Editor’s note: Mary Alice Carr is vice president for communications at the National Institute for Reproductive Health

New York (CNN) — As a reproductive rights advocate and a proud mother of two, my blood ran cold as I read about Oklahoma’s new abortion legislation (HB 2656). The state of Oklahoma just decided, and by an appallingly high margin I might add, that a doctor is protected from being sued if he or she chooses not to tell a woman that the baby she is carrying has a birth defect.

State legislators made this decision Tuesday, voting 36-12 in the Senate and 84-12 in the House to override Gov. Brad Henry’s veto of this law. (The Legislature also overrode the governor’s veto of a second egregious law, HB 2780, which forces women to view an ultrasound before having an abortion.)

Oklahoma, what have you done?

Under this new law, a doctor may withhold information, mislead or even blatantly lie to a pregnant woman and her partner about the health of their baby if the doctor so much as thinks that fetal test results would cause a woman to consider abortion.

As expected, the anti-abortion movement is claiming victory. But this bill isn’t “anti-abortion.” It is devastating because it is anti-motherhood and anti-medicine.

When I found out I was pregnant with each of my children, like every woman who has ever undergone fetal testing, I held my breath at each doctor’s appointment. I didn’t let it go until the doctor or the tech said, “Everything looks great.” I seized up when they took out the blood work results and I didn’t relax until I heard, “It all came back negative.”

But a woman in Oklahoma no longer gets to exhale. Because now, when a doctor says, “Everything looks fine,” she has to wonder; does it really? Oklahoma politicians have now said that she can no longer count on the sacred trust that always existed between her and her doctor. A doctor may now lie to her face and, in doing so, deny a woman what is quite possibly the most important piece of information she will ever receive in her life.

The very thought makes my breath catch even now. The information you get on those visits matters to every woman getting prenatal care, regardless of what she decides to do based upon the results. The legislators have decided that a woman, when she becomes pregnant, loses the right to full, honest information from her doctor.

It is her right to know this information. It is how she and her family determine what to do next, not only to decide if they want to continue a pregnancy, but also to consider how they will prepare to care for a special needs child.

What specialist will they turn to? What support will they require? Who will hold their hand in the delivery room if a child is born who will only live an hour, or a day? Does she want to call her own mom in from across the country or does she want to grieve silently with her partner? What will they tell the children they already have?

Doesn’t every family have the right to the information that may help them decide the course of their future or the future of their child? According to the Oklahoma State Legislature, they no longer do.

These politicians have decided they know best what women need. They are wrong.

I ask each politician in Oklahoma who voted yes on this bill: How dare you? How dare you deny a woman the peace of mind that her baby is healthy? How dare you not give her and her family time to prepare if, God forbid, her baby is not? How is this bill “pro-life”? How is this mockery of medical care and paternalistic devaluing of women, “pro-life”?

This bill is anti-mom, it’s anti-doctor and it is anti-family. And all women, regardless of how they feel about abortion, should be appalled. I hope the courts stand up for the women and families whom politicians have turned their backs on and find this law unconstitutional and flat-out wrong.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Mary Alice Carr.
Originally posted and published here:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/04/28/carr.abortion.oklahoma/index.html

Filed under: Uncategorized

Is The First Amendment for Monotheists Only?

A case coming before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals could end up having major legal ramifications for all religious minorities in the United States. Wiccan chaplain Patrick McCollum has been fighting for years to overturn the State of California’s “five faiths policy”, which limits the hiring of paid chaplains to Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, and Native American adherents. While McCollum has suffered setbacks in his quest, with a California federal district court ruling in early 2009 that he had no standing to bring his suit, he recently gained support on appeal from several civil and religious rights groups who argue that his case should be heard.

“McCollum’s central claim strikes at the heart of the rights and freedoms that the Establishment Clause, the Equal Protection Clause, and Title VII were designed to guarantee. A state policy that classifies on the basis of religion (or any other protected ground) epitomizes disparate treatment that is properly subject to challenge by a member of the excluded group.” – From an Amicus Brief submitted by Americans United For Separation of Church and State, The Anti-Defamation League, The American Jewish Committee, The Interfaith Alliance, and The Hindu American Foundation

While decisions made so far have focused only on whether McCollum has standing as a taxpayer or non-inmate to bring his suit, a new Amicus Curiae filed by the National Legal Foundation, on behalf of a conservative activist organization called WallBuilders, argues that McCollum has no standing because modern Pagans aren’t guaranteed the same Constitutional rights and protections as Christian or monotheist citizens.

