Netanyahu's government assaults Israelis in Tel Aviv

Day 141, as the assault on Gaza continues, a new development on the part of the corrupt Netanyahu government.



The Netanyahu government -- already on trial for corruption in Israeli courts and on trial for journalism in the International Criminal Court -- openly attacks the families of the hostages.







A defense of the indefensible acts will be offered shortly by Debra Messing, she's just busy right now gluing hair extensions onto the bald spots of her head.  After that, she'll be Tweeting up a firestorm to explain how the Israeli people attacked in Tel Aviv are actually anti-semitic. 


Corky Siemaszko and Chantal Da Silva (NBC NEWS) report:


 An Israeli woman who was released by Hamas after weeks in captivity has accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of having “forgotten” the remaining hostages in Gaza, including her American husband.

In an exclusive interview with NBC News’ Molly Hunter on Thursday, former hostage Aviva Siegel said she believes Netanyahu is prioritizing his own political survival and his bid to crush Hamas over efforts to return the hostages. 

“I think that Bibi Netanyahu is thinking about himself more than thinking about us,” Siegel, 62, said.

Siegel, who was released in November after 51 days in captivity, said she wanted Netanyahu to “stop the war” and focus on bringing her husband, Keith Siegel, an American Israeli, back “home as soon as possible.”

But, she said, “I think that Netanyahu has forgotten about Keith and forgotten to be human and bring the human people back.”

Read full story.


 The world has seen the reality of the Netanyahu government in its assault on Gaza and now they see the reality of the Netanyahu government in its assault on Israelis.  This as THE NATIONAL reports:


Brazilian President Luiz Inรกcio Lula da Silva alleged on Saturday that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians, after stirring controversy a week ago by comparing Israel’s military offensive in Gaza to the Nazi Holocaust.

The president said he wouldn't give up his “dignity for falsehood”, an apparent reference to calls for him to retract comments comparing Israel’s conduct in Gaza to the Holocaust, in which six million Jews and others perished during the Second World War.

“What the Israeli government is doing is not war, it is genocide,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Children and women are being murdered.”


Meanwhile, opposition to the continued assault on Gaza builds in the US.  Joe Queally (COMMON DREAMS) reports

Texas Democrat Beto O'Rourke became the latest high-profile member of the party to back the push for Michigan voters to tick the "uncommitted" box on the primary ballot next week as a way to protest President Joe Biden's unconditional support of Israel's unyielding assault on the people of Gaza.

"I do think it makes sense for those who want to see this administration do more, or do a better job, to exert that political pressure and get the president's attention and the attention of those on his campaign so that the United States does better," said the former congressman who has run for both president and the U.S. Senate.

In an interview with the Michigan Advance on Friday, O'Rourke explained that he was partly influenced by a recent New York Times op-ed by Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud which argued that "no amount of landmark legislation" passed by the Biden administration "can outweigh the more than 100,000 people killed, wounded, or missing in Gaza. The scales of justice will not allow it."

O'Rourke said he agrees "with the aims and the goals" of the grassroots campaign in Michigan that is urging Democrats to use Tuesday's primary contest, in which Biden faces no real opponent, as a way to express the deep frustration many voters in the state are feeling over the carnage in Gaza.

"We should have a ceasefire, there should be a return of each [and] every single one of those hostages [taken by Hamas], there should be an end to this war and there should be a negotiated solution to Palestinian statehood," O’Rourke told the news outlet. "All of that needs to happen, and I share the concern that the United States is not doing close to enough to bring those things to pass."

Polls have shown a strong majority of Democratic voters support an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, something Biden has steadfastly refused. Disagreement with the administration's policy is especially high among younger voters as well as the Arab American and Muslim Americans who represent a sizeable bloc of Michigan voters.



The killing continues.  ALJAZEERA reports:


Norway’s embassy in Palestine has shared a social media post mourning the deaths of two Palestinian human rights lawyers killed in Gaza.

