Photo: Delegation from UW met with Congress Members Denny Heck (left) and Pramila Jayapal (right). The delegation included Danbi Won (Civil Engineering); Namrata Kolla (Evans School); Tyler Tobin (Environment and Forest Sciences); Grant Williamson (Clean Energy Institute); David Parsons (English), Max Friedfeld (Chemistry), and Louis McGill (Climate Justice Working Group).
Speak Up for Research Funding!
Last week UAW members in higher education around the country started a nationwide campaign to defend research funding against proposed cuts by President Trump’s budget. Today at the Clean and Fair Economy Summit in Olympia, a delegation from UW met with Congress Members Pramila Jayapal and Denny Heck, and delivered the hundreds of petitions that have been signed so far by UW graduate students and postdocs. That message? Fight for a budget that expands funding for research, expands the rights of immigrants and visa holders, promotes equity and diversity in academia, and recognizes health care as a fundamental right.
Congress member Jayapal said it best: “To stop these budget cuts means working over the long term. Please continue to organize and speak up, because science, immigration, public health, and our community well-being… all of these things are interconnected and we need to speak together.”
If you haven’t already, please add your name to the petition to continue growing the movement! We will continue to collect signatures until Congress returns from recess later this month.
Now more than ever we need to speak up for the values that unite us, and amplify our voices by speaking out together on issues that impact us. This coming weekend, there will be an exciting opportunity to join a statewide campaign for carbon policy in 2018! Join other 4121 members this Sunday from 10am-4pm for the Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy’s training workshop to help recruit 10,000 volunteers and build a strong campaign centered on preparing our workforce for a new clean economy, protecting our health, advancing equity, and drawing down carbon emissions. For more information on the Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy and our Local’s Climate Justice Working Group, check here.
As we move forward toward this year’s bargaining campaign, there will be many more opportunities to get involved and continue building our collective power — stay tuned!
In Solidarity,
Theresa Aliwarga
Douglas Avella-Castro
Andrea Canini
Anthony Castanza
Ying-Yu Chen
Monica Cortes Viharo
Kristen Garofali
Arshiya Hoseyni Chime
Katya Kolesova
Dylan Mayer
Elizabeth Mills
Chelsea Pagan
David Parsons
Michelle Pham
Shua Sanchez
Viral Shah
Sam Sumpter
Arash Tarkhan
Judy Twedt