Sign on to an open letter to Mitch McConnell from Kentuckians

When times are hard, eastern Kentuckians pull together. We make sure our neighbors are safe from high water. We pack hot meals to folks who are grieving. We stand up to injustice. We choose each other.

Right now, so many of us in Kentucky are hurting because of:

• The COVID-19 health crisis, and the ineffective national response.

• The collapse of coal industry jobs, with no plan for the future.

• Widespread poverty and racism, which leave us divided, hurting, and vastly unequal.

• Political leaders in Washington who have turned their backs on us.

It doesn’t have to be this way. For years people in eastern Kentucky have called on our elected officials to show up for our miners and mountain communities. We’ve organized, made phone calls, written letters, rallied, and ridden the bus to Washington. Time and again, we’ve asked Sen. Mitch McConnell to protect our miners with Black Lung Disease, pass the RECLAIM Act to clean up abandoned mines and polluted waterways, and help our communities shape a Just Transition to a brighter future. 

But McConnell and his allies in Washington are busy stirring up fear and dividing us instead of delivering the help we urgently need. 

• Why is Sen. McConnell blocking bills that support the health and well-being of Kentuckians in this time of crisis? 

• Why does he refuse to support a bill (The Heroes Act) that extends unemployment insurance, increases food stamps, and makes affordable health care widely available? 

• Why has he failed to pass a bill (HR 2) that invests in new water lines and broadband and includes the RECLAIM Act, which directs $1 billion to clean up old mine sites? 

• Why does he oppose relief funding for state and local governments and for essential public services like our post offices, schools and hospitals, and safe elections? 

• And why has he failed to secure a long-term funding solution for the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund?

As members of Kentuckians For The Commonwealth, we share a vision for thriving and healthy communities. We’re committed to doing everything we can to build a bright future here in the mountains and across our Commonwealth. We need our elected leaders to do their part. 

We welcome all Kentuckians who share our love for eastern Kentucky to sign this message to Sen. McConnell today. 

Signed, 

Hundreds of other concerned Kentuckians. Please add your name to this list today!