Stand-up day makes Tex. senator a star

Wendy Davis strode onto the floor of the Texas Senate chamber on Tuesday in rouge-red running shoes, and came off it early Wednesday morning as the Democratic Party’s newest star.
ERIC GAY/ASSOCIATED PRESS Texas state Sen. Wendy Davis (D-Fort Worth) stood on the near-empty floor of the Texas Senate on Tuesday afternoon as she filibustered a bill that would ban abortions in the state after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Below, Davis and fellow Democratic senator Jose Rodriguez of El Paso celebrate after time ran out on the bill.

 

  During 13 hours in between, the little-known legislator from Fort Worth delivered a filibuster that electrified social media and stopped passage of one of the nation’s toughest set of abortion restrictions in the waning hours of a special session.  As word spread, supporters thronged the capitol’s entrances, lined the walkways encircling the rotunda and turned the Senate chamber’s gallery into a cheering section.

What made the scene so riveting was the woman who was required to speak without a break, without straying from the topic and without even leaning on her antique walnut desk. As time ran out, Republicans deemed her to have violated those rules — including once for being helped with a back brace — and made her give up the floor.

Such was the bedlam, however, that when the 19-10 vote finally happened, it came several minutes too late for a midnight deadline.

That kind of tenacity has also been the story of her life. Davis, 50, became a mother while still in her teens, lived for a time in a trailer park and graduated with honors from Harvard Law School.
As she spoke, Twitter registered 400,000 tweets with the hashtag #standwithwendy. One of them came from the official account of President Obama, and said: “Something special is happening in Austin tonight.”

But it was a rare — and likely temporary — victory for abortion rights advocates.
Davis succeeded in running out the clock on the session. So late Wednesday afternoon, Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) announced that he would call the legislature back for another special session, to begin July 1. The abortion bill appears certain to be considered again, and if the Republican leadership acts quickly enough, it will not be subject to a filibuster.

“Obviously, if he brings that back again and the management in the capitol on both sides manages time better than they did when we started this past special session, that bill will pass,” Davis conceded in an interview.

The legislation would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, which is about four weeks before a fetus is viable; mandate abortion clinics to meet the same standards as hospital-style surgical centers; and require doctors who perform the procedure to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals.
Advocates of the legislation say it is a means of assuring abortion is safe; opponents say it would force nearly every abortion clinic in the state to close.

In the 2012 presidential and Senate elections, Republicans felt a backlash for waging what Democrats branded a “war on women,” particularly on questions involving contraception and abortion.

But there is a political tide pulling in the other direction. During the more than two years since the 2010 elections strengthened Republican power in state capitals across the country, many have moved to put new limitations on abortion.

Last year alone saw 19 states enact 43 new provisions aimed at restricting abortion, according to the Guttmacher Institute, an advocacy and research organization that promotes abortion rights but produces data that are often cited by advocates on both sides of the issue.

Kathy Hawken, a Republican state legislator who had been among the leaders of the unsuccessful fight against North Dakota’s restrictive new abortion law, was on a vacation getaway with girlfriends when news of Davis’s filibuster came across her Facebook feed.

“I was impressed, particularly in Texas,” she said. “I’m hopeful that this is the start of something bigger.”
The abortion debate has revived in Washington as well following the conviction last month of Philadelphia physician Kermit Gosnell, who was found guilty of three acts of first-degree murder in the deaths of infants born alive while he was performing late-term abortions.

Last week, the Republican-led U.S. House passed a bill that would ban almost all abortions after 20 weeks’ gestation. While the bill stands no chance in the Senate and is constitutionally questionable, its supporters say it will be an isssue that energizes conservative voters in the 2014 elections.
“Just talking about the economy all the time, jobs and the economy, doesn’t motivate people to get out and vote,” said Marilyn Musgrave (R), a former congresswoman from Colorado who now serves as a vice president of the Susan B. Anthony List, an organization that recruits antiabortion women candidates to run for office.

