Bernie Sanders
Sisters, Brothers, and Friends: While the Bill of Rights protects us from the tyranny of an oppressive government, many in the establishment would like the American people to submit to the tyranny of oligarchs, multinational corporations, Wall Street banks, and billionaires.
Are you truly free if you are forced to work 60 or 80 hours a week because you can’t find a job that pays a living wage?
In 1944, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt proposed an economic bill of rights, because he knew that there cannot be true freedom without economic security. He was not able to enact it before his death. Seventy-five years later, that job falls to us.
That is why I am proposing we complete the unfinished work of FDR and the Democratic Party by putting forth a 21st Century Economic Bill of Rights. These rights include:
-Quality health care
-A complete education
-A good job that pays a living wage
-Affordable housing
-A secure retirement
A clean environment
I am asking for your support for this 21st Century Economic Bill of Rights. Will you add your name to say you endorse these rights?
These are my values, and that is why I call myself a democratic socialist.
What I believe is that the American people deserve freedom – true freedom. Freedom is an often-used word, but it’s time we took a hard look at what that word actually means.
Ask yourself: what does it actually mean to be free?
Are you truly free if you are unable to go to a doctor when you are sick, or face financial bankruptcy when you leave the hospital?
Are you truly free if you cannot afford the prescription drug you need to stay alive?
Are you truly free when you spend half of your limited income on housing, and are forced to borrow money from a payday lender at 200% interest rates?
Are you truly free if you are 70 years old and forced to work because you lack a pension or enough money to retire?
Are you truly free if you are unable to attend college or a trade school because your family lacks the income?
Are you truly free if you are forced to work 60 or 80 hours a week because you can’t find a job that pays a living wage?
Are you truly free if you are a mother or father with a newborn baby but you are forced to go back to work immediately after the birth because you lack paid family leave?
Are you truly free if you are a small business owner or family farmer who is driven out by the monopolistic practices of big business?
Are you truly free if you are a veteran, who put your life on the line to defend this country, and now sleep out on the streets?
To me, the answer to those questions, in the wealthiest nation on earth, is no, you are not free.
It is time for the American people to stand up and fight for their rights to freedom, human dignity, and security.
Please add your name to endorse our 21st Century Economic Bill of Rights. Thank you for being a part of our movement. In solidarity.
Senator Bernie Sanders is a U.S. presidential candidate.
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