Posted on July 22, 2022
This Big Telecom company enabled the deadly riot on the U.S. Capitol
More than a year and a half ago, insurrectionists who were incited by Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol building to prevent the peaceful transfer of power.
Five people died, countless innocent people were injured and our fragile democracy has been on the brink ever since.
But did you know that a certain Dallas-based Big Telecom company bears some responsibility for this deadly riot?
It’s true. This well-known Big Telecom company — that has long donated to right-wing causes and Republican politicians — gave over $2 million to the 130 politicians who believed the “Big Lie” and announced they would not vote to certify the election.
Reporting by Judd Legum at the time revealed that AT&T gave $2,053,000 to 130 Republicans who announced that they would overturn the will of the voters and object to certifying then-President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral college victory.
These same far-right politicians fanned the flames of subverting our democracy which led to the domestic terrorist attack on the U.S Capitol.
Make no mistake: As the largest corporate contributor to this group of traitors, AT&T bears responsibility for enabling the Republicans who peddled lies and helped encourage the rioters who tried to overthrow our democracy.
Even after announcing that it would not donate to the Republican members of Congress who objected to certification, AT&T quietly restarted its political giving to right-wing political committees that will support the re-election campaigns of these same election objectors.
Unlike AT&T, CREDO is committed to financially supporting our progressive allies who fight for civil rights, economic justice, voting rights, peace, women’s rights, climate justice and equality.
These donations are just another example of AT&T’s long history of supporting the right-wing agenda, which includes hundreds of thousands donated to politicians who supported the Texas abortion ban and voter suppression bills, $2 million donated to Donald Trump, more than $1.1 million to Republicans during the 2020 election, and a history of supporting racist, anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ lawmakers.
Join CREDO Mobile, the phone company that donates each month — $93 million to date — to progressive nonprofits and gives you an alternative to doing business with big corporations that don’t share your values.
To help make the switch even easier, enjoy savings available on our website. Get on the nation’s best network, while supporting the causes most important to you – at no extra cost. Start making a difference every day with CREDO Mobile.
Posted on July 21, 2022
7 quick tips for taking better photos with your smartphone this summer
It’s summer and it’s hot outside! But if you’re like us, you’re braving the heat and venturing out with friends and family to make long-lasting memories — memories taken and stored on that smartphone camera in your pocket.
But do you ever feel like your pictures just aren’t as nice as the ones your friends post to social media? Don’t worry — we’ve got you covered.
In this week’s tip, we’ll give you 7 quick tips to improve your photography chops and take better photos with your smartphone.
Turn on your photo grid
First, let’s talk about photo composition. You may have heard of the “Rule of Thirds” — the concept of splitting the frame into a 3×3 grid or nine squares, like a tic-tac-toe grid, and positioning major elements in your photo inside these sections, or where the lines intersect.
Your phone can overlay this grid on your screen to help achieve a more interesting photo. Here’s how to turn on the grid for your Android or Apple device.
Look at your screen. Are there elements in the background or foreground that aren’t necessary? Where is the subject of your photo positioned in the frame? Take a few steps forward or back (or zoom in or out) to line up the important elements with the grid, and you’ll end up having a more interesting and well-balanced image.
Pay attention to the way you’re holding your phone
If you’re used to taking photos with your phone in an upright position, consider turning it on its side 90 degrees. You may see a big improvement in your images.
Alternatively, if you’re taking photos or videos for a specific social media platform, like TikTok or Instagram, you may want to create your images vertically.
Again, look at your screen and determine which orientation makes the most sense for your photo. Try it both ways, too — since you’re not shooting with film, you likely have all the storage space you need!
Clean your lenses
No matter how good your photography skills are, you’ll have a hard time taking great photos if your lenses are dirty or smudged.
Flip your phone over and take a look at the lens(es). Are they dirty? Give them a cleaning. Here’s a recent blog post on how to clean your phone the right way.
Turn on HDR mode
HDR mode, or High Dynamic Range mode, is a feature in all newer smartphone camera apps that helps bring out greater detail in the darker and lighter areas of your photos, and balances the light and colors a little better. With HDR mode, your camera takes separate photos at different exposures in quick succession and blends them together to increase highlights and shadows — and the result is a nice photo.
Just note that since this mode takes a little longer to process in your app, there may be situations where you wouldn’t want to use this feature, such as for moving subjects or where dramatic contrast is your intention.
Here’s how you can use the feature on Apple or Android.
Choose your lenses wisely
If you have a newer smartphone with multiple lenses, like the iPhone 13 Pro or the Galaxy S22, you’re in luck! These newer phones have dedicated lenses for telephoto, wide and ultra-wide angles to give you higher quality images with different perspectives.
