For the safety of our community, we are conducting our meetings online until conditions permit us to resume assembling in person.
Monday August 21st at 7 PM
Youth Climate Fighters on Empowerment & Resilience!
Ollie Perrault accepting the Heroes Among Us award from governor-elect Maura Healey in December
Come hear Youth Climate Action Now leaders Ollie Perrault & Morgan Brown-McNeill,
Monday, Aug. 21, 7pm ET
In the space of a few days, the climate crisis brought devastating news from Maui and encouraging news from a Montana courtroom. In the latter story, a group of young people won their lawsuit against a state law prohibiting consideration of climate change in environmental assessments.
The Montana suit is but one of many ways around the world that young people are making their voices heard. Here in the Valley, we have Youth Climate Action Now (YCAN), founded by then 15-year-old Ollie Perrault with a mission “to empower more young people to add their voices to the climate conversation.” A year later, she and Morgan Brown-McNeil continue to bring their leadership, communication, and artistic skills to a wide variety of events and actions aimed at youth engagement around climate.
Young people like Ollie and Morgan, the plaintiffs in the Montana lawsuit, Greta Thunberg, members of the Sunrise Movement and so many others have never known a time when climate catastrophe was a far-off possibility. For them, this is not a surprise but a constant reminder that this is their present and inevitable future unless real, sustained action takes place with real, sustainable change. And they are fighting for their future.
Bring your questions, your friends, your fears and your outrage!
Join us for Climate Resilience and Youth Empowerment With Ollie Perrault and Morgan Brown-McNeil Monday, August 21, 7-8pm ET
Bring your questions, your concerns, and your hopes!
And please share this with family, friends, and colleagues!
ACTIONS
This September 17, thousands will march in New York City to demand that President Biden take bold action to End Fossil Fuels.
And 350 Mass wants to help your people get there!
Hey, Climate Leaders…
Spread the word to your organization.
It's a day trip: leave at 7 am, back by 11 pm. We're hiring buses to leave from multiple sites, and people can reserve a seat to NYC and back For those who need it, we hope to have discounted seats–we want everyone to be able to come!
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In New York this September, the United Nations will gather world leaders for a first-of-its-kind Climate Ambition Summit to demand that nations stop developing new oil, gas and coal projects and begin phasing out fossil fuels once and for all. We want the US to be there!
But with his recent approvals for mega-polluting projects like the Willow Oil Drilling Project and the Mountain Valley Pipeline, President Biden must immediately shape up to earn his seat at the table. And given the opposition we know he faces it will take all of us acting together to make sure he does.
To let us know your organization wants to come along, or with questions, please email me at susalson@gmail.com. We'll follow up soon with more specifics, including a sample email you can send your members with a link to buy a bus seat. Please also let us know if your organization can contribute to help provide discounted bus seats. And think about less climate-engaged groups in your area–faith groups, political groups, school–who should be invited, in hopes of upping their engagement.
Time is short–for this march, AND for the climate.
Please start informing your members now, and we'll get details to you ASAP.
Phone
Banking
Illustration by PA Phone Banker, Nora Brown
Phone Banking on pause until September
The IN-SLWM weekly phone bank is taking a well-deserved rest after having thousands of conversations with Ohio voters.
IN-SLWM's weekly Thursday evening pro-democracy phone bank will resume sometime in September - hopefully with you! Stay tuned!
Support Democratic Candidates in Rural Counties of Virginia
Thanks so much for your participation in the campaign to turn out voters of color in rural Virginia! We will continue to offer postcards to inform voters in this Virginia legislative election. Next up, campaigns in support of specific Democratic candidates running in rural counties. In addition to supporting these candidates, Swing Blue Alliance, together with the Virginia Democratic party, has created a research design that will analyze the impact of our postcards in turning out rural voters. Your work will support the election of Black, progressive women to the Virginia legislature. In addition, the data produced in the research component will inform future campaigns, helping our work to be ever more effective. Contact Marta at levmartam@gmail.com to receive the ordering information, coming soon..
Read on for Swing Blue Alliance’s description of this campaign:
Rural voters hold under-recognized power to influence the outcome of elections for US Senate and the Electoral College. One of the important ways we can help our democracy get on track is to take back state legislatures by driving up rural voter participation. We’ll be supporting 3 candidates in rural state legislative districts (Jade Harris for the VA State Senate and Esther Nizer and Mary Person for the VA House of Delegates). The VA Democratic Party has a diverse slate of rural candidates that reflect a dedication to service and community. These candidates are not only delivering an important message but also listening to the stories of their neighbors, the exact work that transforms how Democrats are perceived. Let’s help build the Democratic base and pipeline for future races. We will also test whether postcards increase rural voter participation and help rural candidates get more votes! In addition to comparing the difference in turnout between individuals who receive the cards and those who don’t, we will examine the percentage of votes cast for the Democratic candidate by precinct in order to measure the card’s effect on vote share.
