Against the NRA, For the Children

Last week, I asked you to march with me to the Georgia Capitol for the Moms Demand Action Advocacy Day. You would think protecting our children from gun violence and mass shootings would be something we all can agree on. But our state government refused to turn on our microphones. We refused to be silenced as we chanted, “Never again!”

It was a powerful day — I have never seen so many people pour into the Capitol. Many of you got to speak personally with your representatives. Unfortunately, I heard some were told, “Don’t expect anything to happen this session.”

There were several bills brought forward tightening up background checks and banning assault weapon and bump stock sales, but they languished with no action.

Yet, I am still hopeful that we have finally reached a tipping point for common sense gun reform. It’s quite possible that reform will come at the state level, as Congress continues to listen to the NRA instead of the people.

A federal court in Maryland just upheld an assault weapons ban originally enacted by the Maryland State Senate following the Sandy Hook tragedy. It is so important that we, in 2018, support and elect progressive candidates at the state level whose values are aligned with the common sense policies we need to protect our families and communities.

Today, I picked up my mail at my post office. There I found a donation with a note, “Thank you for your support against gun violence. My grandchildren’s lives are at stake.”

We are scared. We are hurting. I have a responsibility to keep fighting for change by running an effective campaign and inspiring people to vote.  And each and every one of you has the power to take the NRA down. Get involved. Help a progressive candidate. Volunteer. Make phone calls. Put up a yard sign. Make a donation. Take a friend to the polls. Make a difference.

—Sally

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Moms Demand Action Against Mass Shootings

It has happened again. I heard audio clips of the shots being fired — they were fast, they were constant, and they kept going. I’m even more outraged. This should not be possible.

So, I’m marching. Will you join me? Moms Demand Action, Wednesday, February 21, 2018, Georgia State Capitol, 10am – 1pm. Wear red. Let’s fill the Capitol. Page your legislators from the floor. Make them dedicate a day of work to listening to us. Our kids need to see adults in charge speak up for them.

Register here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1734006126656969/

Parents across the country are scared to send their children to school. Our kids and teachers now use precious learning time to practice “run, hide, fight” in active shooter drills.

And why have our politicians done nothing to stop this? Because they say, “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” That’s true, but the murderers who have committed mass shootings didn’t use pistols, they used semi-automatic weapons typically reserved as weapons of war.

Our politicians say if we “outlaw guns, only outlaws will have them.” Well, so far as I have heard, most the guns used for mass shootings have been legally acquired.

And finally, NRA spokespeople will say that gun control isn’t the answer because what if one day, a “well-regulated militia” is all that stands between us and government-backed terror?

Well, for the thousands of survivors and the thousands more family members who have lost loved ones to mass shootings these last few years, I would argue that they are already living in terror, horror, and grief.

I pray that we won’t see a crime like Las Vegas, or Sandy Hook, or Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School here in Georgia. But prayers for victims are too late. We need action NOW from our representatives.

We need politicians to pass legislation for common sense gun control.

If they won’t act, we will vote them out. And until Election Day, we can keep them busy listening to us instead of the NRA.

—Sally
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Preserving the Rights of Women and Their Families

Like most parents, Jay and I hope that our teenagers grow up making good choices. We want them to learn how to take care of themselves (do their own laundry) and plan for their futures. We want them to grow into responsible, contributing members of their community. But honestly, during the past few months, we’ve started to worry that our government is taking some important decisions away from them.

I hear a lot of officials talking about personal liberty lately – about the right to own a gun and to kill in self defense. But these same representatives are taking away the rights of women to protect their own lives and futures.

Last month, just a few days before the terrible massacre in Las Vegas, the Trump administration signed an executive order making it easier for employers and insurers to stop covering contraception.

Where does this leave the store clerk who can’t afford her high health insurance premiums, let alone her contraception? What about the warehouse worker who, for healthcare reasons needs more expensive contraception? What about the restaurant worker who needs contraception to treat a painful medical condition? These tax-paying citizens have the right to make their own healthy choices, but they are being prevented from doing so because of barriers our government is erecting.

Mr. Trump isn’t going to be there to console these workers, nor does Mr. Trump care if a young woman wants to get that MBA before she adds “mom” to her life experiences. His administration doesn’t believe it has to answer to these workers, nor pay for the consequences of unintended pregnancy.