Let’s say the subject of your photo is surrounded by a lot of distracting objects. By using your telephoto lens option, you can easily eliminate the noise in the background by zooming in. But what if you’re taking a picture of your friends at the Grand Canyon? You might want to choose a wide or ultra-wide lens to capture the stunning scene around you.
Try out “portrait mode”
The “portrait mode” feature on all newer smartphones allows you to sharply focus on your foreground subject while automatically blurring the background. This is a fun way to create portrait-style photos without having to lug around a big DSLR and fancy lens. Note that you will need to be a certain distance away for portrait mode to work, and you should hold your camera relatively still as the phone may take a little longer to process the image.
All newer Apple devices have portrait mode, along with many Android models. Here’s how to use portrait mode for your Apple or Android device, if supported.
Avoid flash & use natural light
When it gets dark out, don’t be afraid to turn off your flash. That’s because most modern smartphone cameras have pretty incredible night mode features that can capture sharp and crisp images in low light settings — all without the need for a tripod.
Newer iPhones (iPhone 11 and newer) should autodetect your lighting situation and activate night mode automatically. You’ll see a night mode icon at the top of the display when you’re about to take your photo. Make sure you hold your phone steady to avoid capturing a blurry photo.
On Android, the directions to enable night mode may vary from model to model. On a Galaxy, for example, open your camera app and swipe to and tap more, then tap night.
Posted on July 14, 2022
11 Ways to Reduce Your Data Usage and Lower Your Cell Phone Bill
We love our smartphones and all we can do with them. Video chat with friends and family, browse social media, play games, listen to music, watch our favorite streaming services and so much more.
But using our phones a lot on a cellular network can really gobble up our monthly data — especially if we don’t have an unlimited data plan — and that may come with unexpected overages and bills, too.
If you’re looking to save some money by conserving your data usage, here are 11 easy tips.
Connect to WiFi whenever possible
By now, you are most likely connecting to your home’s WiFi network to use your home’s internet connection to access data on your phone — but if you’re not, turn it on right now!
Connecting to WiFi networks consistently can surely reduce the amount of cellular data you use, and this is always our first recommendation for our members. Unfortunately, we’ve seen situations where customers thought they were connected to their home WiFi network while watching Netflix, but were using cellular data instead. For reference, streaming high quality audio uses over 100MB per hour while HD quality video can use anywhere between 1GB to 3GB per hour.
To avoid mishap, make sure your WiFi settings are turned on, and you are connected to an available and safe WiFi network — at home or away.
Be wary of public WiFi networks
Speaking of safe WiFi networks, be careful of public WiFi networks, like at coffee shops, shopping areas, or airports, as you may put your personal information at risk. Many times these networks are not secure and other users may be able to see your internet traffic, including your personal information, logins and passwords.
If you are going to use a public WiFi network to reduce your cellular data usage, make sure you are connecting to secure networks and connecting to secure websites and apps. Consider using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) app to encrypt your internet activity (here’s our tip on how to get a VPN for your phone). And make sure not to access personal or financial information on public WiFi.
Here are some more tips from the Federal Trade Commission on how to use public WiFi networks safely.
Enable Data Saver / Low Data Mode
Data Saver (Android) and Low Data Mode (Apple) are built-in features that allow people with limited data plans to conserve data by pausing background data refresh, data syncs and more while using mobile data.
- On iPhone, go to Settings > Cellular > Cellular Data Options > Data Mode > Select Low Data Mode
- On Android, go to Settings app > Tap Network and Internet And then Data Saver > Turn Data Saver on or off.
Disable background app refresh
Some of your apps will continue to gather data in the background while you’re not using your phone if you do not enable one of the features above, so here’s how to disable background app refresh manually:
- To turn this feature off for your apps on iOS, go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh. Here, you can choose whether you want this feature on or off completely, or just WiFi only. You can also toggle this on and off for individual apps.
- On Android, go to Settings > Data Usage to see which apps are using the most data. Tap on the app you’d like to restrict and disable background data.
Prevent photos and videos from backing up over cellular network
Cloud backup services, like iCloud and Google One, are great for backing up your photos and other important data, but they can really eat into your data plan if they are syncing over a cellular network. It’s a good idea to turn that setting off to conserve data.
- On an iPhone, go to Settings > Photos > Cellular Data > then toggle off Cellular Data
- On an Android, open Google Photos > Tap the Account icon > Settings > Backup & sync > Cell data usage > Select None.
