Middle School Elevates its Rights above Corporations’
by: Sunnyside Environmental School Posted on: March 18, 2013
Editor’s Note: We were invited to Sunnyside Environmental School of Southeast Portland, OR to speak to middle schoolers about citizen law making. They taught us a lesson. The students declare that humans come before corporations. Eli, a middle schooler, said, “It’s more powerful for people to know that kids care about this issue—without kids, the corporations wouldn’t even be there.” Read The Sunnyside Declaration below.
Photo: Sunnyside Environmental School Student Signature Gatherers
The Sunnyside Declaration
We, the undersigned students and staff of Sunnyside Environmental School of Southeast Portland, OR declare:
That our rights, listed below, which are required for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, are inherently superior to corporations’ constitutional rights and protections as persons, and any government policy that tries to elevate corporations’ rights above the rights in this Declaration.
Those rights include:
-The Right to have and assert rights
-The Right to publically owned, clean water
-The Right to clean air
-The Right to a sustainable food source and healthy affordable food
-The Right to shelter and education
-Our constitutional rights as citizens
-Nature’s Rights to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate its vital cycles, structure, functions and its processes in evolution
-The Right to democratically make decisions that affect our lives
-The Right to democratically decide what happens in our community
-The Right to abolish any corporate activity within our jurisdiction that violates the rights in this declaration
-The Right to democratically determine our public transportation
-The Right to democratically close legal loopholes
-The Right to medical assistance and healthcare
-The Right to full disclosure of corporate activity
-The Right to energy
-The Right to clean natural resources and a healthy uncontaminated environment
-The Right to gender equality
-The Right to not be discriminated against based on age
-The Right to decide what happens above and below our land
-The Right to personal space and a clean home
-The Right to a clean habitat and neighborhood
-The Right to freedom of thought and creativity
-The Right to choose what enters our bodies
-The Right to life
-The Right to free speech
-The Right to bring a lawsuit to court
-The Right to happiness
-The Right to relinquish rights
-The Right to equal protection under the law
-The Right to play in a clean environment
-The Right to sleep
-The Right to self-defense
-The Right to equal protection regardless of sexual orientation
-The Right to decide what happens on our property
-The Right to a healthy future
-The Right to free information and access to the Internet
-The Right to a clean learning environment
-The Right to a tranquil learning environment
-The Right to participate in amending our government
Signed,
Marisol Hosty, grade 6
Henry Mong, grade 8
Truman Cowan, grade 6
Lucia Grant, grade 8
Ben Green, grade 7
Roisin Prestopino, grade 8
Eliot Martin, grade 6
Savannah Chapman, grade 6
Silvia Rosa Palleroni, grade 6
Madeleine Chesal, grade 6
Frank Webb, grade 7
Jackson Racuso, grade 8
Andreas DePass, grade 7
Cate Hislope, grade 7
Holden Fox, grade 7
Aiden Dummigan, grade 8
Sierra Cleary, grade 8
Julian Santos, grade 7
Samson Oeding, grade 6
Cellina Grimm, grade 7
Shelton Bowmen, grade 6
Emerald, grade 8
Sorrel Uchida, grade 8
Jada Hillman, grade 7
Hunter Burk, grade 6
Anna Rollins, grade 8
Henry Schechter, grade 7
LaSayany Van, grade 6
Mia Stanley, grade 6
Cheyenne Vanderveer, grade 8
Emma Keppler, grade 8
Oliver Garber, grade 6
Mia Bray, grade 6
Olivia Yee, grade 7
Rosie Allison-Brown, grade 7
Audrey Schwing, grade 6
Kyzen Pemberton, grade 7
Tasja Drahveen, grade 8
Micheal Lovett, grade 7
Gavin “Eddie” Griswold, grade 6
Tarquin Perce, grade 6
Tex Walker, grade 8
Avery Williams, grade 7
