HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 02-21-2012 - 4aORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTtON AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: February 21, 2012
Action Agenda
Item No. 4 ~ Gt
SUBJECT: Consideration of Resolution Supporting an Amendment to the United States
Constitution to Clarify that Corporations are Not People and Money Is Not
Speech _
DEPARTMENT: Board of Commissioners PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No
ATTACHMENT(S)• INFORMATION CONTACT:
Comments and Suggested Resolution Donna Baker, Clerk to the Board, 245-
Submitted by Move to Amend 2130
Draft Resolution Bernadette Pelissier, Board Chair, 245-
2130
Pete Brown, Triangle Move to Amend,
919-260-2398
PURPOSE: To consider adopting a Resolution to Amend the United States Constitution to
Clarify that Corporations are Not People and Money Is Not Speech.
BACKGROUND: At the Board's January 24, 2012 regular meeting, members of the Triangle
Move to Amend petitioned the Board of Commissioners to adopt a resolution in support of a
Constitutional Amendment to undo the harm of the Supreme Court's January 21, 2010 Citizens
United decision.
With its January 21, 2010 decision in Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission, the U.S.
Supreme Court ruled that corporations are persons and that campaign donations are the same
as free speech with regard to elections. Triangle Move to Amend rejects the U.S. Supreme
Court's ruling in Citizens United and proposes that the Board of Commissioners adopt a
resolution supporting an amendment to the US Constitution to firmly establish that money is not
speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights.
The group's representatives encouraged the Board to join with other jurisdictions across the
nation in resolving in favor of amending the US Constitution to undo the impact of the Supreme
Court's Citizens United decision and do so as close to the anniversary of that infamous decision
as possible.
The comments and suggested resolution as submitted by Move to Amend prior to and at the
meeting are attached. Staff has also provided a draft resolution for Board consideration.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact associated with consideration of the
resolution.
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends the Board consider the attached
Resolution and, if approved, authorize the Chair to sign the resolution.
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Carol HaY
3500-4 Old Greensboro Rd (White Cross community) "
Chapel Hill, NC 2516 -
Corporations Are Not People
The word corporation does not appear in the Constitution of the United States. Since
1886, when personhood under the 14th Amendment was granted to corporations by the
Supreme Co~~ ~s "right" has been extended to include (and this list is not exhaustive):
1 St ~en~i~.ent protection of free speech ~
--which was e~ended to supersede workers' rights to freedom of association
--then to in~lude advertisi.ng .
--then to include political contributions when money was declared equivalent to
speech
4~' ~mendrnent search and seizure protection
Sr~ ~en~nent protections
--of due process,
__ ag~nst t~g private property for public use,
__ ag~st double jeopardy
~~' p,rnendment right to jury trial in a civil case
In contrast~ Sm~e Sept. 11, 2001, the rights of actual people have been reduced, restricted,
annullecl, and lgnored:
The President can
--order the ~lling of any citizen suspected of terrorism or of supporting terrorists, in
violation of the 4~', 5~`; 6~', and 8`~ Amendments.
-- order the ~definite detention of any citizen accused of terrorism, in violation of the 6~'
Amendme~t.
-- decide whether a citizen will be tried in federal court or military tribunal, in violation
of the 5~' ~en~ent.
-- order surveillance of citizez~s without probable cause, in violation of the 4~'
Amendment•
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,
,
/~
~ ~
! The federal government "can claim secret~ legal arguments to support secret [courtj
proceedings using secret evidence," * in violation of the 4~', 5~', and 6~` Amendments.
The federal government and its CIA employees can torture suspected terrorists, in
violation of treaties to which the U.S is a party, and of the Nuremburg Principles of war ^
crimes and human rights. ~
The federal government can transfer anyone, even U.S. citizens, to other countries fQ~t
purposes of torture. ~
All of these abuses can be applied to innocent people, even people in this very room.
None of us has any legal protection against them.
In light of the fact that corporations have exponentially increasing i.nfluence in the
outcomes of our elections, and therefore in the control of our government, and in light of
the bailout of Wa11 Street at the expense of Main Street, I ask you to begin to help redxess
this gross subversion of human rights and democratic government by supporting a
Constitutional amendment sta.ting that corporations are not people and money is not
speech.
