Rally set Saturday calling for end to Citizens United decision

Submitted by Fox Valley Citizens for Peace & Justice

A rally to call for a constitutional amendment to end corporate influence on elections will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, at the intersection of Kimball Street and Grove Avenue in Elgin. The event is set to coincide with second anniversary of U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision.

Participating are Occupy Elgin, Fox Valley Citizens for Peace & Justice, Public Citizen, People for the American Way, Move to Amend, Common Cause, and Free Speech for People, and 40-plus nonprofit organizations.

The rally is a call for a constitutional amendment to overturn the 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which said that corporations have the same First Amendment rights as people and can spend unlimited amounts to influence elections. The event will be held in coordination with hundreds of similar events taking place nationwide to coincide with Jan. 21, the second anniversary of the Citizens United decision.

At the event, members of Occupy Elgin will gather at the corner of Kimball Street and Grove Street in Elgin with signs and fliers to demand a constitutional amendment to overturn the Citizens United Supreme Court decision. They will announce plans to launch an effort in the coming weeks to get an advisory referendum question to that effect on the ballot for the November elections.

Information about Citizens United and the call for a constitutional amendment can be found at united4thepeople.org.