Gray Panthers Twin Cities - Social justice, ageism, and intergenerational issues.

New Issues:

We have endorsed the Americans United for Change organization both locally and nationally in their efforts to counter the Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. - they call their initiative Medicare Part D Disaster.

Find out more at: www.americansunitedforchange.org

Toy Soldier Campaign - to support our opposition to the Iraq war we are putting plastic toy soldiers around with various messages on them like: "Bring me home." "The war on Iraq was begun on false pretenses and is a failure." "Support the United Nations." "Make peace not war." "Say no to preemptive war." etc. We just leave them in restaurants, or libraries, or bus stops, etc.

We are supporting Grandmothers Against the War in their letter writing project.

Write letters to our grandchildren to tell them why we speak out about peace and social justice. Letters are to pass onto younger generations helpful lessons we have learned. Letters should describe real experiences in your life that have brought you to oppose war.

Find out more...

We have endorsed the Better Ballot Campaign, Instant Runoff Voting for Minneapolis. The Instant Runoff Voting Charter Amendment will be on the ballot in November.

Find out more...

For information on ageism and intergenerational policies click on the Ageism tab on our menu and from the Ageism page look for “Creating an Age-Integrated Society.”

Following are some of the resolutions that address the top three priorities of our National organization. These resolutions were approved at the 2004 National Convention. For a full listing of all resolutions go to the National Gray Panthers web site (www.graypanthers.org).

a. Guaranteed Health Care & Patients Rights

WHEREAS, health care is a basic human need and a right that everyone is entitled to receive, regardless of ability to pay; and

WHEREAS, it is a disgrace that the United States is the only industrialized country in the world which doesn’t provide comprehensive health care to its citizens; and

WHEREAS, the U.S. spends a higher portion of its gross domestic product on health care than any country, a World Health Organization study (in 2000) ranked our health system a shameful 37 out of 191 countries and revealed it ranked 20th in longevity and 18th in infant mortality; and

WHEREAS, 45 million Americans have no health care insurance at all and 42 million or more are significantly underinsured; and

WHEREAS, the American health care system is in crisis, and with the most advanced health care technology in the world, only a few can afford it; and

WHEREAS, the current U.S. health care system does not control its costs by providing high quality services to all before more expensive illnesses develop, and by eliminating excess profits and administrative waste; and

WHEREAS, for-profit HMO’s and insurance companies are restricting access to quality care in order to enhance their profits,

BE IT RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports a single payer, nonprofit, publicly-funded and universal health care system that covers all health care needs, including preventative care, dental care, experimental care, prescription drugs, and long-term care, as examples; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers' Networks in each state pursue the development of a single-payer system in each state, as well as working for passage of national single payer legislation; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers calls on all civic organizations, communities of faith, health care providers and institutions in America to collaborate for universal health care that guarantees comprehensive, quality, affordable health care system for every person in the United States; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports comprehensive
regulation of Health Maintenance Organizations; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports a Patients' Bill of
Rights at the state and federal levels.

WHEREAS, the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) changes Medicare as we know it by providing prescription drug coverage through private insurance companies and private pharmacy benefit managers at the expense of Medicare beneficiaries; and

WHEREAS, Medicare’s new Part D prescription drug plan is seriously flawed because it is complicated and confusing; does not provide adequate outreach and counseling to assist consumers with enrollment; does not provide adequate benefits; allows private plans to change prices at will; uses formularies which are not standardized and may not include all the prescriptions needed by a beneficiary; and puts at risk state and other retiree benefit programs which provide better coverage; and.

WHEREAS, under the MMA, the Medicare program is prohibited from negotiating with drug manufacturers for lower prices, as the VA does to save money, or to import medicines from other countries; and

WHEREAS, prescription drug costs continue to rise, resulting in many people being unable to afford needed prescriptions and being forced to choose between medicines and other necessities; and

WHEREAS, individuals and local and state governments are importing affordable drugs from other countries, while the U.S. government prohibits this activity,

BE IT RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers work to repeal the MMA provisions that privatize Medicare, and replace the Part D prescription drug program with Medicare prescription drug coverage without gaps, based on fair and affordable prices; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that until affordable prescription drugs are available to people in the United States, that there be no constraint on governments from negotiating for lower prices or purchasing lower cost prescriptions from other countries.

WHEREAS, in 1935, Americans called upon their government to create a basic social insurance program for the nation, of which Social Security (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) is a part; and

WHEREAS, the American people have overwhelmingly supported Social Security through taxation; and

WHEREAS, working Americans have also supported continuing refinement of the program and increases in benefits to reflect the cost of minimally acceptable standards of living for the aged and people with disabled; and,

WHEREAS, as a national program, Social Security buffers the costs to State and Local governments for the support of retired and disabled persons; and

WHEREAS, some members of Congress and ideologically-driven theorists propose to cap or decrease benefits, at the same time that a large demographic group approaches retirement age; and

WHEREAS, there are elements in Congress and in American business who would privatize social security; and

WHEREAS, such privatization would destroy the Social Security insurance quality of the program,

BE IT RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers opposes any and all efforts to reduce the effectiveness and reliability of the Social Security Program; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports exploration of a variety of methods to safeguard against shortfalls in the Social Security system, including lifting of the cap on income subject to social security tax, inclusion of State and Local government employees, and other incremental measures that do not require wholesale changes of the program.

WHEREAS, affordable, accessible, safe, and decent housing is a requirement for a reasonable quality of life; and

WHEREAS, there is a crisis in the availability of affordable, accessible and acceptable housing, especially for those who live on limited or fixed incomes; and

WHEREAS, the housing problem is compounded for low wage workers, single parents, seniors and people with disabilities by the lack of adequate public transportation to jobs, health care resources and commercial, educational and cultural centers; and

WHEREAS, an important part of the quality of life is the ability to be involved in the community and not isolated in one’s residence; and

WHEREAS, funding subsidies are needed in order for there to be construction of new affordable and accessible housing and for rehabilitation of existing affordable and accessible housing; and

WHEREAS, the number of homeless people and people living in substandard, often dangerous facilities have increased and continue to increase all over the country,

BE IT RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports public and private policies that preserve and expand funding to create affordable and accessible housing for low-income and disadvantaged persons; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports efforts, by and through government, non-profit organizations and the private sector, to increase the supply of affordable housing, and especially, development of housing with the transportation needs of all residents explicitly included in planning.

WHEREAS, too many years of war and economic embargo have left Iraq with a fragile infrastructure, and unable to provide adequately for itself until normal economic and social life is restored; and

WHEREAS, U.S. policies and actions have contributed directly and indirectly to this situation; and

WHEREAS, it is in the mutual interests of the U.S. and the Iraqi people for the infrastructure to be rebuilt and retained by the people as rapidly as possible,

BE IT RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers urge the President and Congress to provide generously and expeditiously for the rebuilding of Iraqi systems of public health, education, and medical care, and for the development of a viable Iraqi economy; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers support the work of non-governmental organizations, such as the International Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders, as they work with the Iraqi people to achieve these ends; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports the work in Iraq of international organizations, such as the United Nations, by encouraging the U.S. President and Congress to provide adequate financial support for their efforts.

WHEREAS, the U.S., in recognition of its own values of individual freedom and dignity, has traditionally condemned the practice of imprisonment of persons on the basis of their political views or religious background; and

WHEREAS, in the wake of the 9-11 Disaster, the U.S. has arrested and detained many individuals who, in the eyes of the world, are political prisoners; and

WHEREAS, U.S. government leaders and agencies have been slow to differentiate among such prisoners and to identify those who have committed crimes, as opposed to those who have been detained for reasons not directly or legitimately related to public safety or national security,

BE IT RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers urges the President and Congress to resolve quickly the status of persons detained in the aftermath of the 9-11 disaster, affording them protections of law embodied in the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Human Rights; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports the work of Amnesty International, the International Red Cross/Red Crescent and other humanitarian organizations who monitor the status of political prisoners worldwide, and who work for their proper treatment, and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers supports those political prisoners and their advocates who seek justice and freedom for themselves and for others, without resort to violence.

c. Policy on Iraq and Peace

WHEREAS, the United States domination of world affairs includes use of
its overwhelming power for preemptive war rather than complying with
international law, and

WHEREAS, the United States attacked Iraq using false information without
consultation with other organizations and countries, and

WHEREAS, our government's sanctions, war and occupation have damaged
Iraqi infrastructure, such as water, health, electricity, and led to
many Iraqi deaths, and

WHEREAS, the United States occupation of Iraq further damaged the
stability, peace and prosperity of the country and region, and

WHEREAS, the Iraq war caused many American troop deaths and casualties
at enormous taxpayer expense without properly supporting service
families, and

WHEREAS, the United States authorizes massive overspending on the
military rather than on domestic needs, and

WHEREAS, the Constitution established Congress as the body that declares
war and votes for military funds, and

WHEREAS, Gray Panthers strongly opposes all future preemptive wars or
invasions that would further the potential for nuclear war and global
disaster, and

WHEREAS, Gray Panthers seek to pursue peaceful alternatives to war and
reconstruction by strengthening international cooperation and the United
Nations, therefore

BE IT RESOLVED, that the Gray Panthers ask that Congress and the
President bring our troops home without delay, and

BE IT ALSO RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers support the United Nations and
peace efforts to rebuild Iraq, and

BE IT ALSO RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers encourages all concerned
citizens to contact their elected officials, write their local press and
demonstrate when necessary to demand that this Administration bring our
troops home, and

BE IT ALSO RESOLVED, that Gray Panthers encourages all concerned
citizens to work to elect candidates committed to peace and cuts in
military spending.