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Joint Statement for the Senate Finance Hearing on Paid Family Leave
At our 2023 conference, Mormon Women for Ethical Government members overwhelmingly expressed interest in paid family leave as a child and family policy priority they would like to support. Recently, our children and families advocacy committee has had the opportunity to do some national advocacy work in this area. MWEG has a seat on a national leadership council of faith-based organizations of various religious traditions that meets monthly to discuss child and family policy and build our collective common policy interests and knowledge. As a group we have been discussing national paid family leave policy and meeting with members of the House and Senate who are on a working group…
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Electoral Count Reform Act Advocacy — a Timeline
MWEG began working on advocating for an update to the Electoral Count Act in the summer of 2021 and continued working on this until the Electoral Count Reform Act was passed as part of the omnibus spending bill in December 2022. Following our pattern of member engagement, we worked to inform through library pieces and other content, invite to act through direct calls to action to write letters or make phone calls, and involve through constituent meetings with legislators as well as op-eds and letters to the editor. 2021 July Began laying the groundwork by researching the issue and reaching out to key legislators and coalition organizations October Began initial…
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MWEG Participates in Interfaith Press Conference for Child Tax Credit Expansion
On December 15, 2022, Mormon Women for Ethical Government participated in a press conference in Washington, D.C., with an interfaith group of leaders and organizations working to ameliorate child poverty. The goal was to make a personal and faith-based case for the Child Tax Credit. For 25 years, child tax credits have proven to be an effective tool for reducing child poverty and providing significant support for growing families. MWEG member Steffani Thomas spoke about her family’s experience with the Child Tax Credit and shared how her support for this policy is linked to her personal faith. The full text of Steffani’s remarks is found below. A link to a…
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‘The Restored Gospel and Good Government:’ A BYU Studies Feature
In late 2020, the editors of BYU Studies offered MWEG the opportunity to guest edit an issue of the journal focused on Latter-day Saint principles of good government. After more than a year of work, “The Restored Gospel and Good Government” was released last month, and we are thrilled to share it with you. It is a rich, nuanced, diverse meditation on the ways our unique Latter-day Saint culture and doctrine can inform our political engagement. The ideas of many MWEG members are found throughout the journal, beginning with the cover image by MWEG Founding Member Linda Hoffman Kimball. Kimball, along with MWEG Founder Sharlee Mullins Glenn, current MWEG Senior…
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MWEG’s March on Utah
Thousands rallied today in Washington, DC, and around the country to march for voting rights, and MWEG Utah leaders Melarie Wheat and Elizabeth Vanderwerken spoke at the Utah event. They explained what is at stake, why our voices matter in this fight, and how we can protect this most basic democratic right. Read the full text of their speech below, or watch the video here. Civil rights activist and Black voting rights champion Amelia Boynton Robinson was a key figure in the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches. On “Bloody Sunday” she was beaten by police on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, and photos of her lying bleeding and unconscious drew national…
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Utah State Board of Education Public Hearing on Educational Equity in Schools (R277-328)
The Utah State Board of Education hosted a public hearing on July 22, 2021, to allow for commentary on R277-328 — an administrative rule that dictates what Utah schools can and cannot teach about diversity, equity, and inclusion. The Utah chapter of Mormon Women for Ethical Government shared their position at the meeting with the following text and presentation. When sharing any of the below information, please share it in its entirety to maintain the integrity and context of the message. As parents and members of Mormon Women for Ethical Government, also known as MWEG, we wish to express our appreciation for and concerns regarding R277-328. We take seriously the…
