Thank You, Wendy Button

Wendy Button used to be a staffer for JRE 08 campaign. And she was a pretty good writer too.

After all of the hype about yesterday's interview on Oprah (and the media in general this week having a field day about it), Button brings us back to the ground many of us cared about: progressive values such as getting ourselves out of Iraq, homelessness, poverty, the unemployed, with this article she penned at the Huffington Post blog.

It's worth reading.

JRE Still Helps the Needy

NCDem Amy alerted me to latest JRE's helping again the needy:

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1209/30968.html

I don't care who you are, this man doesn't do everything because it's political. It is because it is just in the name of poverty.

JRE and my personal history inspired me to team up at work to help a needy family in our area, as one saw a couple of weeks ago.

Two Families: So Different

One woman of a family thinks of entitlements for having sex with a wealthy politician; the other is a recent widow and has two sons with cerebral palsy. For the second family, my workplace raised over $1200 and bought most of this following wish list:

Mom

Tide laundry soap
Baby wipes
Shampoo
Cascade Action packs



Oldest Son, age 24, confined to wheelchair

Shirts, adult size L
Jeans, 32 W, 32 L

More visual, can’t use hands very much, enjoys animated movies


Younger son, age 12, also confined to wheelchair

Shirts, child size medium or size 8
Pants or jeans, size 10

Hotwheels, just the cars
Transformer toys
Transformer II movie


Household

Both boys could use new sheet sets for bedding, twin size, no flannel

Bath towels, wash clothes

Kitchen towels

Pots and pans


In addition, staff brought cards, postage stamps, etc. I bought for them one of the sets of sheets (some nice all cotton ones).

Can you imagine wishing for laundry detergent and shampoo as personal gifts?


BW readers, we asked what the mom wanted for herself. She said she liked scented candles.

Mind you we are facing furloughs and layoffs.

The Gold Dust Woman in JRE's life is something else to demand 18K a month and doesn't even try to work. She is selfish and lazy.

I call her that based on this song by Fleetwood Mac:

http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoafteck.html

Poverty will always tug at my heart strings. I will not understand why John got involved with such a low class (in spirit) woman and put his family through the tabloids. This woman is capable of working and chooses not to. She is not the working poor when she demands $2100 for babysitting expenses and doesn't try to work.

Mongomery Angels

Last night, I watched Extreme Makeover. It's not a show I view often, but I was given a tip that the Montgomery Family of Central Illinois would be on this episode.

http://abc.go.com/watch/extreme-makeover-home-edition/92244/239285/montgomery-family

The Montgomeries are truly amazing people. They are a family which could have been well off today if Nathan, the father, had continued working as an engineer. Instead, he and the family believed they had a calling from God to help the poor. So they founded, Salt and Light, which feeds on average 265 families each Wednesday and has a store of recycled clothes for those who cannot afford clothes or food on the table.

The house they lived in outside of Philo (about 10 miles outside of the Champaign-Urbana area) was barely inhabitable. One looks of before and after pictures in the video, and it's mind boggling.

The family got to enjoy a real vacation, their first in years, at Disney World.

I had an employee who witnessed the rebuilding and had a family member volunteer his expertise. Watching the community do this work was inspiring. It reminded me of when JRE's campaign sent care packages to the troops, helped with weather proofing a home during the campaign. I miss the esprit d'corps.

I hope Elizabeth and John Edwards saw this episode. If not, they can watch it here.

http://abc.go.com/watch/extreme-makeover-home-edition/92244/239285/montgomery-family

I confess I was very teary-eyed at the end. Here's our local newspaper's article article that describes my and many folks' emotions in watching this special episode.

This week is National Volunteer week, and I'm very happy for this very deserving family. Looks I need to do my share later in the week.

John Edwards Mentioned Positively in a New Poverty Book

A book called Breadline USA: The Hidden Scandal of American Hunger and How to Fix It was published in June. My institution bought a copy and I thumbed through it. Sure enough, on pages 156-7, JRE is mentioned twice.

The context is about pensions (and folks getting cheated out of them when companies declared bankruptcy) within a chapter entitled, "Elderly, Angry, and Looking for Work."

First quote:

"And while leading Democrats, such as ex-Senator John Edwards had long pushed for a reform of the bankruptcy process that better protected workers' pensions and prevented the executives of bankrupt companies from walking away with multimillion-dollar handouts, the Bush White House wasn't interested in such safeguards."

