Category Archives: Front Page

H.R.40 Re-Introduced in the 118th Congress

Update:

On January 24, 2023, Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey introduced S.40, the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act, legislation that would establish a commission to consider proposals for reparations for African American descendants of slavery. The legislation is the Senate companion to H.R. 40, introduced by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX-18).

Jarrett Smith
January 11, 2023

On the first day of the 118^th Congress, Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) reintroduced H.R.40 with a speech on the House floor. In her speech, Rep. Lee noted, “H.R.40 is a crucial piece of legislation because it goes beyond exploring the economic implications of slavery and segregation. It is a holistic bill in the sense that it seeks to establish a commission to also examine the moral and social implications of slavery.”

H.R.40 was first introduced in 1989 by former Representative John Conyers (D-MI) and has been introduced in every Congress since. In the last Congress, H.R.40 passed out of the House Judiciary Committee for the first time in its history, however, it failed to receive a vote on the House floor.

NETWORK, and our multi-faith coalition partners, strongly support the passage of H.R.40, however, given the reality of the divided Congress, we also call on President Biden to establish a commission on reparations via Executive Order.

Last year, more than 2,000 Catholic Sisters and Associates sent a letter to President Biden, urging him to fulfil his campaign promise to support reparations. The letter followed a months-long campaign to build support for reparations with vigils organized by NETWORK advocates to pray and act for reparations. The vigils were held across the country in-person and online with local and national faith leaders.

Creating a commission to study and develop reparations proposals, as outlined in H.R.40, is the only policy that will lead to concrete proposals for repairing the damage that the United States government has inflicted on Black people. Its passage will allow us to move towards dismantling white supremacy and towards repair so that we can build anew together.

Catholic Social Teaching is clear: racism is a sin. Our faith teaches us to reject the immoral system of white supremacy and to work for truth-telling and repair. We can no longer deny the sins of the past and its ongoing implications Black people experience every day. NETWORK urges Congress to support and pass H.R.40 in the 118^th Congress.

Take Action - Email President Biden

Congress and President Biden Must Take Domestic and International COVID-19 Action

Elissa Hackerson
May 13, 2022

How do you carve out a “new normal” in the calm days that follow the urgent times of a pandemic? Two years into life with COVID-19, people in the United States have yet to reach consensus on the path to achieve and maintain normalcy. Medical experts, governments, houses of worship, and ordinary citizens do not accept a uniform standard of safety and protection. Tensions arise over mask requirements in public spaces, vaccines and therapeutics are questioned, restrictions on large public gatherings are shunned, and the efficacy of booster shots is debated. In developed countries like ours, this is privileged discourse. Domestic and international COVID-19 infections persist, but most of us have taken the shot and are now blessed with significantly diminished threats of death and serious illness.

But what about our global siblings in under-resourced nations? How do they fare in places where jabs in the arm aren’t coming because of a lack of political will and resources? The short answer is, not well.

Global Vaccine rates in low-income and middle-income countries are dismally low | Congress and President Biden Must Take Domestic and International COVID-19 Action

© UNICEF/Maria Wamala
COVID-19 vaccinations are being administered in communities hosting refugees, such as Fort Portal, in Uganda.

Globally, only 80% of people in lower-income countries have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. The United Nations reports that of the more than 10 billion doses given out worldwide, only one percent have been administered in low-income countries. Here, there is no debate: citizens across the globe that don’t have an economy like ours, and thus lack access to life-saving vaccines and therapeutics, are suffering. They are ravaged by a pernicious disease tamed by remedies in our country because of economic and health inequities: lack of funds to secure the vaccines and therapeutics, well-resourced countries hoarding supply, and Big Pharma’s preference for patent control and profits over sharing the science for lower-cost vaccine production.

Last October, in remarks given at the World Meeting of Popular Movements, Pope Francis called on pharmaceutical companies to release vaccine patents to make COVID-19 accessible by the poor. He noted at the time that only 3%-4% of the population in some countries had been vaccinated. One would hope that Big Pharma and world leaders would reflect on that dismally low vaccination rate, heed the words of the Pope, and take action that values lives over profit. But that didn’t happen.

What can people of faith do? Be a pest for those in poverty here and abroad

In the Popular Movements meeting, Pope Francis recognized that some consider him to be a “pest” because of his unwavering defense of the poor and vulnerable. It doesn’t stop him in the pursuit of prophetic Christianity and it won’t stop NETWORK, either. As a member of the Catholic Cares Coalition, a national coalition of 60 Catholic religious and non-profit organizations promoting domestic COVID-19 vaccination and working to address COVID-19 vaccine and treatment equity in the U.S. and globally, we advocate for life-saving vaccine policies. Most recently, NETWORK signed on to a coalition letter urging Congress to pass a supplemental funding bill that prioritizes funding for ongoing domestic and international COVID-19 needs.