Norway described Nour Naser Abu Al-Nour and Dana Yaghi as two “brilliant young lawyers” who worked with the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), defending women’s rights.

PCHR said that Dana Yaghi was killed along with 40 others by an Israeli air strike on her family home in Deir el-Balah, on Thursday.

Two days earlier, “Israeli warplanes killed our colleague Nour Abu Nour along seven members of her family, including her two-year-old daughter,” PCHR added.


Also continuing are the arrests.  THE NATIONAL notes, "Israeli forces arrested at least 22 Palestinians overnight in the occupied West Bank, including a journalist and two children, the Palestinian Prisoners Society said on Saturday. This brings to 7,210 the total number of Palestinians arrested in the West Bank since October 7, the society added."  NBC NEWS notes, "Dozens of medical personnel arrested from the Nasser Medical Complex are still in detention, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza." NBC's Mirna Alsharif and Segilola Arisekola quote the Palestine Red Crescent Society stating, "The Israeli occupation continues to detain the PRCS volunteers Mu’men Othman Dahir, Tamer Mahmoud Shahin, and Hamdan Sameer Abu Khater, for the nineteenth consecutive day. They were arrested while passing through what is called 'the humanitarian corridor' set up to evacuate displaced persons from PRCS Al-Amal Hospital in #KhanYunis."

 
 Gaza remains under assault. Day 141  of  the assault in the wave that began in October.  Binoy Kampmark (DISSIDENT VOICE) points out, "Bloodletting as form; murder as fashion.  The ongoing campaign in Gaza by Israel’s Defence Forces continues without stalling and restriction.  But the burgeoning number of corpses is starting to become a challenge for the propaganda outlets:  How to justify it?  Fortunately for Israel, the United States, its unqualified defender, is happy to provide cover for murder covered in the sheath of self-defence."   CNN has explained, "The Gaza Strip is 'the most dangerous place' in the world to be a child, according to the executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund."  ABC NEWS quotes UNICEF's December 9th statement, ""The Gaza Strip is the most dangerous place in the world to be a child. Scores of children are reportedly being killed and injured on a daily basis. Entire neighborhoods, where children used to play and go to school have been turned into stacks of rubble, with no life in them."  NBC NEWS notes, "Strong majorities of all voters in the U.S. disapprove of President Joe Biden’s handling of foreign policy and the Israel-Hamas war, according to the latest national NBC News poll. The erosion is most pronounced among Democrats, a majority of whom believe Israel has gone too far in its military action in Gaza."  The slaughter continues.  It has displaced over 1 million people per the US Congressional Research Service.  Jessica Corbett (COMMON DREAMS) points out, "Academics and legal experts around the world, including Holocaust scholars, have condemned the six-week Israeli assault of Gaza as genocide."   The death toll of Palestinians in Gaza is grows higher and higher.  United Nations Women noted, "More than 1.9 million people -- 85 per cent of the total population of Gaza -- have been displaced, including what UN Women estimates to be nearly 1 million women and girls. The entire population of Gaza -- roughly 2.2 million people -- are in crisis levels of acute food insecurity or worse."  NBC NEWS notes, "More than 29,600 people have been killed in Gaza since the war began, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. More than 69,400 have been injured, and thousands more are missing and presumed dead." Months ago,  AP  noted, "About 4,000 people are reported missing."  February 7th, Jeremy Scahill explained on DEMOCRACY NOW! that "there’s an estimated 7,000 or 8,000 Palestinians missing, many of them in graves that are the rubble of their former home."  February 5th, the United Nations' Phillipe Lazzarini Tweeted:







And the area itself?  Isabele Debre (AP) reveals, "Israel’s military offensive has turned much of northern Gaza into an uninhabitable moonscape. Whole neighborhoods have been erased. Homes, schools and hospitals have been blasted by airstrikes and scorched by tank fire. Some buildings are still standing, but most are battered shells."  Kieron Monks (I NEWS) reports, "More than 40 per cent of the buildings in northern Gaza have been damaged or destroyed, according to a new study of satellite imagery by US researchers Jamon Van Den Hoek from Oregon State University and Corey Scher at the City University of New York. The UN gave a figure of 45 per cent of housing destroyed or damaged across the strip in less than six weeks. The rate of destruction is among the highest of any conflict since the Second World War."   

