Keep Us Going and Growing!

Keep Us Going and Growing! 

By Alex Gallo

Our staff, volunteers and board members have continued to work hard through these challenging times. Some of the projects we focused on are highlighted in this update.  We need your support to keep this work going and growing!

Healthcare for All – Our Healthcare for All campaign believes that healthcare is a human right and every West Virginian should have access to affordable, quality healthcare.  We are working in coalition with the WV Center on Budget and Policy and West Virginians for Affordable Healthcare to expand Medicaid and fight for legislation that puts the health of West Virginians first! This summer we hosted four regional virtual town halls to get input from West Virginians on the Healthcare for All agenda. 

Nationally, we are fighting for Medicare for All. On the state level, we had several legislative wins during the 2020 legislative session, including successfully placing a $100 cap on insulin co-pays, and expanding Medicaid to include preventative dental coverage — and we aren’t stopping there! You can check out the 2021 legislative agenda at www.healthcareforallwv.com.

Please Save the Date for the Health Care for All Summit, scheduled for September 21 and 22. 

Environmental/Climate Justice has been a top priority too. We are working with local grassroots groups across the state to develop clean, green legislative priorities that focused on climate justice. We will continue to fight on the roll-back of clean water regulations.  Last session, we worked to pass a bill to allow utility-scale solar installations by the electric utilities in WV and build support for Power Purchase Agreements to allow affordable solar installs on homes and small businesses. 

Our Clean Elections Campaign is working to increase transparency and accountability in West Virginia elections, and ensure that our courts are fair and impartial. Ahead of the primary, we worked with partners and allies to ensure that state and local election officials had plans in place to administer the election safely and we’re currently focused on making sure voting is safe, accessible and secure in the General Election.

Race Matters in Education  We are really proud to sponsor the powerful work of Race Matters in Education.  As we know there are deep systems of oppression and Race Matters in Education is taking the lead on tackling these systems and raising awareness. In West Virginia, children of color are 1.6 x more likely to spend time out of school due to disciplinary action than their fellow white classmates.  Children cannot learn when they are out of school. Race Matters in Education is working to dismantle systemic racism and raise awareness of implicit bias, educating parents and guardians on the rights of their children, and increasing exposure to opportunities to learn about history and culture. 

As you can see, we are busy here at Citizen Action! Our work is possible because of the support of people like you!  Thank you! Together, we can keep going and growing. 

Please consider making a donation online  or mail a check payable to:
WVCAEF
1500 Dixie Street
Charleston, WV 25311.