The pressure for domestic COVID-19 funds is necessary because nationwide, government money that secured hospital resources and rapid response measures during the height of the pandemic are running out. In our current landscape, if the government doesn’t pass a supplemental bill, it is likely that our “new normal” includes locking out Medicaid recipients, the uninsured, and the under-insured from free and deeply affordably COVID-19-related care, treatment and vaccines. It is critical that we provide funding which allows the United States to respond to these needs while also fulfilling our promises to assist those around the world.

NETWORK’s Request to Congress:

We support the Catholic Cares Coalitions request: pass the supplemental funding bill with at least $10 billion in domestic funding and $5 billion in international funds for COVID-19 vaccines, testing, therapeutics and delivery system strengthening.

What’s a TRIPS Waiver for COVID-19 All About?

Laura Peralta-Schulte Speaks at a White House Candlelight Vigil Calling for a True TRIPS waiver | Congress and President Biden Must Take Domestic and International COVID-19 Action

Laura Peralta-Schulte speaks at a White House candlelight vigil in May 2022 calling for a true TRIPS waiver.

The Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is an agreement created when the World Trade Organization was formed in 1995. This agreement restricts the rights to make and distribute patented medicines or materials, including COVID vaccines, testing and treatment, except under emergency conditions.

This Agreement, pushed by knowledge-based economies like the United States and the multinational, research-intensive pharmaceutical industry, imposed a base of protections for intellectual property rights, from patents to copyrights. Johns Hopkins University

In an effort to decrease pandemic deaths and illnesses, a COVID TRIPS waiver was proposed by South African and Indian governments to relax the intellectual property rights protections for medicines and technologies needed to prevent and treat COVID-19. This initial effort to release the science so lives could be saved was rebuffed by developed nations and pharmaceutical companies — who’ve thus far proven maximizing profits and maintaining control of monopolies is more important than saving lives. South Africa and India amended their waiver request so that it subsides in three years. The cap on the TRIPS waiver was intended to make rich countries and Big Pharma in Europe and North America feel better about lost profits and diminished control (in exchange for saving the lives of the global poor), but the measure has yet to draw support.

Are We Our Brother’s (And Sister’s) Keeper?

Congress and President Biden Must Take Domestic and International COVID-19 Action

Ady Barkan appears on screen at a White House candlelight vigil calling for vaccine equity.

Humanitarian efforts to protect our global siblings should trump financial gains and political posturing. After all, the United States is privileged to benefit from Big Pharma’s vaccine supply. Don’t we have a moral obligation to help vaccinate the rest of the world? Pope Francis would say yes!. And so would Ady Barkan, the founder and co-executive director of Be A Hero. During his electoral campaign, Joe Biden promised Barkan that, “if the United States were to discover a vaccine, he would ensure that no patents stand in the way of other countries’ and companies’ mass-producing it.” As president, Mr. Biden has stated that patents and international trade agreements should not be allowed to prevent the affordable production of COVID-19 treatments.

Unfortunately, these have been empty pledges to date. Pfizer and Moderna, two of the companies that received billions of dollars in public taxpayer funding to develop their vaccines, have not shared their innovation with global scientists. This is particularly disturbing in the case of Moderna’s vaccine project which was completely funded by public money. While U.S. tax dollars fueled the Moderna vaccine, the company padded their profit margin, Moderna forecasts at least $19 billion in sales in 2022.

NETWORK and our Catholic and interfaith partners will continue calling on the U.S. government to share live-saving technology and know-how with countries in the global South so that they can begin developing necessary vaccines, testing and treatment for their citizens. For too long, access to healthcare has depended on the charity of rich countries which is neither predictable or sufficient. Justice requires ensuring countries must be able to protect the health and well-being of their own citizens especially in times of crisis. We must shift from an economy of exclusion to one that prioritizes life.

We Continue Putting People over Profits

Domestically, the appetite for COVID-19 prevention measures may be waning, but the disease is here to stay. We must not ignore it, and we must urge our leaders to diminish its ability to compromise health and take lives domestically and globally. Affordable access to shots, therapeutics, testing, and boosters are key as we continue to battle COVID-19 and any variants that emerge. It’s hard to accomplish this goal when the government funding that ushered us into our “new normal” is drying up.

