ColorOfChange.org changing the color of democracy

Companies are still fleeing the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), the right-wing lobby group responsible for pushing discriminatory voter ID laws throughout the country.

Today, ColorOfChange.org announced that it has received word from five new companies that say they will no longer fund ALEC. John Deere, CVS Caremark, MillerCoors, HP, and Best Buy have all made the decision to end their membership in the organization, joining the roughly 20 companies that have already parted ways with ALEC since ColorOfChange members began demanding an end to corporate-sponsored voter suppression. 

Last week the Supreme Court upheld President Obama's health care initiative, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). This is fantastic news for the Black Americans. We are twice as likely as whites to be uninsured, we have more than double the rate of infant mortality, we face more than twice the rate of diabetes-related deaths than whites — and the list goes on. The national health care plan will bring down health insurance premiums across the board as well as ban exclusions for pre-existing conditions. The law will make health care access attainable for the estimated 48 million Americans — and 7 million Black Americans — without health insurance.

Today, tech industry giant Dell dropped its membership in the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), the group that has pushed discriminatory voter ID legislation throughout the country. A representative confirmed that the company would no longer fund ALEC in an email obtained by ColorOfChange.

With its decision, Dell becomes the 20th corporation to announce that it's left ALEC since ColorOfChange launched its campaign to stop corporate-funded voter suppression. We applaud the company for doing the right thing and encourage corporations still standing by ALEC to follow suit. 

If you haven't already, please join our campaign here. 

Capitalizing on LeBron James' heightened visibility during the much-hyped NBA finals — which is enjoying its highest ratings in eight years — State Farm is heavily promoting an eye-catching public service announcement featuring the celebrity spokesman. The ad graphically illustrates the devastating effects of a stunted education on a young Black man's life prospects, then reassures us: "State Farm and LeBron are helping kids graduate."

But if State Farm cares so much about our kids, why is it still funding the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)?

This week, Trayvon Martin's parents joined the Second Chance on Shoot First Coalition to deliver 370,000 petition signatures to a meeting of Florida's Task Force on Stand Your Ground Laws yesterday. The petition delivery and press conference featured powerful testimonies calling for an end to "shoot first" laws nationwide.

More than 32,000 of the signatures came from ColorOfChange members who signed a petition demanding that the law that was used to justify George Zimmerman's actions come off the books in Florida and across the nation.

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights has voted to launch an investigation into so-called "stand your ground" laws. The laws, which permit the use of deadly force in cases of self-defense, have come under scrutiny after playing a key role in the defense of George Zimmerman, the man who shot and killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida earlier this year. In its proposal, the commission cited potential racial bias in the laws' implementation as the chief reason for the probe.

Members of the ColorOfChange community know well the connection between "stand your ground" and the American Legislative Exchange Council. ALEC, a far-right policy group, has pushed the laws in almost two dozen states.

Today pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson announced that it will no longer fund the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). After standing by the shadowy policy group for months, the company finally responded to the thousands of voices demanding they leave ALEC. In a press release, ColorOfChange applauded the corporations decision noting that...

UPDATE: (06/12/2012) Johnson & Johnson announces it has dropped ALEC membership

Last week, we started running radio ads highlighting the relationship between Johnson & Johnson and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). The ads are running in four cities, including one close to the company's New Jersey headquarters.

Listen to the ads here, then check out our op-ed on in today's Star-Ledger. And if you haven't already joined our campaign calling on corporations to cut ties with ALEC, please join us here.

ColorOfChange Executive Director Rashad Robinson tells a Politico reporter why Mitt Romney's tenure at the private-equity firm Bain Capital is fair game for criticism this election season.

Wondering whether the voter suppression bills that ALEC has pushed will affect your ability to vote? On Wednesday, The Root ran an op-ed by Advancement Project co-director Judith Browne Dianis that's aimed at voters living in states that have passed voter ID laws. These new laws threaten to disenfranchise millions of eligible voters.

Check out the article, learn how to protect your vote this election, and spread the word. Read it all at TheRoot.com.