Actions Previous 2020

Previous Actions from 2020

Actions

Members of Congress

  • Sen. Patty Murray
    (202) 224-2621 | Email

  • Sen. Maria Cantwell
    (202) 224-3441 | Email

  • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st)
    (202) 225-6311 | Email

  • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th)
    (202) 225-7761 | Email

  • Rep. Adam Smith (9th)
    (202) 225-8901 | Email
    		•

    For the Week of Dec 21, 2020

    ? Finally, a week of good news! Americans started receiving the coronavirus vaccine and a second vaccine was approved, Biden picked Rep Deb Haaland to the the first Native American Interior Secretary, Bipartisan Senate Passage of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, Jesuits are returning 525 acres in South Dakota to Rosebud Sioux Tribe, the Supreme Court affirmed that marriage equality under Obergefell V Hodges means that married same-sex couples are entitled to be treated equally under the law. Oh, and President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris received 306 votes in the Electoral College. h/t Robin Gitelman.

    ? As we finish up our fourth year of Indivisible Eastside, we reflect on how hard everyone has fought, where we have won and lost, and what lies ahead. The steering committee is bolstered by the steady participation in activism and heartened by the friendships we have all made. The level of passion and dedication is amazing, but those of us in the fight cannot imagine doing less. Our energy ebbs and flows, we take breaks, but come back to fight alongside those who have been fighting for generations, and for those who are hanging on by a thread. As horrible as the last four years have been, and as hard as the next four will be, we are strengthened by these relationships and look forward to a brighter 2021.

    ? Indivisible Eastside Actions team will take a short break from Weekly Actions Newsletter. See you in the New Year!

    ? Here are your three Actions this week

    ✊ Action 1 – Join Indivisible Eastside on Take Action Network

    Louise, Kat, Daniel W and Sarah F have been working with a team of 35 leaders from 14 Washington Indivisible groups to customize and publicize Take Action Network (TAN). Indivisible Eastside creates or amplifies actions and tailors them for our Congressional and Legislative districts. Take Action Network TAN does that work for us, and allows anyone in Washington State to take action. Additionally, Indivisible Eastside can leverage work done by other groups to promote or co-host actions on TAN. Activists can receive actions based on organizations they trust and issues they care about. And taking action is made incredibly easy by TAN.

    The best way to understand what Take Action Network can do for you is to watch this short TAN overview video. For the reasons stated in the video, we highly encourage you to sign up for TAN. This 4 page signup document includes links to the overview video created by Daniel, a special Indivisible Eastside invitation link, and an orientation to TAN slideshow that Louise created.

    Once you’ve joined TAN, see any actions still active from Indivisible Eastside, do them if you haven’t already, and click “I did this action” to start tracking your activism.

    ✊ Action 2 – Call or Text Georgia Voters with Fair Fight

    Early voting has begun in Georgia! Fair Fight’s most urgent need is phonebank volunteers. They also need Spanish-speaking volunteers to phonebank and call Latinx Georgians. Sign Up Here

    ✊ Action 3 – Apply for, or spread the word about applying for, the King County Equity Cabinet

    In pursuit of King County’s vision to create a just society where all people have equitable opportunities to thrive, the Office of Equity and Social Justice requests candidates for an Equity Cabinet to partner with and advise the County on how to ensure that policies, practices, and outcomes align with its intentions to lead with equity, social and racial justice. The Cabinet, comprised of 12-15 members, will facilitate the County’s commitment to lead with racial justice and invest in partnerships that can steadily inform and influence the County’s decision-making toward defining and achieving equitable outcomes. Please consider applying for the Equity Cabinet, and/or spread the word to others who might want to apply. More Information and how to apply.

    For the Week of Dec 14, 2020

    ? At our December meeting we talked about preparations for January when the WA Legislature will begin their session. For this session, we will be transitioning away from Facebook for our actions and instead encourage all of our activists to use the Take Action Network (TAN), where all our actions will be consolidated. If you weren’t able to attend the meeting, please view the TAN presentation and consider signing up for Take Action Network.

    ? Starting on Tuesday, Dec 15th, there will be a new option for convenient, free COVID-19 testing on the Eastside! King County Public Health is launching a new test site at Bellevue College. Register TODAY for appointments starting 12/15. For a list of other testing locations, visit https://kingcounty.gov/covidtesting.

    More at: Public Health Insider

    ? Have you installed the WA Notify app? It is a new tool that works through smartphones, without sharing any personal information, to alert users if they may have been exposed to COVID-19. It is completely private, and doesn’t know or track who you are or where you go.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 [US HOUSE] Urge the administration to fund Farmers to Families Food Box Program

    A $4.5 billion food program implemented by the Trump administration has kept millions of Americans fed through the pandemic, but is running out of money. With the cold weather and holidays approaching it is more important than ever to help the food insecure. The Farmers to Families Food Box program connected struggling farmers with local food banks to help both the families who need food and the farmers who produce it during the pandemic. It was supposed to provide food support through the end of the year, but because of soaring demand and a shortage of federal money, it is ending a month early in many regions of the country. Please contact your member of Congress and ask them to urge the administration to continue funding for this program.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    Hello, I’m [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling/writing today to let [REPRESENTATIVE] know that it is more important than ever to make sure we don’t neglect the most vulnerable in our communities today. Please urge the administration to continue funding the Farmers to Families Food Box program.

    Thank you.

    ?Bonus Action: Donate to Hopelink to help folks locally!

    ✊ Action 2 [US SENATE] No Corporate Immunity in COVID-19 Relief Bill

    From Seattle Indivisible

    The Senate is in the process of negotiating a COVID relief bill, something Majority Leader McConnell has been stalling for months after the House passed the Heroes act.

    There must be NO CORPORATE IMMUNITY PROVISION in the final bill. Such a provision would allow companies to avoid any consequences from forcing employees to work in unsafe conditions where they might be exposed to COVID, become sick, pass the disease on to others, and die. Similarly, there would be no recourse for customers who were exposed at a place of business. We cannot let our Senators and Representatives negotiate away this point. Contact your Senators to tell them to stand firm against allowing corporate immunity provisions in any relief bill.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    Hello, I’m [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling/writing today to let [SENATOR] know that I am strongly opposed to any corporate immunity provisions in the COVID relief bill that’s currently in negotiations. Companies must be held accountable for exposing employees and customers to COVID. Immunity would mean that businesses would be even less careful than they are now – the opposite of what we need. A too-small relief package can be addressed by the next Congress and the Biden administration, but corporate immunity would be hard to undo. I am asking [SENATOR] to hold strong against any immunity provision, and vote no on any bill that contains it.

    Thank you.

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 3 –[Spokane County Democrats] Help the Spokane County Democratic Party

    From Tina Podlodowski/WA State Democartic Party

    The Spokane County Democrats Headquarters was destroyed by a man who set fire to their office and threatened workers there with a bomb. Fortunately, no one was hurt and the man was arrested. However, the office and everything in it were a near total loss. They need our help to replace what was lost.

    Please help here with a donation: Donate Here. Any amount helps and every amount will make a difference. Please donate through the link, as it helps the Spokane County Democrats handle necessary Public Disclosure Commission reporting on these donations.

    Also, if you can, take a moment to leave a message of support on the Spokane County Democrats FB page – let’s send our warmest (virtual) hugs to them!

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Dec 7, 2020

    ? If you are able to make further donations for the Georgia runoff elections another great organization to consider is ThankYouGa.com. Your contribution will go to support Black, Brown and LGBTQ+ groups on the ground who are working to register and educate voters, drive voter turnout and protect voter rights. These organizations, with others, have been at the forefront of the fight in Georgia and can use our support to win in January.

    You can find our previously published resources for volunteering and donating for Georgia on our website. We are still writing Postcards to Georgia voters. Please register to join us. Our current combined letter/postcard tally is 3775! The current letter writing campaign has ended but we will let you know if others come up.

    ? New COVID-19 Resources:

    • The new Washington State COVID Notification (WA Notify) system is now online. Developed by the University of Washington and the state Department of Health, the app for iPhones and Android phones uses Bluetooth technology to detect proximity to other phones. If someone who has enabled these notifications tests positive, they can anonymously and confidentially notify other users who have been within 6 feet of them. The design of the app is aimed at preserving privacy by not collecting location data or sharing users’ identities. Modelling suggests that if 15% of smartphone owners in King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties use the app, infections could decrease by 11% and deaths by as much as 15%, if used in combination with manual tracing. If you have not already done so, please consider activating the app by following the directions from the Department of Health. The more people that use it, the more effective it will be.
    • The state Department of Health has put together an online event scheduled for Dec. 15 to discuss the development of the new COVID-19 vaccines and what we should expect from them. Staffed and moderated by experts in the field, this will be an opportunity to have your questions answered. Please register to attend. If you can’t attend the live webinar, by registering you will receive a link to a recording after the event.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Bellevue Residents ] Call or email the Dec 7th City Council meeting to ask for a Communities of Color Coordinating Team

    For the past several months a group of our members who live in Bellevue have been gathering data on racial inequity in the Bellevue police force and elsewhere. We will present our findings at a meeting next year, but in the meantime, you can help to advance the cause of racial equity in the city by supporting a proposal which is being discussed in current budget negotiations.

    One of the priorities of stakeholder groups is the creation of a Community of Color Coordinating Team at the city. It is important to note that the development of such a team should be led by staffers, not council members. A request for a one-time earmark of $150,000 to implement a detailed proposal developed by staff is part of the amendment to the budget. Funding for such a group has been discussed recently but the council needs to hear support from residents for the proposal before the budget is adopted this month.

    There are a couple of ways that Bellevue Indivisible members can support this proposal:

    • Call into the Bellevue City Council meeting on Monday Dec. 7. Meetings start at 6:00 pm and questions from the public are taken very shortly after the start of the meeting. You can sign up to speak ahead of time online but the easier way is to join via this week’s Zoom link and raise your hand via the Participants button at the end of the oral comments. City staff will then call on you to speak. You will not be on screen when you speak, so feel free to write a short comment ahead of time and just read it when you are called.
    • Email the council at council@bellevuewa.gov before 3:00 pm on Dec. 7 so that council will see your comments before the meeting. Please let them know that you would like the city to establish a Communities of Color Coordinating Team. You should use that term in your subject line and mention that the development of the team should be led by staffers. If you would like further information please contact us at racialequitybellevue@indivisbleeastside.com. If you would like to use the script provided please personalize it as your individual views will have more impact.

    ☎ Sample Script (fill in the brackets to personalize your message):

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I live in [NEIGHBOURHOOD], Bellevue. I am calling to ask that the City fully fund a Communities of Color Coordinating Team, to be developed by city staff. The establishment of this group would go a long way towards developing trust and understanding with the diverse communities that the city serves. I care about racial equity in Bellevue because <fill in your thoughts.>

    Thank you.”

    ✊ Action 2 [Governor Inslee, State Legislators] Ask the Governor and your state legislators to press for Washington foster children to be returned to the state

    From Crosscut.com

    For several years child welfare advocates have been asking for Washington’s foster children who have been placed in out-of-state facilities to be returned to the state. After disturbing reports of abuse at some of the agencies where they were placed, the state Department of Youth, Children and Families (DYCF) said that it would return all children to Washington by September 2020. At this time, twenty-five of them have still not been returned, including five who are living at institutions managed by a company called Sequel, which has a track record of abuse and even a death at one of its facilities. You can read about it in this letter from Disability Rights Washington, which was sent to Governor Inslee on Oct. 9. Crosscut reports that it has been unable to get a response from DYFC about the delay in moving the children back to Washington.

    Many of the children have severe behavioral and emotional needs that previously could not be accommodated in existing state foster placements, but the Washington Legislature allocated $35 million in 2019 to provide more specialized care for foster children with such needs. By the end of August this year, Washington had licensed a handful of new facilities offering behavior rehabilitation services. The state agencies responsible for the return of these children need to ensure that appropriate facilities are provided as soon as possible to provide a safe home for them.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am writing to express my concern about the foster children from our state who have not been returned from out-of-state residential facilities, despite assurances by the Department of Youth, Children and Families that this would happen by September. Of particular concern are the five children who are still housed in facilities managed by the Sequel company, who have a well documented record of abuse and mistreatment in their institutions.

    The reasons behind this delay have not been made clear. Please do everything that you can to bring these children back to Washington as soon as possible.

    Thank you.”

    ✊ Action 3 –[Members of Congress] Ask your Members of Congress to push for the passage of bills that will support the restaurant industry

    There are currently two bills in Congress which would send much-needed support to the beleaguered restaurant industry. An independent restaurant coalition believes that we could lose up to 85% of small local restaurants if they do not receive financial help from the government. These bills should be incorporated into the next COVID-19 relief legislation.

    In the House, the Restaurants Act (HR7197) would establish a $120 billion Restaurant Revitalization Fund which would prioritize awarding grants to marginalized and underrepresented communities, with a focus on women and minority-owned and operated eligible entities. It has been co-sponsored by Representatives Smith and DelBene. The bill was referred to the House Ways and Means Committee, which Representative DelBene sits on. It is particularly important to let her know that we expect her to push for its passage.

    In the Senate, the companion bill is S4012 and has similar goals to the House bill. It has been co-sponsored by Senator Patty Murray. The bill was referred to the Senate Finance Committee, which Senator Maria Cantwell sits on.

    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL
    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script: (Please edit to reflect your specific asks of Senator Cantwell and Representative DelBene if she is your Representative.)

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am writing to ask you to do everything that you can to pass the The RESTAURANTS Act, which targets relief for local restaurants. Hopefully it can be incorporated into a larger COVID-19 relief package. Small restaurant owners are hanging by a thread, facing financial extinction. Local restaurants are closing at a rapid rate. I urge you to support your strongest efforts to provide them real relief.

    Thank you.”

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date

    • Wed Jan 20 – Inauguration of President Joe Biden

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Nov 30, 2020

    ? Recently we asked you to sign petitions to add two PCC workers to the slate for election to their Board of Trustees. The petitions are now available for you to download and print at home. There is one for each of the two candidates, Laurae McIntyre and Donna Rasmussen. The candidates each need 2,000 signatures to run for the election so please share these with anyone you know who is a PCC member so that workers there can have representation on the Board.

    ? There are several new Town Halls planned by the Washington Indivisible Network (WIN), as the new session of the state legislature approaches, on Civil Rights and on the State Budget and Covid. There will also be Town Halls in December with Representatives Adam Smith, Kim Schrier and Pramila Jayapal. Please register to attend.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Flip the Senate – Georgia Resources

    Nationally, the focus is on flipping the Senate by winning the two runoff elections in Georgia on Jan. 5th. Support Reverend Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in their races by utilizing these tried and trusted resources. There are also some state races that are covered by these campaigns that are important to support.

    1. Write:
      • We are hosting combined letter writing and postcard sessions for the next two Sundays. Please register to attend, and use the following links to get started if you haven’t written letters and/or postcards in the past.
      • VoteForward has more addresses for writing to voters.  You can sign up here if you haven’t already registered with them.
      • The Georgia Postcard Project will have postcards available for out of state writers.  You can also join their Facebook Group.
      • Postcards to Voters has addresses for Georgia listed. You can request them now or register with them if you haven’t written with them before. Contact postcards@indivisibleeastside.com if you need help.
    2. Donate: These races are now the most important to fund, as they are our last chance to take power from Mitch McConnell.
    3. Phonebank or Text: There are many organizations gearing up. Here are a few:

    Elizabeth Standal would like to hold some phone banking sessions for IE members to support the work of the local Georgia organizations. Please contact her at standalem@hotmail.com if you are interested in helping with this effort.

    ✊ Action 2 – [WA LEGISLATURE] Ask legislators to ensure access to critical health services for all WA patients 

    From the ACLU-WA

    Health systems across Washington are limiting the reproductive, end-of-life, and LGBTQ+ related care that residents need. This problem is exacerbated by the large number of health systems that have merged in our state. These mergers often result in fewer health care options for patients and can be devastating when, for example, hospitals or clinics with religious institutional policies restrict or deny services.

    When a patient goes to a hospital or clinic, they expect their doctor or nurse to provide them with medical care based on the provider’s independent, evidence-based medical judgment. Yet across Washington, health entities are, without medical purpose, restricting the care doctors and nurses may offer to patients. These restrictions disproportionately harm women, the LGBTQ+ community, communities of color, people seeking end-of-life care, low-income populations, and people living in rural areas.

    No patient should have their care delayed or denied, especially not when the person is miscarrying or suffering from an ectopic pregnancy. Yet in Washington state this continues to happen, placing the lives and health of patients at risk.

    Further, refusing to allow doctors to serve as attending or consulting physicians under the Death with Dignity Act (“DWD Act”) places vulnerable patients in difficult if not impossible situations. As a result of these circumstances, significant suffering and even violent suicide have occurred in our state.

    Please ask your state legislators to support legislation to ensure that patients have the care that they need. In addition, there is a need for healthcare systems to be accountable to state regulators when merges are proposed to ensure access to healthcare for all residents.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I ask you to support legislation this session to support the rights of pregnant women, dying patients. and LGBTQ+ residents of our state to receive the healthcare that they need. No matter where a patient lives or seeks medical treatment, they should trust that they can get the care they need.

    In addition, there is also a need for healthcare systems to be accountable to state regulators when mergers are proposed. When health systems merge, the government must ensure that communities are able to access the care they need, when they need it.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 3 – [Governor Inslee] Ask the Governor to extend the eviction moratorium to March 2021

    From the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance 

    The COVID-19 recession has left many families in our state and around the country unable to pay rent. The scope of the issue is enormous. At the end of October, more than 500,000 renters in Washington were using credit cards or short-term loans to meet their basic spending needs, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse survey — an increase of about 100,000 from the month before. More than 150,000 renters reported “no confidence” they could pay the following month’s rent, an increase of about 30,000. In total, 63,000 tenants were occupying their homes without paying rent. Keeping people housed is an important contribution to managing the COVID-19 pandemic. Preventing eviction helps to prevent exposure to COVID.

    The current eviction moratorium was extended to the end of 2020 in October but with no federal funds on the horizon and the State legislature not in session, no relief is in sight. In addition, the governor is currently considering imposing conditions on the moratorium, which would create new loopholes in the law. Please contact Governor Jay Inslee and ask him to extend the moratorium until March 31, 2021, which will give the legislature the chance to come up with solutions.  Please also ask him not to weaken the moratorium so that the strongest possible protections can be in place for those in danger of losing their homes.

    • Governor Jay Inslee – EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I am writing to ask you to extend the current moratorium on eviction from rented housing until March 2021, in order to give the state legislature an opportunity to come up with solutions. Ending this essential safeguard in the middle of winter, and with the COVID-19 pandemic still not under control, will cause unimaginable hardship to Washington residents. I urge you to ensure that the protections that it offers continue for as long as is necessary. “

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date

    • Wed Jan 20 – Inauguration of President Joe Biden 

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Nov 23, 2020

    ? COVID numbers continue to climb uncontrollably and on Thursday night we got a glimpse into its gut wrenching impact through someone many of us feel we know and love, Rachel Maddow. You can watch her story, and then be safe to protect all of your loved ones this Thanksgiving by gathering only within your immediate household.

    ? Happy Thanksgiving! The Steering Committee at Indivisible Eastside is so very thankful for all of our members’ dedication to resisting the Trump administration these past 4 years by supporting progressive values, and protecting our democracy!

    ? Here are your three Actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – (US SENATE & GSA ADMINISTRATOR) Tell Senators and GSA Administrator that transition must begin

    From Stand Up America

    Over 153 million people voted and Joe Biden won — but a little-known government agency is holding up the transition process.

    Emily Murphy, the administrator of the General Services Administration (GSA) and a Trump appointee, is refusing to sign documents that would allow the formal transition to a Biden administration to begin (see stories from NPR and the Washington Post). She is holding up an established legal process that takes place whenever a new president is elected.

    The delay puts our national security and health at risk in the middle of a pandemic. Emily Murphy is wasting valuable time that the Biden transition team could spend on planning for vaccine distribution or the replenishment of our national stockpile of medical supplies.

    Action: call upon your senators and the GSA Administrator to say that the transition must begin.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    To Senators:

    “My name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. There is broad consensus that Joe Biden has won the election. It is imperative that the transition process begin immediately to allow coordination and planning. Delays in this process put our national security and health at risk. Please urge GSA Administrator Emily Murphy to sign the needed paperwork to begin this important transition.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    To GSA Administrator:

    “My name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. There is broad consensus that Joe Biden has won the election. It is imperative that the transition process begin immediately to allow coordination and planning. Delays in this process put our national security and health at risk. Please sign the needed paperwork to begin this important transition. Thank you.”

    ✊ Action 2 (US SENATE) – No Corporatists in the Biden Administration

    From Indivisible National

    If we want to see significant progressive change in the next four years, it starts with President-elect Biden appointing progressive leaders to his cabinet and to key administrative positions.

    Mitch McConnell is already gearing up to block Biden’s appointees in the Senate, and we’re seeing signs that the Biden Transition Team is rethinking who they’ll consider pushing forward.

    Our first step is to ensure that President-elect Biden does not nominate or hire corporate executives, high-level consultants, or lobbyists to serve in his administration. This is and should be the floor for holding the Biden administration accountable. After the Trump administration’s unfettered abuse in using public service positions to enrich themselves and their corporate cronies, the American people rightfully demand that public officials nominated to the Biden administration are free from corporate interest. To be clear, the deeply rooted issue that is the revolving door was exacerbated by the Trump administration, but sadly has resulted in disastrous and harmful policy outcomes under both Republican and Democratic presidents. This is why we must act boldly and aggressively now to hold our new Democratic administration to the requirement that public service serve the well-being of the public.

    While having an ethnically diverse cabinet is important, diversity alone is not enough to ensure communities all over the country see their President prioritizing their needs over those of large corporations. All Biden personnel must have a demonstrated track record of fighting for the needs of under-resourced communities, communities of color, people who have been disenfranchised, undocumented immigrants, and the many other marginalized groups.

    Action: call your Senators and demand that they urge President-elect Biden to not nominate or hire corporatists to his administration. And if he does, demand that your Senators decline to confirm those nominations.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I am calling to ask that you urge President-elect Biden to not nominate or hire corporate executives, high-level consultants, or lobbyists to his administration. If he does, I ask you to decline to confirm those nominations. We must now hold our new Democratic administration to the requirement that public service serve the well-being of the public, not corporations.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 3 – [Washington legislative action] Support campaign to build climate and equity into Washington’s Growth Management Act

    From Futurewise

    Futurewise, an organization that focuses on land use policy, and used to be called 1000 Friends of Washington, has created a campaign called Washington Can’t Wait. The goal is “to pressure Washington’s legislature to pass major changes to Washington’s Growth Management Act (GMA) that would address climate change, housing affordability, and environmental justice.” If passed, it would mean that WA state would require cities to include climate action planning (specifically focused on land use, that is, avoiding sprawl) in their comprehensive plans.

    The action is simple: please sign on to Futurewise’s online petition and/or support the campaign in other ways (such as donating, volunteering, or attending educational events or organizing trainings) as listed on the Washington Can’t Wait campaign page.

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date

    • Wed Jan 20 – Inauguration of President Joe Biden

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Nov 16, 2020

    ? State Senator Mona Das (LD47), whose Opportunity PAC helped to elect six black women to the state legislature, spoke at our Group Meeting yesterday. She broke down what the election results mean and what the elected candidates hope to accomplish in 2021. If you missed the meeting, you can read the meeting notes.

    ? From Protect the Results Coalition: “America has decided. We did our job as voters — casting ballots for COVID-19 relief, democracy reform, racial justice, the climate, and so much more. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be the next President and Vice President of the United States.

    Now, election officials and judges are doing their jobs. Votes are being counted and the process of finalizing the election results is proceeding as required by law. The things that Trump is doing and saying are what we all imagined would lead to a national mobilization, but the reality is: we’re winning.”

    We will stay vigilant in keeping an eye on the nefarious actions the outgoing administration takes in the next 64 days, but we can find solace in the reality that we will have a competent administration again on January 20th.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – Take back the Senate!

    Control of the Senate (ie, whether Mitch McConnell keeps his position as Majority Leader) depends on the two runoff elections in Georgia on January 5, 2021.

    Jon Ossoff (D) vs. Sen. David Perdue (R)

    Rev. Raphael Warnock (D) vs Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R)

    A) Write:

    B) Donate: These races are now the most important to fund, as they are our last chance to take power from Mitch McConnell.

    C) Phonebank or Text: There are many organizations gearing up. Here are a few.

    Elizabeth Standal would like to hold some phone banking sessions for IE members to support the work of the local Georgia organizations. Please contact her at standalem@hotmail.com if you are interested in helping with this effort.

    ✊ Action 2 – Stop the Navy from using our State Parks for training

    The Navy has proposed that they should be allowed to use our State Parks for training. They will be presenting their proposal to the State Parks Commission on Thursday, November 19, about 9:15 or 9:30 am. It will be online and we’re looking to have as many people as possible tune in. Watch HERE.

    There will be NO opportunity for public comment or participation during the meeting, so we are inviting/urging people to submit their comments to the State Parks Commission by Tuesday, November 17, at commission@parks.wa.gov

    In your email, you might start with an initial statement, such as “I object to the Navy’s proposal to use our State Parks for training. There are serious problems with the proposal.” Then you might add some talking points:

    • Allowing the Navy to use our State Parks for training would further militarize our society, taking over a large number of parks (29) for military training.
    • The Navy has plenty of other places to train, many of them right next to the parks they want to use. When challenged, they admitted that it was the presence of civilians on whom they could spy that made the parks desirable. Many park users have real and reasonable objections to being spied on.
    • There is very real potential for harm to result from the activities the Navy is proposing. Although the Navy claims to alert park staff and local law enforcement before an activity, in the five years they have used five parks they have never actually done that.
    • Trainees will be carrying realistic looking fake weapons. This would clearly be problematic in our parks, where weapons are not allowed.
    • Having military training activities in our parks is inconsistent with the mission, vision, and core values of the State Park system.
    • Having military training activities in our parks is inconsistent with State Park regulations.

    To quote from the assistant director of State Parks, the mission is “to care for state resources and provide recreational access to the public.” This proposal does not meet that standard and needs to be rejected.

    To quote from a letter to the editor: “One of the key responsibilities for civil authorities is to tell the military when enough is enough. If the citizens don’t put limits on military activities, expansion will never cease. It is up to us, the citizenry, to take that stand and draw the appropriate line. It is not unpatriotic or disrespectful to set limits on the military – it is our responsibility. Just say NO to using public parks for military training.”

    ✊ Action 3 – Tell PCC there should be a worker on the Board of Trustees

    Are you a PCC Community Markets member? The UFCW21 workers union is trying to get an employee (worker) onto the Board of Trustees, but PCC Corporate is making it very hard. Look for a petition to sign outside your store today!

    Call the PCC office at 206-547-1222 or file a customer comment at: pccmarkets.com/contact-us and tell them:

    “I’m a PCC shopper, and I’m asking the CEO to stop blocking workers from running for the Board of Trustees. Give Laurae McIntyre and Donna Rasmussen a fair and safe process to get on the ballot by following your by-laws and letting workers collect signatures electronically.”

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date

    • Wed Jan 20 – Inauguration of President Joe Biden

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Nov 9, 2020

    ? At the time of writing it has been just a few hours since the election was called for President Elect Joe Biden and Vice President Elect Kamala Harris. It’s overwhelming, joyful, and such a massive relief. It has been a long and awful four years. We are so grateful to all of you who have been on this journey with us. Please know that every postcard, letter, text, phone call, door knock, voter registration, donation, sign wave, march, meeting, and Zoom call has helped to get to this moment. Thank you, Indivisibles.

    Let us also acknowledge that this victory came down to the votes of people of color in the states that finally clinched it. The work to build a better America starts with equity for all, and we are here for it.

    Since our first organizing meeting on Jan 5, 2017, our mission has been to ‘resist the Trump agenda’. We will continue to do that until he is gone from the White House in January (if he doesn’t flee before that). There will undoubtedly be further attempts to subvert democracy over the next few months. Remember your emotions today and pledge to use that energy going forward. We aren’t going anywhere. There’s work to be done. Watch this space for forthcoming actions to flip both Senate seats in Georgia, among other things!

    ? Please join us for our post-election Zoom meeting, on Sunday Nov. 15. We will be joined by State Senator Mona Das (LD47), whose Opportunity PAC helped to elect black women to the state legislature. She will help us to break down what the election results mean and what the elected candidates hope to accomplish in 2021. Please register to attend.

    We hope you’ll take some time to relax and recharge, so there is just one action for you this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Take IE’s Issues Priorities Survey

    We will continue to focus on local and state issues in our work, as well as national. Our state legislature is a bulwark against past damage wrought by the Trump administration, and future damage from the tilted Supreme Court. Please take a moment to think about the future you want in WA state. Take the Indivisible Eastside’s Issues Priority survey to tell us where you think our efforts should be focused in 2021.

    Take The Survey

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date

    • Wed Jan 20 – Inauguration of President Joe Biden

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Nov 2, 2020

    ? Take a quiet minute and read historian Heather Cox Richardson’s October 31, 2020 hopeful post, copied here in full:

    The next three days will bring the culmination of the 2020 election season, as those of us who have not already cast our ballots will show up on Tuesday to vote in our local, state, and national elections around the country.

    Lots of us are exhausted and discouraged, and after the chaos of the past four years, it seems entirely fair to be exhausted. As civil rights icon Fannie Lou Hamer said, we’re “sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

    But on this night of calm before the storm, I am the opposite of discouraged.

    I am excited about our democracy and our future.

    Our nation faces headwinds, for sure. We simply must get the coronavirus pandemic under control, and then address the extremes of wealth and poverty in this country. Fixing healthcare, systemic racism and sexism, climate change, and education all must be on the table as we move firmly into the twenty-first century. It sounds like a daunting list, but after years of apathy while a few wealthy Americans tightened their grip on the nation, Americans have woken up to the fact that democracy is not a spectator sport.

    We are taking back our country, and once we have done so, we will find that no problem is insurmountable.

    Democracy is rising. It might not win on Tuesday—no jinxing here!—but if not then, the week after that, or the month after, or the year after. After more than thirty years studying our country’s history, I have come to believe in American democracy with an almost religious faith.

    And then, with our country free again, the future looks wildly exciting, full of different voices, races, abilities, religions, foods, gender identities, books, ideas, inventions, music, clothing, political identities, perspectives. In the past, when we have come through a period in which a small group of Americans has taken control of our society and ordinary Americans have taken it back, industry, art, science, and civil rights have blossomed. For my part, I don’t expect to like everything that happens in such a fertile world, but I do expect to learn, and grow, and feel privileged to watch the construction of a world that reflects our people at their best.

    I know it’s frightening to hear the stories of Republican leaders trying to get ballots thrown out, and right-wing thugs intimidating Biden voters, and so on. But that Republicans feel the need to engage in such tactics despite their ongoing voter suppression and gerrymandering is a tell-tale sign that they know their party has lost any hope of winning a majority of voters, and that the only way they can win an election is to cheat.

    That strategy is not sustainable.

    In the past year, the people who have come to these Letters to read and chat and argue and bolster each other have built a community of more than a million strong. We are artists, nurses, scholars, potters, welders, moms, dads, photographers, lawyers, writers, politicians, teachers, landscapers, boatbuilders, bankers, and doctors, people from every imaginable background, brought together by our love for this country and what it has the potential to be. So tonight, as I fall into bed, I urge you all to keep the faith.

    Because, I promise, you have enabled me to keep mine. —Heather Cox Richardson

    ? Here are your Actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – Make Sure Every Vote Counts

    Great news! In Washington state, roughly 65% of ballots statewide are in as opposed to 41% in 2016. However, some people have yet to vote, or have voted and there’s an issue with their ballot. Make sure Every Vote counts by helping where you can.

    1a. Voters who have not yet voted and need help

    If you know anyone who needs to register to vote, or is having issues with voting, there are six new King County voting centers open Monday and Tuesday at 8:30 am as “one-stop shops” to assist voters with registration, replacing ballots, and getting voters’ pamphlets. They will accept completed ballots as well.

    The centers are listed on the King County Elections Vote Center page – CenturyLink Field Event Center, the University of Washington’s Dempsey Indoor Center, Bellevue College’s gym, the ShoWare Center in Kent, Federal Way Performing Arts & Event Center, the County Elections Center in Renton, and Kenmore City Hall.

    1b. Voters who have already voted, whose ballots have issues

    Over 10,000 Washington ballots have been rejected because of a lack of signature match, and over 3000 simply because folks forgot to sign ballots. These ballots need to be cured, and you can help do that.

    WA Democrats has a volunteer team of 40 people doing ballot curing and can use MORE volunteers – they will train you and this will help get ballots counted. Email the Voter Protection Director, Clyde Shavers, if you can volunteer for ballot curing – clyde@wa-democrats.org For other opportunities Find a volunteer time slot that works for you at https://www.wa-democrats.org/organizingevents/

    ✊ Action 2 – Take IE’s Issues Priorities Survey

    Come what may with the presidential election, our state legislature is a bulwark against past damage wrought by the Trump administration, and future damage from the tilted Supreme Court. Distract yourself from election anxiety by thinking about the future you want in WA state. Take the Indivisible Eastside’s Issues Priority survey to tell us where you think our efforts should be focused in 2021.

    Take The Survey

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of October 26, 2020

    ? The Indivisible movement has been instrumental in pushing back against the Trump agenda and supporting progressive policies and candidates. Watch this short “Thank You” video message to Indivisibles from Nancy Pelosi, Cory Booker, and other elected officials. And Thank You for your involvement.

    ? Help show US Rep Suzan DelBene the power of Indivisible Eastside by attending the Indivisible Town Hall with CD1 Rep. Suzan DelBene, Thursday Oct 29, 7 pm. This will be expertly moderated by Washington State Indivisible Podcast host Stephan Cox. You do NOT have to be a constituent to attend and you can pose a question during registration.

    ? Find Voting Resources in last week’s Action Email.

    ? Here are your Actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Electoral] Protect the NC Vote, Join LD Dems in Sign Waving to GOTV

    As some GOTV activities wrap up, others present themselves. Here are two high-impact activities you can participate in either from your home, or out on the street.

    Protect the NC Vote: Would you like to help “cure” ballots (that is, help voters fix their ballot for things like a missing signature) in North Carolina, reaching out to voters whose absentee ballots have been rejected? Join the NC Dems Voter Protection Team to make critical voter protection calls. Sign up to participate in this CRITICAL action to combat voter suppression and protect the vote. Note that new volunteers will always receive training at the start of the shift.

    Sign Waving with LD Dems:

    You’ve likely seen, or heard reports of Democratic candidates’ signs being vandalized. Sign waving can get the word out about candidates without risking loss of property. Join these LD Dems on street corners. Bring your own signs if you have them, or contact the organizer to let her know you’ll need to borrow one at the event.

    LD45 – Saturday Oct 31

    Questions? Contact Linda Jenkins at volunteercommittee@45thdemocrats.org. (note: Lt. Governor endorsed candidate is Marko Liias).

