Washington (CNN) - Several leaders of progressive organizations announced Friday they will join a group of 6,000 participants in fasting to protest budget cuts that would affect those living in poverty in the U.S. and abroad.
Executives of MoveOn.org, Service Employees International Union, the Center for Community Change, and ColorOfChange.org are among those that have jumped onboard. They will protest the proposed cuts with fasting, advocacy, and prayer, Tony Hall, former Ambassador to the United Nation Agencies for Food and Agriculture, told CNN.
The group said in a statement that their protest focuses on the proposed budget cuts that would eliminate $7.6 billion from domestic programs that impact low-income women and children. Other cuts would potentially eliminate feeding programs for 18 million of the poorest and hungriest around the world, and could cause low-income seniors to lose their monthly nutrition assistance, the group stated.
Hall and Jim Wallis, president and CEO of Sojourners, announced the fast Monday with support from a broad coalition of religious leaders.
"Everybody who is fasting believes in fiscal responsibility but not in making cuts that will hurt the poorest of the poor," Ambassador Hall said, adding that he advises people to contact their representatives and pressure them not to cut funding for the poor and hungry.
"At a time when billionaires are getting massive tax cuts and Wall Street profits are sky high, balancing the budget on the back of the most vulnerable in America is simply immoral," Justin Ruben, Executive Director of MoveOn.org said in a statement. "I am fasting because this budget will leave pregnant women and children hungry, sick people without healthcare, children without pre-school and students without teachers-while giving tax breaks to those who caused this crises."
Mary Kay Henry, President of the Service Employees International Union, Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World, Ritu Sharma, president of Women Thrive Worldwide, Rick Jacobs, Chair and Founder of Courage Campaign; Joaquin Guerra, Executive Director of Presente.org will be among the participants.
As the situation progresses into next week, Hall will call on members of Congress to join in the fast.
From CNN Politics
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Moveon.org engaging in prayer ? I don't think so. Are you kidding me, CNN ?
I am proud to be one of those that signed up. I donate to Boca Helping Hands now but, I will donate 3 meals a day for the 5 days that I have agreed to fast. Please join in fasting and donating. It is good for everyone involved. We lose a little around the middle and we can feed those that need it more.
I see many just want to turn up the printing presses. Ignoramuses.
Are you listening Obama? Here's a guy who cuts off help for the poor with their heating bills, but finds the money for the Dept. of Energy to help corporations put electric motors in fleet vehicles. I guess he's greasing up the deep pockets for 2012.
Well, FLOTUS is out there saying we are an obese nation. These folks can get on that bandwagon and help her achieve the goal of being slim and trim just as she is.
How come no Tea Partyers are joining this fast? Don't they believe in helping ALL Americans, not just those like themselves? Good test of their professed Christianity I think.
Let those fools give their food to someone that can use it. Then they can give their air to someone else as well.
A taste of things to come. We are broke. No budget cuts – we will not be able to eat. Typical libs...
I would strongly reccommend protesters do anything more realistic like get more concderned about a USA economy that is about to burst at the seems instead of fretting over things world wide. Charity starts at home. One cannot fund the world when they have millions of their own starving and homeless.
It is time to get our duckies in a row at home...then we can rethink the world issues.
"At a time when billionaires are getting massive tax cuts and Wall Street profits are sky high, balancing the budget on the back of the most vulnerable in America is simply immoral"
I fail to see how fasting and prayer are going to do much to help this cause. I'm sorry, but I'm calling for more advocacy on this one.
Will Michael Moore be participating?
Can it, MoveOn. We need to cut spending and lower the deficit. You want to help the poor? You raise the money.
1. MoveOn.org, = GEORGE SOROS
2. Service Employees International Union = GEORGE SOROS
3. Center for Community Change = GEORGIE SOROS
4. ColorOfChange.org = GEORGE SOROS
Need I say more?
Jim Wallis of Sojourners = GEORGE SOROS
Mary Kay Henry, President of the Service Employees International Union, Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World, Ritu Sharma, president of Women Thrive Worldwide, Rick Jacobs, Chair and Founder of Courage Campaign; Joaquin Guerra, Executive Director of Presente.org will be among the participants.
NOT SURE ABOUT THESE
They should give all the food they don't eat to the poor.
Gee, I've been fasting along with my family for the last three years while sitting at home an unemployed professional. Time for the tax funded self absorbed "where's my annual 4% CLI?", to get a little taste of the unemployment line! My vote as well as everyone that I know is for Congress to cut their hearts out, we are tired of funding better for those that serve us than we can provide for ourselves.
I'm with you on this protesters, but don't put your health at risk. I notice that republicans and the governor of Arizona now want to tax people for Medicaid benefits if they are obese, have diabetes, or are over weight. Isn't that called discrimination? Oh, that is right, republicans don't care! I can't wait to see the formula to determine if people are over weight? By who's standards?
ask GOP thugs.....they want all the needed cuts, that this nation now direly needs....idiots...education cuts...so that they can send to war, after coming just like a chunk of bone to dog, give some 300 dollars a month, as war vet....then GOP can grow rich on oil....again, same old story....this is what is happening in here...wake up....root out GOP idiots....god bless, America...
The GOP in Congress fast?
Miss a meal for poor and old people?
Give up a snack for to prevent starving poor infants?
Has any one looked at the top GOP candidates?
Huckster, Barbour, Gingrich and Cain?
When was the last time one of them missed a meal?
And for poor people?
Please, they are called Greed Over People for a reason.
Compassion for those less fortunate, was hidden under the hood at the tea bagger's traveling KKK rallies
These people are completely at liberty to ask for voluntary donations for their various programmes–and if they can't get donations from a majority of the people of this country, then they wouldn't get votes of support from a majority either and thus, in a democracy, those programmes should not exist.
Charity is a fine thing, but it's not charity when its the result of government coercion. Then it becomes nothing more than a kind of servitude imposed on responsible, productive, people to give unearned benefits to the irresponsible, the improvident, and the indolent.
Well, since they are not eating, then they can donate the savings to the governmewnt so my taxes will not go up to pay for these social/welfare programs.
I won't lose a bit of sleep if a bunch of commies go hungry...
Poverty, hmmm most of the country is there thanks the that black muslim lover thats in The Peoples White House, Impeach pigbama