“The true historic meaning of “religion” excludes paganism and witchcraft, and thus, does not compel a conclusion that McCollum has state taxpayer standing … paganism and witchcraft were never intended to receive the protections of the Religion Clauses. Thus, in the present case there can be no violation of those clauses … Should this Court conclude that McCollum has taxpayer standing … this Court should at least acknowledge that its conclusion is compelled by Supreme Court precedent, not by history or the intent of the Framers.”

These statements, while certainly not representative of modern-day understandings of the Religion Clauses, have been seemingly welcomed by the California Dept. of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), as the amicus gives no indication that they are missing consent from the defense.

“Wallbuilders files this Brief pursuant to consent from Counsel for Plaintiffs-Appellants and pursuant to the accompanying Motion For Leave to File a Brief Amicus Curiae.”

Indeed, instead of rejecting such a blatantly discriminatory  amicus, according to McCollum, in a statement sent to The Wild Hunt, lawyers for the CDCR have argued from the beginning of this long legal saga that there are two “tiers” of religion in America.

“I originally sued on behalf of myself and Pagan inmates as their chaplain, but about a year later several inmates joined the lawsuit.  Together, we claimed that it is unconstitutional for the state to deny the Pagan inmates their religious rights, their religious materials, and their religious services.

During the course of the case, the CDCR, other related defendants, and the Assistant Attorneys General who represents them have argued before the court that Pagans are not deserving of equal civil rights as are provided adherents of the preferred faiths.  In one of their first arguments to the court, the defendants said that certain “traditional” faiths are first tier faiths and that those faiths were meant to have equal rights and  protections under the United States Constitution, but that all of the other faiths were second tier faiths, and were not meant to have the same equal rights and protections under the United States Constitution as the first tier faiths.”

The bold claim in the WallBuilders’ amicus that modern Pagans have no Constitutional claim to protection under the Religion Clauses is the plain-speaking truth behind the more nuanced claims of faith “tiers” or “traditional” faiths made by the CDCR’s legal counsel. The brief reveals, in the words of McCollum, the “real culprits” behind this long struggle.

“I was told by a wise person early on in my legal battle with the CDCR and the other defendants that in every civil rights case the true nature of those opposing the civil rights of the injured parties would eventually rear their ugly heads, and that it would then become crystal clear who was actually calling the shots on their side and what their objective was.  Yesterday with the filing of this most recent brief, I think I can safely say that the real culprits have clearly shown themselves in full form — and that their goal is to tear down the religious freedoms of all faiths, except a privileged few,  to create a theocracy of privilege similar to the one that spurred the discriminations and abuses on account of religion, which prompted the American founders to form a new nation with liberty and justice for all–a new nation free from such coercion.

If the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals should decide that this line of argument has any validity, it could send a shock-wave through the legal community, casting doubt on any number of legal cases that now ensure the equal protection of religious minorities. This case, fought for so long, and simply to keep a Wiccan from possibly getting a paid chaplaincy position, has already created a “two-tier” religious system for incarcerated Pagans in California. Guaranteeing that some faiths are more equal than others.

In the face of these recent developments, McCollum calls for modern Pagans and their allies to speak up against this injustice.

I think it is now time for our community, and also for people of good will in other faiths and religious communities of conscience to respond to this outrageous position in support of continued discrimination by a governmental agency.  The safety and security of every minority faith community in the country is in danger when arguments like these are thought to be credible by anyone.

We all need to write to Jerry Brown, the California Attorney General, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Mathew L. Cate, the Secretary of the CDCR and let them all know our outrage.  And if you are a Pagan or Heathen, then we must also demand equal treatment, equal accommodations, equal access to our religious items for institutionalized persons, including prison inmates, and equal access to paid Pagan chaplains.”

It seems increasingly clear that arguments in this case over “taxpayer standing” has been something of a red herring, obfuscating the true history of this legal odyssey by McCollum and the Pagan inmates he is fighting for. This is about civil rights and our religious freedoms, not just a chaplaincy job in a prison. One can only echo McCollum’s sentiments, that the time to speak out is now. The time to stand behind and support McCollum is now.

