Category Archives: Voting and Democracy

NETWORK Honors 159th Anniversary of D.C. Emancipation Day

NETWORK Honors 159th Anniversary of D.C. Emancipation Day

Audrey Carroll
April 16, 2021

Today, April 16th, NETWORK celebrates Emancipation Day. On this day in 1862, slavery was abolished in the District of Columbia through the Compensated Emancipation Act. This was a key milestone in the struggle for racial justice that still continues today. 

Emancipation Day honors an important day for people who were enslaved, and invites us to reflect on the larger issues of racial equity, freedom, and democracy. We know that D.C. statehood is a racial justice issue, and until all 706,000 D.C. residents have equal representation, justice cannot be achieved. 

As we celebrate D.C. Emancipation Day, we call on all Members of Congress to join Representative Eleanor Norton and pass H.R.51 to work towards achieving long-awaited racial equity and building a new, just system of political representation. 

Earlier today, Washington faith leaders gathered to call for D.C. Statehood and honor the significance of Emancipation Day. If you missed it, you can watch on NETWORK’s Facebook.

The Racist Filibuster Must Go for Us to Build Anew

The Racist Filibuster Must Go for Us to Build Anew

Sister Simone Campbell
March 25, 2021

The Senate filibuster — currently 60-vote threshold to close debate on a bill and move to a vote — is a relic of the Jim Crow-era that has blocked democracy reform, civil rights protections, and health care expansion for far too long. Since its inception in 1806, the filibuster has been weaponized against people of color to block bipartisan legislation that addresses structural racism and inequality in the United States. Catholic Sisters and NETWORK advocates do not accept antiquated traditions steeped in a racist past to prevent progress and will mobilize across the country to end the racist filibuster.

Constitutionally, bills require a simple majority to pass — just 51 votes in the Senate.  However, the filibuster is a procedural tool which allows senators to block legislation from receiving a vote at all if there are 41 of them that oppose the bill. For centuries, elected officials in the minority have used the filibuster to stop common good, anti-racist legislation from passing and becoming law. In the 19th Century, white Southern Senators used the filibuster to kill Reconstruction and the earliest civil rights bills in order to maintain white supremacy. In the 20th Century, anti-lynching legislation which was widely popular among Congress and the United States people was consistently blocked by a small minority in the Senate. The use of the anti-democratic filibuster as a tool of white supremacy had direct consequences: racist lynching mobs killed an estimated 4,400 Black Americans throughout our nation’s history. To this day, Congress has failed to pass federal anti-lynching legislation. In the Civil Rights Era, Senators employed the filibuster to prevent desegregation and voting rights legislation from becoming law.

The racist application of the filibuster is a clear legacy of the rule, and it continues today. Senators are exploiting the power of the filibuster to block critical legislation meant to dismantle systemic racism and known injustices in the 117th Congress.  The For the People Act, the Justice in Policing Act, the Equality Act, the PRO Act, are all bills that deserve a vote and stand a real chance of passing but for the filibuster rule.  The filibuster is not protecting voters in the minority party; it protects politicians set on preserving the status quo. We cannot allow an arbitrary Senate rule with no grounding in the Constitution to block legislation that enjoys widespread bipartisan support by voters across the country.

The Senate has a moral duty to use this opportunity to end the filibuster.

Add your name to join the Catholic Sisters and activists of NETWORK calling for the elimination of the Senate filibuster.

Statehood and Self-Determination for Washington, D.C.

Statehood and Self-Determination for Washington, D.C.

Ms. Andrea Renee Reed
March 22, 2021

Ahead of the House Oversight Committee hearing on H.R.51 the Washington, D.C. Admissions Act, I sent the following message to all committee members in a letter asking them to support D.C. statehood.