Second quote:

"During his campaign for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination, John Edwards claimed that from 2005 through early 2008 nearly two-thirds of US companies had frozen their pension plans, and one in five workers had actually seen reductions in the size of their eventual retirement benefits. This trends was a startling reversal of three quarters of a century of government policy aimed to shore up and protect the nation's pension systems."

The point here is that our elderly got ripped off and had to go to Wal-Mart or some where else to earn extra money.

http://tinyurl.com/ljtllx (link to Amazon copy)

You know, I bet this nonsense is still going on and no one is paying attention to it, even with a centrist administration.

I sure miss his voice. I think Earl Ofari Hutchinson did too when he penned his piece this week, "Poverty Is Still a Dirty Word."

More about John Edwards at the Fuller Center in El Salvador

The Fuller Center has posted pictures of JRE's visit in El Salvador. According to the website:

Mr. Edwards is meeting with the Fuller Center’s director of operations in El Salvador, Mike Bonderer, and Fuller Center President David Snell to talk about housing for the poor.

On Tuesday, Mr. Bonderer, Mr. Snell and Mr. Edwards met with the head of the El Salvador Assembly (U.S. Congress equivalent) to discuss housing and poverty issues. This week, they will visit the Fuller Center build site, where six new housing units are in the works, to meet with homeowners and volunteers. Mr. Edwards will also help with construction toward the end of the week.

350 homes have already been built in cooperation with Homes from the Heart.

BW readers probably know Elizabeth mentioned this on the Today Show and on Larry King Live last night.

Good to see JRE doing something meaningful when it comes to poverty awareness.

(h/t Waiting for Hope at the Old Elm Tree)

John Edwards Off to El Salvador

I just learned that JRE is off to El Salvador to do some work with the Fuller Center. The Fuller Center is a faith-based center that works on housing for the poor worldwide, and they are finishing a housing building blitz.

I'm glad to see that John is still on raising awareness about global poverty and what private-public partnerships are available.

This is a gift for all.

Sad Diary by a Former JRE Supporter

Today I was visiting the Daily Kos, and saw Refinish69 posting on a GLBT diary. Refinish69 used to publish the most awesome YT's about JRE and his campaign. I waved to him, but he didn't "wave" back.

Now I know why. He's homeless.

Here's part of a diary he wrote at Kos recently. It is part of a series he is writing at one of the branch libraries to give anyone a sense of what it is like to be homeless.

Hard times have hit us all at one time or another. We have seen the high unemployment numbers and the dismal forecast for economy in America. I never thought as a college graduate I would have an inside view of the day to day struggles of the homeless but I am there and will share my experiences so that people might gain a better insight and understanding of the plight we are facing in America.

I have been unemployed since March of 2008. Without unemployment benefits, I took to couch surfing and doing odd jobs for cash. Once the 2008 general elections were over and a new era in American History began, I started a new journey of my own. I spent a few weeks in a weekly motel that cost enough per week that I could have rented an apartment if I had not been evicted back in June. I realized that not only had I run out of money but I had also run out of options. I finally had to admit I needed more help than was available and I would have to take drastic steps. I moved my computer and many possessions that would not fit in a rolling suitcase and left them with a friend. I spent one last night on another friend’s sofa and then I was truly on the streets and homeless.

I arrived at Sally (The Salvation Army) and found out they do a raffle every morning for beds that become available in the men’s dorm. I was there at 8:45 am and waited as I watched more and more men file in hoping to get a bed for Wednesday night. The counselor came out and asked how many men were there for a bed. 15 men ranging in age from 18 to 70 raised their hands. The counselor said they only had two beds. As he walked around the room with a hat with 15 slips of paper, he informed us if we got a number we had a bed but if not we would have to try again the next day. I was not one of the lucky ones.

Realizing I had to do something I started asking questions and was told that I could try the lottery at ARCH (Austin Resource Center for the Homeless) at 6pm. I took my rolling suitcase and Netroots nation bag and headed over to ARCH to ask questions. I had to wait in line to get in and then have my bags go through an x-ray security machine like the ones they sue at the airport and then file through a metal detector. I went to the desk and asked what I need to do and to verify times for the lottery. I was also informed that if the temperature was below 40 degrees, they would allow more people to stay. The first night I was lucky enough to draw a number which meant I could sleep on a mat on the floor in the lobby of ARCH. One the lottery was over I was led into the building and told I would have to take a shower. The ARCH does not provide towels and since I had not thought to back one, I had to dry off with paper towels. I was then given a thin pallet to sleep on. Well, I would not exactly call it sleeping.