Davis’s own political future has also become a hot topic.
As a newcomer to a legislature that meets in regular session for only 140 days every other year, the former city councilwoman was named “rookie of the year” by Texas Monthly magazine in 2009, and made the magazine’s list of 10 best lawmakers this year.

Davis had already established a reputation for stepping up in a fight. The filibuster on the antiabortion legislation was actually her second of note; in 2011, she did the same in the closing hours of the legislative term in an attempt to stop a budget bill that included education cuts. Perry was forced to call a special session to get them through.

So it is no surprise that she has become one of the GOP’s top electoral targets. Next year, she is up for reelection in a district where she has eked out two narrow wins. The question now is whether she takes advantage of her newfound stardom to make a bid for statewide office — something no Texas Democrat has won since 1994.
“Last night, she clearly became a person of heroic proportions to a lot of Democrats, to a lot of women and a lot of young people,” University of Texas political scientist and pollster James Henson said Wednesday. “In the long to medium run, another reality will set in — this is still a very Republican state.”

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John Lewis: ‘Come and walk in my shoes’

The mural "Hero," honoring U.S. Congressman and Civil Rights Leader John Lewis, is shown on the west side of the Renaissance Walk at the corner of Jesse Hill Jr. Drive N.E., and Auburn Avenue, Friday, August 24, 2012, in Atlanta, Georgia. Atlanta-based artist Sean Schwab worked on the mural for eight days using a 65-foot lift to paint the wall. 

By Rep. John Lewis D. GA), 

The Washington Post Posted June 26, 2013, at 9:21 a.m.

 

The Supreme Court has stuck a dagger into the heart of the Voting Rights Act. Although the court did not deny that voter discrimination still exists, it gutted the most powerful tool this nation has ever had to stop discriminatory voting practices from becoming law. Those justices were never beaten or jailed for trying to register to vote. They have no friends who gave their lives for the right to vote. I want to say to them, “Come and walk in my shoes.”

I disagree that just because the incidence of voter discrimination is not as “pervasive, widespread or rampant” as it was in 1965 that contemporary problems are not a valid basis for scrutiny. In a democracy, one act of voter discrimination should be too much.

It took nearly 100 years, from 1865 to 1965, for effective voting rights legislation to be passed. The advances of the Reconstruction period — when some freed slaves were elected to Congress — were erased in a few short years, and for decades this nation turned a blind eye to some of the worst and most brutal violations of human and civil rights.

Also, the purpose of the Voting Rights Act is not to increase the number of minority voters or elected officials. That is a byproduct of its effectiveness. The purpose of the act is to stop discriminatory practices from becoming law. There are more black elected officials in Mississippi today not because attempts to discriminate against voters ceased but because the Voting Rights Act kept those attempts from becoming law. Just hours after the court’s decision was announced, Texas said it would immediately implement the same voter identification law declared illegal by the Justice Department.

We do not want to go back. We must move forward. I think it is very encouraging that some members of Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, have indicated a willingness to fix this problem. Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee are already meeting. I call upon my colleagues to join in a bipartisan fashion as we did in 2006 and find a way to protect access to the ballot box for all Americans.

‘Assembly line’ for illegal campaign donations alleged in probe of D.C. politics

 April 2010, Jeffrey Thompson speaks at a ceremony to remember Dorothy Height.

By Ann E. Marimow and Mike DeBonis, Published: June 19  

The corruption investigation that has roiled D.C. politics for two years has uncovered a highly organized operation inside an accounting firm that funneled illegal contributions to scores of political campaigns, according to new court documents filed Thursday.

For nearly a decade, Jeffrey E. Thompson’s accounting firm was an “assembly line” for donations, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. said. The documents suggest that many employees or their relatives wrote checks to campaigns for D.C. Council, mayor, Congress and other offices to disguise the fact that the money was actually coming from Thompson.  Thompson then reimbursed employees for their “straw” donations through his firm’s accounting and payroll operations, according to the documents.

