Author: press-release

PRESS RELEASE: Virginia Organizing–– Virginia Organizing will hold its Social Justice Bowl VIII on Friday, November 18, at 6:00 p.m. at Westminster Presbyterian Church on Rugby Road.

Please help Virginia Organizing tackle injustice. Come for a soup and bread supper and take home your soup bowl, handcrafted by a local potter.

Tickets must be purchased in advance. They are $25 and are available at Quest Bookshop, Timberlake’s Drug Store, and at the Virginia Organizing office at 703 Concord Avenue. Or purchase your tickets by calling 984-4655 x229. Please also consider sponsoring individuals who would like to attend, but cannot afford tickets.

EVENT SPONSORS:
UNION BANK & TRUST, REBECCA’S NATURAL FOOD, BANKERS INSURANCE, CVILLE IMPORTS, CHARLOTTESVILLE DERBY DAMES AND RUDY’S RUG CLEANING

Virginia Organizing is a non-profit grassroots organization dedicated to challenging injustice by organizing people in local communities to address issues that affect the quality of their lives. Virginia Organizing especially encourages the participation of those who have traditionally had little or no voice in our society.
 

PRESS RELEASE: The Veterans’ PTSD Project–– The Veterans’ PTSD Project is asking Veterans who have successfully overcome Post-Traumatic Stress to write a first-person account of their recovery for those who need to hear it the most – other Veterans and their families. In an effort to change the national conversation on Post-Traumatic Stress, PTSD Project writers are candidly talking about their experiences and speak to Veterans in a way a therapist cannot; they have chewed sand, been IED’ed and gotten the call to come to Walter Reed Hospital to take care of their spouse. They have gone through hell and back and tell Veterans and their families, "I made it, and you can, too."

Most Service Members returning from combat are under the age of 30 – when diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress, they turn to the web for information. There, they find grim statistics when, in fact, the converse is true: most returning Service Members diagnosed with PTSD do not commit suicide or lose their jobs, their families or their sanity – they work through their PTSD and come back stronger.

Since their official launch on September 11th, 2011, the Veterans’ PTSD Project has published narratives of hope and victory on their website (www.veteransptsdproject.com), participated in a discussion panel for the Virginia Wounded Warrior Program in Harrisonburg, VA, and has connected to over 10,000 supporters through its Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/veteransptsdproject).

From Central Virginia, The Veterans’ PTSD Project is changing the national conversation on Post-Traumatic Stress.

For more information or to schedule an interview about The Veterans’ PTSD Project, please contact Virginia Cruse at (434) 906-1618 or by e-mail at virginia@veteransptsdproject.com.

PRESS RELEASE: Southern Environmental Law Center–– An analysis released today of previous traffic studies for the proposed Route 29 bypass in Albemarle County confirms that the highway will not solve traffic congestion on Route 29, and urges federal and state transportation officials to focus on alternative solutions.

The report was written by Norm Marshall, a traffic expert with Smart Mobility, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in transportation modeling, design and planning, and was released by the Southern Environmental Law Center, which is sending the report to the Federal Highway Administration, Virginia Department of Transportation, Albemarle County Board of Supervisors, Charlottesville City Council, and others.

Read the report (pdf) here: http://selc.southernenvironment.org/site/R?i=2Ja69UmF3fgjoAjXMT5l0w

While finding flaws in the studies, Marshall says that the most thorough one, done between 1988 and 1990, indicated that the bypass would not remove enough vehicles from Route 29 to improve traffic congestion significantly. That study found that only about 10% of the traffic on the most congested section of Route 29 is "through" traffic — in other words, the vast majority of vehicles are shoppers, workers and residents making local trips. The data indicated that because of this, the amount of traffic diverted onto the bypass would still leave Route 29 operating at a failing level of service during peak periods.

Marshall also finds that increased traffic from development approved north of the bypass in recent years would significantly reduce any minimal traffic relief the bypass might offer.

"The proposed bypass would be even less effective today than the limited value demonstrated by the 1988-1990 modeling because of intensive development, large traffic volumes, and the increase in the number of traffic signals north of the proposed terminus of the project," he writes.

Since 2003, in Albemarle County alone, roughly 3,000 residential units and more than 3 million square feet of other development have been approved north of where the proposed bypass would tie back into Route 29. In addition, there are nine traffic lights on the 5.7-mile stretch of Route 29 in Albemarle County north of the bypass, and at least three more are proposed.

Marshall also finds that the studies on which VDOT based its most recent traffic projections have serious flaws. As a result, VDOT’s forecasts of the number of vehicles that would use the bypass, including the estimate in its Request for Proposals (RFP) for the project, are completely off base. These forecasts appear to be
based on an unrealistic annual rate of traffic growth of 1.7%.

In fact, the actual rate over the past two decades on Route 29 between Rio and Hydraulic roads, the busiest segment of the corridor, has beenonly 0.5%, and traffic has actually dropped in this stretch in thelast ten years, according to the report. Using this 0.5% rate of growth, it would be the year 2230 before 32,300 vehicles per day traveled the bypass.

