Friday, September 19, 2014

CONGRESSIONAL FULL EMPLOYMENT CAUCUS CO-CHAIRS ANNOUNCE DISCHARGE PETITION FOR THE AMERICAN JOBS ACT


WASHINGTON – Today, Reps. John Conyers, Jr. (MI-13), Frederica Wilson (FL-24), and Marcy Kaptur (OH-09) - all co-chairs of the Congressional Full Employment Caucus - announced a discharge petition for H.R. 2821, the American Jobs Act, to compel House Republican leaders to bring the comprehensive package of employment measures to the House floor for a vote. 

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
“The American Jobs Act will finally put an end to the painful impacts of the Great Recession,” said Rep. Conyers.  “Despite the progress we have seen in recent employment numbers, there are still more than two applicants for every single job opening.  There are still more than twice as many people among the ranks of the long-term unemployed than there were before the financial crisis struck in 2008.” 

H.R. 2821 is an updated version of President Obama's American Jobs Act, a bill that, according toindependent analysis, would have created 1.9 million jobs and boosted growth by 2% if passed when originally introduced in 2011.  Congressional leaders allowed the bill to expire at the end of the 112thCongress without bringing it to the floor for a vote.

This critical legislation rewards work and targets job creation through several fully paid-for provisions.  It would cut taxes for working Americans by reinstituting the Making Work Pay Credit, which provides a tax credit equal to 6.2% of earnings and up to a maximum credit of $400 individuals and $800 for couples.  It would also facilitate job-creating infrastructure investment by supporting public-private financing for projects such as airport and air traffic control systems, highway and bridge rehabilitation, and high-speed rail projects.  Lastly, H.R. 2821 would restore emergency unemployment insurance and end sequestration, the across-the-board budget cuts that are projected to cost Americans more than 2 million jobs over the next decade.

“Together with Democratic leadership, we are introducing this discharge petition for the American Jobs Act because it is time for Congress to focus on the priority that matters most for the American people: Jobs.  House Republicans should stop protecting corporate welfare and start fighting for American jobs,” said Rep. Wilson. “By putting teachers, police, firefighters, and construction workers back on the job, we can not only improve our employment situation but also boost educational outcomes and perform urgently-needed upgrades to our infrastructure.”

“The American public has told Congress over and over again that it is time to get serious about creating jobs, and the American Jobs Act would do just that,” said Rep. Kaptur. “This jobs bill would put millions of Americans back to work, strengthen our communities, and keep America competitive in our increasingly globalized world. Not only would the American Jobs Act put individuals back to work, it would place them in good paying jobs that provide a high quality of life.  This is the American dream and this Congress must act to pass the American Jobs Act, legislation that can quickly turn around the lives of millions of Americans.”

The Congressional Full Employment Caucus is a coalition of 25 Members of Congress who are committed to ensuring that all Americans who want to work have access to either employment or training.  The Caucus regularly hosts expert economists, academics, and policymakers to identify effective job-creation proposals and implement strategies for their adoption.
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE APPROVES THE TRADE SECRETS PROTECTION ACT


WASHINGTON – Today, the House Judiciary Committee approved H.R. 5233, the Trade Secrets Protection Act by voice vote. 

Introduced on July 28, 2014, the bipartisan Trade Secrets Protection Act, which is sponsored by Rep. George Holding (R-N.C.) and Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Subcommittee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), amends the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 to create a federal civil remedy for trade secret misappropriation that will help American companies protect their intellectual property from theft.  Trade secrets include such vital proprietary information as confidential formulas, manufacturing techniques, and even customer lists. 

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.), Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet Howard Coble (R-NC), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Rep. George Holding (R-N.C) released the following joint statement:

“Trade secrets are an increasingly important form of intellectual property that have become more vulnerable to theft as a result of our globalized economy.  As of 2009, the value of trade secrets owned by U.S. companies was estimated to be nearly $5 trillion.  While current federal law protects other forms of intellectual property by providing access to federal courts for aggrieved parties to seek redress, there is no federal option to do so for trade secret theft. The bipartisan Trade Secrets Protection Act seeks to change that by allowing companies to seek civil penalties in order to protect their businesses from those engaging in economic espionage.  H.R. 5233 gives American companies a powerful new tool which will help them compete in an ever-evolving global market."

