Move to Amend

In 2009, several national organizations including the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, the Program on Corporations, and Democracy (POCLAD) and [https://www.democracyunlimited.org/ Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County (DUHC) now Democracy Unlimited] submitted an amicus curiae authored by former Massachusetts assistant attorney general Jeff Clements to the Supreme Court in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, a U.S. constitutional law case concerning the regulation of independent political expenditures by corporations, which the non-profit organization Citizens United challenged on the grounds of violating the First Amendment’s freedom of speech. The brief argued against Citizens United and called for the court to reverse its precedents on corporate personhood, citing the 1886 case of Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad Co. that preceded the extension of constitutional protections to corporations under the Fourteenth Amendment.{{cite web | url=http://www.fec.gov/law/litigation/citizens_united_sc_08_pcl&d_supp_brief_amici.pdf | title=Amicus Curiae Brief in Support of Appellee Federal Elections Commission on Supplemental Question | publisher=Federal Elections Commission | accessdate=July 16, 2019| author=Clements, Jeffrey}}

When the Court ruled to allow for corporations to make political expenditures from their general treasuries under the First Amendment's free speech rights in January 2010, several organizers and attorneys from those organizations behind the brief launched Move to Amend as a national campaign to overturn the Citizens United ruling, arguing that the Court’s decision disrupts the democratic process by granting disproportionate influence to the wealthy with the intent of promoting corporate power at the expense of ordinary citizens.{{cite web|title=Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission|url=http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/citizens-united-v-federal-election-commission/|website=Supreme Court of the United States Blog|accessdate=June 21, 2019}}{{cite web | url=https://movetoamend.org/recommended-reading/move-amend%E2%80%99s-quick-guide-highlights-and-low-points-court%E2%80%99s-decision | title=Move to Amend's Quick Guide to the Highlights and Low Points of the Court's Decision | publisher=Move to Amend | date=January 22, 2010 | accessdate=June 21, 2019 }}{{cite web | url=http://www.alternet.org/story/146664/8_words_that_could_save_our_country | title=8 Words That Could Save Our Country | publisher=AlterNet | date=April 30, 2010 | accessdate=June 21, 2019 }}{{cite web | url=http://inthesetimes.com/article/11937/corporations_are_not_people | title=Corporations Are Not People | publisher=In These Times | date=September 19, 2011 | accessdate=June 21, 2019 }}

Move to Amend's strategy has included grassroots organizing to lobby elected officials and candidates to pass local resolutions and ordinances through municipalities, which call on state and federal representatives to support a 28th Amendment and may include holding a "Democracy Day" public hearing. As of November 2023, over 840 local governments and 22 states have passed resolutions and ordinances supporting a constitutional amendment to address the Citizens United ruling."{{Citation | title= Resolutions & Ordinances | url =http://united4thepeople.org/state-and-local-support-2/ | publisher =United For the People | accessdate= July 9, 2019 }}{{Cite web |title=WIUTA - Home |url=https://wiuta.org/ |access-date=2023-10-25 |website=Wisconsin United To Amend |language=en-US}} Over 300 resolutions were passed by voters via ballot initiatives, including statewide initiatives in Colorado, Montana, California and Washington.{{cite web|url=https://ballotpedia.org/Colorado_Corporate_Contributions_Amendment,_Amendment_65_(2012) |title=Colorado Corporate Contributions Amendment, Amendment 65|publisher= Ballotpedia |accessdate=July 17, 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://ballotpedia.org/Montana_Corporate_Contributions_Initiative,_I-166_(2012) |title= Montana Corporate Contributions Initiative, I-166 |publisher= Ballotpedia |accessdate=July 17, 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://www.prwatch.org/news/2016/11/13171/progressive-policies-win-ballot-box|title= Progressive Policies Win at the Ballot Box |publisher= PR Watch |date=November 11, 2016 |accessdate=July 17, 2019}}

Local affiliates of Move to Amend have helped pass many such resolutions supporting the language of the We the People Amendment, including the Los Angeles City Council which voted unanimously to end constitutional rights for corporations in 2011.{{cite web | url=http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/12/06/los-angeles-votes-to-end-to-corporate-personhood/ | title=Los Angeles votes to end corporate personhood | publisher=Rawstory | date=December 6, 2011 | accessdate=December 26, 2011 | author=Dolan, Eric W.}} In Ohio, local ordinances supporting the amendment and creating a "Democracy Day" public hearing to examine the local impact of political influence by corporations have been passed by municipal governments and voters via ballot initiatives, including Cleveland and Toledo.{{cite web |url = https://www.cleveland.com/brecksville/2013/02/first_ever_democracy_day_draws.html#incart_river |title = First ever Democracy Day draws wide array of opinions in Brecksville |publisher = Cleveland.com|date = February 27, 2013|accessdate = July 9, 2019|author = Robert Rozboril}}{{cite web |url = http://www.clevelandcitycouncil.org/calendar/2019/2019-05-community/biennial-democracy-day-event |title = Biennial Democracy Day Event |publisher = Cleveland City Council|date = May 9, 2019|accessdate = July 9, 2019}}{{cite web |url = https://www.toledoblade.com/local/politics/2019/03/13/Toledoans-air-grievances-on-Democracy-Day/stories/20190313159 |title = Toledoans air concerns over money in politics on Democracy Day |publisher = The Blade|date = March 13, 2019|accessdate = July 9, 2019|author = David Patch}} In Wisconsin, a partner of Move to Amend - Wisconsin United to Amend WIUTA, is building the movement for this amendment. As of 2023, 170 municipalities have passed resolutions, comprising 61% (3.5 million) of Wisconsin residents. WIUTA is also bringing the faith communities into the movement. As of 2023, 10 faith congregations have also passed resolutions calling for the amendment. The Outreach Director, George Penn, can be reached through their site at [https://wiuta.org/ WIUTA.org].{{cite web |date= |title=Wisconsin Ready to Amend |url=http://wiuta.org/resources/wisconsin-ready-to-amend/ |accessdate=October 25, 2023 |publisher=Wisconsin United to Amend}}{{Citation | title= Wisconsin | url =http://united4thepeople.org/state-local/#WI | publisher =United For the People | accessdate= July 9, 2019 }}

The group has included organizers and attorneys from several national organizations among its leadership, including:

• Greg Coleridge, Alfonso Saldana, Jennie Spanos, Katie Krasinski and Cole Bennett, Move to Amend Co-Directors
• Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap, Move to Amend’s former national director and director of Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt CountyDevin Henry (7/14/14) [http://www.minnpost.com/dc-dispatches/2014/07/senate-vs-citizens-united-democrats-push-campaign-finance-constitutional-amend Senate vs. Citizens United: Democrats push campaign finance constitutional amendment] MinnPost [https://web.archive.org/web/20150331224517/http://www.minnpost.com/dc-dispatches/2014/07/senate-vs-citizens-united-democrats-push-campaign-finance-constitutional-amend Archive URL].{{cite web | url=http://www.duhc.org/page/staff-bios | publisher=Democracy Unlimited | accessdate=June 21, 2019 }}
• David Cobb, 2004 Green Party presidential candidate and principal of POCLADMichael Gillespie (Jan/Feb 2011). "David Cobb Speaks at WILPF-DM Awards Banquet". The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs Vol 30. Iss 1: p 60.{{Cite web|url=http://poclad.org/about.html|title = About POCLAD}}
• Riki Ott, a co-director of Ultimate Civics, is a co-founderRiki Ott (Autumn 2012). "Citizens united against Citizens United: A movement is building to amend the Constitution". Earth Island Journal Vol 27. Iss. 3. pp. 40,42.
• Ben Manski, an executive director of the Liberty Tree FoundationMatthew Rothschild (April 2010). "Corporations Aren't Persons: Amend the Constitution". The Progressive Vol 74. Iss 4.: pp. 16,18-20.Ahmad, Meher; DiNovella, Elizabeth. "We, the People". The Progressive Vol 76. Iss. 4: pp. 8-9.
• George Friday, national steering committee member of the Independent Progressive Politics Network{{cite web | url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/OTUS/proposed-constitutional-amendment-claims-money-speech/story?id=18468467 | title=Proposed Constitutional Amendment Claims Money is Not Speech | publisher=ABC News | date=February 12, 2013 | accessdate=July 17, 2019 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.ippn.org/article.php?ID=people.html |title=IPPN |website=www.ippn.org |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070707125031/http://www.ippn.org/article.php?ID=people.html |archive-date=7 July 2007 |url-status=dead}}
• Lisa Graves, executive director for the Center for Media and Democracy{{cite web | url=http://inthesetimes.com/article/5544/corporations_are_people_too | title=Corporations Are People, Too | publisher=In These Times | date=March 2, 2010 | accessdate=June 21, 2019 }}
• Nancy Price, co-chair of the Alliance for Democracy and committee chair for Women’s International League for Peace & Freedom{{cite web | url=https://www.davisenterprise.com/Archived-Stories-0/Taking_a_stand_against_Exxon/ | title=Taking a stand against Exxon | publisher=Davis Enterprise | date=April 2, 2010 | accessdate=June 21, 2019 }}{{Cite web|url=https://wilpfus.org/contact/issue-committee-chairs|title = Issue Committee Chairs | WILPF| date=12 August 2012 }}
• Jerome Scott, a member of the League of Revolutionary Black Workers and founding director of Project South{{cite news |last1=Katz-Fishman |first1=Walta |last2=Scott |first2=Jerome |title=United States polarising - inequality and injustice escalating |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2014/12/united-states-polarising-inequ-2014124152910213390.html |accessdate=July 17, 2019 |publisher=Al Jazeera |date=December 4, 2014}}
• Laura Bonham, a co-founder of Progressive Democrats of America and co-chair of the Justice Party{{cite web |last1=Bonham |first1=Laura |title=Corporate Power on Full Display at Dem and GOP Conventions |url=https://www.commondreams.org/views/2012/09/06/corporate-power-full-display-dem-and-gop-conventions |publisher=Common Dreams |accessdate=July 17, 2019}}
• Egberto Willies, Houston Peace and Justice Center{{Cite web |title=Houston Peace and Justice Center |url=https://hpjc.org/about-hpjc/officers/ |website=Houston Peace and Justice Center}} Board Member, Coffee Party USA Board Member, Pacifica National Board{{Cite web |title=Pacifica Foundation |url=https://pacifica.org/pnb_members.php}} member.
• Maria Agosto, a member of the Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign (PPEHRC){{cite web |last1=Agosto |first1=Maria |title=The Sport of Tax Evasion: Follow the Trillions (If You Can) |url=https://www.occupy.com/article/sport-tax-evasion-follow-trillions-if-you-can#sthash.KyITisYU.dpbs |website=Occupy.com |date=6 September 2013 |accessdate=July 17, 2019}}

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• {{Official website|https://movetoamend.org/}}

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Category:Electoral reform groups in the United States

Category:Political advocacy groups in the United States

Category:Campaign finance reform in the United States

Category:Corporate personhood

Category:Anti-corporate activism