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How to
become a POWER
member
or renew your annual membership:
POWER is
open to people from ALL
WALKS OF LIFE & ALL INCOME LEVELS who care about
ending poverty & want to do
something
about it. By becoming a member of POWER, you're becoming a part of a
growing local movement to end poverty led by poor
& low-income people!
Membership in POWER is
open to all those who:
Help us build
a local movement to end poverty:
BECOME A POWER MEMBER TODAY!
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|
Mission
Statement |
| Portland Organizing to Win
Economic Rights [P.O.W.E.R.] is a
grass-roots anti-poverty action group led by poor & low-income
people.
United with all those who align themselves with this mission, together
we’re
building a local movement to win economic rights for all, end
economic
oppression, & abolish poverty. |
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| Principles
of
Membership |
- I declare
that I fully
& truly support POWER’s mission of
low-income
leadership, winning economic rights, ending economic oppression,
&
abolishing poverty.
- I agree that all
people are
entitled to a decent,
dignified standard of living sufficient to ensure their health
& well-being,
including:
- The
right to adequate food
& nutrition;
- The right adequate housing that is
safe, decent, &
accessible;
- The
right to quality healthcare that is free, universal,
& accessible;
- The right to living wage jobs
with good benefits & the freedom
to unionize
- The right to adequate government
benefits for all who
lack income;
- The right to accessible quality
education at all
levels;
- The right to communicate,
including interpreting &
translation;
- I pledge
solidarity with POWER & all fellow members,
regardless of race,
ethnicity, religion,
class, gender, age, (dis)ability, sexual orientation, receipt
of government
benefits, national origin, political affiliation, or immigration
status.
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| I understand that since membership in POWER is
renewed on an annual basis, in order to remain a POWER member in good
standing I need to renew my membership & dues annually. |
| I
understand that POWER's annual dues are suggested according to income;
and while no one
is ever denied membership because of an inability to pay suggested
member dues, I
understand that I am expected to contribute what dues I honestly
& truly feel I can afford. |
| I understand that while
membership is open to all regardless of income level, in keeping with
POWER's mission of low-income leadership, the rights to cast deciding
votes & hold positions on POWER's Leadership Council are
respectfully reserved for self-declared low-income POWER members. |
| I
understand that in joining POWER I am declaring that I support POWER's
mission, goals, & values, and the organization as a
whole, and that I intend to support, uphold, & adhere to
POWER's mission &
Principles of Membership honestly and
in good faith for the duration of my membership. I also understand that
any failure to do so may result the loss of my membership and/or being
barred from POWER meetings & activities.* |
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Annual
Member Dues
P.O.W.E.R.'s annual
member dues are suggested according to income level. Please
contribute what dues you feel you can afford.
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How to pay member dues:
- Personal
checks or money orders:
Please make
your check or money order payable to
POWER & send by mail to POWER, Po box 4281, Portland, Maine
04101
- Cash:
if possible,
please contact
us
to let us know before you send cash, and/or hand deliver it if
possible.
- PayPal
/ credit card payments:
To pay your membership dues securely
on-line using a credit card, debit card, or
PayPal
account, please click on the "Donate" button below:
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| Income
Level |
Suggested Dues |
I am VERY
LOW-INCOME / POOR:
My yearly income* is $0 - $11,000
($0 - $916 per month). |
$0 - $5
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I am
LOW-INCOME:
My yearly
income* is $11,000 - $21,000
($917 - $1,750 per month). |
$5 - $25 |
I
am NOT LOW-INCOME:**
My yearly
income* is $21,000 -$75,000
($1,751 - $6,250 per month). |
$25
- $100 |
I am
UPPER-INCOME / WEALTHY:**
My
yearly income* is higher than $75,000.
($6,251 or more per month) |
$100 - $500
or more |
ORGANIZATIONAL
MEMBER***
Dues
are based on organization's
budget - for details see POWER's organizational
membership form. |
Dues
are $50-$500 |
*Annual
income for
a 1-person household. Add
$3,600 per additional family member.
**Please note: While membership
is open to all regardless of income level, in
keeping with POWER's mission of low-income leadership, the rights to
cast deciding votes & hold positions on POWER's Leadership
Council
are respectfully reserved for self-declared low-income POWER members.