Tonight ALJAZEERA reports:

Israeli forces have killed at least seven people, including a child, in Rafah, in the latest deadly attack on Palestinians struggling to survive in the southern Gaza Strip’s largest city.

An Israeli air raid hit a residential building belonging to the Shahin family on Saturday, housing displaced people from the Abu Hamra and Abu Sultan families, the Palestinian state news agency Wafa reported.


Let's wind down with this Tweet from Paul Rudnick.



Well said as always. Paul is our country's most astute and hilarious social critic.   The following sites updated:


 

NEWS: Congressman Greg Casar & Texans Celebrate the Connect the Grid Act Introduction

 

NEWS: Congressman Greg Casar & Texans Celebrate the Connect the Grid Act Introduction

February 23, 2024

TEXAS – This week, Congressman Greg Casar (D-Texas), local leaders, and Texans impacted by Winter Storm Uri hosted press conferences in Austin and San Antonio celebrating the introduction of the Connect the Grid Act, H.R.7348.

The Connect the Grid Act would require the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) to connect to the nation’s major electric grids. By connecting the ERCOT grid, all Texans and Americans would have more reliable electricity, saving lives in future natural disasters. The U.S. would also be better-able to reach its climate goals with Texas’s clean energy production.

The bill is co-led by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), and Senator Ed Markey (MA). Original House co-sponsors include Representatives Troy Carter (LA-02), Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Emanuel Cleaver, II (MO-05), Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), Lloyd Doggett (TX-37), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Maxwell Frost (FL-10), Robert Garcia (CA-42), Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), Al Green (TX-09), Sheila Jackson Lee (TX-18), Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Jared Huffman (CA-02), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Delia Ramirez (IL-03), and Rashida Tlaib (MI-12).

The bill is endorsed by the Center for Biological Diversity, Center for Popular Democracy, Clean Energy Grid Action (CEGA), Chispa Texas, Deeds Not Words, Dove Springs Proud, Food & Water Watch, IBEW, IBEW 7th District, Indivisible, League of Conservation Voters, LIUNA - SWLDC, People's Action, PODER, Progress Texas, Public Citizen, San Antonio Alliance of Teachers and Support Personnel (AFT/NEA), Sunrise Movement, Sunrise Movement Austin, Texas AFL-CIO, Texas Campaign for the Environment, Texas Climate Jobs Project, Texas Organizing Project, Workers Defense Project, and Working Families Party. 

Resources: 

Frequently Asked Questions

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Congressman Greg Casar represents Texas’s 35th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, which runs down I-35 from East Austin to Hays County to the West Side of San Antonio.  A labor organizer and son of Mexican immigrants, Casar serves as the Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus for the 118th Congress. He also serves on the Committee on Oversight and Accountability and the Committee on Agriculture.

Congresswoman Bush Urges United States Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to Address Mail Delivery Issues in St. Louis

 February 20, 2024

Congresswoman Bush Urges United States Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to Address Mail Delivery Issues in St. Louis

Letter follows constituent reports of mail delays and disruptions

Washington, D.C. (Feb. 20, 2024) — Today, Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01) sent a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy detailing reports of mail delays and disruptions in St. Louis and urging the United States Postal Service to promptly remedy postal issues. The Office of Congresswoman Cori Bush has received accounts of entire neighborhoods experiencing significant mail service interruptions, affecting all residents, including seniors and people with disabilities who depend on timely delivery of essential documents such as bills and social security checks.

