Stated Clerk Joins Interfaith Leaders in Support of Kerry's Peace Initiative for Israel Palestine

In a letter today to Secretary of State Kerry, thirty Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious leaders, including twenty present and past heads of national denominations and faith organizations “voiced strong support for his determined initiative for Israeli-Palestinian peace.”  In similar letters, the leaders called on key members of Congress “to support Secretary Kerry’s continuing urgent efforts for peace.”

The religious leaders warmly welcomed Secretary Kerry’s announcement a week ago of an agreement “that establishes the basis for resuming direct final status negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis.” Appreciating the progress made in earlier formal and informal negotiations toward resolving final status issues, the religious leaders noted that “while these talks have yet to yield a blueprint for peace, they have identified ideas for addressing key issues that must be resolved in a manner acceptable to both sides.”

The Jewish, Christian and Muslim leaders offered their prayers for Secretary Kerry’s efforts and pledged that they “are prepared through the national organizations we represent to activate members of synagogues, churches and mosques across the country to support bold American leadership for peace.”

“We know the path to peace is complex and challenging,” the leaders said, “but peace is possible.”

Full text of the letter and a list of endorsers follows.

National Interreligious Leadership Initiative

for Peace in the Middle East

Website: www.nili-mideastpeace.org

E-Mail: usicpme@aol.com

July 26, 2013

Secretary of State John Kerry

U.S. Department of State

2201 C Street, NW

Washington, DC

Dear Mr. Secretary,

We write as members of the National Interreligious Leadership Initiative for Peace in the Middle East (NILI), including present and past heads of national denominations and faith organizations.  We support the President’s commitment to make Israeli-Palestinian peace a high priority of U.S. policy. Recognizing, as you do, that the passage of time makes achieving a viable two-state solution increasingly difficult, we have voiced strong support for your determined initiative for peace.

We warmly welcome your announcement on July 19 that agreement has been reached “that establishes the basis for resuming direct final status negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis.”  Looking forward, we appreciate that over the years there has been intermittent progress toward resolving final status issues in both unofficial talks and formal negotiations.  While these talks and negotiations have yet to yield a blueprint for peace, they have identified ideas for addressing key issues that must be resolved in a manner acceptable to both sides.

As Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious leaders, we are committed to mobilizing broad public support for active, fair and firm U.S. leadership for peace. We offer our prayers for your efforts and we are prepared through the national organizations we represent to activate members of synagogues, churches and mosques across the country to support bold American leadership.

We know the path to peace is complex and challenging, but peace is possible.  We pledge our support and request a meeting with you to discuss specific ways we can help.

List of Endorsers follows.

Christian Leaders:

Bishop Richard E. Pates, D.D., Chairman, USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace

Theodore Cardinal McCarrick, Archbishop Emeritus of Washington

Bishop Denis J. Madden, Auxiliary Bishop of Baltimore

Archbishop Vicken Aykasian, Director, Ecumenical Affairs, Armenian Orthodox Church in America

Fr. Mark Arey, Director, Office of Ecumenical Affairs, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America

Kathryn Mary Lohre, President, National Council of Churches of Christ USA

Bishop Mark S. Hanson, Presiding Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Most Rev. Dr. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop and Primate, Episcopal Church

Reverend Gradye Parsons, Stated Clerk, Presbyterian Church (USA)

Reverend Geoffrey Black, General Minister & President, United Church of Christ

Reverend Dr. Sharon Watkins, General Minister, President, Christian Churches (Disciples of Christ)

Bishop Mary Ann Swenson, Council of Bishops, United Methodist Church

Richard Stearns, President, World Vision US

Reverend Leighton Ford, President, Leighton Ford Ministries, Board Member, World Vision US

David Neff, Former Editorial Vice-President, Christianity Today

Jewish Leaders:

Rabbi Richard J. Jacobs, President, Union of Reform Judaism

Rabbi Richard A. Block, President, Central Conference of American Rabbis

Rabbi David Saperstein, Director, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism

Rabbi Elliot Dorff, Ph.D. Rector and Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, American Jewish University

Rabbi Burton L. Visotzky, Professor, Jewish Theological Seminary of America

Rabbi Peter Knobel, Past President, Central Conference of American Rabbis

Rabbi Amy Small, Past President, Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association