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

REP. CONYERS STATEMENT ON SYRIA VOTE



WASHINGTON— Today, Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (MI-13) released the following statement after voting in support of the measure to authorize the Obama Administration to train and equip the Syrian rebel army to battle the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL):

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
“I agree with President Obama that the destabilizing and destructive actions of ISIL demand an American response.  While I am supportive of President Obama’s targeted actions against ISIS to date, I believe our government must be mindful of the unintended consequences inherent in training and equipping fighters in a highly complex foreign conflict.  For this reason, I authored a successful bipartisan amendment to the House’s Defense Appropriations bill this summer, prohibiting the transfer of dangerous shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles known as MANPADs to parties in the Syrian civil war. 

As President Obama uses any authority granted by Congress to train and equip Syrian rebels, I hope he honors the will of the House of Representatives to prevent the dissemination of these and other dangerous weapons in the Middle East and beyond.  

We must remain cognizant that military force is not the solution to the strife afflicting Iraq and Syria.  I continue to oppose the presence of US ground troops in the region.  We must do all we can to eliminate funding sources for ISIL and to support inclusive governance and vigorous dialogue while respecting Iraqi sovereignty.  We must also do what we can to promote a peaceful settlement in Syria and to invest in employment-focused economic development throughout the region.”


Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

REP. CONYERS, SENATOR SANDERS INTRODUCE THE EMPLOY YOUNG AMERICANS NOW ACT


WASHINGTON – Today, Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced the “Employ Young Americas Now Act,” legislation that would fix our country’s youth jobs crisis.

Rep. John Conyers, Jt. and
Sen. Bernie Sanders
The Employ Young Americans Now Act will provide $5.5 billion in immediate funding to states and localities to employ one million young Americans between the ages of 16 and 24, and provide job training to hundreds of thousands of young Americans.  The legislation also allocates $4 billion in grant funding to the U.S. Department of Labor to create summer and year-round employment opportunities for low-income youth and another $1.5 billion in competitive grants for work-based training.

The youth unemployment rate in the United States for 16- to 19-year-olds was 19.6 percent in August, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  The African-American youth unemployment rate is 32.8 percent. 

“Nearly six million young Americans are neither in school nor working,” said Conyers.  “This is a national emergency that demands immediate federal action.  By empowering states, local communities, nonprofits, and small businesses to train and hire young Americans, this legislation will restore financial security, productivity, and dignity.  Our economy and society are strongest when our young people enjoy decent opportunity.”

“The most serious crisis facing this country is the lack of decent-paying jobs, particularly when it comes to young Americans,” Sanders said.  “If young high school graduates are unable to find entry-level jobs, how will they ever be able to develop the skills, the experience and the confidence they need to break into the job market?”

Sanders and Conyers emphasized that youth unemployment has long-term consequences.  Today, more than5.8 million young Americans have either dropped out of high school or graduated from high school and have no jobs.  Unemployment can equate to lower lifelong earnings and productivity for affected workers.  Recent academic studies have shown that people who experience early bouts of unemployment suffer 10 to 15 % lower wages than their peers.  These “wage scars” have been demonstrated to last upwards of 20 years.                                                                                                             

Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) is a cosponsor of the Senate bill.  “High unemployment hits our communities and families hard, and it is particularly devastating for teens and young adults who are denied the opportunity to get the basic job skills they need to go on to college and get a good paying job,” she said.  “This legislation is an investment in our young adults who just need the chance to prove themselves and get ahead.”

In the House, the Employ Young Americans Now Act is cosponsored by Representatives Charles Rangel (NY-13), Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), John Lewis (GA-05), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Elijah Cummings (MD-07), Terri Sewell (AL-07) and Frederica Wilson (FL-24).

The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), United Automobile Workers (UAW), the United Steelworkers of America, Campaign for America’s Future and the National Employment Law Project have also expressed support for this critical legislation.

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Monday, September 15, 2014

REP. CONYERS, SENATOR SANDERS TO INTRODUCE THE “EMPLOY YOUNG AMERICANS NOW ACT”


WASHINGTON – Tomorrow, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will hold a press conference to introduce the “Employ Young Americans Now Act,” legislation that would provide$5.5 billion in grants to states and local governments to provide job opportunities and professional career training to millions of young Americans.

According to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the youth unemployment rate is 19.6% and the African-American youth unemployment rate is 32.8%.           
         
 Who: Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)

What: Press conference on youth jobs crisis
When: TOMORROW – Tuesday, Sept. 16 - 11:30 a.m.

Where: Senate Radio/TV Gallery   (S325)
                                                            
            Contact: Michael Briggs (202) 224-5141   

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Friday, September 12, 2014

Why Has The Use of Excessive Police Force in Child Welfare Been Ignored By Congress?