“I write with deep concern about ongoing, significant and widespread delays to mail delivery service across Missouri’s First District. My office has heard from many constituents throughout St. Louis who are receiving essential documents such as utility bills, social security checks, and federal benefits documents weeks after their bills are due and in some instances documents are not delivered at all,” wrote Congresswoman Cori Bush. “Due to the serious negative impacts on the people of St. Louis, especially our most vulnerable, I ask that immediate action be taken to address these issues.”

A copy of the letter can be found HERE.

In September 2023, the Office of Congresswoman Cori Bush reached out to the United States Postal Service over postal issues in the area of North City St. Louis. After meeting with local post offices, it was reported mail delays were the result of staffing issues.


In the letter, Congresswoman Bush urged the Postmaster General to respond to the following questions:

  1. What steps as the Postmaster General are you taking to improve working conditions for current employees and ensure robust recruitment of new Postal Service employees? 
  2. Does USPS require additional resources to implement a staff recruitment and retention plan?  
  3. What is USPS doing to ensure constituents receive timely communication regarding mail delays? 
  4. Is there a plan to increase customer service to communicate with customers who have missed mail or it is delayed?
  5. What measures is USPS taking to correct the poorly implemented modernization plan? 

Congresswoman Bush has taken consistent action to address longstanding issues within the United States Postal Service, including meeting with local post offices, as well as leveraging her position on the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability which has jurisdiction over the agency.

  • In February 2024, Congresswoman Bush joined Oversight Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (MD-8) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-8) in urging President Biden to swiftly fill vacancies on the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service by nominating two new members who are committed to lowering costs and maintaining service standards.
  • In July of 2023, Congresswoman Bush joined Oversight Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (MD-8), Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), and their Democratic colleagues on the House Oversight Committee in sending a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy calling for information on USPS working conditions following the death of a Texas Mail Carrier during an extreme heatwave.
  • In February 2021, Congresswoman Cori Bush questioned Postmaster General Louis DeJoy during a congressional hearing before the House Oversight Committee about the lack of diversity on the United States Postal Service Board of Governors, which is charged with overseeing the activities of the USPS.

ICYMI: Congressman Garcia Demands USCIS Re-Assess Policy Regarding Strict Translation Requirements for Immigrants

ICYMI: Congressman Garcia Demands USCIS Re-Assess Policy Regarding Strict Translation Requirements for Immigrants

February 22, 2024

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Robert Garcia (CA-42), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs, led a group of Latino Members of Congress in sending a letter to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to change an internal policy that requires congressional offices provide USCIS with certified translations of non-English documents they're filing on behalf of immigrant constituents. Read the letter here. Read the exclusive NBC News article here

or below. 

NBC News

: Latino members of Congress seek changes in translations of immigration documents

By Nicole Acevedo

February 20, 2024

Latino members of Congress want U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to waive an internal policy requiring their congressional offices provide USCIS with certified translations of non-English documents they're filing on behalf of immigrant constituents, according to a letter first obtained by NBC News.

Congressional offices often help constituents with immigration- related issues such as "inquiring for status updates and requesting expedited processing for citizenship cases, DACA renewals, permanent resident cards, work permits" and more, according to the letter. 

Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., who spearheaded this effort, said that most immigrants his office helps only speak Spanish, meaning that his staff spends many hours ensuring constituents have access to USCIS forms in Spanish, but then also translating their Spanish-language answers and documents to English before submitting them to USCIS, as required by its current internal policy.

Garcia said that while they're happy to help constituents with translations, the USCIS requirement greatly limits his office's ability to help more people, effectively placing "a huge barrier to folks trying to navigate the system and do things the right way."

“We want to make sure USCIS is handling this process,” Garcia added. “Right now, we have middlemen that are doing translations.”

In the letter sent to USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou on Tuesday, Garcia and other members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus argue that such English-language translations should be done internally by USCIS.