Globally, even if the TRIPS waiver is granted, money will be needed to produce, transport, and administer the vaccine. Congress should act to address our obligation to take care of people at home and abroad in the supplemental COVID funding bill. Pfizer, Moderna, and other biopharmaceutical companies that maintain a monopoly on innovations created with public funds, cannot produce enough doses on their own to vaccinate the world. By protecting their monopoly, they deny billions of people access to vaccinations.

On May 12, 2022, the second Global COVID-19 Summit was held. Its co-hosts, the United States, Belize, Germany, Indonesia, and Senegal, called for global researchers, heads of states, philanthropic executives, and health experts to explore solutions — and make commitments — to “vaccinate the world, save lives now, and build better health security — for everyone, everywhere.” At the onset of the Summit, President Biden announced a major commitment to vaccinating the world’s lower-income citizens.

NETWORK believes this action, combined with the renewed and increased financial support from other global leaders in the West has the potential to be a game changer for global health and lives around the world. Through the National Institutes of Health, the United States has licensed 11 COVID-19 research tools and early-stage vaccine and diagnostic candidates to the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) so that global manufacturers can use these technologies for the potential development of COVID-19 vaccines, treatments, and diagnostics to benefit people living in low- and middle-income countries.

According to the White House, new financial commitments were made at the Summit that totaled more than $3 billion in new funding above and beyond pledges made to date in 2022. This includes over $2 billion for immediate COVID-19 response and $962 million in commitments toward a new pandemic preparedness and global health security fund at the
World Bank.

See the White House’s account of global commitments made during the summit.

We know that the solution to COVID-19 lies in affordable and widespread access to vaccines, testing and therapeutics. We will continue raising our voices to the White House to oppose Big Pharma’s efforts to exacerbate vaccine inequity in the name of profit. We will continue to urge Congress to pass a supplemental funding bill that prioritizes funding for ongoing domestic and international COVID-19 needs; and we call on President Biden to continue working for an effective TRIPS waiver that makes lifesaving technology available to all.

What We Can Do

What We Can Do

Persistence Under Adverse Conditions is Essential for Seeking Justice

Dr. Mara Rutten
Jan 12, 2023

Sr. Kathy Thornton, Sr. Carol Coston, and Sr. Nancy Sylvester

Sr. Carol Coston, OP (center), Sr. Nancy Sylvester, IHM (right), and Sr, Kathy Thornton, RSM (left), served as NETWORK’s first three directors, their tenures spanning the first 30 years of the organization’s existence.

My community recently watched the 2019 Oscar-winning film “Jojo Rabbit,” the story of a young German boy growing up in the last year of World War II. In one scene, Jojo and his mother pass through the public square, where Nazis had recently hanged members of the Resistance.

“What did they do?” Jojo asks her.

She answers, “What they could.”

For those of us who strive for justice in this world, elections can be both inspiring and terrifying, especially when the two main parties refuse to work together. As the House changes hands, we are rightly concerned about what will become of the issues that animate NETWORK’s Build Anew policy agenda: dismantling systemic racism, rooting our economy in solidarity, building inclusive community, and transforming our politics. But whether Congress champions or stymies them, we must carry on, and do what we can.

NETWORK has been in this place before. Although early on it enjoyed the ear of both major parties, that moment was short-lived. Starting with Ronald Reagan’s election in 1980, it faced the dilemma of how to lobby “in a milieu in which basic assumptions and values were increasingly alien to ours.” How it persevered through decades of opposition to its mission can be instructive on how to work steadfastly for Catholic Social Justice and the common good in adverse political climates.

Reagan’s approach to cutting programs he didn’t like was to defund them. In his first year, he introduced no new initiatives other than the budget, which drastically cut domestic spending. In this way, he could avoid going through the legislative process, which allowed for public debate about the merits of these programs.

With the regular channels of debate cut off, NETWORK turned to the field, where sisters and social workers could testify to the hardships people were experiencing. It provided members with lobbying kits to help mobilize communities and provide Congress with the much-needed perspective on how its policies affect those in need. It also partnered with 175 organizations to highlight that perspective in a week of HOUSING NOW! events to address rising homelessness.

Despite having a friend in the White House, the 1990s were just as difficult. The GOP’s “Contract with America” promised to shrink government by way of cutting social programs, specifically welfare. The suggested cuts were “mean-spirited calling for harsh, punitive measures for poor women and their children.” Again, NETWORK’s impact was dulled when Congress bypassed traditional hearings, shunting aside organizations protesting its agenda.

“Denied clearance to stand outside House and Senate chambers – where the most effective floor lobbying takes place,” it joined with Pax Christi and several women’s religious congregations to form the Welfare Reform Watch Project. Collecting statistical and anecdotal information about the effects these cuts had on people’s lives, they issued a paper in preparation for a Lobby Day “to insist that welfare reform is about getting people out of poverty not just off welfare.”