Rep. Eleanor Holmes-Norton and Ms. Andrea Renee Reed, 2010

My name is Ms. Andrea Renee Reed.  I’m a resident and native of DC, a 62 year-old, grateful African-American woman. Growing up in Washington, D.C. was hard. In the 60s there were several assassinations of civil rights leaders such as President John F. Kennedy, then Malcom X, then Martin Luther King Jr., and then Robert Kennedy—all in the prime of their lives. They led with strength, character and faith.  I can remember overhearing adult conversations about events that were filled with disillusionment, hopelessness, and disempowerment.

In the following years, I have witnessed a downward spiral of disenfranchisement and an economic free fall in the District. It felt like our communities were suffering and the politicians were indifferent. Like they were only interested in using the resources of our city without reinvesting them to meet the needs of the community. Which is why I am writing in support of the Washington, D.C. Admission Act (H.R.51/S.51). This legislation guarantees right of voters to participate fully in federal elections. The more than 700,000 D.C. residents, the plurality of which are Black and Brown citizens, deserve full congressional representation and the self-determination that comes with statehood.

I moved around a lot within the District during my younger years but wherever I lived, nobody in the surrounding community owned their own homes. We all lacked ownership in the places we lived.  Every place I stayed, it was a constant struggle for me and for others in these neighborhoods. My entire experience was an attempt to escape.

It was by God’s grace that I met Ms. Carolyn Byrd who supported destitute young Black people by showing curiosity about their dreams and offering encouragement. Ms. Byrd trusted me with the great responsibility of caring for her disabled daughter, LaShonya.  She showed me that I could make choices about the direction of my life and didn’t have to live in a state of reactivity.  I still believe she could have been an effective, powerful community leader or even city council member had she had the resources available to her.  She held a vision for the District and felt ownership of it as a place to grow and to thrive, and she tried to make it better in her own way.

With her encouragement, I realized I could follow my path, so I left the District and lived many places trying to find somewhere that felt like home.  It was also during that time that I slowly and steadily gained independence and confidence.  An awareness of my contributions and capabilities became more clear to me and I also learned that unaddressed, undiagnosed mental illness had contributed to some of my struggles. With a newfound freedom I slowly began to thrive and feel like a whole person with agency. Mental health issues stagnate the abilities of citizens to meet their highest potential for growth and economic development.

Now, many years later, I chose to return to Washington, D.C. looking for healing and to reclaim my roots.  I reside in a safe environment, with a supportive community in the Petworth neighborhood.  It finally feels like home. This community has inspired me to work for change and I can see now where Ms. Byrd found her inspiration to help others. I feel the same call and that’s why I’m writing today.

I can see with new eyes how the District, as a broader community, suffers like I did growing up: discouraged, disempowered, and held down with little control of its path forward.  In addition to many of the same problems I saw growing up, now with gentrification happening, it compounds the lack of ownership for the native population.  Again, a community left out in our own home.

It is 2021, we are tired of being marginalized and having others dictate our path and our goals. Those of us who call the District home refuse to have our choices undermined or overruled by politicians from other states, some with fewer residents than Washington, D.C. We deserve to have statehood status, with proper representation and agency over our own affairs. I believe DC statehood would improve all aspects of residents’ lives including addressing homelessness and the psychological condition of the broader community, generally uplifting our spirits.

We are ready to claim our home—to TRULY take ownership—and be properly represented in Congress. We are capable of managing our own affairs just like other states. It is time to give us our agency and give the power of the vote to courageous heroes like Rep. Eleanor Holmes-Norton who has been speaking truth to power for 30 years.

Ms. Andrea Renee Reed is a member of the Assisi Community, an intentional community in Washington, D.C. committed to living simply and working for social justice.

Moving Toward a Culture of Encounter on Inauguration Day

Moving Toward a Culture of Encounter on Inauguration Day

Sister Simone Campbell, SSS
February 4, 2021

Two weeks ago, our nation’s 46th President Joe Biden woke up and, with our first woman Vice President Kamala Harris, brought our nation’s Congressional leadership – men and women of both parties, of various religious backgrounds – to a morning Catholic mass at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, D.C. From that private, socially distanced mass, President Biden went on to take the oath of office on the balcony of the Capitol in a ceremony imbued with themes of Catholic Social Justice.

