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Make the Road Action in Pennsylvania, The Center for Popular Democracy, and partners mobilize in Allentown, as part of a national day of action, to proclaim #MitchBetterHaveMyMoney and urge Congress to provide relief for all
On Thursday, Aug. 6, in response to President Trump, Senate leader Mitch McConnell, and Senator Pat Toomey’s failure to provide pandemic relief to families and communities, workers and small business owners will lead a car caravan and rally starting from 1150 S. Cedar Crest Blvd in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Workers and families in Pennsylvania and across the country are taking to the streets as part of a national day of action to demand a federal COVID-19 package that makes free testing and treatment available to all, and provides urgent economic relief to every worker, every family and every small business.
Unemployed workers and excluded immigrant workers will tell their stories and talk about the urgency of extending the $600 per week unemployment benefits, making cash assistance available to all families, and providing grants—not private loans—to small businesses. Together, workers, families and small businesses owners will make the case that #WeAreTheEconomy, which is why we are saying #MitchBetterHaveMyMoney.
This event is part of a National Day of Action under the banner #MitchBetterHaveMyMoney. Actions will take place across 16 states. List of events can be found here: www.mitchbetterhavemymoney.us/
WHO: Make the Road Action in Pennsylvania, CPD Action, Unemployed Action
WHAT: Toomey, #MitchBetterHaveMyMoney – Car Caravan and Rally
WHERE: 150 S. Cedar Crest Blvd, Allentown, PA 18103
WHEN: Thursday, August 6, 2020 at 1 PM ET
WHY: Since the pandemic began in March, over 40 million people filed for unemployment and received the $600 pandemic unemployment insurance. At the same time, all federal relief packages to date have excluded millions of immigrant workers from cash assistance and unemployment insurance, while calling their labor “essential”. Many small businesses in low-income communities of color have been unable to access PPP loans while large corporations have managed to abuse the program. And despite months of efforts, COVID-19 testing is widely unavailable, and treatment unaffordable for millions.
The interests of workers, families and small businesses are the same: people need cash in their hands in order to put food on the table, pay rent, and keep small businesses afloat. That’s why across the country people are demanding three key forms of economic relief: $600 of pandemic unemployment insurance, grants—not private loans—for small businesses to keep people on payroll and cover fixed costs, and cash assistance to every tax payer.
Senator Mitch McConnell and President Donald Trump are pushing to discontinue additional relief payments following the expiration of PUC on July 31st, and the impending expiration of PPP on August 8th. With new cases in the United States breaking records every day, their continued inaction will almost guarantee that more people will get sick, workers will be forced to choose between potentially fatal COVID-19 exposure or devastating economic hardship, and hundreds of thousands of small businesses will close their doors for good.
Information provided to TVL by:
Melissa McCleery
