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9/2/17                                                  http://roganslist.blogspot.com/

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Many newspapers, including New York Times and Washington Post require subscriptions, but without one we can see a few articles each month.  We can also check with our local libraries to find out how to get online access through them.


1.      It seems in this administration that there is no action too small to be taken to denigrate the role of women and people of color in our society. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will not affirm the plan to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill instead of Andrew Jackson: http://thehill.com/policy/finance/348721-mnuchin-treasury-could-scrap-plans-to-replace-jackson-on-20-bill  Someone on Twitter wisely pointed out the irony of this since there is such vigorous desire to retain Civil War history via confederate statues. Let’s remind Mnuchin that women and people of color are by far the majority in our nation and that we deserve a place at the table – starting with our currency: We can provide quick and easy feedback on the Treasury Dept contact form. Call: 202-622-2000. For us postcarders:  Steve Mnuchin, Dept. of the Treasury, 1500 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington DC 20220

2.      Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis was asked about why he is serving Trump and he gave an honorable answer about the duty to serve when called: http://www.newsweek.com/mattis-explains-why-cant-quit-trump-reason-you-expect-658033 Let’s remind him that the service this nation needs from him at this time is not in propping up this disastrous president.  We need him to remain the grown-up in the room. Secretary Jim Mattis, Secretary of Defense, 1000 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-1000

3.      Trump is set to bring an end to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which allowed 800,000 people brought to this country as children to claim full membership in our society in exchange for sharing personal information with the federal government. Folks are coming together across the aisle to fight back, with Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CO) announcing that he will file a discharge petition to force a vote on legislation that would shield these young people from deportation (http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/348771-gop-lawmaker-wants-to-force-vote-on-bill-protecting-daca-recipients). If a majority of members of the House sign Rep. Coffman’s petition, the House will have to consider the bipartisan Bridge Act. Let’s call our reps and tell them we want them to be part of this effort.  Let’s also use this DACA Announcement Reaction Toolkit:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzwKcEUflSONS3JCc0Z0RTJoX28/view

4.      While Trump's muslim bans are playing out in court, he has still been trying to make changes through other means. In May, the administration began using a questionnaire which demands "all prior passport numbers, five years' worth of social media handles, email addresses and phone numbers and 15 years of biographical information including addresses, employment and travel history" http://reut.rs/2vQ9VMI While the questionnaire is technically voluntary, it states that one may not receive a visa if they do not fill out the information. Now, Trump is trying to permanently implement the questionnaire as part of his plan for extreme vetting. Before the Office of Management and Budget approves this drastic request for information, it is seeking public comment until October 2nd. We can read about the details of the data collection, then submit a comment at the Federal Register: http://bit.ly/2uZNXJD Alternatively, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, and National Iranian American Council have drafted a public comment we can use and submit from their action site: http://bit.ly/2vQbPwy

5.      In his continuing attack on women and minorities, on Tuesday Trump reversed the regulation that would require employers of more than a hundred to report how much they pay people, along with their sex and race. The idea was to make visible the inequities that keep white women’s median hourly earnings at 82% of those of white men, black women’s at 65%, and Hispanic women’s at 58%, in hopes either of self-regulation or government intervention: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/31/upshot/one-effort-to-close-the-gender-pay-gap-wont-get-a-try.html  We need to tell Trump (202-456-1111) and Secretary of Labor R. Alexander Acosta (1-866-4-USA-DOL or200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington DC 20210) that we demand transparency in labor practices.

6.      The Republicans would like nothing better than to scrap the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (and ideally, the whole of the Dodd-Frank law):             http://money.cnn.com/2017/08/07/news/economy/republcans-cfpb-cordray/index.html   They have recently stepped up attacks on Richard Cordray, the  Bureau director, who is beset by financial industry lobbyists (currently especially by vociferous payday lenders) opposing his efforts to guarantee our ability to resist their predatory practices.  We need to come to the defense of Cordray and the CFPB: 855-411-2372  or Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, PO Box 2900, Clinton, IA 52733-2900.

State Actions

1.      ALL:  In case it is unclear why we must keep up our vigilance about the Presidential Commission on Election Integrity, it has been revealed that the leader of it, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, is now a paid columnist for Breibart:http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article170581152.html There need be no question about his intentions. Let’s stay in touch with our own Secretaries of State (perhaps sending a copy of the Kansas City Star article). Their addresses are here: http://www.nass.org/index.php/about-nass/alt-roster-2016/

2.      GA: "In a series of since-deleted Facebook messages, Republican state Representative Jason Spencer (R-GA180) told former Georgia state Representative LaDawn Jones (D) that “people in South Georgia are people of action, not drama,” and if she doesn’t understand that she “will go missing in the Okefenokee”—a wild, 438,000-acre swamp." Spencer has since walked back his statements. While we appreciate the apology, we can still let Rep. Spencer know that his statements never should have been made in the first place: Jason Spencer, 501-D Coverdell LOB, Atlanta GA 31569 or call: 404-656-0177.  If we are Spencer's constituents in Georgia state district 180, let's visit his district office at: 28 Yachtsman Ct, Woodbine GA 31569 so he will know that we are watching, engaged and active.

3.      ALL:  We all know that Texas likes its freedom and does not like government telling it what to do in any aspect of living.  Unfortunately, and while Harvey was a larger-than-life storm, Houston added to the problem by choosing to ignore the calls for zoning throughout the years.  Houston has no zoning.  They are now paying the price.  http://www.newsweek.com/houston-drowning-freedom-regulations-656087 and https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-08-31/a-hard-rain-and-a-hard-lesson-for-houston  Let’s make sure our own communities have good, solid, well-thought-out zoning ordinances so that we can all be safe as our communities grow.

Other Actions

1.      Need some visuals and statistics to better understand how the Russian disinformation machine is affecting what comes up in our Twitter feeds? Check out this fascinating dashboard, which features continually updated "charts and graphs ... display[ing] hashtags, topics and URLs promoted by Russia-linked influence networks on Twitter." The bipartisan expert advisory board for the "Alliance for Securing Democracy" is impressive; the site also features a blog on disinformation issues. We can make a donation too, if we feel so inclined.  http://dashboard.securingdemocracy.org/

2.      From one of our own:  Mexico isn't sending rapists. Once again Mexico is sending food, water, medicine to its American neighbors facing a disaster. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/hurricane-harvey-mexico-aid-donald-trump-border-wall-immigration-us-president-a7923476.html  If you'd like to send a thank you note or postcard, mail it to:  Enrique Pena Nieto, President of Mexico, Los Pinos, Mexico City, Mexico 45120

3.      In advance of November’s new ACA (Obamacare) enrollment period, the Trump administration (1) has cut by $90 million the budget that pays for the advertising to inform people about the sign-up period, and (2) has cut by 39% the budget that goes to groups that help people choose their health insurance plans. These cuts are likely to reduce enrollment, sabotaging the health insurance marketplace.  https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-31/trump-health-department-is-said-to-slash-obamacare-ad-budget Let’s contact the editors of our local and regional newspapers and tell them that we want them to publish reports about the sign-up period and where people can get help choosing their plans. When we see media reports with such information, let’s be sure to share generously on social media.  We can also join this new Facebook group that “exists for the sole purpose of helping state and local Indivisible groups work together to actively promote the six week Affordable Care Act open enrollment period on a state and national basis before and during the period of November 1, 2017 to December 15, 2017” - https://www.facebook.com/groups/153329925218556/

4.      Tearing down monuments to treason and bigotry is just the start of our work to improve America’s understanding of our racial history. The Equal Justice Initiative is working to ensure that we better understand the history of white supremacist violence against black people with a national lynching memorial (http://www.alabamanews.net/2017/08/01/construction-national-lynching-memorial-underway/). We can read more about the project here, and we can donate at this link:https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/eji

5.      Good news: Kandace Washington, who was being held in jail without a conviction and is 7.5 months along in a high-risk pregnancy, has been released on bond! MomsRising is asking for those of us with the means to help contribute towards the $1,100 in court and jail fees. We can read more about Kandace's story and donate at MomsRising: http://bit.ly/2wp2gIo

6.      Here’s a critical and long-term way to respond to Hurricane Harvey.  The Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services (T.E.J.A.S.) takes as their mission to analyze the risks to communities living near industrial facilities and provide information in an accessible form to residents as well as to raise awareness about environmental justice issues and provide scientific support to efforts to mitigate the very situation Houston now faces as flood waters breach chemical facilities and refineries that line the Gulf Coast.  With the Arkema chemical facility burning and Houston’s Health Department claiming there’s no reason to test the water since “It’s contaminated. There’s millions of contaminants,” we should lend our generous assistance to this environmental justice effort: http://tejasbarrios.org

Petitions

1.      Color of Change launched a campaign to pressure credit card companies to stop processing donations to hate groups. Momentum is building--MasterCard, Visa, and American Express have already moved to block several violent groups, but there are still dozens more to go. Tell Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover and other financial service companies: "Stop supporting violent hate groups now. Cut off your services to sites that promote rape, white supremacy, and domestic terrorism."   https://act.weareultraviolet.org/sign/stop_funding_hate/

2.      “We worked hard to ensure that the $20 bill would have Harriet Tubman on it and we can’t stop now. Please join us in asking the President and the Department of Treasury not to ignore the more than half a million voters who made their preference known.”  Let’s sign this petition:  http://www.thepetitionsite.com/447/148/127/harriet-tubman%E2%80%99s-place-on-the-20-bill-is-in-jeopardy/

Marches/events/teleconferences to attend/organize

1.      The Save My Care “Drive for Our Lives” country-wide bus tour continues with final stops over the next several days in West Orange, NJ, NYC, Philadelphia, and ending in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, Sept. 6.   Let’s see how we can join in and what we can do:  https://www.savemycare.org/tourevents/

2.      From RISE Stronger:  March for Racial Justice:  
When: Saturday September 30, 2017 at 10am
Where: Lining up at Lincoln Park on Capitol Hill between 10 a.m and 12 p.m,   marching to the Capitol and past the Department of Justice at 12:30, before culminating at the National Mall between 4th and 7th Streets.
More InfoWebsite | Facebook | Twitter

Reading/Watching


2.      This week’s United States of Resistance Digest - http://mailchi.mp/4e464e9c81c8/democracy-demands-your-action-a-guide-to-august-recess-81711

3.      And, our weekly dose of Small Victories brought to us by Peace is Loudhttp://peaceisloud.org/small-victories-issue-35/


Rogan’s List is a participant in and strategic partner of the Action Alliance,
a loosely-federated group of organizations that, in the wake of the
2016 election, are sharing daily or weekly calls to action.
Other member sites are listed here: https://www.actionalliance.co/  --scroll down and click through and you'll find many more opportunities to make a difference.
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Rogan’s List is also part of RISE Stronger’s United States of Resistance








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