March 19, 2013 12:47 PM UTC

Join us and a panel of experts for "The United States of ALEC"

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• by: ProgressNow Colorado

For years, we at ProgressNow Colorado have been tracking the influence of a secretive conservative organization known as the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Recent scandals in other states have resulted in an uncomfortably higher profile for this organization, which has operated in Colorado for decades with very little attention.

The United States of ALEC is a documentary, narrated by Bill Moyers, that reports on the most influential corporate-funded political force most of us have never heard of. A national consortium of state politicians and powerful corporations, ALEC presents itself as a "nonpartisan public-private partnership." But behind that lies a vast network of corporate lobbying and political action aimed to increase corporate profits at public expense without public knowledge.

Click here to join Colorado Common Cause and ProgressNow Colorado for a screening of this important documentary.

In state houses around the country including Colorado, hundreds of pieces of boilerplate ALEC legislation are proposed or enacted that would, among other things, dilute collective bargaining rights, make it harder for some Americans to vote, and limit corporate liability for harm caused to consumers–each accomplished without the public ever knowing who's behind it.

Using interviews, documents, and field reports, the the documentary explores ALEC's self-serving machine at work, acting in a way one Wisconsin politician describes as "a corporate dating service for lonely legislators and corporate special interests."

WHAT: The United States of ALEC Screening Event
WHEN: March 26th 6-8pm
WHERE: Denver Post Auditorium
101 W. Colfax Ave., Denver, CO, 80202 (map)

Panelists

Elena Nunez, Colorado Common Cause (Moderator)
Tony Salazar, Colorado Education Association
Conservation Colorado
Sean Hinga, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
Kirpal Singh, Colorado Trial Lawyers Association
Alan Franklin, ProgressNow Colorado

To RSVP, click here.