SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Ady Barkan (right), pictured with social justice activist Linda Sarsour, confronted Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) about the future of medicare disability benefits last week as the GOP sped to push through their widely disliked tax overhaul plan. Now, after Republicans unveiled the final version of their bill for both the House and Senate on Friday, Barkan is leading the call for people nationwide to come out for a day of massive protest on Monday. (Photo: Courtesy of Ady Barkan)
Man With ALS Who Confronted Flake on Plane Has Just One Birthday Wish: 'A Massive Day of Action to Kill the #GOPTaxScam'
"Some days I feel like giving up. But I can't. Instead, I’ve been crisscrossing the country fighting the Republican tax bill—and fighting for my life."
Dec 15, 2017
Ady Barkan--the 33-year-old political activist who last week seized a chance enounter on an airplane to confront Republican Senator Jeff Flake from his home state of Arizona over the pending tax overhaul legislation--is having a birthday on Monday, but this year he only has one wish: For people nationwide to rise up and raise hell in opposition to what has become known as the "GOP tax scam."
"Monday is my 34th birthday. I probably won't have many more," he wrote in a Saturday email sent by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC). He continued:
As I said in my email earlier this week when I shared the viral video of my conversation with Senator Jeff Flake on a plane from DC, a year ago I was healthy. Then, I was diagnosed with ALS-- also called Lou Gehrig's disease--which is a rapidly progressing deadly ailment with no cure.
Now, I walk with a cane, I have trouble breathing, and I don't even have the strength to lift my 18 month old son into my lap.
Some days I feel like giving up. But I can't. Instead, I've been crisscrossing the country fighting the Republican tax bill--and fighting for my life.
The Republican tax plan would mean serious cuts to disability funding that I'll need before too long to pay for a ventilator to keep me alive and other crucial medical care. What will these Republicans in Congress say to my son if I can't get one?
My birthday is Monday and I have one wish. I want us to make it into a massive day of action to kill the Republican tax scam.
Along with the PCCC, Barkan encouraged people to sign up for and then attend a rally or event in their local district on Monday, December 18th.
Other groups, including MoveOn.org and others, are also organizing:
Since the video of him calling on Flake to buck his party and become a "hero" to the nation by voting against the GOP's plan, Barkan has made several media appearances, including this recent interview on CNN:
And in this video, posted by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) on Friday after he and his family spent time together in her DC office, Barkan explained why it remains so vital that people rise up to stop Trump and the Republicans in the days ahead:
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
ady barkanelizabeth warrenpeople powerprogressive change campaign committeerepublican partysusan collinstaxation
Ady Barkan--the 33-year-old political activist who last week seized a chance enounter on an airplane to confront Republican Senator Jeff Flake from his home state of Arizona over the pending tax overhaul legislation--is having a birthday on Monday, but this year he only has one wish: For people nationwide to rise up and raise hell in opposition to what has become known as the "GOP tax scam."
"Monday is my 34th birthday. I probably won't have many more," he wrote in a Saturday email sent by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC). He continued:
As I said in my email earlier this week when I shared the viral video of my conversation with Senator Jeff Flake on a plane from DC, a year ago I was healthy. Then, I was diagnosed with ALS-- also called Lou Gehrig's disease--which is a rapidly progressing deadly ailment with no cure.
Now, I walk with a cane, I have trouble breathing, and I don't even have the strength to lift my 18 month old son into my lap.
Some days I feel like giving up. But I can't. Instead, I've been crisscrossing the country fighting the Republican tax bill--and fighting for my life.
The Republican tax plan would mean serious cuts to disability funding that I'll need before too long to pay for a ventilator to keep me alive and other crucial medical care. What will these Republicans in Congress say to my son if I can't get one?
My birthday is Monday and I have one wish. I want us to make it into a massive day of action to kill the Republican tax scam.
Along with the PCCC, Barkan encouraged people to sign up for and then attend a rally or event in their local district on Monday, December 18th.
Other groups, including MoveOn.org and others, are also organizing:
Since the video of him calling on Flake to buck his party and become a "hero" to the nation by voting against the GOP's plan, Barkan has made several media appearances, including this recent interview on CNN:
And in this video, posted by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) on Friday after he and his family spent time together in her DC office, Barkan explained why it remains so vital that people rise up to stop Trump and the Republicans in the days ahead:
Ady Barkan--the 33-year-old political activist who last week seized a chance enounter on an airplane to confront Republican Senator Jeff Flake from his home state of Arizona over the pending tax overhaul legislation--is having a birthday on Monday, but this year he only has one wish: For people nationwide to rise up and raise hell in opposition to what has become known as the "GOP tax scam."
"Monday is my 34th birthday. I probably won't have many more," he wrote in a Saturday email sent by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC). He continued:
As I said in my email earlier this week when I shared the viral video of my conversation with Senator Jeff Flake on a plane from DC, a year ago I was healthy. Then, I was diagnosed with ALS-- also called Lou Gehrig's disease--which is a rapidly progressing deadly ailment with no cure.
Now, I walk with a cane, I have trouble breathing, and I don't even have the strength to lift my 18 month old son into my lap.
Some days I feel like giving up. But I can't. Instead, I've been crisscrossing the country fighting the Republican tax bill--and fighting for my life.
The Republican tax plan would mean serious cuts to disability funding that I'll need before too long to pay for a ventilator to keep me alive and other crucial medical care. What will these Republicans in Congress say to my son if I can't get one?
My birthday is Monday and I have one wish. I want us to make it into a massive day of action to kill the Republican tax scam.
Along with the PCCC, Barkan encouraged people to sign up for and then attend a rally or event in their local district on Monday, December 18th.
Other groups, including MoveOn.org and others, are also organizing:
Since the video of him calling on Flake to buck his party and become a "hero" to the nation by voting against the GOP's plan, Barkan has made several media appearances, including this recent interview on CNN:
And in this video, posted by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) on Friday after he and his family spent time together in her DC office, Barkan explained why it remains so vital that people rise up to stop Trump and the Republicans in the days ahead:
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.