"VDOT’s sky-high projection of traffic growth results in an unjustifiable estimate of the number of vehicles that would use the bypass, and hides the truth that it is an outdated and ineffective proposal," said Morgan Butler, Director of SELC’s
Charlottesville-Albemarle Project.

The report identifies key steps FHWA and VDOT must take to develop a valid traffic forecast that presents a realistic picture of any benefits of the proposed bypass. Marshall recommends that the agencies examine a combination of improvements — including grade-separated intersections on Route 29, which have been shown to be
more effective in reducing delay on Route 29 — and enhancements to the local road network, as recommended in a recent study prepared for the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission.

"The amount of money that would be necessary to build the proposed bypass could be spent much more effectively on targeted improvements along the Route 29 corridor," Marshall concluded.

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The Southern Environmental Law Center is a regional conservation organization using the power of the law to protect the health and environment of the Southeast (Virginia, Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama). Founded in 1986, SELC’s team of 40 legal experts represent more than 100 partner groups on issues of climate change and energy, air and water quality, forests, the coast and wetlands, transportation, and land use.
 

PRESS RELEASE: UVA Sierra Student Coalition–– On Wednesday three University of Virginia students will head to Washington, D.C. for special meetings with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson and the White House Liaison to Young Americans Ronnie Cho scheduled for Thursday. Kenneth Hawes, Isabella Artiles and Dyanna Jaye, all second year students, will join 35 student leaders from across the country for the event that will culminate 100% Clean: 100 Actions for Clean Energy, a month of over 100 actions on campuses including U.Va.

The U.Va. Sierra Student Coalition just held its own action, a Camp out for Clean Energy, on Wednesday. Over thirty students and community members camped out in McIntire Amphitheater to raise awareness about the coal plant on grounds. The students are working to pressure the University President, President Sullivan to set a retirement date for the coal plant and push the school onto 100% clean energy.

Student leaders will have the opportunity to brief both Administrator Jackson and White House Liaison to Young Americans Ronnie Cho on student efforts to transition their campuses and communities off coal and dirty energy to clean energy solutions. They plan to thank the Administrator for her leadership on new rules to protect public health from coal pollution – including efforts to clean up smaller coal plants such as the one on U.Va.’s campus. Then, they will head to the White House for a conversation with Ronnie Cho about urging the President to take bold action to transition the nation to cleaner energy sources that will create jobs and improve the health of communities like Charlottesville.

Schedule of Events – Thursday October 27th

10am Round Table Meeting with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at Howard University

12pm Visit Capitol Hill and offices of select Members of Congress

3:30pm Meeting with Ronnie Cho, Liaison to Young Americans and the White House Office of Public Engagement at the White House

Photos and video of the events will be available the following morning.

To stay updated, follow @sierrastudent on Twitter

PRESS RELEASE: City of Charlottesville–– Charlottesville Parks & Recreation will continue the master planning process for the east side of McIntire Park with its next public meeting on October 24, 2011 at 6:30 pm. The meeting will be held at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Performing Arts Center.

During this meeting, the public will have the opportunity to present their vision and ideas for uses of the park. Speakers will have three (3) minutes to share their thoughts. The meeting is free and open to the public and everyone is encouraged to participate in this important mater planning process.

For more information regarding the meeting or McIntire Park, please visit www.charlottesville.org/mcintirepark or call (434) 970-3610.

 

PRESS RELEASE: Occupy Cville–– In an effort to address concerns raised by the public and the media, several Occupy Cville protestors committed to giving a press conference at the end of their first week of occupying Lee Park in Downtown Charlottesville.

This is a transcript with selected highlights of the Occupy Charlottesville protest press conference of Saturday, October 22 at 3 pm. It features a half-dozen speakers, addressing various issues as to why we are in Lee Park indefinitely, responding to the allegations that our occupation was started without first involving the city, what is being accomplished and offered in our public space, and the nature of the movement. This is followed by selected questions and answers including the intended duration and legality of our occupation. Selected quotes are highlighted for your convenience.

A full video of the 34 minute press conference is available for the public at occupycville.org.

Chelsea Weber-Smith: Occupy Wall Street is a leaderless, resistant movement with people of many colors, genders and political persuasions. The one thing we all have in common is that we are the 99% who are striving to recognize the greed and corruption of the top 1%. We are using the general assembly model to achieve our ends and encourage the use of nonviolence to maximize the safety of all participants. The Occupy Wall Street movement (and the Occupy Charlottesville movement) empowers real people to create real change from the bottom up. We want to see a general assembly in every backyard and on every street corner because we don’t need the politicians and Wall street to build a better society. This is a world movement, and we are trying to be in solidarity with the world. Everyone here is speaking on their on behalf, and none of us is speaking as the voice of the whole movement.