 

The allegations that Thompson orchestrated such a far-reaching scheme follow accusations aired last year that he was the secret financier of a $635,000 effort to help the 2010 mayoral campaign of Vincent C. Gray. Those accusations of a “shadow” campaign have dogged Gray (D) since he took office. The mayor has not been charged and denies any wrongdoing.

Prosecutors have said the investigation will move quickly in the coming weeks. They appear to be methodically building a case against Thompson, who was for years one of the District’s largest contractors and who, court records show, is the subject of a grand jury investigation.

The documents filed Thursday show that Thompson’s allegedly illegal campaign contributions went beyond the shadow mayoral campaign to include years of disguised donations to high-profile politicians other than Gray, including Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) and then-Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.). Thompson’s attorney, Brendan V. Sullivan Jr., declined to comment on the case.
 

Thursday’s revelations came at the plea hearing of Lee A. Calhoun, an employee of Thompson’s accounting firm, then called Thompson, Cobb, Bazilio and Associates. Thompson has since left the firm. Calhoun admitted in federal court that he contributed $160,000 in his name and the names of relatives to disguise that Thompson was the real donor.
 

The charges filed against Calhoun last week represented the first time that prosecutors implicated someone who worked directly for Thompson. Thompson is identified in court papers as “Executive A,” but Calhoun’s attorney identified Thompson and his firm in an interview with reporters after Thursday’s hearing.
 

A second associate of Thompson’s, Stanley L. Straughter, was charged Thursday with a similar campaign violation. Straughter’s attorney, Steven J. McCool, declined to comment on the charge. But Calhoun’s attorney, Edward B. MacMahon Jr., said after Calhoun’s hearing that several people close to Thompson will be charged with similar offenses.
 

“The people that worked there and the people that were friends of Mr. Thompson were told to do these things, were convinced to do these things, and that’s why they did them,” MacMahon said. He said “many” other employees of the firm were involved, but he declined to speculate on how much money was ultimately donated. “It’s a big number,” he said.

 

The court documents filed Thursday described an elaborate operation inside the accounting department of Thompson’s firm to keep track of covert donations. Thompson allegedly directed employees and their relatives to become “straw donors” for numerous fundraising events primarily held at the firm’s offices on 15th Street NW. 

 
Reimbursement checks for political contributions were paid through the firm’s accounting department and labeled as “advances” on bonuses, according to the plea deal signed by Calhoun. They often contained an added sweetener of $100 or so, Calhoun said in court.

In Calhoun’s case, the firm allegedly maintained an account in which payments, including the reimbursements, were recorded. The firm also took steps to deal with the tax implications of the alleged straw donations, according to the plea, overstating Calhoun’s income to offset the tax consequences of the reimbursement checks.

Calhoun, 65, told U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly that his former boss pressed him to make “larger and larger contributions.”  Checks in Calhoun’s name went to numerous candidates, records indicate, not only Norton, Gray and Specter but also former mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D), five sitting D.C. Council members and Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D).

“He offered many assurances that it was legal,” said Calhoun, who added that he quickly realized that hiding the true source of the contributions was illegal.  Calhoun, who lives in Silver Spring, faces a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a fine of up to $50,000.

Federal campaign finance records list at least 35 donors besides Thompson and Calhoun who listed Thompson, Cobb, Bazilio and Associates as their employer. They donated a combined $338,000 to presidential and congressional campaigns and various political action committees, most often giving the maximum amount legally allowed.

Straughter and a relative are listed in federal campaign records as donating $61,800 to federal campaign committees since 2002, often donating to the same candidates and committees supported by Thompson.
The charging document in Straughter’s case alleges that he gave illegal donations of corporate money to congressional campaigns in 2010. Records show that Straughter, who was a contractor for Thompson’s firm, made two donations that year: $2,300 to Norton and $2,000 to Specter.

A Norton campaign spokeswoman did not return messages seeking comment. Specter, who was defeated in the 2010 Democratic primary, died in October.  Calhoun remains an employee of Bazilio Cobb Associates, the successor to Thompson’s firm. That firm issued a statement Friday acknowledging that “employees and their family members and friends were ensnared by the aggressive solicitation of campaign contributions” under Thompson’s ownership, which ended in July.