"Utilizing the language skills of USCIS officials to translate documents within the agency would improve accuracy, eliminate burdens on constituents, and save congressional staff many hours of translating documents on behalf of constituents," the letter reads. "While we recognize the administrative challenge associated with enacting this change, we firmly believe that it is a necessary and much-needed step."

According to the letter, around 9% of people in the U.S. — over 25 million people — have limited English proficiency, and of these, over 16 million speak primarily Spanish.

For Garcia, this issue is also personal. An immigrant from Peru, Garcia came to the U.S. with his family as a child and became a U.S. citizen as a young adult in his 20s. Garcia recalls enduring "a really difficult process" as a Spanish-speaking immigrant adapting to a new homeland, learning English and navigating the complex immigration system in his second language.

"As we continue to have these conversations about the border and immigration, this just needs to be a part of it," Garcia said. "The federal government is doing a huge disservice to the Spanish-speaking community and people that are trying to legally navigate the immigration process."

NBC News has reached out to USCIS for comment on the letter.

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Tlaib Introduces Bill to Address Youth Homelessness

Tlaib Introduces Bill to Address Youth Homelessness 

Feb 23, 2024 


Tlaib Introduces Bill to Address Youth Homelessness 

Feb 23, 2024
Ending Poverty
Housing is a Human Right
Justice for All

DETROIT Today, Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (MI-12) introduced the Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act. This bill establishes a new way to address youth homelessness in our country. The bill will launch a pilot program providing direct cash assistance to emancipated minors and young adults under 30 years old experiencing homelessness in the amount of $1,400, or the adjusted fair market rent, for 36 months and then studies the effects of the program on housing and health outcomes, among other impacts. 

“We can’t keep repeating the same policy approaches that haven’t ended the youth homelessness crisis. By providing direct cash assistance, we can address our housing crisis while respecting the autonomy and dignity of the folks receiving assistance,” said Congresswoman Tlaib. “This bill came directly from young people with lived experience. They helped craft the bill to ensure that it meets the real needs of our unhoused neighbors. In the richest country in the history of the world, it’s time to eradicate homelessness. The Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act brings us closer to that goal.”

In a given year, over 3.5 million young adults and roughly 700,000 young people experience some form of homelessness, with specific groups facing a much higher risk than others. Black young people, for example, have an 83 percent greater risk of being unhoused, while LGBTQ+ youth have a 120 percent higher likelihood of experiencing homelessness compared to others. From 2022-2023, the number of unhoused young adults between the ages of 18 to 24 increased 17 percent.

Recent studies providing cash assistance to unhoused people have found that they improved housing and employment outcomesdid not lead to increased substance abuse, and saved money by reducing reliance on the shelter system. However, the study of cash assistance is relatively rare in the U.S., and recent studies of cash assistance to address homelessness have been small, geographically targeted, and have not specifically focused on young people. It is time to demonstrate the benefits of direct cash assistance for young people experiencing homelessness, which is why the Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act is needed. More importantly, participants in past cash assistance programs have described the impact as life changing. Cash assistance provides individuals with the freedom to make their own choices about how to address their unique circumstances.

This legislation is cosponsored by: RepresentativesCori Bush (MO-01), Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Barbara Lee (CA-12), and Jan Schakowsky (IL-09).

This legislation is endorsed by: A Way Home America, Detroit Justice Center, Homeless Action Network of Detroit,  Michigan Coalition Against Homelessness, MiSide Community Impact Network, Ruth Ellis Center, National Homelessness Law Center, Center for Popular Democracy, Campion Advocacy Fund, Community Solutions, Corporation for Supportive Housing, NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, Point Source Youth, True Colors United, Youth Collaboratory, Larkin Street Youth Services, Mockingbird Society, and SaySo.

“As the Executive Director of A Way Home America, an organization that places great value on lived experiences, I am sincerely honored to stand at the forefront of national advocacy, fervently championing the cause of direct cash transfers,” said Marcella Middleton, Executive Director, A Way Home America. “Our shared ambition is to proactively prevent the hardships faced by our most vulnerable youth, while simultaneously offering them the essential ingredients of stability, empowerment, and a promising future.”

