Actions Previous 2021

Previous Actions from 2021

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 20, 2021

    ? This is our last Weekly action of 2021. If you joined Indivisible Eastside in 2017, we’re so happy you’re still with us. If you’re new to the group, we’re glad you found us! We can’t wait for the time we can meet up in person again. But for now we need to be patient. Please stay safe, stay healthy.

    ? Thank you if you’ve completed the IE member survey and if not, we’d love to hear from you. We’ve missed you! People are reporting feeling:

    However you’re feeling, you’re likely not alone. 

    ? Our next member meeting will be on Jan. 22nd, from 3-4:30. New for 2022 – Register once and you’re registered for all upcoming meetings. https://bit.ly/IE-Monthly-2022 

    ? Here are your two actions this week

    ✊ Action 1 – Weigh in on if Indivisible Eastside should be listed as an endorser

    Did you know that Houghton-area and East Bellevue-area voters have much greater representation and influence in city planning than other residents do due to a relic of a 1967 state law that created community councils with veto powers? All other community councils have been disbanded, but these two alone still exist in Washington.

    On Dec 14, the Kirkland City Council unanimously voted to include sunsetting of the Houghton Community Council (HCC) on the City’s legislative agenda for 2022.  This is an important first step towards structural equity in Kirkland. The City is letting the State legislature know that Kirkland needs a change in state law so that every voter’s vote has equal influence, regardless of the Kirkland neighborhood in which we live. Unlike a few folks in Houghton the other 90% of Kirkland residents do not have the benefit of representation by a veto-wielding community council. 

    Grassroots volunteers who live in Kirkland are currently working closely with Kirkland-area Representatives Larry Springer (LD 45) and Amy Walen (LD 48) to introduce legislation in the Washington State House to sunset the Houghton Community Council (HCC). They will also be working with legislators in the 41st LD, which covers Bellevue, to explore if the East Bellevue Community Council (EBCC) should also be included in this law change. 

    Your Steering committee has been asked for permission to list Indivisible Eastside as an endorser. We do not endorse candidates, but with input from our members, we are considering this request. We need your input!

    Action:

    These steps will enable Steering to make an informed decision about whether our members support Indivisible Eastside being listed as an endorser of this proposed law change. We’ll make a decision after the January 22nd group meeting.

    ✊ Action 2 – Get ready for the 2022 Legislative Session by signing up for Take Action Network

    The legislative session starts January 10, 2022 and ends March 10th. That’s 60 short days for our representatives to continue working on bills that didn’t quite pass last session, introduce new policy, and beat back Republican efforts to weaken bills that have passed. 

    The best and most effective way to be engaged is to sign up for Take Action Network (TAN), our Washington-state Indivisible portal that helps you find and organize actions to take. Last session 22 Washington Indivisible Legislative Action (WILA) bill trackers – including Allison and Hanna – used TAN to track 178 bills and create 438 Calls to Action (CTAs) on 110 of those bills. An incredible 10,422 actions were reported taken, thanks to the efforts of these bill trackers, the WILA support team and everyone who shared TAN actions to their Indivisible group.

    One of the Pandemic accommodations that Washington state used last session was the ability to sign in Pro or Con for a bill before a committee hearing. In the past you would have to physically be in Olympia to register your position. This accommodation will be retained this session and TAN makes that action VERY easy. 

    Get ready to be part of this. Click HERE to learn about TAN – or refresh your memory (red and yellow buttons). For those without a TAN profile, accept the invitation from Indivisible Eastside to sign up (green button).

    Calendar of Events

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Dec 13, 2021

    ?Thank you to those of you who have filled out the IE member survey that we shared last week. We would greatly appreciate hearing from as many of you as possible before Dec. 31st.  If you could take a few minutes to fill it out it will add to our ability to plan for 2022 and be more responsive to your needs. We’ve missed you and love hearing from our members!

    ? Save the Date – our next member meeting will be on Jan. 22nd, from 3-4:30. We anticipate that our meetings will remain virtual for a while yet. 

    ? Here are your three actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Congress] Tell Congress to end the inhumane “Remain in Mexico” policy

    From Seattle Indivisible

    Last week the Biden administration restarted the hugely damaging Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” policy, in which asylum seekers are sent to Mexico before processing. The restarting of this policy is in compliance with a federal court order, but the Biden administration is going a step further and increasing the number of countries covered under this policy. Under Trump, the policy covered people from Spanish-speaking countries and Brazil. Biden’s restart to the policy has expanded to include all countries in the Western Hemisphere, a change that was implemented largely to deter asylum seekers from Haiti. This represents a complete failure to make good on his campaign promise of a humane immigration system. Please contact your Representative and Senators and to urge them to speak up about this abhorrent policy.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [CITY]. The Biden administration recently not only restarted the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” policy, but has expanded its reach to include all countries in the Western Hemisphere. This is an abhorrent reversal of campaign promises for a humane immigration system. I urge you to do everything you can to pressure them to NOT expand the reach of the policy, and to end the filibuster so we can finally pass humane immigration reform. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Ask Redmond to ensure funding for bike lanes in their Transportation Master Plan

    From MoveRedmond

    In 2021, MoveRedmond heard from people who live and work in Redmond about the need for bike routes between neighborhoods, schools, businesses and future light rail stations. Throughout the year, they gathered community members to identify key roads that need protected bike lanes and launched their Protected Bike Lane campaign. 

