Blood, Floods, and the Future
News Intro Text
Summer 2016 Baton Rouge Perspective
News Item Content
<p>by Nik Mitchell, Ph.D.</p>
<p>2016 has been a summer of strife for the city of Baton Rouge, my hometown. With the killing of Alton Sterling, the metropolitan area was locked in conflict as the long dormant ghosts of Baton Rouge’s racial past shook off decades of uneasy sleep and began to demand redress. Scenes of police in riot gear with guns drawn went around the world placing this city better known for its college football teams at the center of the global debate on race and police conduct. Then came the murder of three police officers at the hands of Gavin Long.</p>
<p>The city had reached its breaking point. Then, an estimated 6.9 trillion gallons of rain fell on the Baton Rouge metropolitan area, flooding large swaths of it and leaving tens of thousands of people homeless. Mixed in with the images of flooded neighborhoods and devastated lives, there were images of unity in the face of nature’s fury. Declarations of how “race doesn’t matter” were echoed across social media; and how “united Baton Rouge had become” was emblazoned on t-shirts and profile pictures. It is true that natural disasters inspire a sort of racial unity that reveals how insipid “race” really is. It is also true that the Baton Rouge metropolitan area is grotesquely segregated racially and economically. </p>
<div>
<p>How do we reconcile these two stark realities? The answer is: we can’t. The ghosts of Baton Rouge’s past have not been put to rest. The anger that motivated hundreds to demand accountability for the sins of the past and present has not been extinguished. The echoes of the denial of timely emergency health services brought on by hospital closures and the failure of the St. George secession attempt by predominantly white south Baton Rouge due to a technicality still ring in African American Baton Rouge.</p>
<p>It is incumbent for all of those who adhere to social justice to watch the post flood rebuilding efforts carefully to ensure that it is equitable, minimizes any displacement, and stifles the efforts of those who wish to profit from this situation by targeting and exploiting the most vulnerable among us. If this rebuilding effort is to be just and successful, we must embrace race egalitarianism, which is “the conviction that, because of an unjust history, we should endeavor to reduce inequalities of wealth and power between racial groups, as such”[1] and commit to preserving the dignity of the affected. What remains to be seen is how Baton Rouge will transition into a new metropolitan area after the storm. Progress should not and must not come at the expense of the vulnerable. That would be a complete betrayal of the social contract and is the sort of transgression that marks the perpetrators and their descendants whose prosperity came at the cost of the rights and dignity of the vulnerable. The mechanisms of power can be used for justice only if constituents demand it and hold those in control of the mechanisms accountable for their actions so that no one gets left behind. </p>
</div>
<p><a href="https://t.e2ma.net/webview/jqrfl/6c7d7ca1ab0269847910a5a0c0221047">MORE>></a></p>
<p>2016 has been a summer of strife for the city of Baton Rouge, my hometown. With the killing of Alton Sterling, the metropolitan area was locked in conflict as the long dormant ghosts of Baton Rouge’s racial past shook off decades of uneasy sleep and began to demand redress. Scenes of police in riot gear with guns drawn went around the world placing this city better known for its college football teams at the center of the global debate on race and police conduct. Then came the murder of three police officers at the hands of Gavin Long.</p>
<p>The city had reached its breaking point. Then, an estimated 6.9 trillion gallons of rain fell on the Baton Rouge metropolitan area, flooding large swaths of it and leaving tens of thousands of people homeless. Mixed in with the images of flooded neighborhoods and devastated lives, there were images of unity in the face of nature’s fury. Declarations of how “race doesn’t matter” were echoed across social media; and how “united Baton Rouge had become” was emblazoned on t-shirts and profile pictures. It is true that natural disasters inspire a sort of racial unity that reveals how insipid “race” really is. It is also true that the Baton Rouge metropolitan area is grotesquely segregated racially and economically. </p>
<div>
<p>How do we reconcile these two stark realities? The answer is: we can’t. The ghosts of Baton Rouge’s past have not been put to rest. The anger that motivated hundreds to demand accountability for the sins of the past and present has not been extinguished. The echoes of the denial of timely emergency health services brought on by hospital closures and the failure of the St. George secession attempt by predominantly white south Baton Rouge due to a technicality still ring in African American Baton Rouge.</p>
<p>It is incumbent for all of those who adhere to social justice to watch the post flood rebuilding efforts carefully to ensure that it is equitable, minimizes any displacement, and stifles the efforts of those who wish to profit from this situation by targeting and exploiting the most vulnerable among us. If this rebuilding effort is to be just and successful, we must embrace race egalitarianism, which is “the conviction that, because of an unjust history, we should endeavor to reduce inequalities of wealth and power between racial groups, as such”[1] and commit to preserving the dignity of the affected. What remains to be seen is how Baton Rouge will transition into a new metropolitan area after the storm. Progress should not and must not come at the expense of the vulnerable. That would be a complete betrayal of the social contract and is the sort of transgression that marks the perpetrators and their descendants whose prosperity came at the cost of the rights and dignity of the vulnerable. The mechanisms of power can be used for justice only if constituents demand it and hold those in control of the mechanisms accountable for their actions so that no one gets left behind. </p>