Turn off Wi-Fi Assist or Smart Network Switch
WiFi Assist (iOS) and Smart Network Switch (some Android models) are built-in settings that try to boost a spotty or slow WiFi connection by using your cellular connection. But, these settings can also use a lot of data, too.
- To turn this setting on or off on your Apple device, go to Settings > Cellular or Settings > Mobile Data. Then scroll down and tap the slider for WiFi Assist.
- On your Android device, go to Settings > Connections > WiFi. Tap the three dots, select Advanced, and tap the slider for “Switch to mobile data.”
Turn off cellular data for specific apps
Some apps are data hogs, and you might not know which ones are eating up your monthly cellular data until it’s too late. Thankfully, you have some control to limit which specific apps can be used on a cellular network for both Apple and Android devices.
- On iOS, go to Settings > Cellular. Scroll down to see which apps are using cellular data and toggle them on or off. You will also be able to view which apps are using the most data and consider limiting their use only to when you’re on a WiFi network.
- For Android, the process may vary depending on the device model. Open the Settings app > Wireless & networks > Data usage > Network access > Selectively uncheck which apps you would like to prevent from using cellular data.
Limit monthly data usage (Android)
Keeping an eye on your monthly data usage will really go a long way to prevent unexpected overages.
Android makes it very easy to limit your monthly data usage with a built-in feature allowing you to set up a warning when you’re reaching your data limit — or by actually limiting your cellular data to a set amount based on your billing cycle. Here’s how to set that up (note: these instructions may vary depending on your device):
- Go to Settings > Network & internet > Data usage > Data warning & limit (or Data limit & billing cycle) to set your maximum amount of data you want to use for the month. Or, tap “App data usage cycle” to set the first day of your billing cycle.
Watch your monthly data (iOS)
Apple devices don’t include the same built-in feature to physically restrict your data usage, so you’ll need to keep an eye on your data use in your device’s settings.
- To see how much cellular data you’ve used, go to Settings > Cellular > Scroll down to Cellular data.
- Alternatively, you can log into your CREDO account periodically to keep an eye on your data usage, too!
Update apps over WiFi only
If you have your apps set to update automatically, they may be draining your data over a cellular network. You can set your device to update apps over WiFi only to save your monthly data.
- On iOS, go to Settings > App Store > scroll to “Cellular Data” and toggle “Automatic Downloads” to the off position.
- On Android, go to the Play Store and tap Menu > Settings > Auto-update apps, then select “Auto-update apps over Wi-Fi only.”
Upgrade your data plan
If you’ve tried all the tips above and you’re still using too much data, you may want to consider upgrading to a plan with a higher monthly data limit. In the end, it may be one of the best options if you need more cellular data than your current plan allows.
Learn more about all the plans we offer and find the right one for your data needs.
Posted on July 11, 2022
Free Press Action: Fighting for Your Rights to Connect and Communicate
Note from the CREDO team: This July, Free Press Action is among three amazing groups that will receive a share of our monthly grant. Funding from the CREDO community will help Free Press hold media and tech companies accountable for corrupting policymaking and amplifying bigotry, conspiracy theories and disinformation.
Read this important blog post from Craig Aaron and Jessica J. González, co-CEOs of Free Press Action, then click here to visit CREDODonations.com to cast your vote to help determine how we distribute our monthly grant to this organization and our other amazing grantees this July.
Free Press Action fights every day to make media and technology work for people. The organization has been at the forefront of efforts to challenge Big Media and Big Tech for nearly two decades, from campaigns to save Net Neutrality and stop illegal spying to taking on Fox News, Facebook and armies of industry lobbyists.
Our rights to connect and communicate have never been more important — or more endangered. Disinformation, distrust and despair have never been higher, and our media system is one of the main reasons why. Free Press Action is pushing to transform media and tech, pursue racial justice and make policies that actually help people and improve their daily lives.
Free Press Action makes sure your voice is actually heard by decision-makers in Congress and at federal agencies, calls out corporations that abuse their power, and creates innovative policy solutions to some of the biggest challenges facing our economy, democracy and society.
Your vote in July will help Free Press Action’s team of advocates, researchers and organizers to:
Protect Your Most Private Data: In the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, it’s become clear that law enforcement, government officials and others could weaponize our personal online data to investigate, harass and take legal action against people seeking abortions. Free Press Action’s new #HandsOffMyData campaign is confronting these abuses: The organization is working with lawmakers to pass data-privacy legislation and is pressuring tech platforms to keep individuals’ locations, searches and data safe. Free Press Action is pushing for privacy legislation and Federal Trade Commission regulations that include strong civil-rights protections.