With so many challenges facing our nation, I cannot think of a more important time for Catholic Social Justice to take center stage, inviting people of all faiths or secular backgrounds to come together in this critical work of rebuilding our nation and guiding our way forward together. For too many years, racism, sexism, and growing economic inequality have been promoted by White House policy. In Congress, we’ve maintained the status quo with harmful repercussions for Black people, Native Americans, Latinx and AAPI communities, women, families and individuals on the economic margins, and all those with intersecting identities.

On Inauguration Day, the whole country witnessed speech after speech testifying to the value of caring for one another, especially those members of our community facing the most difficult circumstances. We also heard about the critical importance of caring for our planet, being active participants in our communities – what Pope Francis calls “meddling in politics,” and more. These values, inspired by principles of Catholic Social Justice, call us to put the common good above the benefit of any individual or small group. This is what is needed in our nation right now.

Putting the Focus on Listening

In his inaugural address, President Biden said, “Let us listen to one another. Hear one another. See one another.” In his own words, President Biden called us to what Pope Francis has been promoting for years – a culture of encounter. This is the culture fostered by Nuns on the Bus, traveling to different cities and states, meeting people and families and just listening to their stories. I invite you to listen to these stories, which we’ve shared over the years.

In Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis writes, “The ability to sit down and listen to others, typical of interpersonal encounters, is paradigmatic of the welcoming attitude shown by those who transcend narcissism and accept others, caring for them and welcoming them into their lives. Yet today’s world is largely a deaf world…” As we move forward we must do whatever we can to change from being a world closed off from listening and meeting one another. We are called by our faith and patriotism to create something new. We are challenged to create a culture of encounter out of a culture of indifference. As President Biden said, “We must end this uncivil war…  We can do this if we open our souls instead of hardening our hearts.”

However, it was quickly evident that for us Catholics the “uncivil war” does not just refer to the insurrection in the Capitol on January 6, 2021. It was also evident in the attack by Archbishop Gomez, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, on President Biden before he was inaugurated and then on Inauguration day itself. Archbishop Gomez’s actions were not endorsed by the Bishops’ conference and, in fact, have been criticized by many of its members. Pope Francis recently affirmed the Archbishop’s work on immigration reform. With the specific reference, it seems to me that there is an implicit critique of his attack on our new president.

In order to end this “uncivil war,” I believe that we at NETWORK need to continue our effort at encounter and listening. I know from listening to women across the country that the focus of some of our leadership on the criminalization of abortion does nothing to respond to many of their real needs. Let’s begin working to end the uncivil war by lifting up women’s stories and their real needs.

Building Anew Together

In her powerful inaugural poem “The Hill We Climb,” Amanda Gorman, our nation’s youngest inaugural poet and a young Black Catholic woman, declared, “We will rebuild, reconcile, and recover.”

Now, we must come together to face our history and build anew. In the midst of this COVID-19 pandemic, economic crisis, and acting out of white supremacists, the time to boldly respond to the needs of the common good is now. We must ensure that all have access to health care. All people need to be able to feed, clothe, and house their families. We must dismantle structural racism and end white supremacy. This is the building anew that is called for.

We need a new imagination to create a way forward in these unprecedented times. What is old is not working and something new needs to emerge. But I have hope that we can meet this challenge. As Ms. Gorman concluded, “There is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.”

The For the People Act Will Transform Our Democracy for the Better

The For the People Act Will Transform Our Democracy for the Better

Audrey Carroll
February 1, 2021

The For the People Act (H.R.1/S.1) is comprehensive legislation that will make sweeping reforms to restore and protect our democracy.  Making pro-democracy reforms is the first step to making progress on all our other policy issues. NETWORK supports the For the People Act because Catholic Social Justice teaches us that we have a responsibility to participate in our civic society, and this civic duty begins with voting. Protecting the sacred act of voting means ensuring that every eligible voter is able to exercise this right to make their voices heard. No individual or community should be disenfranchised based on their race, ethnicity, gender, religion, disability, or class. Among other critical reforms to strengthen our democracy, The For the People Act would ensure that elections are free, fair, and accessible in every state. Every Members of Congress should be supporting this pro-democracy bill.

