Posted on June 7, 2021
World Refugee Day – Celebrating the Courage of Refugees Through Art
This upcoming June 20th marks World Refugee Day, a moment to recognize the strength, courage, and resilience of refugees, asylum seekers, and all displaced people whose lives have been uprooted by crisis.
From the conflict zones of Syria, to the threat of famine in Yemen, to Central American families seeking safety at the US border, there are now more than 80 million people around the world who have been forced to flee their homes. Unfortunately, these record-breaking statistics come at a time when the most vulnerable communities face a double emergency: conflict and displacement itself, alongside COVID-19 and the long-term economic crisis it has triggered.
Now, as much of our world is beginning to return to normalcy and as vaccines continue to be administered around the globe, the international community must work together to ensure refugees are not left behind.
At the International Rescue Committee, we have teams in over 40 countries and over 20 US cities, providing immediate relief to refugees at the onset of a crisis, and helping them rebuild their lives once they have settled into their new communities. While it is critical to recognize the ongoing struggles and obstacles facing refugees, World Refugee Day is also a time to celebrate their resilience and contributions, and how accepting displaced people into our communities makes the world a better place.
For 2021, we are continuing to put the spotlight on refugee heroes and recognize how courage and creativity in the displaced experience have intersected to forge a way forward. This year’s campaign will put a specific emphasis on the unique contributions of refugee artists, who are providing hope, inspiration, passion, and belonging.
Throughout the pandemic, art has played an important role in so many of our lives. During times of crisis, art especially has the power to move, inspire, and unite, and to help us feel more connected and less alone during this unprecedented moment in history. Across the IRC’s digital media channels and live activations, refugee artists – including painters, dancers, musicians, and more – will “take over” the internet in a celebration of courage and creativity.
With so much inspirational content being celebrated, there are many ways to participate in the IRC’s campaign and to use your own platform to show that you stand with refugees:
- Share Refugee Art: Take part in the IRC’s digital campaign and share content from our social media channels. We will have an original illustration created by a refugee artist for supporters to share far and wide on their social media feeds. The illustration will be complemented by our marquee artist videos, adding up to a “takeover” of the internet with refugee art.
- Attend our Virtual Summit on Refugee Resettlement in the US: The IRC is bringing together refugee voices, policymakers, and experts to discuss how the US can improve its refugee integration processes and provide stronger education and economic conditions for refugees. Be sure to register for part or all of the event here.
- Learn more at rescue.org for more ways to support the IRC.
Posted on June 7, 2021
Park equity must be focus of COVID-19 recovery
As restaurants, movie theaters, and gyms closed their doors over the past year, local park use increased. It’s easy to understand why. Parks, trails, and open space provided locked-down and stressed-out families with rare opportunities to exercise, get some fresh air, and connect with nature. As the pandemic dragged on, Americans also used parks creatively to help with COVID-19 response, distributing masks, providing COVID testing, most recently, providing vaccinations. 
However, a new discovery about parks made by the Trust for Public Land and reported in our nonprofit’s annual ParkScore® index found that park space is not distributed equitably. Across all cities evaluated by the ParkScore index, residents in neighborhoods where most people identify as people of color have access to 44 percent less park space per person than residents in neighborhoods that are predominantly white. Residents in low-income neighborhoods have access to 42 percent less park space than residents in high-income neighborhoods.
It isn’t right, and it isn’t fair.
Every month CREDO Mobile gives to progressive causes. This month we need you to use your outside voice for The Trust for Public Land! Your vote can help create parks, playgrounds, trails, and protect natural spaces. With one click you can help ensure that all people have access to the health benefits and climate solutions that nature provides.
The 2021 ParkScore index quantified park inequity for the first time, but the inequities themselves have existed for decades, caused by dozens of policy decisions, including redlining, discriminatory zoning, and much more. That’s why we’re working with on-the-ground community members and park advocates to make a more equitable park system as part of the pandemic recovery.
We can emerge from this terrible year a fairer, stronger, and more equitable place. The Trust for Public Land is working hard to promote park equity, but we need your help. Please vote for us today. 
Posted on June 3, 2021
9 ways to reduce your mobile data usage and save money
Over the last year, we’ve been using the Internet more than ever before. In fact, at-home data usage surged during the pandemic as many people transitioned to remote work and learning and spent more time streaming entertainment from home.
Now as life starts returning to normal — and we’re home less often — we could see large spikes in our cellular data usage since our mobile devices will no longer be tethered to our home WiFi networks.
All this cellular data usage may come with unexpected overages and bills, too. Here are some easy-to-follow tips to help you find ways to conserve your data and save some money at the same time.
Connect to WiFi whenever possible
Over the last year, you most likely were connected to your home WiFi network when using your mobile device, which reduced the amount of cellular data you used. Unfortunately, we’ve seen situations where customers thought they were connected to their home WiFi network while watching Netflix, but unfortunately, they were using cellular data and eating up monthly usage. For reference, streaming HD quality video can use anywhere between 1GB to 3GB per hour.
As you venture into the world, you will have opportunities to connect to other WiFi networks to help reduce your cellular data consumption. Here are some quick tips:
- To connect to a WiFi, make sure your WiFi settings are turned on, and you are connected to an available WiFi network. Here’s how to connect to WiFi for iOS and Android.
- If you’re working in an office or other workplace, check with your employer to see if you can connect your device to your employer’s network securely over WiFi during the work day.
- When visiting friends and family, ask to connect to their WiFi network if possible.
Be wary of public WiFi networks
As always, be careful of public WiFi networks, like at coffee shops, shopping areas, or airports, as you may put your personal information at risk. Many times these networks are not secure and other users may be able to see your internet traffic, including your personal information, logins and passwords.
If you are going to use a public WiFi network to reduce your cellular data usage, make sure you are connecting to secure networks and connecting to secure websites and apps. Consider using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) app to encrypt your internet activity (here’s our tip on how to get a VPN for your phone). And make sure not to access personal or financial information on public WiFi.
Here are some more tips from the Federal Trade Commission on how to use public WiFi networks safely.
Turn off Wi-Fi Assist or Smart Network Switch
WiFi Assist (iOS) and Smart Network Switch (some Android models) are built-in settings that try to boost a spotty or slow WiFi connection by using your cellular connection. But, these settings can also use a lot of data, too.
- To turn this setting on or off on your Apple device, go to Settings > Cellular or Settings > Mobile Data. Then scroll down and tap the slider for Wi-Fi Assist.
- On your Android device, go to Settings > Connections > Wi-Fi. Tap the three dots, select Advanced, and tap the slider for “Switch to mobile data.”
Turn off cellular data for specific apps
Some apps are data hogs, and you might not know which ones are eating up your monthly cellular data until it’s too late. Thankfully, you have some control to limit which specific apps can be used on a cellular network for both Apple and Android devices.
- On your Apple device, go to Settings > Cellular or Settings > Mobile Data. Scroll down to see which apps are using cellular data and toggle them on or off. You will also be able to view which apps are using the most data and consider limiting their use only to when you’re on a WiFi network.
- For Android devices, the process may vary depending on the device model. Open the Settings app > Wireless & networks > Data usage > Network access > Selectively uncheck which apps you would like to prevent from using cellular data.
Limit monthly data usage (Android)
Keeping an eye on your monthly data usage will really go a long way to prevent unexpected overages.
Android makes it very easy to limit your monthly data usage with a built-in feature allowing you to set up a warning when you’re reaching your data limit — or by actually limiting your cellular data to a set amount based on your billing cycle. Here’s how to set that up (note: these instructions may vary depending on your device):
- Go to Settings > Network & internet > Data usage > Data warning & limit (or Data limit & billing cycle) to set your maximum amount of data you want to use for the month. Or, tap “App data usage cycle” to set the first day of your billing cycle.
Watch your monthly data (iOS)
Apple devices don’t include the same built-in feature to physically restrict your data usage, so you’ll need to keep an eye on your data use in your device’s settings.
- To see how much cellular data you’ve used, go to Settings > Cellular or Settings > Mobile Data. (On an iPad, it may be Settings > Cellular Data)
- You can also reset your data usage for the “Current Period” here every month so you know how much you’re using each billing cycle.
- Alternatively, you can log into your CREDO account periodically to keep an eye on your data usage, too!
Update apps over WiFi only
If you have your apps set to update automatically, they may be draining your data over a cellular network. You can set your device to update apps over WiFi only to save your monthly data.
- On iOS, go to Settings > App Store > scroll to “Cellular Data” and toggle “Automatic Downloads” to the off position.
- On Android, go to the Play Store and tap Menu > Settings > Auto-update apps, then select “Auto-update apps over Wi-Fi only.”
Disable app data in the background
Some of your apps will continue to gather data in the background while you’re not using your phone. This is a great feature for, say, a news app to give you the freshest information the next time you load the app, but not every app needs this feature.
- To turn this feature off for your apps on iOS, go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh. Here, you can choose whether you want this feature on or off completely, or just WiFi only. You can also toggle this on and off for individual apps.
- On Android, go to Settings > Data Usage to see which apps are using the most data. Tap on the app you’d like to restrict and disable background data.
Upgrade your data plan
If all else fails, you have the option to upgrade to a plan with a higher monthly data limit. In the end, it may be one of the best options if you need more cellular data than your current plan allows.
Learn more about all the plans we offer and find the right one for your data needs.
Posted on June 2, 2021
Vote for Freedom For All Americans, Rainforest Foundation US and Trust for Public Land this June
Every month, CREDO members vote to distribute a monthly donation to three incredible progressive causes – and every vote makes a difference. This June, you can support LGBTQ rights, climate justice and public land conservation by voting to fund Freedom For All Americans, Rainforest Foundation US and Trust for Public Land.
Freedom For All Americans
Freedom for All Americans is the bipartisan campaign to secure full nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ people nationwide. The organization is closer than ever to getting this done, by passing the Equality Act, legislation Congress is considering right now.
Funding from CREDO will help FFAA run highly individualized education and lobbying campaigns targeting conservative senators in 11 states, to provide both personal and public pressure and achieve the 60 senate votes needed to pass the Equality Act.
Rainforest Foundation US
Rainforest Foundation supports indigenous peoples of the world’s rainforests in their efforts to protect their environment and fulfill their rights. Global tropical forests are absolutely vital to combating the worst impacts of the climate crisis.
Your support helps ensure that tropical forests can keep capturing and storing carbon, while also producing fresh air and clean water for generations to come.
The Trust for Public Land
Access to nature is a fundamental human right. Yet, 1 in 3 Americans don’t have a park close to home—including 28 million kids. Trust for Public Land is changing that by collaborating with communities to create parks, playgrounds, trails, and protect natural spaces.
Trust for Public Land is leading a movement to put a park within a 10-minute walk of every American. With your support, TPL partners with historically marginalized communities to protect and develop new outdoor spaces so that all people have access to the health benefits and climate solutions that nature provides.
Your vote this month will determine how we divide our monthly donation among these three progressive groups. Be sure to cast your vote to support one, two or all three by June 30.
CREDO members who use our products and services everyday are the reason we are able to make these donations each month. Learn more about CREDO Mobile and CREDO Energy and join our movement.
Posted on June 1, 2021
Our May grantees thank you for your support
Each month, CREDO members vote on how we distribute funding to three incredible nonprofits. Those small actions add up – with one click, you can help fund groups working for gun violence prevention, food and climate justice and promoting the “people’s history” in education. In May, CREDO members voted to distribute our monthly donation to Brady: United Against Gun Violence, Slow Food USA and Zinn Education Project.
These donations are made possible by CREDO customers and the revenue they generate by using our services. The distribution depends entirely on the votes of CREDO members like you. And for that, our May grant recipients thank you.
Brady: United Against Gun Violence
$57,355
“CREDO is an incredible partner in helping build a movement to take real action, not sides, in the fight to end America’s gun violence epidemic.” – Kris Brown, President, Brady
To learn more, visit BradyUnited.org.
Slow Food USA
$40,965
“Thank you! With CREDO’s support, we center FOOD as a delicious solution to climate justice. As a network of over 115 chapters and 5000 members in the US, we are mobilizing a dynamic network to push for radical change in our food systems.” – Anna Mulé, Executive Director, Slow Food USA
To learn more, visit slowfoodusa.org.
Zinn Education Project
$51,679
“Thanks to CREDO members’ support, we will offer educators more free people’s history lessons to “teach outside the textbook.” Over 128,000 teachers access our lessons and hundreds have joined our Teaching for Black Lives study groups.” – Jesse Hagopian, Zinn Education Project “Teach the Black Freedom Struggle” campaign leader
To learn more, visit zinnedproject.org.
Now check out the three groups we are funding in June, and cast your vote to help distribute our donations.
CREDO members who use our products are the reason why we are able to make these donations each month. Learn more about CREDO Mobile, the carrier with a conscience.
Posted on June 1, 2021
CREDO supports LGBTQ rights all year — not just during Pride Month
Here at CREDO, we don’t change our logo each June during Pride Month. That’s because we don’t need to.
While most corporate brands rainbow-stripe their logos for a month-long marketing campaign and issue statements to prove their LGBTQ cred, CREDO supports our allies in the LGBTQ community all year long.
In fact, since our founding in 1985, our customers have helped us donate more than $14 million to groups like the National LGBTQ Task Force, the Transgender Law Center, the ACLU, Freedom For All Americans (a June 2021 grantee) and dozens of other groups fighting for equality and civil rights.
Standing with the LGBTQ community is a core part of our company’s mission, and we are working every day to create a country and a world where everyone is free to be who they are. Our LGBTQ friends and family need allies all year-long — not just in June — and we’re proud to support them 365 days a year.
If brands want to support the LGBTQ community, they should do so authentically and all year-round, starting with the understanding that Pride Month was founded on resistance, and it isn’t a once-a-year party that corporate America can crash.
And companies who claim to support LGBTQ rights – not just the rainbow logos and cash that follows – should stop donating to the Republican party and lawmakers who are relentless in their attacks on LGBTQ equality.
For example, while telecom giant AT&T swaps out its logo for rainbows and sells Pride-themed merchandise on its website, it was reported in 2019 that the company had quietly donated at least $2.7 million to 193 anti-LGBTQ politicians — not to mention its habitual funding of the Republican party and other right-wing causes who stand in direct opposition to equality and LGBTQ rights.
As right-wing conservatives across the country continue their campaign to strip away the rights of LGBTQ people, especially among the trans community, the LGBTQ community needs allies all year, not just in June. We hope other brands follow our lead.
If you’d like to vote for Freedom For All Americans to receive a portion of this month’s donation, please visit CREDODonations.com.
Posted on May 27, 2021
6 tips for a safe and healthy travel season
Memorial Day weekend is upon us, and that usually means summer travel is just around the corner. This year, as more people steadily become vaccinated, pandemic protocols loosened and cabin fever has worn out its welcome, more than two-thirds of Americans are planning to travel this year.
Even though things aren’t quite back to normal yet, you can still have an enjoyable vacation while being safe. Public health officials recommend taking precautions before you travel since the vaccines are not 100% effective and variants continue to circulate, so now’s the time to plan before that vacation to ensure you and your loved ones stay healthy.
If you’re thinking about taking that long-deserved trip this summer, here are some tips to stay safe while having fun.
Get a vaccine (if you can)
As of this post, roughly 40% of the U.S. population has been fully vaccinated, so our country still has a long way to go before the pandemic is over. The CDC recommends that you delay travel until you are fully vaccinated. If you are unable to get vaccinated and you must travel, the CDC has recommendations for steps you should take to protect yourself and others, like continuing to wear masks, social distance, and getting tested. Depending on your destination, you may be required to have proof of a negative COVID test. If you’re not vaccinated and would like to receive one, visit vaccines.gov to find an appointment near you.
And make sure you can prove it
When it comes to proving your vaccination status, it’s probably best to err on the safe side and have proof with you while you travel. If you’re traveling internationally, some countries may require proof of vaccination or a “vaccine passport,” a digital app that proves your status and could exempt you from lengthy quarantines or testing requirements. New York City already has a vaccine passport that will help businesses keep their customers and staff safe. Likewise, some large venues may also require proof of vaccination. Here’s more about vaccine passport apps from The Points Guy.
In the United States, your proof of vaccination is the COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card, the paper card you would have received after your shot. Make sure you take a photo of your vaccine card on your phone, but don’t laminate it. Visit the websites of your airline, hotel and other businesses to double-check their requirements for proof of vaccination or negative test results.
Don’t forget your mask
Even if you’re vaccinated, it’s not quite time to retire that mask just yet. Mask-wearing is still required on public transportation, including planes, buses, trains and subways, and many venues, businesses and municipalities may require them. It’s also a thoughtful gesture to those who aren’t able to get vaccinated, and wearing a mask can put others at ease. Just try to ignore the anti-maskers.
Find a mask that you feel comfortable in for extended periods of time, especially if you are flying long distances, and bring multiple masks that work for you.
Keep your hand sanitizer handy
When you’re traveling, you’re also bound to touch a lot of contaminated surfaces, like elevator buttons, pens and handrails, so keep your hand sanitizer close since it may not be available everywhere you go to prevent spreading any virus.
While you’re at it, check out our recent tip on how to disinfect your phone.
Watch out for online travel scams
While you may be primarily concerned about protecting your health this travel season, be sure to protect your wallet and bank account too. According to consumer advocacy organizations, travel scams are on the rise this year as people begin looking to save money.
As you search online for flights and hotels, be wary of rock-bottom prices (those pandemic deals are over). Scammers are out there looking for people who are searching for terms like “best airfare deals” and directing unsuspecting users to fake airline ticketing sites or fraudulent customer service numbers.
The Better Business Bureau suggests avoiding overly broad searches like “great deals on travel” and only book through reputable companies, not shady third-party sites. Don’t click links in your email or pop-ups offering “free” anything, and watch out for telemarketing calls or texts offering deals on travel.
Check out our recent tip on how to protect yourself from online scammers.
Consider a local day trip
Traveling locally may be your best bet if you want to stay safe this travel season. Find a nearby hike with few people, a bike trip with friends, or an outdoor food festival, concert or movie with social distancing. It may not be the big, post-pandemic vacation you’ve been hoping for, but it’s one step closer to normalcy. The upside? You’ll be reducing your carbon footprint this summer, as a short drive or riding public transportation emits far less carbon than that long international flight.
Posted on May 25, 2021
How history is taught matters: Results of our survey with Zinn Education Project
How history is taught matters, especially Black history.
That’s why, as our country continues to wrestle with issues of racial justice and civil rights, we recently reached out to CREDO members to answer a short survey in collaboration with our partners at Zinn Education Project about their experiences learning Black history in school and how that informs their views about systemic racism, voter suppression and white supremacy.
More than 5,000 CREDO members shared their experiences with us, and here are the results.
Do you remember learning about the Civil War and the Reconstruction Era in school?
We first asked our members if they remember learning about these two closely-related periods in 19th Century U.S. History. Not surprisingly, most respondents remember learning about the Civil War, but many fewer remember learning about Reconstruction, the era that immediately followed the Civil War and emancipation.
According to Zinn, “too often the story of this grand experiment in interracial democracy is skipped or rushed through in classrooms across the country,” and “the possibilities and achievements of this era are too often overshadowed by the violent white supremacist backlash.”
During the Reconstruction Era, mass political participation by Black people secured many new rights and freedoms.
Which of the following, if any, do you remember learning about?
Likewise, a large plurality of respondents were not aware of the new rights and freedoms afforded to Black people during the post-slavery Reconstruction Era.
