“…We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.” Declaration of Independence
Our goals:
- Protect direct democracy and the ballot initiative: Corporate wealth and our own governments are blocking community members and grassroots groups from introducing and voting on ballot initiatives.
- Secure the unalienable right of local, community self-government and stop government “ceiling” preemption: States are interfering in local democratic decision-making on environmental, social, economic, and matters of governance; community self-government insures that communities have the authority to broaden rights and enforce legal protections.
- End corporate money in politics: A tidal wave of corporate wealth is drowning out the voice of the people; local law-making efforts can protect our elections from domination by organized capital by addressing the root causes that allow corporations more “rights” in our electoral process than people themselves.
How Does a Community Lose Its Voice?
- State and Federal Preemption – There are laws that allow large corporations to force harmful activities into communities – despite community opposition.
- Corporate Privilege – Our structure of law elevates corporate decision-making over community decision-making. Corporations have court-conferred constitutional “rights.” They wield these “rights” against communities to eliminate local efforts that may interfere with industry plans to expand their operations, regardless of the impact to communities and nature.
- The Regulatory Fallacy – Agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Labor Relations Board, and the Minerals Management Agency do not actually protect us. Rather, they regulate the amount of harm that is inflicted on our communities.
- Nature as Property – Our legal system grants landowners the right to damage the environment, even though the entire community carries the impact.
- Black Hole of Doubt – We think we’re not smart enough, strong enough, or empowered enough – we literally do not believe we have the inalienable right to govern. Sally Kempton, author and feminist, says, “It’s hard to defeat an enemy who has outposts in your head.”
Snohomish County Community Rights 