Rabbi Alvin M. Sugarman, Rabbi Emeritus, The Temple, Atlanta, Georgia

Muslim Leaders:

Imam Mohammed Magid, President, Islamic Society of North America

Dr. Sayyid Muhammad Syeed, National Director, Islamic Society of North America

Naeem Baig, President, Islamic Circle of North America

Imam Yahya Hendi, Muslim Chaplain, Georgetown University

Dawud Assad, President Emeritus, Council of Mosques, USA

Eide Alawan, Interfaith Office for Outreach, Islamic Center of America, Dearborn, Michigan

Iftekhar A. Hai, Founding Director, United Muslims of America Interfaith Alliance

Organizations for Identification Only

Stated Clerk Writes to Congress about Comprehensive Farm Bill

From the Office of the Stated Clerk:

On Friday, July 26, 2013, the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly, the Reverend Gradye Parsons, sent a letter to members of Congress urging them to complete a comprehensive Farm Bill that ensures access to food for hungry people, provides an ample safety net targeted to those small and mid-sized farmers who most need it, builds up rural communities and their economies, and protects the integrity of God’s creation through robust conservation programs and sustainable agriculture. 

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has a long history not only of providing food and shelter for those in need in our local communities, but also of supporting a strong public-private partnership, where government ensures that vulnerable populations have access to a strong social safety net maintained by our collective commitment to the common good.  As a church, the PC(USA) has also long supported strong, rural communities, sustainable agriculture, and the promotion of conservation on working and vulnerable lands.

Last year, Congress allowed the Farm Bill to expire, even though it has historically been a strong bipartisan bill, drawing support not only from Democrats and Republicans, but also from those representing rural and urban districts. 

“Indeed, it would be more fitting to call this bill our Food Security Bill,” the letter reads in part, “because its implications are much broader than farm policy.”

The Stated Clerk’s letter urges Congress to maintain the symbiotic connection between the programs that provide food to hungry people and the programs that support food production. He also appeals to the witness of the 220th General Assembly (2012), which directed the Stated Clerk and the Office of Public Witness to “orient their advocacy and programs concerning agriculture and food supply in accordance with the following principles and goals: renewability, sustainability, resilience, minimized carbon emissions, participatory research and decision-making, revitalized rural communities, strong local food economies, security of food supply, ethical treatment of animals, and fair and dignified treatment of persons working throughout the food chain.”

For more information on the PC(USA)’s witness around healthy food and healthy farms, visit the official blog of the Office of Public Witness and the website of the Presbyterian Hunger Program.

The full text of the letter:

July 26, 2013

  

The United States Congress

Washington D.C.

Dear Members of Congress:

I write on behalf of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to urge you to complete a comprehensive Farm Bill that ensures access to food for hungry people, provides an ample safety net targeted to those small and mid-sized farmers who most need it, builds up rural communities and their economies, and protects the integrity of God’s creation through robust conservation programs and sustainable agriculture. 

With respect to current political debate, it is essential that the nutrition title be brought back into the larger Farm Bill.  It is no accident that the Farm Bill connects food production with hungry people and stewardship of our fields and rivers.  Long-term food security for our nation demands that the three be interconnected and considered together.  Indeed, it would be more fitting to call this bill our Food Security Bill, because its implications are much broader than farm policy.

In 2012, the 220^th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) directed me and our Office of Public Witness, in Washington, DC, to “orient [our] advocacy and programs concerning agriculture and food supply in accordance with the following principles and goals: renewability, sustainability, resilience, minimized carbon emissions, participatory research and decision-making, revitalized rural communities, strong local food economies, security of food supply, ethical treatment of animals, and fair and dignified treatment of persons working throughout the food chain.”

The same Assembly stated our conviction “that protection of the environment is a vital part of the Christian faith,” and supported the Land Institute’s Fifty Year Farm Bill, which proposes the perennialization of crops and protection for biodiversity, with the goal of social and ecological sustainability.