There is a growing movement of educators committed to teaching people’s history in their classrooms.
What do you think are the top two benefits of young people learning people’s history?
Howard Zinn wrote the landmark 1980 publication A People’s History of the United States which tells U.S. history from “the point of view of — and in the words of — America’s women, factory workers, African-Americans, Native Americans, the working poor, and immigrant laborers.” Zinn Education Project and many educators are now starting to teach the “People’s History,” and we asked our members how students will benefit from this approach.
Are you aware that Republican politicians in many states are attacking teachers’ ability to teach about racism in the classroom?
As some schools across the country are starting to adopt new approaches to teaching systemic racism, bias and privilege, conservative Republican lawmakers are using the opportunity to hatemonger, spread fear and inflame even more racism, moving to ban these curricula and propping up so-called “critical race theory” as a strawman.
We asked if our members are aware of these attacks, and a strong majority are.
A main strategy for maintaining structures of white supremacy is voter suppression.
Are you aware of any of these types of voter suppression in the state where you currently live?
Lastly, we asked our members if they are aware of any types of voter suppression occurring in their states. Roughly 60% of respondents are aware of voter suppression efforts.
According to our internal analysis, CREDO members residing in Republican-led or Republican-leaning states — including Florida, Texas, Wisconsin, Ohio, North Carolina, and Georgia — have seen the most efforts to restrict voting rights.
Posted on May 19, 2021
How to protect yourself (and your money) from phishing, vishing and smishing scams
If you’ve received a strange email, call or text recently that made you think twice, you may have been hit with a social engineering scam. Hackers and scammers are always looking for new ways to steal our personal information and money, and they are getting more sophisticated by the day.
Three common cyber attacks, known as phishing, vishing and smishing, are scams that criminals have been using recently to get people to click malicious links or hand over personal information, like a Social Security number, bank account login, passwords and more.
Here are some tips to help you identify these scams and protect yourself.
What’s phishing, vishing and smishing, and how do I spot them?
These are three sophisticated cyber attacks that prey on unsuspecting internet and mobile users to trick them into handing over their personal and private information. The sender may look legitimate, like your bank, credit card company, or streaming service, and ask you to reply or click a link to verify your information or sign up for a chance to win a free prize. When you click that link, you may be unknowingly downloading malware to your device or visiting a fake site that looks just like the website of your bank or cable company.
Phishing — which involves a fraudulent email asking you to click a link or download software — is probably the most popular of the three scams. According to the Federal Trade Commission, Americans lost $57 million from phishing scams in 2019 alone.
- How to spot it: Signs of a phishing email include spelling mistakes and grammatical errors, typos in the sender name or reply address (credomobile.com vs. credoomobile.com) and strange or unexpected links pointing to a different URL than what is displayed.
Vishing is a portmanteau of “voice” and “phishing” and is a scam where criminals call or leave a voicemail asking for personal information. A vishing scammer will commonly spoof a phone number to make it look like it originated from a trusted source, like a local bank or an 800 number, and will try to convince you to reveal personal information. The FBI recently issued warnings that vishing scams are on the rise by organized crime rings, especially during the pandemic.
- How to spot it: Signs of a vishing call include an unfamiliar caller ID, a caller claiming to be from the government, threatening legal action for unpaid taxes or claiming there are problems with your social security account, anyone unwilling to answer basic questions, or recorded messages that sound automated or ask you to press the keys on your phone.
Smishing is an unwanted text message asking for personal information or urging you to click a suspicious link. The word “SMiShing” is a mashup of SMS (short message service, or text) and phishing, so the attack is essentially a phishing scam conducted over text message. The scammer will typically appear to be a trusted source, like a bank or retailer, and attempt to trick you to click a malicious link or convince you to hand over private information.
- How to spot it: A text sent from an unknown number, spelling or grammar errors, or asking you to click a link to verify your information, offering a deal or prize, view an invoice, reactivate an account, or some other action you did not ask for.