Flora Lark Bailey (speech as written): I have been here since the first real meeting at the Pavilion on Wednesday. We are already a week and a half into this and we have already made so much progress. I would like to speak to the spirit of what I believe this movement is about which is, “What can we learn from you. What can we create together?” I invite anyone who is curious about what Occupy Cville is doing to please come and talk to the people who are here. Don’t rely only on the media or the people who have never been to the meetings. If you come talk with us you will have experiential knowledge as to what and why each individual is here for. As much as this is about Anger- about the state of how things are, all the economic (in)justice and disparities that fuel all the inequalities that exists in Charlottesville and by extension America. And as much as this is about Staying Put, and Standing Up, and Standing Out, it is also about Bringing People Together. I believe Anger stems from Pain and (said Anger, I meant to say Hurt). PEOPLE ARE HURTING RIGHT NOW. And one resource this occupation is providing the city of Charlottesville is the ability to heal, and be heard, and listened to. To give people the opportunity to express their concerns, to give people a reason to care. This is about the people of Charlottesville, about the community in which we all live in. If it wasn’t for the support of everyone donating food, time, energy, and money, this space, this, I believe sacred space, this safe space, would not be able to exist. And it is here, and that is hopeful. There is support for us. In my personal opinion, slow change is good change. It is more sustainable. No one has ever done this before. We need to keep this in mind. This is a learning process. This will take time. We have to be patient. But we are not the only ones who are doing this. There are others in cities all across America and this occupation by association connects our voices with theirs. And any issues we are having with this occupation are directly related to and a direction reflection of how Charlottesville as a society is fragmented as a whole. And we want to address these sources of fragmentation. Where we focus our energy and attention grows. How and why we spend our time and energy is a direction reflection on what we value as a society. Money is Energy. We have an issue with Money in this Country. I think we can all agree with that. Your time is Valuable. You have to value your time and your voice enough to know how much it is worth to this movement. One last point I would like to say is, people are feeling helpless in this time of unprecedented problems. We are the people. Do you remember that statement? We have historical significance in the country (meant to say city, but either works). We the people, need to feel heard and validated and that in and of itself is healing. We are healing people one conversation at a time.

Evan Knappenberger: We do not at Occupy Charlottesville endorse any specific political or religious system. That being said, I would like to speak today as a Christian. We have come up with two points in Occupy Charlottesville that we are about: economic and social justice. As a Christian I remember the words that Jesus Christ said: “He who will lead must be servant of all.” Therefore as we seek to build a society on Earth which reflects the wisdom of the God of justice, we are working in the prophetic tradition in solidarity with the homeless, the afflicted and the oppressed. We are healing the sick of heart, and the sick of the spirit, through community and solidarity: two things which the capitalist culture of consumerism has regularly destroyed. We are offering lots of programs here: tutoring, NA/AA/twelve step programs, yoga, meditation, philosophy classes, food, blankets, tents and books. We are offering them to everybody: the mentally ill, the homeless, the disabled, the substance abusers; anybody that is here. What we are really trying to do here is to create a new culture in this space. We have to acknowledge that this space is public, that what we are doing is freedom of expression but it is more than that. We have to thank the city of Charlottesville for allowing us to use this in accordance with the first amendment. We have to set something straight that was said in the [Daily Progress]. We have been cooperating with the city and law enforcement before the occupation process was started and before we even applied for the permit. So we have to set that straight. We are not a political protest and this is not a publicity game that we are playing. It is not a game with two sides with any other group. What this is, is a tipping point for the Earth and for this culture that we have of selfishness and self-righteous greed. I feel like this is the time we have made for ourselves to step up and change things. I would like to end with a little quote from the Book of Isaiah:
“Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.”

Ashley White: I am here because I feel oppressed. I have been oppressed all my life by the state of society and my heart is broken. I am sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I’m sick and tired of watching people around me suffering, and I am sick and tired of suffering. I’m hungry, my friends and family are hungry. I will stay here as long as it takes in order to make the change that we need to see. We need to come together and stop fighting each other, focusing on our differences. We need to come together as one people, be one, and form that solidarity. Now is the time for change. Now is the time for revolution. Now is the time to make a difference instead of waiting for it to come to us, because there is something coming. I don’t know what that is, but I want to be prepared for it, and I want to see us get through.

Zac Fabian: What I think this is really about is we need to ask ourselves, “What kind of world do we want to live in?” “What kind of world do we want our kids to grow up in?” “What kind of world do we want to build together?” I feel like we’ve reached the point in our history where many people are feeling complacent, they aren’t ready to talk about or address most of the issues that are facing most of the people in this country. Those people who are being oppressed right now almost don’t have a voice anymore. A Democracy is dependent on everyone having a voice, everyone participating. It doesn’t make sense that there is one minority group that is in control directing everyone’s lives. I really want to ask you, how involved can you be? I get the question “What are you doing here just camping out?” and what we are really doing is just “something.” We have a feeling that something is wrong. Everyone here has different problems, being from different socioeconomic backgrounds, and that is what makes this Occupation great: this is not one small group of people. We are the people. This is everyone, we are all experiencing the same world. We really need to bond for this to get anywhere. I really feel that what happened in my experience was that I grew up without a community. I was educated, but what was the importance of all that? I lived in this spot and I don’t even know the people that I live around. What we are doing here is having that dialogue. Bringing all the groups together and discussing whats going on. It’s so easy to go through your life with blinders on and not even know what your neighbors are experiencing, even just on a local level. On a global level, people are at the whim of this very small group that are benefiting, which we call the 1%. In the 80’s we had a policy of deregulation, which I feel got us into this predicament. I feel like government is there to protect the people and somewhere along the way they stopped protecting us. If the government is not going to protect us, we need to do it ourselves.

