[act-ma] Youth Protest TOMORROW, ETC.

[Aria Littlhous]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Katie Gonzalez <katie at massuniting.org>
Date: Thu, Aug 2, 2012 at 11:51 AM
Subject: MassUniting Press Round-up: 8.2.12
To: Jason Stephany <Jason at massuniting.org>, Nora Boedecker <
nora at massuniting.org>



*MassUniting Press Round-up
**Youth Demand Fair Jobs at Bain -- 8.2.12

**Boston Herald I Youth Plan Protest for Summer
Jobs*<http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061150023&srvc=rss>
One hundred young people from the Youth Jobs Coalition said today they will
gather in front of the John Hancock Building on Clarendon Street at 5:15
p.m. tomorrow to urge financial companies Bain Capital and Ernst and Young
to hire youth and meet with members about this issue.

Members said they will visit the companies’ offices in person, adding youth
leaders will also make short statements on this issue, hand out fliers and
lead chants.

*The Boston Globe I Youth Jobs Coalition Protest in Copley Square Calling
for More Teen Hiring*<http://www.boston.com/businessupdates/2012/08/01/youth-jobs-coalition-protest/p4H9ocQKruwO4VJECcy2hI/story.html>
Members of the Youth Jobs Coalition gathered in Copley Square Wednesday
afternoon to protest what they call a lack of teen hiring by Bain Capital,
LLC, accounting firm Ernst & Young, and other Boston companies.

While the city’s youth employment program reached its goal of 10,000 jobs
this summer, members of the coalition say that more needs to be done. They
cited statistics from the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern
University that show only 39 percent of Massachusetts youth had jobs last
summer, compared with 62 percent in 1999. The city’s statistics show that
among the 590 Boston companies with 100 employees or more, 80 percent do
not hire teens for summer jobs.

Lewis Finfer, a leader of the Youth Jobs Coalition, said Bain and Ernst &
Young had not returned calls seeking a meeting about the issue and that the
group would hand-deliver letters during the protest to ask for such
meetings. At the demonstration, which attracted about 40 youth and
organizers, the group also applauded youth hiring efforts by John Hancock
and State Street Corp.; the group defines youth as 14- to 18-year-olds.

*Boston Janitors To Protest Today -- 8.2.12*
*PR Newswire I Janitors and Supporters in 17 Cities Rally to End Poverty
Wage Jobs in Houston, Says
SEIU<http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/01/4681794/janitors-and-supporters-in-17.html>
*
Support for Houston janitors is spreading across the country following the
Tuesday arrests of seven people, including 5 janitors, who participated in
an act of peaceful, nonviolent civil disobedience at a protest in support
of a living wage for Houston janitors.

Today, hundreds of janitors and human rights activists in 17 cities are
protesting in front of office buildings cleaned by the same cleaning
contractors that employ Houston janitors—who are now on their fourth week
of an unfair labor practices strike.

The cities where solidarity actions are taking place are Atlanta, Boston,
Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Los Angeles,
Milwaukee, New York City, Portland, San Diego, San Ramon, Seattle, St.
Louis, Toronto, and Washington, D.C.

*HITC Business I Online Campaign Trashes Jamie
Dimon*<http://hereisthecity.com/2012/08/02/janitor-says-call-me-jamie/>
The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has launched a national
online advertising campaign calling on JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon to
meet with striking Houston janitor Adriana Vasquez, with the tagline 'Call
Me, Jamie'.

The online ads, which feature images of Dimon and Vasquez and allow viewers
to send an email appeal to Dimon, are running in New York, Washington,
Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston.
*The Wall Street Journal I SEIU Launches National Ad Campaign Calling on
JPMorgan Chase CEO to Meet Striking Houston
Janitor*<http://www.marketwatch.com/story/seiu-launches-national-ad-campaign-calling-on-jpmorgan-chase-ceo-to-meet-striking-houston-janitor-2012-08-01>
Janitors in Houston, who are paid as little as $9,000 a year, have been on
strike for three weeks protesting unfair practices by cleaning companies
employed by JPMorgan Chase and other Houston building owners. The online
campaign contrasts the janitors with Dimon, who pays himself $9,000 every
49 minutes leading a company that reported $19 billion in profits in 2011.

The ads will run on more than 1,000 websites, including the New York Times,
Boston Globe, Washington Post, Houston Chronicle, the Nation Magazine and
other national publications. Additional ads have also been launched tying
national real estate firms Brookfield Properties to poverty wages in
Houston.
*
Foreclosures -- 8.2.12

**WWLP I Tucker Family Fights Against
Foreclosure*<http://www.wwlp.com/dpp/news/local/hampden/tucker-family-fights-against-foreclosure>
(With Video)
The Tucker family's home was foreclosed on, and they say the bank has not
been willing to work with them on a compromise.

