The Rally

Yesterday, October 18th, something remarkable happened. You showed up. Not just in numbers, but in spirit, in purpose, and in unity. When we gathered together, it was with one common goal; to stand against the corruption and authoritarianism we see threatening our democratic institutions. But what happened went beyond just showing up with signs and voices. You demonstrated what true civic engagement looks like.

I am deeply grateful for each and every one of you that came out. What struck me most was not just your passion for our main purpose for protesting, but the way you were all so very respectful and maintained the property just as you found it. You were peaceful in a time when tensions are running high and emotions are running strong, you showed restraint and dignity. You all proved that powerful messages do not require chaos or aggression. You respected our community and yourselves with your behavior which speaks volumes about who we are as a group. You showed that we can demand change while honoring the place that we call home. You treated each other with kindness. Watching strangers become allies, seeing people share water and conversation, witnessing the genuine care you showed for fellow rally-goers, this is what community looks like.

What we built yesterday wasn’t a one time event. It was the foundation of something lasting. We have proven that we can come together as an organized, cohesive group, one that knows how to conduct itself with integrity and purpose. This means that we can do this again and again, not just for rallies. We’re building community that can: organize around issues that matter to us, support each other in times of need, work together on local initiatives, create real and lasting change in our area, and stand as one united voice for justice and accountability.

One of the best parts about yesterday for me was going around and talking to people individually. The rally wasn’t long enough for me to even get to half of you but for the ones I did get to talk to It was great! I was the lady with the Bob the Builder hat on. Every person had their own story of why they were there. Everyone brings something to the table. I didn’t start organizing until last year, and honestly was too busy with raising my daughter, working, and dealing with health issues to care about anything else, but now nothing is more important that fighting what is happening, I cannot do this alone. We would not have been there yesterday if we didn’t all see that we had a problem. Alone we are weak but as a group we are strong. As an individual it takes all of your time to fight but as a group it only takes a small amount that we could all spare a little collectively. Voting is only a small part of civic engagement and as we can see that is apparently not enough.

Thank you for showing me, showing all of us, what is possible when good people come together with shared purpose and mutual respect. Thank you for your peaceful presence and thoughtful conduct, and your unwavering commitment to doing this the right way. Let’s keep this momentum going. Let’s continue to organize, support each other, and be the change we want to see. Together we can build something that matters, we are stronger than any force that wants to divide us. With gratitude and solidarity.

By Sally Simpson

Gift Ban

Last week, members of Unite Armstrong joined forces with March on Harrisburg and traveled to the state capitol building. We went there with a simple request, pass a Gift Ban that would prevent our state legislators from accepting unlimited money from corporate interests and lobbyists. It shouldn’t be a radical idea. Most states have figured this out already. But Pennsylvania is one of only three states in the nation that allows our representatives to accept as much money as they want, with no cap on donations or gifts. No limits. No accountability.

We went to Harrisburg to speak with our elected officials, to make our case directly to the people who are supposed to represent us. But our Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman and House Majority Leader Matt Bradford refused to even meet with us. They wouldn’t listen. They wouldn’t engage. Several members of our group were arrested simply for trying to have a conversation with the men who hold the power to bring this bill to a vote. Think about that for a moment, citizens arrested for attempting to speak with their own representative, while corporate lobbyists walk freely through those same halls, checkbooks in hand.

The truth is uncomfortable but undeniable, our legislators are corrupt. They take what amounts to legalized bribes and then refuse to pass the very legislation that would end this system. They have chosen money over the people they were elected to serve. When a representative won’t even speak to his constituents but will gladly accept unlimited gifts from corporate interests, that’s not democracy, that’s a system bought and paid for.

We believe that if we can get money out of politics, people’s interests can finally take precedence. Healthcare, education, infrastructure, all the issues that matter to working families in places like Armstrong County, these could be addressed honestly if our legislators weren’t beholden to the highest bidder. That’s why we marched. That’s why some of us were willing to be arrested. And that’s why we won’t stop until Pennsylvania joins the rest of the country in saying no to unlimited gifts and legalized corruption. Our representatives need to remember who they work for, and it’s not the lobbyists.