    Currently, the City of Redmond is updating its Transportation Master Plan. This document will guide the growth and development of Redmond’s streets, trails, and transit for the next 10 years. You can help to ensure that the plan includes funding for bike lanes by filling out Move Redmond’s petition. Let the City leaders know that you want safe routes to school, home, and work!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Donate to the campaign to bring a public utility district to the Eastside

    The Yes to East King County PUD campaign is gearing up to hit the ground running in January. Until the end of December, all donations to the campaign are being matched! If you’ve thought about donating, now’s the time to double your impact and ensure they can reach twice as many voters. In the new year, they will have postcarding events, sign-waving events, and no-knock canvassing opportunities, as well as a robust social media presence. Please like, follow, retweet, and share their campaign on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you’d like to help spread the word on your neighborhood Nextdoor, please contact volunteers@ekc-pud.org to receive templates. To stay up-to-date on the campaign and upcoming volunteer opportunities, subscribe to their newsletter. Let’s secure a better energy future for East King County!

    Calendar of Events

    Save the Date

    • Sat Jan 22, 3-4:30 – IE member meeting – watch for Zoom link to register.

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Dec 6, 2021 

    ? Indivisible Eastside would like to to send a huge Thank You for the donations that we have received throughout  November. With our matching funds, we are able to donate $1000 to the HealthOne program to provide cold weather clothing, shoes and blankets for people without shelter this winter, as well as thermoses for the program vans that provide hot drinks to their clients. You may have seen the recent Seattle Times article that highlights the outstanding work that they do.

    We will also be donating $250 to aplatefull.org, a program that provides meals to many Eastside clients in need. 

    ? Please note that the Conversations of Collaboration and Coalition Building, scheduled for Dec. 9th,  is being postponed to a later date. We hope you’ll be able to join us then.

    ? Here are your three actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Help Indivisible Eastside plan our next steps as a group

    It’s been a difficult few years for us all and we thought that it was time that we reached out to you to ‘take the temperature’ of the group, to better help us to plan for 2022. We would greatly appreciate it if you could take a few minutes to take this survey. We have missed having in-person events and the connections that they bring so hopefully this will go some way to restoring those connections. Please reply by Dec. 31st.

    ✊ Action 2 – [US Senators] Call to demand that our Senators support removing the filibuster for voting rights legislation

    This is by no means the first time that we have asked you to take this action but the urgency of the situation continues to escalate. Republican state legislatures across the country are passing hundreds of sweeping voter suppression laws that would all but assure GOP electoral victories for years to come. 

    The two key pieces of voting rights legislation introduced by the Democrats, the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, have both passed in the House but are stalled in the Senate. Last month the John Lewis Voting Rights Act did not even get enough votes to be brought up for debate because of the filibuster, although it passed 50-49. Without voting rights reform, prospects are bleak for the survival of the democratic process. 

    We need to insist that our Senators support at the very least an exemption to the filibuster to get this legislation passed. Senator Murray has indicated that this is her position and needs to hear that we support her in this. Senator Cantwell has remained silent since a tweet back in May indicating that she supports the ‘talking filibuster’. This is highly unlikely to be enough, given the Republicans’ willingness to stop at nothing to increase their hold on power. 

    Please send a message to both of our Senators to let them know of your concern for the urgency of the situation. The filibuster is a legal relic that has no place in determining the future of our democracy.

    ☎ Sample Script for Senator Murray:

    “My name is [NAME]. I am a member of Indivisible Eastside from [CITY, ZIP]. Given the Republicans willingness to use all means at their disposal to gut voting rights in this country, we must pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John R Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act as soon as possible. I appreciate Senator Murray’s willingness to come out publicly by explicitly calling for a filibuster exemption and support her position on this. The Founding Fathers did not include a filibuster because it is not democracy when a minority holds the majority hostage.

    Thank you.”

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

    ☎ Sample Script for Senator Cantwell:

    “My name is [NAME]. I am a member of Indivisible Eastside from [CITY, ZIP]. Given the Republicans willingness to use all means at their disposal to gut voting rights in this country, we must pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John R Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act as soon as possible. I urge the Senator to come out publicly and explicitly call for a filibuster exemption for this legislation. The Founding Fathers did not include a filibuster because it is not democracy when a minority holds the majority hostage. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Help 2022 candidates to raise campaign funds before the fundraising freeze

    Candidates for state and local office are restricted in the periods when they can raise campaign funds. The freeze period is in effect during the regular legislative session, the 30 days before the regular session and during any special session of the legislature. The date of the cut off is Dec 11. Early funding is really important so if you are able, please consider donating to your favorite candidates, particularly those who are going to be in tight races, before that date. Thank you.

    Calendar of Events

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Nov 29, 2021

    ? LAST CHANCE:  All donations received during the month of November will be used to support the unhoused population in our area. We will pass donations along to the HealthOne program as well as Eastside providers. ?Donate NOW and IE will match all every dollar for double the impact! ?

    ? Conversations of Collaboration and Coalition Building: Join Washington Indivisible Network to hear the stories from co-conspirators with shared values who have been building relationships and community to accomplish together what could not otherwise be achieved and sustained. Hear how Indivisible Kirkland and Eastside For All have come together to advance equity in East King County and how Janie Starr and Ty Cunningham found common cause working together to address racial equity in the Vashon School District.Thursday, December 9th from 6:30 – 8:00 pm.

    Register here: bit.ly/REI_Panel_12-2021

    ? Here are your two actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – Ask Senators to Quickly Pass Build Back Better Legislation

    The Build Back Better Bill is now in the Senate, where lawmakers have the opportunity to make changes to the bill in order to come up with a bill that will be able to pass their chamber. 