</div>
<p><a href="https://t.e2ma.net/webview/jqrfl/6c7d7ca1ab0269847910a5a0c0221047">MORE>></a></p>
Date
The Dignity of Black Lives
News Intro Text
[Dr. Nicholas Mitchell for The Second Line, Fall 2016]
News Item Content
<p>By Nicholas Mitchell, Ph.D. for<em> The Second Line</em></p>
<p>Pope Paul VI wrote in Evangelii Nuntiandi (1975), that all people have the right to liberation from marginalizing forces, be they social, economic, or political. In the United States, black people suffer from such marginalization and today they desire and work for liberation from all its forms.</p>
<p>The Church is called to support these efforts. If Catholics turn a blind eye to the forces that strip the dignity of millions of African American people in this nation, they are allowing a social structural sin, which is one where the personal prejudices of individuals have been elevated to social policy, to flourish. This guarantees the continuation and escalation of social unrest as the marginalized resist the forces that marginalize them.</p>
<p>The preservation of Black lives is a profoundly Catholic issue because respect for the dignity and sanctity of human life is the very foundation of Catholic social teaching. The single greatest threat to Black lives, physically and spiritually, is the imposition and effects of White Supremacy in the forms of interpersonal and institutional racism which are interconnected. Interpersonal racism is the racism held on a personal level whereas institutional racism is what is manifested in educational, legal, financial, health, and political institutions and can be quantifiably measured through material disparities. Interpersonal racism gives birth to institutional racism and the institutional racism feeds the interpersonal. In this cycle, millions of black lives are stripped of their dignity.</p>
<p>Black Lives Matter and its subsequent polities seek to break this cycle. May we, as a united Christian community, take action from Pope Paul VI’s opening words in Evangelii Nuntiandi (1975): “There is no doubt that the effort to proclaim the Gospel to the people of today, who are buoyed up by hope but at the same time often oppressed by fear and distress, is a service rendered to the Christian community and also to the whole of humanity.”</p>
<p><a href="http://obcm.arch-no.org/system/newsletters/assets/000/000/011/original/OBCM_-_Fall_2016_Newsletter.pdf?1473779699">MORE ARTICLES FROM <em>THE SECOND LINE</em>>></a></p>
<p>Pope Paul VI wrote in Evangelii Nuntiandi (1975), that all people have the right to liberation from marginalizing forces, be they social, economic, or political. In the United States, black people suffer from such marginalization and today they desire and work for liberation from all its forms.</p>
<p>The Church is called to support these efforts. If Catholics turn a blind eye to the forces that strip the dignity of millions of African American people in this nation, they are allowing a social structural sin, which is one where the personal prejudices of individuals have been elevated to social policy, to flourish. This guarantees the continuation and escalation of social unrest as the marginalized resist the forces that marginalize them.</p>
<p>The preservation of Black lives is a profoundly Catholic issue because respect for the dignity and sanctity of human life is the very foundation of Catholic social teaching. The single greatest threat to Black lives, physically and spiritually, is the imposition and effects of White Supremacy in the forms of interpersonal and institutional racism which are interconnected. Interpersonal racism is the racism held on a personal level whereas institutional racism is what is manifested in educational, legal, financial, health, and political institutions and can be quantifiably measured through material disparities. Interpersonal racism gives birth to institutional racism and the institutional racism feeds the interpersonal. In this cycle, millions of black lives are stripped of their dignity.</p>
<p>Black Lives Matter and its subsequent polities seek to break this cycle. May we, as a united Christian community, take action from Pope Paul VI’s opening words in Evangelii Nuntiandi (1975): “There is no doubt that the effort to proclaim the Gospel to the people of today, who are buoyed up by hope but at the same time often oppressed by fear and distress, is a service rendered to the Christian community and also to the whole of humanity.”</p>
<p><a href="http://obcm.arch-no.org/system/newsletters/assets/000/000/011/original/OBCM_-_Fall_2016_Newsletter.pdf?1473779699">MORE ARTICLES FROM <em>THE SECOND LINE</em>>></a></p>
Date
Study: Mississippi has “Two School Systems”
News Intro Text
[Jackson Free Press, September 23, 2016]
News Item Content
<p class="permalinkable permalinking"><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-family: ff-meta-web-pro, "Lucida Grande", Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">By </span><a href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/staff/arielle-dreher/" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 11px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; color: rgb(70, 70, 70); font-family: ff-meta-web-pro, "Lucida Grande", Lucida, sans-serif;">Arielle Dreher</a></p>