If you’d like to be on the mailing list to be notified of these campaigns, contact Marta at levmartam@gmail.com.
Upcoming Postcard Campaigns in California and New York
Ahead, there are two campaigns in which we will soon participate that will focus on Republican (Un)Representatives in the House from districts in California and New York. They are from districts that strongly supported President Biden in 2020, and are assessed to be flippable.
If you’d like to be on the mailing list to be notified of these campaigns, contact Marta at levmartam@gmail.com.
Beyond Valentines: Five Ways to Write Letters That Can Change the World
Using gas to heat our homes and businesses is bad for our health and our climate. Gas companies (like Eversource) are profiting by expanding unnecessary gas infrastructure at the expense of ratepayers statewide!
We need a rapid transition away from gas to a future of clean heat powered by clean electricity, not millions of dollars in stranded assets. This is urgent for our planet and our communities (like Springfield and Longmeadow) which are right now facing expansion projects.
Join the many people in the Commonwealth who have signed the petition to stop MA gas companies from continuing business-as-usual at the cost of our health, safety, wallets, and climate future. It urges Gov. Healey to halt gas system expansion until the state has a concrete plan for a just transition to clean energy. See how many signatures have been collected in your area.
Call your State Elected Officials to tell them to follow California's lead and cut ties with Walgreens!
to hold Walgreens to account for their shameful decision to stop selling the abortion medication mifepristone in 24 states in cowardly deference to those states' Republican Attorneys General's request.
(thanks to Greylock Together Indivisible & Indivisible MA Coalition's Feminist Action Team)
BAR INSURRECTIONISTS FROM THE BALLOT
Sign the Petition
Enacted after the Civil War, Section 3 of the 14th Amendment disqualifies from public office any individual who has taken an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution and then engages in insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or gives aid or comfort to those who have.
By inciting a violent attack on Congress in an effort to prevent the certification of his own electoral defeat, Donald Trump engaged in insurrection and violated his oath of office. Free Speech For People and Our Revolution have teamed up to urge Secretaries of State and chief election officials across the country to follow the mandate of Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment and bar insurrectionists from any future ballot.
Sign hereto tell Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin to abide by Section 3 of the 14th Amendment and bar Trump from appearing on any future ballot in MA.
And read about this success in New Mexico! where citizens filed suit and a County Commissioner was removed from office as a result of his participation in the Jan. 6th insurrection!
TEAMS
The Feminist Action Team
of Indivisible Mass Coalition Fridays at 4PM on Zoom
Join feminists from the Berkshires to the Cape as we plan and implement actions to protect and expand our rights! Currently, we're working to expose the deceptive practices of fake abortion clinics (aka CPC's) and to get MA Sen. Becca Rausch's bill passed.
For more info, see this Explainer with 3 Actions, and(or) Come to our next meeting, at this link:
On Wed evenings at 8 pm or Fri mornings at 9 am, join Paul Spector and activists from across the country to collaborate on helping Democrats win elections. At Paul's meetings, you will...
hear upbeat political news
share questions and comments
learn about new political actions
support fundraisers with special guests -- such as Swing Left, Movement Voter Project, Flip the Senate, New Georgia Project, and Bucks County Democrats
hear inspiring music (mostly from Playing for Change).
Folks find his meetings educational, uplifting, and hopeful, and it's wonderful to see 50-100 other people at each of the two meetings. To check out the meeting, come Wednesday at 8 p.m. or Friday at 9 a.m. EDT, to this Zoom room: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87820043147?pwd=aXZ0K3QrZGtHR2dBUFlCZnk2TU1hQT09
Letters to the Editor (LTE) Writing Team Adopt, Amend, & Send Our-Your Letter to the Editor
Tuesday, July 18, 7-8 PM
Our team is dedicated to writing letters to the editors of our local newspapers,and sharing them with others to send to their newspapers too.
Letters to the Editor (LTE’s) are effective in sharing our progressive views widely with our neighbors and community. They often attract the attention of our political leaders too, and we already have had several published.
Our goal is to motivate ourselves and others to write valuable, high-quality LTE’s on topics which are important to us, and get them published locally and across the state. (Maybe nationally in the future too).
We meet every two weeks on Tuesdays at 7:00pm (on Zoom) to strategize and plan. Our next meeting is Tuesday, July 18 at 7PM.
Our Climate Team is continuing to receive weekly action alerts by email, mainly about climate action that they can take at home.
If you’d like to join the Climate Team, email Michael Dover at mjdover44@gmail.com.
NEWS
VIRGINIA’S LEGISLATIVE ELECTIONS
In this “odd year,” we’ve had two crucial elections – Wisconsin’s Supreme Court, which progressives won in a landslide, and Ohio’s special election, which is looking good for another win. There’s one more state that’s on everyone’s radar this year: Virginia.
