Posted on February 3, 2016
Your activism makes a difference: President Obama visited a mosque
Last December, after the tragedies in Beirut, Paris and San Bernadino, more than 46,000 CREDO activists asked President Obama to take a public stand against Islamophobia by denouncing anti-Muslim violence and making his first public visit to a U.S. mosque.
Your activism made a difference.
Today, the President visited the Islamic Society of Baltimore. His visit comes at a time when Islamophobia is leading to an increase in hate crimes against Muslims and to a growing climate of fear in Muslim communities. The message of inclusion and respect that the President’s visit sends is a powerful counterweight to the xenophobia and racism being stoked by right-wing extremists in Congress, in the media, and on the presidential campaign trail.
Posted on February 3, 2016
Why President Obama’s New Rules for Public Land Use are a Big Deal
On January 15 in his final State of the Union Address, President Obama announced a three-year moratorium on new coal sales on federally-owned land. This is an important victory in no small part made possible by years of pressure from CREDO activists and customers—including 18,000 Citizen Letters sent directly to Sally Jewel, President Obama’s Secretary of the Interior, by CREDO customers in 2013 and 2015.
In putting a temporary stop to new coal sales on federal lands—but continuing new oil and gas sales, which in many cases President Obama is working to expand—this announcement is simultaneously a huge step forward, and not enough, given the current urgency of our fight against the greenhouse gas pollution that is heating our atmosphere.
To understand why, it’s worth taking a few steps back to consider the bigger picture of fossil fuels on public lands, and the math of preserving a livable planet.
The Federal Government manages a huge amount of land that you, I, and everyone else in America owns—28% of U.S. land, in addition to all of our coastal ocean waters. There is a tremendous amount of fossil fuel underneath those lands and waters, also owned by all of us. For nearly a century, it has been the policy of our government to sell to fossil fuel companies—at extremely low prices and with no regard for the climate impact—the rights to drill, mine and frack for those fossil fuels.
The result is that burning oil, gas and coal extracted from federal lands accounts for almost 25% of all U.S. global warming pollution.
Coal is a huge piece of that, with more than half of climate pollution from federal lands from burning coal, about 14% of total U.S. climate emissions.
Unfortunately, President Obama’s action doesn’t stop coal mining currently underway—only new coal sales. The Department of Interior says existing sales will allow companies to keep mining federal lands for another 20 years.
What’s more, coal accounts for less than half of all of the potential climate pollution on federal lands.
From an August 2015 report, Potential Greenhouse gas emissions of U.S. Federal Fossil Fuels, prepared by Ecoshift Consulting for Center for Biological Diversity and Friends of the Earth.
In all, public lands and waters contain a massive carbon bomb of 492 total gigatons of carbon pollution—almost as much as the world’s entire remaining carbon budget of 565 gigatons, the amount scientists say we can release into the atmosphere by mid-century and have a fighting chance of staying below 2 degrees Celsius of global warming.
Last year at the Paris Climate Talks, President Obama and other world leaders came to a historic consensus to try to keep global warming below 2 degrees—and to limit it to 1.5 degrees if possible.
To achieve it, the vast majority of all oil, gas and coal on federal lands would need to stay underground. In light of this, it would make sense for President Obama to put a stop to new sales of not just coal, but oil and gas too. But he isn’t—not by a long shot.
President Obama continues allowing fracking on federal lands, and his administration has proposed an offshore drilling plan that would open to drilling new areas of the Atlantic coast and Gulf of Mexico to offshore drilling. The activities directly undermine the President’s international climate commitments, and fly in the face of the clear math of avoiding catastrophic global warming.
The management of fossil fuels on federal lands is under the President’s sole control. And stopping new sales of all fossil fuels—oil, gas and coal—on federal lands would be the largest action taken by the President to keep fossil fuels in the ground. That’s exactly what he should do.
Our voices have helped push the President to take important steps like putting a stop to Arctic drilling, and the moratorium on new coal sales. But the urgency and math of climate change demand that he do far more to keep fossil fuels in the ground. That’s why it’s so important that CREDO activists and customers continue our pressure. Sign the petition to tell President Obama to stop all sales of fossil fuels on federal lands.
Posted on January 28, 2016
It’s time to fix the Voting Rights Act
In 2013, the right-wing ideologues on the Supreme Court handed down a shameful decision that gutted the Voting Rights Act, ending decades of protection for minorities against discriminatory and unfair attempts to limit voting on the basis of race.
Congress should have acted immediately to fix the damage inflicted by the Court – but more than two years later it hasn’t done a thing.Now, more than 50 years after civil rights activists put their lives on the line for the right to vote, state legislatures across the country are still passing laws to disenfranchise American voters.
Fortunately, progressive champions in Congress are promoting legislation that will restore the Voting Rights Act. The Voting Rights Advancement Act would stop Republicans, in states around the country, from enacting racist voter ID and voter suppression laws. With key federal, state and local elections taking place this November, we need to speak out now, demanding Congress crack down on racial discrimination in voting.
Posted on January 22, 2016
Defend Roe v. Wade on its 43rd anniversary
Historic victories like Roe v. Wade are why CREDO exists: It takes a movement to win these victories and relentless dedication to defend them.