<p class="permalinkable permalinking" id="h113956-p1"><span class="dateline">JACKSON</span> — Mississippians in the highest income-tax brackets have enjoyed the limited economic growth the state has seen since the Great Recession, according to a recent report by Loyola University in New Orleans.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p2"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p2">#</a>“Those people are primarily white and primarily live in urban areas,” Jeanie Donovan, an economic policy specialist who worked on the report, told the Jackson Free Press.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p3"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p3">#</a>That disparity has a direct effect on education.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p4">“This is the hard part about the cyclical nature of poverty,” she said. “Because the school systems are so tied to local property values and local property taxes, where those people who are making more money are living have better (public) schools—or if they don’t, they have enough money to send [their children] to the parallel private school system.”</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p5"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p5">#</a>The report, called “The State of of Working Mississippi 2016,” uses federal- and state-level data to assess the Mississippi’s labor force, employment, jobs and educational attainment.</p>
<div class="inline inline_document inline-right ">
<h5 class="type">
DOCUMENT</h5>
<h4 class="title">
<a href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/documents/2016/sep/23/state-working-mississippi-2016-report/">State of Working Mississippi 2016 Report</a></h4>
<p class="thumbnail"><a href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/documents/2016/sep/23/state-working-mississippi-2016-report/"><img src="http://jacksonfreepress.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/news/documents/2016/09/23/Screen_Shot_2016-09-23_at_11.32.10_AM_t180.png?370a03faaa4bde2115f371a02430eb3e6a451be5" /></a></p>
<p class="download file_type_pdf"><a class="button" href="http://jacksonfreepress.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/news/documents/2016/09/23/State_of_Working_Mississippi.pdf">Download .PDF</a></p>
</div>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p6"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p6">#</a>The report states plainly that Mississippi has two school systems: “underfunded public schools for the poor and private schools for the wealthy.”</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p7"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p7">#</a>Donovan said that tying local school funding to property values is a common practice across the nation, but the difference in Mississippi is the state's level of investment in public education.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p8"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p8">#</a>Mississippi ranks 10th nationally in federal funding per pupil, but ranks 47th in state funding, based on the 2014 data used in the report. Donovan said that some states address funding gaps in low property-value districts using a “Recapture” or “Robin Hood” policy, which takes some of the extra money from high property-value districts and gives it to struggling districts. Texas has implemented a Robin Hood policy, Donovan said, but not without controversy.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p9"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p9">#</a>Metropolitan regions have recovered more successfully from the Recession than rural areas, the report shows, and schools in those areas have benefited.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p10"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p10">#</a>Conversely, in more rural areas of the state where parents earn less money and property values are lower, public school systems are worse. This, in turn, leads to poorer educational outcomes and children in those areas growing up and earning less, Donovan said.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p11"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p11">#</a>The report suggests several equitable strategies to help address low-wage jobs, unemployment and educational attainment statewide. Donovan said Mississippi could introduce a state earned-income tax credit, in order to boost low- and middle-income households and encourage participation in the workforce.</p>
<p class="permalinkable"><a href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/">MORE>></a></p>
<p class="permalinkable permalinking" id="h113956-p1"><span class="dateline">JACKSON</span> — Mississippians in the highest income-tax brackets have enjoyed the limited economic growth the state has seen since the Great Recession, according to a recent report by Loyola University in New Orleans.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p2"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p2">#</a>“Those people are primarily white and primarily live in urban areas,” Jeanie Donovan, an economic policy specialist who worked on the report, told the Jackson Free Press.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p3"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p3">#</a>That disparity has a direct effect on education.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p4">“This is the hard part about the cyclical nature of poverty,” she said. “Because the school systems are so tied to local property values and local property taxes, where those people who are making more money are living have better (public) schools—or if they don’t, they have enough money to send [their children] to the parallel private school system.”</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p5"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p5">#</a>The report, called “The State of of Working Mississippi 2016,” uses federal- and state-level data to assess the Mississippi’s labor force, employment, jobs and educational attainment.</p>
<div class="inline inline_document inline-right ">
<h5 class="type">
DOCUMENT</h5>
<h4 class="title">
