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Social justice hero - Senator Al Franken
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When writing about social justice, it's easy to get caught up
with all that is wrong with the world and all that is wrong with politics. It's time for me to give kudos where kudos is due. So, beginning today, I am starting a weekly column, recognizing a social justice hero. The hero can be a politician, a celebrity or a regular person. If you have a friend who is doing some great things, let me know.
Now, for my first Social Justice Hero of the Week...our Juniorist of our Junior Senators, from the Great State of Minnesota, Al Franken!
In 2005, KBR/Haliburton employee, Jamie Leigh Jones was allegedly gang raped by coworkers. Her rapists then held her in a shipping container, without food or water for at least 24 hours.
To this day, neither her accused rapists nor the company has seen a courtroom. When Jones started working with KBR, she signed a contract prohibiting her from taking her case in front of a judge. Instead, any disputes would be settled by a private arbitrator. Employment attorney, Cathy Ventrell-Monsees told ABC News that Haliburton has won over 80% of arbitration proceedings.
Senator Al Franken, recognizing this as the travesty that it is, proposed an amendment to the 2010 Defense Appropriations Bill, stating that the government would withhold contracts from companies that force their employees to sign such a contract.
According to Franken:
"The constitution gives everybody the right to due process of law … And today, defense contractors are using fine print in their contracts do deny women like Jamie Leigh Jones their day in court. … The victims of rape and discrimination deserve their day in court [and] Congress plainly has the constitutional power to make that happen."
Watch his speech:
The bill passed with a bipartisan 68-30 vote. A list of the 30 all male, all Republican Senators who voted against this amendment, see Republicans for Rape.
In another act of justice, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Texas, voted in a 2 to 1 ruling that her alleged rape was not covered by the employment contract, and that she will be allowed to sue.