Even though this video is from Australia, it was an excellent example of excessive police force in child welfare and a public cry for an investigation.

In the U.S. excessive police force is used everyday, but with the federal program of providing local police surplus military equipment, excessive force is a much different situation.

Local law enforcement use helicopters, snipers, SWAT, tanks, and the list goes on but what the general public does not know is that these so-called raids are executed, most of the time, without a warrant, in the middle of the night.

The excuse of raiding a house in dealing with a child protection issue is centered in the legal term "exigent circumstances" meaning that there must be immediate intervention to save the life of a child. The problem with this is the home is already raided, child placed in foster care, caregiver placed on central registry long before the caregiver has any idea of what has taken place.

Once in court, the caregiver, who is poor, may, if luck is on their side that day in court, get a court appointed attorney, who will do absolutely as little as possible to address the civil rights violations because the jurisprudence of the court is to presume guilt until proven innocent.

Congress needs to step up its game and stop ignoring the fact that child welfare has no civil rights component. Listen to the people.

Poverty is not a crime and Congress needs to stop rewarding those who treat it as such.

Police in riot gear removing Aboriginal children at 'gunpoint'

EXCLUSIVE: Disturbing footage showing police in riot gear storming a home in NSW to forcibly remove indigenous children from their parents has been obtained by National Indigenous TV news.


The Department of Family and Community Services (FACS) and New South Wales police raided the home to remove multiple children from the one family. The children have now been returned to their parents.

The footage and images provided to NITV News show police dressed in riot gear enter a home at around 6.30am  earlier this year.

The parents, who were asleep when the raid began, have told NITV News they awoke to find guns pointed at them and that they were then handcuffed by police as the children were forcibly removed in front of them.

It is alleged the children's aunt and grandfather were also handcuffed and detained by police during the raid.

New South Wales Police has confirmed the raid occurred but said no charges were laid.

The children were placed in temporary foster care, but are now back with their parents.

The New South Wales Greens are calling for answers as to why such heavy handed force was used in the removal of these children.

MLC David Shoebridge says the children remain traumatised and the process and its impact on the children needs to be investigated.

"(This is a) deeply troubling story of a family that's been woken soon after dawn," he said.

"[Police armed with] shields, helmets, assault rifles, the mother and father taken from their beds, shaken from their beds, handcuffed naked, children marched out at gunpoint."

A spokesperson for the Minister for Family and Community Services, Gabrielle Upton said the riot police were present for the protection of caseworkers.

“The Department of Family and Community Services has a very good working relationship with NSW police.

“NSW police provide critical protection in often very complex and difficult child protection matters.”

“Police only attend a child protection issue after a stringent risk assessment."

NSW police provided the following statement:

'About 6am on Wednesday 15 January 2014 police from Moree Local Area Command assisted Family and Community Services officers in the execution of a warrant issued by the local court.

'This was a local operation and did not involve specialist commands like the TOU. (tactical operations unit)

'Children aged between one and 13 who had been identified as being at risk were removed from a home ... by FACS.

'Police attended to prevent any breach of the peace or public order incident.

'One man was detained in handcuffs for a short period. No charges were laid.'

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

CONYERS STATEMENT ON THE 20THANNIVERSARY OF AMERICORPS

DETROIT – Today, Congressman John Conyers Jr. (MI-13) issued the following statement in recognition of the 20thanniversary of the AmeriCorps program:

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
“Twenty years ago, AmeriCorps was founded in order to foster civic engagement and help meet our domestic obligations to one another.  It has succeeded with flying colors.  AmeriCorps has immeasurably strengthened our communities and it continues to embody the very best of American ideals.

In Michigan this year, more than 1,400 individuals will join through the AmeriCorps program to fulfill unmet needs in education, environmental justice, economic fairness and community development.  These men and women join a proud tradition: since 1994 over 25,000 Michiganders have served in AmeriCorps, where they have provided over $80 million worth of vital services to our communities.  

More than anyone, the volunteers fonyr AmeriCorps exhibit the spirit needed to heal our nation’s divisions.  Their spirit is defined not by self-interest and personal gain, but by self-sacrifice and personal initiative.  I congratulate AmeriCorps in celebrating their 20th anniversary and I wish the program all the best for the next twenty years and more.”