<a href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/documents/2016/sep/23/state-working-mississippi-2016-report/">State of Working Mississippi 2016 Report</a></h4>
<p class="thumbnail"><a href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/documents/2016/sep/23/state-working-mississippi-2016-report/"><img src="http://jacksonfreepress.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/news/documents/2016/09/23/Screen_Shot_2016-09-23_at_11.32.10_AM_t180.png?370a03faaa4bde2115f371a02430eb3e6a451be5" /></a></p>
<p class="download file_type_pdf"><a class="button" href="http://jacksonfreepress.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/news/documents/2016/09/23/State_of_Working_Mississippi.pdf">Download .PDF</a></p>
</div>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p6"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p6">#</a>The report states plainly that Mississippi has two school systems: “underfunded public schools for the poor and private schools for the wealthy.”</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p7"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p7">#</a>Donovan said that tying local school funding to property values is a common practice across the nation, but the difference in Mississippi is the state's level of investment in public education.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p8"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p8">#</a>Mississippi ranks 10th nationally in federal funding per pupil, but ranks 47th in state funding, based on the 2014 data used in the report. Donovan said that some states address funding gaps in low property-value districts using a “Recapture” or “Robin Hood” policy, which takes some of the extra money from high property-value districts and gives it to struggling districts. Texas has implemented a Robin Hood policy, Donovan said, but not without controversy.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p9"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p9">#</a>Metropolitan regions have recovered more successfully from the Recession than rural areas, the report shows, and schools in those areas have benefited.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p10"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p10">#</a>Conversely, in more rural areas of the state where parents earn less money and property values are lower, public school systems are worse. This, in turn, leads to poorer educational outcomes and children in those areas growing up and earning less, Donovan said.</p>
<p class="permalinkable" id="h113956-p11"><a class="permalink" href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/#h113956-p11">#</a>The report suggests several equitable strategies to help address low-wage jobs, unemployment and educational attainment statewide. Donovan said Mississippi could introduce a state earned-income tax credit, in order to boost low- and middle-income households and encourage participation in the workforce.</p>
<p class="permalinkable"><a href="http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/sep/23/study-mississippi-has-two-school-systems/">MORE>></a></p>
Date
The Vital Importance of Disaster-SNAP
News Intro Text
[Mazon, September 19, 2016]
News Item Content
<p>In August 2016, prolonged rainfall in southern Louisiana resulted in catastrophic flooding. The floods were called the worst natural disaster since 2012’s Hurricane Sandy, and Louisiana’s Governor quickly declared a state of emergency. Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes. Many are currently living in shelters, and Louisianans are facing damage to their property, lost income, and a lack of insurance.</p>
<p>As families confront wrecked homes and collapsed businesses, additional support is critical, and food banks are overloaded and overwhelmed. Natalie Jayroe, President and CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans, tells us: “To date we have distributed more than 800,000 pounds of food, water and cleaning supplies to an estimated 87,000 people in 19 parishes. Given the level of damage and disruption, we anticipate providing heightened levels of support for the next several months.”</p>
<p>At a time like this, D-SNAP, or “Disaster SNAP,” is a crucial tool to help people who do not normally receive SNAP get back on their feet. D-SNAP is an addendum to the SNAP program that provides short-term food assistance to eligible households who have disaster-related expenses (a disaster-related expense may include temporary housing or personal injury). The benefits are not robust, and only last 30 days, but they do provide an extra dose of support during an emergency situation.</p>
<p>States require authorization for D-SNAP benefits after a natural disaster, and an affected area must have received a Presidential declaration of “Major Disaster” in order to request a D-SNAP. The federal Food and Nutrition Service, or FNS, authorizes states to provide the benefits. In addition to Louisiana, D-SNAP is currently active in California (for people affected by ongoing fires) and Michigan (for people affected by lead water). In the past year, it has been enacted to benefit people affected by catastrophes such as flooding in West Virginia, snow storms in New Mexico, and tornadoes in Missouri.</p>
<p><a href="http://mazon.org/inside-mazon/the-vital-importance-of-disaster-snap">MORE>></a></p>
<p>As families confront wrecked homes and collapsed businesses, additional support is critical, and food banks are overloaded and overwhelmed. Natalie Jayroe, President and CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans, tells us: “To date we have distributed more than 800,000 pounds of food, water and cleaning supplies to an estimated 87,000 people in 19 parishes. Given the level of damage and disruption, we anticipate providing heightened levels of support for the next several months.”</p>
