Category: What You Can Do Now - PACG - Progressive Action for the Common Good

Purchase banned books - No Hate In Our States

3/24/2023

Purchase banned books - No Hate In Our States

Civil Rights Forum

Stay at Homestead Mom (on Facebook)

Hooray for Barnes & Noble’s Banned Books section (kids edition)! Each of these books has been banned by various libraries, schools, and organizations. Several are on the American Library Association’s top 100 most banned and challenged books.

PACG has created purchase links from Barnes and Nobel for these books. Buy them for all of the kids in your life! (Click on the name of the book for more information about it and to find a purchase link.)

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Lorax
Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus
Melissa (previously published as GEORGE)
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
A Wrinkle in Time
Winnie the Pooh
The Adventures of Captain Underpants
The Wizard of Oz
Where the Sidewalk Ends
Hop on Pop
Something Happened in Our Town
And Tango Makes Three

PACG Webmaster

Oppose the Illinois plastics pollution bill - What You Can Do Now

3/19/2023

Call to oppose the Illinois plastic pollution bill

Environmental Forum

The Environmental Forum encourages all of our Illinois members and friends to call their legislators to voice their opposition to House Bill 1616. Our allies at Beyond Plastics have done a lot of work on this important issue.

Dear Environmentalist,

An Illinois House Bill may soon come up for a vote that would promote false recycling solutions and potentially expose communities to toxic pollution if passed. We need your help to oppose it ASAP!
Please make a call now to your Illinois House Representative and urge them to vote 'No' on HB1616 - it only takes a few minutes.

HB1616 is backed by powerful petrochemical interests. See the WasteDive article: "Chemical recycling facility bill in Illinois highlights tensions around future permitting."

HB1616 would amend an existing Illinois state law that promotes "chemical recycling." The bill would extend the deadline for a pilot "pyrolysis" or "gasification" facility to begin construction without undergoing Illinois EPA's regular environmental permitting process. Pyrolysis and gasification (two technologies that fall under the umbrella term "chemical recycling") mostly turn plastic waste into low grade fossil fuels to be burned.

These technologies are polluting, generate hazardous waste, and are sited in low-income communities and communities of color. Also troubling, policies to promote chemical recycling can undermine waste reduction. The straightforward solution to plastic waste is to reduce the production and use of plastics in the first place.

HB1616 could come up for a vote any day. This bill has industry support, and grassroots opposition is critical to make sure false solutions like "chemical recycling" don't undermine true recycling and reduction efforts. Click here for calling instructions and a sample script.

Thank you for your help.

Alexis Goldsmith, Beyond Plastics

Lori McCollum

Take Action for Immigrants - What You Can Do Now

3/7/2023

Take Action for Immigrants!
Comment on proposed fee increases for immigration processing through Monday, March 13th

Civil Rights Forum

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has proposed fee hikes for the processing of immigration papers.

The public may comment on these fee hikes, which could have an enormous negative impact on those needing immigration papers. The comment period ends on March 13, 2023. You may comment at Regulations.gov by typing “Docket No. USCIS-2021-0010” in the search bar and following the prompts to submit comments.

Allison Ambrose

Lobby Day for Abortion - What You Can Do Now

3/7/2023

Lobby Day in Des Moines on Abortion Rights
Tuesday, March 21st at 9:00 am

Iowa State Capitol
1007 E Grand AV
Des Moines, IA (map)

Gender Equity Forum

The Gender Equity forum invites you to a Lobby Day in Des Moines on Tuesday, March 21st hosted by Planned Parenthood Advocates of Iowa and the Iowa Abortion Access Fund. Although the abortion bans did not make it through the “funnel” in the legislature this year, anti-trans bills are moving forward and also need to be opposed.

If you are on Facebook, you can sign up here. The event is free but they ask that you get a ticket to register.

If you are not on Facebook, contact me and I'll register for you.

I'm going! Hope you can join me!

Alta Price

Federal bill to lower drug prices - What You Can Do Now

2/20/2023

Bi-partisan federal bill to lower drug prices

Health Care Reform Forum

PACG’s Health Care Reform forum works to promote the idea of health care as a right for all, not a privilege for a few.