Fight Hate and Disinformation Online: Hate and disinformation threaten public health, safety, racial justice, human rights and fair elections. To push social-media companies to combat hate and disinformation, Free Press Action leads campaigns like the Stop Hate for Profit ad boycott, which inspired more than 1,100 major companies to suspend advertising on Facebook. Free Press Action also co-founded Change the Terms — a coalition of grassroots and civil-rights groups — that calls on tech platforms to adopt model policies against hateful and deceitful content. Leading up to November’s midterm elections, Free Press Action has united dozens of civil-rights groups through #FixTheFeed, a campaign to get social-media companies to stop amplifying content that threatens election integrity.
Restore Net Neutrality and Close the Digital Divide: Free Press Action is the group that first made a national issue of Net Neutrality — the rules that safeguard the free and open internet from discrimination and interference by internet service providers. The group is working to repair the damage the Trump administration did to these fundamental protections, advocate for progressive appointments to the Federal Communications Commission, and make sure everyone has affordable and reliable internet access. Most recently, Free Press Action pushed the Biden administration and Congress to commit $65 billion to close the digital divide — and it’s working to ensure these public funds actually go to the people and communities that need it most.
Get Local Communities the News and Information They Need: Free Press Action works across the country to reinvent local journalism and build strong connections between newsrooms and the communities they’re supposed to serve. The organization pushes for public funding and innovative journalism projects focused on serving and representing local communities. For example, in New Jersey, Free Press Action dreamed up, campaigned for and passed the Civic Info Bill, which created an independent trust to support local-news coverage – the first new public funding for high-quality journalism created in a generation, and a model for other states.
Reimagine and Build a Media System That Represents All of Us: Free Press Action works to reimagine the future of media and technology, design new policies and structures, and develop the political and cultural organizing strategies to actually get there. The group’s projects include Media 2070, which explores how media and tech have harmed Black people and considers what reparations should look like. This visionary project is just one example of how Free Press Action’s work is grounded in a commitment to racial justice and building a true multiracial democracy.
The support of CREDO members ensures that Free Press Action can hold politicians and policymakers accountable, amplify underrepresented voices in the halls of power, and help mobilize millions at moments when public pressure can make all the difference. CREDO activists have been important allies in many of Free Press Action’s campaigns and your vote of support will help power the organization’s work at this crucial time. Thank you!
Posted on July 11, 2022
Security and Privacy Tips for People Seeking An Abortion
With the Supreme Court’s recent decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, many people are rightfully worried about accessing abortion services while protecting their digital privacy and security. We felt it was extremely important to share this article, with permission, from our grantee partners at the Electronic Frontier Foundation with some tips regarding data security and privacy if you plan to seek reproductive care, especially if you live in a state with cruel or highly restrictive abortion laws.
Given the shifting state of the law, people seeking an abortion, or any kind of reproductive healthcare that might end with the termination of a pregnancy, may need to pay close attention to their digital privacy and security. We’ve previously covered how those involved in the abortion access movement can keep themselves and their communities safe. We’ve also laid out a principled guide for platforms to respect user privacy and rights to bodily autonomy. This post is a guide specifically for anyone seeking an abortion and worried about their digital privacy. There is a lot of crossover with the tips outlined in the previously mentioned guides; many tips bear repeating.
We are not yet sure how companies may respond to law enforcement requests for any abortion related data, and you may not have much control over their choices. But you can do a lot to control who you are giving your information to, what kind of data they get, and how it might be connected to the rest of your digital life.
Keep This Data Separate from Your Daily Activities
If you are worried about legal pressure, the most important thing to remember is to keep these activities separate from less sensitive ones. This can be done many ways, but the underlying idea is to keep that information compartmentalized away from other aspects of your “regular” life. This makes it harder to trace back to you.
Choosing a separate browser with hardened privacy settings is an easy and free start. Browsers like Brave, Firefox, and DuckDuckGo on mobile are all easy-to-use options that come with hardened privacy settings out of the box. It’s a good idea to look into the “preferences” menu of whichever browser you choose, and raise the privacy settings even further. It’s also a good idea to turn off this browser’s features to remember browsing history and site data/cookies. Here’s what that looks like in Firefox’s “Privacy and Security” menu:
Firefox’s cookies and history options in its privacy menu
How to turn off Firefox’s feature that remembers browser history
If you are calling clinics or healthcare providers, consider keeping a secondary phone number like Google Voice (which is free), Hushed, or Burner (both Hushed and Burner are paid apps, but have significantly better privacy policies than Google Voice). Having a separate email address, especially one that is made with privacy and security in mind, is also a good idea. Some email services you might consider are Tutanota and Protonmail.