# # #

To learn how you can get involved and for more information on the AmeriCorps program, visithttp://www.nationalservice.gov/

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Thursday, September 11, 2014

U.S. Senate Gets A First Look How Child Welfare Treats Children

Images of Detained Children Haunt U.S. Senate Rotunda

The picture below should haunt every human who claims to care about the well- being of children,

This is the same detention room (except without benches) that was in the Michigan residential facility St. Vincent Sarah Fisher, that I shut down with the help of the Michigan Bureau of Child and Adult Licensing.

In this room, typically 3 by 5 feet, with a drain, or if the kid was semi nice, a bucket, a youth would be locked down for anywhere between a few hours to a few days.  The latter was the norm.  

The room reeked of urine and feces.  The lights were constantly on.  The loudspeaker was used to pipe in taunts staff to ridicule the youth.

Sometimes there were gray bologna sandwiches on stale, or moldy bread thrown in once a day.

This is the place where, once the child calmed down, normal time was at least 2 days, the child would be set free to be placed on a cocktail of psychotropic medication to cause them to show signs of tardive dyskinesia allowing the facility to bill at a higher rate of care.

Majority of the time a child was placed the cell because they complained too much of being raped, beaten, drugged, starved, stabbed, tortured and just wanted to go home.  

The courts function off the fraudulently generated recommendations of the facility and never recommends release.

Rates of billing ranged from approximately $300 to $1,000 a day.  Children were kept in the system for years.  You do the math.

St. Vincent Sarah Fisher Residential Institution made so much money they bought the surrounding land for high end residential development.

As a disclaimer, I will come out to say the Daughters of Charity knew nothing about this.  They had privatized care with some of the most nefariously vile creatures who called themselves "christian".

Always remember...You cannot audit God.

The facility was shut down.  Land sold.  The scum regrouped, changed its name, a bit, and was never prosecuted.. Department of Justice get off its arse and give these children justice. 

#EricHolder #DOJ #Michigan #DanielLevinson 
Detained youth
Richard Ross
“I’m waiting for my mom to come get me. Is she in there? She’s at work today. I want to go home. I got in trouble at school today.” R.T., age 10.

More than half of all states continue to incarcerate children for status offenses through the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act’s (JJDPA) valid court order exception. As a result, in 2011 alone, more than 2,000 children were estimated to be incarcerated each day for behaviors such as running away from home, skipping school or coming home after curfew.

The 10-year-old boy stands with his back to the camera and his hands in his pockets in a bare white cinderblock cell in the juvenile detention center.
In text beneath the haunting image, the boy explains: “I’m waiting for my mom to come get me. … She’s at work today. I want to go home. I got in trouble at school today.”
Another image shows a full-length silhouette of a pregnant 16-year-old girl in a cell who says her only crime was running away from home.
They’re among the 15 images by photographer Richard Ross being showcased this week in an exhibit on juvenile detention in the Senate Rotunda of the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington.
The Act4 Juvenile Justice advocacy group, with the help of Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa, is hosting the exhibit, “Juvenile In Justice,” on display through Friday.
The event marks the 40th anniversary this week of the landmark 1974 Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA).
Ross, a 67-year-old distinguished professor of art at the University of California, Santa Barbara, traveled to more than 30 states and visited 300 juvenile detention centers, where he photographed more than 1,000 children over nearly five years.
The photos on exhibit this week appeared in Ross’ acclaimed 2012 book, “Juvenile In Justice.”

Detained youth
Richard Ross
“I got kicked out of school for partying and truancy. I use meth. They have had me here for two weeks. I think they keep me here because they think I am a risk of hurting myself. When they want to come in, they come in, they don’t knock or anything — this is the observation room …” C.T., age 15.
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention reports that 20 percent of children who are detained for status offenses — such as skipping school and other nondelinquent behaviors — are placed in living units with a young person who has committed murder or manslaughter. Research has shown that suicide rates among incarcerated youth are more than four times higher than they are among youth who are not incarcerated.