Hunger, food production, and care for our natural environment are inextricably linked.  We need a Farm Bill that ensures that food reaches hungry people, safeguards the environment, revitalizes rural communities, protects the security of food supply, enables strong local food economies, and empowers a sustainable agriculture movement.  I urge you to stop using the Farm Bill as a tool for partisan conflict and enact legislation that meets our calls to stewardship, sustainability, and the common good.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact Leslie Woods, Representative for Domestic Poverty and Environmental Issues in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Office of Public Witness at (202) 543-1126 or leslie.woods@pcusa.org. 

Sincerely,

The Reverend Gradye Parson

Stated Clerk of the General Assembly

Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

We are the Power

On July 24, we joined with many family members, friends, other supervisors, colleagues, and allies to celebrate the Commencement of the 19th class of Bill Emerson Hunger Fellows, including our own Fellow, Irene Romulo, who was selected by her peers to deliver one of two commencement addresses. Each fellow received a personal tribute from his or her supervisor from the Congressional Hunger Center.  Irene's supervisor said of her, "I feel better about the world because she is in it."  In the Office of Public Witness, we feel the same way.

But truly, Irene's speech needs no introduction... please listen to this amazing young woman's wisdom.

Commencement Address
by Irene Romulo, Bill Emerson Hunger Fellow, PC(USA) Office of Public Witness
July 24, 2013

Thank you for standing with us and for supporting us along the way.

How can I possibly talk about all that I’ve learned and experienced in one year in five minutes, how do I share all the stories of struggle and hope that people from across the country have shared with us? I’ll try to cram most of it, most of what I believe in, in just these five minutes.

In our discussions we often talk about how important it is to ground ourselves in our communities

In the struggles of our people

And that’s what we’ve done

and now

I know that our lives, my life will forever be connected to each one of you

That it will forever be connected to the many friends and allies that we’ve met along the way

I know that the work we’re doing is tough

And that we’ve got a lot of it to do but

I know that even in all that struggle, there is beauty, there is strength, and there is power

I know that we need to love, to love ourselves and one another, to fully embrace the beauty and power in our histories, in our cultures, our hair, our skin, our languages because

when our lives are devalued, our bodies somehow made less human

when our customs and cultures appropriated, defiled, stolen

that when our peoples are humiliated, that when yet another micro aggression, or another act of violence is made our communities,

it is only through collective action that we’ll find any sort of liberation.

I know that we’ve experienced a lot of anger and hurt.  I know that I personally have a lot of pain that I didn’t know how to recognize, internalized pain that doesn’t just affect me but many of us.

But I also know that we can actively challenge the roots of that pain.

I know it’s possible to stop being afraid to talk, to share, and to confront our traumas collectively

because one person should not have to bear the burden of hundreds of years of struggle alone.

I know that we’re privileged because we’re here and we can and have the language to discuss institutional oppressions but I know we need to move these conversations out

Because for my brother who stands at Home Depot everyday looking for work or the woman, like my new friend Martita, who is being unconstitutionally detained, these conversations alone without action will do nothing to change their situation. I know we need to have these conversations with them because I know that it’s possible to transform an individual from someone that is timid and shy

From someone who has been humiliated for so long that they’ve been shamed into normalizing all the violations and abuses they’ve endured

Into someone who draws strength and power, from all those experiences, and from the people standing with them

Into someone who Stands up at a rally, at a press conference, in front of legislators, in front of their communities

And cries out against our oppressors

And joins the movement of the people

A movement that isn’t just here but that is undeniably tied to the struggles of others

And I know that our work should be tied to the collective liberation of people across the world.

I know it is important to value the stories that our community members are willing to share, to treasure them, because each and every one of their stories is a story of struggle, of hope, and of strength.

And I know we need to make intentional spaces in our work to make sure that these stories are shared and become our guides

I know we need to remember to listen ALWAYS and that we need to reject language that tries to chip away our agency because we are not voiceless

Our people are loud as hell, some just choose not to listen.

I know we can’t trade the rights of some people for those of another

And that compromises that criminalize a sector of us are not compromises but further acts of violence aimed at creating divisions in our pueblo

I know that there should not be anything progressive about wanting dignity, respect, and real justice for all.

I know that there are a lot of things I do not know but that’s okay.

I know that we’re never alone. That everywhere we go we have the power of our ancestors and all our brothers and sisters who work towards the same liberation.