Bailee Elizabeth: There have been a lot of questions about what we are doing here exactly and how we think we are gonna change things. I want to tell you why I’m here. This greed and this level of corruption which we have in our society has directly affected my life. My dad lost his job and shot himself at work. My mom became physically disabled from her factory job and when she filed for disability, lost all her benefits and had to sue to get any insurance. My brother worked for DuPont, became disabled, applied for disability and ten days later was laid off. This is my family. This is my life. I work two jobs, and I’m homeless. I’m 31 years old, and a GED recipient. I am nobody special, just like anybody else that has an opinion, and what I want for people to know about what we are doing here is that we are trying to stand up to help people in need, and we are saying that we are sick of what is happening in this country, sick of what is happening in the world. The problems that we are having in this space are direct reflections of the problems we are having in society. We have mentally ill, drug addicts, alchoholics, doctors, lawyers, nurses, factory workers, homeless people, every type of person you can imagine has been participating in this. We need more people to participate in this. This has been a very democratic process and we need the public with us. We need people who care about these things here to have their voices heard, so that we can more fairly represent the 99%.

Jona Noelle Bailey: It’s so good to see everybody! I am so glad you are all here, it makes me feel so alive! I want to share a poem that I wrote while I was canvassing for Virginia Organizing two years ago. It was door to door. This poem was written about my experience with the potential for one-to-one action. We are asking that you come to this public space to have conversations. I am so excited about what we are doing here, and I am becoming a better citizen, learning about the way we live and the rights and voice that I have. I want to encourage people out there who aren’t sure what is going on or how to respond to just come and check it out. We will embrace you with open arms, and we want to know what bothers you.

come-in-unity (community)

for a brief time
we come into your lives
hoping to find
an open mind
and comfort in humankind

a clenched fist knocks on your door
eager to release it and reach for
a connection between two strangers, a cause and “come in!”
for this truly is where social justice begins

although we cannot step into your house
we will gladly talk with you about
the issues that bother you and what you want to see changed
for you deserve to be listened to
when you call out those issues that need to be named

how close the houses are in proximity
but how distant they feel from unity
too many voices have been silenced
by those who choose fear over kindness
whose sharp words bleed verbal violence

with all the discrimination and pain in this world
i can’t help but wonder what we all are here for
is it not to come in to people’s lives and find
the unifying Humanity that resides
in the grateful smiles and hands that we shake
in the long lasting connections that we make

for a brief time
we come into your lives
searching to find
like-minds

and although it may be hard to believe
you hold all the power that you need
to transform your situation and community

for when open doors meet open minds
possibilities fill the sky
and we can change all that is unjust and wrong
we can create a community of which everyone belongs

for in this small space
between a front door and welcome mat
our Humanity brushes up against each other
and we exchange just that

for what is a community (come-in-unity) based on but
different people willing to open up
to each other and each concern
for justice is something everyone deserves

and because there will always be
interns working for VOP
who unite under justice and equality
we cannot be discouraged, we cannot weep or cry
because we are standing up for people whose access is denied

therefore, we will continue to door knock
and adopt front porches as our own
for like front porch flowers
there will always be room for hope to grow

Selected Questions and Answers:

Q: One problem that has been stated is that you don’t have a clear set of demands. What do you hope to accomplish by being here?
A: Basically, each person that participates in this movement comes with their own beliefs, problems and values, their own experience to share and how that relates to the overall structure (legislation and regulation) of the society that we live in. We each have our own solutions to the problems that we face. We are here to do something. Before this movement we each felt that something was wrong but we didn’t all have the agency to do something about it. In order not to alienate anyone, we don’t make it official that “this is the problem and this is how we solve it.” That kind of language is part of the problem, because these issues are really complex, and you can’t fit them into one little catchy phrase. It’s going to take lots of dialogue and communication to get to a solution. In an immediate sense we are helping the community that is suffering, offering meals and a safe place, tutoring and AA programs. The first step is to air all the grievances; everything needs to be on the table before you can even consider some kind of solution. The way the mainstream media works is that they want you to think “problem-solution, problem-solution” and that is not the reality of this world.