George W. Bush also took on social spending under the guise of “compassionate conservatism.” Bush, an evangelical Christian, summed up his governing philosophy by noting, “It is compassionate to actively help our fellow citizens in need. It is conservative to insist on responsibility and results.” This would mean encouraging people to build better lives for themselves without government assistance and to expand responsibility for federally funded programs to religious and community organizations.

NETWORK cautioned that the “proposal implies that individual conversion of ‘morally flawed’ people is the answer to society’s ills, including poverty. This disregards government’s role in shaping social and economic structures that keep people poor” and would enable the government “to abdicate its larger responsibility to protect the rights of the individual and promote the common good.”

Insisting on the government taking responsibility for the welfare of all its citizens is a tenet of Catholic Social Teaching and the thread that has run through NETWORK’s 50-year history. The first Nuns on the Bus tour promoted resistance to Rep. Paul Ryan’s harmful budget, and our members and staff have continued to engage in lobbying and organizing efforts on behalf of such issues as fair tax policies, immigration reform, Medicaid expansion, and reparations.

There have been both wins and losses, but we continue to do the work because we know that the U.S. government’s time is not God’s time. Until our dreams of a just and equitable society come to fruition, we do what we can.

Dr. Mara Rutten is a candidate with the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas and NETWORK’s historian.

This story was originally published in the 1st Quarter issue of Connection. Download the full issue here.

Healing Our Politics

Healing Our Politics

We Can Build a Better World by Participating in the Systems That Shape Our Destiny

Joan Neal
Jan 11, 2023

Christian leaders gather across from the U.S. Capitol Building for a sunrise vigil marking the second anniversary of the January 6 insurrection. Photo courtesy of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty.

With the 2022 midterms behind us and a new Congress coming into session, it’s fitting for people of faith to survey the “Signs of the Times.” Where is God speaking to us and trying to lead us as a people as we enter a new year, with a new Congress, in one of the oldest democracies on earth? The answer that NETWORK has discerned in the face of an increasingly volatile political landscape is that we must work to heal our politics.

Our political life has suffered a wound, a laceration that has exposed us to further injury and infection. This wound is reflected in the divisions in our society today that allow hateful, dehumanizing rhetoric to become normalized, and violent, resentful action to become a part of everyday life. The Signs of the Times are clear: We are a divided country. Even the composition of the new Congress – with the narrowest of majorities in both houses – suggests a body politic that has been torn asunder.

This situation has been building for a long time. The fact is, we are witnessing the ugly final acts of a power struggle in the U.S. that began half a century ago as an effort to strip away the gains made toward equity and justice for anyone who is not white, male, and socioeconomically privileged.

This struggle has played out in every aspect of our politics and now, most concerning, in our judiciary. For the first time in our history, we are seeing recent rulings that take rights away from Americans instead of expanding them, rulings that seem wholly untethered from any sense of the common good and even reflect bias toward a particular political ideology. Sadly, we also see allegations of corrupt dealings between justices and right-wing groups. Even the objectivity of our judicial system seems caught up in this fight.

The repercussions of this power struggle have been as painful as they have been predictable: stratospheric economic inequality; the dismantling of the power of organized labor; the rise of Christian nationalism with its view that America is only for white Christians; increasing threats to our planet and our public health; rising homelessness, and so much more. These are signs that our politics and our society are in desperate need of healing and repair.

As we look back on 2022 and the legislation passed in the second session of the 117th Congress, we can imagine each bill as a tiny swatch of material trying to patch the frayed social fabric of our current reality. The field hospital imagery of Pope Francis is apt language as we try to bind societal wounds while also addressing their root causes.

This is where we see our mission. At our core, NETWORK is a political ministry, which calls us to respond first with empathy and then with truth-telling and concrete actions that lead to economic and racial justice. We decry the divisions and seek to be a prophetic voice for peace, reparatory justice and reconciliation in order to reshape our politics and center the voices of those whose voices are not heard – those who are not privileged; those who lack the money and power to wield influence; and those who are most impacted by the evils of unfettered capitalism, white supremacy and extreme individualism in our politics and in our society.

At NETWORK, we have endeavored to do this by first listening to and seeking out other justice-seekers, such as the National Black Sisters’ Conference, to partner with us in raising an authentic witness for the common good. We have also sought to amplify the call for justice through our new podcast. “Just Politics,” a collaboration of NETWORK and U.S. Catholic magazine, launched in September 2022 and will have its season 2 premiere in February. We have used this new platform to center the voices of women religious, impacted communities, and other justice-seekers.

