The Way We Worked Exhibit

Dear friend,

This week The Way We Worked photo exhibit made its debut in Orange Mound.  The Smithsonian exhibit displays stories of working Americans and how their lives have changed over time from the early days of our agrarian roots to the modern technological age.

The Way We Worked Exhibit
Annual Veterans Luncheon
Stone Award
Tuskegee Airman Colonel Luke J. Weathers
Jobs and Infrastructure
Student Loans
Rene Sanchez
Diabetes Awareness Month
Helsinki Commission
House Judiciary Committee
eCall to Extend Unemployment Insurance
2012 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award
Grant Announcements

The Way We Worked Exhibit
The Way We Worked exhibit, which is in Orange Mound, Memphis until December 3, displays stories of working Americans and how their lives have changed over time from the early days of our agrarian roots to the modern technological age.  It is a tremendous honor for Orange Mound to have been selected by the Smithsonian Institution to participate in its Museum on Main Street traveling exhibition program.  This marks the first time an urban neighborhood has been showcased in the exhibit.

The Orange Mound Civic Association applied for this opportunity, which was accepted on the basis of what was said to be ‘a very compelling request for proposal.’  It should come as no surprise to those who have lived in Memphis all their lives that Orange Mound would be nationally recognized as being exemplary of the spirit of hard-working Americans.  The Smithsonian exhibit shines a national spotlight on a vital part of our local community that has gone unrecognized for far too long.

Annual Veterans Luncheon
I am hosting my annual Veterans Day luncheon on Friday, November 11 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The Links at Whitehaven, located at 750 East Holmes Road in Memphis.  If you are a District 9 veteran, please contact my office at 901.544.4131 so we know you plan to attend.  Veterans Day gives Americans across the country the opportunity to honor the bravery and sacrifice of all U.S. Veterans.  I encourage all veterans to join us for a day of commemoration and celebration at my Veterans Day luncheon at the Links at Whitehaven.

Stone Award
This week I received the Most Outstanding Politician for 2011 Award at the 16th Annual Stone Awards.  This year’s Stone Awards paid tribute to Judge D’Army Bailey, Larry Finch and Rudy Williams.  I’ve won this award before for my work in Congress and am humbled and honored to win it again.  Click here to learn more about the award.

Tuskegee Airman Colonel Luke J. Weathers
On Wednesday I honored the life and accomplishments of Tuskegee Airman Colonel Luke J. Weathers on the House floor.  Mr. Weathers was a trailblazer and hero and was the first African-American air traffic controller in Memphis and served 25 years with the Federal Aviation Administration.  Click here to see my floor speech.

Jobs and Infrastructure
I spoke on the House floor yesterday about how important it is to support President Obama’s jobs creation initiative, pursue bipartisanship and support infrastructure projects for the benefit of our economy and country.  But Senate Republicans last night voted to block President Obama's measure to spend $50 billion on highway, rail, transit and airport improvements and another $10 billion as seed money for an infrastructure bank designed to spark private investment in construction to turn our economy around.  Click here to see my remarks.

Student Loans
I released a short video this week on how important it is for Congress to help people with their student loan debt.  Student loan debt now exceeds credit card debt in America and that is why I authored legislation to help.  Click here to see my short video and learn more about my bill.

Rene Sanchez
This week I met with Memphian Rene Sanchez, who is interning at the office of Congresswoman Linda Sanchez in Washington as a Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute fellow.  It was great to meet Rene, who is a recipient of the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship, to discuss his experiences in Washington and our hometown, Memphis.

Diabetes Awareness Month
There are more than 25 million children and adults in the United States who suffer from the effects of diabetes and about 79 million Americans are pre-diabetic.  Sadly, diabetes claims the lives of over 200,000 Americans each year.  November is Diabetes Awareness Month and I encourage District 9 residents to talk to their doctors about the best ways to prevent diabetes.  Studies have found that those with pre-diabetes who lose weight and increase their physical activity are often able to prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes.  While this month is dedicated to Diabetes Awareness, I hope you’ll remember that it is important to focus on healthy living year round, and there is no better time than now to start getting healthy.  Talk to your friends about the risks of diabetes, and talk to your doctor about prevention.

Helsinki Commission
On Wednesday, I participated in a Helsinki Commission hearing on “Human Trafficking and Transnational Organized Crime: Assessing Trends and Combat Strategies.”  Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery.  It is a terrible crime that must be stopped and I vow as a member of the Helsinki Commission to do all that I can to end this despicable practice.

House Judiciary Committee
This week I offered several common-sense amendments during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on the Synthetic Drug Control Act of 2011 and the Regulatory Accountability Act of 2011.  The Synthetic Drug Control Act would add more than 40 chemical substances to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, the most restrictive and punitive schedule, without any scientific research to determine whether that is necessary or appropriate.  My amendments would ensure that decisions about drug policy be made on the basis of science, instead of politics, but the Republicans on the Committee voted them down.

The Regulatory Accountability Act would make a host of changes to the Administrative Procedure Act that would make it almost impossible for the federal government to issue regulations that protect our health and safety.  I offered amendments to overturn two of the most egregious parts of this bill but the GOP majority failed to support my initiatives.

eCall to Extend Unemployment Insurance
If you have a story about how unemployment insurance impacts you, your family, or community, please share it with us by clicking here and joining the eCall to Extend Unemployment Insurance.  With nearly 7 million fewer jobs in the economy today than when the recession started in December 2007, unemployed workers are facing a job market where four people are competing for every job opening, and long-term unemployment is at a record high.  Our country has a federal emergency unemployment insurance system to support workers and their families during these difficult times. Unfortunately, the emergency federal unemployment insurance program is set to expire at the end of the year and although the President has proposed extending these essential supports, Republicans haven’t yet agreed to support this critical program.

In just three months, over 2 million Americans will lose the unemployment insurance that keeps them afloat while they look for work unless Congress acts to extend these vital benefits.  I am cosponsoring legislation, the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2011, to extend the federal emergency unemployment insurance program past this year end cutoff.  I believe that Congress must act before the holidays so that unemployed workers and their families have the security that the rug is not about to be pulled out from under them and our economy has the confidence that workers will be supported while they look for jobs.  I am asking for you to share your view on this important issue.  Please be assured that I will do everything I can to support legislation in Congress to create American jobs and support unemployed workers while they look for new jobs.

2012 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award
Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, a Department of Defense (DOD) agency, is now accepting nominations for the 2012 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award.  The Freedom Award is the DOD’s highest award for civilian employers supporting Guard and Reserve members.  The DOD encourages all Guard and Reserve members to nominate employers who have provided exceptional support of their military service.  Nominations may be submitted by service members, or a family member acting on their behalf, at FreedomAward.mil through January 16, 2012.  

Grant Announcements
Each week I release a list of grant announcements from federal agencies like the Department of Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Transportation, and others.  These federal funding opportunities are available to faith-based and neighborhood associations, nonprofits and other community organizations in the 9th district. The announcements are updated weekly on my website.
 

As always, I remain,

Most sincerely,

Steve Cohen
Member of Congress