You can be sure that I will continue to follow and report on this case, and that I will make more information and documents regarding this appeals process available as I have them.

Relevant Documents:

• Statement by Patrick McCollum
• Amicus Curiae by The National Legal Foundation on behalf of WallBuilders
• Amicus Curiae by Americans United For Separation of Church and State, on behalf of Americans United, The Anti-Defamation League, The American Jewish Committee, The Interfaith Alliance, and The Hindu American Foundation
• Amicus Curiae by the Florida Justice Institute and the Legal Aid Society of New York

View Original Post at The Wild Hunt

Filed under: Blogging, Causes, Civil Rights, Faith, Pagan, Persecution, Religion

When I picked up my youngest daughter from daycare yesterday, I caught a whiff of cigarette smoke in the front room. Thinking maybe my daycare provider had just been standing too close to the open door when she had her smoke break, I didn’t worry too much about it until I bent down to help my daughter with the zipper on her winter jacket, which had gotten stuck. I almost reeled back at the stink that hit me from her jacket, and even worse, from her hair. More cigarette smoke. What the hell? Since I had errands to run and an evening class to get to, I decided to wait until today to talk to my daycare provider about it and find out what was going on.

I asked her about it this morning, and she lied straight to my face about it, saying she never smoked in the house, suggesting maybe the smell was because the parents of some of the other kids smoked and the stink got on their jackets and then transferred to my girl, or perhaps it was because of the old ceiling tiles which had been there since forever and maybe still smelled a little like smoke from years ago when they did smoke in the house, or maybe it was just because she’d spent the weekend washing down all the shelves and cabinets in the daycare and had disturbed some smoke-stinky dust. Or maybe, maybe, it was residue from the winterized plastic-covered windows. What the HELL?!?

I went to work, angry and confused and worried, and pretty much gave myself a migraine over the whole situation. I even texted one of the other parents to ask if they’d ever noticed cigarette smoke stink on their kids when they’d picked them up. Sadly, that parent is a smoker as well, and while she swears she never smokes around her kids, she admits she can’t smell it on her kids. She suggested that it might, indeed, be a transfer from her own kids’ jackets.

Hoping that this was the case, I picked up my daughter this afternoon. No stinky-smoke smell in the room. I sniffed all the jackets (feeling like a complete ass the whole time) and smelled – Febreeze! Even the smoker-parent’s kids’ jackets smelled Mountain Fresh. My daughter was wound up (she’d had preschool today, and so, no nap) and my patience was short, and getting shorter by the second, especially when I smelled Febreeze on my daughter’s jacket, and smoke in her hair. We left with a very terse goodbye, and I’ve been literally steaming about the whole situation all night. I even questioned both my daughters, and both have confirmed that she smokes around them sometimes. While I might be dubious of what my 4 year old claims, my 11 year old is very honest.

What I don’t understand and what pisses me off the very most is that my daycare provider would lie to me about this in the first place, and then go to such lengths to cover her ass. She’s been my daycare for four years, has been absolutely terrific, both of my kids love her to death. I’ve never had a problem with her before, have in fact recommended her to several families. I don’t want to change daycares, especially since my kid has such a close bond to her, but now I feel like I can’t trust her, and because the world is what it is and humans are what they are, I really worry about my baby’s safety.

How would you handle this situation?

Filed under: Babies, Daycare, Parenting, Smoking

Come play with us as we craft our very own

Wish Boxes

We all have wishes, dreams, and goals, some easier to attain than others. A common American tradition around  this time of year is to create a New Year Resolution, another type of wish or goal to focus on for the coming year.

Join us as we explore and enjoy this wondrous and magickal turn of the wheel, 2:00 PM at the Sacred Paths Center, through crafting, ritual, myth and song!

When
Sunday, January 17, 2010 at 2:00 PM

Where
Sacred Paths Center

777 Raymond Ave.

Saint Paul, MN  55114

Who should come
pagan / earth-based families

Why
Our meetings will only get better and better as time passes! Don’t miss out on the fun!

What is Pagan Kids N Kin?

Kids ‘n Kin is an Earth-centered program for children and their families. You need not be a member of any group or religion to participate. Because community building requires regular contact, we’re offering our program every other Sunday through June.
Suggested Donation

So that no one need be turned away due to lack of funds for rental space and crafting supplies, we ask that families make donations to support our program. Our costs run about $3-5 per child per session.

