Over the past year, we’ve been calling out Comcast for not paying its fair share of taxes and because of its ridiculously excessive executive compensation.
Rounding out Comcast’s triple play of bad corporate citizenship is its membership in the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Although this may be one of the corporation’s lesser known fouls, it’s no less dangerous.
ALEC is a secretive, extremist organization that pushes an agenda to limit voting rights, privatize schools and prisons, weaker environmental protections, and promote so-called Stand Your Ground laws (like the law protecting Trayvon Martin’s killer). ALEC also pushes laws that would create giant new tax loopholes and attack workers’ rights. Corporations should not be writing laws that will affect real people and communities.
Due to increasing visibility of ALEC’s ties to awful measures like these, many legislators and major companies, including Coca-Cola, Kraft Foods and Mars Inc., have recently backed out from the group.
So, why is Philly-based Comcast still a member of this organization campaigning to put private profit ahead of the interests of our city? Stumping for corporations over people is not a value that Philadelphians believe in. Instead of investing in an organization fighting for the 1% and big corporations, Comcast should be investing in its workers and our city and paying its fair share of taxes.
Comcast needs to hear from us that membership in ALEC is bad corporate citizenship and is bad for business.
Sign our petition calling on Comcast to dump ALEC today.
Last Monday, a jam packed bus filled with Fight for Philly members traveled to Harrisburg in efforts to save General Assistance and oppose anti-Immigration laws.
General Assistance (GA) is a government life line that many of our vulnerable Pennsylvania families depend on. If this life saving funding ceases to exist, it will leave families struggling to live day to day. At the Capitol, a woman who is a military veteran explained how GA helped her get back on her feet. A modest $200 a month helped her and her three disabled sons after her husband left them. The Corbett administration estimates that eliminating the General Assistance program will save $150 million per year. But, if this program is eliminated it would increase the public cost to maintain homeless shelters, prisons, and state psychiatric hospitals.
Fight for Philly partnered with PA Cares for All and other organizations to save this program. Close to a hundred Fight for Philly members stood in solidarity with a broad range of partner organizations in the State Capitol Building’s rotunda, echoing chants of “Keep your Promise” directed at Governor Corbett and his administration.
After the GA rally, the focus turned to Pennsylvania’s proposed anti-immigration laws. Philadelphia-based Juntos led the charge against the 15 anti-immigrant bills, similar to those introduced in Alabama and Arizona. If some of these bills are passed, then businesses employing undocumented individuals would shut down or deny birthright citizenship to children born in PA. Further, it could deny a person without a government issued ID a right to receive public benefits. Community members spoke with state representatives and senators to express their dissatisfaction with these measures that won’t only hurt immigrants, but also poor and working class people.
Not surprisingly, profit motive has been tied to many of these anti-immigration laws through the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). As these connections continue to gain publicity, many corporations are pulling their support for the extreme right-wing group. However, Philadelphia-based Comcast has yet to do so. Stand up for people being harmed by ALEC’s laws and urge Comcast to dump ALEC now.
Over a hundred wor
kers, students, families and members of community joined Fight for Philly for a community picnic and protest against Big Bank greed.
Families and children enjoyed a little picnic in the park at 34th and Chestnut, while enjoying face painting, soccer, and other sports. After picnicking in the park, families took a field trip to the nearby Wells Fargo branch.
Of course, Wells Fargo had locked its doors before we even arrived. Having the bank shut the doors right in our faces was in keeping with the disrespectful attitude Wells Fargo has displayed to the community.Despite Wells Fargo’s provocation, our group remained focused on our message. Professor Josh led a teach-in regarding Wells Fargo’s harms to our communities while children took the opportunity to do some coloring.
Drummers led folks in an outside picket on Chestnut Street and community members spoke out about the bank’s failure to pay its fair share and its involvement in the swap deals marketed to the School District and City that have cost Philadelphia $331 million dollars.
Wells Fargo not paying its fair share of taxes and continuing to profit from shady deals with our city and schools affects us all, and the number of people walking by who stopped to join our protest made that clear. One woman outraged by what she was learning about the bank even grabbed the mic and told the crowd: “I’m going in there to take my money out right now. I can’t believe how Wells Fargo is making so much money at the expense of everyday people like us.”
Wells Fargo has been profiting off of the backs of the middle and working class families, with a shameful record of foreclosures, predatory lending to poor communities, and avoiding taxes that should have gone to keeping schools open and caring for our vulnerable.
As families and children protested Wells Fargo here, three members of Fight for Philly traveled 2,000 miles across the country to protest the bank’s annual shareholder meeting. Even though members had shares to attend the meeting, they were turned away, along with thousands of others. Wells Fargo once again closed its door on the people they hurt and are unwilling to take any responsibility for their despicable actions.
We’ve been protesting big bank and corporate greed for a while now, so we thought we deserved a little fun in the park.
