Happy Friday and Happy Spring. This is a busy time of year, full of school breaks, holidays and the warm momentum that is spring-turning-slowly-to-summer. It's a busy time in Washington, too, with many of our top issues hurtling forward, or at the center of heated debate. So now is not a time to take our eyes off the ball! Please take a moment to scroll down and make sure you've signed all of our top actions from the last week, on gun safety, equal pay, immigration and more. There's also a chance to get a free copy of Kristin's powerful book, KeepMarching. Thank you! =>

1. Don’t Let Reckless Killer of 12-Year-Old Tamir Rice Get His Police Badge Back

BACKGROUND: A reckless killer of children should not carry a badge. Yet, that’s exactly what Cleveland’s police union is trying to do - get Timothy Loehmann, who shot to death 12-year-old Tamir Rice while he was playing in the park, back on the Cleveland police force. Tamir Rice died in 2014. He was playing with a toy gun in the park when a patrol car pulled up to investigate. Officer Loehmann shot Tamir less than one second after getting out of his car. Tamir died the next day. Help Tamir’s mother Samaria Rice confront Cleveland’s police union and stop her son’s killer Timothy Loehmann from rejoining law enforcement. Sign on to Samaria's message to “Stop defending the officer who killed Tamir Rice and trying to get him back on the police force.”

2. Tell Your U.S. Senators to PASS the Paycheck Fairness Act (and let them know what you'd do with an extra $10,000 if the gender wage gap closed!)

BACKGROUND: Spring breakkkkkk! Whether it’s an epic road trip with your kids or a scramble to find child care while they’re out of school, spring break is marked on family calendars across the nation. *** In fact, even the U.S. Senate is on spring break (Congressional recess) right now, so it’s the perfect time to make a splash at our elected officials’ in-district offices! Send a message to your U.S. Senators’ in-district offices about the Paycheck Fairness Act and let them know what you would do with an extra $10,000 a year if the gender wage gap closed.

3. #KeepMarching for Democracy (and get a free book)

BACKGROUND: Together, we can build the America of our dreams that we know is possible. *Want to have a small, local MomsRising book discussion? Say “YES” and we’ll send the first 100 people to sign up a FREE Keep Marching book that you can use for your book discussion, or give to a friend with whom you want to spark conversation, or use with your own pre-existing book group! Building the America of our dreams starts with community. It starts locally with the people you love (or at least like a lot!). It starts with family. It starts with talking. It starts with books, discussions and donuts or whatever treats you love best, and coffee, and maybe even a little wine. It starts with us. It starts with you.

4. Send a QUICK Letter to say NO to Family Incarceration

BACKGROUND: A Federal judge ruled a halt to most, not all, family separations at the border. However, the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) reported that not only were “thousands” more migrant children separated by the Trump administration than previously known, but that they didn’t even know how many children were taken away from their families because of failures to track families as they were being separated! We must ensure that the Trump administration does not respond to calls to reunify ALL children with their families by incarcerating asylum seeking families. Trading family separation for family jails is not the solution. Imprisoning children with their families is still imprisoning children. Children deserve to be with their families outside of cages and they deserve to have their rights protected. Join us today in writing a Letter to the Editor to tell elected officials to say NO to family incarceration.

5. We Need Your Story to Fuel the Momentum for Gun Safety Reform! 

BACKGROUND: June is National Gun Violence Awareness Month, and we're getting ready to remind legislators that moms demand urgent action around gun safety. Americans hear about gun violence, or the risk of gun violence, virtually all the time, whether it be about accidental child shootings, teen suicides and school lock downs, or assaults, murders, and mass shootings. Yet, many people on Capitol Hill still don’t seem to understand that gun safety — the actual safety of our children and the communities in which we are raising them — is our TOP PRIORITY. Please share your thoughts, stories and experiences, which we will use to raise awareness, and amplify our call for gun safety and for Congress to take action!

INSPIRATIONS OF THE WEEK:

Check out these inspiring images of MomsRising members across the country delivering information about the importance of paid family and medical leave to their congressional offices, and MomsRising staff and volunteers joining an action in Columbus, Ohio, asking US Bank to stop financing private prisons! 

Thank you for all you do,