Monday, March 22, 2010

Local AfD'ers bring David Cobb to University of Arizona

A coalition of local groups, including the Alliance for Democracy, will be bringing David Cobb to speak on the need to amend the Constitution to establish broad democratic reforms, including the elimination of corporate personhood. The talk will take place Tuesday, April 13, at the University of Arizona's James E. Rogers College of Law, starting at 7 p.m. The talk is free and open to the public.

David Cobb, who ran for President in 2004 on the Green Party's ticket, continues to oppose the granting of rights to corporations that should be reserved to natural persons. At the national level, he serves as a principal with the Program on Corporations Law and Democracy (POCLAD). As a member of the steering committee of Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County, Cobb helped to pass an initiative limiting corporate contributions to local elections. "Measure T" was eventually declared "null and void," but Cobb refuses to give up the fight against the burden of denying
"corporate personhood."

Writing as a member of a coalition that included Women's International League for Peace & Freedom (WILPF), Cobb helped craft an amicus brief arguing in support of the Federal Election Commission, and in defense of restrictions on corporate political expenditures. Unfortunately, his task has been made more difficult when the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Citizens United and opened the floodgates for corporate dollars to flow. As a result, Cobb once again finds himself involved in a grassroots movement to "legalize democracy."

Working with the Campaign to Legalize Democracy, Cobb notes that more than 70,000 people have already signed the following "Motion to Amend":
"We, the People of the United States of America, reject the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United, and move to amend our Constitution to:

  • Firmly establish that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights.
  • Guarantee the right to vote and to participate, and to have our vote and participation count.
  • Protect local communities, their economies, and democracies against illegitimate "preemption" actions by global, national, and state governments."

Cobb plans to engage the people of Tucson in a dialogue about the importance of pursuing this goal, as well as the challenges that will have to be faced in crafting an amendment that can win passage at the national level.

His lecture will be preceded by media interviews. On Wednesday morning, interested members of Tucson's activist community will be invited to participate in a planning workshop to be held from 9 - 11 AM.

Event organizers include the local chapters of the Alliance for Democracy, WILPF, Democracy for America, and the student chapter of the American Constitution Society at the University of Arizona.

For information about Cobb's visit, his public lecture and the planning workshop, contact C.J. Jones at 622-3580, or cj@mcn.org.

No comments: