{"id":111993,"date":"2022-04-30T10:21:21","date_gmt":"2022-04-30T14:21:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=111993"},"modified":"2022-04-30T10:21:21","modified_gmt":"2022-04-30T14:21:21","slug":"sunday-make-the-road-pa-may-day-marches-urge-state-legislature-to-invest-federal-covid-recovery-funds-in-pa-families","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=111993","title":{"rendered":"SUNDAY: Make the Road PA May Day Marches Urge State Legislature to Invest Federal COVID Recovery Funds in PA Families"},"content":{"rendered":"

Marches will call for PA to use American Rescue Plan funding to help struggling families, and push Congress to establish pathway to citizenship <\/em>
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On Sunday, May 1 Make the Road Pennsylvania, the state\u2019s largest Latinx organization, and partners across the state will hold International Workers Day rallies and marches in Allentown, Reading, and Philadelphia to urge state and federal leaders to take immediate action to truly support struggling working families. The events will call on the Pennsylvania state legislature to invest unused American Rescue Plan funds in Pennsylvania families, and urge Congress to pass a pathway to citizenship to support the essential workers who got the country through the pandemic.<\/p>\n

American Rescue Plan funding from the federal government was distributed to speed up the country\u2019s recovery from the COVID pandemic and the ongoing recession. Following\u00a0Governor Wolf\u2019s plan to spend the $1.7B Pennsylvania received,<\/a>\u00a0rallies will call for specific investments in what Pennsylvania families truly need to thrive and survive in the wake of the pandemic: A living wage, fair and equitable funding for public schools, drivers licenses for all, funding for the Whole Home Repairs Act to help homeowners make necessary repairs, and a permanent rent relief fund to prevent homelessness.<\/p>\n

As\u00a074% of unauthorized immigrants are essential workers<\/a>, many of whom worked throughout the COVID pandemic, immigrant organizations will also urge President Biden to honor his campaign promise to establish a pathway to citizenship, which will benefit\u00a0170,000 undocumented immigrants<\/a>\u00a0in Pennsylvania and call for closure of immigrant detention centers.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Said Patty Torres, Organizing Director for Make the Road Pennsylvania:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAmerican Rescue Plan funding offers our state a once in a generation chance to address the most pressing needs of Pennsylvania families, and this money cannot go unspent while families struggle to meet their basic needs. Right now, the legislature has a choice to make: Ignore the immediate needs of struggling families to\u00a0give tax cuts to the billionaires<\/a>, or put in place the popular policies that are good for working families and for our state and economy: a living wage, fully-funded schools, drivers licenses for all, and a permanent rent relief fund. Our legislators must use this opportunity to help the people the pandemic hit hardest\u2014working families. Investing in our families now will benefit our entire state in the long run. \u201d\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Allentown<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

WHAT<\/strong>: May Day rally and march<\/p>\n

WHEN<\/strong>: Sunday, May 1 – 11:00 a.m. ET till 2:00 p.m. ET<\/p>\n

WHERE<\/strong>:<\/p>\n