<p>At a time like this, D-SNAP, or “Disaster SNAP,” is a crucial tool to help people who do not normally receive SNAP get back on their feet. D-SNAP is an addendum to the SNAP program that provides short-term food assistance to eligible households who have disaster-related expenses (a disaster-related expense may include temporary housing or personal injury). The benefits are not robust, and only last 30 days, but they do provide an extra dose of support during an emergency situation.</p>
<p>States require authorization for D-SNAP benefits after a natural disaster, and an affected area must have received a Presidential declaration of “Major Disaster” in order to request a D-SNAP. The federal Food and Nutrition Service, or FNS, authorizes states to provide the benefits. In addition to Louisiana, D-SNAP is currently active in California (for people affected by ongoing fires) and Michigan (for people affected by lead water). In the past year, it has been enacted to benefit people affected by catastrophes such as flooding in West Virginia, snow storms in New Mexico, and tornadoes in Missouri.</p>
<p><a href="http://mazon.org/inside-mazon/the-vital-importance-of-disaster-snap">MORE>></a></p>
Date
One Year After the Pope's Visit, Join Thousands In Calling for Criminal Justice Reform
News Intro Text
TAKE ACTION
News Item Content
<p><a href="http://cqrcengage.com/jesuit/app/onestep-write-a-letter?0&engagementId=248013"><img alt="" src="https://jsri.loyno.edu/sites/loyno.edu.jsri/files/Take Action.jpg" style="width: 595px; height: 857px;" /></a></p>
Date
You're Invited!
News Intro Text
The Bread or Stones Campaign is a Christian coalition of churches and concerned individuals working together to improve the lives of children in Louisiana. Attend the campaign's New Orleans listening post October 6th.
News Item Content
<div>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; padding: 3px 10px; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;"><b style="box-sizing: border-box;">Attend the Bread or Stones Campaign's listening post in New Orleans!</b></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; padding: 3px 10px; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">The Bread or Stones Campaign is a Christian coalition of churches and concerned individuals working together to improve the lives of children in Louisiana. Church members and leaders concerned with childhood poverty and child well-being in New Orleans are encouraged to attend the campaign's <a href="https://www.votervoice.net/BroadcastLinks/k3R92j9LG1tJwIwUvXpLaA" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; color: rgb(84, 1, 21);" target="_blank" title="This external link will open in a new window">New Orleans listening post </a>at <b style="box-sizing: border-box;">St. Andrew's Episcopal Church </b>at <b style="box-sizing: border-box;">1031 Carrolton Ave </b>on <b style="box-sizing: border-box;">Thursday October 6th from 6:30-7:45pm.</b><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
Come to voice your concerns, share your expertise, and collaborate with others for the good of our<b style="box-sizing: border-box;"> </b>children.<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
<a href="https://www.votervoice.net/BroadcastLinks/k3R92j9LG1tJwIwUvXpLaA" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; color: rgb(84, 1, 21);" target="_blank" title="This external link will open in a new window">Register here to attend.</a><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
Please contact Bread or Stones Campaign Organizer Samuel Rottman with any questions: <strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">samuelrottman@gmail.com</strong><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
Hope to see you there!</p>
</div>
<div>
</div>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; padding: 3px 10px; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;"><b style="box-sizing: border-box;">Attend the Bread or Stones Campaign's listening post in New Orleans!</b></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; padding: 3px 10px; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">The Bread or Stones Campaign is a Christian coalition of churches and concerned individuals working together to improve the lives of children in Louisiana. Church members and leaders concerned with childhood poverty and child well-being in New Orleans are encouraged to attend the campaign's <a href="https://www.votervoice.net/BroadcastLinks/k3R92j9LG1tJwIwUvXpLaA" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; color: rgb(84, 1, 21);" target="_blank" title="This external link will open in a new window">New Orleans listening post </a>at <b style="box-sizing: border-box;">St. Andrew's Episcopal Church </b>at <b style="box-sizing: border-box;">1031 Carrolton Ave </b>on <b style="box-sizing: border-box;">Thursday October 6th from 6:30-7:45pm.</b><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
Come to voice your concerns, share your expertise, and collaborate with others for the good of our<b style="box-sizing: border-box;"> </b>children.<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
<a href="https://www.votervoice.net/BroadcastLinks/k3R92j9LG1tJwIwUvXpLaA" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; color: rgb(84, 1, 21);" target="_blank" title="This external link will open in a new window">Register here to attend.</a><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
Please contact Bread or Stones Campaign Organizer Samuel Rottman with any questions: <strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">samuelrottman@gmail.com</strong><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />
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Hope to see you there!</p>
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Date
2016 legislative update: Alabama avoids deep Medicaid cuts. What's next?
