ALEC Explained at Wednesday Meeting

Local activists have been ringing alarm bells for months about the American Legislative Exchange Council holding its meeting in Salt Lake City next week. If you're still unsure as to what this corporate-sponsored lawmaking machine is all about, Occupy SLC will be holding a primer on ALEC Wednesday evening.

The nonprofit ALEC has, for decades, played matchmaker to large corporations and the state lawmakers who have the power to regulate—or deregulate, as is often the case—their respective industries. From controversial “Stand Your Ground” gun laws like the one called into question by the Trayvon Martin shooting to bills advancing the for-profit prison industry, ALEC has helped push thousands of bills in state Legislatures across the country, with thousands of state lawmakers as members of the organization, including in Utah, as a recent City Weekly cover explored.

Wednesday, you can join Occupy SLC’s ALEC Welcoming Committee for an introduction to ALEC—the organization’s history, how the organization works, its corporate sponsors and the state lawmakers who are members.

Check it out, Wednesday, July 18, 7-8:30 p.m., at the Salt Lake City Main Library, 210 E. 400 South