Dear NOW Activist:
We are writing to you with an urgent request for action. We are asking NOW activists to take the lead in organizing Hungry for Justice campaign actions in your own communities to stop the attacks on poor women and their children.
As we write this letter, Patricia, Karen and some of the Action Center staff members and other activists are in the eighth day of a fast to pressure President Clinton to veto the welfare repeal bill. As you know, the bill would push millions of poor women and their children deeper into poverty. By signing this bill, President Clinton will dismantle the New Deal and replace it with a Raw Deal for poor women and their families.
On Wednesday, July 31, the president announced that he would sign the welfare repeal bill, despite its devastating flaws. The next day, we launched the Hungry for Justice campaign with a huge demonstration in front of the White House. Following the demonstration, we began the fast and called upon all feminist and progressive leaders and activists to join NOW in this campaign. Through the fast, we are enhancing our understanding and our commitment to ending poverty. We believe the fast is providing an opportunity for everyone -- including President Clinton -- to examine our hearts and consciences, while we call attention to the plight of poor people.
The welfare repeal bill is the most devastating, life-threatening piece of legislation in most of our lifetimes. By signing this bill, Bill Clinton will define his presidency -- and the direction of the Democratic party. Whitewater and Travelgate were political ploys to discredit the president, but the welfare repeal bill is truly a measure of his character. If Clinton does indeed sign this bill, then he will have failed the test. This is a very sad time in our history. We, as feminists, must not stand in silence as this bill passes into law. We must act now!
Tell President Clinton to veto the Welfare Repeal bill. The White House Comment Line phone number is 202-456-1111, the email address is president@whitehouse.gov .
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We are encouraging all activists to consider fasting for a day or even a meal. (Please be sure to consult a health care provider before beginning your fast.) Fasters and non-fasters alike are encouraged to contribute the cost of one meal -- or one day's meals -- to the Hungry for Justice campaign.
Until the president left on vacation, we maintained a vigil across from the White House in Lafayette Park to encourage the president to veto the bill. The vigil began at 8 each morning as people passed the park on their way to work and ended at 9:30 pm. We are continuing to have lunchtime speak-outs to talk about why we are fasting. And we still end each night with a candlelight vigil to shed light on the fact that if the welfare repeal bill is signed into law, millions of people will go to bed hungry. With each passing day, the crowds at the speak-outs and candlelight vigils grow. On Sunday, August 4, during the candlelight vigil, activist Dick Gregory announced he would join the fast.
In an emergency meeting, the national NOW/PAC voted to withdraw endorsement and support from all Congressional candidates who voted for the original welfare repeal bill and to intensify our work for those who voted against it. The NOW/PAC has taken a bold and courageous stand. We are asking all NOW activists to do the same. We encourage chapter activists to organize demonstrations to let President Clinton know that it is unacceptable to sacrifice the poor because he thinks it is politically expedient.
Even if the bill is signed, it is absolutely necessary for Bill Clinton to understand that feminists are outraged by his lack of commitment to the poor. On August 18, there will be a birthday gala for President Clinton. The live party in New York City will be fed to big screens in 100 cities (two in each state) across the country. Please use the president's birthday fund-raising party to tell him and the Democratic party that poor women and their families have nothing to celebrate. While Bill Clinton uses his 50th birthday to raise $50 million for Democratic National Committee (DNC), poor women and children will still be reeling from the devastating blow of the welfare repeal bill.
We want to urge you to hold zap actions outside of the birthday gala screening in your area. Dress up like Marie Antoinette and hold signs that say "Let Them Eat Cake -- While Poor Children Go to Bed Hungry." Distribute doggy bags to people going inside. Ask them to throw their table scraps in the bags, since support for the poor is now being reduced to crumbs from the tables of the more fortunate. Dress up like the Statue of Liberty and hold a sign that says "Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor: NOT!" If you do not live in a city that will have a screening of the party, then organize your demonstration at the Clinton/Gore headquarters in your community. Just be sure to have a zap action on Sunday, August 18 -- a national day of action for NOW's Hungry for Justice campaign.
We are counting on you and your chapter activists to make this campaign a success.
We are excited to work with you on this important campaign. If you have any questions or if we can be of assistance to you, please do not hesitate to give us a call. And please be sure to let Beth Corbin know about any actions you have planned so that we can publicize them in our news releases. Also call Beth if there are activists in your chapter who agree to fast.
We look forward to breaking the fast with you only to break into action. We wish you much success in your organizing efforts.