“The current leadership has and will take responsibility for any actions or inactions that wittingly or unwittingly facilitated this conduct,” the statement said.  The firm said it was “relieved that the cloud it has been under for the past 15 months will lift soon.”

 

Chicago teachers union chief faults ‘rich white people’ for city’s education mess

In a scathing speech on Wednesday, the president of the Chicago Teachers Union charged that racism and “rich white people” are to blame for the immense financial crisis facing the Chicago Public Schools.

In her remarks to an audience at the upscale City Club of Chicago, union boss Karen Lewis strongly criticized Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. She also urged the city schools to follow the strategic blueprint of the Chicago Cubs baseball team.

“Members of the status quo — the people who are running the schools and advising the mayor on how to best run our district — know what good education looks like because they have secured it for their own children in well-resourced public and private institutions,” the Dartmouth graduate charged.

“When will there be an honest conversation about the poverty, racism and inequality that hinders the delivery of a quality education product in our school system?” Lewis also asked in the speech. “When will we address the fact that rich, white people think they know what’s in the best interest of children of African Americans and Latinos—no matter what the parent’s income or education level.”

The union leader then questioned the motives of “venture capitalists” who have expressed a desire to improve the quality of education for poor and minority students.

“There is something about these folks who love the kids but hate the parents,” Lewis inveighed. “There’s something about these folks who use little black and brown children as stage props at one press conference while announcing they want to fire, layoff or lock up their parents at another press conference.”

Lewis called for “an end to corporate subsidies and loopholes.” She demanded “progressive taxation” to close the $1 billion budget deficit currently facing the Second City and its public schools.

Higher income tax rates on wealthy residents would generate billions in necessary revenue, the union chief suggested. She also proposed new taxes for commuters and for financial transfers.  In her closing remarks, Lewis, a self-professed Chicago White Sox fan, suggested that the Chicago Public Schools would be wise to emulate the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise.

“When the Cubs lose a game they don’t call for Wrigley Field to close down. They don’t want the entire team dismantled. Despite empty seats, the stadium isn’t accused of being underutilized,” she said.  Lewis, who obviously spends little time listening to Chicago’s two main sports radio stations, also suggested that “no one questions” the salaries of Chicago baseball players.

Year after year — despite individual player performance, despite game losses and near wins — the fans show continue to show up. We keep cheering for our Cubbies. We know they are winners. We dream. We believe,” Lewis said.

“Do the same for our children,” she implored. “Cheer them on. Invest in them. Love them. Support their parents. Support their teachers. Support their schools. Let’s work together. Let’s win, Chicago. Let’s win.”

The Chicago Cubs famously have not won a World Series since 1908 (or a National League pennant since 1945). The team is currently in next-to-last place in Major League Baseball’s National League Central division — 16 games out of first place.

Beyond NYC: Other places adapting to climate, too

By KARL RITTER | Associated Press – 8 hrs ago

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BONN, Germany (AP) — From Bangkok to Miami, cities and coastal areas across the globe are already building or planning defenses to protect millions of people and key infrastructure from more powerful storm surges and other effects of global warming.

Some are planning cities that will simply adapt to more water.

But climate-proofing a city or coastline is expensive, as shown byNew York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's $20 billion plan to build floodwalls, levees and other defenses against rising seas.

The most vulnerable places are those with the fewest resources to build such defenses, secure their water supplies or move people to higher ground. How to pay for such measures is a burning issue in U.N. climate talks, which just wrapped up a session in the German city of Bonn.

A sampling of cities around the world and what they are doing to prepare for the climatic forces that scientists say are being unleashed by global warming:

___

ROTTERDAM, Netherlands. In a country where two-thirds of the population lives below sea level, the battle against the sea has been a matter of life and death for centuries.