Mobile Privacy
One way to protect your privacy is to get a “burner phone” – meaning a phone that’s not connected to your normal cell phone account. But keeping a super secure burner phone may be hard for many people. If so, consider reviewing the privacy settings on your current cell phone to see what information is being collected about you, who is collecting it, and what they might do with it.
If you’re using a period tracker app already, carefully examine its privacy settings. If you can, consider switching to a more privacy-focused app. Euki, for example, promises not to store any user information.
Turn off ad identifiers on your phone. We’ve laid out a guide for doing so on iOS and Android here. This restricts individual apps’ abilities to track your behavior when you use them, and limits their sharing of that information with others.
While you’re at it, it’s a good idea to review the other permissions that apps have on your phone, especially location services. For apps that require location data for their core functionality (such as Google Maps), choose an option like “While Using” that only gives the app permission to view your location when it’s open (remember to fully close out of those apps when you are finished using them).
If you have a “Find My” feature turned on for your phone, like Apple’s function to see where your phone is from your other computers, you will want to consider turning that off before traveling to or from a location you don’t want someone else being able to see you visit.
If you’re traveling to or from a location (such as a clinic or a rally) where there is a likelihood law enforcement may stop you or seize your device, or if you’re often near someone who may look into your phone without permission, turning off biometric unlocking is a good idea. This means turning off any feature for unlocking your phone using your face ID or fingerprint. Instead you should opt for a passcode that is difficult to guess (like all passwords: make it long, unique, and random).
Since you are likely using your phone to text and call others that will share similar data privacy and security concerns as you, it’s a good idea to download Signal, an end-to-end-encrypted messaging app. For a more thorough walkthrough, check out this guide for Android and this for iOS.
Lock & Encrypt
Anticipating how data on your devices might be seized as evidence is a scary thought. You don’t need to know how encryption works, but checking to make sure it’s turned on for all your devices is vital. Android and iOS devices have full-disk encryption on by default (though it doesn’t hurt to check). Doing the same for your laptops and other computers is just as important. It’s likely that encryption is on by default for your operating system, but it’s worthwhile to check. Here is how to check for MacOS, and also for Windows. Linux users ought to check for guides for their choice of distribution and how to enable full disk encryption from there.
Delete & Turn Off
Deleting things from your phone or computer isn’t as easy as it sounds. For sensitive data, you want to make sure it’s done right.
When deleting images from your phone, make sure to remove them from “recently deleted” folders. Here is a guide on permanently deleting from iOS. Similar to iOS, Android’s Google Photos app requires you to delete photos from its “Bin” folder where it stores recently deleted images for a period of time.
For your computer, using “secure deletion” features on either Windows or MacOS is a good call, but are not as important as making sure full disk encryption is turned on (discussed in the above section)
If you’re especially worried that someone might learn about a specific location you are traveling to or, simply turning off your phone and leaving your laptop at home is the easiest and most foolproof solution. Only you can decide if the risk outweighs the benefit of keeping your phone on when traveling to or from a clinic or abortion rally. For more reading, here is our guide on safely attending a protest, which may be useful for you to make that decision for yourself.
Posted on July 7, 2022
8 Cool Tips to Keep Your Smartphone from Overheating
It’s getting hot out there, and as the planet warms from climate change, it’s bound to get even hotter.
That also means your phone is becoming more susceptible to overheating — which can spell trouble. A hot phone can quickly drain your battery, damage internal components or even start a fire. Not good.
Before you throw your phone in the pool to cool it down, we’ll show you how to keep your smartphone from overheating in the first place and keep it working properly during these hot summer days.
First thing’s first, if your smartphone displays a warning screen that it is overheating and you want to use your device as quickly as possible, immediately turn off your device, move it to a cooler location and let it cool down.
However, you can take some easy steps to prevent it from overheating in the first place. Here’s how:
Avoid direct sun
It’s easy to forget that you’ve left your smartphone in the sun, especially at the beach or outside with friends or family. Luckily, iIf you have a newer phone, it should automatically shut down to protect the internal components — but at that point, it may be too late.
The easiest way to prevent your phone from overheating is to beat the heat. Keep your phone out of direct sunlight when you’re outside. If you’re feeling hot, then your phone is, too.
Don’t leave your phone in a hot car
Likewise, a hot car can spell trouble for your smartphone. The inside of a car parked in direct sun in the summer can reach temperatures of over 150º F. That’s why most phone manufacturers recommend that you do not leave your phone inside a hot car, either.
Apple, for example, recommends that your phone should be stored at temperatures between -4º to 113º F, and that you should not “leave the device in your car, because temperatures in parked cars can exceed this range.” Samsung states that the temperature of your Galaxy device may be affected if you are “using your devices in an environment outside of normal operating conditions (between 32 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit).”
Remove your case
If you have a case on your phone, it may be trapping some thermal energy from the battery or other components.
Take off your case and let your phone begin to cool down.
Switch up the settings
There are a few steps you can take inside your phone’s settings to keep your device from getting too hot, especially if you’re already in a warm environment:
- Turn on Airplane mode and/or turn off data
- Turn down screen brightness
- Turn on Power Save Mode or Low Battery Mode
- Keep your phone’s operating system and apps updated
Use a fan — not the freezer
Popping your smartphone in the freezer after overheating may damage internal components since rapidly cooling your phone could create condensation and moisture that can wreak havoc on your device.
Instead, try putting your phone in front of a fan. It should cool much more slowly and hopefully protect your device from cooling too quickly.
Give your phone a rest
If you’re worried that your phone might overheat — or it’s already getting warm — try giving your phone a rest. Certain tasks and applications, like gaming, streaming, video editing or even high speed charging can increase processing power or warm your battery. Try sticking to scrolling social media or putting your phone in the shade for a little while to cool your device down.
Use recommended chargers
Some users report that inexpensive, so-called “off brand” chargers can cause a phone to overheat, which could damage your device. While other chargers may work perfectly fine, we typically recommend that you use chargers and cables made by the manufacturers of your phone. You can find replacement accessories at Apple, Samsung or Google.
Still overheating?
If your phone is continuously overheating, you may need to contact the manufacturer or take your device to a professional to diagnose the problem. The overheating may be caused by a faulty battery or other device components and may be covered by a service plan or warranty, depending on the issue or the age of your device.
It might be a great time to consider upgrading your phone, too! At CREDO, we offer the best phones on the nation’s best network. And just by using our phones and services, you can help us contribute more to great nonprofit organizations fighting for climate justice, like 350,org, the Sunrise Movement, and Friends of the Earth. In fact, we’ve donated more than $20 million to climate justice organizations — and over $93 million in total to progressive nonprofit groups since 1985.
Visit CREDOMobile.com and find which phones and plans work best for you!
Posted on July 5, 2022
Vote for American Civil Liberties Union, Brady: United Against Gun Violence and Free Press Action this July
Every month, CREDO members vote to distribute our monthly grant to three incredible progressive causes – and every vote makes a difference. This July, you can support civil rights, gun violence prevention and digital rights by voting to fund American Civil Liberties Union, Brady: United Against Gun Violence and Free Press Action.
American Civil Liberties Union
The ACLU will never stop fighting for a person’s right to decide when and if to have a child. The organization will continue to fight in the courts, in statehouses, and in Congress, at the ballot box through ballot measures and other races, and in the streets. This isn’t over.
The ACLU are fighting the most restrictive and oppression laws to abortion access and reproductive healthcare than ever before. With Roe v. Wade overturned, through this funding, we are able to mobilize and work with partner organizations to challenge these outrageous bills.
Brady: United Against Gun Violence
For more than 40 years, Brady has united gun owners and non-gun owners alike in the fight against gun violence. With targeted programs designed to tackle the root causes of gun violence in America, Brady works to ensure that every community is safer.
Support from CREDO will bolster Brady’s on-the-ground programs in areas most impacted by gun violence, help them hold the gun industry accountable in court, promote safe gun storage, and more.
Free Press Action
Free Press Action advocates for equitable and just media policy. The organization works to clean up disinformation around our elections, disrupt organized hate online, fight for affordable internet access, secure Net Neutrality and revive local journalism.
Your support will protect the open Internet, fair elections and digital civil rights. Free Press Action will hold media and tech companies accountable for corrupting policymaking and amplifying bigotry, conspiracy theories and disinformation.
Your vote this month will determine how we divide our monthly donations among these three progressive groups. Be sure to cast your vote to support one, two or all three by July 31.
CREDO members who use our products and services everyday are the reason we are able to make these donations each month. Learn more about CREDO Mobile and join our movement.
Posted on July 1, 2022
Our June grantees thank you for your support
Our June grantees thank you for your support
Each month, CREDO members vote on how we distribute funding to three incredible nonprofits. Those small actions add up – with one click, you can help fund groups working for economic justice, LGBTQ rights and peace. In June, CREDO members voted to distribute our monthly donation among Economic Policy Institute, Transgender Law Center and Win Without War. These donations are made possible by CREDO customers and the revenue they generate by using our services. The distribution depends entirely on the votes of CREDO members like you. And for that, our June grant recipients thank you.