By Sally Simpson

Why Unity

Why call for Unity, in times so divided? We are told unity is a dream. But look around! Unity already exists in reality, it exists through the interests had in common. Even through brief disputes in the competitions of markets, debates between politicians and feuds of parties, Officials and Owners have one uniting interest… that being of profit. Don’t be fooled… the ruling class is united! United across borders, across parties, across industries… for one purpose: to line their pockets.

A nightmare is looming over like the clouds up above. Mass layoffs, rising prices, and continuous war, a forecast of crisis, all while the rulers grow rich. But what interests do we have that have nothing to profit from? Nothing to sell but our ability to work? 

Our united interests lies in our wages that we make from our place of work, the income used to pay for our homes in rent or mortgages, pay for groceries to keep us fed and pays for our healthcare, basically our ability to survive. Yet we are turned against each other; by race, by gender, by orientation, by nation, by belief, while they rob us all the same. Not in the lie of stolen jobs or benefits, from immigrants. 

Our Unity is stronger than their lies! Not the unity of politicians and flag-waving patriots… but the unity from below: the solidarity of workers everywhere! We reject every line drawn between us, immigrant or native-born, queer or straight, black, white, or any color, we are one class, in one struggle, with one fight!

Now, the media tries again, using fear, tragedy, and the death of Charlie Kirk and Mellissa Hortman to divide and distract us but we know the truth. The real enemy isn’t one man or one party, it’s the system of profit itself!

Only through Class based Unionism can this beast be defeated. Our fight is not won at the ballot box, it is at our workplaces to defend our most vulnerable amongst us from the vicious attacks and kidnappings to detention centers. 

Our ability to work creates the profit that our bosses take, by coming together and refusing to work in a strike, and hit them where they hurt, their pockets, not out of laziness but a show of might! To show that our work creates their wealth and that without it, they have nothing to show for it but green paper soaked in the blood of war and destruction.

Not one man is a “King” or “Dictator” of absolute authority, he is just a face on the Bill, the true “King” is the Dictatorship of Capital! No “Kings”, No Bosses, No War but Class War! 

Workers of the World Unite!

Kyle Rudolph

Non-violent Medicaid Day of Action

The Nonviolent Medicaid Army Awakening in Armstrong County

In Armstrong County, community members gathered at a local faith based organization to pray and to share stories of struggling to survive in this death dealing healthcare system. Nonviolent Medicaid Army leader, Sally Simpson, shares about Armstrong County, her personal story and their September 6 Day of Action.
Armstrong County sits in the heart of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Rust Belt, a place where the ghosts of industry still linger in shuttered factories and quiet main streets. For generations, this was coal mining country, where men descended into the earth each day and entire communities rose and fell with the fortunes of the mines. Pittsburgh Plate Glass once provided steady work and good wages, anchoring the local economy until it closed its doors, leaving hundreds without jobs and a community struggling to find its footing. What remained was a landscape of economic hardship in a rural, conservative county where the residents value self-reliance but increasingly find themselves dependent on the very government programs they once viewed with suspicion.
Today, Armstrong County still has a hospital, though it’s small and survives primarily on Medicaid reimbursements. It’s the only facility in the county with a maternity ward, a lifeline for expectant mothers who would otherwise face long drives to deliver their babies. The reality is that many people here are on Medicaid, not by choice, but by necessity. This is what poverty looks like in modern America; working families and former middle-class professionals alike, all struggling to access basic healthcare in an area where good jobs disappeared decades ago.
I know this struggle intimately. Nineteen years ago, I was diagnosed with brain cancer, and the disease eventually claimed not just my health but my career and the insurance that came with it.
When my cancer returned five years ago for the second time, I found myself on Medicaid, joining the ranks of my neighbors in a system I never imagined l’d need. For years, I’ve advocated for a universal healthcare system, but it wasn’t until I discovered the Nonviolent Medicaid Army that I found others who shared both my vision and my desperation. For the past several months, l’ve worked alongside people who understand what it means to choose between medication and groceries, who know the fear of losing access to lifesaving care. In this community of necessity, I’ve found purpose, fighting not just for myself, but for all of us.
On September 6, a day marked by solidarity and shared struggle, a small but determined group came together in Armstrong County under the banner of the Nonviolent Medicaid Army to speak about their experiences navigating America’s for profit healthcare system. The gathering, held at a local faith-based organization known for its commitment to community meals and service, brought together voices often unheard, including members of the unhoused community alongside other local residents. We were all united by the common thread of healthcare challenges.

By Sally Simpson