Last week Empower Missouri was joined by almost 200 advocates, community members, and supporters for our Day of Action at the State Capitol. It was a fantastic day of advocacy, camaraderie, and community. Attendees reached every corner of the Capitol, and it seemed like every time I turned a corner or stepped onto the elevator, I was greeted by a group of advocates in our gray Day of Action shirts with “salus populi suprema lex esto” across the front. (This phrase is the Missouri state motto, which translated from Latin means the welfare of the people shall be the supreme law). Attendees met with more than thirty state senators and representatives to advocate for Clean Slate, expanding access to free school meals, and maintaining community-based tenant protections. A special thanks to our cohosts for the day, Compass Health Network and Habitat for Humanity of St. Charles County, who were great additions to the event.
The day ended with a closing rally in the first floor rotunda. The lineup of speakers included our Executive Director Mallory Rusch, housing advocate Heather Powell, Mandy Hagseth from Missouri Family Health Council, community justice advocate Patrick Benson, school nutrition manager Brooke Herrington, Representative Bill Allen, Representative Stephanie Hein, and Representative Brian Setiz. We heard great insights about community justice, access to free school meals, and the importance of housing vouchers to provide stable housing. Thanks to all of these speakers and a special thanks to the community speakers who shared their powerful personal stories.
A few other highlights from the day:
- Watching groups of attendees return from legislator visits with energy and purpose
- The largest pile of sandwiches to ever (almost) fit in my children’s red wagon
- Bright-eyed Empower Missouri staff and Clean Slate supporters who travelled from all over the state to an 8:00 a.m. hearing to show their support for House Bill 953, the main Clean Slate bill in the House. The hearing was well-attended and over 70 people submitted online and in-person testimony in support of the bill
- Groups of students and professors from University of Central Missouri, Central Methodist University, and Saint Louis University
- Hearing the inspiring words from our community speakers loudly echo in the rotunda
There is great momentum from our collective advocacy last week and there is still much work to be done. There are key bills like Clean Slate that we continue to work hard to get passed this legislative session and harmful bills that we are fighting against. If you are interested in joining us in this fight, please visit our Action Alerts page. This page has all of our current action alerts so that you can easily contact your state legislators about passing Clean Slate, expanding access to free school meals, maintaining tenant protections, establishing independent oversight of Missouri’s prison system, and more.
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