CAMPUS HIGHLIGHT…IDEA OF THE MONTH…CITIZENS RISING…MONEY ON MY MIND…PEOPLE’S CLIMATE MARCH…QUOTES OF THE MONTH…FACTS YOU CAN USE
CAMPUS HIGHLIGHT – VASSAR COLLEGE
Vassar College’s DM chapter, founded in 2003, is still going strong! Last month during Freshman Orientation, DMers successfully registered over 250 students to vote. Now they are continuing to register students, and are organizing events for Election Day to get them to the polls.
The chapter has already begun its semester-long film series, screening films related to money in politics like Kochs Brothers Exposed and Pricele$$. They’ve invited Harvard Law Professor Larry Lessig to speak on campus, and are scheduling a lecture series by their own Vassar faculty linking money in politics to issues like income inequality, the environment, funding for higher education and more.
With a growing membership they have big projects in the works including a voter guide and a legal challenge (supported by the school’s President) to voter registration laws that discriminate against students, Adam Eichen, the chapter’s president, affirms, “We have high hopes that this year we will make Vassar Democracy Matters the most active and popular political club on campus.”
GO VASSAR!!
IDEA OF THE MONTH – OCCUPY HALLOWEEN
DM chapters make holidays fun and also politically effective. Here are some DMer’s ideas for the week of Halloween:
Make Halloween Cards: Table in costume! Have materials available for students to make cards to send to politicians. Create messages about how “scary” big money in politics is. Urge politicians to support public campaign financing to get big money out of politics and people back in.
Stage Improv Theater: Dress up and do a short improv skit about big money’s harm to the environment, student loans, democracy and more!
Create a Candy Halloween Quiz: Table with candy and a “money in politics” quiz or game. “How much did the 2012 election cost?” “What’s the average spending for candidates for the Senate” etc. Come up with your own ideas…and have fun!
Find more Action Campaign ideas here.
CITIZENS RISING SYMPOSIUM
Democracy Matters was a proud sponsor of the Citizens Rising Symposium held at MIT last month. Over 500 people packed the auditorium for a teach-in on big money in politics and how to take our democracy back. Professor Martin Gillens spoke about how big political money has fueled growing economic inequality in the US. And Professor Larry Lessig emphasized the tiny number (less than 1%) of the super rich who are holding “our Republic hostage” by funding the campaigns, superPACS, and political speech that benefit them at the expense of the 99%.
Read about the event here.
MONEY ON MY MIND
This month, Jay Mandle critically assesses New York City’s matching system of public financing, in place since 1988. He explores both its strengths and its weaknesses.
Read the full article and explore other issues of MOMM.
PEOPLE’S CLIMATE MARCH
On September 21st, DMers joined hundreds of thousands of others across the globe demonstrating to demand that politicians to act to save the planet from continued climate change. The connection is clear between the crisis of climate change and the money pouring into our political system from oil and gas companies, the fracking industry, and others earning enormous profits from non-renewable energy. The growth of the environmental movement is part of the escalating resistance to the political system dominated by the rich.
Read more here and here.
QUOTES OF THE MONTH (from signs at the People’s Climate March)
“POLITICAL MONEY IS CHOKING OUR PLANET”
“DON’T FRACK WITH US”
“MAKE LOVE NOT CLIMATE CHANGE”
“CHANGE OUR POLITICS – NOT OUR CLIMATE”
“IT’S OUR FUTURE!”
FACTS YOU CAN USE: MONEY, POLITICS & ENVIRONMENT
Total Contributions to Federal Candidates* since 1990 from:
Oil & Gas Industries = $392,119,340
Agribusiness = $784,574,286
Energy & Natural Resource Industries = $675,747,431
VS.
Alternative Energy Industries = $11,915,239
Pro-Environmental Interest Groups = $66,642,227
*Candidates for Congress, President and Vice-President
Read more here and here.
To honor our 2013 activists, we list ten Democracy Matters chapters in each E-News:
Humboldt State University…Iona College…Loyola University Chicago…Marygrove College…McDaniel College…Mt. Holyoke College…Northeastern University…Occidental College…Pennsylvania State College…Russell Sage College…
More Campus Chapters.