News Intro Text
[Alabama Arise]
News Item Content
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Alabama Medicaid is safe – for now. State lawmakers wrapped up their special session last week with a sigh of relief after approving a one-time solution to stop deep Medicaid cuts. The Legislature agreed to use BP oil spill settlement money to address Medicaid’s $85 million shortfall for 2017 and to give the program another $105 million in 2018.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">HB 36, sponsored by Rep. Steve Clouse, R-Ozark, will reverse the 30 percent Medicaid payment cuts to pediatricians and other primary care doctors that had begun in August. The bill will allow Alabama to move forward with <a href="http://www.arisecitizens.org/index.php/publications-topmenu-32/fact-sheets-topmenu-36/health-topmenu-57/3246-6-things-to-know-about-alabama-s-medicaid-reforms" style="color: rgb(0, 51, 255);" target="_blank">the Medicaid regional care organization (RCO) reforms that will emphasize preventive care</a> in an effort to save the state money and keep patients healthier. The measure also will prevent Medicaid from having to cut outpatient dialysis, prescription drugs and other services next year.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">The House on Sept. 7 voted 87-9 to approve the conference committee’s version of the bill. Later that day, the Senate passed it 22-8. <a href="http://wiat.com/2016/09/07/conference-committee-tries-to-break-oil-spill-deadlock/" style="color: rgb(0, 51, 255);" target="_blank">This Associated Press story has more about the plan</a>.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">“We’re relieved that the Legislature pulled Alabama back from the brink of devastating Medicaid cuts that would have hurt more than 1 million people – mostly children, seniors, and people with disabilities,” <a href="http://www.arisecitizens.org/index.php/media-room-topmenu-46/acpp-news-releases-topmenu-33/3483-expand-medicaid-and-end-alabama-s-cycle-of-shortfalls" style="color: rgb(0, 51, 255);" target="_blank">Arise executive director Kimble Forrister said</a>. “And we’re pleased to see lawmakers take steps to help shore up Medicaid funding for the next two years. But vulnerable Alabamians’ access to health care shouldn’t be left up to stopgaps or one-time money.”</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.arisecitizens.org/index.php/publications-topmenu-32/fact-sheets-topmenu-36/state-government-topmenu-52/3495-2016-legislative-update-alabama-avoids-deep-medicaid-cuts-what-s-next"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">MORE>></span></a></p>
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">HB 36, sponsored by Rep. Steve Clouse, R-Ozark, will reverse the 30 percent Medicaid payment cuts to pediatricians and other primary care doctors that had begun in August. The bill will allow Alabama to move forward with <a href="http://www.arisecitizens.org/index.php/publications-topmenu-32/fact-sheets-topmenu-36/health-topmenu-57/3246-6-things-to-know-about-alabama-s-medicaid-reforms" style="color: rgb(0, 51, 255);" target="_blank">the Medicaid regional care organization (RCO) reforms that will emphasize preventive care</a> in an effort to save the state money and keep patients healthier. The measure also will prevent Medicaid from having to cut outpatient dialysis, prescription drugs and other services next year.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">The House on Sept. 7 voted 87-9 to approve the conference committee’s version of the bill. Later that day, the Senate passed it 22-8. <a href="http://wiat.com/2016/09/07/conference-committee-tries-to-break-oil-spill-deadlock/" style="color: rgb(0, 51, 255);" target="_blank">This Associated Press story has more about the plan</a>.</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">“We’re relieved that the Legislature pulled Alabama back from the brink of devastating Medicaid cuts that would have hurt more than 1 million people – mostly children, seniors, and people with disabilities,” <a href="http://www.arisecitizens.org/index.php/media-room-topmenu-46/acpp-news-releases-topmenu-33/3483-expand-medicaid-and-end-alabama-s-cycle-of-shortfalls" style="color: rgb(0, 51, 255);" target="_blank">Arise executive director Kimble Forrister said</a>. “And we’re pleased to see lawmakers take steps to help shore up Medicaid funding for the next two years. But vulnerable Alabamians’ access to health care shouldn’t be left up to stopgaps or one-time money.”</span></p>
<p style="margin-top: 10px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Geneva, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.arisecitizens.org/index.php/publications-topmenu-32/fact-sheets-topmenu-36/state-government-topmenu-52/3495-2016-legislative-update-alabama-avoids-deep-medicaid-cuts-what-s-next"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">MORE>></span></a></p>
Date
Medicaid expansion enrollment in Louisiana tops 305,000
News Intro Text
[Associated Press, September 19, 2016]
News Item Content
<p><span class="info line" style="font-size: 10pt; color: rgb(136, 136, 136); font-family: Helvetica;">By MELINDA DESLATTE<br />
