WHAT: Mass Rally Day of Outrage and People’s Power Assembly
WHEN: Wednesday, May 31 (1:00pm press conference, 1:30pm People’s Lobby day and 6:00pm mass rally)
WHO: NC People’s Power Coalition
WHERE: Outside NC Legislative Building, 16 W. Jones Street, Raleigh
Press contact: Manzoor Cheema, Muslims for Social Justice, 919-412-7008 or info@ncpeoplespower.org
On Wednesday, May 31, over sixty labor, community and faith organizations from every corner of the state will convene for a “Day of Outrage” to protest against the attacks imposed by the right-wing supermajority in the State Legislature.
Between the monster abortion ban (Senate Bill 20), the State Budget proposals, the State Supreme Court rubber stamping cut backs in voter rights, and the many bills that passed crossover in the NC General Assembly, the Legislators are attacking our bodies, our schools, our health, our environment, our rights, our communities, our income, our jobs, our democracy and every aspect of our lives.
The people have had enough and are uniting to resist.
“As a North Carolina educator, I have witnessed first-hand the harm that underfunding has had on our schools and our students,” stated Taylor Cordes, a long-term substitute teacher in Wake County schools and member of the NC Association of Educators. Cordes continued, “We lack resources to meet the needs of all our students. Instead of meeting their constitutional obligation to fund public education, Legislators have chosen instead to send our tax dollars to unaccountable private schools.”
“While the NC General Assembly is attacking Black, brown, working class, women, transgender, immigrants, and refugees, we must unite and fight back,” stated Manzoor Cheema with Muslims for Social Justice. Cheema continued, “We have defeated the reactionary forces in the past, and we can do it again by organizing with the most impacted people in our community and changing the balance of power!”
“As a state employee we are on the front line witnessing the impact of the billions of dollars in annual tax breaks funneled to the ultra wealthy and corporations,” stated Sekia Royall, President of the NC Public Service Workers Union, UE Local 150 and a cook at O’Berry Neuro-medical Treatment Center in Goldsboro. Royall continued, “Our state facilities are massively understaffed.Over 3,700 out of the 11,000 state mental health positions have been vacant for months. Some entire units in our mental health facilities are closing. Workers are extremely burnt out and turnover is at an all time high. This is at a time when our communities need mental health support more than ever. The 2.5% raise offered by the Senate is an insult to the workers that stood by the state through the pandemic. We are losing staff to private agencies, who are paying double what we earn. We propose a raise to $20 per hour or 20% which will go a long way to retain experienced staff.”
“Our state currently faces an onslaught of attacks on our democracy, our public schools, LGBTQ rights, healthcare, housing, and so much more. But, we will not be divided across these issues. NC People’s Power is a state-wide movement united by the belief that a new North Carolina is possible. In this moment, we are called to interrogate the limits of our imagination, and deepen our faith in the power of the people,” stated Rev. Lisa Garcia-Sampson, Executive Director of The Unitarian Universalist Justice Ministry of North Carolina
The people of North Carolina are coming together to put forward the following People’s Agenda:
Invest in Our Children!
- Fully fund public schools (fund Leandro) including early education and childcare, not private school vouchers! Defend Black history and people’s history!
- Protect our children and our communities with sensible gun safety laws!
Fund Health Care!
- Safe staffing in state mental health and medical facilities and universities! Protect mental health of youth and adults!
- Expand Medicaid! Improved Medicare for All – Healthcare is a Human Right! No to BCBS price hikes!
Keep Your Bans Off Our Bodies!
- Defend the right to abortion care and reproductive health care! Protect and increase rural access to OB/GYN and pre/post-natal health care!
- Protect trans youth! Stop criminalization of LGBTQ+ people! Support gender-affirming care services.
Defend Our Rights & Democracy!
- Defend voting rights! No to gerrymandering voting districts!
- Stop criminalizing the right to protest!
- Stop the NCGA power grabs taking historic appointments from the Governor’s office!
Create an Economy for All!
- Raise the minimum wage for all workers to at least $15 per hour. Living wages for all!
- Raise the wages of teachers and state employees to $20 per hour or by 20% over two years, whichever is more.
- Make millionaires and corporations pay the taxes that they owe to support vital public services!
- Support the right to organize a union and public sector collective bargaining! Fully fund OSHA! Safe and healthy workplaces, paid sick leave, paid family and parental leave for all!
- Safe, low income housing for all! Provide direct rent and mortgage relief! Moratorium on evictions, foreclosures and utility cut offs.
- Support minority and women-owned business enterprises.
Uproot Racism!
- Stop attacks on Black, Brown and Indigenous people! Reparations now!
- Protect immigrant workers and families! No to 287G! Community ID’s now!
- Stop construction of prisons and detention centers.
- Expanding criminal record relief and resources for people returning home from incarceration
Protect Our Future! Environmental Justice!
- Clean water, air and land for all! Environmental and Climate Justice now!
- Hold Big Agriculture, Duke Energy and all corporations accountable for environmental pollution! Expand commitments to renewable energy.
The press is invited to the NC People’s Power Coalition press conference (1:00pm) and the rally (6:00pm) on Wednesday, May 31 in the grassy area outside the State Legislative building on the corner of Jones Street and Wilmington Street.
Beyond May 31, the NC People’s Power Coalition is also planning another mass rally at the Legislature on June 14, and rallies across the state on July 1.
For more information about the newly formed coalition visit https://ncpeoplespower.org
Wisconsin Bail Out the People Movement 
You must be logged in to post a comment.