    Contact your Senator to urge them to act quickly to send the Build Back Better Act to President Biden’s desk, so we can finally make it law and invest in our communities.  Important parts of this bill are: 

    • Cutting taxes for working families: This bill will extend the expanded Child Tax Credit increases of up to $300 per month, per child, and provide a tax cut of up to $1,500 for 358,300 low-wage workers in Washington.
    • Lowering health care costs: The bill will close the Medicaid coverage gap to help millions of Americans gain health insurance, extend the American Rescue Plan’s health insurance premium reductions for those who buy coverage on their own through 2025, and help older Americans access affordable hearing care by expanding Medicare.
    • Lowering child care & family care costs: This legislation will provide access to child care for 470,000 young children per year from families earning under 2.5 times the Washington median income, ensuring these families pay no more than 7% of their income on high-quality child care. It will also expand access to free, high-quality preschool to more than 181,000 additional 3- and 4-year-olds per year and increase the quality of preschool for children who are already enrolled.
    • Making the largest investment to combat the climate crisis in history: This bill will cut pollution, reduce energy costs, and create good-paying jobs with a transformational investment to ensure America leads the clean energy economy.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP] and I am asking you to act quickly to pass the Build Back Better Act that the House of Representatives just passed so we can make these important investments in our community. Please do everything in your power to make sure this happens without significant changes to the bill. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 – Support our newly elected School Board members

    Newly elected school board candidates will be sworn in starting this week. Given how contentious these races were, and how we have learned that the far right is focusing their political agenda through these school boards, we need to make sure these newly elected board members know we have their back. Let them know we support equity in education for all students, and the teaching of accurate history that is not censored. 

    Write your local school board. You can click on the links below to generate a prefilled email. Please review the email carefully, sign your NAME and include your CITY and ZIP at the bottom before sending.

    ?Sample Script:

    “Dear Board of Directors, 

    I am writing to welcome the newly elected school board members and to let you all know that I, as a community member in this district, support equity in education for all students. I believe the school board should consider every student in this district when making decisions, keeping equity in mind throughout. I believe the school board should support our teachers, allowing them to teach accurate history that is not censored. I support our public schools and want them to be fully funded, so we can give every student a high quality education. 

    Thank you for serving our community. 

    Sincerely, 

    [NAME],

    [CITY, ZIP]”

    ?Bonus Action:

    We are still looking for people to attend school board meetings. Tell us which of YOUR school board meetings you can attend. You don’t have to have children at school. With your help, we can stay ahead of the worrying trend of misinformed right-wing speakers trying to control school boards. Sign up using the first link below:

    • Use access code ‘eastside’ to fill out the Signup Genius form HERE. 
    • Learn about how to attend or participate in Eastside School Board meetings HERE. 
    • Take notes using the note taking template to report back what you observed HERE

    Calendar of Events

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Nov 22, 2021

    ? As we gather for Thanksgiving this week, please take some time to reflect on the history of this holiday by reading this illuminating article. It turns everything on its head about what we have been taught about that first Thanksgiving in Plymouth with the Wampanoags.  Then give thanks for the food that our good earth gives us, and consider how you can support more sustainable agriculture.  

    ? All donations received during the month of November will be used to support the unhoused population in our area. We will pass donations along to the HealthOne program as well as Eastside providers. ?Donate NOW and IE will match all every dollar for double the impact! ?

    ? If you find yourself landing this year in negative emotions–rage, despair, hopelessness–please know that you’re not alone.

    If you’re in need, join us for the 3rd installment of our workshop for activist burnout hosted by the Washington Indivisible Network.  Tuesday, November 23rd, at 7 PM. Register: http://bit.ly/Burnout_Workshop

    ? Give the City of Redmond input about what you would like the Overlake neighborhood to look like in 2050. Take the survey HERE. 

    ? Here are your three actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – Ask Senators to Quickly Pass Build Back Better Legislation

    Our Washington state Congressional Democrats stood shoulder to shoulder in support of the Build Back Better Act. We are honored to have two House leaders who led their groups in making needed compromises while holding firm on critical progressive and centrist programs.  Pramila Jayapal led the House Progressive Caucus and Suzan Del Bene led the New Democrat Coalition, working to move the bill over the finish line. 

    During this Thanksgiving week, it is appropriate to let all of Washington state Democratic MOCs know how grateful we are for their work in helping our vision of a progressive, people-centered society become a reality.  Important parts of this bill are: 

    • Cutting taxes for working families: This bill will extend the expanded Child Tax Credit increases of up to $300 per month, per child, and provide a tax cut of up to $1,500 for 358,300 low-wage workers in Washington.
    • Lowering health care costs: The bill will close the Medicaid coverage gap to help millions of Americans gain health insurance, extend the American Rescue Plan’s health insurance premium reductions for those who buy coverage on their own through 2025, and help older Americans access affordable hearing care by expanding Medicare.
    • Lowering child care & family care costs: This legislation will provide access to child care for 470,000 young children per year from families earning under 2.5 times the Washington median income, ensuring these families pay no more than 7% of their income on high-quality child care. It will also expand access to free, high-quality preschool to more than 181,000 additional 3- and 4-year-olds per year and increase the quality of preschool for children who are already enrolled.
    • Making the largest investment to combat the climate crisis in history: This bill will cut pollution, reduce energy costs, and create good-paying jobs with a transformational investment to ensure America leads the clean energy economy.

    Call your Representatives to thank them for all the hard work required to pass this historic legislation. 

    ?Bonus Action: The bill now goes to the Senate, where lawmakers have the opportunity to make changes (think cuts) to the bill in order to come up with a bill that will be able to pass their chamber. 