Published: Yesterday</span></p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;"> </p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Thousands of people enrolled in Louisiana's Medicaid expansion program have received preventive services that in some instances have identified cancer, diabetes and other illnesses, state Health Secretary Rebekah Gee said Monday.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">More than 305,000 people have signed up for the coverage that began July 1. Gee said nearly 12,000 of them so far have gotten annual exams, cancer screenings, colonoscopies, mammograms and other services through the government-financed insurance program.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">"That's real people getting real care in real doctors' offices because of Medicaid expansion," the health secretary told the Press Club of Baton Rouge.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">As Louisiana readied for the expansion program, questions were raised by lawmakers, health providers and others about whether people would get a Medicaid insurance card but have trouble finding available doctors or clinics willing to see the influx of new patients.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">Gee said data from the first two and a half months of the program show people are accessing care with their new coverage, some diagnosed with serious illnesses.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">She said more than 1,000 women, for example, have had breast screenings and 24 were determined to have - and are being treated for - cancer. Another 160 people in the Medicaid expansion program were newly diagnosed with diabetes. And more than 100 expansion enrollees have had polyps, which sometimes can develop into cancer, removed from their colons.</p>
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<a href="http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268748/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=7MDlHGoJ">MORE>></a></div>
Published: Yesterday</span></p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;"> </p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Thousands of people enrolled in Louisiana's Medicaid expansion program have received preventive services that in some instances have identified cancer, diabetes and other illnesses, state Health Secretary Rebekah Gee said Monday.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">More than 305,000 people have signed up for the coverage that began July 1. Gee said nearly 12,000 of them so far have gotten annual exams, cancer screenings, colonoscopies, mammograms and other services through the government-financed insurance program.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">"That's real people getting real care in real doctors' offices because of Medicaid expansion," the health secretary told the Press Club of Baton Rouge.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">As Louisiana readied for the expansion program, questions were raised by lawmakers, health providers and others about whether people would get a Medicaid insurance card but have trouble finding available doctors or clinics willing to see the influx of new patients.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">Gee said data from the first two and a half months of the program show people are accessing care with their new coverage, some diagnosed with serious illnesses.</p>
<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px;">She said more than 1,000 women, for example, have had breast screenings and 24 were determined to have - and are being treated for - cancer. Another 160 people in the Medicaid expansion program were newly diagnosed with diabetes. And more than 100 expansion enrollees have had polyps, which sometimes can develop into cancer, removed from their colons.</p>
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<a href="http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268748/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=7MDlHGoJ">MORE>></a></div>
Date
Salaries Increase, But More Texans Still Living in Poverty than before the Recession
News Intro Text
[Center for Public Policy Priorities, September 16, 2016]
News Item Content
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;">The typical Texas household income increased by $2,555 last year according to new data from the <a href="http://www.census.gov/" style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); text-decoration: underline; -webkit-transition: background 0.25s, color 0.25s; transition: background 0.25s, color 0.25s;">Census Bureau</a>. The data also show that fewer Texans are living in poverty, although overall incomes and poverty levels need improvement to ensure long-term economic growth for all Texans.</p>
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;">These changes are welcome news and mirror similar improvements for low-income and working families across the country. However, the Texas poverty rate of 15.9 percent is still much higher than the national average at 13.5 percent in 2015, and large economic gaps persist by race and ethnicity. The poverty rate for Hispanic (22.8 percent) and Black (21.4 percent) Texans far outpaces that of White (8.6 percent) or Asian (10.6 percent) Texans.</p>