H.R.1/S.1 Will:

Protect and Expand Voting Rights

    • H.R.1/S.1 will include voting protections such as automatic and same-day voter registration, prohibiting the purging of eligible voters from registration rolls, restoring voting rights to people with prior felony convictions, standardizing access to early and absentee voting, and prohibiting known voter suppression tactics.

End Partisan Gerrymandering

    • H.R.1/S.1 will ban the practice of partisan gerrymandering and require states to establish independent redistricting commissions with a clear process for public participation in congressional redistricting. Districts that are drawn fairly with public input help ensure a government that reflects and responds to the people rather than the will of politicians.

Prioritize the Will of the People over Profit

    • H.R.1/S.1 will get dark money out of politics by improving transparency in campaign finance and strengthening disclosure for political ads and donors so voters know who is trying to influence them.
    • H.R.1/S.1 will create an alternative campaign finance system by matching small donor contributions. This will allow Americans of all economic means to amplify their voices in our democracy.

Strengthen Ethics Rules

    • H.R.1/S.1 will fortify ethics laws and strengthen enforcement by closing loopholes for lobbyists, requiring presidential candidates to release their tax returns, and supporting the oversight of watchdogs to enforce the law.

Protecting our democracy and making our election systems fair and accessible means we can hold our elected officials accountable for progress on key issues of justice such as living wages, health care for all, immigration reforms, racial equity, and more. The Biden Administration has named democracy reform as a first priority and the new Senate leadership has followed the House example by designating the For the People Act as their first legislative priority in the 117th Session.

Passing federal democracy reforms couldn’t be more urgent.  We know that gerrymandered State legislatures across the country are already looking to crack down on voter access based on lies of widespread fraud in the 2020 election cycle.  In addition, the congressional redistricting process, which takes place every ten years, is around the corner and could result in 10 more years of extreme partisanship due to gerrymandering. It will be an uphill battle but we hope to see swift passage of the For the People Act early in the session as a first step to achieve the common good in our society.

NETWORK Urges Biden-Harris Administration to Address Suffering in our Nation

NETWORK Urges Biden-Harris Administration to Address the Suffering in our Nation

Work for Racial Justice, Respect Immigrant Rights, and Strengthen Democracy in the First 100 Days
Caraline Feairheller
December 19, 2020

As President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris prepare to take office, the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the ways our nation fails to structure a society that cares for those most in need. As both a public health crisis and an economic one, those most disproportionately affected have been communities of color and the poor. Over the years, the willful dismantling of social safety nets combined with the lack of preparedness for the pandemic have resulted in job loss, evictions, and food insecurity for millions of people.

While the injustice inherit in our system cannot be solved in the first 100 days of a new administration, a conscious commitment to alleviating the suffering can result in policies that prioritize the common good and support people and families at the economic margins.

We urge the Biden-Harris Administration to prioritize and commit themselves to systemic change in all branches of government in order to alleviate the harm brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic through the use of legislative action, such as:

  • Implementing a 6-month moratorium on forecloses and evictions.
  • Providing additional cash relief payments.
  • Creating a White House Racial Equity Office within the Executive Office of the President.
  • Require federal agencies serving populations underrepresented on voter rolls to provide voter registration services to their clients.
  • And more

In addition to these COVID-19 priorities, we call on the Biden-Harris administration to take immediate action to advance racial justice, protect immigrant rights, and strengthen democracy.

 

Download the full list of NETWORK priorities for the Biden-Harris transition.

