The Morrill Majority

"I want to stand by my country, but I cannot vote for war. I vote no."
April 6, 1917

These are the words of Jeanette Rankin of Montana, the first woman elected to Congress, voting against the entry of the United States into World War One.  Rankin was one of 50 Members of Congress who voted aginst war.  What is amazing is that she cast this courageous vote on only her fourth day in Congress.  What is even more amazing is that she was the first woman in Congress while most women didn't even have the right to vote until 1920 when the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified.

A Republican, she was elected on a platform that called for universal suffrage, citizenship for women independent from their husbands, support for unions, maternal and children's health, opposition to war and support of women's reproductive freedom. In 1918, sheran for U.S. Senate from Montana, but was unable to gain the Republican nomination.  In the 1920's and 30's she served as a citizen lobbyist, fighting for working people, and more specifically for women's and children's health.

She was a founding member of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom and the founding Vice President of the American Civil Liberties Union.

She won a Congressional seat again in 1940.  Once agian, in her first year in office she voted against war.  This time she was the only Member of Congress to vote against World War II.  Her anti-war stance was so vilified that she didn't stand for re-election.

She dedicated the rest of her life to prevnting war and working for justice.

Some Rankin quotes:

"You can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake"

"Small use it will be to save democracy for the race if we cannot save the race for democracy."

“We're half the people; we should be half the Congress”

"As a woman I can't go to war, and I refuse to send anyone else."

"There can be no compromise with war; it cannot be reformed or controlled; cannot be disciplined into decency or codified into common sense."

www.jrpc.org  Jeanette Rankin Peace Center

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Join the Petition Drive for a National Cesar E. Chavez Holiday!

Today is  United Farm Workers Founder Cesar Chavez’s birthday—an official holiday in eight states and dozens of cities and communities throughout the nation.  We want to ask for your support. Please help the United Farm Workers and the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation support the grassroots efforts of the Cesar E. Chavez National Holiday Coalition to make Cesar’s March 31st birthday a national holiday.

Holiday committee co-chairs Carlos Santana, Edward James Olmos, and Martin Sheen want to share why they support a Chavez holiday.

    "It's supremely important that a day be selected to honor the life of Mr. Cesar Chavez for his quality of service to all humanity. His supreme cry of si se puede will forever resonate as a positive motivator as words of light."

--Carlos Santana

“He evoked a spirit and a challenge to all of us to do what was right for it’s own sake.”
“A national holiday honoring Cesar Chavez would secure his profound legacy.”

--Martin Sheen
    
 
      “Cesar Chavez deserves to be honored with a National Holiday. His life is a beacon of light toward the advancements of all cultures...Lived the life of one who is truly enlightened by the wisdom embodied in love, kindness and forgiveness. He, like Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa and others understood the meaning of non-violent social change...Cesar Chavez is truly a gift to humanity.”
--Edward James Olmos

Cesar Chavez inspired farm workers and millions of people who never worked on a farm to commit themselves to social, economic and civil rights activism. Cesar’s legacy continues to educate, inspire and empower people from all walks of life. Please help us ensure all Americans learn about Cesar’s life and work by signing the petition asking Congress to designate March 31 as Cesar Chavez Day.

 

http://www.ufwaction.org/campaign/chavezholiday08?qp_source=cecweb

Posted by Morrill Majority at 07:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

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On this day in 1872 the Toronto Printers Strike began.  The strike began as apart of a campaign for the 9 hour day.  The publishers used Canadian conspiracy laws to try to break the strike, getting 13 union leaders arrested.

Public support for the strikers resulted in changes in the conspiracy laws, and in the legalization of unions in Canada.

Another result of the strike was the creation of the Canadian Labour Union, the first nationwide labor organization.  The CLU lasted only a few years, but the stage was set for nationwide solidarity across provincial and national borders and across trades.  In the United States, the American Federation of Labor was not founded until  1886 

Posted by Morrill Majority at 07:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

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On this day in 1918, more than 100 Industrial Workers of the World members (Wobblies) were put on trial for opposing US entry into World War I.

IWW Statement on war and militarism.

The IWW has always opposed militarism. We condemn all wars, and for the prevention of such, we proclaim the anti-militaristic propaganda in time of peace, thus promoting class solidarity among the workers of the entire world, and, in time of war, the general strike, in all industries.

Only when working people from around the world come together, recognize our common bonds and common masters, and lay down our tools and arms, will the twin yokes of militarism and capitalism be thrown off our shoulders, and the workers of the world will live in peace with each other and in harmony with the earth.

Posted by Morrill Majority at 09:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

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