Poor People’s Campaign in Binghamton June 7

 Eastern Southern Tier Poor People’s Campaign holds action to demand Representative Claudia Tenney embrace resolution to end poverty

WHAT: The Eastern Southern Tier Region Poor People’s Campaign holds a news conference and rally outside the Binghamton office of Representative Claudia Tenney to demand that she embrace the Third Reconstruction Resolution to end poverty and low wages in the United States. Emerging from the pain and organizing power of the 140 million people living in poverty or with low wages in this nation, the congressional resolution for a Third Reconstruction reflects an omnibus vision for a fundamental restructuring of society that lifts from the bottom. The nonpartisan resolution is a response to years of movement building to create the collective resolve necessary to implement real and transformational legislative action.

WHEN: Monday, June 7, 2021 from 12PM (noon) to 1PM ET. National online program at 3 PM ET.

WHERE: 49 Court Street (Metrocenter), Binghamton, NY, 13901
Online at   for the national program

WHO:

FEATURED LOCAL SPEAKERS

Salka Valerio lives in Binghamton and works as a community organizer for housing and environmental justice. “I slipped into the cracks of the system and was a victim of human trafficking as a child. From that horrible experience, I now use my voice to shed light on issues of trafficking, and other issues that make people vulnerable to being exploited, such as abuse, poverty, and homelessness.”

Kathy Staples is a lifetime resident of Broome County, NY, mother of four, and an Advocate/Rainmaker with TruthPharm. “I found myself angry and sad all the time. I had a person with Substance Use Disorder at home, I worked a full time job, had three babies to take care of and a mom that needed me. It wasn’t until I found a connection with my community that I found some confidence.”

Latoya Melendez is a resident of Chenango County, NY. She is the mother of six, a veteran of the Army, and a nurse. She recently lost her mother to Substance Use Disorder. She turns this pain into the fuel to fight so that others she loves don’t have to fight this struggle alone.

BINGHAMTON AREA MUSICAL TALENT

Diamond D’Nali has been singing locally since she was 12 years old. She says that the music scene has always felt like her home and she loves to share her passion.  “Singing at events such as this gives me a sense of community and hope for this area.”

Honcho Da Don is originally from Brooklyn and now lives in Binghamton. At 16, he finds the studio is his place of happiness. “I can express how I feel and get my mind off certain stuff. I got a lot of people depending on me and I don’t wanna let them down.”

BSM Swerve works and raps in Binghamton. He says “I’m a young man just trying to make it in life. My pops left when I was younger, so I always wanted to be better than that, for when I have my own kids and for my mom. She didn’t deserve that.”

ALSO ON THE PROGRAM

Rev. Kimberly Chastain of the United Presbyterian Church of Binghamton

Luca Iorga from Owego for Equality

Becca Forsyth and Peaches Gillette, Eastern Southern Tier Regional CoChairs for the Poor People’s Campaign

The Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival

“All power, including state power, originates from organization. The present fact is that the ruling class is organized, while the class of the poor and dispossessed is deliberately maintained as the most disunited and disorganized section of the population. In fact, the organization of the rich rests on our disorganization.” Willie Baptist and Kristin Colangelo, 2021. Read more at the University of the Poor