    Contact your Senator to urge them to act quickly to send the Build Back Better Act to President Biden’s desk, so we can finally make it law and invest in our communities. 

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP] and I am asking you to act quickly to pass the Build Back Better Act that the House of Representatives just passed so we can make these important investments in our community. Please do everything in your power to make sure this happens without significant changes to the bill. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 – Support Skagit and Whatcom County Flood Response

    From Seattle Indivisible

    As you may know, the past week has been devastating for many in our state, with rivers flowing at unprecedented levels and towns in Skagit and Whatcom Counties underwater. In Sumas it was estimated that 75% of homes were damaged, I-5 through Bellingham had to be shut down, and there is more rain yet to come.

    This sort of disaster is exactly why we need to invest in climate change resilience for prevention now rather than later. 

    ACTION: If you can, please consider donating to Whatcom Community Foundation Resilience Fund. 

    ✊ Action 3 – Ask your Senators to Quickly Confirm Nominees to the FCC

    BattleForTheNet.com

    Net neutrality is the principle that everyone should have access to websites and apps, preventing Internet providers like Comcast & Verizon from creating “fast lanes,” censoring content, throttling traffic and even outright blocking access to their competitor’s products. This principle has guided the world wide web from the beginning, and has been protected by federal policy under Republican AND Democrat leadership since the early 2000s.

    For a long time, Internet providers ignored this policy and did all they could to destroy net neutrality protections. Finally, after massive public outcry, the Obama FCC issued the Open Internet Order in 2015. But in 2017, Trump’s FCC Chair, Ajit Pai, repealed these regulations, putting Internet providers back in control of what we can and can’t access online.

    The White House has announced its nominees for the Federal Communications Commission who, if confirmed, can finally undo Ajit Pai’s harmful repeal of net neutrality. But time is tight: we need the Senate to confirm both these nominees before the end of the year, or we risk not being able to win back net neutrality in 2022.

    Tell your Senators to act now to confirm Jessica Rosenworcel and Gigi Sohn to the FCC, and to do all they can to reinstate net neutrality.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling to urge [Senator] to swiftly confirm both Jessica Rosenworcel as Chair and Gigi Sohn to the Federal Communications Commission. These candidates are highly qualified and would fight to reinstate net neutrality and to end the digital divide so that all people have affordable Internet access. Right now, nearly 80 million people in the U.S. do not have adequate broadband at home—with poor families and people of color disproportionately disconnected. We can’t afford any more delay. We need a fully-functional FCC now. Please support these candidates, push for their concurrent confirmation, and do all you can to reinstate net neutrality.

    Thank you.”

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

    Calendar of Events

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Nov 15, 2021 

    ? Who is ready for some light-hearted fun? Join us on Nov. 16 at 7 pm for a new edition of Sound Off Washington, the Indivisible News Quiz. This time it will feature 3 of our favorite Washington elected officials. Representative Drew Hansen, Treasurer Mike Pellicciotti, and Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz. It will broadcast on Facebook Live and YouTube. Don’t miss it!

    ? Postcard writers, don’t put those pens away quite yet! You can write postcards to newly-registered, progressive-leaning voters in Pennsylvania–a US Senate seat will be up for election in PA in 2022!  Email Elizabeth at postcards@indivisibleeastside.com to arrange a no-contact pickup in Kirkland of 25, 50, 75 or more cards (your choice).  Your packet includes the campaign-specific postcards, address list, and full instructions.  There is no charge for the cards; you just provide the stamps.  Mail these postcards any time before January 7, 2022.  The organization is Postcards to Swing States–more info here:  https://www.turnoutpac.org/postcards/

    ? If you missed yesterday’s group meeting, you can view the notes and recording of our discussion with 41st LD Representative My-Linh Thai on the future of HB1202 – Addressing meaningful civil remedies for persons injured as a result of police misconduct HERE. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Take action on the WSDOT Overlake Village Freeway Ramp

    From moveredmond.org

    As progress is made on the Eastlink Light Rail system across the Eastside, decisions are being made that will determine the sustainability and liveability of the neighborhoods around the train stations. In Redmond, the Overlake area will be transformed by the Overlake Village Station when it opens in 2023. It will improve access to jobs and affordable housing, and should be a place where priority is given to getting around by foot, bike, and bus. There is also the potential for up to 350 additional housing units to be built in the development.

    However, the Washington Department of Transportation is planning to build a freeway ramp off SR-520 that will bring thousands of cars a day directly in front of the new station, bringing noise, congestion, pollution, and safety concerns to an area where thousands of people will be passing through on foot and by bike and transit. As this article from theurbanist.org further explains, this runs contrary to the stated policy of both the City of Redmond and WSDOT, both of whom have stated goals to prioritize climate and safety concerns in transportation projects.

    Move Redmond has joined with community partners Disability Rights Washington, Front & Centered, 350 Washington, and Redmond residents in calling to halt construction of this project. It cannot go forward as designed. WSDOT should complete an Environmental Impact Statement, conduct community outreach, and commit to prioritizing pedestrian safety, transit access, and full accessibility for people with disabilities. 

    Please use the link provided by Move Redmond to send a message to WSDOT and state leaders that this project needs to be halted. 

    If you are interested in the plans for the Marymoor Village Station (opening 2024) you can join MoveRedmond on the next Walk and Talk on Nov 20th. Please RSVP to join. 

    ✊ Action 2 – Share your opinions about our state tax structure with the legislature

    From taxworkgroup.org

    Our state tax structure is famously unfair and inadequate for our needs. The sales and property tax-based system unfairly burdens the lowest-income families and costs the state billions of dollars in state and local tax revenue. 