The Dutch government devotes roughly 1 percent of its annual budget to its intricate system of dikes, dunes and sea walls. Improvements to cope just with the effects of climate change have been carried out since 2003 — though planning began well before that.

The focus in the 20th century was on a spectacular series of sea defenses, including massive steel and concrete barriers that can be quickly moved to protect against storm surges.

But current techniques embrace a philosophy of "living with water:" Floods are inevitable, and it's better to prepare for them than to build ever-higher dikes that may fail catastrophically.

Thousands of waterways are being connected so the country can essentially act as one big sponge and absorb sudden influxes of water. Some areas have been designated as flood zones. Houses that can float have been a building sensation.

Along the coast, the country has been spouting huge amounts of sand in strategic locations offshore and allowing the natural motion of waves to strengthen defensive dunes.

____

VENICE, Italy. Sea level rise is a particular concern for this flood-prone city. It's in the process of realizing an expensive and oft-delayed system of underwater barriers that would be raised in the event of flooding over 43 inches (110 centimeters), higher than the 31-inch (80-centimeter) level that floods the famed St. Mark's Square.

Venice, a system of islands built into a shallow lagoon, is extremely vulnerable to rising seas because the sea floor is also sinking.

The constant flooding puts the city's considerable architectural treasures at risk. Venice has experienced 10 events over 4 feet 7 inches (140 centimeters) since 1950, including a devastating 1966 flood. Plans for the new so-called Moses barriers will cost more than 4 billion euros. The first of these have been moved into place in recent days. Many Venetians remain skeptical of the project due to the high costs and concerns over environmental risks.

___

LONDON. The low-lying capital of a perpetually soggy country, London has long been vulnerable to flooding — particularly when powerful storms send seawater racing up the River Thames.

But Londoners already have a powerful flood defense: the 570-yard-long (half-a-kilometer-long) Thames Barrier, composed of 10 massive steel gates, each five stories high when raised against high water.

Some have called for Thames Barrier — in operation since 1982 — to be replaced or supplemented by an even more ambitious flood defense system farther down the river. But Britain's Environment Agency says the defenses should hold until 2070.

Meanwhile, environmentally conscious Londoners have made plans to battle some of the other predicted effects of global warming by promoting better water management, expanding the city's Victorian sewage network, and "urban greening" — the planting of trees and rooftop gardens to help manage the urban heat island effect.

___

MIAMI. Southern Florida is one of those places that show up as partially under water in many sea level projections for this century. So it's no surprise local leaders are seeking ways to adapt. Four counties of South Florida, including Miami-Dade, have collaborated on a regional plan to respond toclimate change. Their overarching goal: keeping fresh water inland and salt water away.

The first action plan calls for more public transportation, stemming the flow of seawater into freshwater, and managing the region's unique ecosystems so they can adapt.

Before writing the plan, the counties reviewed regional sea level data and projected a rise of 9 to 24 inches (23 to 61 cm) in the next 50 years along a coastline that already has documented a rise of 9 inches over the last 100 years.

"The rate's doubled. It would be disingenuous and sloppy and irresponsible not to respond to it," said Monroe County Administrator Roman Gastesi, who oversees the Florida Keys.

___

NEW YORK CITY. Mayor Michael Bloomberg last week announced one of the most ambitious plans for defending a major U.S. city from climate change. Recommendations range from installing removable flood walls in lower Manhattan to restoring marshes in Jamaica Bay in Queens, and from flood-proofing homes to setting repair timeframe standards for phone and Internet service providers.

In lower Manhattan, a removable system of posts and slats could be deployed to form temporary flood walls. The height would depend on the ground elevation and potential surge. The approach is used along some Midwestern rivers and in the Netherlands, city officials said.

Projects also include a 15-to-20-foot levee to guard part of Staten Island, building dunes in the Rockaways, building barrier systems of levees and gates to bar one creek from carrying floodwaters inland, and possibly creating a levee and a sizeable new "Seaport City" development in lower Manhattan.

