Columbia County Citizens for Human Dignity

Dear neighbors,

It’s no secret that many of us are hurting – feeling the pain of rising fuel costs, soarining interest rates, falling home values, and threatening unemployment.The hardest part of economic insecurity is that we often face it in isolation. We feel alone with our problems, facing big, impersonal forces but it doesn’t need to be this way. Our history is filled with examples of people coming together to solve the toughest problems. Just ask the folks who survived the Great Depression and World War II how people learned to unite in the face of hard times.

Columbia County Citizens for Human Dignity (CCCHD) is a community group dedicated to working together to solve economic challenges in our county. At this difficult moment, we believe that we should seek common ground and not be divided by hot-button issues.In November, county voters will be asked to decide on a ballot measure that would impose a $10,000.00 fine on any business found to be employing undocumented workers. Another proposed measure would mandate 4 x 8 plywood signs saying ‘Legal Workers Only’ at construction sites.

There are some good, practical reasons to oppose these ballot measures:

• It is already current law that all workers be documented, be paid at least minimum wage and employers fined that violate these laws.
• Critical county law enforcement funds will be diverted from public safety to chase after possible illegal workers.
• The measure will open the county to lawsuits.
• The measure will apply to every business in the county, creating more uncertainty in these uncertain times.

These are important reasons to oppose the ballot measures, but they are not the MAIN reason. That reason was given 2000 years ago by a man named Jesus, who said that we would be judged by how we treated ‘the least’ amongst us. This was practical advice then and now. It means that when people are in a lifeboat on a stormy sea, no one gets tossed overboard, not even the stowaways, because we will need all hands working together to survive.

We are facing increasingly stormy times. Some people feel that it is important to ‘send a message’. Other people feel, just as strongly, that this is the wrong message to send. No one needs to be tossed over the side - not the people facing foreclosure, mounting bills and unemployment, nor the folks fleeing even worse times in other lands. We can do better.

For more information on how you can work with your neighbors to create real solutions to our problems, contact Columbia County Citizens for Human Dignity at ccchd@colcenter.org, www.ccchd.info/ or 503 543-8417.

Invitacion a una… BBQ

Creo que lla has escuchado los rumores o alomejor visto alas personas tratando de llamar la atencion con los carteles enfrente de la oficina de correo hablando mal de los imigrantes ilegales. Haora esto es olgo serio estiempo de reunirse a platicar que es lo que podemos hacer. Nesecitamos entender que esta pascndo para tratar de parar esto lo mas rapido posible.

Lo que esta pesando es simple, la economia es mala para todos nosotros. Al gunas personas trabajan unidas Para superar este problema. Pero otras apuntan a los imigrantes ilegales de que esto este pasando. Estas personas locales quieren hacer mas dificil la posibilidad de que los trabajadores imigrantes en cuentren y mantengan trabajos en nuestro condado. Ellos quieren poner carteles en nuestros pueblos y que dichos carteles anuncien. “Zona para no trabajadores imigrantes” Estas personas tratan de convencer a otras de que los imigrantes son criminales. Eso no es cierto

Ven a enterarte lo que estas personas estan haciendo y como nosotros los podemos detener.

RSVP
Gretchen Ramos
503-366-7863
gretchenramos@comcast.net

This country has laws to protect workers and to mandate employer fairness.

In Oregon we have the Bureau of Labor and Industry. We don’t need more laws at taxpayers’ expense. Let’s use the laws we have!

It is current law that all workers be documented. It is current law that all workers be paid a minimum wage. It is current law that fines be enacted if there are violations of these laws.

If Columbia County pulls out one aspect of current law and holds it up for disproportionate punishment, we are opening ourselves to racial profiling and enormous lawsuits - all at taxpayers expense.

It is currently proposed that every employer in this county would be eligible for a $10,000 fine if they employ someone without accurate documentation.

The funds to police this are mandated to come out of the counties’ general fund – ouch! Our current immigration system is broken. We must create legal ways to enter this country - right now there is no real line to get into, and that is creating violations of worker rights.

Let’s demand workable solutions for Columbia County and our country.

Decline to sign - we need workable solutions not more regulations

In 2008 we will be hosting one peace vigil a month - the first Sunday of every month we will gather at the same spot (the totem pole in S. Scappoose from 1-2 p.m. We will provide signs and reminders but we need you to answer the call.

Dear Supporters of Peace and Justice in Columbia County:

Please check out this article by legendary investigative reporter Seymour Hersh on Bush Administration plans to attack Iran: The New Yorker
www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/10/08/071008fa_fact_hersh?printable=true

Take actions:

Attend Columbia County’s Peace Vigil this Sunday, October 7, 1 to 2 pm. at the Totem Pole in S. Scappoose.

Call your Senators and Congressman Wu. Tell them to vote NO on the additional $42 billion for the Iraq war now before Congress. That’s $42 billion on top of the $100 billion approved in May and the $75billion last October for 2007. Many people believe the new request is a ’slush fund’ to launch attacks on Iran.
Senator Wyden - 503-326-7525
Senator Smith - 503-326-3326
Rep. Wu - 503-326-2901

The prospect of posting Illegal Worker Free Zone signs was briefly raised in St. Helens twice last week — and twice the Columbia County Commissioners and the St. Helens City Council shot it down. To read the entire article, see page 2 of the July 26, 2007 edition of El Hispanic News (PDF).

New Exhibit on Human and Economic Cost of the Iraq War to Oregon on Display July 26th – 29th in Columbia County

The “Eyes Wide Open” exhibit featured boots for Oregon soldiers killed in Iraq, a memorial to Iraqi casualties, and a display on the cost of war to Oregon.

On Sunday, March 18 a Peace Rally took place in Portland at Pioneer Courthouse Square. Several of our “regulars” participated.

We held a special vigil on the 19th (yes Monday) from 5:30 to 6:30 at the Totem Pole in Scappoose. CCCHD signed up for an Iraq War Anniversary Vigil on a shared date with similar MoveOn vigils across the country. Americans across the country are more concerned than ever about our direction in Iraq. Now is the time for Congress to force a change.

On March 19th, thousands of us from organizations across the movement gathered together to observe the fourth anniversary of the war through candlelight vigils. We solemnly honored the sacrifice made by more than 3,000 soldiers and contemplated the path ahead of us. We cannot send tens of thousands of under-equipped and unprepared soldiers into the middle of an un-winnable civil war.

Honor the sacrifice. Stop the escalation. Bring the troops home.