We have strong moral values in our family. We believe in supporting lives – no matter who you are, what race you are, where you live, who you work for, or how much (or little) is in your bank account.

That’s why I’ve stepped up to run for office, along with record numbers of women all over the country. We’re all motivated by these same shared values and sense of urgency in preserving the lives of women and their families. We want to lift people up and bring barriers down. Here at home in State Senate 40, dozens of campaign volunteers have stepped up to help build an infrastructure to get more people out to vote. And over five-hundred of you have chipped in and made donations to our campaign.

If you are one of those five-hundred who have joined the cause, thank you for helping to lift women up. If you haven’t yet joined the cause, there’s no better time than now!

—Sally

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Healthcare is a Human Right

Last week, I suffered a medical emergency — my retina began peeling away from the back of my eye. Fortunately, my healthcare worked for me, and I am on the road to recovery. But I am well aware that this would not have been the outcome for millions of Americans in the same situation. Too many times, I hear stories of people ignoring symptoms because they are scared the care they need will cost too much, even when they have health insurance. If I had ignored my symptoms, I would have eventually become blind in that eye. And we all know that delayed medical care can have even more devastating outcomes.

As your State Senator, I will make all legislative decisions based on the idea that a strong government is necessary to counterbalance special interests, ensuring that an economy based on maximizing profits does not trample fundamental human needs.

Our healthcare industry, through maximization of profits that include multi-million dollar CEO bonuses, is trampling fundamental human rights, and it’s time we say enough is enough.

We need to stop protecting special interests and implement a solution that works for everyone, not just a lucky few. I believe a strong government is the best and most efficient way to get this done. Government is not the enemy. Government is you, me, and our neighbors.

Please speak up and fight for equal access to healthcare for every American, even if your healthcare is working for you. And help me, today, get to Georgia’s State Senate by making a contribution to my campaign. You won’t be disappointed.

—Sally
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Protecting the American Dream for Dreamers

In 2001, Gov. Roy Barnes asked me to serve on his newly created State-Wide Commission for Hispanic Affairs.  As part of that work, I served on the higher education sub-committee, which began its work with the following assumption — providing access to higher education to ALL bright, young people makes for a richer, more productive Georgia.

The issue of undocumented immigration has never been an easy one. Last summer I traveled with the Emory Farm Worker Project with my church youth group. Many of the farm workers are still undocumented because there aren’t enough H2-A Visa workers to handle the harvests. And believe me, most Americans wouldn’t survive this work if it paid ten times what it does.  For years, we have enjoyed the fruits of their labor; the least we can do now is educate their children.  We’ll be richer and more productive for it.

It is said that former President Obama’s DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) dealt with the immigration issue with a scalpel, rather than a hatchet. Our current president prefers a hatchet.

As someone who has done graduate training in the area of child and family development, let me tell you that hatchet-style deportation is emotionally equivalent to physically amputating a limb.  Many of these young people will suffer devastating psychological effects when torn away from everything they know and love.  In fact, we know that the damage begins with the threat of loss, so Trump’s decision to “end” DACA with a six month delay has real implications for those affected, starting today.

My 17-year-old son attends classes at Georgia Perimeter College (GSU).  This morning I mentioned to him that Trump announced the end of DACA.  He replied, “You remember Julio, the guy in my composition class that I helped with his essay? He is one of those Dreamer kids.”  If you have kids, chances are you know Dreamer kids too.

Activate the calls to Congress. It’s time to speak out . . . again.

—Sally

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Investing in Our Public Schools

“The first week of August hangs at the very top of summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning.”

–Natalie Babbitt, Tuck Everlasting, 1975

The above quote is from a children’s book.  I love it because it helps me find a late-summer stillness missing from modern life.

The reality is that by the end of July, some kids have already gone back to school, and other families face school registration, long school supply shopping lists, and the adrenaline rush of “ready, set, go” before the race begins.

I’ll be honest, I’d rather fantasize about a summer fair than ponder the realities of education policy in the United States. But the urgency of reversing a devastating trend drives my advocacy.

Someone told me several years ago, when we were at the height of implementing the Bush Administration’s No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), that the right wing of the Republican party was systematically dismantling public education. I didn’t quite believe it then.  After all, “No Child Left Behind” was about not neglecting the bottom of our society.  How could I be against that?

Then my own children entered public school, and I realized that the flip side to “No Child Left Behind” was “Let No Child Get Ahead.”  Ouch.

NCLB brought with it the practice of more seat time for better test scores.  Some elementary kids were told if they didn’t pass the end-of-year tests they wouldn’t go on to the next grade with their friends. Other teachers felt the need to withhold recess because there was too much content to cover in too little time. One of my last efforts during my two final years in Georgia’s State House was to restore recess to all Georgia school children.  How crazy is it that we need a bill like that?  Even crazier that the bill did not pass.

Then the Great Recession of 2008 hit and brought state budget cuts so severe teachers had to take mandatory furlough days, cutting their planning time.  Beyond furloughs, these cuts were stealth. To the outsider, the doors stay open and the school buses keep running.  Budgets even appear to go up when not adjusted for increases in attendance.  But in reality, when per capita budgets are adjusted for inflation, state K-12 education spending has dropped 11% at the state level, and 15% at the local level since 2002 (“Georgia Lawmakers Balance the Budget,” AJC, James Salzer, Nov. 19, 2015). It’s no coincidence that 2002 is the year the Republicans won the Governor’s office and began building majorities in the legislature.

To families and kids, these budget cuts translate into stressed teachers, buildings so crowded sometimes there’s no place to sit, and children stranded when buses don’t show up.

Finally, there’s no denying the intentional slaughter of our public school system when looking at the transferring of tax funds to private schools.  At a state level, this includes 2008 legislation, signed by Gov. Sonny Perdue, which allows individuals and corporations to redirect their tax bill to private (including religious) school scholarship funds of their choice.  A challenge to this legislation was recently rejected by Georgia’s Supreme Court.  Justice Robert Benham stated for the court, “Plaintiffs’ complaint fails to demonstrate that plaintiffs are injured by the program by virtue of their status as taxpayers.”

I beg to differ.

A friend shared with me the other day her delight that her oldest child’s name was drawn by lottery for admission into a magnet program for high achievers.  She was thrilled to be the recipient of such a wonderful program.  But I looked at her and said, “What happens when your next child’s name is NOT drawn?”  The iniquity is easy to see within a single family.  But the inequality’s damage to society is simultaneously hidden, and yet magnified, when an entire segment of our state’s brightest students are left behind, as in a game of musical chairs.

This is why I’m working to help turn Georgia blue.  Past Georgia Democratic governors have been more friendly to education — Zell Miller brought teacher pay up to national standards and Roy Barnes dedicated funds to decrease class size. All of this was done not by increasing taxes, but by choosing priorities.  These governors had the political will to see the big picture, like looking down from the top of a Ferris wheel.

Please help me turn Georgia blue by supporting my campaign, so we can show that funding public education is an investment in human capital.  If we flip Senate 40 blue, I’ll use my position to help flip Georgia blue.  Donate today.  It takes all of us to get there.

—Sally

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Healthcare in Rural Georgia Needs Our Support

I read a little story last night that I can’t get out of my mind. It was part of an article written by Jim Galloway of the Atlanta Journal Constitution about a conversation he had with Monty Veazey, president of the Georgia Alliance of Community Hospitals. I remember Veazey from my days at the State Capitol; he’s a stalwart for rural Georgia healthcare needs. His job is hard these days.

Veazey was in Clay county over the 4th holiday. Clay county is located in extreme southwest Georgia along the Alabama border. Many of the smaller, rural hospitals near it have closed during the last few years. Anyway, Veazey said $700 disappeared from his wallet while he was there. He kept seeing patients who had been told, “You’re really sick; you need to get to the hospital in Albany.” And the patients said something like, “I have no money to get there. Just give me some medicine and let me go home.” So, Veazey gave them some gas money. They responded, “But I don’t own a car.” So, Veazey gave them some more money and said, “Find someone with a car, and pay them to drive you. You have cancer, and you will die without treatment.”

Here’s a gem of an article about healthcare in Clay county. Read it. It’s short.

If you feel like nothing you’re doing is going to make a difference, I have a little glimmer of hope to share with you. On the map, Clay county is the “L” shaped county on the Alabama border in SW Georgia. Clay county voted 55% Democrat in the 2016 election. They’re part of a little “blue” island in SW Georgia! So yes, we can flip rural Georgia back blue.

—Sally

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