Please RSVP to:

kidsnkin@dragondreaming.com if you will be joining us. Be sure to include first names and ages of children so we can be sure to have enough age-appropriate materials on-hand. RSVP’s are received until 9:00 AM on the day of our meeting. If you find you can come unexpectedly, please do so … we’ll stretch
the materials to make do! (RSVP’s really help, though!)

You can also RSVP through our group on FaceBook.com:

http://www.facebook .com/groups. php?ref=sb# /group.php? gid=169440451835

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Snacks:

If you would like to bring a (usually) healthy snack for the KNK crowd, please e-mail us at kidsnkin@dragondreaming.com. We’d like to have different parents taking turns, with 2 bringing something each time. Our parents have gotten very creative with snacks fitting our themes and it’s been quite fun!

Note about healthy snacks: some of us believe that chocolate is proof that the Goddess loves us, and wants us to be happy. Others believe chocolate is a vegetable, since it comes from a bean — although the argument has been made that chocolate is a fruit … in any case, as long as there are no allergies, and you are happy to partake of chocolate with your child, then we accept chocolate items as snacks. This informal policy could change at any time…

*….
.· ´¨¨)) -:¦:- *
*¸.·´ .·´¨¨)) *
((¸¸.·´ ..·´ -:
-:¦:- ((¸¸.·*´

//*\\//*\\//*\\//*\\//*\\//*\\//*\\//*\\*//*\\*//*\\

eGroups:

pagankidsnkin
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pagankidsnkin/ – Kids N Kin moderated announcement list. You may sign up at the site.

KNKPlan
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/KNKPlan/ – Planning & Development team list. If you’d like to take part, ask one of the leaders at a Pagan Kids N Kin meeting!

Other Groups:

Pagan Kids N Kin Home Page:
http://kidsnkin.dragondreaming.com – Where you’ll find our upcoming schedule and a growing children’s Book of Workings that has been developed at Pagan Kids N Kin sessions.

FaceBook  Page
http://www.facebook .com/home. php?ref=home# /PaganKidsNKin? ref=profile

FaceBook Group
http://www.facebook .com/groups. php?ref=sb# /group.php? gid=169440451835

CafeMom.com
http://www.cafemom.com/group/pagankidsnkin – Forum & message board for KNK family & friends

Filed under: Faith, Pagan, Parenting

To all the Pagan Community:

We are a Pagan congregation that is encountering entrenched discrimination
in upstate New York and currently in court fighting for our rights as a
minority religion. The Maetreum of Cybele is a Goddess-centred,
reconstructionist religion. Although we are not Wiccan, many of us come from
Wiccan backgrounds and still practice as such. We have been noted in Margot
Adler’s “Drawing Down the Moon, Pat Telesco’s “Which Witch is Which” and
Raven Kaldera’s “Hermaphrodeities” . Our founder has been active in the Pagan
Community since the 60′s.

We own real property and run a brick-and-mortar establishment in the Town of
Catskill in Greene County, New York. Our property consists of a historic
former Catskill Inn called Central House and approximately 3+ acres of land
with an outdoor Temple/Grove in the hamlet of Palenville. We purchased the
property 2002 and turned it into a Pagan Temple and Convent. A Pagan Convent
you ask? No, it’s not a contradiction in terms. What we do is provide both
temporary and permanent housing for Pagan priestess who wish to dedicate
themselves more fully to serving their community as well as for purposes of
spiritual retreat, safety and growth.

Not long after we purchased the property a local slumlord addressed a town
meeting calling for us to be run out of town by way of zoning and building
inspection harassment. While most of the people in town rejected his call
and welcomed us, nevertheless over the course of the next several years we
weathered continued harassment, vandalism, threats to “burn us out” followed
by harassing and illegal inspections.

We incorporated in 2005, put the property in the name of the
religious corporation and applied for property tax exemption which was
granted in 2006. The following year the renewal of the exemption was
denied without given reason ironically enough within weeks of our Federal
501 (C)3 status being approved. The Town of Catskill has continued to
deny our exemption to this day in open violation of New York tax law
which mandates the property tax exemption for religious and
charitable organizations.