    The Tax Structure Working Group was established In 2017 by the Washington State Legislature to identify options to make the Washington State tax code more fair, adequate, stable, and transparent. They recently held a Town Hall and are following up by asking for the public’s input via a survey.

    There are two versions of the survey. The short survey takes around 15-20 minutes and asks general questions about your preferences and is focused mostly on personal taxes. The long survey takes around 30-45 minutes and asks more in-depth questions. It also asks for your brief opinions on tax scenarios and includes scenarios on both personal and business taxes. There are several helpful videos that you can watch before sharing your opinions on our state tax structure.

    ✊ Action 3 – Donate to help the unhoused population in our area with supplies for the winter

    Through November we will continue to collect donations, both financial and material, to support the unhoused population in our area. We will pass donations along to the HealthOne program as well as Eastside providers.

    • For cold weather clothing, we are requesting financial donations only, via the link on our website. All donations received during the month of November will be used to purchase specific items from a company where we can get very good value for bulk purchases of new items.
    • If you would prefer to donate goods, we will collect the specific hygiene items that have been requested (no clothing or other personal care items). These items are:
      • Baby wipes
      • Feminine pads
      • Adult incontinence underwear in varied sizes (small, medium & large)
    • From existing funds, Indivisible Eastside will purchase other items for the outreach teams that they have requested, such as large insulated flasks to provide hot drinks from the program vehicles.

    If you would like to donate hygiene items we will have two more opportunities to drop them off over the next few weeks. Look for a car with an ‘Indivisible Eastside Donation Drop Off’ sign.

    • Sat. Nov 20, 12:00 -2 pm – Safeway parking lot, 12519 NE 85th St, Kirkland (Rose Hill) 
    • Sun Nov 21, 12:00-2 pm –  Bank of America/Amazon Fresh parking lot, 3901 Factoria Blvd SE, Bellevue

    Many thanks to those generous Indivisibles who have already donated! We look forward to being able to make a difference in the lives of community members who are facing a difficult winter. 

    Calendar of Events

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Nov 8, 2021 

    ? Thank you to all of you who worked on any of our local election campaigns by canvassing, phone and text banking, donating to candidates, supporting them via their social media campaigns and most of all, voting! The biggest thanks go to the wonderful progressive candidates and their families across our area who put their lives on hold for months on end to run in these sometimes brutal races. Results were mixed but how reassuring to know what wonderful people we have here on the Eastside who are willing to step up for their communities!

    ? A big ‘Thank You’ also goes to all those who wrote postcards for candidates via Postcards4WA. Again, results were mixed but we are thrilled to see several progressive candidates ahead in their races, particularly in Bothell and Woodinville, where that has not always been the case. Fantastic!

    ? Still feeling the need to address your burnout levels? You can catch up on the first session of Washington Indivisible Network’s workshop series, Kicking BURNOUT’s Butt, and sign up for future sessions HERE. Upcoming dates: Nov 9, Nov 23, and Dec 14. 

    ? Please join us Sunday Nov 14, 4 – 5:30 pm for the Indivisible Eastside Group Meeting – All are welcome – Register to attend. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Donate to help the unhoused population in our area with supplies for the winter

    You may remember that back in the Spring we began conversations with groups in the area about the need for alternative responses to mental health crises. You may also have seen the great Washington Indivisible Network Town Hall about it. These conversations have continued and many good connections have been made to people on the front lines of this work. We recently received a request from one of these groups, Health One, which is the Seattle Fire Department’s Mobile Integrated Health response unit. They have two units that cover a large area of central Seattle and have daily contact with people who are experiencing crisis, including not having a place to live. They need an array of items that can be provided directly to people in need from the mobile units. These include cold weather clothing and personal hygiene items. We agreed that this is something that we could help with, with the assistance of our generous members. We would like to include Eastside service providers in this project as well and have reached out to several that we have relationships with as a result of our outreach earlier this year.

    As we have been provided with very specific lists of needed items we have decided on a three-pronged approach.

    • For cold weather clothing, we are requesting financial donations only, via the link on our website. All donations received during the month of November will be used to purchase specific items from a company where we can get very good value for bulk purchases of new items.
    • If you would prefer to donate goods, we will collect the specific hygiene items that have been requested (ie no clothing or other personal care items). These items are:
      • Baby wipes
      • Feminine pads
      • Adult incontinence underwear in varied sizes (small, medium & large)
    • From existing funds, Indivisible Eastside will purchase other items for the outreach teams that they have requested, such as large insulated flasks to provide hot drinks from the program vehicles.

    If you would like to donate hygiene items we will have four opportunities to drop them off over the next few weeks. Look for a car with an ‘Indivisible Eastside Donation Drop Off’ sign.

    • Sat. Nov 13, 12:00 -2 pm – Dick’s Sporting Goods parking lot, 15600 NE 8th St, Bellevue (Crossroads)
    • Sun. Nov 14, 12:00-2 pm – World Market parking lot, 7214 170th Ave NE (Redmond Town Center) 
    • Sat. Nov 20, 12:00 -2 pm – Safeway parking lot, 12519 NE 85th St, Kirkland (Rose Hill) 
    • Sun Nov 21, 12:00-2 pm –  Bank of America/Amazon Fresh parking lot, 3901 Factoria Blvd SE, Bellevue

    ✊ Action 2 – Learn about the Build Back Better Bill from Congressman Adam Smith

    The Build Back Better (BBB) agenda and bill are transformational. According to the White House, BBB will create millions of good paying jobs and lower costs for Americans and their families. 