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;">“Rising incomes for Texas families are great news after years of stagnant wage growth,” said CPPP Associate Director Frances Deviney, Ph.D. “However, we shouldn’t let that overshadow the fact that there is a greater share of Texans compared to the rest of the country facing consistent educational, transportation, child care and job barriers, leaving them struggling to provide for themselves and for their families. We must do a better job supporting public, private, local and state efforts to break down these barriers so that low-income families and individuals can access the Texas middle class.”</p>
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;">The economic challenges facing Texas children are particularly concerning. There are more than 7 million children living in Texas today, representing nearly 1 in 10 children living in the United States. However, nearly one in four Texas children (23 percent) are living in poverty. Poverty rates for Hispanic (33 percent) and Black children (32 percent) are nearly three times higher than they are for White (11 percent) and Asian children (12 percent). Not only are Black and Hispanic children more likely to live in poverty, but they are also more likely to grow up in high-poverty areas than White children, which significantly impacts the resources available to them and their families.</p>
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://bettertexasblog.org/2016/09/salaries-increase-texans-still-living-poverty-recession/">MORE>></a></p>
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;">These changes are welcome news and mirror similar improvements for low-income and working families across the country. However, the Texas poverty rate of 15.9 percent is still much higher than the national average at 13.5 percent in 2015, and large economic gaps persist by race and ethnicity. The poverty rate for Hispanic (22.8 percent) and Black (21.4 percent) Texans far outpaces that of White (8.6 percent) or Asian (10.6 percent) Texans.</p>
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;">“Rising incomes for Texas families are great news after years of stagnant wage growth,” said CPPP Associate Director Frances Deviney, Ph.D. “However, we shouldn’t let that overshadow the fact that there is a greater share of Texans compared to the rest of the country facing consistent educational, transportation, child care and job barriers, leaving them struggling to provide for themselves and for their families. We must do a better job supporting public, private, local and state efforts to break down these barriers so that low-income families and individuals can access the Texas middle class.”</p>
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;">The economic challenges facing Texas children are particularly concerning. There are more than 7 million children living in Texas today, representing nearly 1 in 10 children living in the United States. However, nearly one in four Texas children (23 percent) are living in poverty. Poverty rates for Hispanic (33 percent) and Black children (32 percent) are nearly three times higher than they are for White (11 percent) and Asian children (12 percent). Not only are Black and Hispanic children more likely to live in poverty, but they are also more likely to grow up in high-poverty areas than White children, which significantly impacts the resources available to them and their families.</p>
<p style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://bettertexasblog.org/2016/09/salaries-increase-texans-still-living-poverty-recession/">MORE>></a></p>
Date
Stop Payday Predators
News Intro Text
Tell the CFPB why a strong rule is important to you....
News Item Content
<p><strong>THE PROBLEM</strong></p>
<p>Payday lenders purposefully ensnare people in debt they can’t escape. These legalized loan sharks collect 75 percent of their fees from people stuck in more than 10 loans a year by charging 300 percent APR. <strong>It’s a debt trap.</strong></p>
<p><strong>THE SOLUTION</strong></p>
<p>We can rein in the worst payday lending abuses with a proposed rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Payday lenders are fighting to keep their unfair and abusive practices going. <strong>It’s up to us to make sure the CFPB hears loud and clear that we need to stop the debt trap once and for all.</strong></p>
<p><a href="http://stoppaydaypredators.org/crl/"><strong>TAKE ACTION>></strong></a></p>
<p>Payday lenders purposefully ensnare people in debt they can’t escape. These legalized loan sharks collect 75 percent of their fees from people stuck in more than 10 loans a year by charging 300 percent APR. <strong>It’s a debt trap.</strong></p>
<p><strong>THE SOLUTION</strong></p>
<p>We can rein in the worst payday lending abuses with a proposed rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Payday lenders are fighting to keep their unfair and abusive practices going. <strong>It’s up to us to make sure the CFPB hears loud and clear that we need to stop the debt trap once and for all.</strong></p>
<p><a href="http://stoppaydaypredators.org/crl/"><strong>TAKE ACTION>></strong></a></p>
Date