get involved in these campaigns:
FFLIC - School Discipline Reform Bill - Say YES to HB 372
Let's see our children stay in school and graduate on time! We must demand that best practices are used when addressing student behavior. House Bill 372 supports the Louisiana Department of Education in attaining its Nine Critical Goals. If we are to reform our education system we must reform the way we approach discipline in Louisiana schools. We must ensure that students are not hastily put out of school for minor "infractions!" Keeping kids in school should be a number one priority for our lawmakers.
HB 372 is scheduled to be heard on Wednesday April 27th! Passage of HB372 is one effective way to reduce the states suspensions and expulsion rate. Urge your representatives to vote in favor of HB 372 when the bill is heard in committee.
You can call your legislator and follow the following tips:
- Immediately let the legislator know if you are a constituent (live in his/her district)
- Be prepared! Get to the ask! Make it as personal as possible!
- Let the legislator know that you will follow up with them regarding what specific steps they have taken to address your concern.
- If you cannot talk to the legislator, leave a message with their staff person.
- Document staff’s name, date and time of your call.
You can send tweets to house members that have handles and encourage them to vote in favor. Use hashtags #LetKidsBeKids, #EndSchoolPushouts, or #SayNo2ZeroTolerance, and please tag "@fflicla" on Twitter or "FFLICLA" on Facebook
You can also be a part of a group of FFLIC supporters who will attend the House Education Committee meeting.
Place to Gather: House Education Committee Room 1
Time: Session begins at 9:00a.m. Bills are not heard in order so please be prompt
You can:
- attend the senate education committee meeting
- testify (please contact Gina Womack to coordinate testimony) or submit a green support card in favor of HB 372
- wear black and red
For more information contact Gina Womack by phone 504-481-2376 or email. Please see contact info for legislators on the committee below:
Landry, Nancy (Chairman) landryn@legis.la.gov @Nancy_Landry (337)262-2252
Price, Edward J. (Vice Chair) pricee@legis.la.gov (225)644-6738
Amedée, Beryl (Member) amedeeb@legis.la.gov @BerylAmedee (985) 858-2967
Bouie, Joseph (Member) bouiej@legis.la.gov @DocJoeBouie (504) 286-1033
Broadwater, Chris (Member) broadwaterc@legis.la.gov @Cbroadh2o (985) 543-4900
Carter, Stephen F. (Member) carters@legis.la.gov (225) 362-5305
Edmonds, Rick (Member) edmondsr@legis.la.gov (225) 295-9240
Emerson, Julie (Member) emersonj@legis.la.gov @JulieEmerson (337) 886-4687
Falconer, Reid (Member) falconerr@legis.la.gov @Storeid (985) 792-5185
Hall, Jeffrey (Member) hallj@legis.la.gov (318) 487-5661
Hilferty, Stephanie (Member) hilfertys@legis.la.gov @Nola_Hilf (504) 885-4154
Leger, Walt III (Member) legerw@legis.la.gov @WaltLeger (504) 556-9970
Reynolds, Eugene (Member) reynoldsg@legis.la.gov (318) 371-3092
Simon, Scott M. (Member) simons@legis.la.gov (985) 893-6246
Smith, Patricia (Member) smithp@legis.la.gov @RepPatSmith (225) 342-7106
Barras, Taylor F. (Ex Officio) barrast@legis.la.gov (337) 373-4051
Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center - Mother's Day housing campaign
Too many renters in New Orleans live in damaged, unhealthy, and unaffordable housing. While rents keep going up, the poor quality of rental housing has stayed the same and even gotten worse. This Mother’s Day, we want to tell New Orleans city leaders that enough is enough, and that our city’s renters–especially families with young children–deserve better.
With your help, we’ll post a billboard of the image above on Loyola and Poydras to coincide with a Mother’s Day housing campaign. Together, we’ll show city officials that safe housing is too important to be put on the back burner, and to urge them to hold landlords accountable for making sure that the apartments they rent out meet basic standards of health and safety. Follow this link to donate to this campaign.
via link 2-1-1 - Teen Crisis Textline
In 2015 VIA LINK launched a Teen Crisis Textline to provide teens with a confidential outlet to discuss their issues. The textline is set to serve youth ages 14-22 experiencing emotional distress.Counselors texting with youth are trained professionals and provide emotional support, information, and/or referrals to community resources and crisis intervention as needed. Text 504-777-EASE (3273) to reach the line.
W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) - #RemixTheNarrative
The story of America is shaped by a dominant and false belief in human hierarchy. While we can’t rewrite the past, we have the power to change and challenge that entrenched narrative. By creating new, authentic stories that honor the complexity of the past and forge a more equitable future, we can chart a new path forward. To heal our communities, we must tell our own stories, the tales we believe will be our futures.
In supporting the Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT) enterprise, WKKF launched Remix The Narrative, a web-based campaign designed for inviting and empowering people to share their stories in their own voices. Remix the Narrative encourages individuals to "remix" their narrative by creating their own videos, Tweets and Facebook posts or sharing photos that tell others how they see themselves, opposed to how some people view them due to their race/ethnicity. Follow the hashtag #RemixTheNarrative and see all the posts on RemixTheNarrative.org.
The campaign to change direction
The Campaign to Change Direction is a collection of concerned citizens, nonprofit leaders, and leaders from the private sector who have come together to change the culture in America about mental health, mental illness, and wellness. While many of us are comfortable acknowledging publicly our physical suffering, for which we almost always seek help, many more of us privately experience mental suffering, for which we almost never reach out. To find out more about the campaign and how you can #ChangeMentalHealth, follow this link.
Friends & Families of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children (FFLIC)
FFLIC is a grassroots membership-based organization working to transform the systems that put children at risk of prison. Click here to see what the "Let Kids Be Kids" campaign is doing to build a movement to stop the school-to-prison pipeline.
New Orleans Peace Keepers - Reduce the Violence
The #PeaceKeepers launched a campaign featuring a Squash the Beef Hotline (504-500-1706). Calling ensures no police involvement and confidentiality. Mediators are available to listen to your issues and help #SquashTheBeef. You can support the campaign by spreading awareness and sharing this artwork on Saturdays with the hashtags #KeepThePeace504 #PeaceKeepers and #SquashTheBeef. Follow this link to see the latest on the Peace Keepers Facebook page.
New Orleans CHildren's Advocacy Center
The Dear Parents Campaign, part of the Dear World Campaign, is an innovative new approach to dissuade parents from using physical discipline and encourage them to use more effective forms of discipline. A vast body of research has shown a clear correlation between physical discipline and aggression, poor relationships with peers and parents, and other behavioral problems. Physical discipline has also been shown to be less effective in the long run than other forms of discipline and can lead to worse forms of abuse. Despite these facts, physical discipline remains widely practiced and large seen as acceptable by the American public.