Walk, Kim, walk!
Activists call for moratorium on welfare cutoffs
By Berta
Jourbert-Ceci
'Walk, Kim, walk!" And so she did, in her trademark orange
suit and cap, under a rainy and cold Philadelphia sky, heading
toward the State Office Building for an afternoon rally.
Kim Denmark, the Ohio activist who's been on the road for
welfare rights since 1999, spoke vehemently in support of the
new dimension she has added to the welfare campaign: a
moratorium on time limits and sanctions.
In a leaflet appeal she has been handing out, Denmark wrote,
"I am calling on President Bush, the U.S. Congress and all the
governors and states legislatures across the country to declare
a moratorium on the expiration of time limits for the millions
of people who depend upon public assistance for their
subsistence. Furthermore, I call on all those in power to
declare a moratorium on using sanctions to push people off of
public assistance.
"In the midst of all the gloating about how successful
welfare reform has been, I believe that the true magnitude of
homelessness and hunger caused by the strict sanctions
policies, time limits and other punitive measures mandated by
the 1996 law has yet to be measured."
She continued: "In thinking about this problem it's
important to bear in mind that the five years since President
Clinton signed the welfare reform have been years of economic
prosperity in this country. It appears that the prosperity is
coming to an end as the stock market heads south, and the
announcement of layoffs continues to mount.
"We must ask ourselves, when dark clouds are gathering over
the economy, is this a time to be racing to see how many people
we can push into utter destitution? Indeed, is this not a time
when the so-called safety net is likely to be needed the most?
Should we even be considering granting a trillion-dollar-plus
tax break that will disproportionately benefit the wealthy at
such a time? It's time for the government to stop beating up on
the poorest in society."
This was also the topic she raised in an impromptu interview
with the city's main daily newspaper, the Philadelphia
Inquirer. Since the paper--located one block from the rally
site--did not send a reporter, the demonstrators marched to its
offices to demand an interview.
After a few minutes of negotiations involving supporter
State Senator Shirley Kitchen, Denmark met with reporters from
the Inquirer, the Philadelphia Daily News and associate editors
of both newspapers.
Accompanying Denmark to this meeting were Kitchen, Pam
Africa--a leader of International Concerned Family &
Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal--and this reporter.
After the interview the activists went to the hall of
Service Employees Local 668 where the local's president, Ray
Martínez, welcomed Denmark. A spirited speak-out ensued
at the dinner/reception held there.
Martínez spoke of the role of his union in the
progressive struggle, including its support for ousting the
U.S. Navy from the Puerto Rican island of Vieques and freedom
for Abu-Jamal.
Africa gave a thorough update of Abu-Jamal's case.
Workfairness activist William Mason spoke of the struggle in
his home state, New York.
The groups One Day At A Time, Mothers on the Move,
International Action Center and Peoples Video Network, along
with progressive individuals, signed the call for a moratorium
on welfare cutoffs.
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011
Email: ww@workers.org
Subscribe wwnews-subscribe@workersworld.net
Support independent news http://www.workers.org/orders/donate.php)
HOME
:: U.S. NEWS ::
WORLD NEWS ::
EDITORIALS ::
SUBSCRIBE ::
DONATE
Email
this article
Printable
page