Juvenile justice advocates hope the exhibit brings attention to efforts to persuade congressional lawmakers to reauthorize the JJDPA.
Speaking of senators and others who see his exhibit, Ross said: “I hope that they realize that lives are at stake and that there’s nothing abstract about this, and the places that they hold these kids are inappropriate and they have it within their power to alter that fact.
“Often, you get these works displayed in places that will say, ‘Oh, this is such a shame but [people] are impotent to actually do anything. Well, in this environment, the audience is not impotent. They’re the policymakers.”
Juvenile justice advocates are pressing for a ban on court exceptions to a JJDPA “core protection” calling for deinstitutionalization of “status offenders” — or those who commit offenses that wouldn’t be crimes for adults (like truancy, running away from home or alcohol possession).
The number of status offenders detained had dropped markedly after the JJDPA linked the core requirement to federal funding. But in 1980, the act was amended to include an exception allowing judges to confine a youth for a status offense if the youth had violated a valid court order not to repeat the offense.
Today, more than half of U.S. states continue to allow use of the valid court order exception to detain youths charged with status offenses. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention has reported about 12,000 annual uses of the exception nationwide.
.
In 2011-12, U.S. schools referred 260,000 of their students to law enforcement; 92,000 students were arrested for school-related issues, according to the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights. These young people were disproportionately black students and students with disabilities. They are part of what’s known as the “school-to-prison pipeline,” and include children who, for example, are chronically truant due to bullying at school or get into fights at school as a result of unmet mental health needs.
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

CBC Chair Condemns Attempted Arson Attack on Congressman Emanuel Cleaver’s Office

WASHINGTON, DC (Link) - Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Chair Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) released the following statement condemning the attempted arson attack on Congressman Emanuel Cleaver’s (MO-05) office in Kansas City, Missouri:
“This morning around 3 a.m., a Molotov cocktail was thrown through the office window of Congressman Emanuel Cleaver. No one was hurt and an investigation is underway.
“The Congressional Black Caucus strongly condemns this type of vandalism targeted at Congressman Cleaver, and denounces any act of violence towards Members of Congress. This type of abhorrent behavior is the most ineffective means of voicing discontent or disagreement.
“I expect a speedy, full, and thorough investigation into this incident by law enforcement, so that those responsible are swiftly apprehended and prosecuted. The person or persons responsible for what happened this morning must be punished to the fullest extent of the law.”
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

DOJ Files Amicus Brief in Support of Native Americans Lawsuit of Civil Rights Violations in Taking of Children

Long after the Trail of Tears Native American children have been removed from families and placed in Christian boarding homes to be "assimilated" under the guise of abuse and neglect.

The practice of "assimilation" (stripping of culture, language, indoctrination of Christianity) only recently ended in the late 1990s but continues in the blatant violations of the Indian Child Welfare Act.

The funding nomenclature of these activities is simply termed, "Targeting".

Targeting is designed to focus on "vulnerable populations".

Vulnerable populations are just that; people of color.

It is easiest to see the target when the bullseye is based on the pseudo-science of racial profiling and no oversight of due process; hence, the purposes of this DOJ filing.

The time has come to illuminate the egregious practice of civil rights violations in child welfare.

Amicus Brief of U.S. in support of Sioux Tribe on civil rights violations of Native children and culture

Justice Department Supports Native Americans In Child Welfare Case

The Justice Department has weighed in on a class-action lawsuit in South Dakota pitting Native American tribes against state officials, and come down resoundingly in support of tribes.

It's the first time the department has intervened in a federal district court case involving the Indian Child Welfare Act, a law meant to keep Native American families together. The department filed an amicus brief.

In the suit, tribes claim the state is failing to abide by the 36-year-old federal law, removing hundreds of Indian children from their families in court hearings where parents are rarely allowed to speak, and that often last less than 60 seconds.

The children are then placed in foster care, where they may stay for months or years.

"It's disgraceful," says Stephen Pevar, who is a senior staff attorney at the ACLU, which has brought the suit along with the Oglala Sioux and Rosebud Sioux tribes.

As part of the lawsuit, the state had to turn over rarely seen transcripts of 120 recent court hearings. In every one, the Native American children were taken into state custody.

Not a single parent was allowed to testify at the hearings. Most were not allowed to say anything except their names.

"These were virtually kangaroo courts," Pevar says. "There was nothing, nothing that any of the parents did or could have done. It was a predetermined outcome in every one of these cases."

In one case cited in the lawsuit, children were taken away from a mother who the state said was neglectful. Their father, who was divorcing the mother, appeared at the hearing and said, "I am here. Please give custody of my children to me." The judge placed the kids in foster care.

In another example, a mother returned home from work to find her children had been taken away when her babysitter got drunk. She went to the hearing to explain she was the mother. Her children were also placed in foster care.

"This violates every concept of humanity," Pevar says. "If you have a right to a prompt hearing when [your] automobile is seized, they have a right to a prompt hearing when their children are seized."
State officials declined NPR's request for comment, citing the ongoing lawsuit. Pevar says the suit has been a long time coming.