***Unlike individual member dues, dues for
organizational
members are based on the organization's budget and are NOT
suggested (call us for exceptions). |
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Are you someone who
believes in winning
economic rights, ending economic oppression, and abolishing poverty? Do
you believe that access to health care is a basic human right? Does it
bother you that 52% of the bankruptcies in this country are the direct
result of health crises? Are you sick and tired of hearing about how
great the economy is doing while your family, or the family of someone
you care about, is struggling more than ever before just to put bread
on the table? Does it disgust you that - here in the wealthiest nation
in all of human history - millions of American families are forced to
suffer in poverty, while the richest of the rich get billions in tax
cuts?These are just a few of the reasons that you should consider
joining POWER.
If
you answered yes to any of these questions, and you feel it's time to
do something about all this, your future fellow POWER members are ready
and waiting for you to join us.
POWER
is happy to accept membership from amongst ALL those who align
themselves with our mission and principles of membership. Maybe you're
someone without a whole lot of extra time (extra time? what's that?) -
you can still show your solidarity and support by becoming a member and
contributing much needed dues to help support the work of your fellow
members. Or, maybe you're looking for a way to get more active and
confront these challenges along side fellow members of your community -
in which case, the sky is the limit and we can't wait to hear from
you!
Together we CAN end poverty!
Together we WILL end poverty!
WHEN WE UNITE TO CLAIM OUR RIGHTS TOGETHER WE HAVE
POWER!
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*Disclaimer:
Let it be known that POWER reserves the right to revoke or deny
membership at its own
discretion, including the membership of any person believed to have
violated any of POWER's Principles of Membership, misrepresented
themselves or their intentions, or acted (and/or intended to act) in
such a way as to undermine, disrupt, interfere with, or
otherwise cause
harm to the organization, and/or any of its members, and/or any of its
activities in any way. In addition, POWER reserves the right to
prohibit such individuals from participating in any of the
organization's meetings and/or activities, at its sole discretion.
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ECONOMIC
HUMAN RIGHTS
Conditions
of poverty
represent violations of our economic human rights. As part of the
struggle to end poverty, we're working to document these violations
wherever they occur. Economic human rights are guaranteed to all human
beings; they are
outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, signed by the
United States
in 1948. These rights include:
Article
23
Right to LIVING WAGE JOBS,
to safe working conditions, and to form and join unions.
(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to
just and
favourable conditions of
work and to protection
against
unemployment.
(2) Everyone, without any
discrimination, has the
right to equal pay
for equal work.
(3) Everyone who works has the right to
just and
favourable
remuneration
ensuring for
him/herself and
his/her family an
existence worthy of
human dignity,
and supplemented, if
necessary, by other
means
of social
protection.
(4) Everyone has the right to form and
to join
trade unions for the
protection of
his/her interests.
Article 25
Right to well-being of a
person and their family, including: HOUSING,
HEALTHCARE,
& FOOD,
CHILDCARE, & SECURITY for all those who are unemployed, unable
to work, &/or working at home raising
children &/or
care-taking.
(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of
living
adequate for the
health
and well-being of
him/herself and of
his/her
family,
including food,
clothing, housing
and medical care and
necessary social services,
and
the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness,
disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of
livelihood in
circumstances beyond
his/her control.
(2) Motherhood and childhood are
entitled to special
care and
assistance.
All children,
whether born in or out
of wedlock, shall
enjoy the same
social protection.
Article 26
Right
to EDUCATION,
including higher education & training.
(1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be
free, at
least
in the elementary and
fundamental stages.
Elementary
education
shall
be compulsory. Technical
and professional
education shall be made
generally available and
higher education
shall be equally accessible
to
all on the basis of merit.
(2) Education shall be directed to the full
development
of the human
personality and
to
the strengthening of
respect for human
rights and
fundamental
freedoms. It shall
promote understanding,
tolerance
and
friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall
further the activities of the United
Nations for the maintenance of
peace.
(3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind
of
education that shall be
given to their children.
For
the full text of the UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS CLICK
HERE!
Portland
Organizing to Win Economic Rights = POWER!
Contact POWER
Winning
our economic rights;
Putting poverty on trial;
Building a Maine that truly is the way life should be - for ALL of us!!!
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