On Thursday, July 3, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the President’s Big Ugly Destructive Deadly domestic policy bill, which authorizes the largest cuts to America’s safety net, stripping Medicaid, SNAP benefits, and other vital services from millions of poor and low-wealth Americans. Bishop William J. Barber, II, President & Sr. Lecturer of Repairers of the Breach and National Co-Chair of the Poor People’s Campaign, released the following statement in response to today’s actions by Congress.
“Today, Congress passed one of the most morally-bankrupt pieces of legislation in our nation’s history. This big ugly bill is the largest cut to healthcare and food assistance for children in our nation’s history, and it funds a war on immigrant communities. All the while, the bill gives tax breaks to the wealthiest among us—on the backs of our most vulnerable neighbors.”
“By passing this bill, lawmakers have officially codified the deaths of thousands of people. It’s policy murder in plain sight.”
“Many of the people who passed this bill also consistently profess to be led by religious values. There is no religion that supports the degradation of humans. Policymakers can’t just claim their religious values in one breath, and then turn around and approve legislation that’s guaranteed to kill people.”
“The passage of this bill is deadly, but it is not a defeat. We must meet it with a resurrection. We will organize voters in every impacted community to push legislators who voted for this bill out of office and build a movement together that can reconstruct our democracy.”
Moral Monday In Memphis
Even as we grieve a decision that will hurt all of our communities, we know the moral movement that can reconstruct America must come out of the communities that will hurt first and worst. That’s why we’re taking our Moral Mondays to Memphis, Tennessee and Congressional offices across the South on Monday, July 14. Please help us spread the word.