Democracy Coalition),  formed to successfully get the Oregon legislature to pass House Joint Memorial 6 (HJM 6), which calls on Congress to pass a constitutional amendment clarifying that corporations don’t have the same rights as real people, and that political money should be regulated.  Oregon becomes the 16th state to make a call for a similar amendment.

Eugene Measure 20-198. We the People-Eugene provided educational activities which led to the growth of We the People PAC.  We the People PAC is an advocacy group which is responsible for getting Measure 20-198 on the ballot in Eugene.

Eugene voters, on November 6, 2012, overwhelmingly voted yes (73.5% to 26.5%) on measure 20-198, an advisory question on corporate/union constitutional rights and campaign spending:

Shall Congress send to States constitutional amendment reversing negative impact of the Citizens United case and limit independent campaign spending?

See advisory vote details for more information.

 

We the People – Eugene is a grassroots network of citizens fighting corporate rule in all areas of politics and life. Research, community education, activist training, coalition building and multi-faceted, innovative community outreach are the hallmarks of our approach to social justice in the Eugene Oregon area.

We the People – Eugene was founded in 2011 as a nonprofit, independent coalition of individuals and groups responding to the growing devastation caused by growing wealth inequality, corrupt elections, and other adverse results of bad corporate behaviors that seriously harm the public good.

We the People – Eugene was also organized to facilitate a constitutional amendment process to reverse Supreme Court interpretations granting corporations undue privileges, including the 2010 Citizens United ruling that allows unlimited corporate spending for or against individuals seeking public office.

We are determined, however, to pursue all alternatives that will eliminate the excessive influence of moneyed interests that now govern our politics, distort our priorities and remove common sense from our domestic and foreign policies.

  • maggie

    really? I’m the first person in here? well this has to change.

  • toddboyle

    Ashley Sanders gave the best 1-hour summary I’ve ever heard, of the deeper, historical roots of corporate rule in the U.S.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Br1ULksmqJg