***For Immediate Release***
Friday, May 15, 2020
Contact: Magdalena Cazarez
Communications Director, Nebraska Appleseed
O: (402) 438-8853 ext 119
C: (402) 504-0074
mcazarez@neappleseed.org
Statement from Executive Director Becky Gould on the passage of the HEROES Act
Lincoln, NE — On Friday, The US House of Representatives voted to pass the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act. The Act would support families and communities as the country continues to confront the COVID-19 public health crisis and its ripple effects. It would provide critical, inclusive relief to thousands of Nebraskans who were left out of the original relief package, the CARES Act.
Nebraska Appleseed Executive Director Becky Gould issued the following statement in response:
“We applaud the House of Representatives for voting to protect the health and wellbeing of all Nebraskans through the HEROES Act. This public health crisis has exposed the inequalities in our systems that Appleseed has been fighting against for many decades. Along with extending critical supports like enhanced unemployment and SNAP benefits, the HEROES Act includes enforceable workplace health and safety protections for the more than 20,000 Nebraskans who work in meat and poultry processing, 80% of whom are immigrants, refugees, and people of color.
We simply cannot return to pre-coronavirus conditions, instead, we must pass solutions like the HEROES Act that support our entire community, not just a subset. We are disappointed that Nebraska’s representatives did not support this vital legislation and we call on Nebraska’s Senators Sasse and Fischer to act quickly to ensure the Senate passes a comparable package that provides additional financial support and critical workplace health and safety protections.”
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