The second installment is here.

Refinish69 is truly having to work through many places to get assistance. He appears to be getting it, but so many appointments and so little time. It must be lonely and at times maddening.

This shouldn't be this way in our America.

God bless him, and I hope he finds his way off the streets soon. I only wish John Edwards was in advisory position to advocate for people like him. Many more will continue to slide into the ditch.

John Edwards, Others at Casa per Piccoli Angeli in Haiti

John Edwards was in Haiti along with Madeline Stowe (who helped campaign for JRE last winter) and others to celebrate the ribbon cutting of a new children's rehab hospital in Haiti. The hospital was built by Italian non-profit NPH.

Edwards seemed pleased to be at the event:

"I am particularly excited about being here for the opening of this rehabilitation facility which is much-needed," Edwards told AFP.

"I am also here to help, we hope, bring attention to the plight of the Haitian people, their struggles and their efforts to have a better life."

Haiti is the poorest nation in the Northern Hemisphere as 70 percent of Haitians live on two dollars a day.

The new facility can assist 5,000 children per year, said NPH spokesperson Gina Heratz.

"In Haiti, handicapped children are often abandoned and are regarded as a burden and a waste of time," she said.

Good to see John Edwards working towards bringing awareness about poverty close to home, and that others have joined with him, especially when it affects handicapped children. The Italian company, Coccinelle lent a hand by launching their ethical 'Goodie Bag' a beautifully handcrafted leather bag at an amazingly reasonable price of $150. All of the proceeds from the sale of the "ladybug" bag went to the Francesca Rava Foundation, which is funding this new center which is also known as "the House for Little Angels". The Mediolanum Group was another benefactor for Casa per Piccoli Angeli.


(h/t to another JRE supporter, via e-mail)

John Edwards Buzz: Half in Ten Goes to AARP

Yesterday JRE spoke to the AARP Forum on Poverty and Aging. Fellow blogger Edgery from the EENR blog attended the event and jotted a few notes on the EENR blog:

In introducing John Edwards, Nancy LeaMond (head of the AARP Foundtion) said,

"John Edwards exemplifies the values Bill Anderson advocated throughout his life for our nation's most vulnerable people. ... Bill Anderson was a Legal Services attorney who was once accused by opposing counsel of being 'overzealous' because of how hard he fought for his client. The case was over just a few hundred dollars but Bill understood how important a few hundred dollars were to his cllient, an older woman. ... Bill approved of John Edwards' willingness to speak out on poverty and economic security when no one else would."

This notion, that John Edwards has stood up for the issues of poverty and economic justice when no one else will, resonates strongly here at EENRblog and it is repeated now regularly by the media. Others talk about the different aspects and possible programs; Edwards brings it all together with a clarity that unique.

The theme of today's speech can be summed up in two words "Remember Us." He told about finding the people sleeping under the bridge in New Orleans last January on his way to where he would that he was ending his presidential campaign, and the older woman who said to him as he was leaving, "You won't forget us, will you?"

AARP Radio also interviewed him. Here's a link
to their blog where there are YT clips.

As usual, the idiot paparazzi was there too, more interested in whether or not he was at the Beverly Hills Hilton last week instead of asking him about poverty or Half in Ten. (I'm not posting a link to that story, just trust me that I read it). He told them he didn't have time. I don't blame him. He was rushing to get back to Chapel Hill to celebrate his and bride of 31 years' anniversary, but I'm certain the media didn't get it that was one of his reasons.

Happy Anniversary John and Elizabeth. I've been working on a YT, but my learning curve is steep. For now, I'll just post a pic of you two and just imagine Nancy Lamott singing an obscure Gershwin tune "Ask Me Again."




















Here's some champagne for two of the most selfless but high profile people I am blessed to be acquainted with.

Elizabeth Edwards & Coalitions are Pushing Obama on Health Care

The Politico is reporting that Elizabeth Edwards is leading a $40M campaign called Healthcare for America Now on July 8th at the National Press Club.

Our lady Elizabeth Edwards, Healthcare Guruess

Healthcare for America Now will unveil a $40 million effort, with the first ad buy being a $1.5 million in national print, online and broadcast advertising.
The group's goal is to provide "quality, affordable health care for every American," and it obviously dovetails with the Obama campaign's promise of providing universal health care. The group will spend $25 million in paid media, while also funding 100 organizers involved in events around the country.

Healthcare for America Now coalition is comprised of a who's who list of progressive organizations such as MoveOn.org, ACORN, Americans United for Change, Campaign for America's Future, Center for American Progress Action Fund, National Education Association, Planned Parenthood, the Service Employees International Union, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, United Food and Commercial Workers, and National Women's Law Center. Many state organizations are also participants.

Many of these organizations are also participating in John Edwards' Half in Ten poverty Initiative.

Elizabeth Edwards is a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress (CAP) Action fund, thus it is not totally surprising that she is leading the effort. Sam Stein at HuffPo reported that Elizabeth Edwards said yesterday that Elizabeth continued her criticisms of McCain's plan with this comment (not certain if it was a conference call or not):

Often Republicans try to skate by the issue of health care without putting out a plan...John McCain didn't do that he completely breaks that mold, nit only does he have a plan he has posed the most radical plan in this race, the most radical plan in my lifetime... It ignores what happens in people's lives, how the insurance industry has worked in the past, and will work in the future, and it ignores other kinds of deregulations.

CAP pointed out that in 2009, McCain's plan would cut a family with $40K in income's taxes by $50, but by 2013, as the value of the credit erodes, this family's taxes would increase more than $1,100. By 2018, they will be paying over $2,800 more.

Will you stand with Elizabeth Edwards to obtain health care for all of us? If you're ready, click here and sign up. Elizabeth is obviously pushing Obama's promise on good health care coverage for all.

John Edwards Fires Up ACORN Conventioneers Today

Here's the video clip. He will inspire you too.

More buzz l8tr

JRE Buzz: NYC Edition

Greetings, BW Readers.

Wow, what a whirlwind of all kinds of buzz about John Edwards. He was in NYC for the past couple of days, in which he was honored by Demos, which is a non-partisan public policy research and advocacy organization. I noticed that among co-sponsors for the event were the SEIU and the American Federation of Teachers.

Edwards was also on the Today show again, in which Matt Lauer first chided Edwards for not speaking sooner about the endorsement of Barack Obama on Wednesday, and went on for the next 3 minutes or so about it. Lauer also wanted to fuel speculation about Edwards being a potential VP candidate, in which John put that one to bed:

Former presidential contender John Edwards said on Friday he would not be Democratic front-runner Barack Obama's running mate, but did not rule out taking a role in an Obama administration.

"Won't happen," Edwards told NBC's "Today" program when asked if he would be Obama's vice presidential pick. "This is not something I'm interested in."

Source: NY Times

Finally though, Lauer asked JRE more substantive: about Bush's comments in Israel, comparing Obama's comments to appeasement of Hitler:

It is beneath the President of the United States to make these kind of clearly political accusations when he is addressing the people of Israel on the 60th anniversary of Israel. It shouldn't have been done, particularly in combination with what has been an absolutely disasterous foreign policy."

Edwards was spot on, as usual.

You can watch the video here.

What Lauer didn't get out of Edwards about the endorsement, Greg Sargent at TPM Election Central ferreted a scoop from former JRE campaign staffers:

Edwards Secured Private Commitment From Obama That He'd Go On Poverty Tour As Nominee

This could require Obama to make a commitment of several days during a hard-fought general election, because Edwards specifically secured a commitment that it be a few days long, one top adviser said.

"Edwards was trying to think of ways to specifically hold them accountable," said another former top Edwards adviser. "It's easy for a Democrat to say, `Sure, I'll make poverty central to my campaign.' A poverty tour was something he felt would be really powerful with the spotlight of the general election, and it was a tangible, real thing he could ask them to commit to."

Poverty tour is a great idea. But here's the icing on the cake:

Another of the advisers said that Edwards had secured a commitment that he'd accompany the tour. "It was a specific number of days on the road together, putting poverty front and center -- it would be with him," this adviser said. "He got them both to agree to this. He was really excited."

TPM Election Central

Believe it or not, the Brand X'ers welcomed the idea too, and thought maybe Hillary would like to go too.

Edwards' endorsement was dismissed by Newsweek and Time, but they left out three important ingredients: superdelegates, pledged delegates (especially Florida and possibly Michigan), and an endorsement by a union which backed Edwards: the United Steelworkers. It's possible the Mine Workers might follow.

