C elebrate! We’re launching this new column as a way of recognizing—and rejoicing in—the power of advocacy. Good news, especially when hard won, demands celebration! When we speak out—boldly, respectfully, prayerfully—for justice and truth, things really do change. It might take years, even decades, for us to see a shift, but we are called to continue faithfully—fighting one day at a time, without abandoning hope—to defend the vulnerable, insist on peace, and protect God’s creation, among other things. Want to help us out? Send any good news you want us to celebrate to Kristyn@esa-online.org. New START treaty ratified On December 22, the US Senate ratified the New START treaty, which will re-establish mutual, on-the-ground verification of American and Russian nuclear arsenals and cut the deployed strategic weapons on each side by about a third. Learn more at TwoFuturesProject.org. Craigslist pulls the plug on its “adult section” worldwide Last September, following significant protest by anti-trafficking groups and the suicide of a man who was accused of murdering women he contacted through its adult listings, Craigslist removed the adult section from its US version. In a major triumph for abolitionists, the online advertising site shut down the rest of its adult sections around the world in December. Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said in a statement, “This worldwide shutdown of erotic services sections on Craigslist is a victory in the fight against sexual exploitation of women and children and human trafficking connected to prostitution. This move is another important step in the ongoing fight to more effectively screen and stop pernicious prostitution ads.” Historic victory against mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia In January, the US Environmental Protection Agency announced its decision to protect mountain communities and the health of Appalachian citizens by vetoing the largest single mountaintop removal coal mining permit in West Virginia history, the Spruce No. 1 Mine. In making this decision the EPA reviewed more than 50,000 comments from concerned citizens. Learn more at ILoveMountains.org/Spruce-Mine and at ChristiansForTheMountains.org.
Critical improvements for hungry Americans December 2 was a historic day for Bread for the World, the nonpartisan collective Christian voice that fights to end hunger at home and abroad. On that day the House of Representatives passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, a five-year renewal of child nutrition programs. Already approved by the Senate, the bill was signed into law by President Obama on December 13. Immediately after that, the House passed the Middle Class Tax Relief Act of 2010, which included tax credits for low-income workers. The bill protected the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC)—goals of Bread’s 2010 Offering of Letters (learn more at OfferingofLetters.org). The reauthorization of child nutrition programs—at $4.5 billion over 10 years—is the largest such increase for these programs. This victory was possible because Christians have advocated faithfully through Bread for the World to keep children and their needs constantly before Congress MTV’s Skins takes a blow Almost there: Thanks to letters from consumers like you, nearly a dozen sponsors have already dropped advertising support for MTV’s Skins since the show’s premiere in mid-January. Featuring a cast ranging in age from 15 to 19, Skins purports to address “real-world issues confronting teens in a frank way,” but in reality, it depicts teenagers living extremely dangerously—engaging in indiscriminate sex, drinking, using drugs, breaking the law—yet all without any real or lasting consequences. In January, the New York Times reported that executives at the cable channel were concerned that some scenes from the show “may violate federal child pornography statutes.” As we go to print, several companies have yet to respond to pressure to abandon the show: Visit ParentsTV.org to add your voice.
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