Currently, we are working to inform the community of critical federal legislation being moved through the Senate that would help lower drug prices. This is a bi-partisan effort involving Senator Chuck Grassley, (R-IA), and Senator Amy Klobuchar, (D-MN). Contact your Senators and encourage them to support this life saving legislation.

“Our bipartisan legislation deters practices such as pay-for-delay and sham petitions that undermine competition and limit Americans’ access to affordable and life-saving drugs...," said Senator Klobuchar.

"...I’m glad to see these bipartisan bills receive committee approval, and the full Senate ought to take action on them without delay,” said Grassley.

Read more from a recent news release here.

Past efforts of our Health Care Reform Forum have included the Make Meds Affordable campaign. Click here to read more.

Frank Samuelson

Donations needed for immigrants - What You Can Do Now

2/5/2023

Donations needed for Immigrant Families - Action Alert

1800 7th AV
Suites 5 and 6
Moline, IL 61265 (map)

QCAIR - Quad Cities Alliance for Immigrants and Refugees

On Jan 25, an arsonist set fire to the Timber Knoll Apartments in Moline, Illinois. Sixteen units were burned and several individuals were hospitalized.

Four immigrant families were victims of this fire. They lost everything they owned and are currently staying with friends and families. QCAIR is doing what they can to help them through this crisis.

Donations are being accepted at the QCAIR office. Donations can also be made via Go Fund Me: https://www.gofund.me/27cdccf1.

Susan Leuthauser

Amy Dehaven
563-594-0854

PACG Immigration and Refugee Summit - PACG Event

2/4/2023

Immigration and Refugee Summit - Navigating Complex Policies within a Broken System
Saturday, February 25th from 10:00 am to noon

Eastern Iowa Community College
Rooms W 116/117
101 West 3rd Street
Davenport, IA (map)

PACG Civil Rights Forum and co-sponsored by One Human Family and Quad Cities Interfaith

Join PACG and our co-sponsors One Human Family-QCA and Quad Cities Interfaith as we present "Navigating Complex Policies within a Broken System" on Saturday, February 25th from 10:00 am to noon at Eastern Iowa Community College in Davenport, IA.

The purpose of the summit is to inform participants of the various laws and regulations that affect immigrants and refugees, including visa processing, granting asylum, entrance quotas, available resources, and protections. Updates on current legislation as well as challenges with implementation will be discussed.

Spanish translation will be provided.

Our panelists (below) will inform the audience from their unique perspectives and experiences. They will participate in a Q&A session to discuss specific problems with the current laws in order to identify potential solutions that can be acted upon.

Summer Allchin has been a solo practitioner with Allchin Law Office, PLLC in Muscatine, Iowa since 2012. Summer practices exclusively in immigration law, focusing primarily on family-based immigration, consular processing, waivers, citizenship applications, and domestic abuse issues, such as Violence Against Women (VAWA) and U visas (nonimmigrant victims of abuse that occurred within the US) cases. Prior to opening her own law firm, Summer was an Associate Attorney with a small immigration law firm in St. Paul, Minnesota. She also worked as a family and immigration staff attorney with Mid-Minnesota Legal Services in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Summer received her law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law in 2007, where she was very active in the immigration clinic and received the “Michelle R. Bennet Award for Outstanding Client Services.” She received her B.A. in International Relations and Nordic Area Studies from Augsburg College in 2002. Summer is admitted to practice law in Iowa and Minnesota. She is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and regularly volunteers with the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice immigration clinic in Columbus Junction, Iowa. Ms. Alchin will talk about her work and the obstacles her clients face.

Karina Garnica and Gricelda Garnica are Immigration Counselors at the Catholic Diocese of Davenport. They have more than 20 years of experience in legal family reunification and also help DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipients. They will discuss their work and obstacles that affect the communities they serve.

Mayra Hernandez was born in Mexico and came to live in the United States when she was four years old. She is a DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipient. Mayra is a first-generation college student and received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Iowa. Currently, she is a Community Organizer with Quad Cities Interfaith and her main goal is to identify and develop leaders in the QCA to use their voices and their stories to be powerful. She will talk about her own personal experiences, policies that affect DACA, and what needs to happen in the future.

Ratko Rastovic is the Program Director for World Relief Quad Cities. He arrived in Davenport as a refugee from the former Yugoslavia in 1999 and has been employed by World Relief Quad Cities since 2000, presently as Program Director. He is a partially Accredited Representative for the Department of Justice, which allows him to represent individuals before the Department of Homeland Security.

Fred Tsao is the Senior Policy Counsel at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR). In this position, he provides technical support, trainings, and presentations on immigration-related topics to service providers, immigrant community organizations, and others who work with immigrants. He also provides updates and analysis of changes in immigration policies and procedures to ICIRR members and allies, and assists with the coalition's legislative advocacy efforts. A self-described “recovering attorney,” Fred practiced law at the Rockford office of Prairie State Legal Services, where he worked after receiving his law degree from the University of Michigan. He has also worked with the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, the Chicago Anti-Hunger Federation, and the Missouri Public Interest. Mr. Tsao will speak in depth about what the ICIRR does and some of the current issues that affect immigrant and refugee rights.

We are really excited to bring this group of panelists who have diverse experiences with immigrant and refugee populations to educate the public on the various obstacles and challenges faced by these populations. Our hope is that with a better understanding of what these populations face, we can work to make a difference.

Allison Ambrose

"I Am the Future" showing by DYC of NAACP - What You Can Do Now

2/3/2023

I Am the Future: Standing on the Shoulders of the Past showing - Update
Saturday, February 18th at 3:00 pm

Davenport Public Library
321 N Main ST
Davenport, IA 52801 (map)

Note: The venue has changed. This event will be at the main branch of the Davenport Library on North Main Street.

PACG and the NAACP Davenport Youth Council 47AA

Our Black History Month project is once again being shown at a Quad Cities library. We are very excited that the NAACP Davenport Youth Council will make this presentation.

Please join us for a viewing of the impact that the 1963 March on Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr had on local Quad City residents.

As before, we will have at least some of the interviewees on hand for a discussion afterwards. Read more about these remarkable people from our previous blog post.

Glenda Guster

Review the Covid 19 toolkit - What You Can Do Now

1/31/2023

Covid 19 toolkit

Health Care Reform Forum

You can learn a lot about Covid on this informational link provided by the U.S. government.

Scroll through some tips below before clicking on the link: https://www.covid.gov

Put in your county to find out if the Covid levels are low, medium, or high. (As of Jan 23rd, Scott Co, IA and Rock Island Co, IL were low.) Low, medium and high Covid ratings are based on hospitalizations, cases, and patients in hospital beds. If your county is in the medium range, the local health system is starting to feel the strain.

They post a “Covid-19 Toolkit” with links to resources to keep yourself and others safe:
1. find masks
2. vaccines or boosters
3. test-to-treat locations
4. order free tests from the federal government.

There are two phone numbers listed if you need to speak to someone about your status. Watch for an informational link on “Long Covid,” the long terms effects some people can experience after having the Covid virus.

Don’t stop scrolling; at the bottom you will find more resources:
1. Symptoms and care for the immunocompromised
2. Travel
3. At-home testing
4. Air ventilation
5. Long COVID Study

Frank Samuelson

Encourage business to eliminate single-use bags - What You Can Do Now

1/12/2023

Walmart eliminating single-use bags in some states (but not others)

Environmental Forum

Continue to (respectfully) pressure your legislators and local stores to go plastic-free. It's working!

From CNN: Walmart will eliminate single-use paper and plastic carryout bags at the register from stores in New York, Connecticut and Colorado this month.

The company previously stopped giving out single-use plastic bags in New York and Connecticut and in some areas in Colorado. Walmart offers reusable shopping bags starting at 74 cents for customers without their own bags.

Walmart is trying to get ahead of legislation in some states that are cracking down on plastics. Many customers are also demanding change, and Walmart has outlined corporate environmental goals to achieve zero waste in its US operations by 2025...

...Plastic bags entered supermarkets and retail chains during the 1970s and 1980s. Before then, customers used paper bags to bring groceries and other merchandise back home from stores. Retailers switched to plastic bags because they were cheaper...

...The US plastic industry’s impact on climate change is on track to exceed that of coal-fired power in this country by 2030, the organization projects.

Read the complete article here.

Susan Leuthauser