I know that there’s power in humility, power in reaching out for help, power in our voices, power in our hearts, in our lives, in our experiences, our knowledge, and our dances. Power in our eyes, in our hands, our laughter and our cries…we are the power, together. Cuz the power of the people don’t stop!

Faith Community Criticizes House Budget

July 25, 2013


United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515


Dear Members of Congress:

Across the nation, Head Start programs ended their school years early, canceled summer programs, cut staff pay and benefits, and have announced reductions in the number of children who will be served in the fall. Programs serving meals to seniors have started to reduce days of home delivery and have closed or reduced hours for dining rooms. The long-term unemployed have lost federal jobless benefits, while job-training programs that might have helped them are cut back. Federal funds for education have been cut, with particularly harsh results for schools most reliant on these resources: those on Indian reservations or near military bases. Students counting on college work-study jobs are learning that they will not get them. Poor families or people with disabilities perilously close to homelessness after waiting years for a rental voucher have been told they will have to wait longer.

These are just some of the impacts of sequestration. At a time when we need to invest in education, rebuild infrastructure, protect people from hardship, and jumpstart economic growth that finally reaches most of us, sequestration is taking us backwards.

While many are already hurting from the sequestration cuts, the appropriations levels set by the House of Representatives for FY 2014 will make their hardships even more unbearable in the future. The House of Representatives’ plan not only assumes that next year’s budget will continue the devastating sequestration reductions, but it defies the Budget Control Act’s requirement that half of the $110 billion in additional annual cuts must be imposed on military programs and half imposed on the other areas of government. Instead, the defense budget is increased by 5.4 percent, or $26 billion, over this year’s spending. In marked contrast, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education are slashed 18.6 percent below this year’s funding, including sequestration. The Department of Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development is losing 9.6 percent of its funds. Other important domestic areas are also cut deeply: energy, conservation, and environmental protection programs are cut between 11 – 14 percent. That same $26 billion defense budget increase could cover many of the cuts to these vital departments.

As a faith community, we cannot simply stand aside and allow these cuts to happen. We heed the words of Isaiah 58:10-12: “If you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday…you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.”

We support a Faithful Budget - www.faithfulbudget.org - that helps lift the burden on the poor, rather than increasing it while shielding the wealthiest from any additional sacrifice or using those funds to expand our defense department.

We urge you to oppose appropriations based on the House-passed levels. Congress should enact a budget that can advance fiscal responsibility while increasing support for the poor and vulnerable, by focusing on job creation and economic revitalization, an equitable tax system based on fairness, and true human security over disproportionate military spending. Together, we must be the repairers and restorers of a Faithful Budget.

Sincerely,

American Friends Service Committee
Bread for the World
Disciples Justice Action Network
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Friends Committee on National Legislation
Jewish Council for Public Affairs
Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Washington Office
National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
National Council of Churches USA
National Council of Jewish Women
NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Institute Justice Team
United Church of Christ Justice and Witness Ministries
Union for Reform Judaism
United Methodist Church General Board of Church and Society

Prayers for a Just Economy

Litany from Today's Prayer Service:

Prayers for a Just Economy

On the National Day of Action to Raise Wages

July 24, 2013

 

Gathering Music

Welcome and Reflection – Rev. Michael Livingston

Opening prayer

God of Grace, you have gifted us with a world of abundance; a land of plenty; a country where all can have enough. We come before you this day to thank you for this prosperity and to repent from our apparent inability to share this wealth. God, we stand across from temples of power to declare our own complicity in systems that sustain some of us, while forsaking many others. And we come before you to seek your forgiveness, even as we pray for your justice.

Righteous God, you hear the cry of the poor. You listen to those who do without, while so many spend recklessly and our leaders invest the wealth of the nation in instruments of destruction.

Be with us this day Lord. Hear our prayers. Touch our hearts that we may be faithful witnesses and effective voices for justice. God of mercy, hear our prayer.  Amen.

Readings from the Sacred Texts

Hebrew Scriptures:  Deuteronomy 24:14-15

Holy Qur’an: Surah Al-Mutaffifin, 83:1-4

New Testament: Acts 4:32, 34-35

A Responsive Prayer for Justice[1]

Pray for those who are hungry.

Pray harder for those who will not feed them.

Pray for those who struggle each week to pay their bills.

Pray harder for the wealthy who do not care.

Pray for those who are homeless.

