WHO WE ARE
We are a new organization of North Carolina Quakers. We want to help you advocate for North Carolina legislation and good government practices that embody the Quaker testimonies of peace, simplicity, equality, community, integrity and stewardship.
WHAT WE DO
You’ll see us setting PRIORITIES FOR OUR ADVOCACY and sending out ACTION ALERTS to launch our network of participants into action, and offering resources and training on how to influence NC legislation. SIGN UP for our ALERTS.
READ OUR LATEST ACTION ALERT
THE PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION
November 21, 2020
To All Participants in the Friends Committee on North Carolina Legislation:
FCNCL Policy Statement: We support electoral reform, led by the Religious Society of Friends’ (Quaker) testimonies of Equality and Integrity and in support of our FCNCL minute on anti-racism.
We are asking you to contact Senators BURR and TILLIS:
- TO ACKNOWLEDGE JOE BIDEN AND KAMALA HARRIS AS THE FAIRLY AND LEGALLY ELECTED PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
- TO CALL FOR THE GSA ADMINISTRATOR TO CERTIFY JOE BIDEN AS WINNER OF THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION TO ALLOW HIS TRANSITION TEAM TO BEGIN WORK AND RECEIVE CLASSIFIED NATIONAL SECURITY BRIEFINGS AND ACCESS TO GOVERNMENT SCIENTISTS ON THE CORONA VIRUS TASK FORCE
Free and fair elections are the bulwark of democracy. Republican and Democratic election officials across the country have shown integrity in counting almost 160,000,000 ballots. The Elections Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council and The Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Executive Committees in a joint statement declared that “the November 3rd election was the most secure in American history. Right now, across the country, election officials are reviewing and double-checking the entire election process prior to finalizing the result.”
However, the president has ordered the GSA Administrator not to certify the results of the election, delaying Biden’s team from receiving classified intelligence briefings and engaging with government scientists on the Corona Virus Task Force.
Ask Sens. Burr and Tillis to join these and an increasing number of senate colleagues in stating, at minimum, the importance of Biden’s team having access to the classified presidential daily briefing on intelligence matters:
Mitt Romney (R-Utah), Lisa Murkowski (R- Alaska), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Ben Sasse (R- Nebraska), James Lankford (R-Oklahoma), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), John Thune (R-South Dakota), Lindsay Graham (R-South Carolina), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota), Josh Hawley (R-Missouri), John Cornyn (R-Texas)
In addition, the heads of the American Hospitals Association, The American Medical Association, and the American Nurses Association issued a joint statement on Tuesday urging the Trump administration to share ‘all critical information related to COVID-19’ with Biden. Not doing so, they warned, could jeopardize American lives.”
Talking points for your letter:
- Delays in sharing security briefings undermine the safety and security of our military service members and civilian civil servants overseas.
- There are unknown, possibly serious risks, involved with a delayed transition. When the contested 2000 election delayed George W. Bush’s transition, it delayed his national security team and, according to a finding in the official 9/11 Commission Report, was a contributing factor to the September 11, 2001, terror attacks.
- Having a president with his team in place on day one having critical information about government functions is imperative for an effective presidency.
- The U.S. government is a massive operation that requires a lot of work. Shortening the transition time, especially during the pandemic, threatens to delay the needed help the nation needs to navigate the current public health crisis.
To find your representative and senator, use this link: https://www.ncleg.gov/FindYourLegislators
We encourage you to email us at info@fcncl.org and let us know whatever action you may have taken in response to this alert. Also, if you have any questions about this message or why you are receiving it, please contact us at the same address.
To dowload a pdf of this alert, click HERE.
Next FCNCL Annual General Committee Meeting October 2, 2021
Friends Committee on North Carolina Legislation Minute on Antiracism
(approved at FCNCL General Committee Meeting October 5, 2019)
Responding to and inspired by Friends General Conference’s report (1) on racism, Friends Committee on North Carolina Legislation (FCNCL) commits to becoming an antiracist faith organization. In making this decision we are acknowledging that systemic racism is a long standing and continuing problem in American society. As part of that society, we recognize that as individuals and Quakers we have too often been blind to our own failings and to the part we play in perpetuating structural and institutional racism.
In committing to the work of becoming antiracist, we know that confronting our failures will be difficult and painful. Guided by faith and grace, we are willing to accept this challenge and to do the necessary work. We see this work as essential if we are truly to live our Quaker testimonies and recognize that of God in everyone.
As part of the work of becoming an antiracist organization, FCNCL will ask committees and business meetings to use the query, “How does this decision support FCNCL in its goal to transform into an actively antiracist faith community and in supporting anti-racism policies and regulations in state government?” whenever we make a decision.
- To read what other Quakers are saying in response to recent events, see this statement and compilation of resources from New England Yearly Meeting.
- To see what some Quakers of Color are saying about race issues, visit this compilation of videos at the Quaker Speak website
REVIEW FCNCL’s 2021 LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES
FCNCL uses a corporate discernment process to set our lobbying agenda for North Carolina General Assembly deliberations. These excerpts are from the full statement on 2021 Priorities approved in October 2020, and they are consistent with our Quaker testimonies of Equality & Social Justice, Peace, and Integrity, and with our FCNCL Minute on Antiracism:
- ELECTORAL REFORM – We support:
- Creating an independent non-partisan commission to redraw fair maps
- Legislation that ensures fair and free elections and upholds voting rights.
- Measures promoting strong government ethics
- ACCESS TO QUALITY HEALTHCARE – We support:
- Medicaid Expansion
- Reproductive Rights
- ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION MEASURES – We support:
- Preserving natural areas, air and water quality
- Environmental justice
- Preventing coal ash and concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) pollution
- Mitigating climate change, especially through clean energy and ceasing environmental policy rollbacks
- CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORMS – We support:
- Ending Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids
- Abolishing the death penalty
FCNCL is grateful to Jane Ashley of Flower of Life Press for our logo design