Sources:
*For a summary of the diminishing rights of citizens and links to specific sources
htt ://www.washin on ost.com/o inions/is-the-united-states-still-the-land-of-the-
free/2012/O l/04/~IQAvcD 1 wP print html
For a history of increasing corporate personhood
http://www.wilpf.or~/docs/ccp/corp/ACP/CP article%2Btimeline ~df
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Resolution to Amend the Federal Constitution to Clarify that Corporations are not People and Money is not
Speech .
Whereas, government of, by, and for the people has long been a cherished American value, and We The
Peoplea?Ts fundamental and inalienable right to self-govern, and thereby secure rights to life, liberry, properry;
and the pursuit of happiness is guaranteed in the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, and;
~Vhereas, corporations are human-madeY legal fictions created by express permission of We The Peop~e and our
government, and are not and have never been human beings, but rather are rightfully subsexvient to~human
beings and governments as our legal creations, and;
~Vhereas, corporations can exist in perpetuity, can exist si.multaneously in many nations at once, and can
concentrate vast wealth which allows them to corrupt the political process in order to ga.in special privileges and
to wield coercive force of law to overpower human beings and communities, thus denying We The Peoplea?Ts
exercise of our Constitutional rights, and; ~
Whereas, the recent Citizens United v. the Federal Election Commission Supreme Court decision that rolled
back the legal limits on corporate speriding in the electoral process creates an unequal p~aying field and allows
unlimited corporate spending to influence elections, candidate selection, policy decisions and sway votes, and
forces electeci officials to divert their attention from The Peoplesa?T business, or even vote against the interest
of their human constituents, in order to ensure competitive campaign funds for their own re-election, and;
Whereas, large corporations own most of Americaa?Ts mass media and use that media as a megaphone to
express loudly their political agenda. and to convince Americans that their primary role is that of consumers,
rather than sovereign citizens with rights and responsibilities within our democracy, and this forces citizens to
toil to discern the truth behind headlines and election campaigning, and;
Therefore be it resolved tiiat Orange County, NC stands with the Move to Amend campaign and communities
across the country to defend democracy from the corrupting effects of undue corporate power by amending the
United States Constiiution to establish that:
1. Only human beings, not corporations, are endowed with constiiutional rights, and 2. Money is not speech,
and therefore regulating political contributions and spending is not equivalent to limiting political speech.
DATE:
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DRAFT ~E~- ao~a- oa ~
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
RESOLUTION SUPPORTING AN AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATES
CONSTITUTION TO CLARIFY THAT CORPORATIONS ARE NOT PEOPLE AND
MONEY IS NOT SPEECH
Whereas, Government of, by, and for the people has long been a cherished American
value, and We The Peoples' fundamental and inalienable right to self-govern, and
thereby secure rights to life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness is guaranteed
in the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence; and
Whereas, Corporations are human-made, legal fictions created by express permission
of We The People and our government, and are not and have never been human
beings, but rather are rightFully subservient to human beings and governments as our
legal creations, and
Whereas, Corporations can exist in perpetuity, can exist simultaneously in many
nations at once, and can concentrate vast wealth which allows them to corrupt the
political process in order to gain special privileges and to wield coercive force of law to
overpower human beings and communities, thus denying We The Peoples' exercise of
our Constitutional rights, and
Whereas, the recent Citizens United v. the Federal Elections Commission Supreme
Court decision that rolled back the legal limits on corporate spending in the electoral
process creates an unequal playing field and allows unlimited corporate spending to
influence elections, candidate selection, policy decisions and sway votes, and forces
elected officials to divert their attention from The Peoples' business, or even vote
against the interest of their human constituents, in order to ensure competitive
campaign funds for their own re-election, and
Whereas, Large corporations own most of America's mass media and use that media
as a megaphone to express loudly their political agenda and to convince Americans that
their primary role is that of consumers, rather than sovereign citizens with rights and
responsibilities within our democracy, and this forces citizens to toil to discern the truth
behind headlines and election campaigning, and
NOW THEREFORE BE lT RESOLVED that we, the Orange County Board of
Commissioners stand with the Move to Amend campaign and communities across the
country to defend democracy from the corrupting effects of undue corporate power and
support amending the United States Constitution to establish that:
1. Only human beings, not corporations, are endowed with constitutional rights,
and
2. Money is not speech, and therefore regulating political contributions and
spending is not equivalent to limiting political speech.
This the 21St Day of February 2012.
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Bernadette Pelissier, Chair
Orange County Board of Commissioners