May 15, 2019
Action Alert Digest
Welcome to the new and improved design for The Action Alert Digest! As part of a new overall communications plan for the Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton, Iowa, we have adopted a clearer, more simplified logo and design standards. We hope that the new image identity, to be used on all our digital and print media, will help to unify our mission messaging about living and promoting active nonviolence and peacemaking .
ACTIVE NONVIOLENCE AND PEACEMAKING
“Human Peace Chain” Reflects the Wish of the People on the Korean Peninsula
Last month, some 500,000 people joined hands to form a “human peace chain” along the 500 km long Demilitarized Zone between South and North Korea. They expressed their strong desire for permanent peace in the Korean Peninsula, gathering to celebrate the first anniversary of Panmunjom Declaration and commemorate the centennial of the 1 March Independence Movement.  MORE
Is This Gun Real or Fake?
Dozens of firearms companies license their designs to manufacturers of “airsoft” toy guns. Airsoft licensing deals can be lucrative for gun makers, and gun industry lobbying groups view the realistic toys as gateways to real gun ownership. But experts warn that even trained law enforcement officials often have no way to tell whether a weapon is real or fake. According to a Washington Post database, 153 people with toy guns have been fatally shot by police since 2015.  MORE
NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT
White House Reviews Military Plans Against Iran
At a meeting of top national security aides last week, US Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan presented an updated military plan that envisions sending as many as 120,000 troops to the Middle East should Iran attack American forces or accelerate work on nuclear weapons. The Iranian government has not threatened violence recently, but last week, President Hassan Rouhani said Iran would walk away from parts of the 2015 nuclear deal it reached with world powers.     MORE
Nuclear Security Funding Cuts in Future
The Trump administration is seeking to reduce financial support for the Energy Department's nonproliferation efforts. For the third year in a row, the Trump administration is proposing to reduce funding for core U.S. nuclear security and nonproliferation programs at the National Nuclear Security Administration. The 2020 budget request has prompted concerns from experts and lawmakers about diminishing international attention to nuclear security.  MORE
IMMIGRATION
TAKE ACTION: End the Muslim Ban, Support the NO BAN Act
No family or community should be separated because of their religion or where they come from.  The Muslim Ban poses incredible hardships by separating families, rejecting refugees from war-torn areas, and blocking individuals from obtaining necessary medical treatments. Franciscan Action Network urges us to tell Congress to support the NO BAN Act which would put an end to the racist and harmful ban on travelers to the United States from five Muslim-majority countries.    TAKE ACTION  
Is There a Connection Between Undocumented Immigrants and Crime?
A lot of research has shown that there’s no causal connection between immigration and crime in the United States. But after one such study was reported on last year, readers had one major complaint: Many argued it was unauthorized immigrants who increase crime, not immigrants overall. An analysis derived from new data is now able to help address this question, suggesting that growth in illegal immigration does not lead to higher local crime rates.  MORE
For-Profit Prison Company Under Fire from Shareholders
Geo Group, the largest private for-profit prison company in the United States, is coming under fire from its own shareholders who are concerned about human rights violations in Geo Group’s prisons. At an annual shareholder meeting, a majority of shareholders passed a resolution demanding that GEO better report human rights policies and violations to investors.  MORE
ENVIRONMENT
TAKE ACTION: No Handouts for Fracked Gas
A bill is making its way through Congress that would earmark billions of dollars to support fracked gas infrastructure in Europe, opening up new markets for the fracking industry here in the United States. This would lock in decades of fossil fuel use and result in more fracking, pipelines and other dangerous infrastructure. Food and Water Watch invites us to tell our Senators to stop this bill and oppose handouts to the fracking industry.   TAKE ACTION
It Was 84 Degrees Near the Arctic Ocean This Past Weekend
Over the weekend, the climate system sounded simultaneous alarms. Near the entrance to the Arctic Ocean in northwest Russia, the temperature surged to 84 degrees. Meanwhile, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere eclipsed 415 parts per million for the first time in human history. Saturday’s steamy 84-degree reading was posted in Arkhangelsk, Russia, where the average high temperature is around 54 this time of year.   MORE
New York’s Plan to Make 50,000 Buildings Super-Efficient
New York City passed the most aggressive climate bill in the nation last month, and the city got it done in a truly New York way. The Climate Mobilization Act is the city’s effort to abide by the Paris climate-change agreement even after the Trump administration withdrew the U.S. from the global accords. New York is taking up that pledge by introducing new regulations to address the energy performance of buildings.  MORE
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
TAKE ACTION: End the Criminalization of Child Sex Trafficking Survivors
Instead of being treated as victims, children across the U.S. are being arrested for crimes they were forced to commit as a result of being trafficked. But New Hampshire is one state working to change this injustice. By passing House Bill 189, the state can set an important national precedent for exempting child sex trafficking victims from criminal penalties for crimes they committed as a direct result of their victimization. Freedom United urges us to tell New Hampshire to support child trafficking survivors.   TAKE ACTION
Boys Are Trafficked, Too
There are many myths surrounding the trafficking of boys. Trafficking survivor and expert Russell Wilson says the stigma surrounding the rape of boys and men contributes to skewed studies because male victims often do not disclose their abuse. Wilson says these myths are dangerous and false, making survivors of trafficking feel more isolated and experience additional guilt, only adding to their trauma.  MORE
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT
Sexual Assault Victims Struggle in K-12 Schools
Efforts by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos to overhaul federal rules on sexual misconduct have focused public attention on college campuses. But her efforts put into place more protections for the accused and offer relief for educational institutions. This has prompted new concerns from elementary and secondary school leaders and educators who grapple with sexual misconduct involving much younger students.  MORE
Pittsburgh Police Dismiss Nearly One-Third of Rape Cases as 'Unfounded'
On paper, the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police appears to be effective at investigating rape cases. In 2017, the bureau reported it closed 58 percent of its rape cases (while the national average was 36.5 percent). But the city's success rate comes, at least in part, from the fact that local police deemed 31 percent of the cases it investigated in 2017 as "unfounded." The FBI uses the term "unfounded" to describe cases that, through an investigation, are found to be false or baseless.  MORE
POVERTY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE
TAKE ACTION: Stop the Rollback of Protections Against Payday Lenders

