Panel presentation and discussion at the
Next Systems Studies Convergence

September 4, 2025

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtsy91iCGKM&list=PLrFE8GFuZltEcMb0JntddjsEpMqS10ozd&index=14 
 

This panel includes John Mulkins, Luke Pickrell, and Greg Coleridge as they discuss democratizing the U.S. constitution, with background on our history as a democracy, the undemocratic features of the constitution, what can be done to democratize our constitution, and what can participants do to further the conversation.

Presented by Move To Amend

See all the Convergence sessions at   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUT4Q3RTbFE&list=PLrFE8GFuZltEcMb0JntddjsEpMqS10ozd&index=1

In solidarity, 

Greg, Margaret, Katie, Alfonso, Jessica, Jason, Tara, Cole, Shelly, George, Daniel, Kelsey, Jennie, Keyan, Michael & Alfonso.

P.S.  We are living through a constitutional crisis. Every generation has the opportunity to define history. Together, we must act and do our part to create a Constitution that affirms justice, a livable world and an authentically democracy Your support makes this vision real. Join us with a gift today!

Your voice matters more than ever! Rejoin the movement!

Constitution Day is next Wednesday, September 17. 

The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787 by 39 delegates at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. It replaced the Articles of Confederation as the document defining the new government. Educational programs are provided by publicly funded educational institutions and federal agencies to celebrate the day.

Those programs provide only superficial and slanted views. While there were many elements of the original U.S. Constitution that were indeed revolutionary and democratic, many others affirmed top down control, ingrained property rights over human rights and excluded a majority of the population. We, the People did not – and still do not – include ALL the People.

Social movements for more than two centuries have forced the adoption of amendments and established a culture that led to Supreme Court decisions that included some rights of groups who should have been originally included in the founding document.

This Labor Day, our affiliates and advocates showed once again that grassroots power moves mountains!

Speaker -- David Orr

Thursday, September 11, 5pm PT, 6pm MT, 7pm CT, 8pm ET

REGISTER HERE

The lack of authentically democracy in the U.S. has permitted corporate entities to pursue their own economic and political interests virtually unchecked. This includes plundering the earth and poisoning land, water and air - resulting in the climate crises. What inadequate regulations existed before the Trump regime are now being systemically eliminated. 

The dual crises of democracy and climate change are not separate, but are one interrelated threat to the human future.

That’s the theme of Democracy in a Hotter Time, edited by David Orr, which calls for reforming democratic institutions as a prerequisite for avoiding climate chaos and adapting governance to how Earth works as a physical system.

To survive in the “long emergency” ahead, we must reform and strengthen democratic institutions, making them assets rather than liabilities. The collection of essays proposes a new political order that will not only help humanity survive but also enable us to thrive in the transition to a post–fossil fuel world.

Cultural Change for the We the People Amendment

[eighth in a series]

The United States. has been involved in 11 wars and 175 non colonial military conflicts (and counting) in its 249 year history since claiming independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776. Today, the U.S maintains roughly 750 military bases and installation in 80 countries worldwide. There are very few years in U.S. history when its military was not engaged in armed conflict somewhere in the world.

Perpetual state-sponsored violence from the colonial era to the present day has been responded with perpetual organized movements of people for peace and against wars and colonization. This history is too exhaustive to examine in detail. Thus, this examination will focus on cultural lessons learned from peace, anti-war and anti-nuclear weapons movements beginning in the early 20th century. 

This Labor Day, we invite you to step into the long tradition of courage, solidarity, and struggle that has shaped our workplaces, our communities, and our aspiring democracy.

Join organizers from Strike for Your Rights and the MTA Labor Caucus as we connect the victories of the past to the challenges of today — and prepare for bold action ahead.

📣 Billionaires have the megaphones. We have the people — but we need to be LOUDER.

Move to Amend has a bold mission: pass the We the People Amendment (HJR 54) to end corporate constitutional rights and the false doctrine that money equals speech. Right now, we need to break through to a much bigger audience.

Many issues will never be fully resolved until this one is. We’re fighting dozens of battles: climate collapse, authoritarianism, income inequality, safe food, preserving social and economic safety net programs, gun safety – but none of these can be fully won while corporations have constitutional rights and unlimited money buys political power.

On August 18, 1920, after 75 years of relentless struggle, the 19th Amendment was finally ratified. It boldly declared:

“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of sex.”

It was a watershed moment — the fruit of organizing, sacrifice, and persistence across generations. But history teaches us: rights won are never rights guaranteed.

Today, more than a century later, women are still demanding to be fully recognized as equals under the law. The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)—first introduced in 1923— is currently in a unique legal position. Although it has been ratified by three-fourths of U.S. states, it has not yet been formally codified in the Constitution as the 28th Amendment, leaving women vulnerable to rollbacks on hard-won rights. 

Even more disgusting, corporations have been granted sweeping constitutional rights—the rights of “persons” under the law. This distortion of democracy is why corporations can pour unlimited money into our elections, poison our communities, and put profits over people without accountability.

The contradiction is stark:

• Women fought 75 years for the vote.
• We’ve struggled for over 100 years for constitutional equality.
• Corporations have amassed more rights than people.

That’s why we’re building a movement for the We the People Amendment (currently HJR54) — to affirm that only human beings have constitutional rights and that money is not free speech. Our movement is about creating a genuine democracy free from corporate rule and finishing the work that generations before us began.

And we know this truth: change has always come from people coming together — refusing to be silent, refusing to be divided, and refusing to accept injustice as normal.