In his 2020 encyclical Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis argues for “a better kind of politics” and makes a key distinction between political movements that are populist – the forces that weaponized people’s anger for personal gain – and those that are truly reflective of “the people’s voice”. Our work seeks to put the Pope’s words into action, to insure that our politics includes the needs and voices of all people in order to build a more inclusive and equitable community. Through healing our politics, we can all play a part in shaping our common destiny and building a better country, a better society, a better world for everyone.

Joan F. Neal is NETWORK’s Deputy Executive Director and Chief Equity Officer.

This story was originally published in the 1st Quarter issue of Connection. Download the full issue here.

Listen to Season 1 of Just Politics Podcast!

Listen to Season One of Just Politics Podcast!

January 23, 2023

Our first season of the Just Politics podcast, produced in collaboration with U.S. Catholic magazine, is complete! This exciting new avenue for our political ministry wrapped up its inaugural seven-episode season earlier this month.

Throughout Season 1, our hosts — Colin Martinez Longmore, Sr. Eilis McCulloh HM, Joan F. Neal, and Sr. Emily TeKolste SP — spoke with Catholic Sisters, Members of Congress, and other justice-seekers on the path toward building a more just politics.

Episodes explored topics at the intersection of U.S. politics and the Catholic faith, including racism, elections, immigration, and care for families.

Episode 1 “A good Catholic meddles in politics“
Episode 2 “Sister politics“
Episode 3 “Equally sacred matters”
Episode 4 “Pre-election scary season”
Episode 5 “It’s OK to call something racist”
Episode 6 “To be truly pro-family”
Episode 7 “Let’s be better neighbors in 2023”

You can listen on the U.S. Catholic website, as well as on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Don’t forget to subscribe, and join the conversation about #JustPoliticsPod on social media!

STAY TUNED: We’re happy to share that the first episode of Season 2 will start Monday, February 6!

Webinar Recording: Unpacking NETWORK’s 2022 Voting Record

Unpacking the 2022 Voting Record Webinar

Meg Olson
January 19, 2023

Watch the recording of our recent webinar “Unpacking NETWORK’s 2022 Voting Record: The Deep Need for Repair” — then take action!

View the PowerPoint Slides

Next, take action!

Visit our 2022 Voting Record web page where you can

Download the 2022 Voting Record to see how your Members of Congress scored
Send a quick email to let your Members of Congress know how you feel about their score
Sign up to deliver the Voting Record to your Members of Congress. Once you sign up, a member of NETWORK’s Grassroots Mobilization Team will follow up with you to help you plan your delivery.

Did Congress Strive for Economic and Social Transformation with the 2022 Omnibus Law?

Jarrett Smith, Government Relations Advocate
January 10, 2023

As we begin a new year, NETWORK looks back to see whether Congress made inroads in economic and social transformation with the 2022 Omnibus Law. Every person in our country, whether they live on a sprawling estate, in a farmhouse along a country road, or in a public housing development, should have the resources they need to care for themselves and their families. Sadly, we know that lobbyists and dark money special interests work with some elected officials to block policies that would create just laws and equitable access to economic prosperity.

But NETWORK’s community of justice-seekers know that we can have just and equitable communities where all of us–not just the rich and powerful–can have thriving lives. When we work together and join our efforts with others who share our vision for a multi-racial democracy, we can bring about the economic and social transformation for which we strive.

One of the most important pieces of legislation for the Build Anew agenda last year was the $1.7 trillion FY2022 Omnibus. This bipartisan end-of-year spending package made significant investments in healthcare, housing, criminal legal systems reform as well as critical democracy reforms and investments in voting infrastructure to ensure free and fair elections.

For months, NETWORK advocates across the country (like you!) lobbied Congress to include policy priorities in the Omnibus package like the expanded Child Tax Credit, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, and a pathway to citizenship for undocumented community members. Justice-seekers called, emailed, and tweeted to Congress, wrote Letters to the Editor, and attended rallies, to advocate for a federal budget that supports just and equitable communities where everyone can thrive. Thank you for your advocacy!

An Overview: Where did Congress Invest in Economic and Social Transformation with the 2022 Omnibus Law?

Congress made significant progress toward eonomic and social transformational changes with the 2022 Omnibus in healthcare and housing. Medicaid recipients in Puerto Rico and U.S. territories, and Black mothers who are unable to pay for maternal healthcare receive more aid. For example, Medicaid coverage for new moms is guaranteed for 12 months and infants cannot be removed from Medicaid, or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, for a continuous 12 months, even if their family’s income changes.

Housing measures support people experiencing homelessness, public housing voucher recipients, people in rural communities, and homeowners.