"There is a crisis in many parts of the United States, and there has been one for decades involving the forceable removal of Indian children from their homes by state judges and social services employees," he says. "This lawsuit seeks to do something about it."

In its brief, the Justice Department wrote that state court and state officials with the Department of Social Services have an obligation to "actively investigate and oversee emergency removals of Indian children to insure that the removal ends as soon as possible, and that Indian children are expeditiously returned to their parents or their tribe" from the beginning of the process with the first court hearing to the end.

The Indian Child Welfare Act mandates that states place children with their tribes, their relatives or Native American foster parents if they have to be removed from their families.

In South Dakota, almost 9 out of 10 Native American children are placed in non-Indian homes or group homes, says Chase Iron Eyes, a staff attorney with the Lakota People's Law Project.
"It's a human rights crisis what's going on," he says.

This year, 7 of the state's 9 tribes applied for federal planning grants, with the help of the law project, in an effort to develop their own foster care programs. State officials have said they support that effort.

"We're trying to turn the whole system around," Iron Eyes says, "and give that power back to where it belongs — the power to raise our own families."

Iron Eyes says the future of Native American tribes depends on it.

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:
The Justice Department has weighed in on a case in South Dakota, where Indian tribes charged that too many of their children are put in foster care improperly. In a rare move, the DOJ is supporting the tribes in a class-action lawsuit. The tribes say, the state is violating the 36-year-old Indian Child Welfare Act by removing hundreds of children after extremely brief court hearings. NPR's Laura Sullivan reports.

LAURA SULLIVAN, BYLINE: Last year, tribes in South Dakota came together with the ACLU to file a class-action lawsuit against South Dakota courts and state officials. The tribes say, the state has removed their children and placed them in foster care without giving them notice or a proper court hearing.

As part of the lawsuit, the state had to turn over rarely seen transcripts of 120 recent court hearings - hearings where Native American children were taken into state custody and typically placed for months into foster care. Most of the hearings lasted just a few minutes. Others lasted less than 60 seconds.

STEPHEN PEVAR: It's disgraceful.

SULLIVAN: Stephen Pevar is a senior staff attorney with the ACLU, which has brought the suit along with the Oglala Sioux and Rosebud Sioux tribes. Not a single parent was allowed to testify at the hearings. Most were not allowed to say anything except their names.

PEVAR: These were virtually kangaroo courts. There was nothing - nothing - that any of the parents did or could have done. It was a predetermined outcome in every one of these cases.

SULLIVAN: In one case cited in the suit, children were taken away from a mother the state said had neglected them. Their father, who was divorcing the mother, appeared at the hearing and said, I am here. Please give custody of my children to me. The judge placed those children in foster care.
In another example, a mother returned home from work to find her children had been taken away when the babysitter got drunk. She went to the hearing to explain she was the mother. Her children were also placed in foster care.

PEVAR: There's a crisis in many parts of the United States - and there has been one for decades - involving the forcible removal of Indian children from their homes by state judges and social services employees. And this lawsuit seeks to do something about it.

SULLIVAN: State officials declined NPR's request for comment, citing the ongoing lawsuit. This month, the Justice Department sided overwhelmingly with tribes. It has never before intervened in a district court case involving the Indian Child Welfare Act.

The act mandates that states do everything they can to keep native families together and that they place native children with their relatives, tribes or Native American foster parents if those children are removed from their families. Chase Iron Eyes is a staff attorney with the Lakota People's Law Project. He says nine out of 10 Native American children who are taken from their families in South Dakota are placed in non-Indian homes or group homes.

IRON EYES: It's a crisis. It's a human rights crisis - what's going on.

SULLIVAN: This year, seven tribes in the state applied for federal planning grants to develop their own foster care programs.

EYES: We're trying to turn the whole system around - turn the whole ship around - and kind of give that power back to where it belongs - the power to raise our own families.

SULLIVAN: Iron Eyes says, the future of Native American tribes depends on it.

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE APPROVES BIPARTISAN BANKRUPTCY LEGISLATION


Washington, D.C. – Today the House Judiciary Committee approved H.R. 5421, the Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act of 2014 by a voice vote.

The Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act is a product of the Judiciary Committee’s long-standing oversight of our nation’s bankruptcy laws as well as the Committee’s recent examination into improving bankruptcy laws for the resolution of financial institutions. The Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act incorporates the recommendations of hearing witnesses, regulators and experts from three Committee hearings on the subject over the past year. The legislation specifically adds a new subchapter V to chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code to address the resolution of financial institutions, including large, multi-national financial firms.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Regulatory Reform Subcommittee Chairman Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.) praised today’s Committee vote:

“We strongly support the Committee’s passage of the bipartisan Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act today. This bill was carefully calibrated to strengthen our nation’s bankruptcy laws and to ensure that the bankruptcy process is well equipped to resolve companies of all operations and sizes. This legislation enhances the Bankruptcy Code and its ability to resolve financial institutions in an efficient and value-maximizing manner for the benefit of the U.S. and global economies, employees, creditors, and customers.”

‘Financial Institution 5 Bankruptcy Act of 2014 by Beverly Tran

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

CONYERS AND 10 OTHER HOUSE JUDICIARY DEMOCRATS SEEK ANSWERS FROM NFL IN RAY RICE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE INCIDENT


WASHINGTON – Today, several Members of the House Judiciary Committee issued a letter to Roger Goodell, Commissioner of the National Football League (NFL), raising questions related to their handling of the Ray Rice domestic violence incident. 

The letter is signed by House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers Jr. (MI-13),  Reps. Jerrold Nadler (NY-10),  Luis Gutierrez (IL-04), Zoe Lofgren (CA-19), Sheila Jackson Lee (TX-18), Cedric L. Richmond (LA- 02), Henry C. “Hank” Johnson Jr. (GA-04), Steve Cohen (TN-09), Judy Chu (CA-27), Karen Bass (CA-37), Suzan K. DelBene (WA-01) and Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08).
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

BIPARTISAN BANKRUPTCY LEGISLATION INTRODUCED IN THE HOUSE


WASHINGTON – Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R- VA), Ranking Member John Conyers Jr. (D-MI), and House Judiciary Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law Subcommittee Chairman Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.) introduced H.R. 5421, the Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act of 2014.

The Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act is a bipartisan product of the Judiciary Committee’s long-standing oversight of our nation’s bankruptcy laws as well as the Committee’s recent examination into improving bankruptcy laws for the resolution of financial institutions. The Committee conducted three hearings over the past year on whether and how to enhance bankruptcy laws to better address the unique challenges presented by the resolution of financial institutions through bankruptcy. H.R. 5421 The Financial Institution Bankruptcy Actincorporates the recommendations of hearing witnesses, regulators and experts by adding a new subchapter V to Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code to address specifically the resolution of financial institutions, including large, multi-national financial firms.

Chairman Bob Goodlatte (VA-06)), Ranking Member John Conyers Jr. (MI-13), and House Judiciary Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law Subcommittee Chairman Spencer Bachus (AL-06) issued the following joint statement:

“The House Judiciary Committee has a long history of vigilant oversight of our nation’s bankruptcy laws.  The Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act is a reflection of the Committee’s continued commitment to this oversight and to ensuring that the bankruptcy process is best equipped to resolve companies of varying operations and sizes. The legislation enhances the Bankruptcy Code in order to resolve financial institutions in an efficient and value-maximizing manner for the benefit of the U.S. and global economies, employees, creditors, and customers. This bill has been calibrated carefully to provide transparency, predictability and judicial oversight to a process that must be executed quickly and in a manner responsive to potential systemic risks. We strongly support this bipartisan legislation that will strengthen the bankruptcy process for financial institutions.”

The Judiciary Committee is scheduled to markup this bipartisan legislation tomorrowSeptember 10, 2014.

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Will Texas Gov. Rick Perry Face Another Indictment?

He should.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General has seemed to open up another can of Perry worms in Texas.

The latest audit report finds:
"Texas did not comply with Federal requirements for the use of almost $15 million in Child Care and Development Fund targeted funds for fiscal year 2010"
Other recent reports also found that the rate of child poverty, despite the economy surging in the Lone Star State, is rising at astronomical rates.

Despite Economic Strength Number of Texas Children in Poverty Rising  66% of school age children live in poverty, a 47% increase over the last 10 years.
 The should be interpreted as a state government which places more energy and concern on providing assistance to business to increase revenues that to invest in its future workforce, children.

Not only should one be offended with such state policies but should also be outraged that poverty generates future, cheap labor by depriving families of education, child care, food, shelter and other basic needs that are economically out of reach of the average with children in Texas.

Federal child care funds were diverted to assist in mortgage fraud programs.  The rest "disappeared" through poor record keeping.

The principle point of anger should hail from the fact that there will be no criminal charges and the money will be "paid back" over years through a series in cuts of future funding which will continue the cycle of increasing child poverty and cheap labor in Texas.