    What does that mean? Congress has been debating and negotiating on this for months. Where are we? What’s in the bill? What’s not in the bill? How will this change lives? What do we need to do to help get BBB across the finish line and onto the President’s desk?

    As one of only a handful of Congresspeople who are members of both the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) and the New Democrat Coalition (NDC), Congressman Adam Smith is in a unique position to discuss BBB with Indivisible. Please join us at a Washington Indivisible Network Town Hall event on Nov. 13. Everyone is welcome to join the conversation, whether or not you are in his district. 

    Please register to attend. Questions asked via your registration will have priority although others will be addressed after the event as time allows. 

    ✊ Action 3 – Take action to support local indigenous communities

    November is Native American Heritage Month, also known as American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month. The month is a time to ‘celebrate rich and diverse cultures, traditions and histories and to acknowledge the important contributions of Native people’ (Muckleshoot Tribe). There are several ways that we can offer support to our local indigenous communities that will have long term positive effects. 

    • ✊Action 3b The Snoqualmie Tribe is very concerned about the increasing number of light plane and helicopter flights over their sacred land at Snoqualmie Falls. These flights violate the sovereignty of the tribe, who are the legal owners of Snoqualmie Lodge and surrounding acreage. They are also a considerable safety risk to visitors to the Falls. You can show your support for protecting Snoqualmie Falls by sharing your concerns with the FAA. 

    You can file a general complaint with your broad concerns for air traffic at sacred Snoqualmie Falls with the FAA here (select “General Public”, then “Other” ). You can also use this form to report specific instances of flights at the Falls that you may observe. Please note that drones are not covered by the same (or any) regulations in this instance.

    ☎ Sample Script for the ‘Description’ section of the form, provided by the Snoqualmie Tribes Ancestral Lands Movement:

    “Sacred Snoqualmie Falls in Snoqualmie, Washington is being heavily impacted by helicopter tours and other air traffic. Visitors to the Falls see these aircraft as they fly low and frequently at the sacred site. This air traffic infringes on the rights of Snoqualmie Tribal Members for them to practice their cultural beliefs at their sacred site, and it violates their sovereignty, as controlling one’s airspace is a fundamental tenet of sovereignty. These flights, which are often very low and close to the popular Snoqualmie Falls park, also pose a threat to public safety, and disrupt the ability for visitors to visit the site in a mindful way.”

    Calendar of Events

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Nov 1, 2021 

    ? VOTE and remind friends and neighbors to vote. Don’t wait for the last minute to drop your ballot in a drop box – they may become full on Tuesday. For voting resources see last week’s Newsletter. 

    ? The first session of Washington Indivisible Network’s workshop series, Kicking BURNOUT’s Butt, was amazing! You can catch up on session 1 and sign up for future sessions HERE. Upcoming dates: Nov 9, Nov 23, and Dec 14. 

    ? As the month of November begins, consider participating in the weekly 5 session discussion group – Rethinking “Thanksgiving” – to learn and change the stories we tell ourselves about Thanksgiving. This discussion follows this toolkit created for white folks by the Indigenous Solidarity Network and will be led by Robin G of Indivisible Washington’s 8th District.  Sundays, Nov 14, 21, 28, Dec 5, 12 at 6-7 pm. Email hello@indivisibleeastside.com to receive the zoom link to attend. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Governor Inslee] Ask the Governor to restore race and gender Affirmative Action policies

    From Washington Equity Now!

    Thanks in part to those who took action last week to contact your King County councilmember, the motion to restore race and gender Affirmative Action to WA state law passed the council unanimously! Thank you for your advocacy. The EQUITY NOW! campaign is asking Governor Inslee to sign an Executive Order to rescind Governor’s Directive 98-01 (from 1998) and allow the legislature to implement I-200, as passed by the voters in 1998 and interpreted by the Washington State Supreme Court and the Washington State Attorney General. GD 98-01’s language drastically differed from I-200. Instead of staying within I-200’s stated intent of simply prohibiting “lesser qualified candidates from being selected over more qualified candidates based on race or gender for a public job, contract or a seat in a public college”, GD 98-01 directed all Washington state agencies to immediately cease all Affirmative Action programs. These are any programs that use race or gender as factors for selecting candidates for public employment, public contracting and public college admissions (unless the programs are for outreach and recruitment only). Governor Inslee can sign an executive order now to restore all Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Affirmative Action policies that lie within the stated intent of I-200. More detailed information can be found at the WA Equity Now website.

    Call Governor Inslee’s office at 360-902-4111, or contact him through his online form.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Dear Governor Inslee:

    On October 26th, the King County Council, representing Washington’s most diverse and populous cities, affirmed Motion 2021-0391- “Restore race and gender Affirmative Action to WA state law”. Please hear this message and sign an EXECUTIVE ORDER to RESCIND GOVERNOR’S DIRECTIVE #98-01 and restore Affirmative Action for women and BIPOC communities in Washington state.

    You’ve got my 100% support to make Washington the land of opportunity for ALL!

    Sincerely,


    [NAME]”

    ✊ Action 2 – Keep an eye on School Board Meetings in your district.

    Thank you to the 8 people (so far) who have attended and taken notes for Eastside school board meetings. Some have noted that accessibility for attending is quite variable – while Lake Washington meetings show the speaker, Bellevue shows only static slides, so it’s difficult to tell which board member is speaking. Bellevue also limits the public comment period to 10 minutes – or not at all as in a recent meeting. 

    One important way to know how Eastside school districts are managing equity issues and who opposes them is to join with others in attending these meetings. Joan took some notes on a promising presentation to the NorthShore school board. Can you commit to spend 2 hours a month attending a school board meeting and filling out a note-taking document outline? We are asking our members in Bellevue, Lake Washington, Northshore, and Issaquah school districts to sign up to attend meetings (two people per meeting), either online or in person (districts vary) and take notes. We do not expect anyone to confront other attendees but just to report back. 

    Tell us which of YOUR school board meetings you can attend. You don’t have to have children at school. With your help, we can stay ahead of the worrying trend of misinformed right-wing speakers trying to control school boards.  

    • Use access code ‘eastside’ to fill out the Signup Genius form HERE. 
    • Learn about how to attend or participate in Eastside School Board meetings HERE. 
    • Take notes using the note taking template to report back what you observed HERE

    ✊ Action 3 – [Senator Murray] Thank Sen. Murray for Her Outspoken Support of Family and Medical Leave

    Call Senator Murray’s office to thank her for fighting to provide family and medical leave for the millions of Americans who do not have it. She recently said that Democrats are “not going to let one man tell all the women in this country that they can’t have paid leave.” As reported by the Washington Post (10/30/2021), she has spoken to Sen. Manchin as to “when you just had a baby, [when] you have a seriously ill family member, it is an economic issue for [workers] that they be able to have that time.”  

    Sen. Patty Murray: DC 202-224-2621 | Seattle 206-553-5545 | EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I want to express my thanks to Senator Murray for her support of family and medical leave in the budget reconciliation bill.  I want to also thank her for her long-standing support of child care, universal pre-K, and extending the child tax credit. I’m hopeful these programs will now be in law thanks to Patty.

    Keep up the fight, Patty!”

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Calendar of Events

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Oct 25, 2021

    ? Election reminders:

    • Voter registration can be checked and online registration done here.
    • If you haven’t received your ballot yet, contact King County Elections at 206-296-VOTE TODAY.
    • Online and mail voter registrations must be received by Oct 25.
    • You can register to vote in person during business hours and any time before 8:00 p.m. on Election Day. Check here for Vote Center locations.
    • If you’re stumped on how to vote, check out Fuse Washington’s comprehensive Progressive Voter’s Guide, King County Democrats Endorsements, or the endorsement of your Legislative District Democrats (do some Googling)
    • Ballots can be dropped in the mail without postage or into one of 73 ballot drop locations around the county. Deadline is 8 pm on Tuesday November 2nd.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [KING COUNTY COUNCIL] Restore race and gender Affirmative Action to WA state law

    From Washington Equity Now Alliance (WENA)

    On Tuesday October 26th, the King County Council will vote on Motion 2021-0391 [A MOTION declaring that race- and gender-conscious affirmative action practices in the county are needed to combat discrimination that race- and gender-neutral measures have failed to eliminate in King County – [Page 80 in the Council Packet for the meeting] This motion urges Governor Jay Inslee to rescind Governor’s Directive 98-01 and restore race and gender Affirmative Action in our state laws, as ruled by the Washington State Supreme Court in 2003. For more background, see the Washington Equity Now FAQs.

    Find your King County District and Contact YOUR Councilmember directly

    ☎ Sample Script for Councilmembers Zahilay, Kohl-Welles, and Upthegrove (motion co-sponsors): 

    “Dear King County Council Member (NAME),

    As your constituent, I sincerely thank you for co-sponsoring Motion 2021-0391, which concerns affirmative action practices. I fully support you in voting YES on the motion when the full Council meets on Tuesday Oct 26.

    On behalf of myself and Washington Equity Now Alliance (WENA), thank you!

    in Solidarity, 

    [NAME]”

    ☎ Sample Script for all other Councilmembers: 

    “Dear King County Council Member (NAME),

    As your constituent, I respectfully ask that you join your fellow Councilmembers in voting YES on Motion 2021-0391 when the full Council meets on Tuesday October 26. This Motion, sponsored by councilmembers Girmay Zahilay, David Upthegrove, and Jeanne Kohl-Welles, marks the first legislation introduced in King County’s history to achieve the following three goals:

    1.   To restore race and gender conscious affirmative action policies throughout Washington’s largest county. 
    2.   To urge Governor Jay Inslee to sign an Executive Order rescinding Governor’s Directive 98-01; and finally…
    3.   To urge Governor Inslee to enforce the 2003 Washington State Supreme Court ruling which restored race and gender conscious affirmative action programs 18 years ago in Washington state, and prohibits a lesser qualified candidate from being selected over a more qualified candidate for a public job, a public contract or a seat in a public college or university, based on race or gender.

    On behalf of myself and Washington Equity Now Alliance (WENA), thank you!

    in Solidarity, 

    [NAME]”

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Support the Tax Credit for Union-Made Electric Vehicles made in the U.S.

    From UAW

    All auto companies are moving toward lower emissions, and the market share of electric vehicles will grow. To make the shift to EVs work for our communities, we need policies that promote U.S. manufacturing and good union jobs.

    Right now, there is a provision in the Build Back Better Act that does just that by giving consumers an additional tax credit if they purchase a union-made electric vehicle made in the U.S. House and Senate are likely to vote on the legislation within the next few weeks. Without such groundbreaking policies, the U.S. will continue to slip further behind foreign competitors in production of EVs with no assurance that future automobile technologies will be built by union workers in the U.S.

    The tax credit of an additional $4,500 for union-made electric vehicles made in the U.S. is a win for UAW members, unorganized autoworkers, and the entire labor movement. For more information, see the UAW website. 

    Contact your members of Congress and urge them to support the tax credit.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. I support the EV tax credit for union-made electric vehicles made in the U.S., and I want the provision included in the Build Back Better Act. This is a win for UAW members, unorganized autoworkers, and the entire labor movement.