Pray harder for those who deny them shelter.

Pray for the sick and lonely.

Pray harder for those who will not give them comfort.

Pray for those who cry out for dignity.

Pray harder for those who will not listen.

Pray for those oppressed by unjust wages.

Pray harder for those who exploit them.

Pray for those who bear the yoke of prejudice.

Pray harder for those who discriminate against them.

Pray for those whose basic needs are denied.

Pray harder for public officials who cater to the greedy and ignore those bound unjustly. Amen.

Intercessory Prayers

And now let us, as a community of faith, surround in prayer all those who are struggling on the economic margins. Who have not shared in the great abundance God has entrusted to our care. Who have been left behind by the so-called recovery and who are unemployed or underemployed or unjustly employed – laboring full-time and yet living in poverty.  And let us pray for all those engaged in our unjust economic system: the laborers, the managers, the owners, the policy-makers and yes, we the consumers  - each who has a role and responsibility in creating a faithful economy that once again values work and honors the dignity of all workers.

 Hear now our prayers O God:

We pray today for all those who are seeking employment. For those who are facing an uncertain future – whether they are experiencing joblessness for the first time today or are among the millions of the long-term unemployed who have been out of work for six months or longer.  God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray today for those who are working in low-wage jobs, who work full-time and yet remain trapped in poverty -- workers who are fighting for fair wages, respect and dignity in their workplace.  God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray for children whose parents must often work two or three jobs to afford shelter, food and clothing. And for moms and dads and family members who struggle with the difficult choice of working multiple jobs to provide for their family and cannot tuck their children into bed each night or see them off to school in the morning. God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray for those who labor in the fields to provide us food each day.  For the farm workers who too often work beneath the hot sun without shade and in the deadly heat without water and who do not even make sufficient wages to buy the food they are harvesting. God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray today for our brothers and sisters who work in the shadow of a broken and unjust immigration system – workers who face discrimination and exploitation and whose rights are too often denied because of intimidation and fear of deportation. God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray for all those who labor in restaurants and earn as little as $2.13 per hour – the ‘tipped wage’ which has not been raised in twenty-two years. God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray for ethical employers who share fairly the earnings of their businesses with all their workers. For those who pay living wages and provide benefits sufficient for workers to support themselves and their families. God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray for those employers who have not yet learned to value their workers or recognize their inherent dignity.  For those CEOs and managers who have hoarded riches and yet denied fair wages to all those employed by their companies. We pray, God that you might turn their hearts of stone into hearts of compassion. God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray for our President that he might use the power of his office to lead by example and guarantee that all workers on federal property are paid a living wage, God of justice, hear our prayer

We pray for all our elected leaders that they might place our brothers and sisters struggling on the margins at the very center of their deliberations.  That they would support policies that create good jobs with living wages. That Congress would increase the minimum wage so that no one again would be forced to work full-time and still live in poverty. God of justice, hear our prayer

And finally, we pray that we as your faithful community might use our voices and our resources to build a just economy – an economy of shared prosperity where workers earn living wages and all our brothers and sisters live lives of dignity. God of justice, hear our prayer

God of Justice – we lift up all these prayers to you in the knowledge that you are already at work amid the brokenness of our economic system and that you invite each of us to be a part of your holy work of justice. God we offer to you these prayers today – both spoken aloud and those in our hearts - that together we might be the people you have called us to be reflecting your compassion, mercy and justice in all that we do.  In your many holy names we pray – Amen.

Benediction and Sending Forth

---

[1] by Rebecca Sutton Program Coordinator of Global Women’s Exchange

This prayer was developed for the NY State Labor-Religion Coalition’s seventh annual 40-hour fast.

Interfaith Appeal for Increase in the Minimum Wage

July 24, 2013 

Dear Member of Congress, 

As communities of faith united by our common religious traditions and values of justice and compassion, we write to you today to urge you to co-sponsor and support the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 (S. 460/H.R. 1010) introduced by Senator Tom Harkin and Representative George Miller. 

This important piece of legislation would raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 by 2015 in three increments of 95 cents. The bill would also provide for annual increases in the rate in future years to keep pace with the rising cost of living. Lastly, for the first time in 22 years the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 would raise the minimum wage for tipped workers from its current low rate of $2.13 by 95 cents per year until it is 70% of the regular minimum wage. 