Economic Policy Institute
“Thank you! CREDO members like you are invaluable to our work. Your support helps us to do the crucial research, data analysis, and policy work that the broad progressive movement uses to fight for economic justice for working people and for racial and gender justice.” – Heidi Shierholz, President, Economic Policy Institute
To learn more, visit www.EPI.org.
Transgender Law Center
“From all of us at TLC, thank you CREDO Mobile for your wonderful support over many years. Your partnership means we continue to create a path to freedom for everyone, centering trans Black, Indigenous and people of color, who hold the knowledge, power, and joy to create a future where we can all not only survive but thrive.” – Kris Hayashi, Executive Director
To learn more, visit transgenderlawcenter.org.
Win Without War
“For nearly 20 years, CREDO members like you have fueled Win Without War’s fearless fight to fix a deeply broken U.S. foreign policy. Together, we’ve mobilized thousands of activists to join us in creating a more just and peaceful world. Thank you!” – Sara Haghdoosti, Executive Director, Win Without War
To learn more, visit winwithoutwar.org.
Now check out the three groups we are funding in July, and cast your vote to help distribute our donations.
CREDO members who use our products are the reason why we are able to make these donations each month. Learn more about CREDO Mobile, the carrier with a conscience.
Posted on June 30, 2022
A grocery store in Buffalo. Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. Parkland. Sandy Hook. Las Vegas Route 91. Charleston. Pulse nightclub. Enough is enough.
Note from the CREDO team: This July, Brady: United Against Gun Violence is among three amazing groups that will receive a share of our monthly grant. Funding from the CREDO community will help Brady bolster its on-the-ground programs in areas most impacted by gun violence, help it hold the gun industry accountable in court, promote safe gun storage and more.
Read this important blog post from Brady’s Grants Coordinator Meera Marhoefer, then click here to visit CREDODonations.com to cast your vote to help determine how we distribute our monthly grant to this organization and our other amazing grantees this July.
Gun violence in America is a national emergency and a raging public health epidemic. Every day, more than 300 people are shot and more than 100 are killed with guns. Gun violence has become the leading cause of death for children in America. It causes low birthweight babies in our impacted communities because of the stress faced by mothers. It costs our healthcare system $3.5 billion a year. It rips apart families and loved ones. And yet it’s entirely preventable — if we enact sensible solutions.
Gun violence is a complex public health issue with many forms. Complex issues call for comprehensive solutions — and that’s what Brady has been leading the charge on for more than 40 years. Our philosophy at Brady is that we must work across Congress, courts, and our communities in order to end our nation’s gun violence epidemic and save lives.
Winning Lifesaving Legislation Across Congress and Statehouses
On the heels of the tragedy in Uvalde, we are at a turning point in the movement to end gun violence. Thanks to Americans everywhere rising up to join us in demanding action, Congress just passed the first gun violence prevention legislation in nearly 30 years. The last time this happened was when our namesakes, Jim and Sarah Brady, passed the 1993 Brady Background Check Bill. After decades of deadly federal inaction, this legislative progress is the breakthrough our movement needs to save lives. But we need to ensure it’s just the first step of many.
With your support, we’re making life-saving progress in state legislatures across the country. We helped lead New York in passing a package of 10 lifesaving gun violence prevention bills — one of which will implement handgun ‘microstamping, helping law enforcement solve gun crime and end cycles of violence. We also worked with Maryland and Illinois to ban homemade, untraceable “ghost guns” and the parts and kits used to build them. In Washington State, we banned ghost guns and high-capacity magazines. In both Washington and Colorado, we passed legislation to protect our democracy by keeping guns away from polling places. And in Delaware, in honor of Keshall ‘KeKe’ Anderson, a Brady Legal client who was shot and killed, the state passed the nation’s first bill to repeal unparalleled gun industry protections that block gun violence victims and survivors from having their day in court.
Changing Cultural Norms and Promoting Responsible Gun Ownership
Every day, eight kids are unintentionally injured or killed as a result of family fire, which is a shooting involving an improperly stored or misused gun from the home. Our nonpartisan End Family Fire program educates gun owners about the lifesaving role of safe firearm storage to prevent these tragedies. Unintentional shootings, suicide, and intentional shootings are all forms of family fire; which has an outsized impact on young people, the veteran community, and firearm owners.
But End Family Fire is making a lifesaving difference. Our latest polling shows that 73% of gun owners who have seen our safe storage ads agree that storing all of their guns locked and unloaded reduces the risk of someone dying by suicide in their home — a stark increase from when we launched the campaign years ago. We know that only when the gun-owning community is welcomed into the conversation will we truly be able to End Family Fire.