Q: At one of the first group meetings you decided you were going to stand for economic and social justice. How do you define that?
A: Social justice and economic justice are tied together. Today is actually the international day of justice as far as the global picture of the Occupy Wall Street movement. What we are doing today as part of the actions of what we decided to do last night was to come together and have a discussion about what this actually means. What we are getting so far is that we have a sense of responsibility to our fellow human beings. It is this self-righteous, greedy hording of resources that we are against. Money is the medium of exchange, and not meant to be horded. What we are definitely against is the 80% of the resources being directly and indirectly controlled by only 1% of the population. That in a nutshell is social and economic justice.

Q: My observation of some of the differences between the Tea party and the Occupy Wall Street movement is that you are essentially sticking around. It is essentially present, which is a very different aspect of revolutionary action. It is not going home. That seems to be changing the conversation in America and the World. In the Washington Post last week it was stated that some 70% of the population support the Occupy movement. What are the plans for the global movement for how long to stick around? What about the Charlottesville group plans?
A: There’s been no consensus as far as the global movement goes, but the general idea is that we’re in this for the long haul. We are here for as long as it takes.

Q: How are you handling the permitting process deadlines and extensions?
A: Our understanding is that the permit itself doesn’t really fit with what we are trying to do here. There is no real permit that the city can give us that fits what we’re trying to do. That being said, we are following the spirit of the law, much more than the law itself is actually. We are trying to make this a safe place, clean sanitary and a safe place for everyone, which is the spirit of the law, the three-day length process, the curfew. At the present moment we are filing for three-day intervals of extension. We have requested that the city review their permitting process to allow for longer chunks of time.

###

For more information, please search our website, or email Media@occupycville.org .
 

PRESS RELEASE: Democrats for Charlottesville City Council–– On learning that one of the independent City Council candidates had “endorsed” her this morning, Democratic candidate for City Council Deirdre “Dede” Smith released the following statement:

“Bob is a great guy, and a friend. While we agree on some issues, and it is flattering that an opponent in the City Council race would endorse me, I did not request it, I did not authorize it, and I am not and will not be endorsing him. I am a proud Democrat, and I’m proud to be running as a Democrat on the ticket with Satyendra Huja and Kathy Galvin.”

Ms. Smith underscored her support of her ticket mates:

“We have a great ticket that represents a spectrum of views. Huja, Kathy and I have different experiences and different perspectives, but we share the same goals. All three of us will focus on expanding opportunities for everybody in Charlottesville, and working together to build our community. Whether you identify with a political party or not, look at all the candidates, look at our positions and our records of public service. The choice on November 8 is clear: Huja, Galvin and Smith for City Council.”

Charlottesville Democratic Committee co-chair Jim Nix credited the Firehouse Primary with selecting a strong slate of candidates for the City Democrats:

“Charlottesville Democrats took their Firehouse Primary very seriously this summer and selected a strong group of nominees for City Council. I guess you know you’ve got great candidates when even their opponents endorse them in an obvious attempt to divide the Democratic Party.”

Mr. Nix continued:

“Huja, Galvin and Smith have been out campaigning with and for each other; they are a balanced group of candidates who worked hard to prove to primary voters over the summer that they are the best choice for Charlottesville. Now they are working to earn the votes of everyone in Charlottesville. Dede, Kathy and Huja have become a great team. I hope that Charlottesville will produce a large voter turnout in three weeks and I’m confident that if we can reach all of those voters with our positive message, all three of our candidates will win by a substantial margin. We’re looking forward to this team joining Dave Norris and Kristin Szakos on Council next year to put their many strengths to work for the entire city.”

PRESS RELEASE: Office of the Press Secretary, White House–– THE PRESIDENT: Hello, Asheville! (Applause.) It is good to be back in Asheville, North Carolina! (Applause.) I love Asheville. In fact, I think I should be on the tourism promotion bureau of Ashville. (Applause.) Every time I meet somebody I say, have you guys gone down to Asheville? (Applause.) That’s a nice place to be. So it is wonderful to be back in one of my favorite parts of the country. Our family has great memories of staying here, and it’s always nice to get out of Washington — (laughter) — and breathe some of that mountain air. (Applause.) 

I want to recognize a couple people who are here. First of all, one of the outstanding senators in the United States Senate, your Senator, Kay Hagan, is in the house. (Applause.) Kay’s daughter just got married this weekend, so, congratulations to Kay’s daughter. We are so thrilled by that. 

And we also have your lovely and intelligent Mayor of Asheville, Terry Bellamy, is in the house. (Applause.) The last time I was here Terry said she could play basketball. And so we went out — it turned out she was a cheerleader and not a basketball player. (Laughter.) But she’s doing an outstanding job overall. Thank you both for coming.

Now, as you may have noticed, I came here on a plane. It’s a pretty nice plane. But I’m leaving on a bus. (Applause.) The bus is pretty hard to miss. And over the next few days, we are going to take this bus through North Carolina and Virginia and I’m going to get a chance to hear from folks about how they’re doing, what direction they want to take the country in. 