Today our situation is that we are considered behind on these illegal taxes
and thus in potential danger of having our property taken away which is
probably the motive here. Our case is currently in court however we were
forced at the last minute to go “pro se” (represent ourselves) because the
attorney we were working with would not represent us in court. Under New
York law we must have a lawyer represent us because we are incorporated and
we have been ordered by the court to hire a lawyer. We were actually ordered
to use all our connections and networking so this letter is actually by
court order – believe it or not.

We have also contacted the Department of Justice. Because, after three years
of refusing to give a reason for the denial, we were told this year it was
because of a zoning violation which is actually prohibited by Federal law
under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000. We
are hoping, as provided by the law, that the DOJ will pursue criminal
charges.

What we need from the Pagan Community is this:
We need a lawyer, NOW! We’ve been turned away by over 30 lawyers at this
point even though we feel we have an ironclad case with a Judge predisposed
in our favour. We’ve done all the heavy lifting already, researched relevant
law and prepared all the arguments.

If you or someone you has had a similar problem with the Town of Catkill,
New York, we would very much like to hear from you.

We need you to help spread the word about this. Please forward this letter
widely. This issue is one that potentially effects all minority religions,
especially Pagans.

We would like you to come and visit if you are in the area. We open
our property to all compatible Pagan groups for rituals and other events
as well.

We can always use monetary help. We are a poor order and maintain
our property and do our charitable outreach on a shoestring budget that
is being pushed to the limit fighting this battle. You can paypal a donation
from the button at gallae.com

We are also requesting that you send us some positive energy, even if you
can do nothing else. We really need it to prevail, we need all we can get
right now.

You can learn more about us at our websites at http://gallae. com ,
http://centralhouse .gallae.com and updates are at
http://gallaecentra lhouse.blogspot. com To contact us email firstchurch@ …

We feel we have much to offer the Pagan community and suspect that our case
can potentially have far-reaching effects for Pagans as a whole, especially
those who hope to one day own real property and operate their own temples,
monasteries and convents. We ask that you please help us in whatever way you
can. Thank you for your time and attention.

Mother’s Blessings,

Rev. Cathryn Platine, First Battakes

Rev. Viktoria Whittaker, Battakes-in- Waiting

– Cathryn Platine
@)-’–.–’
“He who can lead you to believe an absurdity, can lead you to commit
an atrocity.”
—Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet, 1694-1778)

http://gallae. com
copyright 2009, Cathryn Platine – all rights reserved.

Filed under: Causes, Faith, Pagan

FROM THE ILLUSTRATORS’ PARTNERSHIP

Filed under: Causes, Copyright, Orphan Works

FROM THE ILLUSTRATORS’ PARTNERSHIP

Tags: Copyright, google book settlement, Orphan Works
Filed under: Causes, Copyright, Orphan Works

I am a gamer. I am also a mom, of two beautiful girls, 11 and 4. Both of them are creative and imaginative enough that I wouldn’t be surprised if they follow in my footsteps for at least some of my hobbies.

I’ve been a gamer since, well, ever since I can remember, really… I used to play with my dad’s painted miniatures and dice sets when I was a little girl myself. I made up my own live-action rps with my friends all through grade school – loosely based off of a bizarro combination of the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon, The Dark Crystal, and Star Wars. Sometimes GI Joe was thrown in for fun. My dad ran a mini-campaign for my friends and I in junior high (where I learned that mages are in general too squishy, but they kick ass and take names if they live long enough), and I started “serious” gaming in senior high (where I met my husband and fellow gamer and co-conspirator). “Serious” gaming as in all-weekend sessions, from Friday night to Sunday afternoon. Sleep was rarely a part of that equation.

I gamed as a young adult, trying out several different genres, but always came back to good old AD&D. I gamed straight through both pregnancies (seriously, gaming – and the friends I gamed with – truly helped me through my very difficult and complicated pregnancies – I doubt I could have made it through TWICE without them), and as time allowed, with the babies. Try nursing, rolling the dice, and looking up the details of a spell or obscure rule all at the same time – talk about multi-tasking!

My friends and I still get together on most weekends, though not for the three-day marathon sessions of our youth. My oldest daughter has expressed interest in gaming herself, and we’ve run a couple of mini-campaigns for her and her friends with their input just to keep things interesting. Have you ever heard of carniverous gummy bears? How about ninja monkey-dragons? My youngest just likes to roll the dice and play with the miniatures – though her Dora the Explorer dolls and Little People have more interesting lives than you can imagine.