Advent 2020: Waiting for a Faithful Democracy

Advent 2020: Waiting for a Faithful Democracy

Sister Quincy Howard, OP
December 13, 2020

During this sacred season of waiting, we anticipate early reforms in the new administration, which will create a more faithful democracy. Since March of 2019 we’ve been waiting: when the For the People Act passed the House and was condemned to the McConnell graveyard. Since 2013 we’ve been waiting: when the Supreme Court’s Shelby County v. Holder ruling gutted the Voting Rights Advancement Act. Since 2010 we’ve been waiting: when the Supreme Court’s Citizens United v. FEC ruling gave free rein for dark money and special interest donors to manipulate elections and influence elected decision makers. In some ways, you could say we’ve been waiting since 1787, when the original democratic experiment was founded within an exclusionary, racist political and economic system. The ideals of democracy articulated by the Founders are an “already, but not yet” scenario—they knew then that the creation of a more perfect union would be an unfolding process.

In 2020, a faithful democracy has never felt more distant. This year’s election was a shameful display of the influence that racism, sexism, power, and money still have in our democracy. Witnessing the fragility and exploitation of our democratic systems during such a vulnerable time in our nation has been utterly discouraging. Sometimes it feels like the democratic experiment is failing.

A new report from the University of Cambridge’s Centre for the Future of Democracy shows that people around the world are collectively losing faith in democratic systems. The drop in satisfaction has been especially rapid and consequential in the U.S. with a majority of citizens (55%) expressing dissatisfaction with democratic government for the first time. This marks a profound shift in our nation’s view of itself — Americans seem to be getting tired of waiting.

In 2020 our democracy is on life support. Suppression tactics to hamper voter participation have become campaign strategy. Gerrymandered districts reflect the needs of the party in power, not the constituents. It is often impossible to know the sources of campaign attacks and fear-mongering half-truths. While these weaknesses were on full display, a coordinated misinformation campaign by the loser’s party is dangerously undermining voters’ trust in elections.

In a faithful democracy, elections, campaigns, and voting are all mechanisms for a collective wisdom to break through which shapes truly representative leadership and empowers accountable decision-makers. This is the open-loop system that, at its best, brings about a more perfect union. Transformational reforms are needed to get us there, and they cannot wait another election cycle.

The For the People Act is a comprehensive package of policy fixes that are far-reaching in scope. They run the gamut from automatic voter registration and a small donor matching program to ethics rules for elected officials and ending gerrymandering. The For the People Act is the best chance we have to end the dominance of big money in our politics, to ensure that public servants work for the public interest, to make voting easier, and to protect the security of our elections.

This transformative bill will be a top priority in the next Congressional session. Its opposition has painted For the People as partisan, but that’s only the case on Capitol Hill. Elsewhere, transformational reforms that make our democracy more accountable, more representative, and more secure is the hope that voters are waiting for.

The Election Results Show Spirit-Filled Voters Chose Community Over Division

The Election Results Show Spirit-Filled Voters Chose Community Over Division

November 9, 2020
biden

President-elect Joe Biden helps kick off the 2014 Nuns on the Bus tour.

The 2020 election has been historic, with record high turnout and even higher stakes for the future of our country. While it demanded patience to count every vote, the results are now clear.

The people of the United States have chosen President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to lead our country and rejected President Trump’s politics of racism, hatred, and division.

This is a time for celebration, gratitude, and preparation for the challenges ahead.

Just before the election was officially called, when it was clear that President-elect Biden would secure the electoral votes needed, Sister Simone Campbell issued the following statement:

“Catholics are not single issue voters, and that’s why Vice President Biden is winning this election. Our community looked at the entirety of Donald Trump’s divisive and harmful record and chose to elect leaders who will govern with empathy and concern for the most marginalized. Catholics rejected racism, hatred, and division and embraced the politics championed by Pope Francis – a politics of love and inclusion.