After Memorial Day, John will back to join Rudy Giuliani in the Radio City Music Hall Speaker series, "The Minds that Move the World." The event is on May 28th and Tim Russert is the moderator.

Speaking of NYC, Elizabeth Edwards will be returning to the Personal Democracy Forum on June 23 in NYC. According to the program announcement, Elizabeth will be giving "her firsthand view of the power and prospects of internet-driven politics".

There is birthday in the Edwards Household a week from today, so I think Elizabeth and John will also be plenty busy planning a party.

John has asked supporters to donate to College for Everyone. It's the program he started in 2005 to raise money for financially disadvantaged students in Greene County, NC who have good grades and are willing to work 10 hours a week.

More buzz l8tr...

JRE Buzz: Edwards wins 7% of Mountaineers' Votes

BW readers, there is a grin the size of West Virginia on my face tonight. Despite Edwards suspending his campaign on January 30th, 7% of West Virginia Democrats and it's possible it will become 8% before the night is out, gave their vote to JRE anyway.

Over at the DU and I'm certain it is being whispered at other blogs, that the folks that didn't vote for Hillary nor Barack were either sexist or racist, or maybe both. I'll concede it is possible, but doubtful. I think it had to do with the main issue that neither candidate addressed very well: the issue of poverty and what to do about it. My guess is that many of the people visited on the Poverty Tour last year found him to be sincere, and the other two less authentic.

Moreover, the Mineworkers' union never backed Clinton nor Obama. Its candidate was John Edwards.

Some of the pundits tonight believe it was a protest vote. I strongly reject that notion.

I can only wonder what Joe Trippi, Jonathan Prince, David Bonior, Elizabeth Edwards, Tracy Joan, and the online communications team from JRE's campaign must be thinking: how did this happen?

I hope they smiled a little, but knowing John and Elizabeth, the campaign was not never about them; it was about "we the people" and our kitchen table issues.

Hillary and Barack should bear in mind that poverty not take a back seat. Just look at James Lowe, who was from West Virginia:

Thoughts for Mother's Day

By Julia Ward Howe
Proclamation of Mother's Day, 1870:

Arise, then, women of this day!
Arise all women who have hearts,
Whether your baptism be that of water or of tears
Say firmly:

"We will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies,
Our husbands shall not come to us reeking of carnage,
For caresses and applause.
Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn
All that we have been able to teach them of
charity, mercy and patience.

"We women of one country
Will be too tender of those of another country
To allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs."

From the bosom of the devastated earth a voice goes up with
Our own. It says, "Disarm, Disarm!"
The sword of murder is not the balance of justice!
Blood does not wipe out dishonor
Nor violence indicate possession.
As men have of ten forsaken the plow and the anvil at the summons of war.

Let women now leave all that may be left of home
For a great and earnest day of counsel.

Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead.

Let them then solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means
Whereby the great human family can live in peace,
Each bearing after his own time the sacred impress, not of Caesar,
But of God.

In the name of womanhood and humanity, I earnestly ask
That a general congress of women without limit of nationality
May be appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient
And at the earliest period consistent with its objects
To promote the alliance of the different nationalities,
The amicable settlement of international questions.
The great and general interests of peace.

It is also Mother's Day that Elizabeth Edwards and I connected online for the first time, in 2006.

Little did I know she would mention me in a speech to the Personal Democracy Forum the next day. Here's the podcast of her talk.

And it appears Elizabeth is going back, June 23-24.

One last thing: poverty strikes single mothers worse than anyone. I am posting a video by NcDem of an interview of JRE on Face the Nation, in which endorsements are discussed, but so is the Half in Ten initiative.



Happy Mother's Day, and let's support our moms and dads.

Edwards to Join Global Poverty Initative Advisory Board at MIT

Yesterday, JRE was at MIT as one of the keynotes for kicking off Millennium Campus Conference at MIT.



Video courtesy of NECN.

It's amazing to me we can spend billions and trillions of dollars in a black hole called Iraq, but 35 million Americans went to bed hungry or were underfed last year. And my understanding is that GPI will be looking at sustainability of water as it is connected to growing crops in underdeveloped countries.

And no, he's still not interested in VP.

Pride by U2: In Honor of MLK and JRE

John Edwards: America's Hour of Transformation is Upon Us

I just watched JRE on TV, announcing that he has suspended his campaign. It appeared clear that he made his decision yesterday afternoon and evening, when he called the other two front runners. He said Clinton and Obama have pledged to JRE that they will make ending poverty central to their campaigns, and if one of them is in the WH, they will make it central to their administration.

He still talked about the cause of poverty and not to turn away from the 37 million whose children go to bed hungry at night. We do not turn way from those who wish to organize as union members when they have been bullied by corporations.

Touchtone comment:

"Your country needs you. We need you, even if the government has turned its back on you, and it has turned its back on you. We have an American house to build. "

JRE mentioned that on the way to the announcement that he stopped at a bridge where 100-200 people were homeless and slept every night. A minister was there to help give comfort, and needed money to do more for them. And in speaking to those homeless, one woman begged him, "Please don't forget us."

I don't doubt he will not forget us. And John and Elizabeth, and in the name of my parents, especially my Mother, I will continue to march with you to end poverty and dream to bring two Americas into one.

I'm certain that BW readers want to know why I think he decided to suspend the campaign, other than the obvious that he was outspent and the media blackout that happened, especially when he told Fixed Noise it was not a legitimate news outlet nor would it be fair and balanced when it came to the debates.

Here's the reason, as exemplified in this quote:

It's time for me to step aside so that history can blaze its path.

That says it all.

As for me, I will not endorse any candidates. JRE will still get my vote on February 5th. But my blog posts will now be more about the One America and I will be holding the other candidates accountable to their pledge, and will comment throughout the campaign about it. I wish them well and luck. They will need backbone and courage to make it through, and help make the party unified.



Godspeed to the Edwards family, and I'll be watching for them too.

UPDATE: Transcript of his speech can be found at the Daily Kos.

MLK III to John Edwards: Stay in the Race

I got this e-mail from David Bonior which contains the text of a follow-up letter JRE received after meeting with MLK, Jr's son. I'm posting the content of the letter, which is more important than the e-mail itself.

January 20, 2008

The Honorable John R. Edwards
410 Market Street
Suite 400
Chapel Hill, NC 27516

Dear Senator Edwards:

It was good meeting with you yesterday and discussing my father's legacy. On the day when the nation will honor my father, I wanted to follow up with a personal note.

There has been, and will continue to be, a lot of back and forth in the political arena over my father's legacy. It is a commentary on the breadth and depth of his impact that so many people want to claim his legacy. I am concerned that we do not blur the lines and obscure the truth about what he stood for: speaking up for justice for those who have no voice.

I appreciate that on the major issues of health care, the environment, and the economy, you have framed the issues for what they are - a struggle for justice. And, you have almost single-handedly made poverty an issue in this election.

You know as well as anyone that the 37 million people living in poverty have no voice in our system. They don't have lobbyists in Washington and they don't get to go to lunch with members of Congress. Speaking up for them is not politically convenient. But, it is the right thing to do.

I am disturbed by how little attention the topic of economic justice has received during this campaign. I want to challenge all candidates to follow your lead, and speak up loudly and forcefully on the issue of economic justice in America.

From our conversation yesterday, I know this is personal for you. I know you know what it means to come from nothing. I know you know what it means to get the opportunities you need to build a better life. And, I know you know that injustice is alive and well in America, because millions of people will never get the same opportunities you had.

I believe that now, more than ever, we need a leader who wakes up every morning with the knowledge of that injustice in the forefront of their minds, and who knows that when we commit ourselves to a cause as a nation, we can make major strides in our own lifetimes. My father was not driven by an illusory vision of a perfect society. He was driven by the certain knowledge that when people of good faith and strong principles commit to making things better, we can change hearts, we can change minds, and we can change lives.

So, I urge you: keep going. Ignore the pundits, who think this is a horserace, not a fight for justice. My dad was a fighter. As a friend and a believer in my father's words that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, I say to you: keep going. Keep fighting. My father would be proud.

Sincerely,

Martin L. King, III

In the name of love and justice, here's U2's Pride.



And a quote from Gandhi, an activist both Dr. King and JRE admire:

"First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win." --Mahatma Gandhi

Summer of Love, John Edwards Edition 2007

Excellent video by Refinish69. Shows videos from working in NOLA, helping a family winterize their home, meeting with the hotel workers in LA and standing with the SEIU in Miami.

This is a "summer of love" redo video as we approach the 40th anniversary of the celebration and the release of Sargent Pepper by the Beatles. Geez, I was 8 years old.