On Tuesday, we’re having a picnic in the park at 34th and Chestnut. Families, workers, students and people from all walks of life are coming together for some food, fun and games and to talk about how we can challenge ‘business as usual’ for big banks and corporations.
We’ll highlight the cuts to our schools and communities that big banks in Philly have played a role in causing. The picnic will include activities like arts and crafts, music lessons and sports – programs that so many of us are already missing or anticipating the loss of.
We’ll also have teach-ins and speak-outs, so folks can tell their own stories about how the banks’ greedy decisions are harming their families.
We’ll have snacks and plenty of fun for folks of all ages.
We’ve been protesting the big banks here in Philly for months because of their profiting at our communities’ loss, foreclosures, predatory lending to poor communities, and avoiding taxes that should have gone to keeping schools open and caring for our vulnerable. And we can’t forget those Wall Street-engineered swap deals marketed to the School District and City that have cost Philadelphia $331 million so far.
Big banks have not only have contributed to the closing of schools and foreclosure of homes, but they are also a big reason why our economy has spiraled downward. They have profited off the backs of the middle and working class families of this city.
Join us for some fun next Tuesday. Speak out about how big bank greed is affecting your family and neighborhood. Learn more about what we can do to continue to fight for corporate accountability. It is up to us to demand the big banks to pay their fair share and begin to make amends with the people they have hurt. It’s time for a change, but we cannot do it without you!
RSVP for this event on Facebook now!
On Tuesday, hundreds of worker
s, students, children, parents and various community groups protested the tax loopholes and tax dodging that aids the 1% at the expense of 99% with a dodge ball game at Comcast Plaza.
Fight for Philly members played a friendly dodge ball game poking fun at Comcast who dodges taxes every year. The game was commenced by the smug Mr. 1% and participants wasted little time pelting him with dodge balls laced with messages like “Close Loopholes” and “Pay Your Fair Share.” From that moment on, dodge balls flew from every direction, making it nearly impossible to escape their paths. Folks had fun expressing their frustration with our unfair tax system, but didn’t forget about the serious issues at play.
“Corporations in Philadelphia are making millions off the 99%, and profiting at our communities’ loss,’ said Marvin Robinson of West Philly. “They are hoarding hundreds of millions that should go to keeping schools open, caring for our elders and putting Philadelphia back to work.”
Comcast is one of the largest companies in Pennsylvania to abuse the Delaware Tax Loopholes, which allow companies to avoid paying millions of dollars in taxes every year. The estimated loss revenue that could be used to help fund Pennsylvania education and social programs is around $550 million dollars. Further, more than 70 percent of corporations in Pennsylvania do not pay any income taxes.
Governor Corbett continuously chooses to protect tax loop holes and benefits that favor the 1%. While Big Businesses are profiting off the middle class and working class families, Pennsylvanians are facing deep cuts to education, healthcare, and other programs that help the less fortunate.
Protestors also made way to Senator Toomey’s office to show their discontent with the Senator’s stance on the Buffet Rule, which was vetoed in Congress the day before. The law would have reduced tax inequality between America’s 1% and America’s 99%. The plan would apply a minimum 30% income tax to individuals earning more than million dollars a year.
“Senator Toomey needs to represent people like us, not corporations. He should focus on creating jobs here and putting money in people’s pockets right now,” said Matt Wah, a Northeast Philly resident. “We need to end tax breaks for millionaires and big corporations.”
On Monday, the eve of Tax Day, Mitt Romney was invited by a local Tea Party organization to speak at their summit held at the Franklin Institute.
Like the last time Romney was in town, Fight for Philly headed to the event, hoping to talk to Mr. 1% himself. We had a lot of questions for him: How could he suggest cutting education and housing in order to give more tax breaks for the rich? Why won’t he release more of his tax history? Why doesn’t he think the 1% should pay their fair share in taxes?
Those questions, unsurprisingly, were never answered. Mitt Romney didn’t want to hear from us, maybe because we all paid a higher tax rate than him (as well as many big corporations and other rich people). We were denied entrance to the event, even though we had tickets.
Romney spoke out against the Buffet Rule. The Buffet Rule would reduce tax inequality amongst America’s richest 1% and the rest of us. The tax plan would apply a minimum 30% income tax rate to individuals earning more than a million dollars a year. This law failed in Congress on the same day. According to CBS news, Romney attacked the President’s tax plan by saying “Raising taxes affects our economic freedom. Regulation. You have to have regulations to make a market place work, but regulations that get too large can overwhelm the enterprises that you’re trying to encourage.”
It’s unfortunate that Mr. Romney is making excuses for Big Business to continue to dodge taxes.
We weren’t alone in our not-so-warm welcome for Romney. Also on Monday, City Controller Alan Butkovitz called out Romney for his desire to give tax breaks to the 1%. He went on further to say “Mitt Romney represents a continuation of the idea that the only people making a contribution to society are rich people who invest money and that it’s not worth it for them to pay taxes because they won’t invest in the economy,” Butkovitz said, calling the idea perpetuated by the Tea Party “myopic and obsessive.”
This week, 100,000 people from across the country will come together. We will talk about this terrible economy. We will review the rich history of nonviolent direct action in America. We are going to create a new wave of change now.
We Philadelphians need to fight for what is right. We need to let Big Banks and Big Business know we are no longer going to sit around and watch them ruin our city! As this American Spring blooms, we will stand up for equality and economic justice. It’s a battle in the streets.
Our greatest advances in our economy and democracy have come when ordinary people like us took a stand. When people do things like fight back, form unions, win civil rights, demand equality for women and minorities – these efforts work when we pull together. We need you to join us in taking action this month: Here are a few of our upcoming events this Spring:
See you there!
Anne
Please visit www.the99spring.com to find out more information.
On Sunday, A
pril 1st, while many families gathered to celebrate Palm Sunday and with Passover quickly approaching, community and religious members gathered for a solidarity march. Close to a hundred people from all walks of life marched to oppose social and economic injustices and those who oppress us. The march included many stops throughout downtown Philadelphia, most notably Governor Corbett’s office, where members demanded an end tax loopholes and tax breaks for the 1%. The march concluded with a Jewish Seder and community feast at Logan Circle.
In addition to speaking against out against an unfair tax system that works in favor of rich corporations and the 1%, the afternoon-long protest addressed other injustices that Philadelphians are facing, including the mayor’s recent restrictions on giving out food to our homeless, proposed anti-immigration laws, budget cuts that are dismantling our schools and city services, and the need for earned sick time off.
The event was organized by a broad, interfaith coalition, and aimed to claim the Passover and Palm Sunday holidays as those with a tradition of bringing together communities in times of need. Passover remembers the Israelites’ liberation from slavery from the Egyptians. And Palm Sunday celebrates Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, and marks the beginning of Holy Week. In a way, the people of Philadelphia gathered to show they will no longer stand to be treated unfairly and speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves.
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Herschel, who marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the Selma Civil Rights March once said, “Speech has power. Words do not fade. What starts out as a sound, ends in a deed.” It is up us to keep on fighting for what is right and put pressure on those who repeatedly try to sway us from gaining equality.
On March 29th, hundreds of people gathered at Love Park to show “Brotherly Love” to thousands of Philadelphia security officers who recently formed a union together. Elected officials, faith leaders, union members, workers, students, and activists from across the city were in attendance to show their support. Their collective power will transform 3,000 security jobs into family-sustaining jobs in Philadelphia.
The new income that these officers will take home can potentially transform the communities that they reside in. Currently, security officers in Philly are making as low as $8.00 an hour. Their well-earned pay increase could lead to a better standard of living for their families and reduce poverty in the process. There should no reason why someone who works full-time to protect others should have a lack of financial security – or return home to some of the most unsafe neighborhoods in Philadelphia, especially while corporate execs sit around and collect millions.
Councilwoman Jannie L. Blackwell explained that “with our nation’s economy still in trouble –and about 25 percent of Philadelphians living in poverty – it’s more important than ever that hardworking families have good-paying, stable jobs.” She continued on to say that security officers will now “have a chance to earn a decent wage and have the health care that they need to support and care for their families.”
“Securing wage increases and healthcare is not only a significant victory for the city’s security officers, but it also demonstrates that when workers come together and unionize they can bring about a path to the middle class,” said Pennsylvania AFL-CIO President Richard Bloomingdale. “We encourage all of the security companies in the city to create family sustaining jobs for security officers in Philadelphia.”
Today’s rally was a victory not only for the security officers, but for the people and communities of Philadelphia. With our support, these 3,000 security officers will Fight for Philly together and bring millions of dollars to this city and into their communities.
On Thursday, March 22nd, Fight for Philly joined the Communication Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) in their fight against telecom giant Verizon. Verizon, a multi-billion dollar company, has scorned their workers by refusing to cover necessary benefits for their works and in sharing the company’s mutually-earned financial success.
However, over the last four years, top executives of the company have “earned” $283 million, but yet the 45,000 workers who make Verizon’s success possible have little to show for the success that they created.
Why would company as lucrative as Verizon try to put the squeeze on their workers? One word: Greed.
Verizon has outsourced thousands of jobs overseas, and wants to continue sending more American jobs to low wage countries. Not only does Verizon want to ship out jobs to cut costs, but they want to slash pensions and charge employees more for health benefits.
In attending the rally, Fight for Philly lent their support to the CWA and IBEW workers because of our commitment to holding the 1% accountable for their actions.
Officers from local and national unions explained to the crowd of supporters that we all need to stick together and continue to fight for economic equality and against corporate greed. They called on the activists to talk back to companies like Verizon, to the wealthiest 1% of America who blatantly abuse their power and wealth, and to the elected officials who are perpetuating these injustices.