And I’ll be doing a little bit of talking, but mostly I’m going to do a whole lot of listening — because there doesn’t seem to be much listening going on in Washington these days. (Applause.) People don’t seem to be paying much attention to the folks who sent them there in the first place. And that’s a shame. Because once you escape the partisanship and the political point-scoring in Washington, once you start really start listening to the American people, it’s pretty clear what our country and your leaders should be spending their time on.

AUDIENCE: Jobs!

THE PRESIDENT: We should be talking about jobs. When you hear what’s going on out in the country, when you take the time to listen, you understand that a lot of folks are hurting out there. Too many people are looking for work. Too many families are looking for that sense of security that’s been slipping away for the past decade, now. 

Here in North Carolina, you’ve got thousands of construction workers who lost their jobs when the housing bubble burst. Some of those construction workers are here today. They’ve got experience. They’ve got skills. All they want is to be back on the job site doing what they do best. (Applause.)

And there is plenty of work to go around. In this airport right here in Asheville, you’ve got a runway that needs to be widened and repaired. You’ve got a taxiway that’s in the wrong spot –- which means that planes sometimes get too close together. So we could be doing some work right here at the Asheville Airport that would help boost tourism, help to boost the economy here, put people to work right now. (Applause.)

But it’s not just here in Asheville. All across the state, you’ve got highways that need to be built. You’ve got bridges that need to be fixed. You’ve got schools that need to be modernized. (Applause.) And that’s what America used to do best. We used to build things — built the Transcontinental Railroad; built the Golden Gate Bridge; the Hoover Dam; the Grand Central Station. There’s no reason why we should sit here and watch the best highways and the newest airports being built in China. We should be building them right here in the United States of America. (Applause.) Right here in North Carolina. (Applause.)

Now, our problems were a long time in the making –- we’re not going to solve them overnight. But there are things we can do right now to put people back to work — right now. There are things we should do right now to give the economy the jolt that it needs. So that’s why I sent Congress the American Jobs Act. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Thank you!

THE PRESIDENT: Keep in mind — keep in mind, Asheville, this is the kind of bill containing the kinds of proposals that in the past have received support from Democrats and Republicans. It’s completely paid for — by asking our wealthiest citizens, folks making more than a million dollars a year, to pay their fair share. (Applause.)

Independent economists — not my economists, but independent economists — have said this jobs bill would create nearly 2 million jobs. That’s not my opinion. It’s not the opinion of folks who work for me. It’s the opinion of people who evaluate these kinds of things for a living. It says this bill will help put people back to work and give our economy a boost right away.

But apparently none of this matters to the Republicans in the Senate — because last week they got together to block this bill. They said no to putting teachers and construction workers back on the job. They said no to rebuilding our roads and our bridges and our airports. They said no to cutting taxes for middle-class families and small businesses when all they’ve been doing is cutting taxes for the wealthiest Americans.

AUDIENCE: Booo —

THE PRESIDENT: They said no to helping veterans find jobs.

Essentially, they said no to you — because it turns out one poll found that 63 percent of Americans support the ideas in this jobs bill. (Applause.) So 63 percent of Americans support the jobs bill that I put forward; 100 percent of Republicans in the Senate voted against it. That doesn’t make any sense, does it?

AUDIENCE: No!

THE PRESIDENT: No, it does not.

Now, it turns out that the Republicans have a plan, too. I want to be fair. They call — they put forward this plan last week. They called it the “Real American Jobs Act.” The "real one" — that’s what they called it — just in case you were wondering. (Laughter.) So let’s take a look at what the Republican American jobs act looks like. It turns out the Republican plan boils down to a few basic ideas: They want to gut regulations; they want to let Wall Street do whatever it wants

AUDIENCE: Booo —

THE PRESIDENT: They want to drill more.

AUDIENCE: Booo —

THE PRESIDENT: And they want to repeal health care reform.

AUDIENCE: Booo —

THE PRESIDENT: That’s their jobs plan.

So let’s do a little comparison here. The Republican plan says that what’s been standing in the way between us and full employment are laws that keep companies from polluting as much as they want. On the other hand, our plan puts teachers, construction workers, firefighters and police officers back on the job. (Applause.)

Their plan says the big problem we have is that we helped to get 30 million Americans health insurance. They figure we should throw those folks off the health insurance rolls; somehow that’s going to help people find jobs.

AUDIENCE: Booo —

THE PRESIDENT: Our plan says we’re better off if every small business and worker in America gets a tax cut, and that’s what’s in my jobs bill. (Applause.) Their plan says we should go back to the good old days before the financial crisis when Wall Street was writing its own rules. They want to roll back all the reforms that we’ve put into place.

AUDIENCE: No!

THE PRESIDENT: Our plan says we need to make it easier for small businesses to grow and hire and push this economy forward. (Applause.)

All right, so you’ve gotten a sense — you got their plan, and then we got my plan. My plan says we’re going to put teachers back in the classroom; construction workers back to work rebuilding America, rebuilding our schools — (applause) — tax cuts for small businesses; tax cuts for hiring veterans; tax cuts if you give your worker a raise. (Applause.) That’s my plan. 