“Today marks the beginning of a new chapter in American history. When President Trump leaves office in January, he will leave behind a battered country, a biased court system, and a bitter divide in many parts of our nation.  It is up to all of us to fix what Donald Trump has broken. Unlike his administration, we are confident that a President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris will listen to the full breadth of equally sacred values that multi-issue Catholic voters hold dear.

“So do not turn away from the pain and sadness of what Donald Trump has wrought. Allow it to break your heart. When our hearts have been broken open, nothing can stop us. The faithful way forward is together. We congratulate Vice President Joseph Biden and Senator Kamala Harris on their imminent victory, and we look forward to working together to create a more perfect union, caring for those who were too often left out of the Trump administration’s care.”

There is still much work to be done to create a nation driven by justice, equity, and inclusion, and as a family, we can do it together.

Together, let us congratulate President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris on their victory, and look forward to creating a more perfect union, caring for those who were too often left out of the Trump administration’s care.

Catholic Sisters to President Trump: Count Every Vote

Catholic Sisters to President Trump: Count Every Vote

On November 4, 2020, over 1,500 Catholic Sisters from across the United States sent a letter to President Trump urging him to respect our democracy and count every vote.

Read the letter below, or download as a PDF


November 4, 2020

President Donald J. Trump

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Trump,

A few weeks before this historic election, Pope Francis published a new encyclical where he wondered “what do certain words like democracy, freedom, justice or unity really mean?” Have they, as the Pope writes, been “bent and shaped to serve as tools for domination, as meaningless tags that can be used to justify any action?”

That question has never been clearer than today, when some elected officials make the immoral choice to hold onto power at any cost, including disenfranchising thousands, denying their most sacred gift: their voice.

Each vote left uncounted represents a soul with a story. Over the last several weeks, Sisters virtually visited over 60 communities across the country where people came together to share their struggles with one another. It was clear from coast to coast that there are urgent needs to keep one another safe from disease, end structural racism, fix our broken immigration system, support social programs that pull families out of poverty, and expand health care access for all people. This election season reminded many of the equally sacred priorities of our shared faith in these challenging times.

People are afraid of losing their healthcare, looking at the ashes of a home destroyed by a wildfire, searching for solutions to end systemic racism, wondering where their next paycheck will come from, or mourning the loss of a relative to COVID-19. Across the country, these Americans took their country up on its promise: that they could vote to elect leaders and chart a new course. Now we see their votes discounted in our election process.

Americans know that thoughts and prayers alone will not end their pain and suffering and that they must act. That’s why it should be no wonder that we saw a historic number of people cast a ballot. Each of these individuals must have a say in who represents them in government. We must ensure that every vote is counted, in accordance with applicable laws, no matter how long the process takes.

Catholic Social Teaching urges us to act on behalf of those who are marginalized in our society. We have a responsibility to one another, not to help one political party win, but to live up to our values. In the words of Pope Francis we must act “In the name of the poor, the destitute, the marginalized and those most in need, whom God has commanded us to help as a duty required of all persons, especially the wealthy and those of means.”

We took vows as Catholic Sisters, and you took a vow to uphold the Constitution.

Stay true to your vow. Count the votes. Ensure the United States lives up to its promise. Every voice — and every vote — is sacred, especially the most marginalized among us.

Sincerely,
Sister Simone Campbell, SSS
Executive Director, NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice

And more than 1,900 Catholic Sisters from across the United States.

Vote! A Message from Nuns on the Bus

Vote! A Message from Nuns on the Bus

November 3, 2020

Across the country, We the People have the same message: Your vote is your voice!

Featuring:

  • Miguel Lugo, Homeboy Industries
  • Rep. Rosa DeLauro
  • Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis, Middle Collegiate Church
  • Dr. Emma Violand-Sanchez, the Dream Project
  • Rob Sand, Iowa
  • Valarie Kaur, the Revolutionary Love Project
  • Senator Cory Booker
  • Ramiah Whiteside, EXPO-Milwaukee
  • Dr. Paula Hill-Collins, the Health Wagon