Editor’s note: This piece was written by Cheryl Fish-Parcham, Director of Access Initiatives at Families USA. It was originally posted on Families USA’s website on August 1. For more information on the so-called “short-term insurance” plans and other threats to the Affordable Care Act, see the July 23 Human Needs Report. …
Archives: Voices
Deadline for Telling the Commerce Department to Junk its Census Citizenship Question is Tuesday, August 7
You can file comments online here, and your voice is needed to make sure everyone is counted. The Coalition on Human Needs submitted comments today to the Commerce Department voicing our strong opposition to the inclusion of a question about citizenship in the 2020 Census. Such a question, as the…
Journeys: Timely New Book Examines Immigrants’ Stories
Editor’s note: The following blog post is authored by CHN intern Paige Brigham, a rising senior at Allegheny College. The story of Ahmed Ahmed began in his home country of Somalia, where his father worked his way out of poverty to provide a comfortable life for a family of ten….
Zero Tolerance at the Border a Disaster for Families
At Tuesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on “Oversight of Immigration Enforcement and Family Reunification Efforts,” Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) minced no words. He said, “If families and children are going to be kept in federal custody they must be kept in facilities where they will be treated humanely, and with…
Trump Top Priorities
Of course we know President Trump wants to build a border wall. Yesterday he threatened to shut down the government over funding for it. But that’s not his Administration’s only priority. Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin announced that they’re studying whether they can provide another $100 billion tax break…
Every person should count — and be counted.
This week, 131 groups, including the Coalition on Human Needs, joined two lawsuits aimed at preventing the U.S. Commerce Department from including a citizenship question in the 2020 Census. The moves come as CHN, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and a broad host of other grassroots, advocacy,…
The People’s Budget: A Progressive Path Forward
The People’s Budget: A Progressive Path Forward Progressive leaders in Congress Tuesday unveiled an ambitious budget plan that may not receive an up-or-down vote this year, but serves as a stark contrast to budget proposals advanced by President Trump and the House GOP leadership. The People’s Budget: A Progressive Path…
The Human Needs Report: House Labor-H bill, migrant family amendments, a SCOTUS nominee, threats to the ACA, and more
CHN just released another edition of the Human Needs Report. Read on for the latest on the House Labor-H bill and other FY19 spending, migrant family separations, proposed SNAP cuts, reactions to the Supreme Court nominee, threats to the ACA, and more. Click here for a PDF version. …
Celebrating the heroes
The Coalition on Human Needs and close to two hundred advocates celebrated CHN’s 15th annual Human Needs Hero reception Thursday, July 19. CHN’s honorees this year represented the surge of activism that has swept across the country over the past 18 months. They included: Helen Blank of the National Women’s…
A message of hope for consumers and the CFPB
Check out this video, reminding us of the importance of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) – very timely on the day Kathy Kraninger is having her confirmation hearing to head it.
Why We Do the Work We Do Together
The CHN office is always a flurry of activity. With a small staff and so much to do to protect and expand basic needs programs that help our low-income neighbors, there’s no time to sit still. This week is even busier as we take care of final preparations for our Human Needs Hero…
The unacceptably high cost of jailing children and families seeking safety in the U.S.
The Trump Administration has started to reunite children torn from their parents at the border, partly complying with a judge’s order. Fifty-eight out of 103 children under the age of five have been returned to their parents. Thousands of children five and older must be reunited with their parents by…