    All of the following are on Sat Oct 31:

    • Duvall – 11 am-1 pm – outside City Hall on Main Street
    • Woodinville – 11 am-1 pm – outside Molbaks on 175th Street (main downtown road) Rep. Suzan DelBene will be participating!
    • Kirkland – 11 am-1 pm – 3rd Street and Central Peter Kirk Park
    • Redmond – 2-4 pm – downtown Redmond Park, Redmond Way, opposite Hoffman’s Bakery
    • Sammamish – 2-4 pm – meet outside City Hall.
    • Redmond (Trilogy over 55 development) – time varies but within the noon to 3 pm range

    ✊ Action 2 – [Resistance] Speak out against USPS firing Postal Police

    The Wall Street Journal reports that the U.S. Postal Service has ended agency patrols that protected mail and letter carriers. The agency’s unilateral order ended daily patrols meant to prevent robberies of blue collection boxes and mail vehicles, and has left letter carriers without escorts on unsafe routes in some of the nation’s biggest cities. Mail thieves, in the past, often targeted mail for credit cards and checks. Now, postal police officers said the fear is that thieves will also get ballots, which could be ditched.

    Created in 1971, the Postal Police operate as a uniformed division under the Postal Service’s Inspection Service, tasked with protecting U.S. mail.

    Action: Contact your Members of Congress to voice your concern about the safety of postal carriers and the US mail.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am very concerned about the recent firing of US Postal Police as reported in the Wall Street Journal October 16th. US Postal letter carriers are valued public employees and deserve to work in a safe environment. Many of the duties of the Postal Police are to safeguard not only letter carriers but the letters and packages entrusted to the US government for safe and timely delivery. While mail thieves may target credit cards and packages, during this election season, collateral damage may occur, resulting in discarded or destroyed ballots. I urge you to use your position to reinstate the Postal Police, restore their duties to what was in place in 2019, and restore the public’s confidence in the USPS. Thank you.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of October 19, 2020

    ? Protect The Results: What will happen as the late night of November 3 rolls by and November 4 begins? This year is like no other–there may be attempts to throw out the will of the voters in the Presidential election. But we have ways to respond. A coalition of organizations across Washington and the country, including Indivisible, have already started making plans to protect election results. Indivisible Eastside has created an event, Count Every Vote in REDMOND: Protect the Results, with a tentative date and time of Nov 4, 5:00 pm. Sign up to get a notification for potential rapid mobilization.

    ? As we move towards a Biden Administration, Indivisible’s connection to our US representatives will be crucial in advancing progressive policy. Be part of solidifying that relationship by attending the Indivisible Town Hall with CD1 Rep. Suzan DelBene Thursday Oct 29, 7 pm moderated by Washington State Indivisible Podcast host Stephan Cox. You do NOT have to be a constituent to attend – we want to showcase our powerful Washington Indivisible Network.

    ? Letterwriting and Postcarding Update: On Saturday, 16 million letters to infrequent voters in 12 key states were mailed by activists around the country. Indivisible Eastside members contributed a whopping 11,600 letters! Some writers met up at Redmond Sorting center to drop off their trays of letters, and were part of a short documentary about the Big Send in the PNW. Huge Shoutout to Yvonne B for spearheading this project and Jennifer H for lending her energy, tech expertise, and steadfast support.

    IE members have written 43,000 postcards to voters around the country since January. Last Wednesday, Indivisible Eastside writers mailed 12,000 of the 60,000 postcards to Washington voters for 22 key races through Postcards4WA.

    Think about it. That’s over 54,000 voters who are receiving friendly reminders to vote in this most important election, all thanks to individual actions by Indivisible Eastside members and a group of amazing, dedicated organizers. Congratulations to all participants! Our reward will be the results. Here are some of the top writers!

    Letterwriters – Top 10: Jennifer J-F: 980, Carolyn A: 935, Katie and John P: 820, Sue C: 700, Karen C: 600, Kai C: 475, Jeanne A: 500, Linnea M: 470, Russell C: 400, Yvonne B: 395

    Postcarders: Individuals: Christy B: 7,786, Joachim V: 1,430, Helen B: 1,010 Pairs: Elizabeth S: 1,626, Joachim V: 510, Ann T: 500, Ruth L: 490 Team: Heather K’s team of 20: 3,350, David D’s team of 4: 2,720, Lisa O’s team of 6: 2,022

    ? Here are your Actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Resistance] Urge Secretary of State Wyman to be a positive spokesperson for Vote By Mail.

    Washington State’s Vote by Mail system is the envy of democracy loving people everywhere. We should be shouting from the rooftops about how safe, secure, transparent and reliable the system works. The King County Election center is visited by government officials from all around the world seeking to bring Vote by Mail to their states and countries. Yet, our Republican Secretary of State has done little to publicize its security. Contact SOS Kim Wyman and urge her to speak out. We need positive messaging from her to counter Trump’s narrative of voter fraud as he aims to undermine the results of this election.

    Email SOS Kim Wyman: kim.wyman@sos.wa.gov

    Subject Line: Please Make a Public Statement Concerning the Safety of Mail-In Ballots and your Commitment to Protecting the Integrity of the Electoral Process

    ☎ Sample Script to copy and paste into your email:

    “Dear Secretary of State Wyman,

    As a voter in the state of Washington, I am proud of our vote by mail system. However, claims have been made to try to throw the election on November 3, 2020 into undue doubt and controversy. There have been unsubstantiated charges of fraud, especially related to mail-in ballots. Moreover, many Americans are concerned about an array of voter suppression efforts.

    As a concerned citizen, I ask you to publicly commit to protecting the electoral process from being discredited or manipulated to the advantage of any candidate or party. Specifically, I ask you to make a public statement that Washington’s vote-by-mail system is safe and secure, and that the American people should have confidence in voting by mail. I further request that you make every effort to guarantee the integrity of the voting process in Washington by publicly guaranteeing that, first, every vote in Washington will be counted to the full extent that the law provides, next, that votes will be duly presented to the state delegation to the Electoral College, and finally that you will do everything within your power to ensure that Washington’s delegation to the Electoral College will honor the popular vote.

    In addition, I want you to commit that if President Trump or any other political leader seeks to discount, discredit or stop the counting of mail-in votes, that you will publicly speak up in opposition. I am concerned, and I know you are as well, about some of the statements that President Trump has already made to undermine confidence in mail-in voting. As you, a Republican, are asking for my vote for re-election as our WA Secretary of State, it is important for me to know–before election day–that you are prepared to speak up for the integrity of this election, even if that means speaking in direct opposition to the leader of your political party.

    The integrity of the vote is the heartbeat of democracy, as is honoring the results of a full count of the votes in every state. I look forward to hearing from you in writing in response to my requests, and hope that you will step up at this critical time to protect democracy by protecting the vote.

    Sincerely,
    [NAME]
    [CITY, ZIP]”

    ✊ Action 2 – [Electoral] Vote The Full Ballot

    People around the country are so determined to vote in this election that they’re waiting in long lines, sometimes for hours! Here in Washington, our world-class vote-by-mail system facilitates easy access to your ballot. That’s why the least we can do is VOTE THE FULL BALLOT.

    Many voters feel they don’t have enough information to make informed decisions on some of the less publicized items. Our friends at FUSE have the excellent Progressive Voters Guide (now available for 8 states!) that give their recommendation and reasoning. Seriously, take 30 minutes to learn more, and become a resource for your friends and family.

    For example, an item you might want to know more about:

    King County Proposition #1 would protect and expand critical regional health care services for decades to come. Proposition 1 would implement a capital improvement bond of $1.74 billion to provide needed health and safety improvements at Harborview Medical Center. As The Stranger asks – What Are You Gonna Do? Vote Against Helping a Hospital in the Middle of a Pandemic?

    ☑️ Action 2a: Review the Voting Resources below and VOTE! And click here to let us know you’ve voted!

    ☑️ Action 2b: Email The Voting Resources to 3 friends. Post on social media.

    ☑️ Action 2c: Once you’ve voted, let people know. Mention it when you’re talking to friends, family, and colleagues. Post about it on social media. This kind of positive peer pressure is one of the most effective ways to remind and encourage other people to vote! Here’s a handy Democracy Bingo Chart you can print and fill in.

    Voting Resources: Do your research!

    • The Progressive Voters Guide, from our friends at Fuse, is now available for eight states. Please share with friends and family in CA, CO, MI, WI, TX, PA, and VA, as well as here in Washington. Notice that many of these states have potentially impactful races for Democrats!
    • Your Democratic legislative districts (1st, 5th, 41st, 45th, 48th) have endorsement guides, as well as King County Democrats.
    • The Washington State Voters’ Guide is available in several formats. It carries a disclaimer that it does not take responsibility for candidate statements or arguments, so bear that in mind.
    • We cannot stress enough how important it is to #VoteYourFullBallot. The ballot will be long and many important races are a long way down. Please take your time to research the candidates and issues and vote in every race.

    Voting Basics

    • Don’t forget to sign the envelope! (You’d be amazed how many people forget). Adding your phone number and email helps to resolve problems with your ballot quickly.
    • Track your ballot to make sure that it has been counted. Starting Oct 20, check out the King County Elections Webcams to view their operation.
    • If you need to check your registration or change your address (online by Oct 26) or have other voting questions, check with King County Elections.
    • If you haven’t received your ballot by October 19 – or if you’ve lost your ballot – you can print one out at voter.votewa.gov (when you come to the menu, click My Ballot/Online Ballot and read the instructions carefully) or get one in-person at your county elections office. Call 206-296-VOTE (8683) with questions.
    • If you’re wondering where to get the most bang for your donation buck, Washington Indivisible Network has put together this great list of state candidates to help you decide

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of October 12, 2020

    ? Bellevue residents – don’t forget to sign up for one of the listening sessions this week to gather input for the city’s review of the police use-of-force policies. You can also watch on YouTube and email questions to the council, which will be forwarded to the consultants that they have hired.

    If you would like some background on this, please let us know at RacialEquityBellevue@indivisibleeastside.com. We have a great set of talking points, put together by member Sally F, with help from our friends at Indivisible Kirkland.

    ? We want to acknowledge the generosity of members who have donated funds to Indivisible Eastside this year. As our meeting expenses have been non-existent, we are making a donation to an organization that helps to get voters to the polls in Texas.

    ? Speaking of generosity, we are so thrilled that Steering Committee member Rhiannon and her sister Morwenna will be participating in the National Womens’ March in Washington DC this weekend, thanks to our member Lassie and her generous group of friends. Thank you on their behalf from Indivisible Eastside!

    ? We continue to write Postcards and Letters to Voters in swing states. The last letter-writing session is Tuesday Oct 13, but we still have Postcard sessions planned for future weeks! Please scroll down to the calendar for event dates and registration – (39,310 Postcards, 7,945 Letters in 2020)

    ? If you missed yesterday’s group meeting, here are the Meeting Notes, including a link to the recording.

    Here are your Actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Electoral] Here we go!

    Ballots drop this week in King County and it’s just three weeks until Election Day! We have been working towards this for almost four years. Now is the time to fine tune our voting plans and get that ballot in the mail (by Oct 27) or the ballot box (Oct 15-Nov 3).

    Voting Basics

    • If you need to check your registration or change your address (online by Oct 26) or have other voting questions, check with King County Elections.
    • Don’t forget to sign the envelope! (You’d be amazed how many people forget). Adding your phone number and email helps to resolve problems with your ballot quickly.
    • Track your ballot to make sure that it has been counted.

    Do your research! There is a lot of information out there on candidates and issues.

    • The Progressive Voters Guide, from our friends at Fuse, is now available for eight states. Please share with friends and family in CA, CO, MI, WI, TX, PA and VA, as well as here in Washington. Notice that many of these states have potentially impactful races for Democrats!
    • Your Democratic legislative districts (1st, 41st, 45th, 48th) have endorsement guides, as well as King County Democrats.
    • The Washington State Voters’ Guide is available in several formats. It carries a disclaimer that it does not take responsibility for candidate statements or arguments so bear that in mind.
    • We cannot stress enough how important it is to #VoteYourFullBallot. The ballot will be long and many important races are a long way down. Please take your time to research the candidates and issues and vote in every race.
    • If you’re wondering where to get the most bang for your donation buck, Washington Indivisible Network has put together this great list of state candidates to help you decide.

    ⭐️ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [Electoral] Support critical House races that might be the path to victory

    From WashingtonPost.com

    In the (hopefully) unlikely event that neither candidate wins a clear cut victory in the Electoral College, deciding the presidency falls to the House of Representatives. In such a scenario, in a rare twist mandated by the 12th Amendment, each state’s delegation counts as one vote. So Montana and Alaska, with just one at-large representative, count the same as California with its 53 members and Texas with 36 members.

    The victor must receive at least 26 votes, a clear majority. Trump has proclaimed he is ready to fight in courts if he should lose the race, and that he is ready to force the matter all the way to the House. Currently Republicans have the delegation majority in 26 states, Democrats have 22 states, while Pennsylvania and Michigan are essentially tied. Nancy Pelosi has pointed out that the new Congress, sworn in the first week of January, would cast those votes early next year ahead of the scheduled Jan. 20 inauguration. She is pushing for donations to go to those races that will flip those majorities to Democrats and cut off Trump’s path to a second term.

    Pelosi said recently “What we hope to accomplish is to send a very clear message on Election Day to the president: …don’t cause chaos because you think it will lead to a light at the end of the tunnel, because that light at the end of the tunnel in the House is going to be a train coming right at your plans.”

    Here are some candidates whose races could be critical to tipping the balance in favor of Democrats in the event that the election is decided in the House. Please consider donating to them if you are able.

    • In Michigan, Hillary Scholten is in a close race for Justin Amash’s old seat (MI-03).
    • In Pennsylvania and Florida, a single pick up would help to give Democrats a majority of House seats. Candidates to support in close races are Eugene DePasquale (PA-10) and Alan Cohn (FL-15).
    • In Montana, Kathleen Williams is running for the open at-large congressional seat.
    • In Alaska, Alyse Galvin (officially non-partisan but the Democratic nominee) is running for the state’s at-large congressional seat.

    ⭐️Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save The Date:

    • Sun Nov 1, 12:30-1:30 – Black Lives Matter Flash Stance: Bellevue. On the corner by Dacels Jewelers in Factoria – organized by East Shore Unitarian
    • Tues Nov 3 -VOTE in the General Election by 8 pm
    • Wed Nov 4, 5:00 pm – possible Protect the Results Rally, downtown Redmond Park, depending on events around the election.

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of October 5, 2020

    ? The possibility that Trump and his cronies will try to steal the election is a valid concern right now. There are myriad ways that he will try to pull this off, which you will have heard and read about. It behooves us all to take this seriously and be informed as to possible actions to take. Please check out one or more of these resources:

    • Crosscut and ProPublica have a tipline where you can report any problems with ballots, voter registration, voter intimidation, or other problems that affect your vote.
    • Indivisible and a coalition of groups are working on plans to Protect the Results.
    • Choose Democracy has a variety of tools to learn about the threat and steps to combat it.
    • There is some very good information in this article from wagingnonviolence.org

    ? Following the death of George Floyd and subsequent protests, the City of Bellevue pledged to undertake a review of the police department’s public safety practices, and how it can better serve the community. Over the summer they hired a consultant to work on the review. The next step will be a series of community forums on policing policies and practices. They will be held on Oct 13, 15, and 17 and registration is now open. You can read the city’s summary of the process here.

    A group of our Bellevue members have been working to learn more about policing practices and their possible implications for racial equity in our city. In order to gain an accurate picture of current policies and their effects, we have submitted a list of twenty-six questions to the city and police department. The City Manager’s office is working on most of them and has referred us to other sources for answers to the rest.

    We are looking for interested members to sign up to work on our team. We have some specific tasks that will take a very small amount of time but will help to keep the topic in the public eye and show that there is support in our city for the need for change in the culture of policing.

    If you are interested in learning more about our work on this, as well as school-related policing issues, please email us at RacialEquityBellevue@indivisibleeastside.com.

    ? As we dig further into looking at how our local governments deal with racial equity issues on the Eastside, we will reach out with specific actions for residents of specific cities and school districts. We can do this if we have your information, and not bother you with actions for a different city or school district. If you’re not yet signed up for our Action Emails, please do so by going to our website. Make sure to fill all the fields including the City where you live, as well as the School District that serves your neighborhood.

    Don’t know your districts? You can find it at Washington’s District Finder.

    You can look up your School District here. Search your address and then zoom out enough to view the boundaries of the school district you are located in, by clicking on the “+ / -” buttons on the top left of the page. The school district is labeled on the map in ALL CAPS.

    ? We continue to write Postcards and Letters to voters in swing states. Please scroll down to the calendar for event dates and registration. (32,410 Postcards, 7,245 Letters in 2020)

    Please take these two actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Resistance] Speak out against the administration’s proposal to drastically expand immigrant surveillance

    From Alx Dark

    As we focus on the election we must not forget that this administration continues to try to implement potentially harmful policies in a variety of areas, including immigration. It has recently proposed a rule to dramatically expand its surveillance over immigrants as well as U.S. citizens sponsoring immigration cases. The proposal includes collecting DNA, voices, iris and face scans as well as other personal characteristics for virtually all immigration and citizenship applicants, to be stored in government databases, potentially forever. Even survivors of trafficking and domestic violence, including children, would not be excluded. Learn more here.

    The administration has provided no valid justification for indefinite and extreme surveillance and has proven unable to safeguard personal data in the past.

    We have an opportunity to make a public comment on this rule change. However, instead of the standard 60-day public comment period, the administration is trying to push this devastating rule through as quickly as possible by only offering a 30-day window. To slow this rule down, a huge number of unique public comments must be submitted. While you can submit the sample comment as is, we strongly encourage you to make the comment your own. Consider sharing your own experiences, stories, perspectives, values, and research as to why we should not institute mass and indefinite surveillance of immigrants.

    You can make you comment here but be sure to do so before Tuesday October 13.

    ⭐️ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [Electoral] Help to flip a Washington Congressional seat

    Southwest Washington’s 3rd Congressional District has been represented for five terms by a Republican. She is a Trump supporter (despite not voting for him in 2016, she now plans on doing just that) and is the only GOP House member on the Pacific Coast.

    In 2018 Democrat Carolyn Long came within six points of flipping the seat, which made it the closest reelection victory in the incumbent’s career. Despite a disappointing primary result, a recent poll has shown her making up ground and closing the gap considerably. We can help to flip this seat and give the people of southwest Washington the representation that they deserve. There are several ways that we can do that.

    • ✊ Action 2a – Donate to her campaign.
    • ✊ Action 2B – Sign up to write postcards for her at Postcards4WA. There are still plenty of addresses available, as well as for Tanisha Harris, who is running for the State House within this Congressional District.

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save The Date:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of September 28, 2020

    ? 2020 has been a year of rough weeks, but this last one has been one of the roughest. Please, take time to care for yourself and your loved ones. It’s important not to go down the dark path of the president’s narrative – often used to deflect from news he doesn’t want the public to focus on. His #1 goal is winning re-election and if he thinks convincing Democrats that their vote won’t count, he’ll spread lies and uncertainty to achieve that goal. Don’t play into sharing that dis-information. If you participated in the Disinformation and Digital Voter Suppression Webinar series, you know what we’re talking about. If not, check out the Webinar Recording for Part 1, and Part 2 and plan on attending Part 3 on Oct 14th.

    ? This year, Crosscut is partnering with ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative newsroom, to look into any problems voters have in casting their ballots. Are you seeing mail delays? Issues with registration? Other issues that hamper Washington’s vote-by-mail system? They want to know about it.

    They’re also interested in any problems that might arise with counting ballots or keeping our elections secure. They’re looking for voters, election administrators, and election workers who are willing to share with them how the voting process goes for them. Click for more info and to sign up.

    ? We are looking for volunteers to make oral comments at (virtual) Bellevue City Council meetings on Monday evenings. If you would like to help with this please contact us at RacialEquityBellevue@indivisibleeastside.com

    ? We continue to write Postcards and Letters to voters in swing states. Please scroll down to the calendar for event dates and registration. (31,471 Postcards, 6,390 Letters in 2020)

    Please take these two actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Resistance] Slow the SCOTUS nominee process!

    From Indivisible Vashon

    Trump has nominated Amy Coney Barrett to fill Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat on the Supreme Court. In this fight, the stakes are enormous and Democrats need a plan. Their options in the weeks ahead are limited, but Republicans face a slim margin for error.

    There are steps Democrats can take to apply maximum pressure, brand the process as the illegitimate farce it is, and lay the groundwork for desperately needed reform that can reverse the damage early in 2021 if Democrats win in November.

    The all-important question is, does the majority leader, Senator Mitch McConnell, have the votes? Nothing matters more to him than the courts, so the safe bet is that he will find them. The gauntlet of hypocrisy Republican senators will have to run will be brutal and will likely hurt those in close re-election races. Read more in this NYTimes Opinion article …

    Call your senators using the script below. Thank Senator Cantwell for her Twitter post and urge her to keep speaking loudly against a rushed nomination process. Thank Senator Murray for her statement regarding the SCOTUS nominee and urge her to keep speaking loudly for a SCOTUS nominee by the next President.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, I’m [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. Thank you for speaking out against a rushed Supreme Court Justice nomination process. Please continue to speak out loudly for the next Supreme Court Justice to come from a nominee named by the next President. I urge you to use the following tactics to slow this illegitimate process down.

    • Say “I Object”, every time McConnell calls for Unanimous Consent – especially regarding meetings of the Judiciary Committee.
    • Force Republicans to produce quorums on their own, creating a “quorum call” that requires 51 Republican senators on the floor before the Senate can conduct business.
    • Boycott any Supreme Court nomination hearings – do not legitimize the nominee or the rushed nomination process.
    • Reform the court in 2021 – call for term limits.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – Sign up for our Actions Newsletter

    You’ve likely heard the phrase – All Politics is Local. If you’re not yet signed up for our Action Emails, please do so by going to our website. Make sure to fill all the fields including the City where you live, as well as the School District that serves your neighborhood.

    Don’t know your districts? You can find it at Washington’s District Finder.
    You can look up your School District here. Search your address and then zoom out enough to view the boundaries of the school district you are located in, by clicking on the “+ / -” buttons on the top left of the page. The school district is labeled on the map in ALL CAPS.

    Why do we want this? Local Politics.

    From time to time, we reach out with specific actions for residents of specific cities and school districts. We can do this if we have your information, and not bother you with actions for a different city or school district.

    Currently, we’re engaged with Racial Equity work. We’re organizing to counter the narrative of vocal groups speaking out against policy changes that residents are asking for. One example is the removal of School Resource Officers (armed police) which make SOME parents feel safer, but not Black and Brown students.

    Thank you for working to help make everyone feel welcome in your city!

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save The Date:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of September 21, 2020

    ? From Tina Podlowski, Chair of the Washington State Democratic Party, Sep. 18th:

    “We lost a legend tonight. Justice Ginsburg will go down in American history as one of the fiercest advocates for civil rights and equality under the law that we’ve ever been blessed to serve us in public life. Tonight, we send our love and our sympathy to Justice Ginsburg’s family, and we grieve with them as we mourn her loss.”

    “But tomorrow, the work of fighting to protect the rights Justice Ginsburg enshrined in decisions issued from the highest court in the land must continue. The security of so many Americans’ reproductive rights, right to marry whomever they love, and the fundamental right to be treated as equals in our society should never have rested on the shoulders of a five foot tall, 87 year old giant of American jurisprudence. We must recommit ourselves to ensuring America lives up to the vision of a just society Justice Ginsburg brought to life in both the decisions she authored and the example she set for women everywhere. May she rest in peace.”

    We commit to doing just that and are glad to have you in the fight with us. Please find a way to Get Out The Vote in a way that you’ve never tried before, whether it be donating, postcarding, letter writing, phone- or text-banking. If you’re not sure how, check our website for resources or email us at hello@indivisibleeastside.com. The work continues.

    ? Here in Western Washington we have been suffering mainly from the effects of the wildfires on our air quality but other areas have also seen major loss of life and property damage. If you can, please consider contributing to wildfire relief efforts, both in our state and for our neighbors in Oregon.

    ? By now you should have received a mailer from the USPS that contained incorrect information about voting protocols for our state. Despite what it says in the mailer, voters in Washington don’t need to request an early ballot, because ballots will automatically be mailed to registered voters on Oct. 16, which is 18 days before the election.

    Please check this list of key dates and make sure you understand all of the deadlines so that you are ready to VOTE!

    ? We have a fantastic new resource that has details of all of the Washington State races that the Washington Indivisible Network has identified as key races to support for November. Check out this comprehensive list of who to support all over the state. We can flip many of these seats!

    ? We are looking for volunteers to make oral comments at (virtual) Bellevue City Council meetings on Monday evenings. If you would like to help with this please contact us at RacialEquityBellevue@indivisibleeastside.com

    ? For those who were not able to attend Saturday’s group meeting, here are links to the Meeting Notes and Video Recording.

    Please take these two actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Electoral] Help Re-elect Chris Reykdal as Superintendent of Public Instruction

    From https://www.chrisreykdal.org

    Chris Reykdal was elected as Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2016, having served as a Representative in the State Legislature for six years prior to that. In his time at the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction he has worked hard to challenge systemic educational racism, increase graduation rates, support teachers, and delink high stakes testing from graduation. He won the Primary election in August but the combined Republican votes outnumbered his total. His two main rivals both ran on a platform of opposing the comprehensive sexual health education bill that the Legislature passed last year. His opponent in November is running in opposition to the bill. She has no background in public education and, in the spirit of Betsy DeVos, is a proponent of ‘school choice’, meaning public funds for private schools.

    She is supremely unqualified for the office and has been less than truthful about her education in her candidate statement for the voters’ guide. You may also recall that a statement that she made in the voters’ guide about Superintendent Reykdal was found to be untruthful in Thurston County Superior Court, although the State Supreme Court overruled this. While they did not comment on the truthfulness of her statement, they ruled that it could not be proven that it was defamatory to Reykdal. Voter guides in Washington contain a disclaimer that the statements are not fact-checked.

    If you attended our group meeting on Saturday you will have heard how important it is to vote FOR Referendum 90 to ensure that all Washington State students have access to a science-based sexual health curriculum. A vote for Chris Reykdal will also help to ensure that this important piece of legislation takes effect, as our elected officials intended.

    ✊Action 1a– Listen to the Indivisible State Podcast and hear an interview with Chris Reykdal.

    ✊Action 1b– read up on Chris Reykdal and donate to his campaign if you can. Please help to spread the word about the importance of this race.

    *** This is also a timely reminder that it’s really important to #VoteTheWholeBallot. In the Primary election there was a 20% drop-off in the number of votes cast, when you compared the top of the ballot (Governor’s race) with the Superintendent’s race further down the ballot. This cannot happen in the general election – too much is at stake!

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [Resistance] Ask your Members of Congress to support an accurate Census Count

    From thecensusproject.org

    As you probably know, the U.S. Census Bureau is ending all counting efforts for the 2020 census on Sept. 30, a month sooner than previously announced. That includes critical door-knocking efforts and collecting responses online, over the phone, and by mail. These last-minute changes to the constitutionally mandated count of every person living in the U.S. threaten the accuracy of population numbers used to determine the distribution of political representation and federal funding for the next decade. The Government Accounting Office (GAO) has recently released a report detailing their concerns that a shortened time frame and late design changes could ‘escalate census costs and undermine the overall quality of the count.’

    On September 15, bipartisan bills were introduced in both the US House (HR8250) and Senate (S4571) to extend field operations to October 31st, and extend two other key statutory deadlines for four months. It is telling that even Republican legislators from states such as Alaska are concerned that cutting the field operations short will result in a large undercount, which could significantly affect their federal funding and political representation for the next decade. Please contact your Representative and Senators and ask them to co-sponsor and support this legislation. Time is of the essence as Congress will be recessing for the election in a few weeks. It would be good to support Senator Murkowski on this as we are going to need her vote in the Supreme court battle.

    If you have not yet responded to the census, or know anyone who might not have, you can do so easily here. It takes just a few minutes.

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL
    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script for Senators:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am writing to you because I am concerned about the shortened deadlines for completing the count for Census 2020, and the impact this will have on Federal funding and political representation across the country. I urge you to support the bipartisan bill recently introduced by Senators Schatz, Peters, Murkowski, and Sullivan (S 4571), which will extend important deadlines for the Census. This will help mitigate the undercount that will inevitably happen if current deadlines are not changed.

    Thank you.”

    ☎ Sample Script for Representative:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am writing to you because I am concerned about the shortened deadlines for completing the count for Census 2020, and the impact this will have on Federal funding and political representation across the country. I urge you to support the bipartisan bill recently introduced by Representatives Young and Gallego (HR 8250), which will extend important deadlines for the Census. This will help mitigate the undercount that will inevitably happen if current deadlines are not changed.

    Thank you.”

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save The Date:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of September 14, 2020

    ? Join us for our September General Membership Meeting on Saturday the 19th at 4 pm. We will hear from Pasado’s Safe Haven with an update on the latest legislation for the 2021 session, the Approve R90 Campaign will explain this referendum, and we will have breakout rooms to discuss how to talk about Biden’s Policies in advance of the debates. Register To Attend.

    ? For this November’s election it is going to be more important than ever to turn your ballot in as soon as you receive it. Here are some key dates to be mindful of and to make sure you are ready to VOTE!  

    ? Eastside Change Coalition needs our help! They have made repeated attempts to set up meetings with the Bellevue City Council and have been met with passivity, dismissiveness, or no response at all. They are asking that we use this email template to demand Black voices be heard in this city.

    Please take these two actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Electoral] – Help Re-elect Dr. Kim Schrier for Congress

    From https://www.drkimschrier.com/

    In 2018 many Indivisible groups worked hard to replace Dave Reichert in the 8th district with Dr. Kim Schrier to flip this swing district BLUE!  In 2020 Republicans outvoted Democrats in our top-two primary, and as a result, Sabato’s Crystal Ball shifted this race in the Republicans’ favor from ‘Likely Democratic’ to ‘Lean Democratic.’ Now, MyNorthwest says Kim’s facing an “even tougher road to reelection” this November.

    We need all hands on deck if we’re going to win on Election Day.

    Action 1A) Donate to Kim’s Campaign!

    Action 1B) Volunteer for Kim’s Campaign.

    Action 1C) Tell your friends who live in CD8 to vote for Dr. Kim Schrier!

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted! 

    ✊ Action 2 – [Resistance] Call out PSE for actions against the Puyallup Tribe and all of us

    From Sierra Club and Olympia Indivisible 

    Action 2A) Construction continues on Puget Sound Energy’s LNG facility in Tacoma. In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis and this historic moment in the fight for Black lives, PSE continues to push a facility that targets brown and black bodies first and worst. The Puyallup Tribe is steadfast in their opposition and community groups continue to stand with them.

    Write letters to the press and elected officials about how PSE is a bad actor. Here is a writing guide  with talking points and information on where to send letters. 

    Action 2B) Puget Sound Energy (PSE) has partial ownership in a large coal-fired electricity plant known as Colstrip Unit 4, in Colstrip, Montana. As you probably know, coal is an extremely dirty and climate-damaging fossil fuel. Because of Washington state’s Clean Energy Transformation Act (CETA), passed in 2019, PSE is required to stop producing coal-fired electricity for sale in Washington by 2025. So PSE should be taking steps to guide the plant to an orderly retirement. Instead, they’ve filed a formal request with the WA UTC, saying they plan to sell the plant to NorthWestern Energy of Helena, Montana, which is an out-of-state utility that plans to burn coal indefinitely. 

    PSE is also planning to sell extremely valuable transmission lines from Colstrip well below their long-term value.  These lines could instead be used to connect us to Montana wind projects. PSE most needs electricity in winter, exactly when Montana’s wind blows hardest and PSE’s existing Eastern Washington wind projects are at their lowest level of output. There are many ways that these moves of PSE are underhanded and destructive. To learn more, see the Washington Indivisible Network (WIN) Talking Points for PSE activists.

    We have the opportunity right now to tell the WA Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) how damaging the proposed sale would be. The UTC will hold two audio-only virtual public comment hearing sessions on the proposed sale of Colstrip assets on October 8, 2020, one at 1:30 pm and another at 6 pm. Details about how to comment are on the UTC website — scroll down to Public Comment Hearing.

    In your comments, please reference Docket# UE-200115 and provide your NAME and ADDRESS.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Do not allow the Puget Sound Energy Colstrip Sale, Docket UE-200115. This sale undermines the Washington Clean Energy Transformation Act (CETA) which requires all Washington State utilities to remove coal fired electricity from the power grid by 2025. Units 3 and 4 produce 10+ million tons CO2/year, equal to 2 million cars.  When we retire these units, it will be one of the greatest climate pollution reductions ever achieved in the Northwest. Additionally, we must stop the groundwater pollution from the leaking coal ash ponds, which customers already have to pay to clean up. PSE should also not sell their interest in a major Colstrip transmission line. Instead, it should be used to add Montana wind projects. The highly valuable transmission line is owned by its customers.
    This destructive sale must be stopped.” 

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save The Date:

    • Wed Oct 7, 6-7:30 pm PST – Vice Presidential Debate on most major networks, Susan Page from  USA Today is moderator
    • Thurs Oct 15, 6-7:30 pm PST – second Presidential Debate on most major networks, Steve Scully from C-Span is moderator
    • Thurs Oct 22, 6-7:30 pm – third Presidential Debate on most major networks, Kristen Welker from NBC News is moderator
    • Tues Nov 3 -VOTE in the General Election by 8pm

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of September 7, 2020

    ? King County Elections is challenging voters to hit 90% turnout in the November General election. 90% turnout would be record-breaking, with a previous high of 85% in the 2012 General election. Share this information with your friends and family!

    ? FUSE Washington puts out an amazing Progressive Voters Guide. They are expanding their Progressive Voters Guide to include seven states this fall: Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Colorado, Virginia, California, and of course Washington. Donate to help them expand their reach to more than a million voters!

    ? We continue to write Postcards to Voters and Letters to Voters. Please scroll down to the calendar for event dates and registration. (21,982 Postcards, 5,055 Letters in 2020)

    Please take these two actions this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Electoral]- Help Elect Gael Tarleton for Secretary of State

    Our current Secretary of State Kim Wyman is a Republican, and many consider her a “good” Republican because she is skillful at using talking points to appeal to a very broad base. Don’t be fooled, though:

    Democrat Gael Tarleton is passionate about our right to vote.

    • State Rep. Gael Tarleton is a national security expert and seasoned legislator, having worked as a senior defense intelligence analyst at the Pentagon, advising the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gael will strengthen our election systems and work to protect them from foreign interference.
    • As Secretary of State, Gael Tarleton will lead efforts to expand voter participation and engagement.
    • Gael will ensure that eligible voters are not removed from the voter rolls.
    • Gael pushed for audits in our elections to ensure they are ready to deal with current and emerging threats.
    • Gael pushed legislation to fund voter education efforts in our state and more ballot boxes throughout Washington.

    You can watch this video from the Washington Indivisible Town Hall to hear directly from Gael!

    Action 1A) Donate to Gael’s Campaign!

