This past weekend was momentous. Move to Amend, in coalition with our partners; Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, The Pachamama Alliance, A Radical Guide, and Liberty Tree Foundation for the Democratic Revolution assembled over 130 people for a weekend of learning, visioning, and discussions about a People’s Constitution.

Thank you so much to all of the participants, panelists, presenters, artists, facilitators, and those who took on childcare this weekend so we could gather. 

The People’s Movement Assembly was a catalyst -- the beginning of something big -- and we invite you to sign up here to stay up to date on all things related to this project!

You can view the video from Saturday here, and the video from Sunday here. 

During the PMA we collectively identified that:

• We are in a moment of converging crises - Climate collapse, global uprisings against state violence and police brutality, and a global pandemic when most are without access to healthcare
  
  
• We’re witnessing the consequences of the institutions and values defined in (or missing from) the US Constitution - An undemocratic and ultra-powerful judicial branch, lack of human rights protections, no right to vote, and a whole lot of racist language just to name a few.
  
  
• Bold, systemic change is needed - We have to know our power and be able to think outside of what we’ve been told is possible. It’s going to take courage, audacity, and a whole lot of learning and conversations to make it happen, but the only thing we have to lose is our chains. 
  
  
• We have to have a vision and a plan - We learned that when constitutions around the world are re-imagined (on average countries rewrite their constitutions every 19 years) they’re more democratic when the Movement has a clear vision of what they want in their constitution. We have been building this vision for over ten years, and we continued it this weekend. 
  
  
• People want a constitution that protects human rights, not just property rights. They like a lot of what’s in the Bill of Rights, with some changes and exceptions, and they wished it extended further. People want a right to healthcare, rights of nature, gender equity, a right to vote, and a whole lot more. 

We have a lot of political muscle to build to be prepared to democratize the constitution. We’re not proposing we are the ones to do it, nor that it should be done right now. But there are people who want to restrict rights and create room for more authoritarianism, and they’re planning for a constitutional convention. We need to have a plan too. If we don’t, it’s surely downhill from here.

We’re moving forward on this work, we’re creating a strategy, and if you liked the PMA, there’s a lot more where that came from. Sign up here to stay up to date on the latest news and future People's Movement Assemblies.

But we need your help. Obviously we’re not getting money from big corporations, political parties, or the non-profit industrial complex. If We The People are going to make any change to the US Constitution, whether that’s the 28th amendment, or even more, we’re going to have to fund this work. 

This weekend’s People’s Movement Assembly was created  almost entirely with volunteer labor. But if we’re going to keep this going, we have to sustain this work. Please consider investing in this work at MoveToAmend.org/donate. 

Thank you so much for all the ways you work towards a better world. 

In solidarity,

Jessica Munger
she/her
Program Director, Move to Amend