Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, and justice at its best is power correcting everything that stands against love.
-Martin Luther King Jr. (the anniversary of his 1968 assassination was April 4th)
Fran Regan understood the importance of exerting love and power as a Move to Amend leader. He helped guide the Philadelphia area MTA Affiliate group for many years. He traveled the short distance by train to lobby for the We the People Amendment on Capitol Hill with former Move to Amend Director Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap, as well as at the conclusion of several annual Move to Amend Summits in Washington, DC.
Fran was a great citizen lobbyist, not only because of his knowledge and commitment, but in how he related to others – with utmost respect and love as fellow human beings, seeking common ground and appealing to their innate goodness. Those included Congressional aides and Congresspersons who were, at least initially, suspicious of our “radical” proposal or didn’t agree with how ending “corporate personhood” and the corrupting influence of big money in politics would improve the lives of people and the state of democracy.
Fran also understood how essential it was for Move to Amend to become more politically potent through recruiting, training, organizing, collaborating and fundraising – as a vehicle based on “love implementing the demands of justice.” He was an incredibly active supporter of Move to Amend in all these ways.
Sadly, Fran passed away in June 2021 from cancer. He has been deeply missed by all who knew him. Some of you, no doubt, remember him.
Yet, his support of Move to Amend continued after his death by including a gift to us in his will. The legacy gift has helped us continue the work that he so valued – working inside the political/economic system to respectfully advocate and lobby for ending corporate rule in all its forms and “money as free speech” and outside the system to build a powerful movement for authentic democratic change seeking to correct “everything that stands against love.”
We are very grateful for Fran's vision and commitment to justice and democracy beyond his own physical life.
You’re invited to consider doing the same. Join other Move to Amend supporters who have made a bequest donation to support the Movement to Amend. The many options are described by going to https://www.movetoamend.org/planned-giving
We believe enactment of the We the People Amendment is inevitable for an authentic democracy ever to exist and feel it will happen sooner rather than later given the growing awareness of rising corporate power and corruption of money in politics. If so, we will continue as a movement to educate and organize to further expand the power of people to decide their/our own future.
The quest to create, expand and protect real democracy for justice, peace and a livable world never ends.
Many thanks for considering supporting this long-term democracy journey.
If you have any questions, please email Katie Krasinski, our Fundraising Director, at [email protected]
