NAACP and the Forward Together Moral Movement to Visit State Lawmakers Today to Advocate for Repeal of Extreme Laws Now Hurting Thousands

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE,

May 27, 2014

Contact: Sarah Bufkin, NC NAACP - smbufkin@gmail.com or 404.285.3413

Note: Time Change from 12:30 PM to 12:15 PM

The North Carolina NAACP and the Forward Together Moral Movement to Visit State Lawmakers Today to Advocate for Repeal of Extreme Laws Now Hurting Thousands

Today, Tuesday, May 27, 2014

12:15 pm

Halifax Mall (behind the General Assembly)

16 West Jones St, Raleigh, NC 27601

DURHAM, NC - The North Carolina NAACP and the Forward Together Moral Movement will return to the People's House today, Tuesday, May 27 to lobby our lawmakers directly to repent for the harm inflicted by their ideological choices, to repeal these extreme laws that are hurting our state's most vulnerable and to restore our confidence in their capacity to govern for the good of the whole. 

"Today, we will go into the People's House ready to make our voices heard on behalf of thousands of North Carolinians," said Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II, president of the North Carolina NAACP. "By visiting each and every state legislator in person, we hope to remind them that their political choices are more than just policy debates - they are hurting real people."

At the Forward Together Moral Movement People's Lobby & Advocacy Day, grassroots volunteer lobbyists from across North Carolina will visit state legislators to advocate for returning public policy to the moral center - particularly for the expansion of Medicaid, the restoration of the Earned Income Tax Credit, the extension of unemployment benefits, increased support for teachers and public schools, stronger environmental regulation around coal ash and a fair tax code that does not give huge windfalls to the wealthy and corporations, only to overburden the working poor.

Prior to the lobbying session, movement supporters will attend a policy briefing by scholars and experts so as to better understand the tremendous benefits North Carolinians could gain if state lawmakers were to repeal and reverse these extreme policies.

The schedule for tomorrow's Forward Together Moral Movement People's Lobby & Advocacy Day is below:

12:15 - Media are encouraged to arrive to set up 

12:30 - Opening remarks by Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II, on Halifax Mall

12:40 - Policy briefing by scholars (see full list below)

1:00 - "Moral Foundations for Public Policy: Bible and Prayer Study" hosted for legislators by clergy members in Room 1425 in the General Assembly Building

1:15

1:30 - Lobbying instructions

1:50 - Question and answer session on lobbying strategies

2:00 - Break into small teams, receive lobbying materials and move to the General Assembly

2:30 - Lobbying teams visit legislators in their offices to advocate for repeal

The list of scholars and speakers for the policy briefing are as follows:

Voting Rights   -   Dr. Stephen Boyd, Wake Forest University

EITC   -   Dr. Patrick Conway, UNC-Chapel Hill

Education   -   Dr. Karey Harwood, NCSU

Racial Justice Act   -   Dr. Bob Korstad, Duke University

Medicaid Expansion   -   Dr. Nancy MacLean, Duke University

Women's Health   -   Dr. Rachel Seidman, UNC-Chapel Hill

Unemployment Insurance   -   Dr. David Zonderman, NCSU

Benefits of Repeal   -   Rob Schofield, NC Policy Watch

The Forward Together Moral Movement has also released a new video on May 19's Moral Monday rally and action. See below:

Moral Monday Returns | NC Forward Together Moral Movement