Good news for people who want to do good: Week 57

Welcome to your weekly roundup of good news about good people, how you can help make a difference — and a picture of President Obama hard at work in the Oval Office.

The fight for gun safety is ramping up in the wake of the Parkland school shooting

It has been just over one week since a gunman killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. But the momentum for a newly invigorated gun safety fight is already sky high, thanks to the bravery and boldness of the young survivors.

From the very beginning, teens like Emma Gonzalez, David Hogg, Brandon Abzug, and others have been leading the charge to change the dangerously lax gun laws in the United States. And Americans are solidly behind them.

Kids are standing up and speaking out — including right to Trump’s face — with major nationwide actions already being planned for people across the country to take part and stand in solidarity with the victims.

On March 24, kids and families will take to the streets of Washington, D.C., for the March For Our Lives to demand substantive action from Congress to stem the tide of gun violence. And on April 20 — the 19th anniversary of the Columbine school shooting — students are planning a nationwide school walkout.

The movement is growing, and these heroic young people are showing the world what it means to take action and speak truth to power.

ACTION ALERT: Enough! National School Walkout

But you don’t have to wait a month to get active: Women’s March and Women’s March Youth are hosting a school walkout on March 14.

Students, teachers, and administrators are encouraged to walk out of classrooms and offices for 17 minutes, in honor of the 17 victims, at 10:00 a.m. EST. Take part and raise your voice to say #ENOUGH!

“If all our government and President can do is send thoughts and prayers, then it’s time for victims to be the change that we need to see.” —@Emma4Change

Today’s #SignOfResistance is by @sheringsheet.#NationalSchoolWalkout #MarchForOurLives #NeverAgain #ENOUGH pic.twitter.com/HTWh5viOIF

— Women’s March (@womensmarch) February 20, 2018

Indivisible Chicago braved the freezing weather to march for gun reform

It barely got above 40 degrees in Chicago on Feb. 18, but folks in that city wouldn’t let a little thing like icy streets and cold air keep them from doing something important.

For Indivisible, that was taking to the streets to demand gun reform:

Indivisible Chicago’s march for gun reform. This is on Dearborn near Washington. Their first stop will be Daley Plaza. Then they’ll head to Trump Tower. pic.twitter.com/1zEnifD2aY

— Rachel Hinton (@rrhinton) February 18, 2018

Next time you feel too tired to join a protest or knock on doors, remember these folks and get going!

32 women veterans are running for Congress

Congress currently only has four women veterans out of 535 members, but that number could start to creep up soon.

Thirty-two women, including 25 Democrats, who have served in the military are campaigning for House and Senate seats across the nation. Many of them served in pioneering combat roles in Iraq and Afghanistan, and now they’re ready to take on Washington — particularly in the Trump and #MeToo era.

“Many of us felt like we really had to focus on some of the areas that needed further groundbreaking, such as the House of Representatives and the Senate,” said Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat and former Navy helicopter pilot running in New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District, who noted the “lack of respect” for women from the Trump administration.

And Marine Lt. Col. Amy McGrath, running in Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District, declared, “A lot of us are saying this isn’t the country we fought for.”

So they’re running to get that country back for all of us.

ACTION ALERT: Women Grab Back recess toolkit!

The Congress February recess is almost up, but you still have time to give your lawmakers of a piece of your mind.

Ultraviolet has your Women Grab Back toolkit, with everything you need to hold your elected officials accountable on health care, immigration, gun reform, and the sexual predator occupying the White House.

Celebrities have donated massive amounts of money to the fight for gun safety

The fight for gun safety is not only being amplified by brave teenage survivors — it’s being financially boosted by some of the biggest celebrity names in the country.

George and Amal Clooney got the ball rolling, announcing that they would be standing “side by side with this incredible generation of young people” at the March For Our Lives, and donating $500,000 to the cause.

Hours after the Clooneys’ statement, Oprah announced she too would donate $500,000. And right on her heels was Steven Spielberg and studio executive Jeffrey Katzenberg.

Celebrities and teenagers alike are often dismissed by pundits and politicians as being unworthy of listening to. But together, these groups are making themselves loud and clear, and they’re not going to shut up until real change happens.

Save My Care has a powerful new ad declaring ENOUGH IS ENOUGH with the GOP’s war on health care

Trump and the Republicans are doing all they can to chip away at Americans’ access to quality, affordable health care. It’s crucial that everyone remain aware of what the GOP is trying to do behind closed doors.

Save My Care has a new ad that raises the alarm about the uncertainty the Republican war on health care is causing for so many people.

ACTION ALERT: Working People’s Day of Action!

On Feb. 24, join It’s About Freedom and thousands of people across the country in the Working People’s Day of Action.

Strong unions, equitable pay, quality health care, safe communities — join others and raise your voice to demand a better society and a stronger future for everyone.

NJ governor cheered as he signs his first bill into law, restoring reproductive care funding

New Jersey’s new Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy got a round of applause when he signed his first bill into law — especially because he was restoring $7.5 million in grants that former Republican Gov. Chris Christie had stripped from clinics like Planned Parenthood years ago.

The bill will expand access to reproductive health care for tens of thousands of New Jersey residents.

And it comes on the heels of Planned Parenthood’s massive campaign to fight for reproductive justice in all 50 states.

“This moment is a testament to what’s possible when we work together,” said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. “This is why we do the work we do — to enact policies to change people lives for the better.”

Republicans in California are on the verge of falling to third-party status

It’s no secret that California, aka the Left Coast, is a liberal stronghold in state and national politics.

But the already tenuous foothold of Republicans in the Golden State is slipping even further. New data posted by California Secretary of State Alex Padilla shows that the GOP in that state is nearing third-party status, thanks to massive drops in party identification and registration.

“Overall, just over 4.8 million Californians are currently registered as Republicans, representing 25.4 percent of the total electorate. That’s a loss of almost half a million voters — and a huge drop from the party’s 36 percent share — since the end of 1997,” notes DailyKos editor James Lambert.

During that same time period, Democrats gained almost 1.7 million new voters. Further, independents — or what are known as “no party preference” voters in California — now make up 25 percent of the state’s electorate. And a majority of those voters tend to favor Democratic candidates and policies in the voting booth.

If the Republican Party continues to cling to Trumpism, it may find itself finished last in California in the near future.

ACTION ALERT: No NRA Money!

The NRA’s stranglehold on local, state, and national politics must be broken, for the safety and well-being of all of us.

Take the voter pledge, and urge your candidates and elected officials to take their own, to say #NoNRAMoney and to fight back against opponents of common sense gun safety laws.

Rep. John Lewis’s graphic novel autobiography will have a new trilogy

Rep. John Lewis fought for civil rights alongside Martin Luther King Jr., nearly losing his life in the process. And as a member of Congress, the Georgia Democrat has continued that work for decades.

His incredible story in the Civil Rights Movement was brought to stunning life in the graphic novel trilogy March.

But there was so much more to be told about his life and work, and Lewis now has a second trilogy in the works, with the first volume to be published in Aug. 2018.

This series will be called Run, and will tell the story of Lewis’ political career.

“In sharing my story, it is my hope that a new generation will be inspired by Run to actively participate in the democratic process and help build a more perfect union here in America,” Lewis said in a statement to Time magazine.

If anyone could inspire someone to want to make a difference, it would be Rep. John Lewis.