This fall, every seat in the Virginia General Assembly is up for election.This means that in November Virginia voters will determine the makeup of the entire state legislature, setting the stage for critical decisions on issues from voting rights to public education to abortion access.
This election could hand the Republicans control of both houses of the legislature while Republican Glenn Youngkin sits in the governor’s office – a trifecta. Turning the state government over to Republicans would likely see abortion bans and voting restrictions similar to what we’re seeing in other red states. On the other hand, if progressives take back the House of Delegates – they need 5 more seats – while holding on to their state senate majority, they can block the Republicans’ extremist agenda. A win in Virginia, combined with Wisconsin and (we hope) Ohio, will be a message to the country that Democrats are the party that voters trust to govern responsibly.
IN-SLWM is ready to respond to the challenge. Look for announcements soon after the Ohio results are in, for invitations to join actions supporting progressives in Virginia – including Vote Forward letter writing, postcard writing, phone banking, fundraising for Virginia candidates and grassroots groups, and other activities.
If you have any questions, please write to Michael Dover at mjdover44@gmail.com.
NEW SLOGAN, NEW WEBSITE ADDRESS & MORE
Indivisible Northampton and Swing Left Western Massachusetts merged in May of last year and we’ve accomplished a lot since then. Now we're getting around to making changes to our website and other aspects of our Internet presence.
We have had a new logo for some time, thanks to the wonderful talent and generosity of web designer Nora Brown. She has also created a new banner design, above, to use as our letterhead and as an actual banner for rallies, standouts, and other in-person events. As you can see, it includes a new website address, in-slwm.org, that replaces the old indivisiblenorthampton.org. The old address will automatically redirect to the new address.
The banner also displays our new slogan: Defeat MAGA. Save Democracy. No explanation necessary; it’s simple and to the point.
We’re also working on a new design and new content for the website. Expect to see a bunch of changes on the site, which we hope will make our information more complete, and accessible. We’ll also be making it easier to sign up for our mailing list and our Facebook group. Stay tuned!
Indivisible New England Digest:
National Workshop, Webinar & Call Calendar
We are fortunate to have Judy Stadtman as our Indivisible National regional organizer. Judy is the liaison between the national organization and local groups in CT-MA-ME-NH-VT. She does an incredible job keeping IN-SLWM connected to and supported by Indivisible National.
Judy is incredibly active and responsive to our needs. She is eager to lend a hand and hear from anyone who seeks her advice or guidance. If you have any questions or would like to connect with her, please don't hesitate to email her at Judith@Indivisible.com. She looks forward to hearing from you!
New Mission Statement
The Steering Committee has recently updated our Mission Statement to better reflect our post-merger identity and priorities as we collaborate with you to save democracy.
We're eager to hear your thoughts and feedback, so please take a moment to check out our new Mission Statement and let us know what you think. Thanks for your continued support!
Here it is:
Our mission is to promote a strong and inclusive American democracy by educating and mobilizing constituents of MA CD-2 and beyond. We work to elect and hold accountable bold progressive leaders who will protect our country from the dangerous agenda of the right-wing MAGA extremists. We aim to strengthen our democratic institutions, advance social justice, protect the environment, and more. As a proud chapter of Indivisible and Swing Left, we collaborate with local, regional and national groups to build an informed, sustainable activist community.
Northampton Reparations Committee Webinar
On January 24 the Northampton Reparations Committee presented an online webinar cohosted by Forbes Library.
This section of our newsletter features articles written by one of our subscribers and an article or two selected by our steering committee. Subscribers to the newsletter are welcome to submit writing by email to info@indivisiblenorthampton.org with the subject line "Newsletter Submission".
The opinions expressed in the writings don't necessarily reflect any consensus of Indivisible Northampton.
That Zen saying is also the name of a daily email from activist and Substack columnist Jessica Craven. On weekdays she offers a bunch of actions for subscribers to take, such as phoning senators and representatives – often with different scripts for Democratic and Republicans – about issues needing their attention. On the weekends, she highlights items from the news that are encouraging, under the headline “Celebrate This!” Here’s the link to her substack page.
SPEAKING OF FACEBOOK…
If you’re not already subscribed to either our Facebook Page or group, consider joining! We share daily posts from political historian-commentator Heather Cox Richardson, occasional posts from other sources such as Robert Reich and Robert Hubbell, announcements of our public Zoom meetings, and opportunities for action. To follow our Facebook Page (followers do not post) , click here. To join our Facebook Group (members can post), click here. Both receive all IN-SLWM announcements and the daily Richardson posts.
Trouble Joining the Meeting?
When you click the link in your confirmation email, a Zoom page will open in your web browser and the Zoom app will open.
If the Zoom app does not open, here are a few things you can try. You will need to know the meeting id, which is embedded in the address of the Zoom page that opened. On the page that opened in the browser, in the address bar you'll see an address that looks something like this:
