Greetings.
I hope you are safe and well; many in our community are not. Please take a minute right now to take some action. Even if you’ve already made the call or sent a comment, do it again.
Our collective voice is our best weapon -- please use yours. More information on how is below.
Forward Together
Anna Richards
Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP
PROTECT THE INCARCERATED
Time is running out for those incarcerated in North Carolina prisons, prison guards and staff and surrounding communities. Prisons and those housed within are particularly vulnerable to an outbreak of COVID-19.
It is imperative that Governor Roy Cooper use his powers of clemency, reprieve, and commutation to significantly reduce the prison population especially the elderly, frail, and those who pose no significant public safety risk. So far Roy Cooper has done nothing despite repeated requests by advocates and experts.
Please use your voice and your power to demand action. You can call him at 919-814-2000 or email at Roy.Cooper@nc.gov or Governor.nc.gov. Ask him to immediately reduce the prison population for the safety of those incarcerated, the correctional staff and surrounding communities.
SUPPORT MAIL-IN VOTING
Public health requires changes to how we vote to ensure free and fair elections. Please express your support of a comprehensive vote-by-mail system as part of our state's COVID-19 contingency-planning around November's general election.
Voice your support for mail-in voting now. Direct it to the "Continuity of State Operations" Working Group.
SUPPORT MEDICAID EXPANSION
Our hospitals and community health centers need to keep their doors open during this public health crisis by being compensated for the lifesaving care they provide. With so many uninsured North Carolinians, Medicaid expansion is the fastest and most effective way to make sure that NC families, our economy and our healthcare system can survive this crisis and beyond.
Voice your support for Medicaid expansion now. Direct it to the "Health Care" Working Group.
PROTECT INCARCERATED POPULATIONS AND SUPPORT STAFF &
SUPPORT UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE EXPANSION
Submit your comments to the "Continuity of State Operations" Working Group.
"People in prisons, jails and detention centers are uniquely vulnerable in this moment of a public health emergency. People in confinement have no control over their own movement and are held in close quarters without adequate resources for hygiene, creating the perfect conditions for the dangerous spread of COVID-19.
"It is essential that all government officials follow the recommendations from public health experts to stem the spread of the coronavirus in our communities by protecting the health and safety of incarcerated people, medical staff and correctional officers." - Chantal Stevens, Interim Executive Director, NC ACLU.