Movement toward justice in the omnibus legislation is also noted in criminal legal system reforms where new laws bridge significant racial equity gaps in health care, access to housing, and equity in the judiciary and police forces. We hope the funding leads to improved health outcomes and treatment by the criminal legal system for Black, brown and indigenous communities.

The omnibus also includes critical democracy reforms that shore up Presidential elections (Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act of 2022) and a $75M investment in election security grants to ensure all votes are counted by continuing provisions from the Help America Vote Act of 2002.

Sometimes, Policy Not Included in a Bill is a Positive Result

NETWORK celebrates the harm avoided in the omnibus. For example, the continued misuse of Title 42 cannot be part of a fair, humane asylum process. It was not codified into law thanks to Democratic Members of Congress who rebuked attempts to incorporate outdated public health policy into permanent immigration law.

Movement Toward Justice in a Polarized Congress

We are disappointed that significant NETWORK priorities were left out of the package but appreciate that Congress took steps toward social and economic reform with some of the omnibus investments. Ultimately, the bipartisan passage of the FY2022 omnibus package was a significant accomplishment in a polarized Congress.

The leadership of Senate Appropriations Chair Patrick Leahy (D-VT), now retired, and House Appropriations Chair Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) allowed Congress to reach an agreement and fund the government before the end of the year. However, it is unacceptable that more Members of Congress did not support including needed policies like a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, the expanded Child Tax Credit, and the EQUAL Act.

NETWORK will continue making these issues top legislative priorities into the future and – with your help – continue building support for these common-good policies in the 118th Congress.

Reclaim Rev. King’s Dream, Repair What Has Been Broken

A Recommittal to Build Anew

Jarrett Smith and Min. Christian S. Watkins
January 16, 2023

After a restless and tumultuous midterm election year, we entered 2023 with bated breath and anxiety over what is to come. The initial days of this 118th Congress provided negligible relief. Four days of disputatious debate and back-room negotiations making international headlines, demonstrations of ineffective leadership, and stirring spectacles of brute disputes in the House chamber were newsworthy manifestations of similar occurrences on the local, state and federal level that we have seen for too many years to count. Not to mention remembering January 6th, the insurrection’s aftereffects, investigation, and repudiation thereof. Politically, these past 16 days have been a whirlwind, and we have 349 to go.

One of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King’s final socio-theological inquiries remains with us nearly 55 years after his ascent to the ancestral realm. “Where do we go from here: chaos or community?” This decades-long question needs a robust, faith-filled response THIS year. Ourselves, our children, and the whole of Creation deserve it. Future generations depend on it.

Beyond Rev. King’s Civil Rights movement accolades, and even beyond his consistently brilliant articulation and yearning for the church and society to realize what it means to truly be the “Beloved Community,” he helped us to understand more fully the essence of human dignity and worth, and the importance for these to be enacted among all of us if we will ever be all that God calls us to be.

The sacred interconnectedness of our diversely complicated existences cannot be ignored. Our nation and “world house” are in peril. The inescapable mutuality of our problems and robust solutions to resolve them for our destiny’s sake must be a priority. This holiday is not just to be a means for rest, but a day of remembrance and service towards that end. Moreover, we must not be so distracted and dismayed by the antics of this and previous years to forget the many accomplishments of yesteryear.

Some of the accomplishments towards building the “Beloved Community” include:

Passage of the Inflation Reduction Act meant to curb inflation by reducing the deficit, lowering prescription drug prices, and investing into domestic energy production while promoting clean energy. Enactment of a  $1.2 trillion infrastructure package which drastically increased investment in the national network of bridges and roads, airports, public transport, national broadband internet, as well as waterways and energy systems. President Biden appointing the highest number of federal judges since Reagan. Re-joining the international Paris Climate Accord, which President Trump had parted ways with, allowing the U.S. to restart and improve its commitment to combatting climate change, working with global players to thwart the climate’s deterioration. We cannot forget that President Biden started his term signing into law the American Rescue Plan. The law kept millions of families housed while Covid-19 ravaged the country. The list of legislative accomplishments goes on, and none could have been possible without your commitment to the practice of caring for those people and families too often judged as “the least of these.” Reflecting on these achievements must refuel our fervor for faithful advocacy.

As we look forward to future acts of making Justice possible by the works of our hands, feet, and voices, we must recommit to repairing what has been broken through an unwavering recommitment to build anew. While NETWORK remains steadfast to the prevailing priorities of social justice and racial equity, our policy advocacy is rooted in repairing what has been broken since the Doctrine of Discovery was signed, for the benefit of future generations that will follow. We welcome your collaboration on ending poverty and a progressive pursuit of reparations, repairing and strengthening the Voting Rights Act, and advancing robust criminal legal system reforms. Your participation in working to eliminate hunger and houselessness, assuring that labor is not in vain and equitably compensated, guaranteeing the “more than haves” pay their fair share into our nation’s support systems to adequately care for those who have not, and more!

Rev. Dr. King’s legacy proclaims, “We are now making the choices which will determine whether we can achieve these goals in forthcoming decades. We cannot afford to make these choices poorly.” We are now making the choices which will determine whether we can achieve these goals in forthcoming decades. We cannot afford to make these choices poorly.

We can do better! Our existence demands we must do better! Will you journey with us until we realize what Brother Martin saw on the Mountain Top?

Lent 2022: Lent Calls Us to Remember Our End

Lent 2022, Week 5: Lent Calls Us to See True Gifts

Inequity hurts our country. More importantly, it hurts the broader Body of Christ when generations of families are ensnared in cycles of financial hardship. A new status quo is needed! As we enter Lent’s final days, let us be mindful of how we can advocate for justice that extends past our earthly lives.

View earlier Lenten Reflections: Ash Wednesday | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4

Colin Martinez Longmore
April 1, 2022

[su_row][su_column size=”2/3″ center=”no” class=””] Watch Tax Justice For All – Week 5 (starting at at 29:50).
This week, we explore family, housing and taxes to explore advantages that contribute to wealth: imputed income, mortgage interest deductions, and home equity gains.[su_youtube url=”https://youtu.be/r4q9c0WYIFg” width=”360″ height=”300″ title=”Watch NETWORK Lobby’s Tax Justice For All Series for Your Lenten Reflection”] The system of penalizing poor families and rewarding wealthy ones supercharges the already growing racial wealth gap. We know that this type of inequity hurts our country, but more importantly, it hurts the broader Body of Christ by ensnaring generations of families in cycles of financial hardship.
Questions for reflection:

How have you directly benefited from the efforts of a previous generation?
What do you hope to pass on to future generations?
How can reflecting on the end of our earthly lives help us become better advocates for justice?

Thank you to NETWORK Grassroots Mobilization team members Sr. Emily TeKolste, SP for co-leading us through these lessons. We’ll watch the end together next week!

[/su_column][su_column size=”1/3″ center=”no” class=””] A month ago, on Ash Wednesday, we heard the priest say, “Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.” Lent reminds us of our death and calls us to focus on the last things. This includes how we will be judged before God, but it also includes how we find ourselves and our families at the end of our lives.

Recently, my wife and I were married at our home parish, surrounded by the community that raised us. After the big day, we eagerly shifted our focus to the next chapter—starting our household together. With new jobs, a new city and a new apartment, we kicked off the New Year with a blank canvas, ready to create our version of a Holy Family.

She and I are first generation Americans and college graduates. Thanks to the incredible sacrifices of our parents, and several strokes of good fortune, we found ourselves in the position to do what our families could not: build wealth.
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As we combined our budgets and planned for our financial future, we were grateful for the sacrifices our families made to provide us with this opportunity. However, at the same time, we were mindful that our financial plans would have to account for the fact that neither of our parents have retirement savings. In a few years, we will have to support them in old age.

Unfortunately, in our country, this situation is not unique. We can see it illustrated in the mixed-citizenship status family with parents who don’t hold retirement assets, or in the single mother heading into old age with a high personal debt-to-income ratio due to emergency expenses. There are countless families who find themselves in the cycle of an upward generational transfer of wealth, where younger generations are financially supporting their parents, rather than receiving wealth from them.

Our tax code does not reward this spending framework. It also disadvantages these families by not offering help, in the form of interest deductions, on certain debts like medical bills, credit cards, or personal loans. Many families are limited in their ability to save, invest, build wealth, retire comfortably and pass down wealth to future generations.

In contrast, wealthy—and overwhelmingly white—families enjoy a very different set of rules in our tax code when it comes to passing down wealth. The “stepped-up” basis loophole for inherited assets protects these families. They can dodge taxes on their wealth when transferring it from one owner to the next. The value on investment assets gained during the original owner’s possession is not taxed upon being inherited by the new owner. In other words, the assets are “stepped-up” in value and the new owner is able to realize tax-free gains. On top of that, estate and other inheritance loopholes allow wealthy families to avoid taxes on up to $23 million when passing down wealth.

The system of penalizing poor families and rewarding wealthy ones supercharges the already growing racial wealth gap. We know that this type of inequity hurts our country, but more importantly, it hurts the broader Body of Christ by ensnaring generations of families in cycles of financial hardship. A new status quo is needed! As we enter into the final week of Lent, let us be mindful of how we can continue to advocate for a justice that extends past our earthly lives.