Max Weisenbloom, grade 7
Caleb Ohryn, grade 6
Rebecca Miller-Rondthaler, grade 6
Michael Schurdt
Kincaid Davis, grade 8
Ally Schade, grade 7
Rosemary Elliot, grade 8
Sophia Smith, grade 7
Zora Enders, grade 7
Erik Martinez, grade 8
Jackson Baker, grade 6
Kamil Tez, grade 7
Jasper Hamilton, grade 8
Rico Cabrera Orlando, grade 6
Zakiah Schaefle, grade 7
Madeline Yee, grade 8
Devin Stirnkorb, grade 7
Cedar Pearson, grade 6
Indy Lyon-Myrick, grade 7
Isabella Senatori, grade 6
Maeve Nagel-Frazel, grade 7
Emma Skow, grade 6
Allia Service, grade 7
Tylor Hulbrock, grade 6
Sydney Spencer, grade 7
Nick Leonard, grade 8
Elijah Barto, grade 8
Ioane Ruatake, grade 8
Noah Brown, grade 6
Emily Willard-Herr, grade 8
Anna Hawking, grade 6
Ehman Tanneholz, grade 7
Marisol Hosty, grade 6
Shelton Bowman, grade 6
Ellis Ransdell, grade 7
Sophia Smith, grade 7
Luz Mery Ventura, grade 7
Cellina Grimm, grade 7
Alexander Caughman, grade 8
Jackson Ramsey, grade 8
Emerald Seale, grade 8
Ella Kohn-Brown, grade 6
Eli Hiton, grade 6
Maurice Lee, grade 6
Wren Helzer-Florer, grade 6
Sam Oeding, grade 6
Wyatt Freda-Cowie, grade 8
Arion R.Longstreet, grade 6
Madi Welch, grade 7
Amaya, grade 7
Max H., grade 6
Isabele McTighe, grade 8
Connor Elliot Nickerson, grade 8
Jasper Hamilton, grade 8
Tom Tandberg, grade 7
Simon Barbarasch, grade 7
Logan William Taylor Watkins, grade 8
Sierra Rae Cleary, grade 8
Jayne Frost, grade 7
Amelia Hillery, grade 7
Kirin Furre, grade 6
Blake Hulbrock, grade 8
Cole Grant, grade 6
Matt Sisco, grade 6
Maya Baeckel, grade 8
Devin Stirnkorb, grade 7
Lorelei Millund, grade 8
Davis Le, grade 6
Andreas DePass, grade 7
Mia Bray, grade 6
Olivia M. Yee, grade 7
Sydney Yelton, grade 7
Mia Barnes, grade 7
Nathan VanHorn, grade 7
Audrey Finley, grade 6
Jaxon Heorst, grade 6
Easton Spring, grade 8
Silvan Yang, grade 7
Deva Gaynor, grade 8
Mikah Wahlstrom, grade 8
Maggie McBride, grade 6
Lucinda Drake, grade 6
Arturo Flores, grade 8
Caleb Ohryn, grade 6
Rebecca Miller-Rondthaler, grade 6
Mia Stanley, grade 6
Chloe F., grade 6
Indy Lyon-Myrick, grade 7
Celia Mellow, grade 7
Colton Jelsema, grade 7
Liam McBride, grade 6
Matt Adams, grade 8
Christopher Schetter, grade 8
Sloan Nickerson, grade 6
Ayler Louviere, grade 8
Issaiah Petrasy, grade 6
Poppy Gormen, grade 8
Max Anderson, grade 7
Cate Hislope, grade 6
Indigo Keohane, grade 7
Micah Tyson, grade 8
Lara Tucker, grade 8
Gavin Moore, grade 6
Miette LeFebvre, grade 8
Otis Tucker, grade 6
Clay Friedman, grade 8
Emma S., grade 6
Emmett Morris, grade 6
Aidan Lynn, grade 6
Barbara Sutton, grade 8
Ben Alvi, grade 7
Sofia Ben-Zaken, grade 7
Evan Wallace, grade 7
Vatin Ponglong, grade 8
Alijah Sefchick, grade 6
Dillon Wells, grade 8
Yoneysi Ibanez, grade 6
Isaella McHenery Galligues, grade 6
Arkain, grade 7
Thomas Irvan, grade 7
Mallach Fishman Kelly, grade 7
Noah Dorr, grade 8
Grace Shetterly, grade 7
Isabella Senatori, grade 6
Fred Kerr, grade 7
Finn Vega, grade 7
Oliver Aguirre, grade 8
Anna Williams, grade 8
Stephanie Taylor, grade 8
Sophia Weir, grade 6
Claire Hery, grade 6
Milena Ben-Zaken, grade 7
Sophia Weir, grade 6
Sara Baker, grade 6
Sage McBee, grade 7
Colleen Whalen, grade 8
Terrel Irvan, grade 8
Kayla Albright-Deeley, grade 7
Francis Floyd, grade 8
Riley Read, grade 8
Katryna Ohryn, grade 8
Michael Stapleton, grade 6
Annika Mayne, grade 6
Asa Hack, grade 8
Mya Anderson, grade 7
Raven W., grade 6
Sarah Rose Ezelle, grade 8
Sophia Cardiel, grade 8
Emi Berklovich, grade 6
Lucy Strobel, grade 6
Hannah Dugo, grade 6
Simone Holmes, grade 7
Jan Zuckerman, teacher
Michael Jansa, teacher
Cori Longstreet, teacher
Karen Shay, teacher
Tara Branham, teacher
Cybelle Corwin, grade 8
Ethan Hughes, grade 8
Vincent Prat, grade 8
Nora Pearson, grade 8
Skyler Nichols, grade 8
Cole Grant, grade 6,
Josh Stirnkorb, grade 8
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by: Scotty Kimballon: Monday 18th of March 2013
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