Winning Legal Reforms and Taking the Gun Industry to Court
Brady Legal is our nation’s longest-standing public interest law organization. We take on the gun industry in court, holding it accountable, preventing gun trafficking and illegal sales, and saving lives. We represent victims of gun violence against gun companies who negligently supply or make guns and we reform the gun industry through impactful litigation. Through our litigation efforts against the corporate gun lobby, we have won over $30 million dollars in settlements and verdicts for victims and their families.
Posted on June 30, 2022
Supreme Court Reverses Roe v. Wade — Support the ACLU to Defend Our Fundamental Rights
Note from the CREDO team: This June, the ACLU is among three amazing groups that will receive a share of our monthly grant. Read this important blog post from Justin Rodriguez, Manager, Corporate Engagement at ACLU below, then click here to visit CREDODonations.com to cast your vote to help determine how we distribute our monthly grant to this organization and our other amazing grantees this June.
On June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a shameful ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, the nearly 50-year-old landmark decision recognizing the federal constitutional right to abortion. The ruling in the case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, will allow anti-abortion politicians in states across the country to ban abortion and force millions of people to remain pregnant and have children against their will.
This decision revokes the federal constitutional right to abortion and our agency over our lives and futures. This is an outrageous attack on women’s rights and the bodily autonomy of everyone who can become pregnant, and the effects will be immediate and far-reaching.
Regardless of this horrendous decision, abortion is still our right. We all deserve the power to control our bodies, lives, and futures. Abortion is also health care. Access should not depend on where we live, how much money we make, or who we are.
What comes next for abortion rights?
- Abortion may be banned in nearly half of the country, affecting more than 36 million people.
- This will have an immediate and devastating impact on both public health and personal freedom. Banning abortion does not eliminate the need for this kind of care – rather, it will force people to seek abortion outside of the health care system. No one should be forced to carry a pregnancy against their will and face the life-altering consequences of being denied essential health care.
- This unprecedented attack on essential care on abortion access disproportionately harms the same people who have faced systemic barriers to care – communities of color, the LGBTQ+ community, undocumented immigrants, young people, those living in rural communities, people with disabilities, and people with low incomes.
What Is the ACLU Doing to Respond?
The ACLU has an office in every state. Our lawyers, lobbyists, and, organizers have been preparing for this moment. In the short-term, we will mitigate the damage and protect abortion access wherever we can, and generate an outcry in opposition to the ruling.
- In Michigan and Vermont, efforts are underway to enshrine the right to reproductive freedom in their state constitutions.
- In Kansas and Kentucky, we are fighting ballot initiatives that propose state constitutional amendments to remove abortion rights. We cannot let those measures succeed.
The ACLU’s Post-Dobbs Rapid Response includes:
- Litigation: We will file post-ruling litigation in 8–12 states in an attempt to preserve as much abortion access as possible for as long as possible.
- Education/communication: To educate the public and media about what the Supreme Court ruling actually means—both legally and in terms of human impact.
- Mobilization: We will mobilize the ACLU’s (and the ACLU affiliates’) millions of members, activists, and supporters to loudly demonstrate their opposition to the ruling—on Decision Day and beyond.
- Advising clinics: We will continue to advise clinics, abortion providers, and other organizations that provide support to people seeking abortion care in both hostile and haven states, helping them design ways to support patients seeking abortions while minimizing the legal risks to them and their patients.
- Federal administrative advocacy: We will urge the Biden administration to use its bully pulpit to react strongly against the Supreme Court ruling and to quickly prioritize the administration’s federal response to the ensuing abortion crisis.
- State legislation: We are working with our ACLU state affiliates to discuss strategies, to map out plans of action, and to provide resources (such as messaging guidance, sample legislative testimony, talking points, etc.) and will continue to do so after the ruling comes down.
Channeling people’s anger into taking action means that we will collect thousands of new activists’ contact information nationwide. We are building political power for the long-term. This is the only way to put the power back in the hands of the people.
Here are some immediate action items you can do:
- Support abortion funds and advocacy organizations. Abortion funds remove the financial and logistical barriers to abortion access. Please donate here to the National Network of Abortion Funds, which will split your contribution among more than 80 local abortion funds across the country.
- Take our pledge today and join the ACLU’s People Power network as a defender of abortion rights for ways to get involved through rallies, activist trainings, and more.
- Take your voice to the streets, and
- Send a message to politicians at the ballot box: Abortion is a right, and you can’t ignore us.
For more information, read Jessica Arons, Senior Policy Counsel, ACLU blog here. Protests and actions are taking place across the country, and you can locate events in your state here.
The majority of Americans overwhelmingly support the right to control one’s own body and future. The ACLU is in the courts, legislatures, and the streets, and we need all of you to join us.
