[Editor’s Note: Richelle Friedman, CHN’s Director of Public Policy, attended a town hall meeting held by Senator Bernie Sanders. Her reflections on the event are below.] An enthusiastic crowd of 150 gathered at a church in northwest DC to hear from Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), described by one attendee as a…
Archives: Voices
Head Smacker: House Gives Millions of Dollars More to Wealthiest 5,000 Families
Yesterday, the House voted (270-179) to give millions of dollars more to heirs of the wealthiest estates in America and to add the $269 billion cost of doing so to our growing deficit, all while continuing to claim they care about poverty reduction, inequality, and reducing our debt. By repealing…
Your voice is needed: Sign by April 15 to tell Congress to #StopTheCuts
Sign to tell Congress to vote for investments, not wasteful spending. The Senate and House are making critical budget decisions that will deeply affect all Americans in 2016. All members of Congress need to hear from constituents before April 15 that cuts to programs that help Americans are not acceptable….
Care about inequality?
Do you think a tax change that would provide $269 billion to estates of millionaires and billionaires over the next decade would worsen or lessen inequality? Next week, the House of Representatives will vote on a bill (H.R. 1105) to repeal the estate tax, to give $269 billion to the…
Proposed budget cuts would be devastating, but it’s not too late
See below for a re-cap of the #StopTheCuts tweetchat and learn more about what must (and can!) be done. Then take action! There are deep, devastating cuts to critical programs that help children and families proposed in both the Senate and House budget resolutions that were recently passed. CHN, the…
How Low Wages Hurt Families and Perpetuate Poverty
This post was originally published on Oxfam America’s blog, The Politics of Poverty, on April 7. Low wages for workers today are likely to predict low wages for those same workers tomorrow (and for many years after), as a new survey of research for Oxfam America by Shawn Fremstad, a Senior Fellow…
6 Things to Know about Economic Mobility (or Lack Thereof) in the US
Last week, I attended a conference with a very long name addressing a very big problem. The Federal Reserve System Community Research Conference; Economic Mobility: Research and Ideas on Strengthening Families, Communities and the Economy was two days of presentations and discussions about the many aspects of economic mobility –…
Join us on Twitter April 9th for a #StopTheCuts Tweetchat and Tweetstorm
Join the Coalition on Human Needs, Children’s Defense Fund, and other national organizations for an important tweetchat and tweetstorm on how the proposed budget cuts hurt children and families. On Thursday, April 9, 2015 at 1pm ET national organizations will answer critical questions surrounding the budget and share ways to take action with #StopTheCuts. At 1:30…
Detained Mothers Who Fled Central American Violence in Holy Week Hunger Strike
About 25 mothers detained at the Karnes Family Detention Camp near San Antonio, Texas have started a Holy Week hunger strike. These are among the hundreds of mothers and children held at the Karnes site because they were part of the surge fleeing violence in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras…
Head Smacker: Tax Cuts for Low-Income People are Better for The Economy, but Congressional Budgets Cut Them
Most members of Congress will tell you that they want to grow the economy, create jobs, and strengthen and expand the middle class. But the budget outlines just passed by the House and Senate make choices that would undermine these goals. New research confirms that tax cuts for lower- and…
Fact of the Week: Unemployment Rate for African Americans is Higher than Prerecession Levels in 28 States
For many, 2014 was a good year to get a job. By December 2014, the unemployment rate had fallen to 5.6 percent, the lowest it had been since June 2008. Nearly 250,000 jobs were being added every month. The gains in job growth were especially important for African Americans, who…
Outcomes
Many of you have information we need. The Congressional budget resolutions just passed have targeted vital human needs programs. Please share in the comment space below examples of the ways lives are changed for the better by any federal program you choose to talk about. We want to hear your…