6/2/20
NATIONAL
ISSUES
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TRUMP
THREATENS TO DEPLOY MILITARY ON AMERICANS:
“As the nation prepared
for another night of violent protests sparked by the
police killing of George Floyd, President Donald Trump threatened to deploy
the military if states and cities failed to quell the demonstrations.” During
the statement made yesterday evening at the White House, police were clashing
with protesters in front of the White House. Trump also stated that he believes the
wrong-doing is being orchestrated by “radical left-wing groups” although there
is no evidence to support that claim. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/01/trump-threatens-to-deploy-military-as-george-floyd-protests-continue-to-shake-the-us.html In keeping with the same tone used with the
governors yesterday morning, Trump wants a tough, authoritarian approach to be
taken. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-united-states-governors-weak-dominate-protest-civil-unrest/ Let’s tell Trump that a real president
would acknowledge and address the cause of the unrest and promise to seek
answers leading to real justice for all.
Let’s encourage Trump to read President Obama’s piece from yesterday: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/president-barack-obama-puts-guidelines-work-amid-george/story?id=70996007
or heed Vice President Joe Biden’s words: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/biden-riots-emotional-plea-george-floyd-protests-a9541481.html Both these men embody what America needs
right now.
TRUMPS’S
RACIST TRAGEDY: Unsurprisingly but tragically, Trump continues to
pour kerosene on every fire that is burning in America. On Monday, he got on a
call with governors and called many of them “weak” and encouraged a crackdown
on protestors: https://apnews.com/b3817623ef861818803b5676d43741ea Let’s
call for his resignation and contact our MoC to demand that they also call for
his resignation.
SPREAD THE
TRUTH ABOUT THE PROTESTS AGAINST THE MURDER OF GEORGE FLOYD: While Trump and Attorney General Barr are trying to blame the
violence on the left wing, report after report has surfaced that right wing
white supremacists are instigating the violence. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2020/05/30/outsiders-extremists-are-among-those-fomenting-violence-in-twin-cities.
Let’s make sure to spread articles and eyewitness accounts of what is
actually happening on our personal and social media networks and contradict
accusations that Black Lives Matter organizers and other left-wing groups are
responsible. Let’s also make sure to spread the stories about the police
departments that marched in solidarity with the protesters. https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/2020/05/31/in-some-cities-police-officers-joined-protesters-marching-against-brutality/#374d2bdf5edb
and https://nj1015.com/camden-police-march-with-protesters-in-strong-message-of-unity-opinion
INVESTIGATE
WHITE SUPREMACIST GROUPS FOR DOMESTIC TERRORISM: In response to the ongoing protests, Trump
recently tweeted that he would classify the antifa as a domestic terrorist
group (which he has no authority to do) and AG Barr promised to investigate
antifa members. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/05/31/george-floyd-protests-trump-antifa-terrorist-organization/5299766002/.
However, neither Trump nor Barr is doing anything to slap terrorism labels and
investigate several far-right white supremacist groups who have been alleged to
have participated in protest violence, like the Three Percenters and the
Boogaloo Bois. Let’s tell the Department of Justice (202-353-1555; 950
Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC, 20530-0001; website form; Facebook; Twitter: @TheJustice Dept.) that these groups are
likely to have played a much bigger role in the violence and they should
immediately be censured and investigated. Let’s also ask our MoCs what they can
do to make sure these groups are held accountable and stopped.
CALL OUT
FACEBOOK CEO MARK ZUCKERBERG FOR LETTING TRUMP GET AWAY WITH LIES: After Twitter took a strong stand by
contradicting Trump’s lies about mail-in voting, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg
said that Twitter had overstepped its bounds, implying that social media sites
had no ethical responsibility to promote truth. https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2020/05/27/zuckerberg-criticizes-twitter-for-fact-checking-trump-tweets/.
Now that Trump has gone even further and used Twitter to instigate military violence
against the protesters, for which he earned another rebuke from the company. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/29/technology/trump-twitter-minneapolis-george-floyd.html
Facebook workers went public with their protest
over Zuckerberg’s stance. https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/facebook-employees-go-public-disagreement-over-zuckerberg-s-handling-trump-n1220961 Let’s make sure Zuckerberg
knows that we are disappointed by his response and we expect Facebook to take a
strong stand against perpetuation of Trump’s violence, and hate speech, which
are in violation of the company’s community
standards.
SUPPORT
PROTESTERS ARRESTED FOR FIGHTING INJUSTICE: More than 4,400 people have
been arrested at demonstrations nationwide since the murder of George Floyd
focused our national attention on police violence against the African-American
community once again. folks are acting in solidarity with these protests by
donating to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, which is helping to pay the bail for
these protesters and for everyone caught up in the failed cash bail system. https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/5/29/21274665/minneapolis-protests-minnesota-freedom-fund-twitter-bail, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/06/01/george-floyd-protest-arrests-dc-chicago-minneapolis/5305001002/
We can join them by donating here. We can also
donate to other bail funds for protesters here.
DEFUNDING
THE POLICE: Even as Trump
calls for “vicious dogs,” “ominous weapons,” military deployment, “domination,”
and hides in his White House bunker, reports are rife of increasing police
aggression against those protesting police violence in the wake of the murders
of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/police-tactics-floyd-protests.html or https://www.amnesty.org.uk/press-releases/usa-police-must-end-excessive-militarised-response-george-floyd-protests or https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/05/31/journalists-blinded-injured-arrested-covering-george-floyd-protests/5299374002/
One of the central demands of the protesters is a reframing—and defunding—of
policing as we know it, a demand often characterized as too “radical” for
consideration; but if, as some do, this change were understood as a shift from
“warrior” to “guardian” (https://www.wnyc.org/story/what-will-it-take-to-protect-black-americans-from-police-violence )
perhaps it would seem plausible to demilitarize the police and dramatically cut
their budgets. Faced with huge tax deficits due to the corona virus,
big-city mayors are cutting human services of all kinds while leaving police
budgets untouched (in NYC, for example: https://www.gothamgazette.com/city/9374-city-council-questions-de-blasio-priorities-first-executive-budget-hearing-coronavirus-cuts ).
And cities are paying (or issuing police brutality bonds": https://acrecampaigns.org/research_post/police-brutality-bonds/)
for huge police misconduct settlements. We need to join the Movement for Black Lives and demand that our
mayors and governors defund and reconceive—not “reform,” as they have claimed
to do in the past—policing in the US.
ELECTION
PROSECUTORS WHO WILL STAND UP FOR WHAT’S JUST: The delay
in charging the killers of Ahmaud Arbery is being investigated by the
Department of Justice, but we can't simply leave it up to them to stop the
failures of our criminal justice system.
https://www.11alive.com/article/news/crime/us-attorney-eyes-charges-against-state-officials-in-arbery-case-familys-lawyers-say/85-591fe568-4402-493a-af0f-40633af69e4a
The deaths of Ahamud, George Floyd and
Breonna Taylor should remind us of the importance of changing that system - and
that includes changing the people running it. Let's sign up to join the texting team for Real Justice PAC and
help them elect prosecutors who are committed to a truly just justice system.
USE THIS
GUIDE TO SAFELY FILM EFFECTIVE POLICE VIOLENCE VIDEOS:
Videos have
been a powerful tool in exposing police violence and starting the process of
holding the perpetrators responsible, but how do we make sure that our videos
have the strongest possible impact? Videos that are filmed, ethically,
strategically and released with advocacy and legal efforts have the greatest
chance of being effective, according to human rights organization
WITNESS. We can learn more about safely filming effective videos of
police violence here: https://www.teenvogue.com/story/how-to-film-police-safely
OPPOSE AN
ULTRACONSERVATIVE, ULTRA-PARTISAN TRUMP JUDICIAL NOMINEE: This
week, the Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote on Trump's nomination of
37-year-old Mitch McConnell and Brett Kavanaugh protege Justin Walker to a
lifetime appointment on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit -
commonly known as the second-most powerful court in the country. Walker is an
ultraconservative Federal Society member who has publicly bashed the Affordable
Care Act and has been extremely partisan in his brief tenure as a federal judge; https://www.thetelegraph.com/news/article/Graham-urges-older-judges-to-retire-so-GOP-can-15301626.php, https://www.rollcall.com/2020/04/17/judge-justin-walker-is-a-window-into-mcconnells-sway-on-federal-courts/, https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/03/politics/justin-walker-affordable-care-act-obamacare/index.html
Let's contact our senators and tell
them we want them to oppose Walker and take action against McConnell's attempts
to rush through judicial confirmations during this pandemic.
HELP SAVE
THE JOSHUA TREES, ICONIC SYMBOLS OF THE DESERT: The iconic Joshua Trees are in danger. Developers
have uprooted and bulldozed them, off-roaders, cattle, power lines,
pipelines and water-mining are destroying their habitat. With climate change
threatening younger trees from taking root, it’s possible that this century
will be their last. Ironically, the very agencies that should protect these
valuable trees, the Yucca Valley Town Council and Hi-Desert Water Board are
trying to strip their last protections, urging the Fish and Game Board not to
put them on the Endangered Species List. We can help protect the Joshua
Trees by supporting the listing of the trees on the Endangered Species
List and sending your comments to the Fish and Game Commission. The deadline
for comments is June 10th. E-mail
to fgc@fgc.ca.gov Mail
to California Fish and Game Commission, P.O. Box 944209, Sacramento, CA
94244-2090
STAY SAFE
WHILE PROTESTING: It is an
extremely dangerous time to be out in the streets, still some of us feel
compelled to speak out and bear witness in this way. Here are some ways to
stay safer on the streets. To help reduce possible COVID -19 spread, we
can layer a nylon band cut from a pair of pantyhose or tights to help filter
out over 90% of potentially dangerous particles. https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/04/22/840146830/adding-a-nylon-stocking-layer-could-boost-protection-from-cloth-masks-study-find
We can
check the many useful safety strategies outlined in this Teen Vogue article.
https://www.teenvogue.com/story/how-to-prepare-protest We also can check to see if our state ACLU
has an app to safely send our videos so they are protected even if the police
seize or destroy our phones: https://www.aclu.org/issues/criminal-law-reform/reforming-police/aclu-apps-record-police-conduct
SOCIAL
JUSTICE BOOK GROUP: Expanding
our awareness of racism and other injustices in America will help make us more
informed voters, and empower us with deeper knowledge when we hold our elected
officials accountable. Book groups focused on social justice are a great way to
grow and learn with others. Let’s reach out to friends and neighbors
and form a Social Justice Book Group today. Here are some resources to
get started: https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/social-justice-book-club and
https://reformjudaism.org/social-justice-advocacy/how-start-social-justice-book-club and
https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/social-justice-syllabus-borders
POSTCARDING
WRITE-UPS: From one of our own: This has been a difficult week, reminding us
how many struggles we face on multiple issues. It would be lovely if there were
just one problem. We could focus on fixing it, then waiting for the next
problem to arise and take care of that one. Unfortunately, problems are not
particularly good about queuing up and waiting their turn. Remind yourself that
you're one of millions. What you do may seem small, but so many of us the world
over are fighting for justice, safety, and opportunity for all. The "national generic" version
of this week's postcarding write-ups can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1h9cNA3-EVUBImauOqVMcCNwbwl53z3PDa84i5-3A3DY/edit?usp=sharing
COVID HEROES
SOUGHT: The Kennedy Foundation has created a special
award to honor courage during the COVID crisis, and we are asking everyone and
anyone to nominate their own heroes, for acts large and small, the doctors,
nurses and hospital staff, grocery store employees, transit workers, police,
firefighters and EMTs, family members, and local officials — the people
who have met this moment on the front lines.
Let’s check this out and submit our nominees: https://www.jfklibrary.org/events-and-awards/profile-in-courage-award/covid-courage
ELECTION/VOTING
2020
ELECTION CALENDAR: This
resource is searchable by date and state - https://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/2020-state-primary-election-dates.aspx
REMINDER-
CHECK VOTER REGISTRATION STATUS: Let’s make sure to regularly check our voter registration
status. States are purging voters routinely--we don't want to get caught
off guard. Take 1 minute and check right now: I Will Vote Then, let’s check how to vote by
mail in our state. Many rules have changed due to the pandemic and we may
be able to vote with a mailed ballot. We can find our state's latest voting
rules here: How to Vote By Mail in Every State
TODAY, TUESDAY,
JUNE 2 ELECTIONS: Let's take a look at the states that have elections
this Tuesday. The links on each state name will take us to the Ballotpedia page
for that state to see what is on the ballot. Accompanying articles have
information important specifically to voters in that state. a) IOWA - Des Moines Register: What to expect. ; b) MARYLAND- WAMU: Here's how to vote; c) MONTANA KTVH: high turnout expected. (note: this is an all-mail
primary); c) NEW MEXICO - Albuquerque Journal: A primary like no other; d) PENNSYLVANIA- WPXI: What you need to know; e) SOUTH
DAKOTA- Argus Leader: Everything you need to know; f) WASH.D.C.- WTOP: Everything you need to know.
NEXT
TUESDAY, JUNE 9 ELECTION: NEVADA: Nevada
is on pace for strong voter turnout in its 2020 presidential primary election,
according to new figures released by the Nevada secretary of state’s office. We
can read more at Las Vegas Review Journal. If we are Nevada voters,
let's send in our ballots today for this all-mail primary if we have not
already done so.
FOR
GRANDMOTHERS AND THEIR ALLIES:
Grandmothers for a Brighter Future, one of the first, if not THE first,
grassroots postcarding organization, is gearing up to help flip the Senate in
2020. They are focusing on sending postcards to voters in three states: Maine,
Kentucky, and Arizona. In advance of this campaign, they are seeking to grow in
numbers and impact. Let’s help them by signing up and inviting others
to join us: www.grandmothersforabrighterfuture.com/
STATE/LOCAL
RALLIES/GATHERINGS/TRAININGS/GROUP ACTIONS/TWEETSTORMS
VOLUNTEER
TO ADOPT A BATTLEGROUND STATE FOR 2020 VICTORY: The election may hinge on six key states and
a Vote Save America has just launched a strategy to win them. The Adopt a
State Program is brand-new remote mobilization program that will help us
directly support the work of organizers and candidates in these six key
battleground states that will be most important to winning a progressive
majority on Election Day—no matter where we live. After months working with the
most effective state parties, political strategists, and progressive
organizations on the ground in Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, Michigan,
Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin to find out where we can help the most,
they will only send us actions that will make a real impact. We’ll get first
rate training to become part of the best group of digital organizers out there. This custom
live training series will include four sessions on Thursday evenings in June,
curated to help make us the most effective organizers we can be. When
we sign up, we’ll learn the messaging that works best, and the remote and
in-person opportunities that will help us make the biggest possible impact on
the outcome of its races: https://votesaveamerica.com/subscribe/
GET TRAINED
TO VOLUNTEER VIRTUALLY FOR BIDEN: The upcoming 2020 Presidential Election will be crucial in deciding the
fate of our country and our democracy. After 2016, we know we cannot be
complacent, but must do everything possible to defeat Trump and get our country
back on track. One way to start is to help Joe Biden's campaign which is
looking for volunteers right now. We can click here to join an Action
Center trainings (which will be offered 75 times between May 27 and November 1)
and learn how to use our online organizing hub to volunteer virtually for Joe: https://www.mobilize.us/joebiden/event/149561
MASS
POOR PEOPLE’S ASSEMBLY & MORAL MARCH ON WASHINGTON: “The Mass
Poor People’s Assembly & Moral March on Washington is going digital! On
June 20th, we will hold the largest digital and social media gathering
of poor and low-wealth people, moral and religious leaders, advocates, and
people of conscience in this nation’s history. A global pandemic is exposing
even more the already existing crisis of systemic racism, poverty, ecological
devastation, the war economy and militarism, and the distorted moral narrative
of religious nationalism. On June 20, the 140 million poor and low-wealth
people across this nation will be heard!”
We can sign up here: https://actionnetwork.org/forms/rsvp-for-june-20-2020-mass-poor-peoples-assembly-moral-march-on-washington
READING/WATCHING/LISTENING
Why You
Need to Stop Saying "All Lives Matter" - https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/politics/a27075028/black-lives-matter-explained/
75
Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice - https://medium.com/equality-includes-you/what-white-people-can-do-for-racial-justice-f2d18b0e0234
FEC
commissioner refutes Trump's voter fraud claims - https://www.axios.com/trump-voter-fraud-claims-fec-cheif-fact-check-5a188119-e9c7-4f57-932b-8ed248e82a68.html
We’re
Keeping A Running List Of Hoaxes And Misleading Posts About The Nationwide
Police Brutality Protests - https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/janelytvynenko/hoax-misleading-claims-george-floyd-protests
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We can stay up
to date on Congress by checking out their schedules. a) The House publishes
a weekly schedule at The Weekly Leader (published and dated Friday)
as well as daily schedules at The Daily Leader. b) The Senate updates
their schedule daily at the Senate Floor Schedule
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