___

BANGLADESH. A low-lying delta nation of 153 million people, Bangladesh is one of Asia's poorest countries, and one that faces extreme risks from rising sea levels. Its capital, Dhaka, is at the top of a list of world cities deemed most vulnerable to climate change, according to a recent survey by risk analysis company Maplecroft. The World Bank says a sea level rise of 5 inches (14 centimeters) would affect 20 million people living along the country's 440-mile (710-kilometer) coast. Many of these people would be homeless.

Bangladesh is implementing two major projects worth $470 million that involve growing forests on the coastal belt and building more multistory shelters to house people after cyclones and tidal surges. Developed nations have so far provided $170 million to the fund.

"Bangladesh is opting for adapting to the climate change impacts as the world's developed nations are not doing enough to cut down carbon emissions," said Forest and Environment Minister Hasan Mahmud in a recent speech in Dhaka. "We want the donors to contribute more to our efforts."

___

MALDIVES. The Maldives, an upmarket beach paradise for tourists, has also become a symbol of the dangers of climate change.

Made up of hundreds of islands in the Indian Ocean, it's one of the most low-lying nations in the world, and exceptionally vulnerable to rising seas.

Some scientists have said the Maldives could disappear within decades, and former President Mohamed Nasheed even proposed relocating all 350,000 inhabitants to other countries.

While other researchers say those fears may have been overblown, the country is taking measures to protect itself.

A seawall was built around the capital, Male, after flooding in the 1980s. That wall protected the city from the worst effects of the devastating 2004 tsunami, which temporarily put large swaths of the country under water.

The country's climate adaptation plans call for relocating residents from small vulnerable islands to bigger, better protected ones.

It's also creating new land through land reclamation, expanding existing islands or building new ones, to ease overcrowding. The reclaimed land is being elevated to better withstand rising seas.

___

BANGKOK, Thailand. Even before the consequences of climate change became evident, scientists were well aware that Bangkok — whose southern suburbs border the Gulf of Thailand — was under serious threat from land subsidence.

Sea level rise projections show Bangkok could be at risk of inundation in 100 years unless preventive measures are taken. But when the capital and its outskirts were affected in 2011 by the worst flooding in half a century, the immediate trigger was water runoff from the north, where dams failed to hold very heavy rains.

Industrial areas in the capital's suburbs, housing important businesses, were devastated. So the focus was put on a short-term solution for that area.

The government recently announced winning bids totaling 290.9 billion baht ($9.38 million) by Chinese, South Korean and Thai firms to run the flood and water management schemes, including the construction of reservoirs, floodways and barriers.

Solutions to the problem of rising seas are still being studied.

"Construction alone is not sustainable," says Seree Supratid, director of a climate and disaster center at Rangsit University. "People have to adapt to nature. For example, you know Bangkok will be flooded by the rising seas in the next 100 years, then you have to learn to build your houses in a way the floodwater cannot reach it, putting it up high or something."

___

CUBA. Officials recently finished a study of the effects of climate change on this island's 3,500 miles (5,630 kilometers) of coastline, and their discoveries were so alarming they didn't immediately share the results with the public to avoid causing panic.

According to the report, which The Associated Press obtained exclusively, rising sea levels would seriously damage 122 Cuban towns or even wipe them off the map by 2100. Scientists found that miles of beaches would be submerged while freshwater sources would be tainted and croplands rendered infertile. In all, seawater would penetrate up to 1.2 miles (2 kilometers) inland in low-lying areas, as oceans rose nearly 3 feet (85 centimeters).

Those frightening calculations have spurred systemic action in Cuba, the largest island in the Caribbean and one that is heavily dependent on beach-loving European and Canadian tourists. In recent months, inspectors and demolition crews have begun fanning out across the island with plans to raze thousands of houses, restaurants, hotels and improvised docks in a race to restore much of the coast to something approaching its natural state.

In the tourist resort of Varadero, the country faces a dilemma: Tearing down seaside restaurants and hotels threatens millions of dollars in yearly tourism revenue, while allowing them to stay puts at risk the very beaches that are the main draw.