5 will get you 10 that similar fraud findings will manifest in other Texas child welfare programs.

Thanks Rick Perry for showing the nation on how not to run a stat and showing the world that we need to take better care of our most precious treasures.

Why help the border babies when you do not help your own citizens?

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©

Monday, September 8, 2014

Will Congress Finally Hold Hearings on Police Brutality In Child Welfare

The only question now is to see if Congress will bring up the issue of child welfare and the police aggression associated with it.

It is standard tactics for Child Protective Services to invoke police intervention in a child abuse initial contact situation.

It could be as simple as asking for a second opinion of a psychiatric of your child being put on experimental psychotropic medication or as fundamentally simple as meeting weekly quotas of removing children from the home under the premise of being poor.

This is a pattern and practice which happens everyday around the country and Congress refuses to talk about it.
Congress mulls response to Ferguson





When Congress returns to Washington this week from their long summer recess, lawmakers will waste little time weighing a legislative response to last month's turmoil in Ferguson, Mo.
The violent stand-offs that followed the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer set off a firestorm of congressional criticism over the police response to public protest. Although the saga has largely faded from the headlines, a number of lawmakers will resuscitate it in coming days in order to highlight various proposals designed to prevent another similar incident. 
Senate Democrats will hold a hearing Tuesday to examine the "militarization" of police departments; a House Democrat will introduce legislation to rein in a federal program providing military equipment to local law enforcers; a leading Senate Republican is mulling his own legislative approach to the police crack-down in Ferguson; and members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) plan to use the high-profile event to promote existing bills addressing a range of race-based issues, including police brutality, profiling, youth development and criminal justice reform.
Legislation on such thorny issues has little chance of moving through a highly-polarized Congress, especially given September’s short legislative calendar and the political hurdles posed by the looming midterm elections. But that's not stopping the loudest critics of the police activity in Ferguson, who are hoping the chaos and publicity surrounding the tragic episode marks a watershed moment in how law enforcement is conducted across the country.
"This kind of response by the police has become the problem instead of the solution," Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), head of the Homeland Security Committee's sub-panel on finances, said last month. "Today is going to be a new start, we can and need to do better."
McCaskill's subcommittee will hold a hearing Tuesday to examine the  Pentagon's 1033 program, which arms local police with surplus military equipment.
Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), meanwhile, is leading the charge in the House. The CBC member is poised to introduce legislation scaling back the 1033 program by banning the transfer of specific military grade equipment – including grenade launchers, acoustic cannons and certain armored vehicles – from the Defense Department (DOD) to local police precincts. The bill would also establish new reporting requirements designed to ensure that transferred equipment isn't lost, stolen or misallocated.
Johnson spokeswoman Carole Mumford said Friday that the bill is likely to be introduced the week of Sept. 16th. She said it has bipartisan support, but declined to name co-sponsors.
"This is a bipartisan bill and we expect to have strong support from both sides of the aisle," Mumford said in an email.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), another fierce critic of the police response in Ferguson, is also mulling legislation to address the issue, his office said Friday. A spokesman said Paul first wants to sit down with staff upon his return to Washington "to see which direction he wants to go."
Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and Carl Levin (D-Mich.), chairman of the Armed Services Committee, have also questioned the 1033 program in the wake of Ferguson. 
Levin has written letters to both Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder asking for a review, a spokeswoman said Friday, but has no plans to stage a hearing in his panel – yet. 
"We will await the outcome of these reviews before deciding on any specific legislation," spokeswoman Kathleen Long said in an email.
Leahy's office did not respond to a request for comment.
Across the Capitol, CBC leaders – among the sharpest critics of the events surrounding Ferguson – are hoping to use the tragedy to highlight a slew of related bills they've introduced throughout the year. The lawmakers are pushing proposals to combat racial profiling, overhaul the criminal justice system, tighten the nation's gun laws and establish mentoring programs designed to keep kids out of trouble.
Behind Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, the Democrats have called on Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) to hold hearings on the excessive use of police force when Congress returns.
Goodlatte, however, doesn't share their urgency. The Virginia Republican has said he's awaiting the results of several ongoing investigations into the Ferguson saga before deciding if Congress has a role to play in response – a position that remained unchanged as of Friday, a spokeswoman said.


Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/216863-congress-mulls-response-to-ferguson-tragedy#ixzz3CjnDNMZr
Follow us: @thehill on Twitter | TheHill on Facebook

Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©