And then you got their plan, which is let’s have dirtier air, dirtier water.

AUDIENCE: Booo –

THE PRESIDENT: Less people with health insurance.

AUDIENCE: Booo —

THE PRESIDENT: All right so, so far at least, I feel better about my plan. (Laughter and applause.) But let’s admit I’m a little biased. So remember those independent economists who said our plan would create jobs, maybe as many as almost 2 million jobs, grow the economy by as much as 2 percent? So one of the same economists that took a look at our plan took a look at the Republican plan, and they said, well, this won’t do much to help the economy in the short term — it could actually cost us jobs. We could actually lose jobs with their plan.

So I’ll let you decide which plan is the real American Jobs Act. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Obama’s plan!

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: Look, I appreciate the “four more years,” but right now I’m thinking about the next 13 months. (Applause.) Because, yes, we’ve got an election coming up, but that election is a long ways away, and a lot of folks can’t wait. A lot of folks are living paycheck to paycheck. A lot of folks are living week to week. You’ve got kids right now who’ve lost their teachers because at the local level you ended up having layoffs. You’ve got bridges right now that are crumbling and deteriorating. So we don’t have time to wait. And we’ve got a choice right now — right now.

Look, I want to work with Republicans on ways to create jobs right now. And where they’ve got a decent idea I’m happy to work with them. Just last week, we passed a bipartisan trade agreement with Korea that will allow us to sell more goods overseas and support almost 70,000 jobs here at home. Because my attitude is if we’re buying Hyundais and Kias, I want them buying some Fords and Chryslers and Chevys. (Applause.) 

So if they’re serious about creating jobs, I’m ready to go. I don’t think anybody doubts that I have gone out of my way to try to find areas of cooperation with these Republicans. (Applause.) In fact, some of you have been mad at me for trying too hard to cooperate with them, haven’t you? (Applause.) Some of you — I get some of your letters and your emails. You’re all like, why are you cooperating with them all the time? Because it can’t be all about politics. Sometimes we’ve got to try to actually get something done. And so I’m eager to see them stand up with a serious approach to putting people back to work.

It’s time to focus less on satisfying some wing of the party and more on common-sense ideas that we can take to people to work right now and help the middle class — and help people get into the middle class, because there are a whole bunch of folks who are hurting out there and have never gotten the opportunity.

So we’re going to give members of Congress another chance to step up to the plate and do the right thing. Kay and I, we’ve decided let’s go ahead and let them do the right thing one more time. We’re going to give them another chance to do their jobs by looking after your jobs.

AUDIENCE: Right now!

THE PRESIDENT: So this week, I’m asking members of Congress to vote — what we’re going to do is we’re going to break up my jobs bill. Maybe they just couldn’t understand the whole all at once. (Laughter.) So we’re going to break it up into bite-size pieces so they can take a thoughtful approach to this legislation.

So this week I’m going to ask members of Congress to vote on one component of the plan, which is whether we should put hundreds of thousands of teachers back in the classroom, and cops back on the street, and firefighters back to work. (Applause.) So members of Congress will have a chance to decide — what kind of future do our kids deserve? Should we stand up for men and women who are often digging into their own pockets to buy school supplies, when we know that the education of our children is going to determine our future as a nation? (Applause.)

They’re going to have a chance to decide, do we want to make sure that we’re looking after the men and women who protect our communities every day — our first responders, our firefighters, our police officers? (Applause.) And then, after they’ve taken that vote, we’re going to give members of Congress a chance to vote on whether we’re going to put construction workers back to work. Should they be just sitting around while roads and bridges and runways fall apart? Or should we put them back to work doing the work that America needs done? (Applause.)

After that, we’ll give them a chance to decide whether unemployed Americans should continue to struggle, or whether we should give them the experience and support they need to get back in the workforce and build a better life. And we’ll ask them to take a stand on whether we should ask people like me to pay a little more so middle-class families and small businesses can pay a little less, and end up creating the kinds of jobs we need in this economy. (Applause.)

So those are the choices that members of Congress are going to face in the coming weeks. And if they vote against these proposals again — like I said, maybe they just didn’t understand the whole thing, so we’re breaking it up into pieces. If they vote against taking steps that we know will put Americans back to work right now –-

AUDIENCE: Right now!

THE PRESIDENT: — right now —

AUDIENCE: Right now!

THE PRESIDENT: — then they’re not going to have to answer to me. They’re going to have to answer to you. (Applause.) They’re going to have to come down to North Carolina and tell kids why they can’t have their teachers back. They’re going to come down to North Carolina and look those construction workers in the eye and tell them why they can’t get to work doing the work that America needs done. They’re going to have to come down here and explain to working families why their taxes are going up while the richest Americans and largest corporations keep getting sweet deals in the tax code. They’re going to have to come down and explain to you why they don’t have an answer for how we’re putting Americans to work right now. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Right now! Right now! Right now!