[su_quote cite=”NETWORK Prayer to Move from Reflection to Action”]Good and gracious God, as we prepare ourselves to share in the joy of Easter, open our hearts and minds. Help us to see what we would rather not see, especially the suffering caused by the injustice of systemic racism. Help us reflect on these painful realities and see them for what they are. Help us to avoid despair and to move from reflection to action, galvanized by your Spirit. Grant us the courage to speak out and the clarity to cooperate with your grace in building the world anew. Amen. [/su_quote]

Advent 2022: Better Neighbors Care for New Moms

Advent 2022: Better Neighbors Care for New Moms

Laura Peralta-Schulte
December 19, 2022

Reflection:

When we reflect on the coming of Jesus at Christmas, one detail is very striking as a person who have given birth: God decided to incorporate the birthing of a healthy baby – under far from ideal circumstances – into the salvation plan of the world.

Everything touched by God is forever transformed. And with Christmas now so near – the birth of Jesus so imminent – we should remember that welcoming Jesus into the world means supporting something sacred: maternal health.

The U.S. faces a devastating maternal health crisis. Over 800 women died due to pregnancy or childbirth in 2020, a record high. There are two concrete ways that justice-seekers can confront this crisis right now.

Call to Action:

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act would guarantee pregnant workers a right to reasonable, medically-necessary accommodations, closing gaps in current law that have left too many pregnant workers unprotected for too long. Pregnant workers are routinely denied basic, temporary accommodations to ensure a healthy pregnancy. These are often as simple as a stool to sit on, a break from lifting heavy boxes, schedule changes, and protection from dangerous conditions. Many pregnant workers face undue pressures to take an often-unpaid leave of absence, which leads them to poverty. Despite current protections included in the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 (the last time we passed any sort of legislation to protect pregnant workers), over 37,000 pregnancy discrimination charges have been filed between 2010 and 2020 with the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The establishment of nationwide 12-month postpartum Medicaid coverage would reduce disparities in coverage across states, eliminate racial inequities in maternal health outcomes, and end preventable maternal deaths. Extending Medicaid coverage from the current requirement of 60-days postpartum to 12-months nationwide is critical to lowering the nation’s maternal mortality rate. Medicaid covers at least 40 percent of all births in the U.S., a disproportionate number of which are to Black, Latinx, and Native American people.

The legislative priorities not passed before the end of the 117th Congress will continue to be priorities of NETWORK in 2023 and beyond!

H.R.40 Re-Introduced in the 118th Congress

Update:

Jarrett Smith January 11, 2023

Congress and President Biden Must Take Domestic and International COVID-19 Action

Elissa Hackerson May 13, 2022

What We Can Do

Persistence Under Adverse Conditions is Essential for Seeking Justice

Dr. Mara Rutten Jan 12, 2023

This story was originally published in the 1st Quarter issue of Connection. Download the full issue here.

Healing Our Politics

We Can Build a Better World by Participating in the Systems That Shape Our Destiny

Joan Neal Jan 11, 2023

This story was originally published in the 1st Quarter issue of Connection. Download the full issue here.

Listen to Season One of Just Politics Podcast!

January 23, 2023

STAY TUNED: We’re happy to share that the first episode of Season 2 will start Monday, February 6!

Unpacking the 2022 Voting Record Webinar

Meg Olson January 19, 2023

Did Congress Strive for Economic and Social Transformation with the 2022 Omnibus Law?

Jarrett Smith, Government Relations Advocate January 10, 2023

An Overview: Where did Congress Invest in Economic and Social Transformation with the 2022 Omnibus Law?

Sometimes, Policy Not Included in a Bill is a Positive Result

Movement Toward Justice in a Polarized Congress

Reclaim Rev. King’s Dream, Repair What Has Been Broken

A Recommittal to Build Anew

Jarrett Smith and Min. Christian S. Watkins January 16, 2023

Lent 2022, Week 5: Lent Calls Us to See True Gifts

Advent 2022: Better Neighbors Care for New Moms

Laura Peralta-Schulte December 19, 2022

Reflection:

Call to Action:

Jarrett Smith
January 11, 2023

Elissa Hackerson
May 13, 2022

Dr. Mara Rutten
Jan 12, 2023

Joan Neal
Jan 11, 2023

Meg Olson
January 19, 2023

Jarrett Smith, Government Relations Advocate
January 10, 2023

Jarrett Smith and Min. Christian S. Watkins
January 16, 2023

Laura Peralta-Schulte
December 19, 2022