If you were a gamer, or still are, would you or do you encourage your children in the pursuit of these hobbies?

Originally posted on my Momaroo blog here and then it made it to their front page here!!! Woot!

Tags: dice, Gaming, Hobbies, Parenting
Filed under: Gaming, Hobbies, Parenting

Until recently, I always thought I was a fairly open-minded, open-hearted person. I have always despised people that are not, people that think their way is the only right and true way. Being open-minded, and holding the saying “There is no one true way” very close to my heart, have always been a core part of my values, of my day-to-day existence. My very foundation was terribly shaken recently, however. I have learned I have a dark spot on my soul after all.

My eldest daughter wanted to attend a local bible study with some of the neighborhood kids.

I was absolutely crushed. I am pagan myself, and have been raising my children in my own faith, and encouraging them to ask questions about other faiths so they can make their own decisions when they feel ready. They haven’t really been interested in any other religions, and I thought I was safe.

I struggled a lot with my daughter’s request – my husband can tell you about the absolute fit I threw. Not in front of my daughter – no, this was after I said, sure honey, that’s fine, let me know if you have any questions about what they talk about, and she jogged off happily to learn about Christianity and Jesus and the good ol’ King James Bible. You would have thought, by my reaction, my daughter had told me she was joining a cult that sacrificed babies or something.

I was furious. How would I be able to tolerate my own daughter, my flesh and blood, my soul and center for being, wanting to learn about a religion that, deep down inside, I have deep-rooted resentment and anger towards? Why would she want to learn about that religion, of all the religions in the world to be curious about? What can I do about it, without becoming a hypocrite?

Filed under: Faith, Parenting

FROM THE ILLUSTRATORS’ PARTNERSHIP

Orphan Works: Back Again

6.17.09

In Orphan Works Land, no news has been good news, but that’s about to change:

http://www.ip-watch.org/weblog/2009/06/11/copyright-holders-acknowledge-losing-battle-for-public-consciousness-at-world-copyright-summit/

US Copyright Register Marybeth Peters told Intellectual Property Watch that orphan works legislation is expected to be introduced within the next 10 days. It is her understanding there may still be some issues in the House version to be resolved, and there are some stakeholders – such as illustrators and other artists – “who are probably going to lobby pretty hard against it.”

Peters said this issue is important to her, and the fact it came so close to passing last year is almost bittersweet. “What I hope it isn’t … is it’s one magic moment you get” to finally get it passed, then it doesn’t happen, she said.

We don’t mean to disparage the Register’s comments. She’s had a long and distinguished career at the Copyright Office. But her statement deserves a reality check. Illustrators are not opposed to an orphan works bill. We’re opposed to this bill.

We’re opposed because its scope far exceeds the needs of responsible orphan works legislation.

Moreover, illustrators and artists are not the only stakeholders who oppose it. At last count, more than 83 creators organizations are on record against it, representing artists, photographers, writers, songwriters, musicians and countless small businesses.

Last year, we proposed amendments to the Orphan Works Act that would have made it a true orphan works bill. The amendments were drafted by the attorney who was chief legal counsel to the House Judiciary Committee in drafting the 1976 Copyright Act. The amendments were co-sponsored by the Artists Rights Society and the Advertising Photographers of America. They can be found here: http://ipaorphanworks.blogspot.com/2008/07/hr-5889-amendments.html

On July 11, 2008, we submitted those amendments to both the House and Senate Judiciary Committees. In our preamble we wrote this:

As rights holders, we can summarize our hopes for the Orphan Works Act simply: to see that it becomes a true orphan works bill, with no unnecessary spillover effect to damage the everyday commercial activities of working artists. We’d be happy to work with Congress to accomplish this. No legislation regarding the use of private property should be considered without the active participation of those whose property is at stake.

Last year more than 180,000 letters were sent to lawmakers from our Capwiz site. These letters did not come from obstructionists. They came from citizens whose property is at stake. They may lack the resources of big Internet companies and the access of high powered lobbyists, but last year they spoke. They asked only one thing: that Congress respect their personal property rights and amend this bill to make it nothing more than what its sponsors say they want it to be – a bill that would affect only true orphaned work.

We urge this Congress to listen.

- Brad Holland and Cynthia Turner for the Board of the Illustrators’ Partnership

Filed under: Copyright, Orphan Works