Four years have passed since the official end of the recession, yet workers across the country continue to struggle with a sluggish recovery. Now is the time to raise the federal minimum wage. According to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), 30 million workers would see a boost to their income if this bill was passed. In addition, the Fair Minimum Wage Act would generate more than $32 billion in new economic activity, translating to 140,000 new full-time jobs and assisting local economies and communities. 

Our common scriptures present a vision of shared responsibility, commanding that we care for the vulnerable among us and also endows the notion of work with an inherent dignity. Right now it is imperative that our nation’s leaders keep our economy on the pathway to a healthy recovery and support low-wage workers. We believe you can do so by co-sponsoring and supporting the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013. 

To sign on as a co-sponsor please contact John D’Elia (John.D’Elia@mail.house.gov) in Representative Miller’s office or Liz Weiss (Liz_Weiss@help.senate.gov) in Senator Harkin’s office. 

Sincerely, 

American Friends Service Committee 

Bend the Arc Jewish Action 

Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE-LA) 

Cincinnati Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice (CICWJ) 

Conference of Major Superiors of Men (CMSM) 

Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) 

Detroit Interfaith Worker Justice 

Disciples Justice Action Network 

The Episcopal Church 

Friends Committee on National Legislation 

Greater New York Labor-Religion Coalition 

Ignatian Solidarity Network 

Interfaith Worker Justice 

Jewish Council for Public Affairs 

The Jewish Labor Committee 

Jewish Women International 

Leadership Conference on Women Religious (LCWR) 

Let Justice Roll 

National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd 

National Council of Jewish Women 

NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby 

Office of Social Justice of the Christian Reformed Church 

Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) 

Sisters of Mercy Institute Justice Team 

South Florida Interfaith Worker Justice 

Union for Reform Judaism 

Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations 

United Church of Christ Justice and Witness Ministries 

The United Methodist Church- General Board of Church and Society

U.S. Jesuit Conference 

Is it a crime to be hungry?

Life-size cutouts symbolizing the 1,100 individuals deported every day

Maria asked this question as she recounted the horrors she lived through while detained for six months in Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s jail and the Eloy detention center in Arizona. Maria is 62 years old. She was released 11 days ago and today she is here in D.C. to share her story. She was arrested during a workplace raid and is now considered a convicted felon, simply for working in the U.S. The raid was just one of the 75 unconstitutional raids ordered so far by Sheriff Arpaio in Arizona, where the epitome of anti-immigrant legislation is the law of the land.

To a room full of teary-eyed staffers from the offices of members of the House of Representatives, Maria recounted tales from her experience inside the Eloy detention center. She told us about the infections and illnesses she contracted due to lack of medical attention, the irony of having to work for $1 a day given that she was arrested precisely for working, the moldy food she was forced to eat, the maggots in the meat, which the guards claimed were simply extra sources of protein, and the emotional distress experienced by people who have been detained. Despite everything she has gone through, the trauma, and the fear that is now constantly with her, Maria is here in D.C. standing strong and sharing her story to make sure there is a stop to unnecessary detentions and deportations, and that people like her are not excluded from immigration reform.

Maria is just one of the over 100 people who will be gathering in D.C. for the National Convening of Persons in Deportation Proceedings.  They will be in D.C. this week for a series of actions demanding that President Obama put an end to all deportations. They will also be attending workshops designed to teach community members to fight deportation orders. The week is also the last week of a rolling fast that began in California in early March to bring attention to the more than 1,100 people deported each day.

The separation of families that occurs because of deportations causes immense pain and suffering for families and for whole communities. The courage and strength of people like Maria are truly inspiring. Let us use that inspiration to fuel our continued advocacy for just and compassionate policies. Let us continue to show love and care for all our brothers and sisters.  

New Poll Shows that 80% of Americans Support Raising the Federal Minimum Wage

From the National Employment Law Project: 

NEW POLL: Overwhelming Majority of Americans View Minimum Wage Increase as Important Priority for Congress Over Next Year 

Members of Congress call for passage of Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 after four years without a federal minimum wage increase; rallies planned in over 30 cities across the country to demand higher wages for millions of America’s lowest-paid workers.

