Resolutions In Support of Amending the Constitution

People across the country are reclaiming their democracy by encouraging their local townships to pass resolutions in support of amending the constitution in response to the Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United. On Monday, April 4, 2011, a resolution calling for a constitutional amendment was passed at the Annual Town Meeting, in Provincetown, Massachusetts.

In Wisconsin, on Tuesday, April 5, 2011, the Madison City Council and Dane County Board of Supervisors overwhelmingly approved a Move to Amend resolution, supporting a constitutional amendment stating that corporations should not be granted the same rights as people. Though a number of signatures were gathered in support of the resolution, the Madison City Council was not required to consider the language for a vote. Regardless, the Council chose to place the resolution on the ballot, as did the Dane County Board of Supervisors.

Massachusetts SD 772. Senator Jamie Eldridge (D). Introduced on 1/21/2011. Free Speech For People resolution calling on the United States Congress to pass and send the states for ratification a Constitutional amendment to restore the First Amendment and fair elections to the people. Click here to view the resolution.

California AJR 3. Assemblyman Pedro Nava (D-35). Introduced on 1/23/2009. Expresses disagreement with the Citizens United ruling and calls on the US Congress to pass a constitutional amendment. Click here for additional information, including full text and current status.

The corporatocracy rolls on in a wave of black goo, drowning pelicans and our representative republic.  Steps that could limit CEO pay or require disclosure of corporate election funding are killed or stalled. 

But good news exists as well and it comes from the states.  Today it's Massachusetts.  This is a model of how we will save this republic.

Here's a PDF and the key section:

WHEREAS the First Amendment to the United States Constitution was designed to protect the free speech rights of people, not corporations;

WHEREAS, for the past three decades, a divided United States Supreme Court has transformed the First Amendment into a powerful tool for corporations seeking to evade and invalidate democratically-enacted reforms;

WHEREAS, this corporate takeover of the First Amendment has reached its extreme conclusion in the United States Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Citizens United v. FEC;