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Webinar Rewind: Diversity in the democracy reform movement

Diversity in the Democracy Reform Movement

As protests sweep the country in response to continued police violence against Black people, many democracy reform leaders say that achieving racial justice and fixing our broken political system are two sides of the same coin. Amendments to the Constitution have been rooted in protecting the rights of citizens and making the system more accessible to those who had been excluded, including Black and Native Americans and women. Democracy reform has, from its inception, been about bringing about allowing all Americans to have a viable voice in our government.

The Fulcrum convened reform leaders to talk about the importance of leaning into the diversity of the movement and how the foundations of democracy reform are built on social justice and civil rights.

The Fulcrum's audience development editor, Tristiaña Hinton, moderated a discussion with:
• Gilda Daniels, litigation director at the Advancement Project
• Jacqueline De Léon, staff attorney for the Native American Rights Fund
• Khalid Pitts, executive vice president of policy and programs, FairVote


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Michelle Martinez, University of Michigan (U-M)

Michelle Martinez, the inaugural director of the Tishman Center for Social Justice and the Environment at the University of Michigan (U-M)

At the University of Michigan, Environmental Justice Starts With Who Gets to Decide

When Michelle Martinez talks about climate change, she does not begin with temperatures, emissions, or models and projections.

She begins with people. For Martinez, the inaugural director of the Tishman Center for Social Justice and the Environment at the University of Michigan (U-M), climate change is already being experienced through the housing, economic, and political crises confronting communities today. And that makes climate justice inseparable from a more basic civic question: Who has the power to decide what happens to a community?

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Hand of Man Pointing to an I Voted Sticker

Close Up Hand of Man Pointing to an I Voted Sticker Place on His Shirt

Getty Images

Voters Want Results. The Midterms Made That Clear.

The 2026 midterm elections were never going to be a referendum on one person. They were always a test of whether Americans believed their leaders were addressing the issues affecting their daily lives.

Voters delivered a clear message in the midterm elections. The results were historic. Democrats not only reclaimed control of the House of Representatives, but also captured a majority in the U.S. Senate.

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A woman protesting holds a sign that readds, "Our Raise! Labor Safety Costs, surrounded by other people.

Uber drivers participate in a rally outside of the Uber Headquarters on January 05, 2023 in New York City. Uber drivers in NYC participated in a 24-hour strike outside of the company's NYC headquarters

Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

21st-Century Gig Workers Need Portable Benefits

In recent years, the US labor force has been undergoing a fundamental transformation. In today’s "Uber economy," gig workers, freelancers, contractors, temps, permatemps, remote workers after COVID, and so-called “independent workers” have been championed by Silicon Valley and Wall Street as the “new way to work”—the wave of the future, especially with AI changing the nature of work itself.

Many US consumers have driven in an Uber taxi, but don’t realize that most drivers earn below minimum wage after accounting for vehicle expenses, gas, maintenance, and unpaid time waiting for passengers. Those drivers are so-called “independent contractors,” so the billion-dollar Uber is not responsible for providing healthcare, Social Security contributions, workers' compensation, or unemployment compensation, not to mention sick leave or vacation pay.

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