May 13 is just around the corner, and so is another chance to celebrate the mamas in our lives. We are tired of the same commercials for cleaning products and Hallmark cards, along with [Read more]]]> Our Mama’s Day Brunch was a wonderful success thanks to your presence and support. The photos from our amazing shoot will be available soon!

May 13 is just around the corner, and so is another chance to celebrate the mamas in our lives. We are tired of the same commercials for cleaning products and Hallmark cards, along with the message that we just want material things for Mother’s Day.  While flowers and robes are welcome, we know the mamas in our lives want and need much more — love, support, connection, and policies that support our families as they are.

Much of what we see and hear every day in the news and TV gives the impression that there is one right way to have a family, but we know that the vast majority of us living in the US today don’t live in a nuclear family behind a picket fence. Whether it’s immigration status, sexual orientation, race or class, we are asbeautiful as we are varied. SPARK, as a partner in the Strong Families coalition, a 10-year national initiative to change the way people think, feel, and act in support of families, believes that all families matter. Yours, mine and all of ours.

This Mama’s Day, we are proud to bring you lots of ways to show and share you care:

Share Stories: Mother’s Day Celebration in South Atlanta

On May 12, Project South will host its 2nd annual Community Forum. Join mothers and their supports in the South Atlanta area to discuss issues women of color face such as lack of assistance with childcare and a decreasing number of childcare options. We will also celebrate the resilience of mothers with music, free food, and exclusive tokens of love and appreciation.

Send Love: Mama’s Day E-Cards

Strong Families E-Card available at www.mamasday.org!

This Mama’s Day, you have a whole new way to show love to the mamas in your life. Nine artists designed cards for you to customize and share. The full set will be available on May 8th, but you can see a sneak preview here. When they are released, we hope you will send, share and savor these beautiful cards.

Shout Out: Calls From Home

Media Literacy Project, Strong Families, and Thousand Kites need your help to produce Calls from Home: Mama’s Day Special, a radio project that connects incarcerated mothers to their families, friends, and communities. With your support we’ll send voices through barbed-wire to our millions of neighbors behind bars this Mama’s Day.

Sing a song, read a prayer, speak from the heart and let our mamas behind bars in our nation’s prisons know you’re thinking about them. Call to our toll-free 24/7 answering machine now at 877-410-4863 to leave a recording we’ll play over the air.

Follow Strong Families on Facebook and Twitter, and join us by tweeting #mamasday to share the love!

Thank you so much for remaining a fierce fighter for justice this year, all year, every year. We couldn’t do this without you!

A brunch that’ll make you jump up and kiss yo mama! This event celebrates motherhood [Read more]]]> Saturday, May 5th, 2012 — 12:00pm to 2:00pm
SPARK’s House @ 2048 Hosea L. William Drive Suite B

SPARK and Project South, as members of the Dignity & Wellness for Georgia Families Coalition, are proud to host Mama’s Day Brunch!

A brunch that’ll make you jump up and kiss yo mama! This event celebrates motherhood and honors all of our diverse and beautiful ways of building families. Through media campaigns, community outreach, political education, and positive public policy, The Dignity and Wellness for Georgia Families Coalition strives for long-term investment in safe, strong families.

Join us for food, music, photos, and celebration! This event is free to the public and childcare will be provided.

To volunteer, sponsor, or donate, e-mail Bianca Campbell.

Please RSVP @ http://bit.ly/Je0Jpp

Any day now, a billboard could appear on a busy city street in the Washington area featuring a large photograph of an adorable yet pensive looking black girl standing beneath these words:

“The most dangerous place for an African American is in the womb.”

Such billboards, part [Read more]]]> Washington Post - By Courtland Milloy, Published: March 13

Any day now, a billboard could appear on a busy city street in the Washington area featuring a large photograph of an adorable yet pensive looking black girl standing beneath these words:

“The most dangerous place for an African American is in the womb.”

Such billboards, part of a national antiabortion campaign, have already appeared in Atlanta and New York, and similar ones are expected to go up in other cities this year. The stated purpose is to bring attention to the disproportionately high rates of abortion among black women. But the real intent is to shame the black woman, single her out by race and cast her body as the personification of sin and death.

Do white women know how it feels to be attacked like that?

Read full article here.

But such heated debates distort basic women’s health concerns, said Heidi Williamson of SPARK Reproductive Justice Now. The idea that women can walk off the street and get a late-term abortion for example, she said, is the [Read more]]]> Ga. abortion bill adds 
to national debate

Atlanta Journal Constitution – By Christopher Quinn and Shelia M. Poole

But such heated debates distort basic women’s health concerns, said Heidi Williamson of SPARK Reproductive Justice Now. The idea that women can walk off the street and get a late-term abortion for example, she said, is the sort of misconception that goes unchallenged during the emotional exchanges between both sides.

Georgia’s debate is a reflection of what’s happening in the rest of the nation, she said. “It’s getting more arcane with each session.”

Read full article here.

SB 292 and HB 861 will mandate that all recipients of TANF (Temporary Assistance [Read more]]]> TODAY is cross over day at the Georgia Legislature. This means that any beneficial or destructive bills could either die or be passed on for further voting. We need your power to ensure that the harmful legislation mentioned below dies TODAY!

SB 292 and HB 861 will mandate that all recipients of TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), commonly referred to as welfare, and Medicaid pay for and pass a drug test in order to receive benefits for themselves or their children. As Florida proved last year, drug testing is an expensive process and only serves to reinforce the pervasive and dangerous “welfare queen” stereotype which simply is not true.

SB 460 provides a religious exception to employers allowing them to deny coverage of contraceptives under their health policies if it conflicts with their religion.

SB 438 provides that no health insurance plan for state employees will provide coverage for abortion services.

SB 312 mandates that those on welfare must do “personal growth” exercises such as volunteer or some sort of uncompensated work.

SB 469 would limit mass picketing outside private residences and force members of unions and advocacy groups to put into writing every year that they want to pay union dues or organizational fees through paycheck deductions.

That’s quite a lot and it’s just the senate side. We must call in TODAY and make our voices heard! Legislatures will be there until midnight, battling it out. We must end this tireless attempt to regulate and control our bodies!

You can find out information on your state senator and representatives by visiting Vote Smart.

TODAY, we ask that folks call Chairman Jay Neal’s office and explicitly ask him to vote HB 653, The Giving Birth in Safety and Dignity Bill, out of committee. HB 653 will ban the use of [Read more]]]> After two successful events, we are ready to use the momentum of the 5th Annual Legislate THIS! to demand justice!

TODAY, we ask that folks call Chairman Jay Neal’s office and explicitly ask him to vote HB 653, The Giving Birth in Safety and Dignity Bill, out of committee. HB 653 will ban the use of restraints on incarcerated women during childbirth in Georgia.

Enclosed is a script and Chairman Neal’s contact information. Please share this information with your base, particularly to those whom live in Walker or Catoosa County Georgia.

We thank you for your time, dedication, and support in ensuring that all women in Georgia can give birth in dignity and safety. Be sure to let us know how your call went by emailing Bianca!

- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -

Script & Contact Info

Contact: Representative Jay Neal of LaFayette, GA
Office: 706.375.9200
Email: jay.neal@house.ga.gov

Script:

“Hello, my name is ______ (If you live in Walker or Catoosa county, mention where you live). May I speak to Representative Neal?”

If NO: (Be sure to leave a message!)

“Well, I want Representative Jay Neal to vote HB 653, regarding safe birth for incarcerated women, out of committee. It is unsafe for both mother and child, and I am uncomfortable knowing so few counties have policies against this practice. We’ve proven it’s happened recently, and outside of Fulton county. We need a STATE law so that we all fall in line and ensure safe birth for all Georgians. We need Jay Neal to vote this out of committee immediately!”

If YES:

“Hello, Representative Neal. My name is ______ (If you live in Walker or Catoosa county, mention where you live). I want you to vote HB 653 out of State Institutions and Properties! Restrained childbirth is unsafe for both mother and child, and I am uncomfortable knowing so few counties have policies against this practice. We need a STATE law so that we all fall in line and ensure safe birth for all Georgians. Will you put this up for a vote this session? (If NO, what is his hesitation and what information can you/we provide?)

Thank you for your time.”

Thank you to everyone who packed the room at the committee hearing today. Your presence proved to be just as convincing as the testimony and fully demonstrated the community support for this legislation.

Ashley shared her experience in restraints and it left the room quiet. [Read more]]]> You called! You wrote! You showed up!

Thank you to everyone who packed the room at the committee hearing today. Your presence proved to be just as convincing as the testimony and fully demonstrated the community support for this legislation.

Ashley shared her experience in restraints and it left the room quiet. Not a question was asked. She stood strong, held her ground, and compelled the committee to pay attention to this serious issue. Thanks to the expert testimony of our additional witnesses, medical provider Dr. Michael Lindsay, law professor Kathleen Burch, and Georgia Sheriff Association’s Oliver Hunter, the legislation was articulated from every conceivable angle.

After a long and exhaustive discussion, Committee Chairman Representative Jay Neal said, “I don’t want to let go of this bill.” He is committed to doing what he can to get this passed and has moved the bill into a mini-committee!

The discussions in this smaller committee will move fast, and we need to move even faster! Here are four ways you can help pass HB653:

1. Join the core! Come to our planning meetings Tuesdays @ 6:00pm to learn more and join in on this important work.
2. Register for the 5th Annual Legislate THIS! Join us and Dorothy Roberts for Two Days of Action and Power.
3. Call & email your legislators!
4. Donate! We can’t do this work with you. Your generous support allows us to ensure that our community needs take precedent in policy discussions.

Watch the Dignity & Wellness for Georgia Families Coalition present HB653 to the SI&P Committee

Presentation begins at 1 hour.

On February 7th, 2:00pm at the [Read more]]]> As a member of the Dignity & Wellness for Georgia Families Coalition, SPARK would like to invite you to join us for our first committee hearing of HB 653, The Giving Birth in Safety and Dignity Bill, which would end the practice of restraining incarcerated women during childbirth.

On February 7th, 2:00pm at the Georgia Capitol’s Coverdell Building, witness history in the making here in Georgia as women who have experienced the cruel practice of restrained childbirth get their day of justice! YOU have the opportunity to change the lives of women and children by showing up and showing support for the bill and the folks willing to take a stand to ensure its passing.

Join us in the fight for dignity and wellness for all Georgia families!

Here are the ways you can support:

1. Show up on Feb. 7th! We don’t have a room number yet, and are asking that folks meet us on the first floor of the Coverdell Building in the lobby.
2. Share on Facebook and Twitter! We will be sending out action alerts on Friday and Monday, so spread the word!
3. Bring your crew or send them along in your place! Numbers matter and we want to fill the meeting space with as much of our community as possible.

The Coverdell Building is located at 18 Capitol Square (Mitchell Street). You will need government-issued ID to get in. Paid parking is available nearby. The closest MARTA station is Georgia State Station.

You can learn more about the Dignity and Wellness for Georgia Families Coalition by  clicking here.