They could be given a 48 hour eviction notice any day now, but the Tuckers
say they plan on fighting it with some help from the community.

According to Catrece Tucker, "We're not giving up, we're not moving. We
have a program that's working with us, ‘No One Leaves,’ and if they come
out to put us out we'll have an eviction blockade."

Members of “No One Leaves” say they will form a humane blockade and are
prepared to be arrested.

*Leominster Champion I Senate, House Agree on Legislation* *Preventing
Mortgage Foreclosures*<http://www.leominsterchamp.com/news/2012-08-03/Your_City/Senate_House_Agree_on_Legislation_Preventing_Mortg.html>
State Representative Dennis A. Rosa (D-Leominster) joined his colleagues in
the Legislature on Thursday in sending legislation to the Governor that
will prevent unnecessary and unlawful foreclosures, reduce the number of
abandoned properties across the Commonwealth and help remove one of the
biggest remaining barriers to the state’s ongoing economic recovery.

“Representing one of the legislative districts hardest hit by the
foreclosure crisis, I want to commend everyone involved in putting forth
this very important and thoughtful piece of legislation, said Rosa. There
is nothing like owning your own home, and with the passage of this bill it
will help families keep their homes, stay in their communities, and enjoy
the benefits of homeownership. This is definitely a steppingstone to
strengthening our economy.”
*State House News Service I Activists Object to Language in Foreclosure
Bill on Gov's Desk*
(No link)*
*Anti-foreclosure activists have seized on language within the foreclosure
bill on Gov. Deval Patrick’s desk that they say could hamper those who have
lost their homes to foreclosure from recovering the properties in lawsuits.

The language says that third-party buyers will “be immune from any
liability” when they buy foreclosed property even in cases where the
foreclosure was improperly handled because the foreclosing entity did not
hold the note for the property, according to Jason Stephany, of
MassUniting, a liberal activist group. Even if the foreclosure was improper
in that way, the third-party buyer would get to keep the property as long
as the foreclosing entity files an affidavit that says it has complied with
the law.

“The affidavit could be a lie,” said Grace Ross, a former Green-Rainbow
candidate for governor. “You go to court; you prove that it was a lie; you
still can’t get your home back.”

However, one of the drafters of the law said that the activists are
fighting for a right that does not currently exist.

“I don’t think Grace and their group can cite one case where the homeowner
ever got their house back,” said Adam Martignetti, chief of staff to Rep.
Michael Costello, a lead conferee on the conference committee that
reconciled House and Senate versions of the bill. He said he had not seen a
case where a person defaulted on a mortgage, lost a home in foreclosure and
then successfully sued to take the house back from a third-party that had
bought the home in a foreclosure auction.

*NBC News I Regulator Defies White House, Rejects Mortgage
Plan*<http://economywatch.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/01/13068766-regulator-defies-white-house-rejects-mortgage-plan?chromedomain=bottomline>
In the latest chapter in the long-simmering feud, Edward DeMarco, head of
the Federal Housing Finance Agency, said Tuesday that offering relief to
homeowners with bloated mortgages could encourage more people to default.
The agency’s latest analysis defended DeMarco’s assertion that the White
House plan would not stop enough foreclosures to be a cost-effective use of
taxpayer funds....

The conflicting analysis of the plan's impact reflect differing assumptions
about how many struggling homeowners would apply for help and whether
modifying their loans would save them from default. The debate has also
been heavily influenced by political differences over whether tax dollars
paid by homeowners who are keeping up with loan payments should be used to
help others who are struggling.

Even as the housing market has begun showing signs of bottoming after the
worst collapse since the Great Depression, roughly one in every four
homeowners with a mortgage owes more than their home is worth. Those
“underwater” households represent a continued drag on home sales because
their owners -- from growing families looking for more space to older
people looking to downsize -- can’t afford to pay off their mortgage.

So far, the Obama administration’s efforts to prod lenders to write down
underwater mortgages have fallen far short of expectations. With less than
100 days to the November election, the administration is eager to convince
voters that it has made every effort to help ease the financial pain of the
housing collapse and the resulting recession.

Obama’s Republican opponent, Mitt Romney, has argued that the government’s
efforts have only prolonged the housing downturn and that the real estate
market should be allowed to hit bottom to build a sustainable recovery.