“The Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act is a welcomed first step towards addressing the ongoing issue of homelessness and the manner in which unhoused residents are disproportionately impacted by the criminal system,” said Nancy Parker, Executive Director, Detroit Justice Center. “Our current system fails to address known root causes, and instead, substitutes prisons and jails for actual policies that address the confluence of indigency and egregiously high housing costs in this country. This bill represents a long overdue shift away from the flawed carceral approach towards a more just city.”

The full text of the bill is available here.

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Senator Baldwin Brings Home Nearly $120 Million for Clean Drinking Water in Wisconsin

 02.20.2024

Senator Baldwin Brings Home Nearly $120 Million for Clean Drinking Water in Wisconsin

Funding through Baldwin-backed Infrastructure Law will help communities rebuild water infrastructure, address PFAS, replace lead pipes

WISCONSIN – Today, Senator Tammy Baldwin announced that she helped bring home $119.6 million for clean drinking water to help local communities replace lead service lines, address toxic PFAS chemicals, rebuild wastewater infrastructure, and protect the Great Lakes. The funding is from the Baldwin-supported Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds.

Senator Baldwin secured key provisions of her Made in America Act in the infrastructure law, ensuring that American iron and steel are used in the construction of the water infrastructure under the Water State Revolving Funds.

“Whether it is the Mighty Mississippi, our Fresh Coasts, thousands of inland lakes, or abundant drinking water sources, water is central to the Wisconsin way of life. As we see an influx in toxic chemicals, lead contamination, and pollution, it is more important than ever that we work to keep our waters clean and safe – our economy, health, and lifestyle depend on it,” said Senator Baldwin. “I am proud to deliver this funding to dig up lead pipes and provide safe drinking water, help communities address PFAS and get rid of toxic chemicals, and protect our freshwater resources for generations to come. And, to do it all, we are using American-made products and American workers.”

"In Wisconsin, where we rely upon our state's freshwater resources for everything from maintaining livestock and crops to our outdoor recreation industries and more, PFAS and other contaminants are a serious threat to our way of life and our economy," said Governor Evers. "With support from President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we’ll be able to continue building upon our work to keep our kids, our families, and our communities safe and ensure every Wisconsinite can trust the water coming out of their tap."

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law allocates $50 billion to the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund – the largest such investment in drinking water, wastewater, water reuse, conveyance, and water storage infrastructure in American history, including dedicated funding to replace lead service lines and address PFAS. Last year, funding from this program was allocated to over 100 Wisconsin municipalities.

This year’s allocation for Wisconsin is in addition to a total of $334 million the state received in 2022 and 2023 through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Last year, Senator Baldwin announced Wisconsin is receiving over $25.2 million from the Environmental Protection Agency under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to address emerging contaminants and forever chemicals, like PFAS. With Senator Baldwin’s support, Wisconsin was also selected as one of four states designated for a program that provides hands-on support to guide communities through the process of lead service line removals from start to finish.

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Senator Murray Meets with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest WA, Local Partners to Discuss Connecting Students with Hands-on Career Experience and Mentorship Opportunities

 

Senator Murray Meets with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest WA, Local Partners to Discuss Connecting Students with Hands-on Career Experience and Mentorship Opportunities

Senator Murray: “For our communities and our nation to succeed—our young people have to be able to succeed. That means ensuring every child can get a quality public education, and making sure we are building the pathways and providing the opportunities they need to pursue a good career.”

***PHOTOS AND B-ROLL of today’s event HERE***

Olympia, WA – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, met with local high school students, mentors, and partners of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Washington (BBBSSWA) to discuss their career exploration programs and efforts to connect local high school students with mentorship opportunities and pathways to rewarding careers. The visit took place at Naked Prosthetics, a cutting-edge prosthetics manufacturing company in Olympia that partners with BBBSSWA through their career mentoring exploration program, which pairs students with mentors at local businesses to help them gain hands-on career experience and a better understanding of the variety of paths into the workforce. 