    Action 1B) Volunteer for Gael’s Campaign by emailing info@voteforgael.org or write postcards for her with Postcards4WA.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] Support the Approve R90 Campaign

    Earlier this year, the legislature passed mandatory, comprehensive sex education (SB 5395), ensuring that all students have access to age appropriate sex education, no matter their zip code. Extremist, anti-sex ed opponents have succeeded in putting this referendum on the ballot in November in an attempt to kill the bill.

    SB 5395 requires all public schools to offer medically accurate age-appropriate comprehensive sex education that is LGBTQ inclusive, includes affirmative consent, and teaches the signs of healthy relationships.

    There is a disinformation campaign happening to sway people to vote against the referendum. The campaign has resulted in 90% of all letters to the editor being against it so far.

    Action 2A) Write letters to the editor to Approve 90 WA – See www.approve90WA.org for talking points.

    Action 2B) Donate to the Approve90WA Campaign.

    Action 2C) In November, vote YES to approve Referendum 90 in Washington!

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save The Date:

    • Wed Oct 7, 6-7:30 pm PST – Vice Presidential Debate on most major networks, Susan Page from USA Today is moderator
    • Thurs Oct 15, 6-7:30 pm PST – second Presidential Debate on most major networks, Steve Scully from C-Span is moderator
    • Thurs Oct 22, 6-7:30 pm – third Presidential Debate on most major networks, Kristen Welker from NBC News is moderator
    • Tues Nov 3 -VOTE in the General Election by 8pm

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of August 31, 2020

    ? Thank you to the 40 people who filled out the IE Survey.

    • 45% – 48th | 25% – 41st | 15% – 45th | 10% – 1st | 2.5% – 5th | 2.5% – unknown
    • 45%- CD9 |, 42.5%- CD1 | 10%- CD8
    • 47.5%- Bellevue | 22.5%- Redmond | 12.5% Kirkland
    • 60% arrived at the survey via email newsletter, 32.5% arrived via FB group
    • The majority of people found the weekly actions a little too much, or couldn’t take all the actions.
    • FB group is a split between people who love it and engage by sharing to their networks, and those who don’t or aren’t on FB.
    • Respondents really want racial justice and equity in schools!

    ? We’ve handed out over 500 flyers alerting residents to how cuts to the USPS will affect safe voting around the country. We’ll be at Crossroads and Kirkland Post offices this week again. You can sign up to be part of a 2 person team on a 1.5 hour shift by filling out USPS Action Form and we’ll be in touch.

    ? By the Numbers: 2020 Postcarding Tally: 19,827 | 2020 Letterwriting Tally: 4,430 | USPS Flyers handed out: 500 | IE members who contacted their rep: CD1: 10, CD8: 9, CD9: 11 | Days until Nov 3rd: 64 | Actions this week: 2

    ✊ Action 1 – Electoral: Support Candidates with GOTV and Donations

    Remember back in 2017 when we could. not. wait. until 2018 to make change through voting? We worked hard with canvassing and flipped CD8 and helped usher in the blue wave gaining over 40 seats in the House. Today, with daily assaults on our democracy, the urgency is even greater. Consider one or both of the following actions.

    1. Donate to candidates, if you can. Today is an important end-of-month deadline.
      1. WA State: Opportunity PAC supporting 9 Democratic Black women for state legislature.
      2. Sister State: You can make a difference in ending partisan Gerrymandering in North Carolina by supporting Dr. Frances Jackson and Brian Farkas and flipping the NC house. These two candidates have been adopted by Sister District Puget Sound.
      3. US Congress: Dr. Kim Schrier’s hard won seat is vulnerable. Let’s not let it slip back to Republican control.
      4. US Senate: So many to choose from, but NC and AZ will also help flip the White House, and ME is so important to the senate.
        1. NC – Cal Cunningham is leading Republican Senator Thom Tillis in polls.
        2. AZ – Mark Kelly is leading Republican Martha McSally in polls.
        3. ME – Sara Gideon is leading Republican Susan Collins in polls.
    2. Phone bank, Text bank, write Postcards and Letters.
      1. Use Indivisible Vashon’s GOTV site to find a place to make a difference
      2. Join Indivisible Eastside’s Postcarding team – now opportunities to write for WA state races
      3. Join Indivisible Eastside’s VoteForward Letterwriting team

    Here are some of the GOTV activities IE Steering Committee members have been involved with:

    • Louise participated in the T’wina Nobles phone bank through Washington Democrats. The 20 minute training was great, and the platform ThruTalk dials the numbers for you from your computer so your personal number is not used at all. T’wina is an awesome candidate, leads the incumbent by a slim margin in the primary, and if elected would be the only Black senator in the Washington State Senate. Consider supporting T’wina any way you can.
    • Hanna and Kat attended Indivisible Vashon’s – Resistance cafe Thursday from 3-5. Hanna highly recommends it. She joined the text banking breakout room. She says it was nice having others to chat with while texting, and Noah gave really great support for people who need a little more hand holding with tech. They also have phonebank and postcarding breakout rooms.
    • Allison attended phone banking with the 41st Democrats. They are getting out the vote for Kim Schrier and other candidates in the area needing extra help.
    • Joan runs the Postcarding Group’s orientation breakout session every other Sunday.
    • Jennifer runs the Letterwriting Group’s orientation breakout session every other Tuesday.

    If you need help getting started with any of this, just email hello@indivisibleeastside.com and we’ll get you going.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – Resistance: Support Milwaukee and Seattle Protesters

    Anti-Black violence happens every day, and this violence deserves protest every day. Please read this statement from Black Lives Matter Seattle King County:

    “In Wisconsin there were two shootings, one by a police officer, one by a civilian. Both were anti-Black vigilantism. There was a time in our nation’s history when it was unthinkable that a white person could ever be criminally convicted for killing a Black person. Today, such convictions are still unthinkable, as long as the killing is purported to have been in the name of law and order. Our criminal justice system has been set up to make sure those killers walk free. Continue reading …

    Action 2a: Support Protesters in Kenosha

    Donate to the Milwaukee Freedom Fund, which provides money for bail, tickets, connecting protesters to lawyers, and more.

    Action 2b: Support Seattle based Riot Kitchen

    Riot Kitchen was formed this year to serve food during Seattle protests, and then expanded to provide nourishment at Portland protests. A crew was driving a minivan, bread truck, and black-painted school bus cross-country to Washington, D.C. to join in the March On Washington: Get Your Knee Off Our Necks when the police shooting of Jacob Blake prompted a detour to Wisconsin.

    Eight Riot Kitchen volunteers were arrested Wednesday in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and were released Friday, but law-enforcement officials continue to hold their three vehicles as well as cellphones and some other personal items, according to a board member of the nonprofit.

    Read more about Riot Kitchen and donate to help them continue to serve free food to those putting their bodies on the line to protest police violence.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of August 24, 2020

    ? Thank you to all who filled out the IE Survey. We’ll share the results next week, but we heard that although people generally like this newsletter, it can be a bit much. So we’re going to simplify down to 1 electoral action (help get great people elected) and 1 resistance action each week.

    ? Don’t like phonebanking? We hear you. Don’t like Trump and his destructive policies? How about 4 more years with Mitch McConnell running the Senate? Do you believe age appropriate sex education in schools would help foster healthy relationships and save lives? The time is now to get out of our comfort zones. We’re all home and so are the people we’re trying to reach. Reports are, people are receptive to unsolicited phone calls – they’re that isolated.

    So, reach for your inner resolve, roll up your sleeves, and join introverted Indivisible Eastside Steering members as we walk the talk and do some phonebanking. See action 2 below for details.

    ? By the Numbers: 2020 Postcarding Tally: 18,422 | 2020 Letterwriting Tally: 4,275 | Days until Nov 3rd: 71 | Actions this week: 2

    ✊ Action 1 – Resistance – #SaveThePostOffice

    1a. Saturday’s MoveOn #SaveThePost Office day of action was a mask-wearing, social-distancing success. Lots of honks and waves from passing mail delivery trucks, and from cars arriving and departing the many Eastside post offices. As was emailed to you on Friday, we will be joining Indivisible Groups around the state in sustained presence at the post offices. If you would like to be part of a 2-4 person team handing out flyers, please fill out this USPS Action Form and we’ll be in touch.

    1b. Last week’s Action email had just 1 action – Contact your member of congress about the Delivering for America act supporting the US Postal Service. Some of you may have called but surprisingly few clicked the Contact-me link to reach your representative. Here’s the tally:

    Adam Smith – 13

    Suzan DelBene – 6

    Kim Schrier – 4

    We know we can do better this week, so let’s try some friendly competition to see which CD has the most active activists who will Help the American Postal Workers #SaveThePostOffice

    From the American Postal Workers Union

    The movement for our public Postal Service has three immediate demands of our elected officials and of Postmaster General DeJoy:

    • Provide at least $25 billion in immediate support for the Postal Service
    • Stop the mail slowdown policies introduced by Postmaster General DeJoy
    • Ensure public confidence in voting-by-mail by providing all necessary resources for the most timely delivery of election mail possible.

    Senators need to keep hearing from the people they represent about the role the Postal Service is playing during this crisis and its ongoing value to the American people. The public trusts postal workers and values the services they provide. Support their demands in Congress, organize an event and keep the pressure up! It is only through massive pressure from the people that the Senate will be moved to prioritize the public Postal Service and permanently stop DeJoy’s delays.

    Action: Contact your Members of Congress in support of the APWU’s demands.

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script for Senators:

    “Hello, I am contacting you today in support of the American Postal Workers Union’s demands. [Add a personal story about how the Postal Service affects you or your small business].

    Please do everything you can to provide at least $25 billion in immediate support for the Postal Service, stop the mail slowdown policies introduced by Postmaster General DeJoy, and ensure public confidence in voting-by-mail by providing all necessary resources for the most timely delivery of election mail possible. The USPS serves Main Street, NOT Wall Street. Please protect this vital service.

    Thank you.”

    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script for Representatives:

    “Hello, I am contacting you today in support of the American Postal Workers Union’s demands. Thank you for voting yea on the “Delivering for America Act”.

    [Add a personal story about how the Postal Service affects you or your small business].

    Please do everything you can to stop the mail slowdown policies introduced by Postmaster General DeJoy, and ensure public confidence in voting-by-mail by providing all necessary resources for the most timely delivery of election mail possible. The USPS serves Main Street, NOT Wall Street. Please protect this vital service.

    Thank you.”

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – Electoral – Participate in GOTV activities

    Bup bup bup – your cursor is moving to click “close”. Louise, Allison, Linda, Kat, and Hanna ask you to read on. We need your support.

    There are a myriad of opportunities to reach voters, from helping Wisconsin voters sign up for absentee ballots, to educating people on the Planned Parenthood ApproveR90 campaign, helping Black women get elected to Washington State legislature, to ousting Sen. Susan Collins in Maine.

    How to choose? To help you on your way, Indivisible Eastside steering members will be participating in 2 opportunities. Join us! Once you get your feet wet, you’ll find your niche.

    Do any of these times work for you? Join us. If not, explore the Indivisible Vashon resource and find one or two places you can help, sign up and attend. On November 4th, don’t be someone who has to look back and think, ‘I wish I had done more to get out the vote.’

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of August 17, 2020

    ? First of all, let’s celebrate the fact that we now have a team of candidates who are ready to take on this terrible president and his cronies. It was great to feel the surge of energy this week after Joe Biden announced Senator Kamala Harris as his choice for Vice President. Whatever your views on the merits or otherwise of either of them, we are here to support them going forward and to be a part of the movement to regain the White House, flip the Senate, and retain control of the House. We’re glad you’re here to help!

    ? Thank you to those of you who joined our Town Hall with Representative Adam Smith and our Group Meeting with State Senator Manka Dhingra over the weekend. Please mark your calendars for our next Group Meeting on Sept. 19th.

    ? This is your last chance to take our member survey! Please help to help us determine the direction of our work over the next few months. Your responses are important!

    ? You are probably aware that the Democratic National Convention is taking place from Aug. 17-20. It is, of course, all virtual, but will give us an opportunity to see the candidates who will hopefully lead us out of the nightmare of the last almost four years. National Indivisible has provided us with the opportunity to have a little fun during the convention by making bingo cards for you to play while you view. You can find them here. Have fun!

    ? Please note that we will have a special guest at the next Postcard session on Aug. 23rd. Many of you will remember working with Deb Carstens of Postcards4WA.org. She is going to join us to tell us about upcoming campaigns for writing postcards for Washington state candidates in the November election. Don’t forget to pre-register!

    ? We just have one set of actions for you this week. We had planned on taking a break this week but concerns over the Post Office could not be ignored. Please keep up the pressure on all of your elected officials to express their concerns around this issue. Representative Adam Smith shared in our Town Hall that public pressure is key to effecting any change on this. Tell your friends and family in Republican areas that their voices need to be heard!

    ✊ Action 1a – [US HOUSE] Ask your Representative to support legislation to protect the Post Office

    From Indivisible.org

    In response to Trump’s continued attempts to sabotage the election by causing chaos at the US Postal Service, Representative Carolyn B. Maloney, the Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, has introduced a bill called the Delivering for America Act (HR8015). This would prohibit the Postal Service from implementing any changes to the operations or level of service it had in place on January 1, 2020, until the COVID-19 pandemic has ended.

    This legislation would maintain current service standards as well as the integrity of our elections and bedrock democratic principles. As you may remember, the House instituted remote voting procedures months ago. They could move this bill now (because clearly this is now an emergency), doing two things: putting us in a stronger position to be able to organize around the bill being included in a future COVID funding package, and allowing us to point to a concrete action that Senate Republicans are refusing to take to ensure seniors can receive their medications on time. (This is outside of the additional funding the Senate Republicans continue to sit on in the Heroes Act.)

    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am calling to urge you to co-sponsor the Delivering for America Act (HB 8015), introduced recently by Representative Maloney. This bill would prohibit the Postal Service from implementing any changes until after the COVID-19 pandemic has ended, and is an important response to the emergency that we find ourselves in. The House should move this bill forward so that Senate Republicans can be held accountable for their obstruction in the fight for a fair election process.”

    ✊ Action 1b If you live in Redmond (or Olympia, Tukwila, Tacoma, Wenatchee, or Yakima), you may have heard that the Post Office there is removing sorting machines by August 22. Please call your city council members and let them know that they need to speak up against this ongoing assault on a fair election process.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of August 10, 2020

    ? A few reminders of upcoming events:

    • We will host a Town Hall with Representative Adam Smith on Aug. 15 where he will be talking about the NDAA and defense spending. Register to attend.
    • Our next Group Meeting will be on Aug. 16. We will be joined by State Senator Manka Dhingra who will share her perspectives on criminal justice and state budget shortfall ramifications. Register to attend.

    ? We are beginning to structure our teams to work on racial equity in the areas of schools and police reform on the Eastside. If you are interested in helping with this work please email us at hello@indivisibleeastside.com.

    Please consider signing this petition to the LWSD asking for more in-depth teaching about racial justice in the lower grades.

    ? If you haven’t already done so please take our survey to help us determine the direction of our work over the next few months. Your responses are important!

    ? Thank you to those of you who responded to our list of fiction by Black authors last week, and for your suggestions and corrections. It was by no means exhaustive so we have added to it for your reading enjoyment.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US SENATE] Insist that critical relief is protected in coronavirus relief legislation

    Negotiations on the much needed legislation to provide relief during the ongoing pandemic appear to be stalled. Since the House passed the Heroes Act in May, Senate Republicans have sat on their hands and now many people with critical needs have lost their financial lifelines. The bill that Senate Republicans offered (the Heals Act) was hugely inadequate and was rightly rejected by Democratic negotiators. You can hear about some of the critical differences between the two Acts in this video from Representative Rick Larsen.

    Although Democrats are united on the need to pass comprehensive legislation, we need to keep reminding them that critical components of the Heroes Act need to be protected and should not be negotiated away. Some of these items are maintaining enhanced unemployment benefits at $600, helping people with housing insecurity, and protecting SNAP (food stamps). Funding is needed for states to help with schools and election assistance, as well as urgent support for the Post Office.

    Please contact your US Senators and remind them that we are counting on them to stand firm in protecting vulnerable Americans during these negotiations.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I am writing from [CITY, ZIP] because I am concerned that the negotiations around the coronavirus relief bill in the Senate will result in many Americans being left without critical support during these difficult times. Measures such as enhanced unemployment support, help with housing insecurity, increased funding for SNAP, support for states for election security and schools, as well as substantial support for the Post Office must be protected. Financial support should not be contingent on immigration status. Please do not allow Republicans to gut the important measures that were included in the Heroes Act passed by the House.”

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Ask them to support an investigation into the Postmaster General

    From the Washington Post

    Over the last few months we have had several actions around supporting the US Postal Service. Recently the Postmaster General has taken further steps to sabotage the service even further, with the goal of disrupting service to the point where it will impact the election. In recent days he has overhauled the leadership structure, centralizing power around himself and de-emphasizing decades of institutional knowledge. The Postal Service has also informed states that they’ll need to pay first-class 55-cent postage to mail ballots to voters, rather than the normal 20-cent bulk rate. And of course Republicans have no plans to support states with additional funding in the COVID-19 relief bill currently under consideration.

    A group of Democrats, led by Senator Warren, have sent a letter to the Postal Service Inspector General asking for an investigation into recent changes.

    Action 2A We need our congressional representatives to speak up in support of the investigation and the Postal Service. It cannot be allowed to be politicized to the degree that it will impact the outcome of a national election. Please ask them to add their voices to the demand for Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to be held accountable for his actions.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am writing to express how disturbed I am by recent changes made by the Postmaster General to the operations of the US Postal Service. His moves to both centralize power within his office and to increase the cost of mailing ballots from the bulk rate of 20-cents to the first class rate of 55-cents are unacceptable and must be met with the strongest protest by congress. This blatant attempt to influence the outcome of the general election cannot be tolerated. Please publicly show your support for your colleagues, led by Senator Elizabeth Warren, in their call for an investigation by the Postal Service Inspector General into the recent changes made by Mr. DeJoy.”

    Action 2B The proposed rate change is required to go through the Postal Regulatory Commission. You can comment here and let them know that this proposed increase request, two months before a general election in the middle of a pandemic, is simply unacceptable and should be refused.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Make a plan for participating in electoral work

    The Primary election has come and gone, with generally positive results in our State. Despite this, and the favorable polls that we keep reading about, we know that we can take nothing for granted, especially given this administration’s determination to win at all costs. The blue wave needs to be a tsunami, leaving no doubt as to the will of the electorate.

    This is the time to focus our attention on how we want to deploy our time, energy and dollars to help candidates cross the finish line in November. We need to pay attention to all races, but especially those where a seat is at risk or flippable.

    In Washington State, there are opportunities to help the campaigns of important candidates through the following organizations:

    • Persist PAC supports Black women in their campaigns for the State Legislature. You can donate through this link.
    • Code Blue (Facebook only) runs regular phonebank sessions for a variety of candidates, including those supported by Persist PAC and several in Eastern Washington.
    • Dr. Kim Schrier, WA-08, garnered only about 50% of the vote in the primary and could use some help ensuring that this district stays blue in November. You can sign up to help with phone banking or donate via her website.
    • Volunteer through the Washington State Democrats. They have many opportunities to get involved.
    • Closer to the election, your Legislative District will also have opportunities to help. Give them a call!

    Nationally there are many organizations where you can join efforts to make this a successful election.

    • WINdivisible is Indivisible National’s plan and has phone and text banking opportunities, as well as letter writing.
    • SwingLeft, with their strategy of focusing on critical Super States, has a plethora of opportunities to act in very focused ways in critical races around the country. In conjunction with VoteForward, this is the organization that we work with in our letter writing campaign.
    • Vote Save America has great resources to get involved and focus on individual states, with online trainings for volunteers from the Crooked Media podcast team.

    There are many other groups out there that can use all of our help over the next 80+ days. Pick one and make a plan. Adopt a state or a candidate or three and let’s do as Michelle Obama suggests and ‘run through the tape!

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of August 3, 2020

    ? Primary Election ballots are due by Aug. 4th by 8pm in the drop box. Do not mail at this point, they won’t get processed by the post office in time! Click HERE for more information.

    ? There are lots of reading lists out there for White people to read about systemic racism (a great example is: Start Here, Start Now: A guide for white folx who want to do better compiled Jan. 2020 by S.G. Morrison), but after awhile, non-fiction can be exhausting. So we decided to put together a list of our own of fiction by Black authors. Check it out, buy some books and email us if you have any good ones to add. We will update the list.

    ? Take some time to read some GOOD NEWS! ? Scroll to the bottom for the latest.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Take our Pre-General Election Survey!

    It’s been a long 3 1/2 years, but we are in the home stretch of this nightmare administration. To make sure we are successful in November, we want to check in and see how we can inspire you to continue the work to be successful in the General Election. At this point there are so many opportunities for volunteers, it’s a challenge for us to decide where to focus our attention. That’s why we need to hear from you. Let’s get started.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [Virginia Mason] Tell Virginia Mason to put patients’ needs first

    From ACLU-WA, NARAL- Pro-Choice WA, Planned Parenthood

    CHI Franciscan and Virginia Mason are moving toward combining operations. This could result in people being denied care because of their local hospital’s religious objections. Virginia Mason is one of the state’s largest remaining secular health systems. A merger with CHI Franciscan will deny patients of a full range of reproductive health care, LGBTQ+ services, and end-of-life care options.

    The ACLU is ‘deeply concerned’ by the proposed merger. Restrictions to healthcare due to religious objections not only harm the relationship between patients and providers, but also disproportionately impact women, LGBTQ+ patients, BIPOC communities, people seeking end-of-life care, low-income individuals, and rural communities.

    Use the ACLU form to send a message to the CEO of Virginia Mason

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [City Council] Tell City Council to stop sending police to Seattle

    During the protests in Seattle on Saturday, July 25th, someone captured a photo of a policeman wearing a Bellevue Police patch (in the Twitter link, click ‘Show this thread’ to see the photo). It was shocking for us at Indivisible Eastside to discover that Bellevue Police Department had deployed their armored vehicle and tactical forces through a “mutual aid” agreement with Seattle Police Department. Departments have these agreements with other jurisdictions to provide support, but a side benefit is that the out of jurisdiction department doesn’t necessarily have to follow restrictions that the Seattle City Council may have on their own department (e.g. restrictions on tear gas or other less-lethal crowd control munitions). We also dug deeper into the BPD funding, and the relationship to the Bellevue Police Foundation. As of July 26th, the foundation has removed their board of directors, donor, and grants pages, but an IE member was able to pull them up in the cached web pages. The Foundation has funded these less-lethal munitions and military style gear that wouldn’t be in the official police budget. We need to raise more awareness of these issues in our local municipalities, so our ask is to have as many people as possible contact their city councils and the chief of police to tell them the militarization of our police department is not acceptable.

    Click on the ‘Email’ link to generate a prefilled email. Please review the email and sign your name before sending.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am deeply concerned with the open-ended use of city police resources as “mutual aid” to other jurisdictions. The city of Bellevue sent an armored vehicle and tactical forces to the protest in Seattle on July 25th. Escalating tensions with a military type show of force is not a way to encourage peaceful protest, and I don’t want my tax dollars to be used to that end. We need, instead, to reduce police budgets and redirect funding by investing it in Black community-led education, health, and safety programs. Examples of programs to invest in are schools and youth homelessness services, solutions to the opioid crisis, and non-police responders for crises such as mental health response teams and community violence prevention programs.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of July 27, 2020

    ? Primary Election ballots are due by Aug. 4th. Click HERE for more information.

    ? July 27 marks 99 days until the general election, and it also happens to be the third anniversary of Indivisibles defeating Trumpcare. So, in celebration and commitment to the work ahead, from July 27-August 2, Indivisible groups all over the country will be hosting phone banks and text banks as part of our unified digital program. Looking for ways to help? Check out Windivisible!

    ? Take some time to read some GOOD NEWS! ? Scroll to the bottom for the latest.

    ICYMI: How to be an anit-racist with Ibram X. Kendi viewable until Aug. 20th

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [PRC Inspector General] Stop Politicization of the US Postal Service

    From Marlena H. and Indivisible National

    In May Trump appointed a political ally who is wholly unqualified for the position to serve as Postmaster General. He has promptly begun cost-cutting “efficiencies” such as slowing down delivery and making such drastic cuts the work can’t get done, hence it ends up not being delivered at all. In Maine, the postmaster is intentionally slowing down service and prioritizing 4th class deliveries (packages–think Amazon) over First Class mail. This has huge implications for vote-by-mail!

    ✊ Action A: Call, or send a message via webform for the Postal Regulatory Commission’s Inspector General

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am deeply concerned about the US Postal Service being politicized and undermined by the Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of the US Postal Service in allowing citizens to vote-by-mail as a safe alternative to in-person voting. If we let the USPS collapse or even cripple it with major cuts and slowdowns, it will have a truly detrimental effect on our elections.

    Thank you for your hard work handling comments.”

    ✊ Action B: Contact your US Senator to make sure they fully fund the USPS in the Hero’s act. You can use the following call tool on Indivisible National’s website – enter your phone number and you will receive a call that will connect you to your Senator’s offices. Or contact your Senator in the usual way. https://indivisible.org/demand-your-senators-ensure-safe-secure-elections-during-covid-19-outbreak

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. Coronavirus is a threat to our health, our livelihoods, and our economy, and now it is also a threat to our elections. We need to make structural reforms to expand vote-by-mail systems and safe in-person voting options, or the November election could be at risk. I urge [SENATOR] to support the Heroes Act, including its $3.6 billion in election funding, without allowing it to be watered down.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [Local, County, State and US Gov’t] Resisting the rise of paramilitary units

    From Alx Dark (excerpts from his FB post) and 5Calls

    The Trump administration has established paramilitary units that have abducted protesters off the streets of Portland. These units are not wearing identifiable uniforms or other insignia, they are driving unmarked vehicles, and they are not identifying themselves either publicly or to those whom they have detained and arrested. These paramilitary units do not have the authority (under federal law) to enforce state laws on non federal property. There are a handful of federal buildings in the city where DHS Secretary Chad Wolf has cited graffiti as an excuse for these attacks on protesters. But federal officers are patrolling streets a significant distance from federal buildings and arresting protesters who pose no imminent threat to federal property.

    Local and state authorities (from the city to the governor of Oregon) have stated that they don’t want these units operating in their state, and that these units are aggravating the long-standing protests against police violence and racial injustice that started with the murder of George Floyd.

    Trump tried to involve the military in DC and that received enough pushback that he had to retreat. The same thing needs to happen here. Right now.

    Start by calling your MoCs: Orgeon Senators have proposed an amendment and Representatives are working on budget items related to these paramilitary activities. We recommend contacting the State Governor and Attorney General as well to resist paramilitary actions. If you have time, continue on through the local level, where officials can also resist the actions of Federal agencies contributing to paramilitary activities.

    ✊ Action 2A: US Senators

    ☎ Sample Script for Senators:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am deeply concerned about DHS paramilitary forces attacking and kidnapping protesters in Portland. I urge [SENATOR] to support the National Defense Authorization Act amendment from Senators Merkley and Wyden, prohibiting these actions, and to withhold DHS funding that could be used for this oppression.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 2B: US Representatives

    ☎ Sample Script for US Representatives:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I am a constituent. I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am deeply concerned about DHS paramilitary forces attacking and kidnapping protesters in Portland. I urge [REPRESENTATIVE] to press for funding cuts not only for ICE and for Customs and Border Patrol, but for all agencies contributing personnel and assets to these paramilitary units. This includes the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Prisons, and the U.S. Marshals Service. Please take strong steps to withhold funding that could be used for this oppression.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 2C: ?????

    ☎ Sample Script for Governor:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am deeply concerned about DHS paramilitary forces attacking and kidnapping protesters in Portland. I urge Governor Inslee to order state agencies to stop cooperating with DHS agencies until the paramilitary operations end. I also ask Governor Inslee to call on the National Guard to protect protesters who are being subjected to abduction by people who are not identifying themselves as law enforcement.

    Thank you for your time and consideration.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ☎ Sample Script for Attorney General:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I urge Attorney General Bob Ferguson to join Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and resist Trump’s use of unmarked, militarized law enforcement from unlawfully detaining and harming residents who are engaging in constitutionally protected protests. The Trump administration has clearly indicated that they will send unaccountable secret federal agents wherever they deem politically expedient.

    Thank you for your time and consideration.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 2D: ??????/????

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am deeply concerned about DHS paramilitary forces attacking and kidnapping protesters in Portland. I urge the [NAME OF COUNCIL OR EXECUTIVE] to publicly oppose the kinds of tactics being used in Portland, and to resist the use of these paramilitary units locally, in every way that you can.

    Thank you for your time and consideration.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [Mr. Prem Watsa] Exit the for-profit bail bond industry

    From ACLU

    Money should never determine someone’s freedom. Yet every year, millions of people in the United States choose between paying bail or being locked up until their cases go to court.

    The only option to avoid jail if you can’t afford bail? Pay a non-refundable fee to a for-profit bail bonds company. This $2 billion industry traps people into a cycle of debt and fees – and unsurprisingly harms Black and low-income communities the most. In fact, bail amounts assigned to Black men average 35% higher than those for white men.

    Big insurance corporations are propping up this toxic system, and its largest investor is the Canadian-based company Fairfax Financial Holdings – run by CEO and chairman Prem Watsa.

    Mr. Watsa was just appointed co-chair to the recently-formed “Canadian Council of Business Leaders Against Anti-Black Systemic Racism,” a group primarily established in response to the George Floyd protests. He spoke at the council’s first interactive virtual summit last Monday – where he and others committed to taking substantive actions to end anti-Black systemic racism.

    Private insurance corporations are keeping this exploitative system alive – fueling mass incarceration and disproportionately harming Black and low-income communities. And the largest investor in this predatory industry is Canadian-based Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. It’s time to tell them to stop.

    Use the ACLU form to send a message to Mr. Watsa.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of July 20, 2020

    ? We are deeply saddened by the death of Congressman John Lewis and we are determined to follow his advice to “get in good trouble”. BBC News presents a brief history of John Lewis’s amazing contributions to the civil rights movement.

    ? ICYMI:

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Tell Congress to speak out against Trump’s fascist moves in Portland

    From Seattle Indivisible

    We’ve been seeing increasingly disturbing stories coming from Portland, Oregon over the past few days about Department of Homeland Security (DHS) affiliated Federal officers attacking protesters in the city. For instance, officers without any identification have on at least one occasion kidnapped folks off the street, forced them into unmarked vehicles, and held them in cells for hours before finally releasing them without charges. (Acting Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli has been extremely evasive about the number of times these kidnappings have occurred.) Federal officers have also been shooting protestors with ‘non-lethal’ munitions, like tear gas and rubber bullets.

    What’s especially frightening about the situation in Portland is that DHS is threatening to deploy their paramilitary forces not just in Portland, but in cities across the country. Ken Cuccinelli: “This [deploying Federal officers] is a posture we intend to continue not just in Portland but in any of the facilities that we’re responsible for around the country.”

    Even as the situation in Portland continues to escalate, we need to make sure that it does not spread any further. That’s why we want you to contact your members of Congress to tell them that they need to stop Trump’s literally fascistic actions before he goes any further.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am deeply concerned about DHS paramilitary forces attacking and kidnapping protestors in Portland. I am even more concerned about DHS Deputy Secretary Cuccinelli stating in an interview with NPR that DHS has plans to occupy more cities across the country. What is [SENATOR / REPRESENTATIVE] doing to rein in DHS and stop its fascist behavior?

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – Vote Vote Vote!

    Ballots for the August 4th Primary election have arrived! Have you voted? If so, click this link. If not:

    Familiarize yourself with the endorsed candidates.

    A couple of races will require some research on your part to learn which candidates more closely align with your values. The Lt. Governor seat has two strong Democrats running – both endorsed by FUSE. They are retiring congressman Denny Heck – endorsed by King County Democrats, LD 1, 41, and 48, and State Senator Marko Liias endorsed by LD 45th. In the 5th LD incumbent democrat Mark Mullet has a democratic challenger Ingrid Anderson who has been endorsed by FUSE, NARAL ProChoice Washington, and Washington Conservation Voters. Washington State Indivisible Podcast has done a series of town halls. You can listen to the Ingrid Anderson episode here, and the Marko Liias episode here.

    When voting: Don’t let yourself get stuck in “undervoting” – vote all the way down the ballot. With all the great candidate information at your fingertips, it’s easy to vote in Washington State.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – Help Returning Citizens Pay Fines & Fees

    From NPR and Florida Rights Restoration Coalition

    In 2018, nearly two-thirds of the Florida electorate voted to amend the state constitution and allow felons to vote. The amendment applied to felons who had completed their parole or probation periods, and it did not apply to those convicted of murder or sexual offenses. The referendum’s passage meant that some 1.4 million felons in the state would be eligible to vote. It had bipartisan support outside the Legislature from both conservative and liberal groups.

    The GOP-controlled Legislature, however, passed a law that conditioned the right to vote on payment of all fees, fines, and restitution that were part of the sentence in each felon’s case. This law has come under legal challenge and with the Supreme Court’s refusal to take up the issue, remains in place pending a hearing that will occur after the Florida Primary. There are an estimated 85,000 people who are registered to vote but cannot do so lawfully unless they pay what amounts to a poll tax.

    ✊ Action: If you can, donate to the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition to ensure that Florida citizens who have served their sentence will be able to vote in August AND November.

    “We at the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, as returning citizens ourselves, know first-hand how financial hardships can prevent people from fully engaging in their communities. So we created a fund to help returning citizens with outstanding fines and fees complete their sentence and move forward with their lives. 100% of your tax-deductible donation will go to those who have completed incarceration and probation but still have to complete financial portions of their sentence. Please give whatever you can and help us spread the word!”

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of July 13, 2020

    ? We’re weary, and it’s finally summer. For the next month or so, we will shift the focus of the weekly actions a bit to allow space for each of us to recharge, do personal work around the primary election and to engage in racial equity learning. We will also share some good news and results of some actions that are ongoing.

    ? Events this week:

    ? Events last week – recordings:

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Pockets of Sunshine

    Amid the many many storm clouds of 2020 are a few rays of sunshine to enjoy.

    The Postcarding group has been busy! We keep a weekly tally of cards written. For the week ending July 3rd, 17 writers wrote 1195 postcards to encourage voters to sign up for Vote by Mail in Florida, or to vote in specific races. For the week ending July 10th, 23 writers wrote 1179 postcards. If you’d like to join this effort, learn about where these cards are going, or log your cards you’ve been writing, see Postcarding Resources to get started.

    The VoteFwd Letterwriting group has also been busy. To date they have written 2435 letters to voters to encourage voting in November. If you’d like to join this effort learn about where these letters are going, or log your letters, see the Letterwriting Resources to get started.

    Good news from the Supreme Court:

    For more Good News collected by IE Steering see the Good News page on our website.

    ✊ Action 2 – [KING COUNTY COUNCIL] Tell King County to defund the police and invest in healthy, sustainable, and equitable communities for all people

    From Jon P, the Movement for Black Lives and King County Equity Now Coalition

    With King County facing a major budget shortfall due to COVID-19, we have a unique opportunity to cut our spending on police forces that consume ever larger shares of our budget. Instead of defunding education or scaling back on much-needed social services in a recession, King County should reduce our law enforcement budget by 50% to help cover the deficit.