How to protect yourself from these scams
- The most obvious: If it feels like a scam, it’s probably a scam. Trust your gut.
- If you receive an unsolicited phone call, text, or email, NEVER hand over your personal information, including passwords, bank account or Social Security numbers. Most creditors, companies and services will never ask for this information when calling you.
- Never click a suspicious link, and never call or text back a number you don’t recognize. The same goes for any suspicious looking emails. Mark them as spam and delete.
- Read our previous tip on how to block robocalls and spam calls.
- Slow down. If the person contacting you is turning up the urgency, it’s most likely a scam. Take a step back and ask yourself if the situation feels right. Again, if this is an organization you recognize, call the customer service number published on its website.
- Protect yourself ahead of time by turning on automatic updates on your computer and mobile device. Turn on multi-factor authentication, especially on your most sensitive accounts.
- If you feel like the call, text, or email is legitimate, hang up with the caller or do not reply to the text message or email. Visit the website of the organization in question and call the customer service number.
- If you’ve handed over your personal information or mistakenly clicked a link that you suspect to be fraudulent, change the passwords to your affected accounts, including your email and bank accounts, immediately. Run a virus or malware scan on your devices. Call the organization or company that you suspect this fraud originated from and explain the situation. Notify your bank, credit card company and/or credit agencies about the situation.
Posted on May 17, 2021
Take Back the Court is fighting the Republican theft of the Supreme Court
After the passing of progressive icon Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Donald Trump and right-wing Republicans rammed through Trump’s third hyper-partisan Supreme Court nominee right before the 2020 election, solidifying for a generation a conservative majority bent on turning back decades of progress on reproductive rights, workers rights, voting and civil rights, the environment, and so much more.
Instead of being America’s last line of defense for liberty, justice and our fundamental rights, the Supreme Court has now become a branch of government reliably looking out for the interests of corporations, the wealthy and the Republican party, over everyday working families.
That’s why, after RBG’s passing in September 2020, CREDO members helped us donate $50,000 to Take Back the Court, an important ally in the fight to expand the Supreme Court and restore the right to vote, ensure reproductive freedom, protect workers, halt our climate emergency and save our democracy.
Since our donation, the assault on our elections, voting rights and democracy has only intensified, with more than 40 states introducing legislation to suppress the vote, especially in communities of color, as well as the insurrection on the U.S. Capitol to overturn the presidential election. This assault on our democracy was enabled by the Roberts’ Court’s outrageous decision to gut the Voting Rights Act.
Take Back the Court has been tirelessly advocating to add more seats to the Supreme Court as the only practical, proportional way to reverse the theft of the Supreme Court and restore its balance, integrity, and independence — and the organization’s victories in the last few months have made waves in Washington and across the country.
In April, the organization advocated for the introduction of the Judiciary Act of 2021, historic legislation introduced by Sen. Ed Markey and Reps. Jerry Nadler, Hank Johnson, and Mondaire Jones, that would expand the Supreme Court from the current nine seats to thirteen as an essential structural reform to counterbalance the theft of the Court by right-wing partisan politicians. The bill’s introduction received 17 original cosponsors, widespread coverage in NBC, CBS, Vox, Good Morning America and other major outlets, and a massive coalition of progressive organizations who back the bill. Speaker Nancy Pelosi even said that court expansion should be considered.
If we want to restore our democracy, end partisan gerrymandering, restore the Voting Rights Act, and stop the flood of unlimited dark money in our politics, the organization argues, then we must un-rig the system and expand the Supreme Court. You can read more about why expanding the Court is so important from Take Back the Court’s director Aaron Belkin in “The Case For Court Expansion.“
Structural reform of this scale won’t be easy, and Take Back the Court needs our help. Here are some ways to get involved:
- Follow Take Back the Court on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!
- Call your Senators and member of Congress and urge them to co-sponsor the Judiciary Act of 2021. The Capitol switchboard number is (202) 224-3121
- Sign Take Back the Court’s petition demanding Senators stand with Ed Markey in support of the Judiciary Act of 2021