Washington, DC – As four years pass without an increase in the federal minimum wage, a new poll released Wednesday finds that 80 percent of Americans – including 62 percent of Republicans and 80 percent of Independents – support raising the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour and indexing it to the cost of living, as proposed in the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 introduced by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Rep. George Miller (D-CA) earlier this year. According to the poll, 74 percent of Americans consider raising the minimum wage to be an important legislative priority for Congress to address over the next year.

As members of Congress, business leaders, and workers gather in Washington on Wednesday to call for immediate passage of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013, thousands of low-wage workers and their supporters in over 30 cities throughout the U.S. will hold rallies at major retail and fast food corporations, as part of a National Day of Action to raise wages for millions of America’s lowest-paid workers.

With congressional leaders signaling plans to make raising the federal minimum wage a high-profile issue ahead of the 2014 midterm elections, the new poll finds that Congressional candidates who support legislation raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour gain a substantial 36 percent net advantage (51% more likely to support, 15% less).  [Top-line results of poll available here]

 “Four years without a raise is three years too many,” said Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) on Wednesday. “While millions of workers have been without a raise, costs have continued to climb. Between 2009 and 2012, rent has gone up 4 percent, food is 8 percent more expensive, child care costs 9 percent more, and public transportation takes a 13 percent bigger bite out of workers’ wallets.  We have to make sure that working families can keep up with the economy. Also, by increasing the minimum wage, we can give tens of millions of workers more money in their paychecks to spend at local businesses, increasing sales and boosting economic activity.”

“The American people understand that a decent minimum wage is not a handout,” said Rep. George Miller (D-CA). “It’s about valuing work. The pressure to act is building.  We now see majorities of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents in all corners of the country support this raise. The time has come for American workers to get a raise. It’s time to grow our economy from the bottom up.”

At a noon press conference on Capitol Hill Wednesday, Rep. Miller will join Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Rep. Donna F. Edwards (D-MD) in calling for Congressional action to pass the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 (H.R. 1010 / S. 460). Over 140 members of the House of Representatives have joined as co-sponsors of the Fair Minimum Wage Act, along with 30 members of the Senate.

The Hart Research poll confirms that opposition to the federal minimum wage remains an extreme position that is out of step with the views of the vast majority of voters. Last month, Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) stated in a Senate HELP Committee hearing that he would favor abolishing the federal minimum wage altogether: according to the poll, fully 80 percent of voters, including 72 percent of Republican voters, disagree with abolishing the minimum wage.

“When it comes to the minimum wage, every year without an increase means that millions of America’s lowest-paid workers are forced to take a pay cut as the cost of basic expenses continues to rise,” said Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project Action Fund. “Stagnant wages are a recipe for disaster for working families and the America economy alike.”

The Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 would raise the federal minimum wage from the current rate of $7.25 to $10.10 per hour by 2015, and it would provide for annual increases to the rate in future years to keep pace with the rising cost of living, a key reform known as “indexing” that  ten states have already successfully implemented. The bill would also raise the minimum wage for tipped workers from its current low rate of $2.13 per hour, where it has been frozen since 1991, to 70 percent of the full minimum wage.

Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour would boost pay for more than 30 million low-wage workers. According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Economic Policy Institute, 88 percent of these workers are adults over the age of 20; 85 percent work more than 20 hours per week; and 43 percent have at least some college education.  The minimum wage is also a staple of support for many families:  more than 15 million children in the U.S. have a parent who would benefit from raising the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour.

With 70 percent of the economy driven by consumer demand, businesses cite lack of demand as a major reason they are not hiring. However, with overall wage growth stagnant and declining in low paid occupations, many consumers just don’t have the money to spend. The Economic Policy Institute estimates that raising the minimum wage to $10.10 would generate more than $32 billion in new economic activity, supporting the creation of 140,000 new full-time jobs as businesses expand to meet increased demand.

The most rigorous economic research over the past 20 years shows that raising the minimum wage boosts worker pay without causing job losses – even in regions where the economy is weak or unemployment is high. A recent study by the Center for Economic and Policy Research reviews the past two decades of research on the impact of minimum wage increases on employment and concludes that “the weight of the evidence points to little or no effect of minimum wage increases on job growth.”