The visit comes as Murray is working to secure $750,000 in Congressionally Directed Spending in the Fiscal Year 2024 funding bills for BBBSSWA to expand their career exploration partnerships into more rural communities in Southwest Washington.

“For our communities and our nation to succeed—our young people have to be able to succeed. That means ensuring every child can get a quality public education, and making sure we are building the pathways and providing the opportunities they need to pursue a good career,” Senator Murray said. “Career mentorship programs like this can really open doors for young people—that’s why I’m working right now to secure funding through Congressionally Directed Spending to help Big Brothers Big Sisters expand their partnerships to rural communities in Southwest Washington. As Appropriations Chair, I’m fighting to secure strong investments in workforce and apprenticeships programs, even under very difficult funding constraints, in our final bills for Fiscal Year 2024.”

At the visit today, Senator Murray first heard from local high school student “mentees”—and their “mentors” at Naked Prosthetics—in a discussion about the students’ experience gaining hands-on career experience through Naked Prosthetics’ partnership with BBBSSWA. Afterward, Senator Murray toured Naked Prosthetics and heard more about the groundbreaking work they do to manufacture high-quality prosthetics, including working with VA clinics and hospitals to provide prostheses for veterans with traumatic finger injuries. After the tour, Senator Murray met with leaders at BBBSSWA and Naked Prosthetics, and other local partners—including Capital STEM Alliance and Career Connect WA—to discuss current and future efforts to connect students in the community to career pathways and opportunities, and how Senator Murray can continue to support these efforts at the federal level.

“Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Washington creates and supports one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth. Our Career Mentoring Exploration program collaborates with workplace partners, including Naked Prosthetics, to empower youth to discover, explore, and envision their future. With the support of their mentor and dedicated Big Brothers Big Sisters staff, youth take real steps toward achieving their goals. We are honored have been selected to share our work with Senator Murray as she champions workplace development across the nation,” said Jeff Engle, Executive Director of BBBSSW.

“Naked Prosthetics is dedicated to improving the lives of individuals with partial hand limb difference. Central to this mission is building a skilled and passionate workforce. We believe that participating in the Career Mentoring Exploration program provides an opportunity to show young people how they can pursue a career in this impactful industry,” said Jessica Coen, Director of Custom Experience at Naked Prosthetics. “We admire Senator Murray’s commitment to federal-level workforce development and are proud to be involved in this event.”

Senator Murray has been a champion for workforce development programs and apprenticeships programs throughout her career. As a senior member and former Chair of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, Murray led passage of the original Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, and reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. On the Appropriations Committee—which she now Chairs—Senator Murray has long fought to secure strong investments in workforce training programs and high quality apprenticeships. 

In the Senate Labor-HHS funding bill for Fiscal Year 2024, which Murray wrote and passed through committee as Appropriations Chair, Senator Murray also fought to include $750,000 to help Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Washington expand their career exploration program for high school students into more rural service areas in Pacific, Grays Harbor, and Mason counties. As negotiations over final spending bills for FY24 continue, Senator Murray is pushing to ensure this funding is maintained in the final bill that is signed into law.

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Friday, February 23, 2024

EXTENSION: Get the lowest Bioneers 2024 prices through Saturday!

 

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Bioneers 2024 tickets are selling fast, and we're excited to offer an extension on our early-bird pricing! All conference ticket prices will increase on Saturday at midnight.

The program is truly amazing. You'll be welcomed to immerse yourself in three captivating evenings of thought-provoking films, indulge in an unforgettable double-bill concert, and engage in numerous enriching conversations that promise to be unlike any other. Among the many remarkable sessions, attendees will have the opportunity to join popular On Being podcast host Krista Tippett for a rare, intimate live interview. Get your pass today to join hundreds of amazing speakers and thousands of engaged attendees. Prices go up next week!

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