In 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a rule that requires payday lenders to check a borrower’s ability to repay before lending money. But now the CFPB is looking to gut this crucial protection. Without this rule, predatory lenders can force borrowers to take out multiple loans, some averaging over 350 percent interest. The Coalition on Human Needs invites us to tell the CFPB to keep the payday rule intact for consumers.  TAKE ACTION
White House Seeks to Redefine Formula for Calculating Poverty
The Trump Administration is proposing regulatory changes that could result in cuts in federal aid to millions of low-income Americans. The proposal would change how inflation is used to calculate the official definition of poverty used to estimate the size of the country’s poor population. This would mean that the poverty level would rise at a slower rate, resulting in fewer families and individuals able to qualify for food assistance like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid.  MORE
AT&T Reaps $21 Billion Windfall From Trump Tax Cuts, Then Cuts 23,000 Jobs
AT&T promised to create thousands of new jobs as Trump's tax legislation was enacted in 2017—but the telecom giant has done precisely the opposite since the bill became law, while raking in over $20 billion in extra profits. AT&T has slashed 23,328 jobs since Congress passed Trump's tax bill in 2017, including nearly 6,000 in the first quarter of 2019 alone.    MORE
DEATH PENALTY

Don Edward Johnson is scheduled to be executed on May 16 by the state of Tennessee for the murder of Connie Johnson. Please hold Don, Connie, their families and the people of Tennessee in prayer.  TAKE ACTION

Michael Samra is scheduled to be executed on May 16 by the state of Alabama for the murders of Randy Duke, Dedra Mims Hunt, Chelisa Nicole Hunt, and Chelsea Marie Hunt ​. Please hold Michael, Randy, Dedra, Chelisa, Chelsea, their families, and the people of Alabama in prayer.   TAKE ACTION