Poor People's Campaign- Dia de los Metros

 

With Día de los Muertos approaching, we’re sharing numbers on poverty-induced death in America—as well as some solutions. We also have recaps of a talk given in Oakland by Haiti’s former First Lady and a gathering to discuss racism in L.A. Speaking of L.A., Angelenos are urged to join the next regional meeting, where we’ll go over some big plans for 2024. Forward together!

Announcement

Remembering those lost to poverty As we approach Día de los Muertos (the Day of the Dead), we remember those we have lost—including loved ones and neighbors taken before their time by poverty.   Celebrated on Nov. 1 and 2 in Mexico and Central America as well throughout California, Día de los Muertos is when the spirits of the dead are believed to return home and spend time with their relatives. To welcome them, families build altars in their honor.   During a time dedicated to the recognition of mortality, our minds also turn to facts like these (from the PPC California fact sheet): Across the country, approximately 1,000 people are still dying from COVID every week and millions of people lack access to health care. During the most intense period of the pandemic, 2,704,300 people were uninsured. With the ending of continuous eligibility for Medicaid, 2,633,500 more people are estimated to lose access to health care. Also during the pandemic, moratoria on evictions and utility disconnections saved lives. If enacted earlier, they could have reduced COVID deaths by 40 and 15 percent, respectively, across the nation. Universal health care could have saved 330,000 lives. Between 2019 and 2020, California experienced a 1.9-year decline in average life expectancy. It doesn’t have to be this way. The Third Reconstruction Resolution points to solutions that could end this cycle of poverty and unnecessary death. Share these facts and solutions with your family, neighbors and elected officials. (Don’t know who represents you? The League of Women Voters has this handy tool.)