THE PRESIDENT: And if they support the Republican plan — if they support the Republican plan, they’ll have to explain to you why they’d rather deny health care to millions of Americans and let corporations and banks write their own rules instead of supporting proposals that we know will create jobs right now.

So that’s where all of you come in. Some of these folks just aren’t getting the message, so I need you to send them a message. I need you to make your voices heard. I need you to give Congress a piece of your mind. (Applause.) These members of Congress work for you. If they’re not delivering, it’s time to let them know. It’s time to get on the phone and write a letter, tweet, pay a visit. Tell your elected leaders to do the right thing. Remind them what’s at stake: Putting people back to work, restoring economic security for middle-class families and helping create a ladder for folks who aren’t middle class yet to get into the middle class; rebuilding an economy where hard work is valued and responsibility is rewarded, building an economy that lasts for the future and for our children. (Applause.)

If we want to actually lower the deficit and invest in our future, if we want the best roads and best bridges and best airports here in the United States, if we want to continue to invest in our technology and our basic science and research so that we can continue to invent new drugs and make sure the new cars of the future that are running on electricity are made right here in North Carolina and made right here in America — if we want to do all those things, then we got to step up. (Applause.) We got to get to work. We got to get busy right now. (Applause.)

We can’t do nothing. Too many folks are hurting out there to do nothing. We need to act.

AUDIENCE: Right now!

THE PRESIDENT: Right now. (Applause.) We are not a people who sit by and do nothing when things aren’t right. We’re Americans. If something is not working, we go out there and fix it. We stick with it until the problem is fixed. That’s the spirit we need to muster right now.

AUDIENCE: Right now!

THE PRESIDENT: Let’s meet this moment. Let’s get to work. Let’s show the world once again why the United States is the greatest country on Earth.

God bless you. God bless the United States. And thank you, Asheville. Thank you, North Carolina. (Applause.)

END 11:13 A.M. EDT

PRESS RELEASE: Office of Delegate David J. Toscano–– Delegate David J. Toscano will hold a town hall meeting on Monday, October 17th at 6 p.m. in the Woodbrook Elementary School Cafeteria. The public meeting with be an opportunity to introduce himself to voters in the Woodbrook precinct which was added to the 57th district in the recent redistricting bill, update citizens on the General Assembly session, and address issues of concern.

“I look forward to meeting my new constituents and hearing what matters most to them,” said Toscano.

Delegate Toscano will discuss the recent redistricting and other result of the the 2011 General Assembly session, as well as looking ahead to the pressing problems that continue to face the Commonwealth.
Constituents may direct questions to Delegate Toscano’s office at (434) 220-1660.
 

PRESS RELEASE: The Farmers Market Coalition–– The Farmers Market Coalition (FMC), a national nonprofit incorporated in Iowa in 2006, now has presence in Charlottesville, Virginia. This summer, Executive Director Stacy Miller relocated to the city, and brought the organization with her. FMC is committed to strengthening farmers markets across the country for the mutual benefit of farmers, consumers, and communities, and is now bringing this goal to Charlottesville.

This is an exciting period of growth for farmers markets, as their numbers have more than tripled in the United States since 1994. In this context, the Farmers Market Coalition works to connect farmers markets with information and resources to help them succeed. The organization, which has volunteer board of 17 members across the country, builds networks between farmers markets of all sizes to share best practices and help one another succeed. At the national level, FMC also informs public policy by translating the knowledge and needs of practitioners in the field to federal decision-makers.

”Merging agriculture, and civic engagement is nothing new to Charlottesville,” says Stacy Miller, Executive Director of the Farmers Market Coalition. “I’m thrilled that FMC has found such a welcoming home base from which to help the national farmers market movement grow and thrive.” Since moving to Charlottesville, Miller has advised a research team of University of Virginia (UVA) faculty and City Market stakeholders as they undertake a comprehensive data-collection effort that will inform and strengthen the market’s role in the community. FMC also is collaborating with the Morven Summer Institute, an interdisciplinary program based at UVA’s Morven Farm, and is assisting in the planning of next summer’s programming.

Market Central, the nonprofit dedicated to preserving and enhancing the markets sponsored by the City of Charlottesville, is one of several hundred members of FMC.

This month, the Farmers Market Coalition hired Natalie Roper, a third year student at the University of Virginia, as FMC’s 2011-2012 Research and Education intern. Roper has been working with a team through the Jefferson Public Citizens program at UVA to survey City Market customers to provide a foundation of data for the Market. FMC has advised in this project and will continue to do so in the next year. Roper, an American Politics major from Richmond, says “this internship is an exciting opportunity to put our local research into a national context, and learn more about the practices and policies influencing farmers markets around the country.”

The Farmers Market Coalition (FMC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to strengthening farmers markets for the benefit of farmers, consumers, and communities. For more information about the Farmers Market Coalition, including please visit their website at www.farmersmarketcoalition.org.