    This permanent reduction should lead to increased investment in Black-led, community-based organizations to ensure that COVID-19 does not further exacerbate the racial resource/wealth gap.

    In addition, King County must not prosecute protesters, including those arrested violating curfew, and those living in encampments.

    Local activist Jon P has created an easy tool to send an email directly to King county executive Dow Constantine and council members.

    Click Here to launch the tool and send an email today.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [YOU] – Get ready to Vote!

    Ballots for the August 4th Primary election will be mailed out July 17th.

    Before your ballot arrives:

    1. Learn what’s on the August 4 ballot. Washington’s regularly scheduled Primary is the first Tuesday of August. In 2020, it includes Statewide Executives (such as Governor), US Representatives, State Legislators, Supreme Court Justices, Superior Court Judges, and some local offices such as County Commissioners. US Senate is scheduled for 2022. The August Primary does not include President/Vice President.
    2. Check your registration HERE to make sure it’s in order. July 27 is the deadline for online and mail registrations. August 4 is the deadline for in-person voter registration or updates – but best not to count on that.
    3. Familiarize yourself with the endorsed candidates.

    A couple of races will require some research on your part to learn which candidates more closely align with your values. The Lt. Governor seat has two strong Democrats running – both endorsed by FUSE. They are retiring congressman Denny Heck – endorsed by King County Democrats, LD 1, 41 and 48, and State Senator Marko Liias endorsed by LD 45th. In the 5th LD incumbent democrat Mark Mullet has a democratic challenger Ingrid Anderson who has been endorsed by FUSE, NARAL ProChoice Washington, and Washington Conservation Voters. Washington State Indivisible Podcast has done a series of town halls. You can listen to the Ingrid Anderson episode here, and the Marko Liias episode here.

    When your ballot arrives: Don’t let yourself get stuck in “undervoting” – vote all the way down the ballot. With all the great candidate information at your fingertips, it’s easy to vote in Washington State.

    ⭐ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of July 6, 2020

    ? Don’t forget to participate in Blackout Day, on July 7th, by buying from Black-owned businesses. Here are several resources to help you find these businesses.

    You can also donate to the Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County Investment Fund here.

    ? Register to attend the July 12 Monthly meeting at 3:00 pm. See details in Action 1 below.

    ? On July 13, we will host Jevin West, Director of the Center for an Informed Public at the University of Washington. His talk ‘Calling BS: Combating Strategic Misinformation’ is sure to open your eyes. This webinar is part of the Washington Indivisible Network series of monthly calls. Register here.

    ? The August primary is coming up! If you need to register to vote or change your address, the deadline is July 27. You can find everything you need here. Ballots drop on July 17 and have to be mailed or dropped off in a ballot box by Election Day, Aug. 4.

    The King County Democrats endorsements can be found here.

    The FUSE Progressive Voters Guide will be available here later this week.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Continue to work on issues of racial justice

    At our July 12 group meeting we will hear from Fernell Miller, founder of The Root of Us, a diversity and equity consultancy. She will talk about how, as community members, we can learn more about inequity and begin to acquire the skills to work towards more equitable and collaborative communities.

    Ms. Miller has provided some resources that she would like us to consider before the meeting, to get our personal input and to broaden our understanding of the issues. The resources are focused on the educational system and will serve as an entry point into how policing Black, Indigenous and People of Color affects our communities. The surveys help shed light on how privilege and power dynamics affect us internally and how they play out in the systems we use in daily life.

    • Please fill out this survey as best you can, choosing the category that you best relate to. Even if you don’t feel able to answer every question your participation will help to illustrate how positive and negative experiences at school affect students.
    • Watch these videos.
      Terry Harris: How are the Children?

    GPA Fatigue: A Reflection on the Grading System (Spoken Word Poem)

    ⭐️ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Add your voice to the campaign to Stop Hate for Profit

    We all know that Facebook has a terrible record when it comes to promoting hate, bigotry, racism, antisemitism, and violence. Their attempts to combat false and divisive narratives have been too little, too late, and have come only under extreme pressure. Now the non-profit group Stop Hate for Profit is hitting them where it hurts – their income from advertisers. Since July 1, more than 900 companies have called on businesses to “hit pause on hate” and not advertise on Facebook in July (updated number of companies from Sleeping Giants Twitter feed). The social network makes nearly all of its money from ads, raking in more than $70 billion in revenue last year.

    As a consumer, you can add your voice to this campaign by filling out the petition on their website and demanding that Facebook make permanent changes to their policies. Enough is enough!

    ⭐️ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Protest the use of Covid-19 Relief funds being diverted from K-12 public schools to help private schools

    From NPR

    At the end of June the Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, proposed including K-12 private schools in the relief funds which will be made available by the CARES Act. This interpretation of the rules could mean that districts serving low-income students could be required to spend relief money on more affluent, private school neighbors. At this time when public schools need all the help they can get to remediate the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, it is unconscionable to divert funds to private schools who are better able to weather financial hardships, and who should not be on the receiving end of public funding.

    Please leave a comment on Regulations.gov outlining your opposition to this. The deadline for comments is July 31.

    ☎ Sample Script: (Edit to personalize)

    “Funding from the CARES Act should be directed to low income K-12 public schools, as it was intended, and not diverted to private schools to fulfil a political agenda. This proposed rule could significantly harm the vulnerable students who were intended to benefit the most from the CARES Act relief.”

    ⭐️ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of June 29, 2020

    ?The Initiative 1776 website is now working, and you can sign ONLINE. Please send this web address to your networks. https://yeson1776.com/ Due date is June 30th!

    ? Did you know that you can sign up to observe the processing of ballots at the King County Elections office? Become a Certified Election Observer for the Democratic Party! On weekdays during the August Primary cycle, King County will process ballots, and they request volunteers from each of the political parties to observe, to ensure the electoral process is transparent and accountable. King County Elections only allows 5 participants from each political party at each of these trainings, so slots will be allocated on a first come, first serve basis.

    King County Elections will be holding this training at two different times prior to this election cycle:

    • Tuesday, July 14th, 10:00am-12:00 pm
    • Thursday, July 16th, 4:00-6:00 pm

    You need only attend ONE session, and once certified, your training is good for 2 years. SIGN UP HERE

    ? One of the major concerns approaching the election is the abundance of false and misleading information, both online and elsewhere. There are several events coming up that will be helpful in navigating our way through the swamp, and you can find them listed in the Calendar section. We are particularly excited to have guest speaker Jevin West, of the Center for an Informed Public at the University of Washington. The webinar featuring him, on July 13, will be part of the Washington Indivisible Network series of monthly calls. Register here.

    ? Resources for writing Postcards to Voters.

    ? Upcoming dates for writing letters to voters and get the Zoom link.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Federal Government] Oppose asylum restrictions

    Last week we asked you to comment on plans by the administration to put asylum out of reach for many people. Because of continued attacks on the asylum system, we are repeating this Action.

    In March they introduced policies that would allow the government to immediately expel people from Mexico and Central America to Mexico before they make an asylum claim, usually within two hours, purportedly to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

    Now the administration has proposed more sweeping restrictions on asylum claims. The proposed rules will effectively end asylum as we have known it by narrowing qualifications and “streamlining the process.” If implemented, the rule would eliminate gender-based asylum—shutting the door to anyone fleeing life-threatening persecution due to their gender, while undoing decades of legal precedent. Women fleeing rape and severe domestic violence, LGBTQ+ individuals facing deadly attacks, and those escaping other fatal gender-based harms will no longer be allowed to seek safety within our borders if the regulations take effect.

    It would also make seeking asylum more difficult for people who face persecution for their race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a social group. You can read more about it HERE.

    As if that wasn’t bad enough, the Supreme Court has now decided that asylum seekers do not have the right to take their case to a Federal court if it has been rejected by a immigration hearing at the border, leaving them with no judicial oversight over possible flawed deportation orders.

    If you have not already done so, please leave your comment here regarding the rule change. Look for the Comment Now button at the top of the page. These attacks on the concept of asylum are an insult to democracy, and reflect this administration’s desire to curb immigration at all costs, regardless of the price paid by those seeking a safer place to live.

    Comments must be submitted by July 15th.

    ?Sample Script (Edit to personalize):

    “The administration’s proposed regulations are an assault on the fundamental right to seek asylum. If fully implemented, they will gut years of progress in the U.S. to create bridges to safety for so many whose governments could not and would not protect them from severe harm and even death. Moreover, these regulations specifically endanger and target survivors of gender-based violence and will make it all but impossible for them to achieve justice. These new rules should not be implemented. “

    ⭐️ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Continue to work on issues of racial justice

    ✊ Action 2a: For our July 12 group meeting we will be hearing from Fernell Miller, founder of The Root of Us, a diversity and equity consultancy, working mainly in the field of education. She will talk about how, as community members, we can learn more about inequity and begin to acquire the skills to work towards more equitable and collaborative communities.

    Ms. Miller has provided some resources that she would like us to consider before the meeting, to get our personal input and to broaden our understanding of the issues. The resources are focused on the educational system.

    GPA Fatigue: A Reflection on the Grading System (Spoken Word Poem)

    ✊ Action 2b: On July 7th, the Black community will participate in Blackout Day, when they ask the Black community to not spend a single dollar outside of their own community. While they welcome support from allies, it is very much a movement for and by the Black community. As allies, one of the best ways that we can participate is to make a point to buy from Black-owned businesses as often as possible, but particularly on that day. There are several resources to help you find these businesses; sadly they are thin on the ground on the Eastside. (Please let us know if you know of any that are not listed.)

    You can also donate to the Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County Investment Fund here.

    ✊ Action 2c:

    Every now and then we are going to use the Actions that are being put out by Educators For Justice-Bellevue Schools as a prompt for our own reflection and work on racial justice. Here is the first one:

    • What is an area of #BlackLivesMatter or racial justice work that you have disagreed with?
    • How do you think your whiteness plays a role in how you view that area?
    • What perspectives can you seek out to understand this issue more deeply?

    ⭐️ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [State legislators and Governor Inslee] Ask our state government to support undocumented Washingtonians

    From WAISN

    In recent weeks a distressing reality hit Washington State. Despite only being 13% of the population, the Latino population now makes up the majority of COVID-19 cases in Washington State. Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders suffer the highest rates of infection of any group in King County, rates that are compounded by inadequate access to health care. Immigrant workers are overrepresented in industries with distressingly high rates of infection, including agriculture where yet another worker died last week. Immigrant families are more likely than others to be facing eviction in the months to come. Continuing to leave these community members with no economic support will force them into unsafe situations, risking their lives and undermining public health.

    Undocumented communities, people of color and a diverse coalition of allies are disappointed in Governor Inslee’s failure to act towards addressing the needs of immigrant Washingtonians during the COVID-19 pandemic. This has cost lives, undermined public health and has unfairly left immigrant workers to bear the cost of the pandemic on their own.

    WAISN is asking that our state legislators and our Governor step up to address the needs of this community and fund a Worker Relief Fund. Undocumented immigrants and their families were excluded from all relief packages passed by Congress, despite paying taxes and often having citizens in their family. They are also ineligible for unemployment insurance. Providing economic stability to all workers is essential to ending this public health crisis.

    You can generate prefilled emails to State Legislators by clicking on the ‘EMAIL’ links next to their names. Please review the email, personalize it and sign your name before sending.

    • Governor Jay Inslee EMAIL
    • 1st Legislative District
      • Sen. Derek Stanford (1st LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Davina Williams Duerr (1st LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Shelley Kloba (1st LD): EMAIL
    • 5th Legislative District
      • Sen. Mark Mullet (5th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Bill Ramos (5th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Lisa Callan (5th LD): EMAIL
    • 41st Legislative District
      • Sen. Lisa Wellman (41st LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Tana Senn (41st LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. My-Linh Thai (41st LD): EMAIL
    • 45th Legislative District
      • Sen. Manka Dhingra (45th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Roger Goodman (45th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Larry Springer (45th LD): EMAIL
    • 48th Legislative District
      • Sen. Patty Kuderer (48th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Vandana Slatter (48th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Amy Walen (48th LD): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script (Edit to personalize):

    “I’m writing to urge you to include EVERYONE, no matter what their immigration status is, in any state legislation to support our health, safety, and economic well-being in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    More than 250,000 undocumented immigrants call Washington home. These workers make substantial contributions to Washington’s economy, including paying more than $316 million each year in state and local taxes. They are overrepresented in industries that have been decimated by the pandemic, including restaurants, hospitality, landscaping, and construction.

    We must ensure all of us can access the care we need.

    I am asking you to include us all by: creating a Washington Worker Relief Fund that provides economic assistance to undocumented Washingtonians and creating a permanent system that gives undocumented immigrants access to unemployment insurance.

    The choices you make now to help us weather the outbreak of this virus can also set a better course for the future of our communities. As your constituent, I implore you to make policy choices that help us all, no matter what our immigration status is.”

    ⭐️ Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of June 22, 2020

    ? Last week, there were two important SCOTUS decisions. On Thursday in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court rejected Trump’s arbitrary implementation of a white supremacist agenda and protected DACA recipients — a victory that immigrant youth had been fighting for for years. Earlier in the week SCOTUS also ruled 6-3 that firing someone for being LGBT+ is a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Both of these victories on relatively narrow margins are definitely important wins to celebrate, but they’re also part of a much larger picture: we shouldn’t have to live in a world where we wait with fear and uncertainty as increasingly conservative federal courts decide the fate of basic human rights and protections.

    ?Indivisible National and Stand Up America are partnering for a new project to protect the results of the 2020 election. The Protect the Results website explains the risks we face with the election, and they are building a coalition of voters ready to mobilize if Donald Trump refuses to accept the results of the 2020 presidential election. You can sign on to get alerts HERE.

    ? Governing starts locally. The City of Bellevue is seeking candidates for several boards and commissions. Applications must be submitted by 5pm on July 8th.

    ? You may have recently received an invitation to take the Household Pulse Survey. The U.S. Census Bureau, in collaboration with five federal agencies, is using the information collected to produce data on the social and economic effects of COVID-19 on American households. Data will be disseminated in near real-time to inform federal and state response and recovery planning. Check out the interactive tool: https://www.census.gov/data-tools/demo/hhp/#/table

    If you haven’t yet, respond to the 2020 Census today at https://2020census.gov/.

    ? To see upcoming dates for writing Postcards to Voters and get the Zoom link:

    http://indivisibleeastside.com/events/event/postcards-to-voters-3rdplacecommons-b/

    To see upcoming dates for writing letters to voters and get the Zoom link:

    http://indivisibleeastside.com/events/event/write-letters-to-voters-with-vote-forward/

    ?The Initiative 1776 website is now working, and you can sign ONLINE. Please send this web address to your networks. https://yeson1776.com/ Due date is June 30th!

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Federal Government] Oppose asylum restrictions

    The administration effectively put asylum out of reach for many people at the Canadian and Mexican borders in March, with the aim of preventing the spread of the coronavirus, but that move is supposed to be temporary. It allows the government to immediately expel people from Mexico and Central America to Mexico before they make an asylum claim, usually within two hours. Now the administration has proposed more sweeping restrictions on asylum claims. The proposed rules will effectively end asylum as we have known it by narrowing qualifications and “streamlining the process.” If implemented, the rule would eliminate gender-based asylum—shutting the door to anyone fleeing life-threatening persecution due to their gender, while undoing decades of legal precedent. Women fleeing rape and severe domestic violence, LGBTQ+ individuals facing deadly attacks, and those escaping other fatal gender-based harms will no longer be allowed to seek safety within our borders if the regulations take effect. More information HERE.

    Leave your comment on the Federal Registry. Comments must be submitted by July 15th.

    ?Sample Script (Edit to personalize):

    “The administration’s proposed regulations are an assault on the fundamental right to seek asylum. If fully implemented, they will gut years of progress in the U.S. to create bridges to safety for so many whose governments could not and would not protect them from severe harm and even death. Moreover, these regulations specifically endanger and target survivors of gender-based violence and will make it all but impossible for them to achieve justice. These new rules should not be implemented. “

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [U.S. Forest Service] Protect North Fork Nooksack River From Logging

    From North Cascades Conservation Council

    The U.S. Forest Service is proposing logging along the North Fork Nooksack River and its tributaries just off the Mount Baker Scenic Byway at a scale not seen since last century. Please state in your own words how this part of the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest is important to you, and include the following talking points:

    – Due to the huge scale of proposed logging in this proposal, its radical departure from previous Forest Service management direction, its controversial nature, and negative impacts on local communities, an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) must first be completed.

    – The Forest Service must fully weigh the importance of this National Forest for reducing the existential dangers of climate change to both our regional ecosystems and human communities. Logging these forests defeats their carbon sequestration potential for decades to come.

    – In the face of extensive and ongoing clearcutting operations on private and state timberlands nearby, the Forest Service must prioritize allowing our National Forest to mature naturally for carbon capture, clean water, sensitive wildlife habitat, and compatible recreation.

    – The Forest Service must not construct new logging roads, including so-called “temporary” roads, which act as vectors for invasive weeds and human-caused abuses (including fires), while fragmenting habitat. Instead, the Forest Service should permanently close unneeded decaying roads.

    Submit your comment HERE.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [King County Council] Preserve the Sammamish Valley Rural Area and Farmland

    From Friends of Sammamish Valley

    King County Council has passed a Beverage Ordinance that would change the zoning codes that have protected our farmlands and rural neighborhoods, such as Hollywood Hill and the Sammamish Valley farmlands, from urban development. The Ordinance has been challenged, but if it goes into effect, the rural character of our community and farmland would quickly be lost. Traffic along Redmond-Woodinville Road would become much worse than it already is. Our community’s quality of life would suffer, as would the value of our properties, and the green open spaces and farms of the Valley would become just fond memories.

    The WA State Growth Management Hearings Board (GMHB) invalidated the Adult Beverage Ordinance in a strongly worded, unanimous May 26th Order. The Board’s Order cites a dozen grounds for invalidation under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) and the Growth Management Act (GMA) and faults the County repeatedly for ignoring the Ordinance’s potential environmental harm and impacts on infrastructure.

    As of June 7, 2020 we have learned that King County is considering a superior court appeal of the Board’s Order. The appeal deadline is June 26. The County should not waste even more taxpayer dollars attempting to open protected farmland and rural residential areas to incompatible commercial uses. It should instead proceed constructively to enforce code against the handful of illegally operating adult beverage businesses. Code clearly states that sales are limited to products produced on-site in these rural locations. The violators all truck in alcohol produced elsewhere.

    Click here to automatically send email to the King County Council and Executive Constantine telling them to not appeal the decision. Make your voice heard!

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of June 15, 2020

    ?Thousands of people attended Friday’s BLM Seattle-King County march in Seattle and there were local marches all across the state. BLM Seattle-King County is asking people to follow up by taking action to support their demands. Please make sure you continue to participate safely in any future protest–there are tips in this article from Seattle and King County staff (scroll down to find the Q & A section). And of course if you have any Covid-19 symptoms, stay home. Get tested at the first signs of illness, by either contacting your primary care physician or going to one of the low-barrier testing sites in King County.

    ? June 19th is “Juneteenth”, and our local BLM Seattle-King county organization is holding online community events every day this week. Join in the celebration!

    ? Many of you may know the Progressive organization Fuse Washington. They are the ones that put out a really comprehensive progressive voter’s guide every year and also partner with many local progressive campaigns. They are asking supporters to redirect donations that would normally go to Fuse Washington and instead support the following Black led organizations:

    ?Washington state has been struggling to protect our agricultural workforce during this pandemic. In central Washington right now, the coronavirus infection rates are among the highest in the country. The Seattle Immigrant Rights Action Group is fundraising to purchase high-quality, reusable cotton masks for migrant farm-working families in the Skagit Valley and Yakima areas. Donate HERE to help this effort.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Local City Councils] Defund the Police

    From Indivisible National

    Part 1: We keep hearing the words “Defund the Police” or “Abolish the Police” in the media (or listen to The Daily “The Case for Defunding the Police”) and from activist groups, but what does that mean? No matter where you’re from, you want to feel like your local and state institutions have your back. Consistent acts of police brutality and violence against Black communities shows that these institutions serve some of us — but not all of us. Defunding the police means re-allocating funds to transform communities by ensuring that more people have access to what they need to be safe and well, giving way to new services that are better equipped to support and protect.

    Local Black-led organizations are demanding that local governments commit to cutting funding for the police and investing it in Black community-led education, health and safety programs (such as funding for schools and youth homelessness services, solutions to the opioid crisis, and non-police responders for crises such as mental health response teams and community violence prevention programs).

    Please call the numbers listed below or email your City Council. You can generate a pre-filled email by clicking the ‘EMAIL’ link. Please review the email and sign your name before sending.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I am calling because consistent acts of police brutality and violence against Black communities show that these institutions serve some of us — but not all of us. Please support our Black community and defund the police by making cuts in funding for the police and investing it in Black community-led education, health, and safety programs. Examples of programs to invest in are schools and youth homelessness services, solutions to the opioid crisis, and non-police responders for crises such as mental health response teams and community violence prevention programs.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    Part 2: Read “Defund the Police? Here’s what that really means.” to learn how to talk to friends and family about this topic.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Sign this letter to elected officials

    From Public Defenders Association/ Amanda DuBois

    In King County, we are very close to creating the best system for investigating police killings in the United States. But we need your help to push us over the finish line. Every death involving law enforcement in King County receives an inquest hearing. Nowhere else in the country does this! An inquest is essentially a trial–the family has an attorney and the cops have an attorney. A jury reviews evidence and hears witness testimony. Under recent changes fought for by leaders from the black community and police accountability advocates, the jury then determines what happened and whether the officers complied with policy and training. If you can help push us over the finish line, the jury will also recommend whether the officers should be charged with a crime.

    This is exactly the type of community review of law enforcement killings that protests have demanded in recent weeks!

    However, Seattle and several other law enforcement agencies are suing to destroy this process. If they are successful, the family of Charleena Lyles (who PDA represents), Damarius Butts, and Isaiah Obet (and all future families) will not receive a meaningful inquest hearing. These lawsuits must be withdrawn!

    SIGN THIS LETTER TO ELECTED OFFICIALS

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [YOU] Gather signatures for I-1776

    From Lisa Weber LD48 Democrats

    Remember what happened to I-1000? Initiative 1000 was an Initiative to the Legislature that was sponsored by the One Washington Equality Campaign. The state legislature approved I-1000 on April 28, 2019 along party lines in a vote of 56-42 in the House and 26-22 in the Senate, with all votes in favor coming from Democratic legislators. Washington Initiative 1000 was designed to allow affirmative action policies by the state of Washington in the areas of public education, public employment, and public contracting as long as such policies do not constitute preferential treatment (as defined) and do not use quotas.

    • Under I-1000, preferential treatment would have been prohibited. I-1000 would have defined preferential treatment as using certain characteristics (such as race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, color, or age) as the sole factor for selecting a lesser-qualified candidate over a more qualified candidate.
    • However, affirmative action would have been allowed under I-1000. I-1000 would have defined affirmative action as using certain characteristics (such as race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, color, or age) as factors when considering a person for education or employment opportunities.

    Under the guise of “discrimination,” Letpeoplevote.org made false claims about what I-1000 would do, and ran an aggressive campaign for Referendum 88 to be on the November ballot to put I-1000 (falsely described) to a vote by the people. R-88 was rejected by the voters by a narrow vote, repealing I-1000.

    We have a second chance! Jesse Wineberry is at it again, and needs help collecting signatures for his new initiative 1776. I-1776 is basically the same as I-1000, with the exception that they added equity in healthcare, and specifically ensuring that equal access to a Covid-19 vaccine was mandated if it is developed.

    Since signature gathering during the pandemic is near impossible in person, people from the Referendum 90 campaign (repealing the sex ed bill that just passed the legislature) petitioned our Secretary of State Kim Wyman to allow petitions to be collected electronically via scan and fax. The SOS granted that to them, so Jesse Wineberry appealed to her that she should allow the same for I-1776, and she conceded.

    Here is the I-1776 Petition

    1. Please print the petition (double sided–you need both pages).
    2. Have family and friends sign (must be registered voters).
    3. Fill out the section on the back for Signature Gatherer.
    4. Scan both sides.
    5. Email completed petitions to hannapcowa@gmail.com by June 29th. We will collect and forward to the campaign.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of June 8, 2020

    ? This has been an intense time, and we were glad to see so many of you at our meeting on Saturday 6/6. Based on requests we heard during the meeting, we put together Action 1, along with other items in this list. May it inspire you to action!

    ? Friday, June 12th, Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County is calling for a statewide general strike and march for Black lives. Details of the Seattle march are not yet available so check back on the Black Lives Matter SKC website or facebook page for details of time and place. Indivisible Eastside is sharing this information for those who feel they can participate safely. For others, please see action 1 below for ways to support Black owned business, organizations, and candidates.

    ? Saturday June 13th, join Indivisible Eastside and friends for a Town Hall conversation with Congressman Adam Smith to discuss racial justice, use of the military in civilian populations, COVID recovery, and much more. This event will be moderated by Stephan Cox, Washington State Indivisible Podcast. You can submit questions in advance when you register at bit.ly/AdamSmith_TownHall. This event is 10:30 – 11:30 and will be recorded.

    ? In case you’re looking for the COVID-19 resources list (found at the end of previous weekly Actions), it’s now on our website. We also link to it in the Resources section below.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Continue to practice Anti-racism

    As we learned in the group meeting on Saturday, anti-racism is not a state of being, but rather an ongoing process and something to practice. Continue your journey with actions you can do today and bring others along with you.

    I have time to really focus:

    I have more money than time:

    I have energy to amplify the voices of Black people:

    I have energy to work in my local community:

    I have persistence:

    • Don’t allow this topic to drop in the weeks and months ahead
    • Continue beyond the 21 Day Racial Equity Challenge
    • Follow up on the Mayor Pledge and 8CantWait Police reforms
    • Share this resource with a friend or family member

    ? Did you take action? Click here for each action you took to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] End Militarization of Police

    From Seattle Indivisible

    Efforts in Congress to curb militarization of civilian police departments through legislation have been repeatedly stymied during the Trump administration. In 2015 President Obama curtailed a Pentagon program that had previously been furnishing surplus military hardware to local police departments across the country. President Trump then revived this so-called “1033 Program” his first year in office, allowing surplus bayonets, grenades, armored vehicles, and other military hardware to once again flow to local law enforcement agencies.

    But now, in the wake of nation-wide protests over the killing of George Floyd, and the unprovoked violence against peaceful protesters by heavily-armed police, bipartisan support is building for legislation to end the transfer of military hardware to police departments. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) recently announced he intends to introduce an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act to discontinue the transfer of military weaponry to local civilian authorities. Representative Ruben Gallego (D-Arizona) also plans to introduce similar legislation in the House, where it will likely pass, creating momentum towards inclusion in the defense bill.

    Cutting the supply chain of combat weaponry to police is one small step Congress can take immediately towards much needed broader police reform.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I have been upset by images of heavily armed police attacking peaceful unarmed protesters this past week and appalled by the president’s calls to bring in the military to quell protests. The Pentagon’s provision of military grade weapons to local police departments through the so-called 1033 Program has simply inflamed tensions and is not a solution to unrest over the murder of unarmed Black people. Please support legislation to end the Pentagon’s transfer of surplus military equipment to civilian law enforcement and end the militarization of local police. Thank you.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [US HOUSE] Support the House Resolution to Condemn Police Brutality

    From 5Calls.org

    In the wake of the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and the hundreds of other lives cut short by police violence, Congresswomen Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Karen Bass (D-CA) and Barbara Lee (D-CA) have introduced a resolution to condemn police brutality, racial profiling and the excessive use of force. In addition to condemning all acts of police brutality, the resolution calls for the adoption of reforms and policies at all levels of government to end these injustices. These reforms include:

    • Improving oversight and independent investigations to hold individual officers and police departments accountable;
    • Supporting efforts to establish all-civilian review boards with the authority to investigate police misconduct to ensure community-level oversight, accountability, and disciplinary action of police officers;
    • Adopting unbiased law enforcement policies at all levels of government that reduce the disparate impact of police brutality, racial profiling, and use of force on Native American, Black, and Brown people and other historically marginalized communities; and
    • Calling for the Department of Justice to reassert its authority to investigate individual instances of racial profiling, police brutality, and violence and to investigate and litigate against individual law enforcement officers and police departments that routinely violate civil rights.

    Demand your members of Congress support the House Resolution Condemning Police Brutality. Congress must unilaterally oppose all acts of police brutality, racial profiling, and excessive use of force.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling today in support of the House Resolution Condemning Police Brutality. Congress must take concrete steps to end police violence, racial profiling, and the use of excessive force.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of June 1 2020

    ? Are you feeling outraged about the racial atrocities in the news from the past few weeks? If you’re white, imagine feeling that way every single day. Imagine the toll it would take on your mental and physical health. Think about it, do something.

    It would be hard to miss the news of recent fatal and insidiously racist events. The sad fact is they are only the most high profile incidents. They represent hundreds or thousands around the country.

    If you feel concern, use this email to direct your concern, and take action! We feel that this anti-racism work deserves 30 minutes of your time, but you can be the judge of that. Consider the important difference that your voice and actions can make for others. If you can’t devote the mental energy or time right now, close this email, mark it as “unread” and come back when you can.

    If you haven’t already, please read about each of these people and then continue with the three actions below. Ahmaud Arbery. Breonna Taylor. George Floyd. Christian Cooper. Omar Jimenez.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Follow the Lead of Black Voices

    1a. Hear directly from Ebony Miranda, Co-Founder & Board Chair of Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County. She will be speaking on Wednesday, June 3, 6:30 – 8 pm at Seattle Indivisible’s Monthly Meeting. All are welcome.

    1b. Read this message from Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County for ways to support the Black Community:

    ??? ACTION ALERT ???

    We have heard your calls for action in response to the murder of George Floyd and other recent victims of police brutality. We’re hurting, frustrated, scared, and enraged just like you. We understand the need to be together, to collectively mourn and rage. Several groups and individuals have announced protests and marches in the Seattle area to demand justice for recent events. Our board of directors was initially conflicted about whether to boost these demonstrations, as your safety is of utmost importance. Ultimately, we decided that the situation is too dangerous for us to encourage greater attendance at these in-person protests.

    We live in a country that has lost more than 100,000 people to COVID-19. This virus has ravaged our communities in a way that largely mirrors the existing inequities and structural racism inherent in our healthcare systems. We refuse to encourage our community members to needlessly risk their lives and their health during this time when other avenues of action are available.

    As we all endure these dark and challenging days, we realize that what is most urgently needed now is direct community support and assistance. We need to support the families who have had their loved ones taken from them by police. We need to support the demonstrators in Minneapolis whose efforts successfully led to the arrest of George Floyd’s killer. We need to support the demonstrators in Louisville who were attacked while demanding justice.

    It’s for this reason that we as an organization (Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County) have decided to make the following donations. Please consider joining us as we support those who are in need:

    1. We’re giving $500 to Louisville Community Bail Fund.
      Help pay bail to demonstrators arrested in Louisville protests. Organized by Black Lives Matter Louisville.
      https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising/louisville-community-bail-fund/
      http://blackliveslouisville.org/
    2. We’re giving $500 to the North Star Health Collective
      We originally wanted to donate to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, which is directly helping individuals arrested in the recent protests. However, the MFF is urging people to donate to other groups, such as the North Star Health Collective, a group of medics who specialize in supporting protestors fighting for justice.
      https://www.northstarhealthcollective.org/donate
      https://www.northstarhealthcollective.org/
    3. We’re giving $500 to Black Visions Collective.
      Black Visions is a Black queer/trans led org who are in Minneapolis and have been on the frontlines of the protests.
      https://secure.everyaction.com/4omQDAR0oUiUagTu0EG-Ig2
      https://www.blackvisionsmn.org/
    4. We’re giving $500 to Reclaim The Block.
      RTB is a coalition that pushes the city of Minneapolis to divest from policing and instead fund community-centered health and safety programs.
      https://secure.everyaction.com/zae4prEeKESHBy0MKXTIcQ2
      https://www.reclaimtheblock.org/
    5. We’re giving $500 to the George Floyd Memorial Fund.
      Funds will help support the Floyd family as they grieve, arrange a funeral, prepare for legal proceedings, and care for George Floyd’s children.
      https://www.gofundme.com/f/georgefloyd
    6. We’re giving $500 to the Columbus Freedom Fund.
      The CFF is bailing out protestors in Columbus, Ohio who were arrested when demonstrating in response to Breonna Taylor’s and George Floyd’s murders.
      https://www.paypal.me/columbusfreedomfund
      https://www.facebook.com/pg/CFFOhio/posts/
    7. We’re giving $500 to the NYC Liberty Fund.
      The Liberty Fund is a charitable bail fund that servers all areas on New York City, including areas where
      https://www.classy.org/give/204448/#!/donation/checkout
      https://www.libertyfund.nyc/

    —

    Stay connected with our chapter’s local initiatives by signing up to our mailing list: http://subscribe.blacklivesseattle.org/

    Donate to our chapter: https://blacklivesseattle.org/donate/

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – Reflect and Take action on White Privilege

    Read Shani Silver’s blog:

    “This is for my white friends and readers. I could say it is being written and posted in response to recent events, but if the events are free-flowing, and endless, they are not recent. They are constant horrors that are a way of life, and they’re not happening to us. We are removed from them, safe from them, and that is our privilege. Just one privilege of countless others. Another privilege we have is doing nothing. Doing nothing is a racist act. Learning nothing is a racist act. Changing nothing is a racist act.”

    Continue reading, then:

    1. Reflect: Am I allowing my privilege of being overwhelmed to prevent me from learning how to take action?
    2. Reflect: How has my view of my privilege changed over the past 3 years. Over the past month?
    3. Take action: Continue your anti-racism education by exploring this resource list. Choose a few to read/watch/listen to. http://bit.ly/ANTIRACISMRESOURCES
    4. Register for and attend Indivisible Eastside’s June 6 Monthly Meeting from 10:30 – noon where we will, in part, explore some of this.

    ? Did you take action? Click once for each of the above actions that you took to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – Support Local Women of Color Candidates

    From Code Blue Washington State – Julia R and Elizabeth S

    Please consider supporting these excellent WA State candidates who are women of color–Tanisha Harris, Jamila Taylor, and Joy Stanford for State House, and T’wina Nobles for State Senate. We can amplify their message by Liking and Following their Facebook pages, inviting friends to Like and Follow (especially friends who have connections to the candidates’ districts), making a donation, and/or volunteering (phone banking, etc.).

    T’wina Nobles, LD28 (Lakewood & Steilacoom): Nobles is a PTA mom and School Board director. Her opponent is conservative incumbent Steve O’Ban. However, this district flipped one of its State House seats with Democrat Mari Leavitt winning in 2018. If elected, Nobles will be the only African-American person serving on WA’s State Senate.

    Tanisha Harris, LD17 (Vancouver WA): Harris came within 1.4% of winning this seat in 2018. Her opponent is incumbent Vicki Kraft, a Matt Shea buddy. Let’s help Harris provide Vancouver, WA with better representation!

    Jamila Taylor, LD30 (Federal Way): Jamila Taylor, an attorney who advocates for crime victims with an extensive record of volunteer service in the Puget Sound. A Democrat, Taylor will run for the position currently held by outgoing 30th District State Representative Mike Pellicciotti, who is running for State Treasurer.

    Joy Stanford, LD26 (Gig Harbor & Bremerton): Joy currently works in the non-profit sector for Shared Housing Services as a Community Outreach Specialist, helping Pierce county residents avoid housing instability, and as a substitute teacher in the Peninsula School District.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    COVID-19 / Coronavirus Resources and Ways to Help

    Compiled by Jennifer Ho

    Not everyone is able to take preventive measures due to various circumstances (medical, financial, ability). We encourage as many as possible to take whatever action they can within their ability, to assist however they can those who are struggling, and to help mitigate the risk for our vulnerable populations. As much as possible, use official sources of information and do not pass along information unless you’re very confident of the source.

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    ? Did you take any of these actions? Click here to be counted!

    For the Week of May 25, 2020

    ? Today we remember the men and women who have died serving our country in the military. Many of us who might ordinarily gather in family and friend groups, will not be able to do so this year. It is a small sacrifice we make for the safety of our friends, neighbors, and strangers we are protecting by staying home and staying safe.

    ? Last year, Sister District Puget Sound adopted two candidates in Virginia, and Indivisible Eastside members stepped up to make phone calls, write postcards, and donate to their campaigns which in turn helped Virginia flip their legislature blue! This year SDPS is supporting two candidates for State House in North Carolina – Dr. Frances Jackson and Brian Farkas. Momentum is working for Democrats in North Carolina where in 2018 they broke Republican supermajorities in both chambers. Here’s the important part: by flipping a chamber in 2020, Democrats will have a voice in the next round of redistricting. Keep an eye out for opportunities to support these two candidates. Right now you can:

    • Learn more about North Carolina and the candidates (see links above)
    • Consider donating to Sister District and their campaigns
    • Connect with Elizabeth S to write Postcards for these candidates.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Governor Inslee] Protect Yakima Valley workers

    From 350Seattle, Seattle Indivisible and Indivisible Kirkland, with updates

    Do you eat apples and cherries? The folks who grow and pack our fruit need your support!

    Most workers in agriculture are essential, and are often stuck working shoulder to shoulder in indoor processing facilities and living in crowded dormitories. By mid-May rural Yakima County had 1,203 cases of Covid-10 and 47 people had died. The county has the highest rate of COVID-19 cases on the West Coast — 455 cases per 100,000 residents. Over 100 workers at Allan Brothers Fruit walked off the job on May 7th, demanding safe conditions and hazard pay after fourteen of their co-workers got sick with COVID-19, and after management did little to inform workers or implement safety guidelines. A wave of strikes followed, with over 1,000 workers on strike at seven different facilities. Edgar Franks, political director of Familias Unidas por la Justicia, a union for Washington farm workers, said generally, all the workers on strike in the Yakima Valley want the same thing. “They don’t want to become infected and transfer it to their families or the community,” Franks said. “They believe that being out here and on strike is very important to fix the conditions inside.”

    Striking workers need support to sustain their courageous stand:

    ✊ 1a. Call or email Governor Inslee 360-902-4111 | EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling to urge Governor Inslee to support our essential agricultural workers striking in Eastern Washington. The demands are extremely reasonable. They deserve hazard pay, personal protective equipment, the ability to observe social distancing, and assurances that sick workers will not be retaliated against for taking time off. Thank you.”

    ✊ 1b. Call management and urge them to negotiate, and not to retaliate against striking workers.

    ✊ 1c. Donate to Familias Unidas por la Justicia (FUJ) and Community to Community Development (C2C), which have been on the ground supporting the workers from day one.

    ✊ 1d. If you know people in the area, point them here to plug in.

    ✊ 1e. Follow FUJ and C2C on Facebook to receive farmworker updates.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Don’t let the government spy on our Internet activity without a warrant!

    From Jon P – Seattle Indivisible

    The House will be voting Wednesday on H.R. 6172, legislation to reform several aspects of the PATRIOT Act — but unless the Lofgren-Davidson amendment (which mirrors the earlier Wyden-Daines amendment) passes, the government will still be able to spy on internet activity without requiring a warrant. 70+ organizations across the political spectrum, including Indivisible, ACLU, MediaJustice and CAIR, as well as tech companies including Microsoft and Amazon support this vital amendment.

    So now’s a crucial time to call your representatives, and ask them to

    • SUPPORT the Lofgren-Davidson amendment to H.R. 6172, the USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020
    • OPPOSE any attempts to weaken the legislation
    • OPPOSE the underlying bill if it is weakened or if the Lofgren-Davidson amendment does not pass

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I am [NAME], from [CITY, ZIP], and I urge you to support the Lofgren-Davidson Amendment on H.R. 6172, the USA Freedom Reauthorization Act of 2020 — and to vote against the bill unless it is strengthened. The FBI should not be allowed to use the PATRIOT Act to surveil Americans’ online activity without a warrant. Please oppose any attempts to weaken the legislation, and please vote NO on H.R. 6172 if it is weakened or the Lofgren-Davidson amendment does not pass.”

    ✊ Action 3 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Investigate Firing of Inspectors General

    • April 3: Michael K. Atkinson – inspector general for the intelligence community – fired by Trump
    • April 7: Glenn A. Fine – acting inspector general for the Defense Department – fired by Trump
    • May 1: Christi A. Grimm – principal deputy inspector general for the Department of Health and Human Services – fired by Trump
    • May 15: Steve A. Linick, inspector general at the State Department – fired by Trump

    Mr. Trump’s decision to remove inspector general Steve Linick of the State Department is the latest in a series of ousters aimed at inspectors general who the president and his allies believe are opposed to his agenda, upending the traditional independence of the internal watchdog agencies.

    Representative Eliot L. Engel, Democrat of New York and the chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, have opened an investigation into Mr. Linick’s removal, citing a pattern of “politically motivated firing of inspectors general.”

    In letters to the White House, to the State Department, and to Mr. Linick, the two Democrats wrote that they believed Mr. Linick had opened an investigation into wrongdoing by Mr. Pompeo and that Mr. Pompeo had responded by recommending that Mr. Linick be fired.

    Senator Mitt Romney of Utah, one of the few congressional Republicans who have been publicly critical of the president, denounced Mr. Linick’s dismissal Saturday evening. “The firings of multiple Inspectors General is unprecedented; doing so without good cause chills the independence essential to their purpose,” Mr. Romney said on Twitter. “It is a threat to accountable democracy and a fissure in the constitutional balance of power.”

    Contact your members of Congress and demand investigations into all four firings.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. What will you do to rein in Trump’s firing spree? Michael Atkinson, inspector general for the intelligence community, was fired April 3rd. This was followed on April 7th by the firing of Glenn Fine, acting inspector general for the Defense Department. In the midst of the global pandemic, Trump fired Christi Grimm, principal deputy inspector general for the Department of Health and Human Services, on May 1st. Most recently, on May 15, he fired Steve Linick, inspector general at the State Department. I understand an investigation has begun regarding the latest firing, but please, I urge you to investigate this pattern of abuse of power. Thank you.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of May 18, 2020

    ? Get Out the Vote (GOTV) online activities are our only way to reach out to voters for the foreseeable future. Check out some of the possibilities and join us for an online session! Please remember to register ahead of time.

    • Thank you to those of you who joined us on May 12 for our virtual letter writing session, including Michelle from California! We use the Swing Left/Vote Forward platform, focusing on key swing states that, with a greater turnout, can be flipped to Democrats in September. Letters are written to progressive-leaning unregistered and low-propensity voters encouraging them to register and vote. After signing up with Vote Forward and requesting letters (as few as five if you want) you will receive a list of voters and a letter template that you can personalize with your own encouraging message to vote. Letters will not be mailed until October, so there is plenty of time to work on this. So far our group has written over 600 letters! Our next Zoom writing session, hosted by Yvonne B, will be on May 26. Details and Registration are here.
    • Writing Postcards to Voters Zoom meetings are being run by Elizabeth S. The next one will be on May 31. For registration and more information, please check here.
    • For resources of all kinds on GOTV activities, including text and phonebanking, check out this great resource put together by our friends at Indivisible Vashon.

    ? A member of our steering committee recently donated blood and learned that as postponed surgeries start to be rescheduled, the blood supply in our region is expected to be insufficient because so many fewer people have been donating during the pandemic. Please consider making an appointment to donate, especially if you are Type O. There are extra appointment slots if you are in that category.

    ? Starting May 18, King County residents are required to wear face masks in most settings. You can familiarize yourself with the requirements and read more about it here. In conjunction with social distancing and frequent handwashing, masks can be an important tool to help stop the spread of the droplets that are the primary means of transmission of the virus. Let’s continue to be an informed and proactive community in the work to get to the next stage of the re-opening the state.

    ? Washington Indivisible Network (WIN), in partnership with Washington State Indivisible Podcast and other area Indivisible groups such as Olympia and Tacoma, continues to host virtual Town Halls with candidates for state elections. You can register for any of these events in WIN’s Newsletter, where you can also see recordings of previous events.

    • State Town Hall on May 19 with Hilary Franz, candidate for Commissioner of Public Lands.
    • Candidate Town Hall for Lt. Governor with Marko Liias and Denny Heck on June 2.
    • Town Halls with candidates for LD10 on May 26 and May 28 (one night for each position). If you know anyone in this area (Whidbey, Camano Islands, and roughly the area between Arlington and Mount Vernon) please let them know about this opportunity to talk to their candidates.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week. Don’t miss the COVID-19 resource section at the end and the many excellent community resources it includes.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Governor Inslee] Urge the Governor to pressure ICE to release asylum seekers and immigrants from custody

    From RAICES (Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services)

    In the face of continued refusal by federal authorities to use discretion to release people from immigration detention, almost two dozen human rights, immigrant rights, and civil rights advocates and service providers are coming together to seek the release of immigrants and asylum-seekers in detention.

    The groups are petitioning the governors of California, Louisiana, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington to take action to protect detainees from further exposure to the coronavirus in facilities where conditions are already poor and policies for dealing with the health crises are severely lacking. ICE has a well-documented history of medical abuse and neglect. Since the onset of the pandemic, ICE facilities have failed to provide detainees with sufficient soap and sanitizer, neglected to facilitate physical distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19 within crowded facilities, and continued to transfer detainees between facilities at grave risk to their health. Even before COVID-19, the needless, arbitrary detention of immigrants and asylum-seekers in inadequate conditions with negligent medical care violated human rights and caused untold human suffering.

    The first death of a detainee in ICE custody occurred on May 6th in California and there are now over 140 cases at the same facility. Across the country other ICE detention facilities are reporting almost 1000 cases of COVID-19, out of a population of almost 28,000 detainees, of whom only around 2,000 have been tested.

    This is completely unacceptable. Please send an email to Governor Inslee asking him to work with ICE to release detainees from ICE facilities in the state.

    • Governor Jay Inslee EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “As you are the government official responsible for the health and safety of your state’s residents, I urge you to take all possible actions to press ICE to release immigrants and asylum-seekers detained in Washington without delay, and to protect them, facility staff, and the broader public from the threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in ICE detention facilities.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Ask Legislators to Support the ReWIND Act and Stop the Fossil Fuel Bailout

    Due to the coronavirus crisis, more than 35 million people have filed for unemployment. Many of us have heard about ordinary people dealing with unemployment offices that are over capacity. But while regular taxpayers and small businesses are still waiting for relief, oil lobbyists are getting moved to the front of the line. The Trump administration is rolling back royalty rates and axing rules meant to stop oil executives from using stimulus money to pay themselves. Now, there’s new legislation that would block their worst abuses. Senator Merkley and Representative Barragán recently introduced the ReWIND (Resources for Workforce Investments, not Drilling) Act, which also has the support of Rep. Pramila Jayapal.

    This is not a separate relief package (like a CARES or CARES2 package), but instead prevents relief money from going to fossil-fuel bailouts. The ReWIND Act would:

    • Block the fossil fuel industry from receiving federal funds meant for families, workers, and small businesses
    • Ban the government from stockpiling oil we don’t need through the Strategic Petroleum Reserve
    • Put a moratorium on new oil and gas leasing and outlaw royalty relief for companies that drill on public lands
    • Stop bank holding companies from taking over distressed oil and gas corporations

    For a list of more provisions in the Act, see the Press Release from Representative Barragán (scroll about one-third down the page for a list) or the Fact Sheet from Representative Barragán. At the end of the Fact Sheet, there’s a list of supporting groups, such as the Sierra Club, Friends of the Earth, 350. org, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and quite a few others. Ask your members of Congress to support the ReWIND Act.

    If you’re not sure of your district you can find it at Washington’s District Finder

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL
    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] and I am a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. I am writing today to ask [SENATOR/REPRESENTATIVE NAME] to co-sponsor the “Resources for Workforce Investments, Not Drilling” (ReWIND Act) introduced by Senator Merkley and Representative Barragán. The ReWIND Act stops vital relief money from going to the fossil fuel industry and ensures that ordinary people and communities will be prioritized over polluters. I urge you to co-sponsor the ReWIND Act and make sure these provisions are included in the next stimulus package.

    Thank you.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [State Legislators] Ask your legislators to address inequities in the special session

    From the League of Women Voters

    Given the impact of COVID-19 on the state’s economy, the Legislature will almost certainly be called into special session sometime this summer to make adjustments to the State’s budget. The shortfall in the budget due to the coronavirus is predicted to be around $7 billion at this point. Conversations among legislators are already underway to prepare for that session.

    We agree with the League of Women Voters’ position that we should ask our legislators in their planning for this session to consider how they can remediate some of the long-standing and undeniable racial and economic disparities that have become even more glaringly obvious during the COVID-19 crisis. Data in every state indicates that people of color have been significantly disproportionately harmed by the COVID-19, both in health and financially, and this is true in Washington as well. Additionally, people of color are more likely to lose their housing in the aftermath, joining the already disproportionately high ratio of people of color who are experiencing homelessness. Further, job losses will lead to problems assuring health care coverage.

    Please email your state legislators asking them to take these points into consideration when deciding how to balance the budget. You can generate prefilled emails by clicking the EMAIL links below. Please review the email carefully and sign your name before sending.

    If you’re not sure of your district you can find it at Washington’s District Finder

    • 1st Legislative District
      • Sen. Derek Stanford (1st LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Davina Williams Duerr (1st LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Shelley Kloba (1st LD): EMAIL
    • 5th Legislative District
      • Sen. Mark Mullet (5th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Bill Ramos (5th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Lisa Callan (5th LD): EMAIL
    • 41st Legislative District
      • Sen. Lisa Wellman (41st LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Tana Senn (41st LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. My-Linh Thai (41st LD): EMAIL
    • 45th Legislative District
      • Sen. Manka Dhingra (45th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Roger Goodman (45th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Larry Springer (45th LD): EMAIL
    • 48th Legislative District
      • Sen. Patty Kuderer (48th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Vandana Slatter (48th LD): EMAIL
      • Rep. Amy Walen (48th LD): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I am a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. As you prepare for what will likely be one of the most challenging special sessions ever, I am writing to ask that you consider how to remediate some of the long-standing racial and economic disparities that have become even more obvious during the COVID-19 crisis. Data in every state indicates that people of color have been significantly disproportionately harmed by the COVID-19, both in health and financially, and this is true in Washington as well. Additionally, people of color are more likely to lose their housing in the aftermath, joining the already disproportionately high ratio of people of color who are experiencing homelessness. Further, job losses will lead to problems assuring health care coverage.

    As you decide what budget cuts to make, please look closely at the impacts of your proposed reductions on people living at the lowest income levels, with particular emphasis on people of color.

    Please consider several specific items:

    • Maintain the budget for affordable housing development. During this economic collapse, people of color will lose their jobs, and therefore their housing, at much higher rates than others. Providing housing should be emphasized, especially because those costs will be less than the cost of addressing the consequences.
    • Prepare now for the coming surge in homelessness. Homelessness will increase as the eviction and foreclosure moratoria end. People who have lost their jobs will be unable to make the necessary back payments when they come due. Disproportionately, those who become homeless will be people of color, just as with the current population experiencing homelessness.
    • Retain, or even expand, the Medicaid program at current levels. As the unemployment rate increases, many more people will need to look to Medicaid for health care.

    Thank you.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    • Tues May 19, 7 pm, Indivisible Town Hall with Commissioner of Public Lands Candidate – Register to Attend
    • Tues May 26, 7-8 pm, write Letters to Voters online with Vote Forward and Indivisible Eastside. Please register.
    • Sun, May 31, 12:30-1:30, Postcards to Voters Zoom Meeting, led by Elizabeth S. Please register.
    • Tues June 2, 7-8 pm, Indivisible State Town Hall – Lt. Governor Candidates (Marko Liias and Denny Heck) Register To Attend
    • Sat June 6, 10:30 am – noon, IE Monthly Group Meeting – online
    • Sat June 27, 2020 9:45 am – 2:00 pm, 1st LD Community Forum – Power of Women: Breaking Barriers (via Zoom, $10.00)

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of May 11, 2020

    ? Please join us this week for one, or both, of our Get Out the Vote (GOTV) online activities. Please remember to register ahead of time.

    • Virtual letter writing session, utilising the Swing Left/Vote Forward platform. Our next event, hosted by Yvonne B, will be on May 12, 7 – 8 pm. Details and Registration are here. We’ll have a break-out room for brand-new participants, so don’t be shy about joining even if you haven’t yet signed up with Vote Forward.
    • Writing Postcards to Voters Zoom meeting run by Elizabeth S. The next one will be on May 17. For registration and more information, please check here.
    • For resources of all kinds on GOTV activities, including text and phonebanking, check out this great resource put together by our friends at Indivisible Vashon.

    ? So many people are hurting from the effects of COVID-19, and food banks are under a lot of pressure to meet the needs of our communities. We know that many of you are involved in efforts to help with food insecurity and other issues and we applaud you for that. If you are looking for reliable organizations to donate to here are a few suggestions.

    ? Washington Indivisible Network (WIN), in partnership with Washington State Indivisible Podcast and other area Indivisible groups such as Olympia and Tacoma, continues to host virtual meetings with candidates for state elections. See WIN’s most recent Newsletter with details and links to register for upcoming Town Halls, as well as recordings of past events.

    ? We’re getting better at our online group meeting skills! Saturday’s meeting featured small group discussions in break-out rooms, Sen. Lisa Wellman, and Fairvote WA’s excellent presentation on Ranked Choice Voting. See the Meeting Notes for the Video and Audio recordings. Next meeting is Saturday. June 6, 10:30 am.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week. Don’t miss the COVID-19 resource section at the end and the many excellent community resources it includes.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US Senate & House] Ask Legislators to Support the Paycheck Guarantee Act

    Indivisible has joined with a network of progressive groups recently to champion a People’s Agenda in ongoing coronavirus relief bills. The goal is to support legislation that focuses on keeping people on payrolls, providing direct financial relief, protecting public health, and defending elections.

    The next CARES Act is being put together as we speak and there is an important piece of legislation that acts as one plank of this effort and needs our urgent support. At stake is the welfare of at least 30 million American workers who are currently jobless, including 1.4 million Washingtonians – more than 38% of our state’s workforce.

    Representative Pramila Jayapal has developed the bipartisan, bicameral Paycheck Guarantee Act to address the deficiencies of previous bills. This proposed legislation (the PGA) gets help to businesses quickly with a minimum of red tape, and imposes strong conditions on the aid to protect workers, such as banning stock buybacks, protecting collective bargaining agreements, and putting worker representatives on corporate boards.

    The National organization of Indivisible has a plan for Actions to support the PGA for this week:

    • The Congressional Progressive Caucus Action Fund has put together a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer in support of including the PGA in forthcoming CARES2 legislation. Indivisible Eastside has signed on to this letter as part of the Washington Indivisible Network.
    • As of May 6, several of our legislators (Representatives Smith and Schrier) have signed on to the PGA, but we need to ask those who haven’t to step up and provide their support. Please join in a nationwide plan to flood the offices of legislators with calls asking them to support this important piece of legislation.

    No later than Tuesday May 12, please call the offices of Senator Murray, Senator Cantwell and (only if you are one of her constituents) Representative DelBene, letting them know how important the PGA is and that you expect them to support it.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I am constituent from [CITY, ZIP] and I am calling with my concerns about the forthcoming CARES2 legislation for coronavirus relief. As part of this package, Congress urgently needs to do more to stop mass layoffs, keep American workers employed, and save their healthcare benefits. I am urging you to support the Paycheck Protection Act proposed by Representative Jayapal, which will get help to businesses quickly with a minimum of red tape, and imposes strong conditions on the aid that is necessary to protect workers. This approach is being used successfully in Germany, France, Denmark, and the UK and has resulted in much lower levels of unemployment in the population.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ⭐️ Extra Credit Action:

    • If you are on Twitter, on Wednesday May 13 please send tweets to the relevant legislators asking them to support the Paycheck Protection Act, using a shortened version of the sample script.

    Please use the hashtags #PeoplesAgenda, #WaIndivisible and #IndivEastside

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [Governor Inslee] Ask for an extension of the moratorium on utility shutoffs

    From the Sierra Club

    In the original March 18 coronavirus emergency order, Governor Inslee “strongly encouraged” all utilities in the state to “take reasonable actions to mitigate the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on their utility customers caused by this crisis.” The order urged but did not mandate utilities “to prevent disconnection of services due to nonpayment” during the crisis. In early April, Indivisible Eastside signed on to a letter to Governor Inslee from the Sierra Club, and other organizations, which requested a moratorium on utility shut offs during the coronavirus pandemic. On April 17, Governor Inslee extended relief for utility customers but it was only for a period of three weeks, and so it has now expired.

    The same organizations are asking for the moratorium to be extended until after the Stay Home, Stay Healthy order ends. We have committed to this as an organization but your individual voices in support will also have an impact.

    You can send an email to the Governor, via his Chief of Staff, David Postman, asking for him to take this action. You can use the prepared text in this letter for inspiration, but please reframe it in your own words.

    To: david.postman@gov.wa.gov
    Click the link above to generate a prefilled email. Please add your City, Zip and sign your name before sending the email.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Dear Governor Inslee:

    I am a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. Thank you for your continued efforts to protect the most vulnerable people in Washington from hardship, including utility shut-offs. We appreciate your attention to the political process, and acknowledge that bringing the extension on utility shut-off moratoriums to the legislature yielded a short extension. Thank you for your attempt at building a broader consensus around this urgent issue.

    But three weeks is not enough. Right now, some Washingtonians are having to decide which essential things to do without. Should they prioritize paying for food, water, electricity, medicine, diapers, or rent? Extending the moratorium on utility shut-offs doesn’t just ensure that people have access to electricity, water, and telecommunications — it gives them important information about how to budget their precious resources during an incredibly uncertain time.

    Your leadership is needed now more than ever. Please use your existing authority to extend this protection for at least six months after the end of the “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order. This is what is needed to protect those most at risk from financial hardship and move towards long term actions that truly address the devastating impacts of this crisis. Show Washingtonians — and particularly those hardest hit by this crisis — that you have our back.

    Thank you for your leadership and continued efforts to protect all Washingtonians.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] File for PCO between May 11 and May 14th

    Precincts are small geographic areas within a Legislative District. Precinct Committee Officers (PCOs) are the building block of the Democratic Party. They are the grassroots organizing base for all of the Legislative District’s activities. PCOs:

    • Canvass or telephone your precinct in coordination with election strategy at least once a year.
    • Coordinate with campaigns in educating voters and generating interest in the election on behalf of candidates and ballot measures.
    • Attend as many of the monthly legislative district and county organization meetings as possible. Many agenda items are voted on ONLY by PCOs.

    This is a vital way to help Get Out The Vote, and be an important part of the Democratic party. When Indivisibles get involved with the Democratic Party, it moves the party toward being more progressive.

    Ready? Click here to file for PCO  

    Learn more: There are a few ways to become a PCO.

    Let us know if you decide to run for PCO! We’d love to hear from you at hello@indivisibleeatside.com

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date

    • Sat June 6, 10:30 am – noon, IE Monthly Group Meeting – online
    • Sat June 27, 2020 9:45 am – 2:00 pm, 1st LD Community Forum – Power of Women: Breaking Barriers (via Zoom, $10.00)

    Lists of Upcoming Events

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of May 4, 2020

    ? Please join us at our next Indivisible Eastside Online monthly meeting, Sat May 9, 3:30 – 5:00. Please register, even if you’re not 100% sure you can attend. That way we’ll have time to vet everyone beforehand to prevent Zoombombers from entering the meeting. Agenda items include:

    • A talk from Lisa Ayrault , Executive Director of FairVote Washington, which is “a non-partisan, non-profit, volunteer-driven champion of electoral reforms like Ranked-Choice Voting that give voters greater choice, a stronger voice, and a more civil, representative democracy that works for all Americans.”
    • We will also hear from state Senator Lisa Wellman (D-Mercer Island) about her race to keep the 41st LD in Democratic hands.
    • After the presentations there will be some time for general discussion and check in time.

    ? As we move into May, our situation is evolving as a result of Washington’s early adoption of staying home to stay safe. Governor Inslee has proposed a carefully thought out plan to gradually reopen activities and commerce safely. Its success is dependent on people being willing to play by the rules and not rush back to normal levels of activity. As the Governor says, no one wants to do this, so let’s make sure that we don’t have to do it twice. In King County, there are still approximately one hundred new cases per day, so we have a way to go until we can relax. Let’s continue to connect and check in with each other online, and support each other in creative ways. The University of Washington has some good ideas. What are some of the things that you have done?

    ? Like many organizations, we continue to work on ways to engage in the General Election, now almost exactly six months away. In the absence of in-person activities, our priorities will be writing postcards and letters, and text and phonebanking. We will continue to offer access to all of those tactics in the months ahead. Here are some upcoming opportunities:

    • We have held several virtual letter writing sessions, utilising the Swing Left platform. In exciting news this week, they announced a new initiative called The Big Send, in conjunction with Vote Forward, Indivisible, the Women’s March and other organizations. The goal is to stockpile ten million letters to send to voters from historically underrepresented demographics in battleground states in October. You can read an article about it here.Our next event, hosted by Yvonne B, wll be on May 12, 7 – 8 pm. Details and Registration are here. We’ll have a break-out room for brand-new participants, so don’t be shy about joining even if you haven’t yet signed up with Vote Forward.
    • Writing Postcards to Voters continues, both individually and at bi-weekly Zoom meetings run by Elizabeth S. The next one will be on May 17. For registration and more information, please check here.Thank you to those of you who were able to join us on May 3rd, where we got to chat with Tony the Democrat, the founder of Postcards to Voters. We heard a lot of interesting information about the evolution of the program and how it is run. If you aren’t one of the 75,000 volunteers who have sent almost nine million postcards since it started in 2017, please check out the link and join us!

    ? Washington Indivisible Network (WIN) hosts monthly Zoom meetings about topics of interest to groups around the state. Please join us on Mon, May 4 at 7:00 pm, when Kevin Jones of Indivisible Vashon will talk about The Path to WIN: Federal Election Engagement Update. He will update us with developments since he first presented on this topic in January. Please register here to join the meeting.

    WIN, in partnership with Washington State Indivisible Podcast and other area Indivisible groups such as Olympia and Tacoma, continues to host virtual meetings with candidates for state elections. See WIN’s most recent Newsletter with details and links to register for upcoming Town Halls, as well as recordings of past events.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week. Don’t miss the COVID-19 resource section at the end and the many excellent community resources it includes.

    ✊ Action 1 – [ICE] Tell ICE to release immigrant youth detained in Cowlitz County

    From Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN) and ACLU

    Cowlitz County’s youth jail in Longview, WA is one of only 3 jails in the nation incarcerating unaccompanied immigrant children for ICE without access to due process.

    As shown in a new report from the University of Washington Center for Human Rights, called ‘Immigrant Family Separation in Northwest Juvenile Jails’, ICE separates these children from their families on the East Coast, transports them thousands of miles to Cowlitz County, and refuses to transfer them to the one agency responsible for the reunification of immigrant families under federal law, the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). ICE claims this is because these particular children are “public safety or national security threats.” But when asked to see the legal documents underlying that determination, ICE and Cowlitz county refused to provide them – even going so far as to sue a UW professor just for inquiring.

    The same county has now released all U.S. citizen children from custody over concerns about COVID-19; but the immigrant youth remain incarcerated and exposed.

    There are two actions that you can take to ask for the safety of these juveniles, who are unfairly incarcerated due solely to the place of their birth.

    You can use this link to write a letter to the Cowlitz County Commissioners asking them to end the contract with ICE. Let’s help WAISN achieve their goal of two hundred letters!

    You can use this link to urge Nathalie Asher, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Field Office Director for the Pacific Northwest, to release the remaining youth being held in Cowlitz County.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [King County Council] Support the relief package for local Arts organizations

    From Seattle Indivisible, Seattle Times

    One of the privileges of living in the Seattle area is its great music venues, local theatre groups, dance troupes, and many other organizations and businesses that create the vibrant culture of our region. Our arts and culture organizations and their employees have been hit hard by the pandemic, as many of them depend on the support of steady attendance from patrons. Thankfully, there is potentially some relief on the horizon.

    King County Executive Dow Constantine has proposed a new emergency relief package of $57 million, with a vote in King County Council expected on May 12. $16 million of this is earmarked to support homeless youth programs, arts and culture groups, science and arts education organizations, and live music venues. In many cases relief would be tied to re-employing furloughed workers, which would help both the affected organizations, and their employees, begin to recover from this economic crisis.

    Please contact your King County Council Representative before May 12 and ask them to support the package proposed by Dow Constantine.

    Take a look at this map to figure out your county council district: https://www.kingcounty.gov/…/county-council-districts-2012.…

    Then click on your council representative’s name on this site to find their email: https://www.kingcounty.gov/elected.aspx

    ☎ Sample Script: (Please try to rephrase using your own words)

    “I’m a constituent, writing from [CITY, ZIP], to ask you to vote yes on the new relief package that King County Executive Constantine proposed to King County Council. I am particularly glad to see that some funds in this package are earmarked for arts and culture organizations and music venues, as these have been hit hard by the pandemic and the Seattle area would suffer greatly from their loss.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Help Friends and Family Respond to the 2020 Census

    The Census has been ‘live’ since April 1st, and as you can see using this link, Washington’s response rate, currently at 61%, is higher than the national average but still well below the 2010 national average of 74%. Because of difficulties posed by COVID-19 in carrying out the collection of data, the final date for the online, phoned and mailed responses has been pushed back to Oct 31st. There are a number of other operational adjustments that have been made that you can read about here.

    As you know, responses to the Census shape decisions about how billions of dollars in federal funds flow into communities each year for the next 10 years for critical services.

    Reach out to friends and family members in other regions and ask if they have responded to the 2020 Census. You can use the response rate link to check up on their area and engage in a little friendly competition to see whose rates are highest!

    If you or anyone you know have not yet responded to the Census, please do so now. If you submit your 2020 Census form today, then your household’s participation will be recorded, avoiding follow-up visits to your home, which supports social distancing for you and the Census worker, and also reduces costs by eliminating follow-up Census visits.

    Here’s how to do it:

    That’s it! It really does only take about ten minutes.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online or Recorded Events:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of April 27, 2020

    ? Good News! As WA social distancing enters its 5th week, we should be thankful for our proactive leadership and can feel good about how well Washington is faring compared to other hard-hit communities. Continue adhering to the governor’s mandate while supporting local businesses as best you can, and check in on your family, friends and neighbors. We all need human interaction, even if it can only be by phone or across the yard for now.

    ? Vote Forward has a plan to reach out to democratic voters in order to take back the US Senate and White House. Yvonne B is hosting a virtual event this Tuesday, Apr 28, 7 – 8 pm. Details and Registration are here. We’ll have a break-out room for brand-new participants, so don’t be shy about joining even if you haven’t yet signed up with Vote Forward.

    ? FairVote Washington is “a non-partisan, non-profit, volunteer-driven champion of electoral reforms like Ranked-Choice Voting that give voters greater choice, a stronger voice, and a more civil, representative democracy that works for all Americans.” We are pleased to welcome executive director Lisa Ayrault to speak during the Indivisible Eastside Online monthly meeting, Sat May 9, 3:30 – 5:00. Please register, even if you’re not 100% sure you can attend. That way we’ll have time to vet everyone beforehand to prevent Zoombombers from entering the meeting.

    ? Washington Indivisible Network (WIN), in partnership with Washington State Indivisible Podcast and other area Indivisible groups such as Olympia and Tacoma has a great line-up of online opportunities to hear directly from candidates for state elections. See WIN’s most recent Newsletter with details and links to register for upcoming Town Halls, as well as recordings of past events.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week. Don’t miss the COVID-19 resource section at the end and the many excellent community resources it includes.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Stop discrimination based on tax filing status

    U.S. citizens who file joint tax returns and are not in the military have been blocked from receiving federal stimulus checks if they are married to immigrants who don’t have Social Security numbers.

    According to the LA Times article, this was also the case in the 2008 federal stimulus package. Denying economic relief to tax-paying US citizens because of their joint tax filing status with non-citizens is clearly discriminatory. Ask your congressperson to rectify this unjust policy in any upcoming Pandemic Response Legislation.

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL
    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I am very concerned about the fact that U.S. citizens who file joint tax returns and are not in the military have been blocked from receiving federal stimulus checks if they are married to an immigrant without a Social Security number.

    Denying economic relief to tax-paying US citizens because of their tax filing status with non-citizens is clearly discriminatory. I urge you to rectify this unjust policy in any upcoming Pandemic Response Legislation.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] Support Tricia Zunker in May 12 WI Special Congressional Election

    From Daily KOS

    Imagine a scenario where no candidate gets the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency. Obviously, that would mean something has gone terribly wrong, but it’s possible, as this map shows. Even without a perfect 269-269 tie, faithless electors or a 3rd party candidate winning a state (Utah?) could result in… a Contingent Election in the US House.

    Here’s how the 12th Amendment lays out the Contingent Election process (emphasis added):

    “…the votes shall be taken by states, the representation from each state having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two-thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice.”

    So each state gets 1 vote. You need 26 votes to win. And each state’s vote is decided by its delegation in the US House (Senators don’t count here).

    As BJ Rudell points out at The Hill, Republicans currently hold the majority in exactly 26 state delegations. And one of those is up for grabs this May in Wisconsin!

    “Since Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Wisc.) retired three months ago, House Republicans have held a 4-3 seat lead in the state — one of 26 state delegations the party controls….

    So if a Republican wins the WI-7 special election in May, the GOP will maintain leads in a majority of state delegations, giving President Donald Trump a definite advantage if no presidential candidate wins 270 electoral votes this year. And if a Democrat wins the Wisconsin seat, that state’s delegation would be evenly split [4-4], giving Republicans control of only 25 states — not enough to select Trump on a party-line vote.”

    Tricia Zunker is a really strong candidate to win that seat! She is President of the Wausau School Board (largest population center in WI-07), a law professor, and a Justice on the Ho-Chunk Nation Supreme Court. Democrats in the district will be riding a wave of momentum from Judge Jill Karofsky’s victory. Voter turnout will be as unpredictable as the April 7 election was. One thing going for us may be that with the recent experience being so fresh on voters’ minds, maybe more of them will vote absentee.

    Action 2a: Donate to support Tricia Zunker in a must-win special Congressional election in WI! The Special Election is on May 12th with nothing else on the ballot and can help stop Trump from back-dooring himself into another four years.

    Action 2b: Write Postcards. If you’re an approved Postcards To Voters writer, contact PostcardsToVoters (via their facebook or text addressbot), and ask for addresses for Tricia Zunker’s campaign. If you’re not already approved, contact Liz S at postcards@indivisibleeastside.com and she can get you set up to write.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [YOU] Continue as, or consider becoming a Democratic Precinct Committee Officer

    Precincts are small geographic areas within a Legislative District. Precinct Committee Officers (PCOs) are the building block of the Democratic Party. They are the grassroots organizing base for all of the Legislative District’s activities. PCOs:

    • Canvass or telephone your precinct in coordination with election strategy at least once a year.
    • Coordinate with campaigns in educating voters and generating interest in the election on behalf of candidates and ballot measures.
    • Attend as many of the monthly legislative district and county organization meetings as possible. Many agenda items are voted on ONLY by PCOs.

    This is a vital way to help Get Out The Vote, and be an important part of the Democratic party. When Indivisibles get involved with the Democratic Party, it moves the party toward being more progressive.

    There are a few ways to become a PCO.

    Let us know if you decide to run for PCO! We’d love to hear from you at hello@indivisibleeatside.com

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of Online, or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of April 20, 2020

    ? April IS the cruelest month. Here is some good news to get us through.

    ? In other good news, we’d like to warmly welcome Kat Pipkin to the Indivisible Eastside Steering committee. Kat came on our radar in 2017 as the owner of a number of inflatable Trump Chickens which she provided to countless rallies including on a boat protesting Robert Mercer’s Yacht on Lake Union and at the University of Washington Medical Center rally to save the ACA. Her skills go well beyond chicken wrangling and currently she’s the Zoom mistress managing a series of Town Halls for candidates in flippable WA LDs as well as candidates for Secretary of State, Treasurer and Commissioner of Public Lands. These town halls are co-hosted by Indivisible Tacoma, Washington Indivisible Network and Washington State Indivisible Podcast and are listed in the calendar section below. We’re thrilled to have Kat’s “get s&*t done” energy in the Indivisible Eastside Steering Committee.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week. Don’t miss the COVID-19 resource section at the end and the many excellent community resources it includes.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Continue Funding World Health Organization

    From Seattle Indivisible

    On Tuesday, in the middle of a global pandemic, Trump announced that he plans to halt all funding to the World Health Organization (WHO) “pending investigation” of their reaction to the spread of COVID-19. This is absurd scapegoating and extremely dangerous. The U.S. is the largest funder of WHO, and such a significant blow to funding may disrupt research into a COVID-19 vaccine, distribution of test kits, and other essential services that WHO is providing in this time of crisis.

    It is unclear how exactly Trump plans to halt funding – he may not have the authority to do so unilaterally, without the approval of Congress. But Republican Senators and Congresspeople have already begun to parrot him, claiming that the WHO is a “propaganda arm of the Chinese government” and should be defunded.

    Let’s make sure that the voice of reason is louder than the clamor of conspiracy and cronyism – call your representatives and let them know that we must continue funding WHO.

    Note: Government offices are running on small crews and working from home to do their part in slowing the spread of COVID-19. Whenever possible, we’ll be emailing rather than calling, to support them in this effort.

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL
    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script (for best results, reframe in your own words):

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I am writing from [CITY, ZIP] in reaction to Trump’s declaration to halt U.S. funding to the World Health Organization. This political scapegoating puts millions of lives in danger and will likely disrupt the WHO’s distribution of test kits and even the development of a vaccine to fight COVID-19. The executive branch does not have unilateral authority to redirect funding – Congress has the power to stop it from doing so. Please do everything you can to make sure that the U.S. continues to fund WHO in this time of crisis and in the future. Thank you.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] Pick a digital Earth Day event to attend

    Compiled by Jan K.

    Digital Earth Day events have been popping up right and left, and there are a wide range to choose from. These events offer great opportunities to learn about not just the environmental movement/climate movement, but movement-building in general, so it’s likely that regardless of your specific interests, you’ll find something out there that’s worth your time to attend. Most events are free, although of course they highlight organizations to consider supporting with a donation if you can. Also, if you’re interested in ways of speaking across ideological divides, look at the event on April 25. Have a good Earth Week online!

    • April 21, 11:30 am-12:30 pm: Climate Anxiety, Staying Engaged Without Getting Overwhelmed. Dr. Jennifer Atkinson of UW Bothell will lead a discussion about how people can channel concern over climate change into action. Jennifer Ewing (staff member in City of Bellevue) will also be there – it’s a City of Bellevue event originally planned to be held at Bellevue College. Register at: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tZQrcOqtpzgtBBLmsqVK26ZvqzcU1fKQhA
    • April 22-24: Earth Day Live is a three-day online event to “Strike, divest, and vote to save humanity and our planet.”
      • Day 1, Wednesday, April 22: Earth Day!
        • WA Youth Climate Strike is hosting a series of one-hour trainings from 10 am – 4 pm.
        • Sunrise Tacoma is hosting three live streamed Power Hour webinars from 3-6 pm focusing on the ways that the Green New Deal would bring about environmental, social, and economic justice.
        • U.S. Climate Strike is hosting Earth Day Live, a three-day livestream (April 22-24) that will include speakers, musical performances, and digital actions
      • Day 2, Thursday, April 23: Stop the Money Pipeline Day of Action
      • Day 3, Friday, April 24: Day of Political Action and Voter Engagement
    • April 23, 11:30 am-12:30 pm – CITY OF BELLEVUE EVENT: Environmental Stewardship Plan Town Hall. Jennifer Ewing, the city’s Environmental Stewardship Program Manager, will talk about how the city is addressing climate change and answer questions. (Jennifer Ewing said she might allow some extra time at the end for Q&A – hopefully that’s the case.) Register HERE.
    • April 23, 7 pm: “Climate Science on Tap” event (online), Climate Change (Mis)Information: Communicating Facts and Responding to Falsehoods. Sign up at the preceding link. Cascadia Climate Action organizes Climate Science on Tap events from time to time, and in general maintains a great calendar of climate-related events.
    • April 25, 1 – 4 pm: Citizen Climate Lobby’s Earth Day event includes keynote speaker Dr. Katharine Hayhoe, a world-renowned climate scientist, evangelical Christian, and host of the podcast, “Global Weirding” Click the link for more info – the workshops in the event are great for learning more about talking across ideological divides!

    ? Did you sign up for one of these? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [YOU] Stand with Washington Students and Decline to sign Referendum-90

    From Naral Pro Choice WA and Planned Parenthood Northwest

    Anti-sex ed activists are trying to collect 130,000 signatures by early June for their campaign to repeal comprehensive sex ed (SB 5395) with Referendum 90.

    SB 5395 requires all public schools to offer medically accurate age-appropriate comprehensive sex education. SB 5395 requires the curriculum to be LGBTQIA inclusive, and to teach affirmative consent and healthy relationships.

    We need you to speak up right now to protect sex ed and keep R-90 off the ballot.

    Action: Use Naral Pro-Choice Washington’s Site to declare you stand with the health and well-being of Washington students and that you refuse to sign this dangerous ballot measure.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of In-Person, Online, or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of April 13, 2020

    ? Way to do the COVID-pivot, Indivisibles! We had 40 people on our Group Meeting Zoom call Saturday. If you weren’t able to attend, we highly recommend you take 30 minutes and listen to State Rep. Gael Tarleton. She filled us in on how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the state budget and what plans are in place to address the shortfall. See the Meeting Notes, for the resources for COVID related resources and remote GOTV that were discussed. Next meeting will be Saturday May 9th, 3:30 – 5 on Zoom.

    ? A personal note from Louise: When I joined Indivisible Eastside back in March 2017 I became the “group action” lead responsible for the weekly actions newsletter and in-person events. I was a committee of one, and the learning curve was steep so there were no events outside our monthly meetings for quite some time. For the newsletter there was little or no policy direction from Indivisible National. We did the best we could, relying heavily on Seattle Indivisible for actions.

    We thought the 2018 and 2020 elections would never get here, yet here we are – 6 months from the presidential election, bruised, discouraged at times, disgusted most of the time. I can’t tell you how impressed I am with every Indivisible leader and member I’ve connected with – the actions we take collectively make a difference, and collectively, we keep each other going.

    In 2017 we were all compelled to act as the onslaught of the first 100 days and beyond smacked us over the head EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. We had little direction and were “building the airplane while flying”. Today, so many airplanes have been built that there are perhaps too many options for action now. For me, this can sometimes lead to analysis paralysis. “Do I commit to this org’s platform for textbanking, or should I do that org’s phonebanking?”

    Each week we share with you three actions that we know will make a difference and will take you no more than 10 minutes each. Some may not make complete sense to you (why am I contacting my Democratic leader who I know has already supported this bill?), but believe me, when many of us take these actions, we will have a profound effect. One way you can help ME stay motivated, is to click the “Click here to be counted” links after each action.

    But, outside of these I recommend you to choose two ongoing ways to safeguard our democracy and dedicate a few hours a week to them. Maybe one is to attend some of the increasingly available online opportunities listed below. Another might be regularly text-banking, postcarding, or phonebanking for an organization that helps people register for vote-by-mail. It doesn’t matter what you choose – just stick with it every week that you can. See the Calendar of Events below for online opportunities and  Saturday’s meeting notes for details on how to get involved from your home.

    Thank you for your passion, commitment and dedication, as we ramp up in these next 6 months to save our democracy!

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week. Don’t miss the COVID-19 resource section with 5 new resources.

    ✊ Action 1 – [PORT COMMISSIONERS] Reject Collaboration with Customs and Border Protection 

    From the ACLU

    On March 10, 2020, Port of Seattle Commissioners voted unanimously to collaborate with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in rolling out its facial recognition program at SeaTac International Airport, ignoring the many privacy, civil liberties, and community organizations that urged the Port to reject participation.

    Unlike other forms of identity verification, facial recognition technology can enable undetectable, persistent government surveillance on a massive scale. As this technology becomes increasingly widespread, the government can use it to track individuals’ movements and associations, posing grave risks to privacy and civil liberties.

    Use the ACLU Site to urge your elected Port Commissioners to reverse the decision authorizing the Port to work collaboratively with CBP.

    Take Action Here to message Port Commissioners Sam Cho, Stephanie Bowman, Ryan Calkins, Fred Felleman, and Peter Steinbrueck.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Fight for Fair Elections in the Time of COVID

    From Seattle Indivisible and Indivisible.org

    The current pandemic is uprooting everything – our day-to-day routines, our sources of income, and the function of many institutions that we all rely upon. It is an uncertain time, and unfortunately it’s also an election year that could reelect the worst president America has ever seen. We cannot let COVID-19 uproot a fair democracy. We must ensure that fair elections can still take place even if people are scared to leave their homes, and we must give states as much time as possible to prepare. This is especially important because some states are more prepared than others.

    Senator Elizabeth Warren introduced a new plan to assist states in expanding vote-by-mail for this November’s election. Her plan builds on the election protection bill previously introduced by Senators Wyden and Klobuchar and asks for $4 billion for election protection efforts. Senator Warren’s plan would:

    1. Expand early in-person voting and no-excuse absentee vote-by-mail to all states.
    2. Require states and jurisdictions to establish a publicly available contingency plan to enable eligible Americans to vote in the case of an emergency.
    3. Require the Election Assistance Commission to create a domestic version of the federal write-in absentee ballot.
    4. Require that all states provide envelopes with prepaid postage to all voters who request a voter registration application, absentee ballot application, or absentee ballot, and require that all states offer and accept online absentee ballot applications.
    5. Require absentee ballots to be counted if postmarked or signed before the close of the polls on Election Day.
    6. Provide money to states to implement these reforms.

    Email your Senators and Representative to demand they fight to get the Warren plan included in the next coronavirus relief package.  Note: Government offices are running on small crews and working from home to do their part in slowing the spread of COVID-19. Whenever possible, we’ll be emailing rather than calling, to support them in this effort.

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL
    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script *:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I am writing from [CITY, ZIP] because I am concerned about the impact that the current pandemic might have on elections in November. States need help to ensure elections are safe and fair. To this end, Senator Warren has introduced a new Election Protection plan to assist states in expanding vote-by-mail. I urge [REP/SENATOR] to support this plan and fight to include the protections it lays out in the next coronavirus relief package. We are running out of time before the November elections. Thank you.”

    *When emailing, it is more effective if you can make the above points in your own words, rather than cutting and pasting. However, a cut and paste is better than no email at all!

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [Governor Inslee] Use Executive Power to Save Lives

    From the ACLU

    As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across Washington and the nation, Governor Inslee must take action to prevent an outbreak in Washington prisons, where close quarters make social distancing impossible.  Amid a COVID-19 outbreak in the Monroe Correctional Complex penitentiary, Gov. Jay Inslee announced Thursday afternoon that in the coming days some state prisoners could be released to prevent unnecessary illnesses and deaths, as well as to free up space within the complex, so that prisoners are less packed in. It has taken nearly a month, 12 confirmed cases among staff and inmates, and a near prison riot for him to make this statement.

    Other states have begun the process of expedited parole or clemency, often for nonviolent offenders. Georgia’s Board of Pardons and Paroles began reviewing the potential for clemency release of incarcerated people within 180 days of release for nonviolent offenses. California’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is expediting parole release for those incarcerated on nonviolent offenses with less than 60 days left on their sentence.

    Use the ACLU site to send Governor Inslee a message and urge him to do everything he can to keep Washington prisons safe for inmates and workers.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of In-Person, Online, or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of April 6, 2020

    ? Our next Group Meeting will be on Sat. April 11, 3:30-5:00. Once again, it will be online, via Zoom. Rest assured that we are taking significant precautions to ensure the security of the meeting, following recent hacking attempts at public Zoom meetings. One of the changes will be that we are asking you to pre-register if you would like to join the meeting. We may ask for some basic identifying information. Look for a confirmation email with a link just for you, then please join the call a few minutes early to ensure that you are logged in on time.

    Register for the April 11 Zoom meeting

    Agenda:

    • How to do Get Out the Vote during the Shutdown (Swing Left letter writing, phonebanking)
    • State Representative Gael Tarleton will join us from 3:45-4:15 for a wrap up on the legislative session in Olympia and what has changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There will be an opportunity for questions. To save time, you can ask them ahead of time when you register.

    Note, if you’re unable to attend Saturday’s meeting, Rep Tarleton will be presenting similar material via the Washington Indivisible Network Monday April 6 at 7:30. You must register here to attend that meeting.

    ? Please remember to fill out your Census form! The more people that fill them out online, the less effort and expense will have to be spent on in-person followup, which has been made much more difficult because of COVID-19. It just takes a few minutes!

    You can fill out your 2020 Census form online here. (Have your 12-digit census ID handy. This is found in the materials mailed to you or left at your door.) If you or anyone you know is not able to respond online, it can also be done by phone. The Census is safe to fill out and the confidentiality of the information you provide to the Census Bureau is protected by federal law.

    ? Postcards to Voters Update

    In-person writing sessions are cancelled for now but there are a couple of ways that you can still do this important Get Out the Vote activity (although you should obviously not do it if you feel even slightly sick). There are plenty of races that need attention right now.

    • If you have not worked with Postcards to Voters before, you will need to sign up at https://postcardstovoters.org and go through their registration process.
    • You can write postcards independently, ordering supplies and addresses online.
    • You can write postcards at home and participate in Elizabeth Standal’s virtual postcard party, as a way to boost morale and build community. You would need to order supplies online, with the option of having Elizabeth order the addresses for you. If you are interested in that, please email her at standalem@hotmail.com for more information.
    • Supply Guide:
    • NOTE that according to NPR, the coronavirus can live on hard surfaces for up to 3 days (for cardboard, 24 hours) under typical indoor conditions. For this reason, after you get your items, we recommend setting them aside for 3 days before writing on them, for the safety of you and your family members. As always, wash hands and surfaces and avoid face-touching. More info here: The New Coronavirus Can Live On Surfaces For 2-3 Days – Here’s How To Clean Them

    ? Self-care is particularly important in these trying times. Apart from the obvious recommendations to eat healthy food (but not too much!), get enough sleep and some daily exercise, it’s also important that we think about our mental health.

    • This article explains very well what many of us may be going through. We hope that you will find it helpful.
    • Our friends at the Washington State Indivisible Podcast also have this previously recorded Q&A session with therapist and Indivisible leader Jennifer Young, which may answer some of your questions about coping with anxiety and depression in the current situation.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You, especially if you are in the science field] Tell the EPA Why Restricting Science Is Disastrous to Our Health and Environment

    From the Union of Concerned Scientists

    As the country is understandably focused on the coronavirus pandemic, the Trump administration has chosen this moment to release its long-planned proposal for the restricted science rule (also referred to as censored science).

    The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed rule would arbitrarily exclude or give less attention to many scientific studies—including thousands of public health and epidemiological studies—that the agency can use to make informed policy decisions under major public health and environmental laws.

    The EPA announced it was opening a 30-day comment period (April 17th deadline) for the rule and that they would not be holding any virtual public hearings.

    The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and other groups submitted requests for an extension of the comment period given this pandemic. The EPA has refused. Given EPA’s failure, UCS will conduct a public hearing on Tuesday, April 14. There are two ways that you can help.

    1. Provide a written comment to the EPA before the April 17th deadline. You can use their guide to help shape your comment.
    2. Provide oral testimony during the Union of Concerned Scientists’ virtual public hearing on April 14th – register to attend here, and use the UCSUSA guide to help shape your comment.

    ⭐️ Extra credit: If you are a public health professional and are unable to write a comment right now but still want your voice to be heard, we recommend going to the Federal Register docket, and providing a short statement that includes stating your role in the field, that you would have liked to provide a comment, but you do not have the ability to do so as you are focusing on addressing the pandemic, and that 30 days during this time of crisis is insufficient and has hindered your ability to participate. Of course, please use your own language and reasoning that is appropriate for you.

    ? Why is this important? EPA must address public comments to a rule, AND should this rule be adopted, legal challenges to it are extremely likely, and your comments are tremendously valuable in that process.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [Members of Congress] Call for a People’s Bailout

    From Indivisible National

    Congress has now passed three coronavirus-related response bills. While these bills have temporarily filled in important gaps in our paid sick leave, unemployment insurance, and health care systems, they are grossly insufficient given the magnitude of the current crisis. What’s worse, in return for helping people who are desperately in need of support, Trump and his Republican allies demanded hundreds of billions of dollars in unaccountable corporate bailouts.

    This crisis isn’t over and soon Congress will likely have to pass at least one additional response package. We need to continue demanding that any coronavirus response legislation puts people’s needs ahead of corporate profits — in other words, we need a People’s Bailout. Specifically, we’re asking Congress:

    1. Protect our democratic processes while protecting each other.
    2. Make health the top priority, for all people, with no exceptions.
    3. Provide economic relief directly to the people.
    4. Rescue workers and communities, not corporate executives.
    5. Make a down payment on a regenerative economy, while preventing future crises.

    These principles are backed by over 500 groups and were introduced in a letter from Reps. Dingell, Ocasio-Cortez, Jayapal, Pocan, and Lee in the House and Senators Markey and Duckworth in the Senate.

    Congress must fix the gaps in the previous bills, and make sure that the response to both the outbreak and the likely recession that will accompany it make both less likely to happen in the future.

    Indivisible National has developed an easy tool that you can use to send an email to your representatives using their template or your own words. Use this link to email your House representative and both of your senators with one click:

    Indivisible Contact Your Members of Congress

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Help gather signatures for an Eastside PUD

    You may have heard that there is a campaign to set up a Public Utility District on the Eastside to replace Puget sound Energy. We have heard about it at several of our in-person meetings and have been able to help to gather signatures to get the proposal on the ballot in November. They need 35,000 from registered voters by the end of June. Because of the COVID-19 virus shutdown, signature gathering has had to stop but there is now a way that you can help the campaign to reach their goal from your home.

    If you are willing to sign, collect signatures from your immediate family, and/or a few neighbors or friends (while practicing appropriate social distancing), please email Volunteer Coordinator, Barbra Chevalier (barbra@ekc-pud.org), with your name and mailing address. She will then mail you a petition along with a self-addressed, stamped, return envelope and email you instructions for gathering signatures. We need petitions returned by June 15; the petition does not have to be completely filled with signatures before you return it! If you have any family or friends who would be willing to do the same, please share this email with them, or direct them to Barbra.

    Detailed information about the campaign, including a map of the proposed district, along with answers to frequently asked questions, can be found on the campaign website at: https://ekc-pud.org

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of In-Person, Online, or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of March 30, 2020

    Now that we have had several weeks’ experience of social distancing and staying at home, the novelty has definitely worn off. Hopefully, though, we are realizing that this is how it needs to be for the next few weeks, maybe months, for the spread of the virus to be contained. It is indisputable that the procedures that we have in place now will save lives and help our health providers to deal with the pandemic in as efficient a manner as possible.

    We are so grateful for the labor and sacrifices of all of our essential workers, and appreciate that we have a Governor who bases his decisions on science and data, despite severe provocation. Let’s also be thankful that we have Members of Congress who are doing everything that they can to deal with the situation, which is seriously exacerbated by the incompetence at the White House. We will get through this, and November is not that far away. Let’s persevere and work together to play our part!

    ? Postcards to Voters Update

    We have been participating in two different postcard writing sessions for several months, on Fridays in Bellevue and alternate Sundays in Lake Forest Park. In-person writing sessions are obviously cancelled for now but there are a couple of ways that you can still do this important Get Out the Vote activity (although you should obviously not do it if you feel even slightly sick). There are plenty of races that need attention right now. For example, we have recently been writing to support an important Supreme Court race in Wisconsin.

    • If you have not worked with Postcards to Voters before, you will need to sign up at https://postcardstovoters.org and go through their registration process.
    • You can write postcards independently, ordering supplies and addresses online.
    • You can write postcards at home and participate in Elizabeth Standal’s virtual postcard party, as a way to boost morale and build community. You would need to order supplies online, with the option of having Elizabeth order the addresses for you. If you are interested in that, please email her at standalem@hotmail.com for more information.
    • Supply Guide:
    • NOTE that according to NPR, the coronavirus can live on hard surfaces for up to 3 days (for cardboard, 24 hours) under typical indoor conditions. For this reason, after you get your items, we recommend setting them aside for 3 days before writing on them, for the safety of you and your family members. As always, wash hands and surfaces and avoid face-touching. More info here: The New Coronavirus Can Live On Surfaces For 2-3 Days – Here’s How To Clean Them

    ? One important reminder – don’t forget to fill out your Census form! This chart shows where response rates stood on March 24. The more people that fill them out online, the less effort and expense will have to be spent on in-person followup, which has been made much more difficult because of COVID-19. It just takes a few minutes!

    You can fill out your 2020 Census form online here (Have your 12-digit census ID handy. This is found in the materials mailed to you or left at your door)

    ? It’s difficult being cut off from gathering with friends and enjoying the cultural activities that our area has to offer. Please check out the Calendar section for some options to enjoy events that are now being streamed, both local and from further afield.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Members of Congress] Ask your Senators and Representative to support legislation to help the US Post Office

    From MSN.com

    Democratic Representatives Gerry Connolly (Chairman of the Subcommittee on Government Operations) and Carolyn Maloney (Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform) have sounded the alarm this week about the financial viability of the Postal Service, saying that it could be in danger of shutting down by June. This is due to the impact of the Coronavirus severely restricting the volume of items being sent via the mail as businesses have closed. Critical supplies, such as shipments of prescription drugs, could be stuck, mail voting in the upcoming November election could be stymied, and hundreds of thousands of postal employees could be out of work.

    A Coronavirus emergency bill introduced on March 23rd by Congressional Democrats included an allocation for $25 Billion for emergency operations and elimination of the current debt. It would also have required the Postal Service to prioritize medical deliveries and allowed it flexibility to meet crisis conditions. However, the Coronavirus bill that finally passed on March 27th was based on a different bill and did not include any of those provisions, although it did include the possibility of a $10B loan from the Treasury. Representative Connolly believes that Trump personally vetoed the original provisions. This is in line with the Republicans’ vision for the privatization of the USPS and is completely unacceptable. The Postal Service needs the financial support of the government as urgently as many of the other entities that have received help. Every community in America is served by the USPS, which would not be the case if it was privatized.

    Please contact your Members of Congress and ask them to support HR6379, the original Democratic bill. If that does not move through the House, they must pledge to support the Postal Service through any other legislative means possible.

    Due to the representatives’ staff now working remotely, our suggestion is to email rather than call the representatives’ offices.

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL
    • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st): EMAIL
    • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th): EMAIL
    • Rep. Adam Smith (9th): EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. I am greatly concerned by recent reports from Representative Gerry Connolly and Representative Carolyn Maloney about the current financial viability of the Postal Service, and their concerns that it could run out of money by this summer. I urge you to support the provisions to support the Postal Service that were included in HR 6379. If that legislation does not progress, it is critical that another source of funding be found in order to protect the agency. This country is depending on the Post Office to continue to serve all of its communities with deliveries of goods and services, including medications.“

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Support Undocumented Workers and their families who will be excluded from support in the Coronavirus Bill

    From Washington Dream Coalition, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, and the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network

    The recent stimulus package passed by Congress will provide almost no relief to undocumented persons, even if they are paying taxes, and may even exclude many mixed status families. Their U.S. citizen children will be deprived of vital aid if the head of their household, or anyone in their family’s tax return, files with an ITIN, which is a tax designation often used by undocumented workers who do not have a social security number but are still required to pay taxes. As unemployment insurance, health insurance, and most safety net programs already exclude undocumented individuals, Congress has shut another door on undocumented Washingtonians.

    To support our undocumented families, the Washington Dream Coalition, in partnership with Scholarship Junkies, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, and Washington Immigrants Right Solidarity Network is fundraising through a GoFundMe Charity campaign. This will be managed by Scholarship Junkies, a registered 501(c)(3) to provide financial relief to undocumented individuals in Washington State.

    Their goal is to raise $100,000 to support at least 65 undocumented individuals in Washington State. Please consider donating to the fund to support our undocumented families.

    Contributions can be made at www.scholarshipjunkies.org/relief. This will be a tax-deductible donation.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Read some Good News!

    We normally share Good News items at our monthly meetings. In the absence of in-person meetings, we thought that we’d share them here with you.

    Feb 13 – Native Americans defeat GOP’s racist voter ID law in North Dakota

    Feb 18 – Federal court rules that Border Patrol cannot arbitrarily search our electronic devices

    Feb 20 – Mississippi six week abortion ban struck down by federal judge

    Feb 21 – Greyhound to stop allowing immigration checks on buses

    Feb 26 – Attorney General Ferguson “ready to take on Facebook” over alleged campaign finance violations

    Feb 28 – House panel launches inquiry into William Barr over possible interference

    Mar 1 – Wisconsin appeals court overturns ruling ordering voter purge

    Mar 4 – Virginia Is First Southern State to Ban Conversion Therapy for Minors

    Mar 9 – Judge blocks Trump administration effort to allow release of 3-D printed ghost guns in AG Ferguson lawsuit

    Mar 14 – Judge blocks rule that would have kicked 700,000 people off SNAP

    Mar 20 – Judge Rules Against Trump’s Attempt to Log in America’s Largest National Forest

    Mar 25 – Court rejects Michael Cohen’s plea to cut short prison sentence

    Mar 25 – KUOW stops airing live White House briefings so that they can be fact checked before broadcasting

    Mar 26 – Judge orders environmental review of Dakota access pipeline

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of In-Person, Online, or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date:

    • Sat Apr 11, 3:30 – 5:30 pm IE Group Meeting April – ONLINE
    • May 11-15 – Filing Dates for Elected office including Precinct Committee Officer.
    • Sat, Jun 6, 6-9 pm, Eastside Democrats Dinner, Hilton Bellevue – Registration now open – Join the Indivisible Eastside table!

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of March 23, 2020

    ? It’s hard to know where to start with this week’s news. We are all experiencing something unprecedented in our lifetimes and it can be exhausting to keep up with the constant news and advice. We hope that you are able to practice healthy and safe protocols and are as set as anyone can be for what may lie ahead. We are all figuring this out as we go along but one thing is for sure – we’ll do a lot better when we help each other out, albeit from a distance.

    Further on in the Actions section there are specific ways that we can help organizations in our area but if anyone individually feels that they could use some help that they have not been able to find, please reach out. If we can’t help we may be able to put you in touch with someone who can. We are all in this together!

    We would like to share this here (author unknown):

    When you go out and see the empty streets, the empty stadiums, the empty train platforms, don’t say to yourself, “It looks like the end of the world.”

    What you’re seeing is love in action. What you’re seeing, in that negative space, is how much we do care for each other, for our grandparents, for our immuno-compromised brothers and sisters, for people we will never meet.

    People will lose jobs over this. Some will lose their businesses. And some will lose their lives. All the more reason to take a moment, when you’re out on your walk, or on your way to the store, or just watching the news, to look into the emptiness and marvel at all of that love.

    Let it fill you and sustain you.

    It isn’t the end of the world. It is the most remarkable act of global solidarity we may ever witness.

    ? One important reminder – don’t forget to fill out your census form!

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US SENATE] Demand Senators resign for profiting from COVID-19 insider trading

    From 5calls.org

    Despite publicly downplaying the coronavirus crisis, several Senators made massive stock sales weeks before the market crashed over pandemic fears.

    Update from Heather Cox Richardson

    There are three Senators whose names have come up in discussions of insider trading, but whose transactions appear legitimate. They are Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), and Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI). Feinstein did not attend the briefing where the senators heard of the dangers of the coronavirus, her holdings are in a blind trust and her sales were in unrelated stocks, and she lost money. Inhofe had been systematically selling stocks for a while, so his sale of stocks on January 27 after receiving a classified briefing was actually not unusual. Johnson, too, had been selling stocks and continued to sell after the market began dropping.

    On Wednesday, March 18th, the same Republican senators who made oddly prescient stock sales opposed an amendment to expand paid sick leave to millions of Americans.

    Senators and any other political representatives who have profited from insider knowledge of the coronavirus crisis while misleading the public must resign immediately.

    Due to the representatives’ staff now working remotely, our suggestion is to email rather than call the representatives’ offices.

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m writing to express my outrage over reports that Senator Burr and Senator Loeffler sold stocks prior to the coronavirus-related market crash while publicly downplaying the viruses’ seriousness. These stock sales illustrate that the senators knew the seriousness of coronavirus despite their statements and votes to the contrary.

    I ask Senator [NAME] to urge her colleagues to resign over this unethical behavior.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Help your Eastside neighbors

    Many community organizations are struggling with funding even more than usual at the moment because they have had to cancel or postpone fundraisers, while at the same time serving increased needs due to the health and economic crisis.

    If you can donate even a small amount over the next weeks and months, it will help them to keep serving our Eastside neighbors who need assistance. While some of these organizations are based in Bellevue, most of them serve a wider area. If you know of other Eastside agencies who could use some help, please let us know.

    Rent Support/Eviction Prevention (these organizations provide financial support towards rent)

    Housing

    Shelters

    Meals

    Community Centers, Early, School-Age and Family Learning, Before and After School Care

    Mentors and Family Support

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – Covid-19 / Coronavirus Resources and Ways to Help

    Compiled by Jennifer Ho

    Not everyone is able to take preventive measures due to various circumstances (medical, financial, ability). We encourage as many as possible to take whatever action they can within their ability, to assist however they can those who are struggling, and to help mitigate the risk for our vulnerable populations. As much as possible, use official sources of information and do not pass along information unless you’re very confident of the source.

    Also, keep in mind if ordering delivery service, if you’re feeling even slightly unwell, include a note to your delivery person to leave your order outside your door as a courtesy to their health.

    =???????????=

    =??????=

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    ? Did you take one of these actions? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of In-Person, Online, or Recorded Events:

    For fun, here is a list of upcoming livestreamed events for our area.

    Save the Date:

    • Sat Apr 11, 3:30 – 5:30 pm IE Group Meeting April – ONLINE
    • May 11-15 – Filing Dates for Elected office including Precinct Committee Officer.
    • Sat, Jun 6, 6-9 pm, Eastside Democrats Dinner, Hilton Bellevue – Registration now open – Join the Indivisible Eastside table!

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of March 16, 2020

    ? Indivisible Eastside has an involved and passionate grassroots community, and community health and safety is of utmost importance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Self-care is part of effective activism, so please stay informed and look after your loved ones and neighbors! We’ll beat the spread together (staying 6 feet apart at least)!

    You may have seen variations of the Flatten The Curve graphic to encourage social distancing to slow the spread of COVID-19 so that health facilities are not overwhelmed. Here’s another visualization. However, lessons learned from China and Italy predict very serious outcomes in the US with mere social distancing. Here is a compelling argument to practice social isolation, as much as possible in the coming weeks rather than simple social distancing.

    See action 3 below for concrete ways you can stay safe, while helping your community and local businesses.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US SENATE] Support real FISA Reform!

    From Jon Pincus – Seattle Indivisible

    Last week, the House passed a very weak FISA “reform” bill that extends the administration’s warrantless wiretapping powers until 2023 without introducing significant reforms. Senator Ron Wyden points out that the bill the House passed does nothing to address the Trump administration’s claim that they can spy on Americans with no judicial or congressional oversight. And that’s only one of the many problems with it — Republican Senators Rand Paul and Mike Lee think it’s so bad they’re urging Trump to veto it. But Attorney General Barr likes it, and Mitch McConnell is not planning on allowing any amendments in the Senate.

    Fortunately there’s an alternative — with bipartisan support. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) have introduced the USA FREEDOM Extension and Amici Curiae Reform Act (S. 3420) combines a short three-month extension of FISA with significant reform of the “amicus curiae” process, which lets experts provide information to the court.

    Voting may start as early as Monday, so please contact your Senators ASAP and ask them to

    • OPPOSE H.R. 6172, The USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020
    • SUPPORT S. 3420, USA FREEDOM Extension and Amici Curiae Reform Act

    To reduce burden on our Senators’ staff during the pandemic, we’re asking you to email instead of call:

    • Sen. Patty Murray: EMAIL
    • Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Please OPPOSE H.R. 6172, the USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020. It doesn’t do anywhere near enough to reform the badly-flawed FISA process, and in some ways even makes things worse. H.R. 6172 doesn’t close the loophole that allows Trump to spy on any American without a warrant. And please SUPPORT S. 3420, the USA FREEDOM Extension and Amici Curiae Reform Act.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [Gov. Jay Inslee] State Legislative Action Recap – we’re not quite done.

    The Washington State Legislature adjourned on time March 12th. Thank you so much to all who called or emailed their legislators this 2020 legislative session! There were several bills where actions of Indivisible members around the state really did help to pass (or prevented passage).

    We’re sharing some bills below we are excited about, and an ask to help a bill over the finish line. See the graphic above for more highlights from the Washington Senate Democrats.

    • Increasing Opportunities for Young Voters (SB6313). Young voters who participate early in their adulthood are more likely to vote consistently as they get older.
    • Concerning Open Courts (HB2567). No one should be afraid to go to court for fear of deportation.
    • Aligning state greenhouse gas emission limits with current science (HB2311). State officials and agencies (such as the Dept. of Ecology) and regional and local government agencies can use this to back them up as they take stronger action — they can point to their obligations to help meet state limits.
    • Reducing pollution from plastic bags by establishing minimum state standards for the use of bags at retail establishments (SB5323). We must reduce our dependence on plastic.
    • Concerning the management and oversight of personal data (SB6281). We opposed this bill and thanks to the hard work of a bunch of Indivisibles and other consumer advocates this bill DID NOT PASS! Big tech really wanted this bill, and it came down to a few Senators (including our own Manka Dhingra!) who stood up for the consumers! Please thank her: Sen. Manka Dhingra (45th LD): Olympia 360-786-7672 | EMAIL
    • Finally – Concerning Comprehensive Sexual Health Education (SB5395). All children should have access to medically accurate, age appropriate sex ed with an emphasis on consent and inclusion. Law enforcement and educators support this bill. This bill has some vocal opponents pressuring the Governor not to sign it. Please call Gov. Inslee’s office to let him know that you support this bill!

    Governor Inslee’s Office: 360-902-4111 | ONLINE

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, this is [NAME] from [CITY]. Please sign SB 5395 into law. Sexual health education is an important component in keeping our children healthy and safe. I fully support this bill and hope that the Governor signs it into law as soon as possible. Thank you.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – Covid-19 / Coronavirus Resources and Ways to Help

    Compiled by Jennifer Ho

    Not everyone is able to take preventive measures due to various circumstances (medical, financial, ability). We encourage as many as possible to take whatever action they can within their ability, to assist however they can those who are struggling, and to help mitigate the risk for our vulnerable populations. As much as possible, use official sources of information and do not pass along information unless you’re very confident of the source.

    Also, keep in mind if ordering delivery service, if you’re feeling even slightly unwell, include a note to your delivery person to leave your order outside your door as a courtesy to their health.

    #WeGotThisSeattle

    =???????????=

    King County Public Health

    WA State Dept of Health, CDC, WHO

    COVID-19 Fact Sheets (multiple languages)

    Watch Out for Fake Online Coronavirus map – City of Bellevue Facebook post

    Full List of WA news sites with no paywall for COVID-19 coverage

    ✅ The Seattle Times

    ✅ The News Tribune

    ✅ KUOW Public Radio

    ✅ Crosscut

    ✅ KNKX Public Radio

    ✅ Northwest Public Broadcasting

    King County Library System – access paywalled news sites with your library card – KCLS Facebook post

    =??????=

    What to do if you have confirmed or suspected COVID-19

    Supplies List (buy only what you need for 14 days)

    Enroll for health coverage:

    Ask Your Pharmacies About Prescription Home Delivery

    =???????=

    Employment Security for Affected Workers and Businesses – WA employment security department

    Employment Security Scenarios and Benefits Chart – WA employment security department

    Support local business – #SpendLikeItMatters! – intentionalist

    Support local business – Ongoing list of Shops, Services & Restaurants with deals to keep their revenue stream going – King5

    Donate to local food banks in WA foodpantries.org

    Donate to the Seattle Foundation COVID-19 Response Fund to “provide flexible resources to organizations in our region working with communities who are disproportionately impacted by coronavirus and the economic consequences of this outbreak”

    Volunteer to deliver community mutual aid support in the Puget Sound area – mutual aid solidarity network

    Or donate to the fund to deliver community mutual aid support in the Puget Sound area

    Donate blood to assist with shortages – BloodworksNW, RedCross Blood donation

    Contact large organizations (including your own employers) and call on them if they are not already doing so to protect income for hourly and wage workers/contractors/vendors, update paid sick leave policies, and support gig workers:

    ? Did you take one of these actions? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of In-Person, Online, or Recorded Events:

    Save the Date:

    • May 11-15 – Filing Dates for Elected office including Precinct Committee Officer.
    • Sat, Jun 6, 6-9 pm, Eastside Democrats Dinner, Hilton Bellevue – Registration now open – Join the Indivisible Eastside table!

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of March 9, 2020

    ? Our online Group Meeting Saturday was a great example of adaptation to circumstances. Thank you to the 28 people who participated. See the March 7th Online Group meeting notes with a video and audio link to a recording of the presentation and discussion on Socialism. We hope we will be able to hold the April 11 IE Group Meeting April in person at the Bellevue Library. We will also reschedule the SwingLeft Letter Writing event once we’ve gotten the all clear.

    ? Thursday’s Get Out The Vote overpass action drew 16 people to message VOTE VOTE VOTE! / DEADLINE 3/10!. The Covid-19 virus had a silver lining for commuters – there were hardly any! So we switched to VOTE VOTE 3/10! See the video on YouTube.

    ? Speaking of voting – we know you know the deadline to turn in your ballot is Tuesday. Remind a friend, neighbor or child to make sure to sign their ballot and put in a drop-box, or hand in at the post office. Mailing from a postal box is not guaranteed to be postmarked in time.

    ? Micheala G is out protesting every Wednesday from 4:30 – 5:30 at the Redmond Downtown Park. Email soec@indivisibleeastside.com to connect with Michaela and join her – she looks lonely!

    ? Thanks to all of you who are participating in our new way to estimate how many people are taking our actions. Last week’s numbers were 3 times higher than the previous weeks. When you click the link below each action (after you take the action ?) it will increase a counter to let us know. And you’ll get a new GIF reward each week (it doesn’t capture your name or your computer’s IP address). ?

    ? Feeling isolated due to the ongoing precautions against the spread of the COVID-19 virus? Here are 3 at home actions that will connect you with people around the country this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [YOU] Help Arizona Democrats sign up for the Permanent Early Voter List (AKA Vote by Mail)

    From Code Blue Washington

    The Grassroots Democrats HQ virtual phone banks are making calls to registered Democrats in Arizona, asking them to sign up for the Permanent Early Voter List (PEVL). Once signed up they will receive their ballot 30 days before Election Day by mail. PEVL voters in Arizona are also significantly more likely to vote than non-PEVL voters. While non-PEVL voters often have turnout rates under 50%, PEVL voters are consistently in the 70-90% range. Your efforts on this phonebank can have a significant impact on Mark Kelly’s Senatorial race this November.

    How to get started with Phonebanking

    1. On your computer or tablet go to https://grassrootsdems.org/ and sign up to “Phone Bank Now” in the Volunteer Menu.
    2. Look for an email reply and click on the link.
    3. Inside the Google Document “Daily Action Page” find the Virtual Phone Bank links.
    4. Choose “Legislative District 28 / 20 – Permanent Early Voting List – PEVL”
    5. Log in with Action ID and you’ll see your first voter on the screen!

    Need more details about how to log in? Read details on Page 2 of the AZ 2020 Phone Bank document.

    FYI, in January and February members of Code Blue Washington have used this phonebank to contact 220 voters – 126 of whom have commited to signing up for PEVL! Let’s help them out!

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] Get involved in Indivisible’s fight to take back the Senate by supporting the Payback Project

    Indivisible has a plan that will help to defeat ten Republican Senators and lay the groundwork for a more democratic Congress in November. Since launching the Payback Project, volunteers have sent thousands and thousands of texts and have connected hundreds of new volunteers with groups on the ground in key senate states. There are still a lot more texts to go! Textbanking is like canvassing or phonebanking, but for text messages, using an online platform that doesn’t reveal your personal phone number. You can sign up for the next Webinar training session on Tues March 17th at 5:00 pm here or send a donation to help the work. Please check out this creative tool to help flip the Senate!

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [YOU] Sign up and write Postcards To Voters

    As many of you know, many members participate in Postcards To Voters gatherings on Fridays and Sundays. With the outbreak of the virus, the organizers have suspended those in-person meetings and are asking people to participate from home. Do you have a creative flair? Head to the craft store, get a handful of pens, order some postcards, and get writing. It’s incredibly therapeutic.

    Postcards to Voters are friendly, handwritten reminders from volunteers to targeted voters giving Democrats a winning edge in close, key races coast to coast. A year ago September the founder – Tony the Democrat – joined a postcard writing gathering. He shared with us his story and since then the organization has only grown. On average they assign 5,000 addresses EACH DAY. Be part of this! Get your kids or parents involved!

    How It Works

    1. Sign Up
      • We’ll send you an email with instructions
    2. Become an Approved Writer
      • Write a practice postcard and email us a photo following instructions in the email
    3. Approval
      • Approved – We’ll send you addresses and information on how to obtain additional addresses
      • Not Approved – You will receive an email detailing why and how to fix it
    4. Request Addresses
    5. Keep up with Current Campaigns

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    • May 11-15 – Filing Dates for Elected office including Precinct Committee Officer.
    • Sat, Jun 6, 6-9 pm, Eastside Democrats Dinner, Hilton Bellevue – Registration now open – Join the Indivisible Eastside table!

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of March 2, 2020

    ?  Our next Group Meeting will be on Sat, Mar 7 at 12:30 at the Redmond Library. The meeting starts at 1:30 but before that, at 12:30, we will be writing letters to voters as part of the  SwingLeft 2020 strategy. We heard about this at our last meeting and it is one more useful tool to reach out to voters in potential swing states. Come for the Get Out The Vote, stay for the conversation about ‘How to talk about Socialism and Democratic Socialism’ with Speaker Cliff Cawthon of Bellevue College. Join us for one or both, but please Sign Up for the Letterwriting party via SwingLeft, or email hello@indivisibleeastside.com if you plan on coming for Letter Writing so we’ll have enough materials for everyone.

    ? Presidential Primary Reminders

    • Remember that if you need to register to vote in the Presidential primary you must do it online or by mail by March 2nd or in person by March 10.
    • Our friends at FUSE have put together a special Primary version of their awesome Progressive Voters Guide to help you with your candidate choice. They are not making an official endorsement of any candidate but have reviewed their platforms and put them into a format where you can easily compare them on particular issues.
    • If you want your Washington ballot to be counted you MUST select a party on the ballot, and you must sign a statement promising that you didn’t vote in both parties’ Primaries. As of Friday,  over 36,000 ballots have been rejected over the failure to select a party – don’t let this happen to you! Questions about whether this is the best system are for another time; for now, the important thing is to have your vote counted!
    • We’ll be doing an #AlphabetResistance March 5th 4:30 – 5:30 with the message Presidential Primary / Ballot Deadline 3/10. Please RSVP to let us know you can join us. This is super important as the length of our message depends on how many can participate. Also, if we need to cancel, we can’t let you know if you haven’t RSVPd.

    ? NEW! We would love to know how many people are taking our actions. When you click the link below each action (after you take the action ?) it will increase a counter to let us know. And you’ll get a little GIF reward (it doesn’t capture your name or your computer’s IP address). ?

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Demand Congress pass a clean bill funding the coronavirus response

    From 5Calls

    Donald Trump has systematically undermined the United States’ capacity to respond to novel infectious diseases like the coronavirus, known as COVID-19. From eliminating a Bush-era program to monitor emerging illnesses, to firing the White House’s entire pandemic response infrastructure, to proposing a 19% cut to the 2021 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) budget, Trump has left the US unprepared for the novel coronavirus outbreak spreading worldwide. Unsurprisingly, the Trump administration is now turning a request for emergency coronavirus funding into a political fight.

    The Trump administration has asked Congress for $2.5 billion in COVID-19 funding, an amount even Republicans have called inadequate. Furthermore, the White House wants Congress to reallocate over $535 million in Ebola response funding and $37 million from the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) to the COVID-19 response. The proposed Ebola funding cuts could endanger efforts to contain an ongoing Ebola epidemic in Democratic Republic of the Congo, while the LIHEAP cuts could eliminate funding help for heating for nearly 750,000 low-income families. Urge Congress to reject the White House request and instead allocate net new emergency funding for the COVID-19 response.

    ☎ Sample Script:.

    “I’m calling to urge [REPRESENTATIVE/SENATOR] to pass an adequate coronavirus emergency funding bill that does not take money from other key government initiatives. While a robust coronavirus response is essential, it must be funded with net new emergency money rather than funding from things like Ebola response efforts and heating assistance for low-income families. 

    Thank you for your time and consideration.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE] Ask for an investigation into Trump’s purges 

    From seattleindivisible.com

    You may have read reports over the past week of Trump’s post-acquittal firing spree. He now feels he has free rein to reshape the government in his image. The conservative activist group Groundswell (led by the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas) is helping to engineer these purges of the Department Of Justice, State, and other critical government agencies by creating ‘disloyalty’ lists and memos, and passing them to President Trump.

    Most recently, Groundswell provided a memo to Trump justifying the dismissal of the US Attorney General for the District of Columbia, Jessie Liu, and the withdrawal of her nomination for a treasury position. She was reportedly targeted for not succumbing to pressure by Attorney General Bill Barr to deliver an indictment against former FBI director Andrew McCabe, and for overseeing Roger Stone’s prosecution.

    It is time to fight back against these radicals who are helping Trump dismantle the rule of law and spread corruption throughout our government. Let’s also ask our Representatives to call for a House Oversight Investigation into the Groundswell memos that have been used to smear and remove other government officials.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I’m calling from [CITY, ZIP].  I am concerned about Trump’s recent government purges of officials who are considered disloyal to him at all levels of government. Please call for a House Oversight investigation into the Groundswell memos that have been used to smear and remove government officials. We cannot allow our system of justice and our intelligence agencies to be corrupted and weaponized.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Comment on the draft plan to keep the Lower Snake River Dams in place

    From KUOW

    For many years the State of Oregon, the Nez Perce tribe, and fishing and environmental groups have fought for the removal of the four dams on the Lower Snake river, in order to restore the populations of endangered salmon in the Columbia and Snake Rivers. This would also benefit our imperiled Orca population, which depends on the Chinook from those rivers to survive.

    A draft Environmental Impact Statement has now been released which rejects the proposal to remove the dams. This is a disappointment to those groups working to restore our native salmon population. The final decision will be made at the Federal level but in the meantime there is a thirty day comment period (ends April 13), where you can make your views known on the decision of this draft report to reject the removal of the dams.

    Please record your comments here, selecting Dams under the areas of Concern menu. For reference material from which you can assemble a comment, take a look at this article from Save Our Wild Salmon–choose a section and go to the last 1-2 paragraphs of that section for some pithy sentences to help you make your point.

    There are also six public comment meetings, including one in SeaTac.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    • May 11-15 – Filing Dates for Elected office including Precinct Committee Officer.
    • Sat, Jun 6, 6-9 pm, Eastside Democrats Dinner, Hilton Bellevue

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Feb 24, 2020

    ? Presidential Primary Update

    The Nevada caucuses have already happened and the South Carolina primary is coming up quickly as well, on Saturday, February 29. Then comes Super Tuesday, on March 3, where a third of the primary’s delegates will be up for grabs. The main event for us happens on March 10th, when Washington State has its very first Presidential primary election. As campaigning ramps up and candidates do their best to make their case to voters, here are a few key things to remember.

    • The Indivisible Candidate Scorecard, built based on feedback from group leaders, is a helpful tool that folks can use to compare and analyze candidates and where they stand on the issues that matter most to Indivisibles. Elizabeth Warren scored best on the categories outlined in this rubric, followed by Bernie Sanders. The scorecard continues to be a living document that we periodically update when candidates announce new positions or shift their policies.
    • Tune into the 10th Democratic Debate on Tuesday, February 25 at 5:00 pm (Pacific Time). This debate will be co-hosted by CBS and the Congressional Black Caucus Institute and will take place at The Gaillard Center in Charleston, SC. So far, six candidates have qualified: Joe Biden, Michael Bloomberg, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren. Because last month the DNC decided that this debate and all following debates would remove the donor requirement threshold for participation and instead use only polling or delegate count, self-funded billionaire Michael Bloomberg was able to qualify for last night’s debate in Nevada and next week’s debate in South Carolina. Tom Steyer and Tulsi Gabbard have not qualified. The next debate will be moderated by Norah O’Donnell, Gayle King, Margaret Brennan, Major Garrett, and Bill Whitaker.
    • Remember that if you need to register to vote you must do it online or by mail by March 2nd or in person by March 10.

    ? The presidential primary is a golden opportunity for Democrats to gain party affiliation information, so the more people who vote, the better future GOTV efforts will be. We’ll be doing an #AlphabetResistance March 5th 4:30 – 5:30 with the message Presidential Primary / Ballot Deadline 3/10. Please RSVP to let us know you can join us. This is super important as the length of our message depends on how many can participate. Also, if we need to cancel, we can’t let you know if you haven’t RSVPd.

    ? At our last group meeting, Yvonne B presented the SwingLeft GOTV Letter Writing Project based on SwingLeft’s 2020 strategy. There was much interest, so she’s setting up a session Sat, Mar 7 at 12:30 at the Redmond Library. This will be right before the 1:30 IE group meeting in the same room. Come for the Get Out The Vote, stay for the conversation about ‘How to talk about Socialism and Democratic Socialism’ with Speaker Cliff Cawthon of Bellevue College. Join us for one or both, but please Sign Up for the Letterwriting party via SwingLeft, or email hello@indivisibleeastside.com if you plan on coming for Letter Writing so we’ll have enough materials for everyone.

    ? NEW! We would love to know how many people are taking our actions. When you click the link below each action (after you take the action ?) it will increase a counter to let us know. And you’ll get a little GIF reward (it doesn’t capture your name or your computer’s IP address). ?

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE] Ask your Representative to end surprise medical billing

    From Indivisible, The Hill

    Every day, over 10,000 families in the United States receive a surprise medical bill. These bills happen when a person is charged for care from an out-of-network provider through no fault of their own. They are especially common in emergency settings; one-in-five emergency department visits and nearly 70% of air ambulance transports result in a surprise bill.

    Congress needs to act to protect patients, as described in this Indivisible article.

    Recently, in a bipartisan effort, the House Health and Labor Committee (HELP) passed a bill (HB5800) to protect patients from surprise billing, but there is a competing (also bipartisan) effort to support a bill from the House Ways and Means Committee.

    The HELP approach, which is also backed by the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Health Committee (chaired by Sen. Patty Murray) would in many cases set the payment rate based on the median amount paid for that service in the geographic area, a practice known as “benchmarking.” Benchmarking is considered the best approach for stopping surprise medical billing. The HELP approach also includes the option of going to arbitration (not considered the best approach) for some higher-cost bills.

    The rival Ways and Means approach, which is backed by doctor and hospital groups (including Rep. Schrier- WA-08), would instead give the payment decisions to an outside arbiter. Significantly, large amounts of money from private equity firms have been flowing into the debate in favor of an arbitration-based solution.

    There is a danger that no legislation will be passed because of the delaying tactics employed by various groups. Considering that the issue has strong bipartisan support in both the Senate and the House, this would be nothing short of disastrous for patients. Please let your Representative know that you support the legislation proposed by the House Education and Labor Committee, which also has the backing of union and consumer groups.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I’m calling to ask [REPRESENTATIVE] to support HB 5800, which will end surprise medical bills using benchmarking for all services, including air ambulances. The bipartisan compromise legislation that has already passed in the Senate HELP Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee is the best model for Congress to follow in protecting families from the financial devastation that can result from a surprise bill.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ? Did you take the action? Click here to be counted!?

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Ask your Members of Congress to speak out about the use of immigrants’ counselling sessions being used against them

    From The Washington Post

    In an attempt to prevent immigrant youth from getting asylum, the government is going through notes taken in counseling sessions and picking out items that can be used against them, even though the counselors assured the kids the sessions would be confidential. What’s worse, the practice may be technically legal.

    As described in a Washington Post article, one young immigrant was detained in a facility in 2017 and soon after arriving, participated in mandatory counseling sessions with a therapist who was also working under the assumption that such sessions would remain confidential. He described heartbreaking situations from his life in Honduras. He was considered to have been trafficked and “subjected to involuntary servitude by being forced to work for a gang.” Despite this, because of his contacts with gangs before fleeing to the US, his records, including those from all of his counseling sessions, were sent to ICE. His disclosures were used against him in an effort to pose him as a threat, should he be released from custody. He has spent over 900 days in custody, in three different centers, and has lost contact with his sister, who he escaped Honduras with. He has no other family.

    This is legal only because he was originally under the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which meant ORR acted as de facto parents, with the right to see children’s records and share them as it sees fit. This dystopian scenario has led to the misuse and deliberate misinterpretation of counseling notes by ICE.

    The American Psychological Association has called for immediate halt to the weaponization of therapy notes as a means of denying asylum. We are asking that you ask your Members of Congress to add their voice to this demand. It is unconscionable that youth with backgrounds as traumatic as this are having the very sessions that are supposed to help them used against them in the cruelest of ways.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I am calling to ask you to investigate and speak up about the practice by ICE of using confidential notes from counseling sessions with immigrant and refugee youth against them in their requests for asylum. Recently the Washington Post and the American Psychological Association have described how counseling records are turned over to ICE and deliberately misinterpreted to portray youths as posing a danger to society and therefore not eligible for asylum. This is a serious abuse of confidentiality as well as a deliberate misuse of the information contained in the records.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!?

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Support Lori Feagan in her campaign to oust Representative Matt Shea

    You may have been following the sorry tale of the State Representative from WA-04, who has been exposed as allegedly promoting political violence based on his white supremacist views. There has been no progress towards removing him from the House as all Republicans have refused to sign a letter asking for his expulsion. (Shout out to Representative Tana Senn-WA-41 for co-writing the letter.) House leadership have not wanted to put it to a vote because they don’t have the necessary two-thirds majority, which would require nine Republicans to break ranks and vote for his expulsion. Shea remains defiant, insisting that he has done nothing wrong. Law enforcement have so far not done anything with the report from independent investigators that was presented to the House in December.

    What we are left with is the option of voting him out in November. He has two opponents; one is a more moderate Republican and the other is Democrat Lori Feagan. She is a forty-year resident of Eastern Washington and has worked there as a nurse and nurse practitioner for many years. While she has been fundraising successfully, she still lags behind Shea, and will have to survive a Primary election in August to run against him in November.

    Let’s give her campaign a boost! Please donate today so that she can replace Matt Shea and give the 4th Legislative District a Representative who will lead the district with integrity and compassionate values. Any amount, however small, will help. You can donate here and visit her Facebook page here.

    ? Did you take action? Click here to be counted!?

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    • May 11-15 – Filing Dates for Elected office including Precinct Committee Officer.
    • Sat, Jun 6, 6-9 pm, Eastside Democrats Dinner, Hilton Bellevue

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Feb 17, 2020

    ? At our last group meeting, Yvonne B presented the SwingLeft GOTV Letter Writing Project based on SwingLeft’s 2020 strategy. There was much interest, so she’s setting up a session Sat, Mar 7 at 12:30 at the Redmond Library. This will be right before the 1:30 IE group meeting in the same room. Come for the Get Out The Vote, Stay for the (conversation about) Socialism. Join us for one or both, but please Sign Up for the Letterwriting party via SwingLeft, or email hello@indivisibleeastside.com if you plan on coming for Letter Writing so we’ll have enough materials for everyone.

    ? Speaking of GOTV, the presidential primary is a golden opportunity for Democrats to gain party affiliation information, so the more people who vote, the better future GOTV efforts will be. We’ll be doing an #AlphabetResistance March 5th 4:30 – 5:30 with the message Presidential Primary / Ballot Deadline 3/10. Please RSVP to let us know you can join us. This is super important as the length of our message depends on how many can participate. Also, if we need to cancel, we can’t let you know if you haven’t RSVPd.

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Demand AG Barr’s Resignation

    On Feb 11, four federal prosecutors withdrew from a high-profile case, after senior Justice Department officials overruled them and recommended that Roger Stone—a longtime friend and former campaign adviser of President Trump’s—receive a lesser prison sentence. Stone was convicted last November of lying to Congress and tampering with a witness to prevent investigators from learning how the 2016 Trump campaign tried to benefit from stolen Democratic Party emails. The highly unusual intervention raises questions about whether the President, or the Attorney General, William Barr, intervened in a federal criminal case to help an associate.

    More than 1,100 ex-Justice Department officials called for Barr’s resignation stating in part “Mr. Barr’s actions in doing the President’s personal bidding unfortunately speak louder than his words,” and “Those actions, and the damage they have done to the Department of Justice’s reputation for integrity and the rule of law, require Mr. Barr to resign.

    Senator Patty Murray signed on to a letter to Attorney General William Barr Friday calling on him to resign and Rep Adam Smith Tweeted “Trump and AG Barr don’t care about the institutions that support our country and their actions are a grave threat to all of them. Our country should not protect the power of just a few individuals. The President is laying waste to our institutions for his own personal power.”

    Although Attorney General William Barr has finally agreed to testify to the House Judiciary Committee on March 31 we need our members of congress to understand how vitally important to us and to ask them to demand Barr’s resignation.

    ☎ Sample Script for Sen. Patty Murray:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP].

    I’m calling to express my deep concern with Attorney General Willam Barr’s interference in the sentencing of Trump associate Roger Stone. Thank you for speaking out against this unethical political intervention. This behavior degrades the integrity of the Department of Justice and puts into serious question its ability to uphold justice and the rule of law. Please condemn this behavior and continue to demand that AG Barr resign.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ☎ Sample Script For Other Members of Congress:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP].

    I’m calling to express my deep concern with Attorney General Willam Barr’s interference in the sentencing of Trump associate Roger Stone. I urge [SEN/REP NAME] to speak out against this unethical political intervention. This behavior degrades the integrity of the Department of Justice and puts into serious question its ability to uphold justice and the rule of law. Please condemn this behavior and demand that AG Barr resign.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] Thank Lt. Colonel Alexander Vindman

    Lt. Col. Vindman was the Director for European Affairs for the US National Security Council (NSC) until he was fired on February 7, 2020 by President Trump in retaliation for testifying before the US Congress regarding the Trump–Ukraine scandal. This is patriotism at its finest. Consider sending him a brief note of thanks (a postcard is fine) for his courage. Lt. Col. Yevgeny Vindman was also fired, so consider adding a note of support for him as well.

    The address is:

    Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman

    C/o Congregation Adat Reyim

    6500 Westbury Oaks Court

    Springfield VA. 22152-2520

    ✊ Action 3 – [YOU] Fill Out Indivisible’s Presidential Candidate Survey

    Indivisible National would love to hear your current opinion about your top 3 candidates. It’s pretty short, so please take a few minutes and fill out the Indivisible Presidential Candidate Survey. Note: there is a donation request at the end, but that’s not their main purpose of the survey.

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    • Wed, Feb 19, 6:30 -8:00 pm, Kirkland Talks About Racism: Driving While Black – Lake Washington Institute of Technology. Registration required. Presented by Leadership Eastside.
    • Fri, Feb 21, 9:30 – 11:00 am, Postcards and Coffee – Crossroads Mall, Bellevue
    • Sat, Feb 22, 9-11:30 am, Kirkland Talks: Community Dialogue, Kirkland Teen Union Building. Free, Registration required. Presented by Leadership Eastside.
    • Sat, Feb 22 – Legislative District Town Halls:
      • 1st LD – Feb. 22, 3-5 p.m. with Sen. Stanford and Reps. Duerr and Kloba at Cascadia Community College.
      • 5th LD – 3 events
        • 9:30-10:30 a.m. Tahoma High School Performing Arts Center 23499 SE Tahoma Way, Maple Valley, WA 98038
        • 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. North Bend City Hall, 920 SE Cedar Falls Way, North Bend, WA 98045
        • 1:30 -2:30 p.m. Blakely Hall At Issaquah Highlands, 2550 NE Park Dr, Issaquah, WA 98029
      • 41st LD – Feb. 22, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m with Sen. Lisa Wellman and Reps. Tana Senn and My-Linh Thai. Bellevue College, Room N201 (3000 Landerholm Circle SE, Bellevue).
      • 45th LD – Feb. 22, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. with Sen. Dhingra and Reps. Goodman and Springer at Lake Washington Institute of Technology, West Building, Room 404 (11605 132nd Ave. NE, Kirkland)
      • 48th LD – Feb. 22, 10:30 a.m.-noon with Sen. Kuderer and Reps. Slatter and Walen at Redmond City Hall (15670 NE 85th St, Redmond).
    • Sun, Feb 23, 12:30 – 2:30 pm, Postcards to Voters, Third Place Commons, Lake Forest Park.
    • Wed, Feb 26 4:30 – 5:30 Stand On Every Corner – Redmond Downtown Park. Email rally@indivisibleeastside.com for details.
    • Thur, Feb 27, 6-8:30 pm, Kirkland Talks: Community Dialogue, Kirkland Teen Union Building. Free, must pre-register. Presented by Leadership Eastside.
    • Thur, Mar 5, 4:30 – 5:30 pm Alphabet Resistance. RSVP to participate.
    • Sat, Mar 7, 12:30 – 1:30 SwingLeft GOTV Letter Writing – Redmond Library
    • Sat, Mar 7, 1:30 – 3:30 IE Group Meeting – Socialism! – Redmond Library
    • Sun, Mar 8, 1 – 4 pm, Womxn’s March on Seattle, Rally at Cal Anderson Park (new date)
    • Tues, Mar 10, 8 pm, Washington’s Presidential Primary voting deadline. Ballots must be postmarked by that day or in drop box by 8 pm.

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Feb 10, 2020

    ? Notes from Saturday’s Group Meeting. Check them out for great resources to share with your family, friends and neighbors about voting in the Presidential Primary and getting involved in elections through SwingLeft. Our next meeting is Mar 7, 1:30 – 3:30, called IE Group Meeting – Socialism! We will learn more then about how best to talk about Democratic Socialism.

    ?The NobodyIsAboveTheLaw – Reject The Coverup Mobilization at Redmond Downtown Park on Wednesday was soggy, angry, and satisfying. Thanks to the intrepid 60 who turned up! There will be small Stand On Every Corner protests spearheaded by Michaela G every Wednesday 4:30 to 5:30. Bring your protest signs and join others to protest the Trump administration’s policies.

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [WA State House and Senate] Advocate for Important State Legislation

    Feb 7 was the first cutoff when bills needed to be voted out of their committee of origin (with the exception of fiscal committees) to stay alive. Tuesday, Feb. 11th all bills have to be out of fiscal committees of origin. Here is the cutoff calendar. Things move very fast in such a short session!

    Actions will require you to know your Legislative District.  If you don’t know it, you can find it at Washington’s District Finder. A list of “still active” actions (which means go for it if you haven’t done them yet!) can be found on the Take Action Network site. We HIGHLY recommend using this powerful tool.

    ✊Action 1a: ? or ? Support SB 6077 – Limiting High Capacity Magazines

    This bill is sitting in the Senate Rules Committee, waiting to be sent to the floor for a Senate vote. Limiting high-capacity magazines limits the number of deaths and injuries that a mass shooter can cause by providing a critical opportunity to intervene once a mass shooting has begun. This bill sets a reasonable limit for the capacity of magazines that can be sold or possessed in Washington state – 15 rounds. Nine other states have similar or more restrictive laws.

    Please call or email your legislators. Click ‘EMAIL’ to generate a prefilled email. Make sure you add your name & LD before sending.

    ?Sample script:

    ”My name is [NAME] and I live in the [LD] Legislative District. Please send SB 6077 to the Senate floor for a vote. Washington must prioritize public safety and limit high-capacity magazines. Limiting high-capacity magazines limits the number of deaths and injuries that a mass shooter can cause by providing a critical opportunity to intervene once a mass shooting has begun. This bill sets a reasonable limit for the capacity of magazines that can be sold or possessed in Washington state – 15 rounds. Nine other states have similar or more restrictive laws.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ⏰ Deadline: Before February 11th.

    ✊Action 1b: ? or ? Support SB 6313 – Increasing Opportunities for Young Voters & SB 6228 – Restoring voter eligibility for all persons convicted of a felony offense who are not in total confinement under the jurisdiction of the department of corrections

    SB 6313 allows persons to vote in a primary election if they are 17 years old, but will be 18 by the general election. It requires that DOL provide an automated process for 16 and 17 year olds to sign up to register to vote and requires that public universities, if requested by the student government, and certain public university branch campuses open student engagement centers to provide ballots.

    SB 6228 automatically restores voting rights for persons as soon as a sentence of total confinement under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections (DOC) is ended. It requires the Secretary of State to compare the voter rolls to a list of persons serving sentences of total confinement under DOC jurisdiction at least once a month, and it makes conforming changes regarding the voter oath, jury pool, and DOC notification of voting rights.

    Please call or email your legislators. Click ‘EMAIL’ to generate a prefilled email. Make sure you add your name & LD before sending.

    ?Sample script:

    My name is [NAME] and I live in the [LD] Legislative District. I’m calling to ask Chairman Habib / Senator Stanford / Senator Mullet / Senator Wellman / Senator Dhingra / Senator Kuderer to support SB 6313 – Increasing Opportunities for Young Voters and SB 6228 – Restoring Voting Rights. Research shows that voting is habitual – young voters who participate early in their adulthood are more likely to vote consistently as they get older. Additionally, registering and activating young voters before they move out of their childhood homes leads to higher turnout rates. Not only is the freedom to vote fundamental to our democracy, it is an important component of successful re-entry into society for those who have been imprisoned, which is why SB 6228 is supported by law enforcement agencies as well as civil rights groups. I urge you to support these two important voting rights bills.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ⏰ Deadline: Before February 11th.

    ✊Action 1c: ? or ? Support HB 2184 – Requiring comprehensive sexual health education in public schools

    HB 2184 requires age-appropriate, scientifically accurate, inclusive sex ed, with an emphasis on learning about consent. The bill has a more generous deadline than last year’s version that didn’t pass. There are school districts in WA that have dropped sex ed entirely from their curriculum, so this piece of legislation is extremely important.

    Please call or email your legislators. Click ‘EMAIL’ to generate a prefilled email. Make sure you add your name before sending.

    ?Sample script:

    ”My name is [NAME] and I live in the [LD] Legislative District. I’m calling to ask Representative Springer / Representative Senn to support HB 2184. Sexual health education, as described in HB 2184, is very important in protecting and educating children. This bill will make sure that kids are learning scientifically-accurate, inclusive information and will ensure that kids learn about consent and healthy relationships. I was so disappointed when this legislation did not pass last session. Please pass this bill out of committee as soon as possible.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ⏰ Deadline: Before February 11th.

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Censure Trump

    From 5Calls

    In an unsurprising yet historic event on Wednesday, February 5th, the Senate failed to convict Donald Trump on both articles of impeachment put forward by the House of Representatives. All Senate Democrats voted to convict, while the only Republican to vote favorably for removal on either count was Mitt Romney, the Republican party’s presidential nominee in 2012. In his announcement on the Senate floor he stated, “The grave question the Constitution tasks senators to answer is whether the President committed an act so extreme and egregious that it rises to the level of a ‘high crime and misdemeanor.’ Yes, he did.”

    While Romney was the only Republican Senator to cast a guilty vote, he is not the only one to admit that what Trump did was wrong. In public statements, Senators Alexander (R-TN) and Murkowski (R-AK) described Trump actions as “inappropriate” and “shameful”. And in private, even more GOP Senators have admitted to voting against removal not because they think Trump is innocent, but because of fear.

    Now that our constitutional check on the executive branch has failed to reprimand a president for abusing power and other unacceptable undemocratic behavior, Congress must move to its next option: censure. This is the formal condemnation of an individual by Congress. While not as drastic as impeachment and removal, censure is still a serious reprimand that will rein in Trump’s insistence that he did nothing wrong. If Republican members of Congress believe that Trump’s behavior was indeed “wrong” as so many of them have said, they should reprimand him for it and support the censure resolution proposed by Senators Manchin (D-WV) and Feinstein (D-CA). If Congress fails to hold Trump accountable for his actions in the way that still remains, the American people will be doomed to a lawless president.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent. I’m calling to demand [NAME] support a resolution to censure Trump. Trump’s shameful and undemocratic behavior cannot go unpunished.

    Thank you for your time and attention.”

    ✊ Action 3 – [US HOUSE] Thank your Rep for co-sponsoring H.R. 2214: NO BAN Act

    From NoMuslimBanEver.org

    Three years after thousands of people joined airport protests against his cruel and harmful Muslim Ban, Trump is expanding the ban by blocking immigration visas from Eritrea, Nigeria, Burma, and Kyrgyzstan, as well as diversity visas from Sudan and Tanzania.

    This administration’s clear intent all along has been to keep out as many people from Muslim-majority countries as possible, whether as refugees or based on their nationality. As with the ban currently in place, some of the newly banned countries are not Muslim-majority, but that doesn’t hide or change the intent behind these bans all along. Like its predecessor, this new ban will impact Muslims the most.

    The Muslim Ban continues to separate families, leaving our friends and neighbors unable to be with their children, spouses, or parents and preventing many people from seeking or continuing career and educational opportunities or life-saving care in the U.S.

    We must not be silent in the face of the shameful Supreme Court decision. This is like what was done in the Dred Scott decision upholding slavery or like Korematsu, which upheld Japanese internment. So we’ll fight back against this xenophobic ban, in our communities, in the courts, and in Congress by demanding passage of the No Ban Act.

    All Democratic Washington representatives have co-sponsored H.R. 2214: NO BAN Act. Please contact your representative, thank them, and ask them to continue to speak out in support of the No Ban Act.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, I’m your constituent and a supporter of the #NoMuslimBanEver campaign.

    After 3 years under Trump’s racist order that bans Muslim families from entering the country, I am disturbed and alarmed by recent reports that this administration is planning to expand the horrific Muslim Ban further.

    Thank you for co-sponsoring H.R. 2214: NO BAN Act. I’m asking that you continue to speak out and publicly oppose the Muslim Ban and any expansion of it that would hurt families, openly discriminate against communities of color, and create a pathway for systemic religion-based discrimination. 

    Thank you for your time.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Feb 3, 2020

    ? Mark your calendar – our next Group Meeting is on Sat, Feb 8, from 4:00-5:30. Please note that it will be at Bellevue Library this time. We look forward to hearing about the work of Swing Left, as well as learning about recent legislative updates from Olympia. Make a plan to join us and bring a friend!

    ? It’s been a week of acute frustration on the impeachment front. Republican senators have been impervious to pleas to do the right thing and put country over party, and the threat of losing their funding from Mitch McConnell’s network of party financiers ensured that evidence will never see the light of day during the trial.

    What’s left is the knowledge that this can be changed at the ballot box. We can only hope that when John Bolton’s book is published (if further legal shenanigans don’t prevent that), it will strengthen American awareness of the illegality of the situation. Polls show that a substantial majority of Americans wanted to see evidence and/or witnesses at the trial. The Republican choice to hold a sham trial will definitely not be a plus for them in November..

    ? We will be fully involved in the fight to defeat corrupt candidates in November. Indivisible National has an exciting new initiative called the Payback Project, which aims to target nine key Republican Senators and hold them accountable for their lockstep support of the President. Check it out!

    Another way that you can help right now is to contribute to funds to help candidates who have a chance to flip all sorts of seats across the country. Check out this link to Swing Left and think about making a donation, however small. Early money is vital for campaigns! You’ll be hearing more about this organization at our meeting on Saturday Feb. 8..

    ?The NobodyIsAboveTheLaw – Reject The Coverup Mobilization has been activated calling for protests Wednesday around the country. We won’t register an event until after we’ve spoken with the Redmond Police, but a bunch of us will be out Wednesday at the West end of Redmond Downtown Park from 4:30 – 5:30. This is the second weekly Stand On Every Corner effort spearheaded by Michaela G. Bring your protest signs and join others disgusted with the Senate Republicans.

    ? Unfortunately, due to the vagaries of the weather, we had to cancel our planned Alphabet Resistance protest on Jan 30. If you would like to be in the loop for future events please email us at alphabet@indivisbleeastside.com so that we can keep you informed.

    ? Please remember to vote if you live in these school districts. Ballot boxes are open and ballots must be postmarked by or returned to a dropbox by 8:00 pm on Feb. 11th. If you need to register to vote or update your information you must do so by Feb 3rd. You can read about our local bond campaigns here (Bellevue) and here (Issaquah).

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 [You] Oppose Proposal to Increase Immigration Fees and Limit Fee Waivers – deadline extended to Feb. 10.

    From the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project (NWIRP).

    Details are from their Facebook page.

    Late last year, the Trump Administration published a proposal that would increase fees that immigrant community members have to pay to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for a wide range of immigration applications. Immigration advocates are deeply concerned that this proposal will effectively price out countless individuals around the country from being able to obtain critical immigration protections or U.S. citizenship.

    This proposal would significantly increase fees for applications for lawful permanent residence, U.S. citizenship, and DACA renewal, among others. It also would, for the first time, impose an application fee for seeking asylum. And the proposal would eliminate the option to seek fee waivers for many applications, including the one to pursue U.S. citizenship.

    USCIS is proposing these fee increases without any meaningful evidence that they would relieve case processing delays or otherwise improve services. In fact, the proposal seeks to shift some of these funds to pay for some ICE enforcement activities.

    The good news is that the deadline to submit public comments opposing these fee hikes and related changes has been extended through February 10th. We hope you will urge the Administration to withdraw this proposal by submitting a personalized comment through this link. Further talking points are available through the American Immigration Lawyers Association but please use your own words in your submission. Currently only 239 comments have been received. Please add your voice to the requests to revisit this additional barrier to fair and equitable immigration policies.

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Learn about the Washington State Presidential Primary

    From Washington State Democrats

    For the first time in over 75 years, Washington State voters will be participating in a state-run Presidential Primary to allocate National Convention delegates to Presidential candidates. Both major political parties are allocating their delegates this way, and voters have a new way to have a say in who should be our next President.

    When is the Presidential Primary?

    The Washington Presidential Primary is March 10, 2020. Registered voters will receive ballots in the mail about 18 days before Primary Day.

    How do I vote in the Presidential Primary?

    1. Check your voter registration. Go to www.myvote.wa.gov to verify that you are registered to vote and that your county elections office has your address correct, so your ballot for the Presidential Primary will be sent to your home. Look for your ballot packet to arrive around February 21, the first day of the 18-day voting period for the Presidential Primary.
    2. Pick a Party! Inside your ballot packet you will find a return envelope, a security sleeve or envelope, and a ballot. On the return envelope you will have a choice between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. Follow the instructions to mark your choice of Party, and sign the oath for your choice of Party.
    3. Pick a Candidate! You will have one ballot with two sections, a Democratic section and a Republican section. You must use only one Party section, and it must be the one matching the Party you picked on the return envelope. If the party on the envelope and the ballot are different, your ballot cannot be counted, so double check!

    The Democratic Ballot will have these choices:

    • Michael Bennet
    • Joseph R. Biden
    • Michael Bloomberg
    • Pete Buttigieg
    • John Delaney (left the race Jan 31st)
    • Tulsi Gabbard
    • Amy Klobuchar
    • Deval Patrick
    • Bernie Sanders
    • Tom Steyer
    • Elizabeth Warren
    • Andrew Yang
    • Uncommitted Delegates

    The Republican Ballot will have one choice, Donald J. Trump.

    Follow the instructions in your ballot packet to mark your ballot for your preferred candidate. Place your ballot in the security envelope or sleeve, and place the security envelope with your marked ballot enclosed into the return envelope.

    Close the return envelope, be sure to choose your party, and sign the oath. If the Party oath on the outside of the envelope and the ballot inside the envelope are not marked with the same Party, your ballot will not be able to be counted!

    You can either send your ballot back through the US mail (postmarked no later than March 10), or drop it in a handy drop box, as listed on the King County Elections page.

    For questions about the process and what happens next, see this document.

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Learn about opportunities to work on electoral races in battleground states.

    There has been an increasing interest in working to help flip seats in November by travelling to battleground states with a variety of critical races. One of the leaders in this movement is Common Purpose, based in Seattle. They have a well thought out model of taking the lead from local organizations and have done extensive research on the races where volunteers can make an impact. It is interesting reading.

    If you or anyone you know is interested in doing this work, there is an introductory workshop on Feb. 8th, with further ones in March (under the Calendar listings).

    Trips to other states cost money, and volunteers are self-funded. If you want to support their work but are not able to travel you can help the organization by making a donation (link on website).

    A fantastic way to learn more about Common Purpose is to listen to an interview with the founder (and UW professor) David Domke, on this edition of the Washington State Indivisible Podcast.

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Jan 27, 2020

    ? The first week of the impeachment trial of the President has wrapped up, with a few interesting side notes being revealed as more proof (if any was needed) of his guilt, but no surprises as far as the Republicans in the Senate being willing to admit any of it as evidence. If you are weary of the news and would like one good resource to sum up the events of the day you might consider following history professor Heather Cox Richardson, either in her newsletter or on Facebook.

    In the face of the sham impeachment trial, we feel it’s time for an Alphabet Resistance next Thursday evening January 30th, 4:15 pm. The message will be:

    US Senate Do Your Job / History Will Judge!

    We need 20 people for this action, but would really like 10 more people to come out with signs. You can bring your used but relevant Impeach And Remove signs, or make new ones.

    To join, please email alphabet@indivisibleeastside.com with one of the following messages:

    “Count me in to Flip!” if you’re up for flipping a letter for 45 minutes or

    “I’m Bringing My Sign” if you can come and share the message with the passing cars.

    Weather forecast shows showers, but we know that can change. Look for confirmation emails a couple of days before, as well as day of.

    ? By now, if you live in certain school districts, you should have received your ballot for the upcoming election. Ballot boxes are open and ballots must be postmarked by or returned to a dropbox by 8:00 pm on Feb. 11th. If you need to register to vote or update your information you must do so by Feb 3rd. You can read about our local bond campaigns here (Bellevue) and here (Issaquah).

    ? Some communities are fighting back against Puget Sound Energy’s harmful practices and are working to create publicly owned power instead. If you’re interested in finding our more you can attend one of the kickoff meetings of the East King County Public Utility District on Feb. 1st. There is one in Bellevue and one in Woodinville. Please RSVP if you plan on attending.

    ?In addition to our on-going Postcards and Coffee at Crossroads, we are also offering another Postcards to Voters writing opportunity at Third Place Commons every other Sunday, 12:30-3:00 pm. The next three dates are: Feb. 9, Feb. 23, March 8. Please RSVP to postcards@indivisibleeastside.com so we make sure we have enough addresses and supplies for everyone.

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Support disability benefits for disabled people by January 31 (deadline extended)

    From Jen Hoffman’s Americans of Conscience Checklist

    Social Security Administration is proposing to increase oversight of people receiving disability benefits (SSDI/SSI) that will result in a significant loss of benefits. Now is a great time to add your voice and strengthen the outpouring of concerned comments that have been coming in about the proposed rule.

    Recipients of Social Security disability benefits are already rigorously screened. Fewer than 4 out of 10 applicants becomes eligible, after which they participate in Continuing Disability Reviews (CDRs).

    SSA estimates that 2.6 million more CDRs would be conducted under this new rule, at a cost of $1.8 billion over the next decade while cutting $2.6 billion in benefits.

    Most disabled people cannot afford to hire a lawyer for the CDR process. The maximum amount that SSI will provide is just 74 percent of the federal poverty level—currently $12,490 for an individual. As of November 2019, the average SSDI benefit was just $14,855 per year.

    When people lose their SSI or SSDI, they may experience health care interruptions, loss of independence, and housing and food insecurity.

    The last major change in the CDR schedules occurred in the early 1980s. The trauma to individuals, families, and communities was so great that Congress created the current structure with legislation in 1982 and 1984.

    Please submit comments in your own words on the comment page using these tips: 1) Introduce yourself. 2) State why you oppose the proposal based on your values and, if applicable, 3) Share a story (anonymously if enrolled) of how you or a loved one are impacted by Social Security disability benefits. Review this article for more ideas. Remember that the deadline is January 31.

    ✊ Action 2 – [State Representatives] Ask your representatives to insist on a vote for the expulsion of Matt Shea

    From the Spokesman-Review

    Rep. Matt Shea (R-Spokane Valley) has allegedly been supporting domestic terrorism, as revealed by a private investigation in a report presented on Dec. 1st 2019. He has been removed from the Republican caucus and from his committee assignments. While leaders of both parties have asked him to resign, he has refused, claiming that he has been the victim of ‘label lynching ’, even though he refused to participate in the investigation. The report should be made public soon and Democratic leaders in the State House are now saying that they may skip further action against him. Because expulsion would take a two-thirds majority, they would need all 57 Democrats and 9 Republicans to vote for it.

    Apparently feeling that they lack the numbers, they are considering dropping further action because of the amount of disruption it would cause to the tight legislative schedule.

    While we appreciate that they have a job to do passing important legislation in this short session, we believe that it is important that members are required to take a stand on this so that their constituents can see who made a public declaration against his repugnant views and who didn’t.

    Please contact your state Representatives and ask them to pressure the Democratic leadership to insist on holding a vote on Matt Shea’s continuing presence in Olympia. You can call your Representatives of use the prefilled ‘EMAIL’ links below to send them an email. Please sign your name before sending the email.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I am disturbed by reports that the Democratic leadership in the House appears to be backing away from a vote to expel Matt Shea. Despite the apparent lack of support from your Republican colleagues for this, I think that it is important that they are held accountable to their constituents in a public vote that will show whether or not they continue to support his repugnant views having a place in our elected body.

    Please pressure Speaker Jinkins and other Democratic leadership to allow such a vote to take place. Representative Shea must receive a clear message that there is no place for his views in Olympia.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 3 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Support the Equal Rights Amendment

    From 5Calls and the League of Women Voters

    On January 15th, Virginia became the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment The time is now for Congress to restart the constitutional amendment ratification process to include the ERA.

    The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), first introduced in 1923, is a proposed constitutional amendment that prohibits denying or limiting equality of rights under the law based on sex. Unlike many other nations’ constitutions, the US Constitution does not specifically guarantee equal rights for all citizens regardless of sex. The ERA would finally enshrine protections against sex discrimination in our Constitution, an important safeguard against recent congressional attempts to reverse legislative prohibitions on sex discrimination. The ERA would also require courts to apply strict scrutiny when assessing policies that allow for differential treatment based on sex.

    When Congress approved the ERA in 1972, only 35 of the required 38 states ratified it by the 1982 deadline, and the ERA failed to pass. Now, Democrats in both chambers of Congress have introduced resolutions that would remove the deadline so the ERA can become a permanent part of the U.S. Constitution.

    In the Senate, Senate Joint Resolution (S.J.Res) 6, introduced in January of 2019, seeks to remove the ratification deadline. At this time, Senator Murray has signed on to it but Senator Cantwell has not.

    In the House, H.J.Res.79 was introduced and placed on the calendar on Jan. 16th. All Washington State Democratic Representatives are co-sponsors.

    We have a two part Action concerning this:

    ✊ First, please contact Senator Cantwell and ask that she adds her name to this important piece of legislation.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “The year 2020 is significant as the United States marks the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. Furthering equality by removing the deadline on the Equal Rights Amendment would be a fitting tribute to those that fought so hard to ensure that women had the right to vote 100 years ago. Given that Virginia recently became the 38th state to ratify the ERA, it is time that Congress moves forward with this process.

    Please join your Senate colleagues in adding your name in support of Senate Joint Resolution 6. Adding your voice to this bill will help to ensure that equal rights for women are enshrined in our Constitution.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Second, please contact your Representative and ask that they move the legislation forward as quickly as possible.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “The year 2020 is significant as the United States marks the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. Furthering equality by removing the deadline on the Equal Rights Amendment would be a fitting tribute to those that fought so hard to ensure that women had the right to vote 100 years ago. Given that Virginia recently became the 38th state to ratify the ERA, it is time that Congress moves forward with this process.

    Thank you for supporting House Joint Resolution 79. I appreciate that it has been added to the House calendar and urge you to ensure its speedy passage through the House so that we can finally move towards constitutionally guaranteed equal rights for all women in the United States.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Jan 20, 2020

    ?The Impeachment Articles have been transmitted to the Senate. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court has been sworn in, and the Senators have taken their oath to be impartial Jurors. Senator McConnell indicated the trial will begin on Tuesday. At 1:00 pm on January 21st, we will begin to see how this will all unfold. Will there be witnesses, or will Mitch McConnell have his preferred way to quickly dismiss charges? This is history in the making, folks!

    ?At the last meeting, we heard from Debbie Lacy of Eastside Refugee & Immigrant Coalition on a new organization she is forming called Eastside For All. Eastside for All is the first racial justice advocacy organization based in East King County focused entirely on Eastside communities. Help them get off the ground by donating HERE.

    ?In addition to our on-going Postcards and Coffee at Crossroads, we are also offering another Postcards to Voters writing opportunity at Third Place Commons every other Sunday starting January 26, 12:30-3:00 pm. First four confirmed dates: Jan. 26, Feb. 9, Feb. 23, March 8. Please RSVP to postcards@indivisibleeastside.com so we make sure we have enough addresses and supplies for everyone.

    ?We have had an uptick in requests to join our Facebook group, and in order to make sure each requester is a real person with good intentions, we prompt for answers to a few simple questions. If you have requested access, but have not answered the questions, we cannot grant you access. We do this to make sure our group remains a safe space for all to engage.

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US Senate] Vote on War Powers Resolution

    The House of Representatives passed a war powers resolution that would curb the power of Trump to attack Iran. On Saturday, Senators Bernie Sanders and Mike Lee announced that they are co-sponsoring a bill (SB3159), “No War Against Iran Act.” Senator Tim Kaine has a resolution (SJR63) with two Republicans in support—however, it is in limbo. We need to send a loud message to the Senate that the President’s powers need to be in check and that we do not want another war.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi – My name is [NAME], and I’m calling from [CITY, ZIP]. I am very worried about the United States blundering into war with Iran, and I want to urge Senator [NAME] to support the war powers resolutions that have been put forth, and to show the country that you can still legislate at a time when much attention is being given to the impeachment hearing. The threat from Iran is still real, and we need to be proactive to check the President’s power to take us to war.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ?Bonus (From Seattle Indivisible): Share this action with friends and family in UT, KY, ME, and IA to bolster the Republican senators who may help this resolution pass.

    Share on social media, forward the email, or simply tell people about it face-to-face! They can use the script above to reinforce their own senators’ decision to support the war powers resolution.

    ✊ Action 2 – [US House] Protect Pregnant Workers Rights

    From ACLU

    Pregnant workers in the U.S. still lack critical protections in the workplace. Too many employers believe they can fire pregnant employees, or force them to quit or take unpaid leave instead of providing temporary accommodations that would allow them to remain productive employees and maintain a healthy pregnancy. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act would help protect the health and livelihoods of pregnant workers. Tell your member of Congress to cosponsor the PWFA now.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME], and I’m calling from [CITY, ZIP]. I am calling to urge Representative [NAME] to cosponsor the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (HR 2694). No one should have to choose between making a living and having a healthy pregnancy. Please help pass the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (HR 2694) to protect the health, rights, and economic security of pregnant workers and ensure a more equitable workplace.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 3 – [YOU] Comment on Puget Sound Energy Rate Hike Proposal

    From 350 Tacoma, 350 Seattle

    Puget Sound Energy (PSE), a for-profit gas and electric utility provider, has filed for another rate increase for residential customers, even though they already raised rates for gas customers by 14% just a couple months ago! So what does this rate increase have to do with climate???

    • PSE is the company building the controversial Tacoma LNG fracked gas refinery and storage project. Although less than 2% of this infrastructure is designed for their residential customers as backup power on the coldest days of the year, PSE expects to pass on over 40% of the construction costs in the form of higher utility rates. PSE’s requests for higher rates are unjustified.
    • Until state law that was passed in 2019 started pushing PSE to change their resource mix, PSE was getting over 60% of their energy from fossil fuels and wanted to expand “natural gas” infrastructure while ignoring the potential of solar, wind, and grid optimization. “Natural gas” is really just methane gas, a potent heat-trapping greenhouse gas, mostly sourced from fracking–which causes severe health complications, groundwater contamination, earthquakes near extraction sites and is often located near or on indigenous land. PSE cannot justify raising rates while they continue to press for climate-damaging fracked gas rather than renewables.
    • PSE is holding back local clean energy initiatives. As part of the newly formed group “Partners for Energy Progress,” PSE plans to launch a $1M campaign in the PNW to push back against any local initiatives designed at transitioning away from fossil fuels, such as banning gas hookups in new infrastructure. According to Sightline Institute, between 2008 & 2018, PSE spent about $7 million in WA, funding political candidates, PAC’s, and lobbying! Before PSE is allowed to raise rates, they should be required to stop wasting the money of ratepayers in this way.

    Verbal comments will also be taken at a public hearing on Wed January 22nd at Bellevue City Hall beginning at 6pm.

    SUBMIT COMMENTS HERE! (Additional, detailed talking points are in this link)

    ?Bonus: Some communities are already fighting back against PSE’s harmful choices and are working to create publicly owned power instead! Want to help spread the word or gather signatures to get the PUD initiatives on the November 2020 ballot?

    East King County Public Utility District – Learn more or volunteer to help here!

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Jan 13, 2020

    ?What a week! With all that has transpired in the news in the first two weeks of this year, it’s enough to make your head spin, but we won’t let it get us down! Nevertheless we persisted!

    ☮️We protested #NoWarWithIran last Thursday with Alphabet Resistance on the i-405 overpass in Bellevue. Check out our message!

    ?We continue to write Postcards to Voters on Friday mornings at 9:30am at the Crossroads Mall. This week we wrote to Texas voters for the Mar 3rd Pres Primary as part of a Sister District research project. If you would like to join next week please RSVP HERE, so we know how many addresses to prepare for.

    ?On Sunday we celebrated our 3rd Anniversary with an inspiring potluck gathering to keep us motivated! We heard from Debbie Lacy of Eastside Refugee & Immigrant Coalition on a new initiative Eastside For All. We celebrated the past and brainstormed what we could do this year to remain engaged to bring about the progressive change we need this year! You can read the meeting notes HERE.

    ?On Jan 18th, join Indivisible Eastside for the 4th year of the Womxn’s March Seattle. Meet across Denny way from the NW the corner of Cal Anderson park at 12:40 for a group photo, then we’ll move into the park to hear the speakers. Planning on meeting up with us? Email hello@indivisibleeastside.com and let us know.

    ?We will be writing postcards at the Womxn’s March! The plan is to meet at the Armory/Center House at Seattle Center at 2:30 where the march ends. This is a great option for those who want to participate but not march. Our goal is to recruit new writers; encourage them to try writing one card or a few while onsite and sign up with Postcards to Voters and/or with the local postcarding groups. If you want more information or have questions email postcards@indivisibleeastside.com.

    ? The WA State 2020 Legislative Session begins today! We will be tracking bills and sharing out action items in a separate email weekly on Fridays just through the legislative session which ends in March. We are working through our email system to target those emails, as best we can, only to people in the specific Legislative District needed. (We have you listed in the XX legislative district, if you have moved or this is incorrect, please update.) (We do not have your LD, please reply back with that information so you don’t receive unnecessary emails.) With your help, we hope to pass some really needed progressive legislation this session. Stay tuned…

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US House & Senate] Protect Iranian Americans at the Border

    From WAISN and CAIR

    Last weekend after the United States killed the commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps’s Quds Force, we heard reports of Iranian-Americans being detained at the Blaine Border. The Washington state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-WA) reported Sunday that up to 150 Iranians and Iranian-Americans experienced extremely long delays and about 60 of them were detained and questioned at length at the Peace Arch Border Crossing in Blaine, WA this weekend. Those detained reported having their passports held while they were questioned about their political views and allegiances.

    It is in these times that we must remind each other that we have rights, and that our families belong together and free without fear of violence or persecution, no matter what country of origin they came from. We must support our immigrant families in ensuring their freedoms.

    Please read this article from WAISN which has helpful information about Know Your Rights, how families can get legal support, how you can join a Rapid Response Team, and how to stay informed of the latest information to support our immigrant community.

    Contact your senators and congressional representative to convey your concern and urge them to pass the NO BAN Act.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi – My name is [NAME], and I’m calling from [CITY, ZIP]. I am concerned about reports that Iranians and Iranian-Americans have been targeted based on their national origin and were detained at the Canadian border. I urge you to press for an investigation and to hold Customs & Border Protection and the Dept. of Homeland Security accountable.

    I also urge passage of the NO BAN Act, which would repeal all versions of the Muslim ban, refugee ban, and asylum ban; change immigration law to prevent discrimination based on religion; and limit executive authority to prevent any president from issuing future discriminatory bans again.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] Be a Citizen Lobbyist, attend a Lobby Day!

    The word Lobbyist usually conjures up disgust and frustration, because we typically think of the big corporations who pour tons of money and time into hiring lobbyists to influence legislators to craft legislation for their benefit. But there is another kind of lobbyist that can be just as powerful if we organize together, and that is the Citizen Lobbyist, using a form of advocacy that focuses on educating or influencing representatives in our government. You do not need money or power to lobby. The Public Disclosure Administration requires disclosure of paid lobbyists in our state, however, “citizens who petition their state government — through personal contact, telephone calls and letters — without payment of any kind and without spending funds to benefit public officials are not subject to the law.”

    Many different types of coalitions and groups organize official “Lobby Days” while the WA State legislature is in session. That means now, since the Legislative Session for 2020 starts today!

    These organizations provide everything you need to lobby your legislator in just one day, and you will be able to do that with other like-minded citizens. Pick an organization or topic area you are passionate about and sign up to attend! It will be empowering to experience to know you had a hand in sculpting democracy in WA State.

    Click the link to register:

    Sex Ed Hearing Day with Planned Parenthood: Thurs, Jan 16

    WA State Dems Lobby Day: Fri, Jan 17

    League of Women Voters Lobby Day: Tues, Jan 21

    NARAL Mid and North Puget Sound Troublemakers Advocacy Day: Thurs, Jan 23

    Moms Demand Action Advocacy Day: Wed, Jan 29

    Environmental Lobby Day: Thurs, Jan 30

    #IGNITEtheCapitol: Thurs, Jan 30 (IGNITE is a Young Women’s Political Organization)

    WAISN Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Day: Wed, Feb 5

    WaSIC (Washington State Indivisible Coalition) Lobby Day: Tues, Feb 18 (Link goes to Carolyn Barclift for registration)

    Or find more lobby days on the Take Action Network.

    ✊ Action 3 – [US House & Senate] Oppose Privatizing the U.S. Postal Service

    From Seattle Indivisible

    The United States Postal Service (USPS) has been steadily losing money for more than a decade. In 2018, the Trump administration proposed to significantly restructure, then privatize the USPS. The proposal received bi-partisan pushback in the House, as well as opposition from consumers, postal worker unions, and businesses. Under a privatization scheme, rural areas would likely see price hikes and a decline in postal services because they are more costly to serve and less profitable.

    Now, with a majority of Trump appointees on the USPS Board of Governors and the possibility that we will soon have a new Postmaster General favorably disposed to privatization, the concern is that the administration will again push for a restructuring and privatization scheme that will favor business interests over the public good.

    Most experts agree that something needs to be done to put the USPS on a more solid financial footing, but privatization is not the answer. Democrats are working on at least one alternative proposal, the USPS Fairness Act, to improve the situation, although no single alternative proposal has moved forward yet. Here’s an article with more information.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello. My name is [NAME], and I’m calling from [CITY, ZIP] about the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to restructure and privatize the US Postal Service. I’m very opposed to any changes in the Service that could undercut its fundamental mission of providing reliable and affordable mail delivery to every resident in the nation. I urge [MoC] to oppose privatization of the USPS or other so-called “reform” efforts that focus on reducing services, raising individual customer rates, or cutting postal worker wages, and to look at alternative ways of addressing the problem of solvency for the Post Office that are equitable across all USPS customers and USPS workers.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Jan 6, 2020

    ? We made it to 2020! It’s been a little over 3 years since Nov 2016, but it seems like 30. Is your energy flagging? Indivisible Eastside is here to help you stay organized and energized in your activism. Here are 2 ways to get your year started off right:

    ? Attend the Indivisible Eastside Potluck Birthday Party at the Redmond Library Jan 12th 11:30 – 3

    ? Attend the Womxn’s March on Seattle, Jan 18th 1-4 pm Seattle

    ? On Jan 12th, bring a savory item to share at 11:30 for our potluck lunch. We’ll provide the “Nevertheless We Persisted” Birthday cake. We’ll also be sharing ideas for how to engage in 2020. Then we’ll hear from Debbie Lacy of Eastside Refugee & Immigrant Coalition on a new initiative Eastside For All. “People of color comprise over 40% of the population in our Eastside communities of Bellevue, Issaquah, Redmond, Kirkland, and Sammamish. And 1 out of every 3 residents was born outside the U.S. But, our city councils, school boards, commissions, large nonprofit boards and business associations do not reflect this racial and cultural diversity.” Read more on the fledgling Eastside For All website and come to the meeting to learn more.

    ? On Jan 18th, join Linda, Jennifer, Louise and others for the Women’s March Seattle. Meet across Denny way from the NW the corner of Cal Anderson park at 12:40 for a group photo, then we’ll move into the park to hear the speakers. Planning on meeting up with us? Email hello@indivisibleeastside.com and let us know.

    ? Here are your 3 actions this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE] Demand Your Representative Rein In Trump’s March to War

    From Indivisible.org and Seattle Indivisible

    Last Thursday evening, it was confirmed that the United States killed the commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps’s Quds Force, by drone strike in Iraq. Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East Policy, Andrew Exum, described this as an act of war against Iran in an article in The Atlantic. We don’t know yet what will happen next, or how Iran will respond, but we do know that our elected officials in Washington need to tell Trump that we cannot go to war with Iran.

    Representative Adam Smith spoke out on Friday Raising Grave Concerns About Pentagon Military Action in Iraq. Congresswoman Suzan DelBene made a statement on twitter demanding the Administration immediately brief congress on how they plan on protecting US personnel from retaliation and their long term objectives. However, Rep. Kim Schrier, did not criticize Trump but rather only called for Congress to be briefed.

    ☎ Sample Script for Rep. Schrier:

    “Hi – My name is [NAME], and I’m calling from [CITY, ZIP]. I am very worried about the United States blundering into war with Iran, and I want Congresswoman Schrier to take steps to prevent us from going to war. Also, I urge the Congresswoman to join Representatives Adam Smith and Suzan DelBene and speak out about this today. As Representative Smith states, “The American people deserve to know why President Trump has brought us to the brink of another war, and under what authority.” I urge Congresswoman Schrier to do everything possible to assert Congress’s role as a co-equal branch of government, speak out against pressure to “fall in line behind the commander in chief,” and block this attempt to draw attention away from impeachment proceedings.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ☎ Sample Script For Rep. Smith or Rep DelBene:

    “Hi – My name is [NAME], and I’m calling from [CITY, ZIP]. I am very worried about the United States blundering into war with Iran, and thank Representative [NAME] for speaking on behalf of the American people who deserve to know why President Trump has brought us to the brink of another war, and under what authority. I urge Representative [NAME] to do everything possible to assert Congress’s role as a co-equal branch of government, speak out against pressure to “fall in line behind the commander in chief,” and block this attempt to draw attention away from impeachment proceedings.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 2 – [Regulations.gov] Leave a Comment Against Trump’s Latest Attack On Social Security by Jan. 17

    From Seattle Indivisible

    The Trump administration is continuing to look for novel ways to cut benefits to those most in need. In a new proposed rule, they aim to increase the frequency of medical reviews in the hopes of kicking more people off of Social Security disability benefits.

    Currently, the Social Security Administration evaluates disability recipients at three different frequencies to determine whether they still qualify for benefits: “medical improvement expected” (every 6 to 18 months), “medical improvement possible” (every 3 years), and “medical improvement not expected” (every 5 to 7 years). The proposed rule adds a new category called “medical improvement likely” (evaluated every 2 years). The SSA says 4.4 million people, including children and ‘Step 5’ recipients (those aged 50 to 65 with poor health and no income), would be moved into this category. Democratic lawmakers and disability advocates say this is unnecessarily burdensome, and that for Step 5 recipients, there is no actual evidence that they are ‘likely’ to improve. A Forbes magazine piece explains:

    “In general, medical conditions deteriorate as people age, especially those who have limited resources. Compelling Step 5 recipients through a review every two years will make it even more difficult for them to comply with the review process, putting their benefit eligibility in jeopardy.”

    Opponents of the rule are not rejecting the need for need-based evaluations – but warn that the extra red tape is designed to force out of the program people who need help, but lack the ability or resources to keep up with the arduous evaluations.

    ACTION: Use your own words to leave a comment on the Regulations.gov comment page against Trump’s proposed regulatory rule that aims to kick people off of SSDI. Deadline to have your comment considered is January 17.

    ✊ Action 3 – [US SENATE] Urge Senators to allow Chief Justice to Prescribe Impeachment Trial Procedure

    In a Dec. 27, 2019 letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, Ralph Nader and Constitutional Law scholars Louis Fisher and Bruce Fein proposed that the Senate allow Chief Justice John Roberts to prescribe impeachment trial procedures—subject to veto by a Senate majority. In doing so, the Senate would avoid some degree of political infighting and blatant partisan bias. While this approach is not perfect, it would create a more impartial and legitimate impeachment process.

    Please read the points in the letter, then contact your Senators urge them to support this modest, but important proposal.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi – My name is [NAME], and I’m calling from [CITY, ZIP]. I support a proposal sent on Dec 27, 2019 to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi. In the proposal, Ralph Nader and Constitutional Law scholars Louis Fisher and Bruce Fein proposed that the Senate allow Chief Justice John Roberts to prescribe impeachment trial procedures—subject to veto by a Senate majority. In part it states “Chief Justice Roberts, in contrast to the Senate Republican majority or House Democratic majority, is the optimal choice to establish independent and credible procedures for the impeachment trial of President Trump to strengthen public confidence in the outcome.

    Thank you for your hard work answering the phones.”

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    Calendar of In-Person Events:

    Save the Date:

    …and More:

    Resources:

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