Sexual Assault Awareness Month, A Lifetime of School Shootings, Closing the Wage Gap: Your civic action to-do list for 4-20-20
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3. As we mark Sexual Assault Awareness Month we must recognize the important work sexual assault programs are doing to change the way they deliver services to meet the current needs of survivors.
In a nutshell: Shelters are working closely with hotels and motels to abide by social distancing guidelines, hotlines are upgrading systems in order to take calls remotely, and organizations are transitioning to serve their clients virtually. At JWI we have reoriented our sexual assault prevention work to focus on digital consent and online harassment, engaging college students through webinars and zoom calls.
Take action: Domestic violence and sexual assault coalitions and programs that work with communities of color and underserved communities need additional funding to do their jobs. Click here to urge your Senators and Representative to take action now!
2. For high school seniors born in 2002, this past month was the first March in their lifetimes that they didn’t have to hear about, read about, or experience a school shooting. As we mark the anniversary of the Columbine shooting today, think about the generation of children who have grown up learning how to respond to an active shooter in their school.
In a nutshell: The way to end school shootings can not be to close schools. State legislatures and Congress must pass common sense gun reforms so that when our children do return to school they are safe.
Take action: Email your members of congress to urge their support for an assault weapons ban, universal background checks, and to make sure no abuser has access to a gun.
1. The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted women, and still the Administration is abandoning its responsibility to stop pay discrimination and close the wage gap.
In a nutshell: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is planning to stop pay data collection through rulemaking because they say it is too “burdensome” for employers!
Take action: Click here to send a comment through the National Women’s Law Center template and let the Administration know they should reconsider its decision – the deadline is Wednesday!