___

MBEERE, Kenya. While sea level rise threatens some coastal communities in Africa, the continent faces even bigger climate-related problems inland. Climate scientists have projected shifts in rainfall patterns leading to extended droughts in some areas and increased flooding in other parts. To small-scale farming communities, these shifts could be disastrous, adding further stress to scarce water supplies.

Adaptation therefore is focused on learning to cope with the climatic changes, adjusting farming practices and improving water conservation efforts.

In Kenya's Mbeere district, where people say they're noticing longer dry spells, U.K.-based charity group Christian Aid is teaching farmers to help them predict the seasons and know better what to grow and when to plant.

A text messaging system helps farmers get up-to-date weather reports specific to their locations.

"We are supporting them to access and interpret climate information and help them make forward-looking decisions so that their farming is better suited to the predicted changing conditions," said Mohamed Adow, of Christian Aid. "Farmers live off the land and the weather, and small changes to weather patterns can be a big disaster to small-scale farmers in Africa whose entire livelihoods and well-being depend on farming."

More Abject Behaviour from "Good" Christians

Teacher fired over ex-husband’s ‘threatening and menacing’ behavior

By Dylan Stableford, Yahoo! News | The Lookout – 19 hrs ago

 

An elementary school teacher fired by a private San Diego-area school following a domestic violence incident involving her ex-husband is speaking out about her ordeal.  Carie Charlesworth, who taught second grade at Holy Trinity School in El Cajon, Calif., told the San Diego NBC affiliate that the incident with her ex-husband occurred back in January.

“Basically, we’d had a very bad weekend with him," Charlesworth, a mother of four, said. “We'd called the Sheriff’s Department three times on [that] Sunday."

The following morning, Charlesworth said, she informed the school of the incident and told the principal to be on the lookout for her ex-husband. When he was spotted in the parking lot, the school went into lockdown.  Charlesworth was put on indefinite leave, and her children, who also attended Holy Trinity, were removed by the school.

"At this time, Mrs. Charlesworth and her children are on an indefinite leave of absence," Francie Wright, Holy Trinity's principal, wrote in a letter to parents on Jan. 29. "We request that you keep them in your prayers."

“It felt like the kids and I were being punished for something we didn’t even do,” Charlesworth told NBC 7.

Her ex-husband was subsequently sent to prison, but in April, the school fired her anyway.  The Diocese of San Diego wrote in a letter to Charlesworth that it was concerned about her ex-husband's "threatening and menacing behavior."

The letter noted, "We feel deeply for you and about the situation in which you and your children find yourselves through no fault of your own. Although we understand he is currently incarcerated, we have no way of knowing how long or short a time he will actually serve and we understand from court files that he may be released as early as next fall. In the interest of the safety of the students, faculty and parents at Holy Trinity School, we simply cannot allow you to return to work there, or, unfortunately, at any other school in the Diocese."

Kenneth Hoyt, Charlesworth's attorney, said she intends to sue.

"They’ve taken away my ability to care for my kids,” Charlesworth said. “It’s not like I can go out and find a teaching job anywhere.”

Not surprisingly, advocates for domestic violence victims are outraged.

"We have 1 in 3 women in the United States who are victims of domestic violence," Heather Finlay, chief executive of YWCA San Diego, told NBC 7. "Firing all of them is not the answer."

Blogger's Note :  Is this the same Catholic Church that encourages women to carry unwanted pregnancies to term; that tells us they will step forward to help?  This is a woman who did everything she was supposed to do.  This is a woman that they know, a woman they hired, for a position of trust and honor - and this is how she is treated (how her children are treated) at the very moment they most need the community's support?  If we had a hierarchy in the Catholic Church that understood the meaning of "c-h-u-r-c-h", they would fire everyone who was part of this decision.  But no matter, I think her attorney and the ACLU will help bring that about.  There should be a federal law that protects victims of violence from this sort of retaliation by their employers, particularly large employers.