The National Employment Law Project Action Fund is a project of The Advocacy Fund.

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Raise the Minimum Wage

A Job Should Keep You Out of Poverty, Not Trap You In It!

"Our economy is stronger when we reward an honest day's work with honest wages…no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty, [we must] raise the federal minimum wage." –President Obama, State of the Union Address, February 12, 2013”

On June 25, 1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed into law the Fair Labor Standards Act, creating a minimum wage, overtime, and basic labor standards.  Seventy-five years later, these core labor protections are still the cornerstone of the U.S. economy.  This bill was instrumental in ensuring that workers, especially those who are most vulnerable to unscrupulous employers, can make a living and provide for their families. 

Four years ago today, the last increase from the 2007 bill to raise the federal minimum wage took effect, bringing the federal minimum wage to its current $7.25 per hour. People who work full-time at a minimum wage job, earn $15,080 per year.   This means that a full-time minimum-wage worker cannot even meet federal poverty level standards if they have any dependent family members.  For instance, for a family of three (one adult, two children), the poverty threshold is $19,530.  But minimum wage work has not always trapped workers in poverty.  Indeed, the minimum wage used to grow in relative proportion to productivity and size of the economy.  In 1968, the height of the minimum wage’s value, the wage floor was the equivalent of $10.67 in today’s dollars.

Write to your Members of Congress today – a job should keep you out of poverty, not trap you in it.

Currently there are bills in Congress to address this injustice -- the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013 (S. 460 / H.R. 1010), sponsored by Senator Tom Harkin [D-IA] Representative George Miller [D-CA].  This bill seeks to bring the wage up to $10.10 per hour, and index it to inflation, so that low-wage workers will see some of the benefits of the economic growth that has been reaching only those earners at the very top of the income scale in recent years.   The Fair Minimum Wage Act will raise the wage from $7.25 per hour to $10.10 in three steps of 95 cents each over 2 years.  After that, the minimum wage will see annual, automatic cost-of-living increases, tied to inflation.  And perhaps even more important, these bills will break the 22-year freeze on the minimum wage for tipped workers, which has stagnated at $2.13 per hour since 1991.  These bills will bring the tipped wage up, in 95-cent increments, until it is 70% of the regular minimum wage, after which it will also be tied to inflation.

These are some essential steps toward spreading out some of the economic gains in our economy, and those who may find this increase precipitous, should note that, even after full enactment of the wage increase, which could not possibly take place until 2015 at the earliest, the annual salary of those working a full-time minimum-wage job will be just $21,008, which still leaves low-income families too vulnerable.  The minimum wage is intended to act a wage floor in the labor market, but we have a long way to go before achieving living wages for all.

Send a message to your Members of Congress now!  Urge them to cosponsor these bills.

The Presbyterian Church has a long history of supporting the rights of workers to earn fair wages, good benefits, and safe working conditions.  Indeed, in recognizing the value and dignity of work, the 2008 Social Creed for the 21^st Century, adopted by the PC(USA) and our ecumenical partners, says:

“In faith, responding to our Creator, we celebrate the full humanity of each woman, man, and child, all created in the divine image as individuals of infinite worth, by working for…

• Employment for all, at a family-sustaining living wage, with equal pay for comparable work.
• The rights of workers to organize, and to share in workplace decisions and productivity growth.
• Protection from dangerous working conditions, with time and benefits to enable full family life.

Indeed, our biblical tradition also reminds us that the livelihood of workers is a responsibility of the community, for the prophet Malachi, echoing earlier laws and prophets, prophesies, “Then I will draw near to you for judgment; I will be swift to bear witness against… those who oppress the hired workers in their wages, the widow and the orphan, against those who thrust aside the alien, and do not fear me, says the Lord of hosts.” (3:5)

The system of low-wage work in the U.S. ensures that those who are vulnerable and have little will stay that way.  Low-wage work cannot support a family, nor provide workers with the necessary supports to climb out of poverty.  A job should keep workers out of poverty, not in it!

As part of his salvific ministry, Jesus said, “the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.”  In the tradition of the Savior who came to bring good news to the disheartened, dispirited, and disenfranchised, we must support social justice for all God’s children.  Write to you Members of Congress today. Four years is too long without a raise.  Now is the time to raise the minimum wage.