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IRAQ UPDATES
CLIMATE CHANGE UPDATES
COLLEGE AFFORDABILITY UPDATES
AFFIRMATIVE ACTION UPDATES
STUDENT PROFILES

IRAQ UPDATES

On May 1^st, 2003, while standing in front of a massive “Mission Accomplished” banner, President Bush declared that major combat operations in Iraq had ended.

Five years later, U.S. military deaths have surpassed the 4,000 mark, sectarian militias dominate the Iraqi landscape, and violence continues to rage. The mission is far from accomplished.

That’s why Campus Progress has put together an Iraq Action Toolkit to help you get engaged and add your voice to the thousands already demanding to bring our troops home.

Download the PDF of the toolkit here and find:

• A brief summary of the history and problems with the war in Iraq
• Talking points and statistics
• Sample letters to the editor and a sample op-ed
• Ideas for activists and journalists
• Other resources
  

If you have any questions about how to implement any of these plans, or want to get more involved in our Iraq Campaign, please email us at organize@campusprogress.org.

CLIMATE CHANGE UPDATES

In a surprising pre-Earth Day speech, President Bush announced his commitment to fight global warming. He talked about the supposed success of his administration in tackling climate change by diminishing energy intensity (i.e. outsourcing production to China) and reassured Americans that there will be no need for them to change their ways since technology will solve the problem for them. Check out this clever drinking game that shows us that the benefits of carbon taxes or cap and trade schemes are nowhere in Bush’s radar.  His speech also implied that it is up to developing nations to take leadership in fixing the problem that we in developed nations created. No climate change speech is complete without someone claiming that ‘clean coal’ and nuclear will save us all.  Go back to last month's newsletter to read up on just how problematic the President’s proposed solutions are.

In honor of May 1^st, U.S. “Mission Accomplished” day, check out this blog post about the connection between our war in Iraq and the war on the planet. If you’d rather be celebrating May Day (as the rest of the world honors International Worker’s Day), read up on green jobs and how the labor and environmental movements are joining forces.

COLLEGE AFFORDABILITY UPDATES

More than one thousand students, mobilized by Students for California’s Future marched in Sacramento on April 21^st to protest Gov. Schwarzenegger’s proposed $1.1-billion cut to higher education in California.  There is another statewide day of action planned for May 19^th. In Kentucky, four hundred students went on strike to protest proposed cuts in higher education. Unfortunately, California and Kentucky are not the only states where higher education is on the cutting board; colleges and universities risk losing funding in New York, New Jersey, Alabama, Arkansas, Vermont, Rhode Island, Illinois, and many other states.

The U.S. House and Senate have been unable to reach an agreement on the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA), and are unlikely to do so before the deadline of April 30, 2008. The HEA is the law that sets most federal policies related to colleges and universities, including financial aid programs. One of the central disagreements is over a provision that would require states to adequately fund their higher education institutions.

Finally, you may have heard about the “credit crunch,” which means that it is currently more difficult or expensive to get mortgages and other loans. This is expected to have some effects on the student loan industry, and Congress is working on a bill to make sure that students will be able to get loans even in the worse case scenario. Many in the media are sensationalizing the effect that the credit crunch is having on the availability of financial aid, however, and student loan companies are exploiting the hysteria to push for a “bail out” from taxpayers. If you are worried about how you will be affected, chill out and read this.

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION UPDATES

It looks like Ward Connerly is having some major difficulties in his multi-state attack on affirmative action.  Earlier this month, Connerly’s campaign surrendered and stopped signature gathering efforts to place his anti-affirmative action ballot initiative on the November ballot in Oklahoma.

Following that defeat, residents in Missouri continued to express frustration and disdain for Connerly’s tactic of paying “carpet-baggers”, or out-of-state circulators, to come into the state and gather signatures. Now, with less than a week left before petition signatures are due in Missouri,  the proponents of the so-called civil rights initiative have, as of yet, failed to gather enough valid signatures.  A group analyzing thousands of signatures has filed a legal challenge claiming that by their estimates, approximately 69,000 signatures are no good.

Reports also suggest that Connerly is running into similar trouble in Arizona, where on the ground organizers believe that his campaign his having difficulty gathering enough signatures before the July 3^rd deadline.

In the meantime, students in Colorado that attended the University of Denver training earlier this month are gearing up for a fierce public education campaign. 

STUDENT PROFILES

Check out what some students are doing to organize against the war:

• Spring Break in DC:  Students from across the country came to the Capital for the 5^th anniversary of the war to protest, lobby, and end the war.
• University of Denver:  Students and community members held a weekend-long teach-in complete with tents, workshops, and speakers.
• California State University, Fullerton:  Students for Peace and Social Justice held a campus die-in to raise awareness and jumpstart fall semester anti-war activism.
• Connecticut Opposes the War: Students held a statewide anti-war student conference and rally and are planning to follow-up with town budget hearings.
• Wesleyan University:  Students for Ending the War in Iraq (SEWI) are running a campaign to get their campus to divest from weapons contractors involved in Iraq.
• New York University:  Students and community members held a panel on the significance of antiwar films and their role in unleashing meaningful resistance.

ACTION ALERTS

5 Years Since Mission Accomplished
The anniversary of Bush's "Mission Accomplished" speech is coming up this Thursday, May 1st, yet the war continues with no end in sight.  Do you want some tips, action ideas, statistics, and a sample op-ed to help jumpstart activism on your campus or in your community?  Download the Iraq Action Toolkit for tips on how to organize on or around May 1^st here.

Sign the Youth Climate Pledge!
With Power Vote, a non-partisan campaign spearheaded by Energy Action Coalition, we will build a youth voting block 1 million strong to elevate the issue of climate change, hold our elected representatives accountable, and we work together on our campuses and in our communities to usher in a clean and just energy revolution. Check it out here.

This Mother's Day, Give the Best Gift of All
Mother's Day weekend (May 9 - 11th) is our chance to expand the climate movement—to invite parents, young people and community groups to come together and send a powerful message that resonates with our political leaders.  Find events or create your own here.

Protect Academic Freedom
There is a right-wing movement that has introduced legislation in thirty states that would curtail the exchange of ideas between faculty and students. These groups believe that ideas like feminism and fields like peace studies are too controversial for “impressionable” college students. Join Campus Progress as we work with the Free Exchange on Campus coalition to protect the critical dialogue between and among students and faculty that makes higher education what it is. You can help by signing up as a Free Exchange supporter, or by organizing an event on your campus.

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