Link to photo and video clips here
PHOENIX —United for Democracy (UFD) Arizona Coalition Members Common Defense and AZ AANHPI Advocates, in partnership with Rising Youth Theater, held a Press Conference on the Arizona Capitol House Lawn this morning, Wednesday, September 25, to discuss the urgency to pass legislation to fix the United States Supreme Court in light of attacks on Arizonans’ freedoms including the freedom to vote and reproductive freedom.
The event highlighted how decisions made by the U.S. Supreme Court are impacting our families, communities and democracy. After delivering a letter to the Arizona Congressional delegation on Monday, the groups called on the members of Congress and their fellow Arizonans to take action at this critical inflection point for our democracy, focusing on the role veterans and civilians have had throughout history in paving that path to progress — and the importance of doing so again to restore integrity and faith in the high court.
This press conference was part of United for Democracy’s “Week of Action” across Arizona from September 22nd through September 28th. UFD is collaborating with local organizations such as Arizona Faith Network, Phoenix Pride, and the NAACP Maricopa County, hosting a range of activities including banner drops, campus tabling, community programs, and canvassing.
“There is a path forward — if only our members of Congress are bold enough to act. To get them to do requires each and every one of us to engage in the fight to fix the U.S. Supreme Court. That is why United For Democracy is on the ground here in Arizona with our local coalition of over 20 organizations working to hold our members of Congress accountable,” said Rev. Dr. Cathy Clardy Patterson, Arizona BIPOC and Faith Outreach Organizer, United For Democracy . “Dr. King said, ‘the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.’ We are entitled to a U.S. Supreme Court more beholden to the promise and pursuit of ‘equal justice under law than they are to special interest and corporate benefactors. It is long overdue.”
“The decisions coming out of this broken partisan U.S. Supreme Court aren’t just abstract legal rulings. They are personal attacks on my rights, my autonomy and the dignity of women everywhere — from the right to make decisions about our own bodies, to the protections and benefits armed through service, the Court is actively working against us while allowing the wealthy and powerful to thrive at our expense. As a woman veteran, I feel deeply betrayed by the system I once swore to defend. It’s time to take back control. We need to fix the US. Supreme Court and return power back to Arizonans. Where it belongs,” said JoJo Sweatt, U.S. Marine Corps Veteran and Organizing Director for Common Defense.
“[The United States Supreme Court], once tasked with upholding our democracy, has now become a battleground for billionaires to gain even more power at the expense of working people like you and me. The justices who sit on that bench have grabbed unprecedented power to decide the most intimate and crucial aspects of our lives, from our health care decisions — with the overturning of Roe v Wade — to the wages we earn — from the labor lawsuits we’ve seen where they’ve taken the size of major corporations. They have decided about student loan debt, and have even decided about whether our votes can even count. But it doesn’t have to be this way. We are not powerless. It is time to fix the United States Supreme Court and return the power to where it belongs with us, the people of Arizona. We should have the ability to make decisions that affect our daily lives, whether it’s about our health care, our paychecks, or our democracy,” said Rep. Analise Ortiz, Arizona State Representative.
“I, and every service member past and present, raised our hand and swore the oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States from all enemies, foreign and domestic… My intention today is to make it clear that I will uphold the oath I took two times to avoid decades of our civil rights and equal justice under the law being placed in jeopardy of being dismantled by the current, unelected politicians-in-robes — also known as the U.S. Supreme Court. It is time for the U.S. Supreme Court to be meaningfully reformed,” said Dr. Signa Oliver, native Phoenician and former PPD Officer and US Army Judge Advocate General Officer.
“They’re now even demanding that we, the first Americans in our own homelands, have to prove citizenship. That’s what the U.S. Supreme Court decided just several weeks ago. That’s made it really complicated for a lot of grassroots groups like ours… Even though we’re being asked to prove our citizenship once again, remember that all of this is a complicated history between the United States government, the state of Arizona, and tribes— but we work through these systems. It’s our democracy and we have a right to protect it,” said Jaynie Parrish, Executive Director of Arizona Native Vote.
“As a previous criminal justice organizer, I know how the courts can impact families, especially families of color. And lawyers have argued that Arizona’s execution methods of cyanide gas or lethal injection are unconstitutionally cruel and unusual punishment…and the U.S. Supreme Court is no different after failing to overturn Marcellus Williams’ execution yesterday though no trace of his DNA was on the murder weapon. Without the will of the people, injustices like these would go unchecked,” said May Tiwamangkala, Advocacy Director of AZ AANHPI Advocates
“What do you call a democracy that doesn’t protect the citizens’ right to vote? You call it what it is. Call it broken, right? 2020? Derek Chauvin’s knee was on George Floyd’s neck. Brianna Taylor was murdered where she slept. We voted, and the response and insurrection attempt on Capitol steps, fake audits and over 500 laws written to restrict votes where we rest. You gotta see how this all connects. Worse yet, we now get judges replaced with partisan actors enamored with the idea of taking America backwards,” said Christopher Owners, “Truth Be Told,” Writer, Spoken-Word Poet, and owner of CultureHub.