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Constellation of Public Interest Groups Marks the Terrible Anniversary of the Citizens United Decision

January 21, 2011 marked the first anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United decision. To mark the event, the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD), Public Citizen, People for the American Way, MovetoAmend.org (MTA), and FreeSpeechforPeople.org (FSfP) delivered over 750,000 signatures calling on Congress to amend the Constitution and reverse this terrible decision. The Center also worked with the Coffee Party and the Backbone Campaign to organize a legal summit in DC to address the decision and its implications for numerous issues affecting Americans' lives and the American Dream. CMD's Executive Director, Lisa Graves, was asked to speak to these issues along with People for the American Way, Public Citizen, and Common Cause, and moderated a panel presenting amendment strategies by MovetoAmend and FSfP and others, and also participated in a panel on how to find common ground on these issues across the political divide. The events were broadcast on C-SPAN. The Center emphasized the need for a constitutional amendment, and that legislation like the DISCLOSE Act alone was not enough: "Disclosure is important, but is no substitute for the reforms we need. The problem is not just lack of disclosure but the corrupting influence by corporations on elections.". CMD is a co-founder of MTA's grassroots efforts, which is over 100,000 voices strong, and also works in the constellation of public interest groups, including People For, Public Citizen, Common Cause, FSfP, and other national groups to try to help improve coordination among these efforts to amend the Constitution.

How else can you get involved?

Organize locally! View resources on how to get more involved here, here, and here.

'Join the movement!' Join the Center for Media and Democracy and almost a million Americans in calling for a constitutional amendment. You can sign up to help with referenda against the idea behind Citizens United that corporations are entitled to constitutional "rights" and the pernicious notion that spending money equals speecch and thus cannot be regulated at Move to Amend and Movement for the People. If you are interested in focusing on fighting corporate constitutional rights you can also help support Free Speech for People. For local activities, check out the Move to Amend events page and calendar, or search for events on the Movement for the People website.

'Sign the Petition!' To stay up to date on the latest news on these and related issues, let the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) know that you agree our laws should put "Americans Before Corporations" by clicking here if you agree that:
 * It's wrong to give corporations the same rights as people, especially when it comes to our elections.
 * A corporation isn't really a person.
 * Corporations are created by statute to help maximize profit and limit legal liability.
 * Corporations can't go to jail when they hurt or kill someone; they're different from real people.
 * And they just aren't entitled to all the same rights that are constitutionally guaranteed to human beings.
 * Plus, corporations have so much more money than most ordinary citizens that their influence drowns out the voices of we the people in our democracy.