*MBTA -- 8.2.12*
*The Boston Globe I Doubling of MBTA Shuttle Fares Strains Disabled
Users*<http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/regionals/north/2012/08/01/doubling-the-ride-fare-strains-users/r3ChpbTdgbUvajQaYtzqTL/story.html?camp=newsletter>
James Nowlan, who uses a wheelchair and is on a fixed income, had to make
some changes when MBTA fare increases took effect July 1. He depends on The
Ride shuttle for disabled people, but he can’t afford to pay an extra $80
per month for his usual 40 rides.

To cut costs, Nowlan, 51, now volunteers just two days per week instead of
three. He also uses the Salem Council on Aging shuttle instead of The Ride
as much as possible.

For the Council on Aging service, he pays a $1 suggested donation for an
in-town, one-way trip, versus $4 for the same trip on The Ride.

“I’m kind of cutting back a little bit because I have medical appointments
coming up and will probably have to use The Ride,” said Nowlan, who has
muscular dystrophy. “I enjoy volunteering, but I can’t do as much now. My
rent is going up, and I can’t be spending more on my transportation.”

Around the region, disabled people are feeling an especially tight pinch
from last month’s MBTA fare increases. While average T fares rose 23
percent, users of The Ride now pay 100 percent more, as one-way rates
jumped from $2 to $4. And since many who use The Ride are unable to work,
higher fees need to come out of their fixed incomes.

*Sen. Scott Brown -- 8.2.12

**The Boston Globe I Scott Brown, Promoted to Colonel in National Guard,
Honored in Ceremony with John
McCain*<http://www.boston.com/politicalintelligence/2012/08/01/scott-brown-promoted-colonel-national-guard-honored-ceremony-with-john-mccain/XtCjGNDP8cG0auPsy5lsaL/story.html>
In a private ceremony presided over by Senator John McCain in the US
Capitol on Wednesday, Senator Scott P. Brown formally became a colonel in
the Army National Guard, according to Brown’s office.

Brown’s promotion from lieutenant colonel was approved by his Senate
colleagues late last week as part of series of 800 promotions adopted with
unanimous consent.
*Politico I Scott Brown, McCain Bond Over
Military*<http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0812/79282.html?hp=l7>
When he heard a few years ago that a Republican was planning to run for Ted
Kennedy’s Senate seat in deep-blue Massachusetts, Sen. John McCain thought
it was “a pretty good joke.”

*The Boston Globe I Big Ad to Goad Congress on Assault
Guns<http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2012/08/02/scott_brown_urged_by_gun_control_group_to_back_federal_assault_weapons_ban/>
*A Newton-based advocacy group is calling on US Senator Scott Brown and
other members of Congress to support a federal ban on assault weapons, and
the group plans to add a banner on Thursday to a billboard near Fenway Park
that highlights the dangers of gun violence. “How can Congress live with
themselves, knowing they allow criminals and terrorists to buy guns
undetected?” said John Rosenthal, founder and chairman of Stop Handgun
Violence.

*Barnstable-Hyannis Patch I Scott Brown to Lunch in Hyannis -- What Would
You Ask Him?*<http://barnstable-hyannis.patch.com/articles/senator-brown-to-lunch-in-hyannis-what-would-you-ask-him>
Senator Scott Brown will get some face-time with local residents at a Cape
Cod Chamber sponsored luncheon at the Hyannis Golf Club on August 8.

The doors will open at 11:30 a.m. and the Senator will arrive shortly
thereafter to have one-on-one conversations with those present. Lunch will
be served while the Senator addresses the group. Reservations must be made
in advance through the Cape Cod Chamber website or by calling the Chamber
directly at 508-362-3225, ext.  532. Tickets are $28 per person and include
lunch in the terrace room.

*Sentinel & Enterprise I A Vote For Scott Brown is One for Job
Creation*<http://www.sentinelandenterprise.com/letters/ci_21216818/vote-scott-brown-is-one-job-creation>
(Letter to the editor)

We need our elected officials and political candidates to be advocating for
policies that will encourage job creation, not deter it. Scott Brown knows
that with almost 250,000 Massachusetts citizens out of work, creating jobs
should be Washington's No. 1 priority.

With that in mind, he has passed innovative solutions, such as the Hire a
Hero Act, which gives tax incentives to companies that hire veterans, and
proposed other ideas designed to boost hiring, including tax cuts on small
businesses so they can create more employment opportunities.

-- 
Katie Gonzalez
Communications Assistant
*MASS*UNITING




-- 
"Our goal is a society that prioritizes the needs of all before the profits
of the few." passed by Occupy Boston General Assembly 11/29/11
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