A. Phillip Randolph Institute Legislative Conference
From a Press Release in my email, notice of this interesting Conference this weekend — let us know if you plan on going:
A. Philip Randolph Institute of Delaware to Host Legislative Conference Featuring Public Officials, Non-Profit Organizations, the Faith Community and Community Based Organizations
Contact:
Mark Brunswick, APRI Director of Education
302-691-5816
The A. Philip Randolph Institute of Delaware has recruited a roster of public officials, non-profit organizations, the Faith Community and community based organizations to discuss legislative issues of importance to all Delawareans in a conference to be held on Saturday, February 21st at Ezion-Mt. Carmel Church, 800 N. Walnut St. in Wilmington. The all day event will run from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is free and open to the public.
“This is a first of its kind event hosted by an organization in the African-American community,” said Mark Brunswick, the A. Philip Randolph Institute Director of Education. “We have conducted active and effective lobbying in Dover for the past five years and have learned that our mission of social justice and change is at its best when we are able to bring together legislators, advocates, policy makers and the community to discuss issues and plan solutions to improve opportunity and quality of life for us all,” he continued.
The following panelists have committed to participate in the conference which will address the Delaware Economy, Justice System Reinvestment, Health Care and Wilmington Public Safety:
Delaware Economy
- Director Ann Vasilli or Robert Scoglietti of the Delaware Office of Management and Budget
- State Representative Dennis P. Williams, Co-chair of the Joint Finance Committee
- Wilmington City Councilman Charles Potter
- Rashmi Rangan, Executive Director of the Delaware Community Reinvestment Act Coalition (DCRAC)
- Jennifer Hill, Service Employees International Union
- A representative of the Hispanic Business Alliance
Justice System Reinvestment
- Representative of Department of Corrections Commissioner Carl Danberg
- Drewery Fennel, ACLU of Delaware
- State Representative James J. Johnson
- Denise Nix Thompson
- Elder Tyrone Johnson, Interdenominational Ministers Action Council
Lunch speaker: To be Announced
Health Care
- Honorable Rita Langraf, Secretary of Health and Human Services
- LaVaida Owens-White, Wilmington NAACP Health Care Committee
- Branch Heller, Alliance for Health Care Reform
- Leonard Young, A. Philip Randolph Institute of Delaware
Wilmington Public Safety
- Rev. Clarence Pettit, Spirit of Life Lutheran Church
- Shawn Allen, YESS
- Representative of Interfaith Building Blocks for Wilmington
- Danny Young
The event is structured to allow all participants to attend each of the 75 minute panels during the day. All panels will follow up with a half day workshop in the near future to focus on legislative strategies for each of the issue areas, build coalitions and identify emerging community leadership.
The schedule for the day will be:
8:00-8:45 Registration
8:45-9:05 Welcome/Overview/Charge
9:15-10:30 Panel A: Delaware Economy
10:30-10:45 Break
10:45-12:00 Panel A: Delaware Economy (repeat)
Panel B: Justice System Reinvestment (repeat)
12:00-1:15 Lunch speaker to be announced
1:15-2:30 Panel C: Health Care
Panel D: Wilmington Public Safety
2:30-2:45 Break
2:45-4:00 Panel C: Health Care (repeat)
Panel D: Wilmington Public Safety (repeat)
The A. Philip Randolph Institute is an affiliate organization of the AFL-CIO with its roots in the African-American labor community and a mission of economic equality and civil rights.
This event is free and open to the public. Please call 302-691-5816 or email deapri@mindspring.com with any questions.
Tags: Announcement
This looks like a nice day with some really interesting speakers. I’m sure that I can’t do the whole day, but I may try to make a few of the sessions.
I just love this. Health Care they have had the answer for 5 years…SB177 single payer health care.
We need to be vigiliant about this: all that medicaid money coming to Delaware~~needs to go into a fund of its own…..not the General Fund as legislators have done the past. Co-mingling of funds (federal) is illegal. There is no way to track how much of that medicaid money is going for people who are disabled, or those who have lost their jobs and going without health care. Every year those federal dollars are sent to Delaware have been placed in the general fund, where is the accountability to determine whether those funds actually went to those for whom it was sent, or whether the State used that money to balance their budget?
Tomorrow morning on WDEL, Al is having Marie Ann Agazadian, myself and another parent who will be speaking on behalf of the disabled population who are being cut to the bone. Those medicaid funds should go to beef up the providers who are working in the red, because they State never gave them a cost of living increase in more than 3 years. Our providers under contract with the State are forced to perform the service, even though they are not being adequately funded to do so. This is a major problem for all people with disabilities.
I am going to try to get to a few sessions too, They’ve a goal of 150 people to go to this so I hope lots of readers here stop by for sessions that interest them.
2. The Delaware Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation Act is ready to go. That will do wonders to cut the numbers of people who commit non violent crimes from going to jail, and instead being placed in Rehab. The legislators have a copy of that legislation. Why arent they supporting that legislation? We don’t need another 900 bed prison costing millions of dollars..we need to reform the justice system top down. This legislation does exactly that.
I look forward to attending.