Rally to Reclaim Our Democracy

This Monday, January 21st, is Inauguration Day. No doubt many Americans will watch the ceremonies and remember the long and bitter campaigns that occurred all over the nation for over a year prior to Election Day last November.

It is fitting, then, that we remember two other reasons Monday is significant.  The first is that January 21st, 2013 is the third anniversary of the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Citizens United case that unleashed an avalanche of outside political spending.   The first election cycle since the ruling lived up to its hype, as we saw a handful of elite special interests drowning out the voices of ordinary citizens. As we reported in Distorted Democracy, 60.5% of the 440.9 million raised by Super PACs from individuals came from just 91 people giving at least $1 million.  Just over 1,900 donors giving $10,000 or more were responsible for 97% of this fundraising.

The second reason is that Monday is when we celebrate the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who fought for the right to vote without obstruction.

This Saturday we will be joining our partners in the United for the People—Georgia coalition at the State Capitol to build upon the work of Dr. King and continue fighting for free and fair elections.  Private and special interests continue to magnify the opinion of the few in our elections, and we will urge our leaders to take a stand against this distortion of our democracy by amending the Constitution to clarify that corporations are not people and that money is not speech.

If you’d like to make your voice heard above the noise of corporate spending and super PAC money, come join us tomorrow, January 19th at the Gold Dome at 10AM. You can RSVP at our facebook event here or e-mail us at [email protected] for more information.