In the 43 years since women won reproductive freedom, that freedom has been under continual attack. CREDO is proud to give progressives an easy and effective way to defend it. For 30 years our customers have raised over $7 million for groups fighting for reproductive freedom, simply by using CREDO products and services. We’ve also provided millions of Americans with simple, powerful tools to take grassroots action on issues like choice.
Posted on January 21, 2016
#DemocracyAwakening: Overturn Citizens United
Six years ago today, the Supreme Court unleashed a number of assaults on our democracy with its disastrous Citizens United decision: The rise of Super PACs, the idea that corporations are people and money equals speech, and a flood of secret and untraceable “dark money” in our elections.
That’s why over 100 progressive, civil rights, and social justice organizations have joined together this year to form a coalition that will push for fundamental reforms in both voting rights and campaign finance as part of a year-long Democracy Awakening.
CREDO is supporting the efforts of these groups, which include the NAACP, Public Citizen, MoveOn.org, and the National Organization for Women, by putting Congress on notice right now that fixing our democracy will be a top priority for 2016. And we’re starting by demanding that 2016 is the year Congress overturns Citizens United.
Posted on January 13, 2016
Why CREDO is donating to three pro-choice groups this month
As you may have seen, CREDO will be making donations this month to three pro-choice organizations – NARAL Pro Choice America, Planned Parenthood affiliates and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health.
The donations to these three pro-choice groups are being made as part of our unique monthly donations program.
The three groups were nominated by CREDO Mobile customers and then chosen from among hundreds of nonprofits as CREDO’s first monthly donations slate of 2016. To determine how much funding each group will receive, CREDO Mobile customers and activists can vote online for the organization they want to see receive funding. The votes will be tallied at the end of the month and the funds will be divided appropriately between the three groups based on the votes each group received.
Posted on January 12, 2016
#WeAreEFF: CREDO is proud to fund the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Almost a year ago, in February 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) finalized historic Net Neutrality rules designed to stop Internet Service Providers and telecommunications companies from discriminating against content on the Internet. CREDO activists and customers played a huge role in that fight for over a decade, pouring in hundreds of thousands of public comments and petition signatures, more than 15,000 phone calls, and nearly $1 million in donations to groups fighting for Net Neutrality.
But now, news has emerged that T-Mobile may be violating the FCC’s Net Neutrality rules by throttling video content through its new “Binge On” feature.
Our friends at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) quickly documented and explained the violation in a helpful blog post – and started calling T-Mobile out for its potential Net Neutrality violation on Twitter by taking advantage of an #AskJohn Twitter chat in which T-Mobile CEO John Legere responds to questions from the public.
Posted on January 10, 2016
10 things President Obama must say in his last State of the Union
Tomorrow, President Obama will deliver his final State of the Union Address.
The last of his presidency, this speech will define his agenda for the next year. There is no upcoming reelection campaign or midterm to use as an excuse for inaction. The time for half measures is over. This is the President’s final opportunity to put forward a progressive vision and make desperately needed reforms before he leaves office.
The president can use executive orders to push forward a progressive agenda and bypass the sabotage of Republicans in Congress. Join me below the fold for ten top areas President Obama should prioritize in his final State of the Union, along with ways you can help build pressure on President Obama to make the most of this last chance to be bold.
Posted on January 8, 2016
Round up your January bill to support women’s rights
You may know that CREDO gives millions each year to the nation’s leading nonprofits. But did you know that CREDO also makes it easy to round up your Mobile or Long Distance bill for progressive change? By rounding your bill to the nearest $1, $5 or $10, you further support the progressive organizations up for vote that month.
If you’ve ever considered rounding up your CREDO mobile or long distance bill, this January is a fantastic month to do so. This month we’re donating exclusively to groups fighting for women’s access to reproductive health care: Planned Parenthood Affiliates, NARAL Pro-Choice America and National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health. 100% of round-up proceeds are directly added to the monthly pool of donations.
How does it work?
When customers round up their phone bill, CREDO adds their extra contribution (100% tax-deductible) to the total donations raised that month for the three groups we selected to receive funding.
Posted on January 7, 2016
6 Questions for Heidi Hess, CREDO’s lead women’s rights campaigner
Heidi Hess is a Senior Campaign Manager with CREDO Action. If you passed by her on the sidewalk, you probably wouldn’t guess that she’s our strategic campaign mastermind on all things women’s rights. But she’s that and more, including a mom of two boys who fill her non-work time with basketball, reading, and lots of silliness.
1. How did you become a progressive organizer?
I worked in public education for a long time, as a teacher and a coach. Then in 2005, after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, I worked with my husband James Rucker and our friend Van Jones to start ColorOfChange.org. ColorOfChange’s mission is to strengthen Black Americans’ political voice in order to improve the lives of Black people all over the country. Helping with ColorOfChange’s early campaigns was how I got my start as a progressive organizer.
2. Why is the right wing intensifying its attack on women? Why now?
Actually, attacking women is nothing new for the right-wing. It’s an essential part of the Republican platform, a key way Republicans pander to their anti-woman base, and it’s rooted in a fundamental desire to take away women’s rights. I think we’re seeing an increase in rhetoric now because of the Republican presidential campaign. The candidates are all trying to bolster their anti-choice, anti-Planned Parenthood credentials.