    This provision will:

    1. Give consumers an extra $4,500 tax credit for buying a union-made electric vehicle made in the U.S.
    2. Set union labor standards, wages, and working conditions as the floor and not the ceiling before companies can benefit from this tax credit.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 3 – Donate to Indivisible’s fight for Democracy Reform

    From Indivisible

    On Oct 20th, fifty Senate Democrats (including Manchin and Sinema!) supported beginning debate on the Freedom to Vote Act — the current version of the big democracy reform bill that we’ve been fighting for all year. As expected, McConnell and his GOP allies filibustered to prevent that debate. Then, at the Oct 21st CNN Town Hall (summarized here), President Biden said he supported scrapping the filibuster to pass voting rights! That’s a big f—ing deal and Indivisible wants to build on that momentum!

    Question: What does the failed vote do to move the ball forward? 

    Answer: It demonstrated Democratic unity and GOP opposition. 

    Question: What will the endgame look like?

    Answer: A successful end to reconciliation followed by a showdown on the filibuster.

    → click here to donate $10, $20 or $50 to help Indivisible finish the fight for our democracy in 2021.

    Democracy reform has always had Biden’s support, but it’s never been his top priority. His top priority has always been infrastructure and the Build Back Better economic agenda. As long as Congress is still negotiating that “reconciliation” bill with Manchin and Sinema, Biden will not be throwing his full weight into getting those two senators onboard with filibuster reform.

    But the endgame is now coming into focus. Once the reconciliation fight is over, that frees up the legislative calendar and President Biden’s time. In the time period between the completion of the reconciliation legislative fight and the end of the year, we will have a brief window of opportunity to call the question on the filibuster. Down one path is a vote to reform the filibuster and save democracy. Down the other path is a vote against any changes to the filibuster — a vote that will allow McConnell to kill the Freedom to Vote Act. It is our job to make that choice as stark as possible.

    From Indivisible co-founder Ezra Levin: 

    “We have big things planned! We’re working with our partners right now on a massive nationwide action to show senators that we won’t accept any more delays — it’s time to act on democracy and eliminate the filibuster to do it. We have ads we want to run in Arizona (and around the country — to the tune of $200k!) and swag we want to send to activists in West Virginia. We want to drive calls to key senators and holdouts. And we want to get a massive amount of press coverage so that congressional leadership and President Biden feel the pressure and support to get this done. Our allies in the Senate advise us that this is EXACTLY what we need to do to create the space for a deal to be reached.

    Some of this stuff we can do on the cheap, but much of it costs money. You know Indivisible doesn’t take money from corporations or political figures. Grassroots donations like yours are our single largest source of support. So when we face a budget gap like this, it’s my job to level with you directly and ask if you have a few extra bucks to help us close the gap and finish this fight. So let me level with you directly and ask: do you have a few extra bucks to help us close the gap and finish this fight?”

    –>If so, click here to donate $10, $20 or $50 to help Indivisible finish the fight for our democracy in 2021.

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Candidate Forums:

    Calendar of Events

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Oct 18, 2021 

    ? Our October meeting yesterday focused on our school districts and the challenges we are facing with a rising rhetoric against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. If you missed it you can access the meeting notes HERE. 

    ? Election reminders:

    • Voter registration can be checked and online registration done here.
    • If you haven’t received your ballot yet, contact King County Elections at 206-296-VOTE.
    • Online and mail voter registrations must be received by Oct 25.
    • You can register to vote in person during business hours and any time before 8:00 p.m. on Election Day. Check here for Vote Center locations.
    • If you’re stumped on how to vote, check out Fuse Washington’s comprehensive Progressive Voter’s Guide.
    • Ballots can be dropped in the mail without postage or into one of 73 ballot drop locations around the county. Deadline is 8pm on Tuesday November 2nd.

    ? Thank you to all who helped write Postcards4WA! Here’s a few stats on what we did:

    • More than 200 writers!
    • 10 campaigns with a total of 12 candidates. 7 candidates are BIPOC and of the 12 candidates, 10 are women!
    • Candidates running for:  school board, judge, city council, county council positions
    • Candidates running in:  Bellevue, Bothell, Woodinville, Sammamish, Snohomish County, Gig Harbor, Bremerton, Walla Walla, and Spokane Valley
    • In total, over 26,000 postcards written!

    ? Here are your 2 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Help needed with local school boards

    #iteachthetruth

    Two weeks in a row we have had ACTIONS to ask for volunteers to attend school board meetings, and included background information on some of what is happening in our school districts. If you haven’t had a chance to sign up to take notes at a school board meeting please do that using the link above. 

    Today’s action is focused on an issue that happened at Eastlake High School where the reasons for some collective decisions about the ‘theme’ of a football game were mischaracterized and overblown. Conservative local talk radio host, Jason Rantz, has used the situation to stir up his base and put LWSD teachers in harm’s way by amplifying the national narrative that the far right is using to undermine our public schools. We need to call on the school, district leaders, students and families to unequivocally stand by ALL teachers who engage in equity work in their classrooms and the district’s own commitments to anti-racist, abolitionist teaching.

    • Superintendent of Lake Washington School District: Jon Holmen
      • joholmen@lwsd.org
    • Associate Superintendent of Lake Washington School District: Matt Gillingham
      • mgillingham@lwsd.org
    • Director of Secondary Education of Lake Washington School District: Whitney Meissner
      • wmeissner@lwsd.org 
    • Eastlake High School Principal Chris Bede
      • cbede@lwsd.org
    • School Board of LWSD
      • boardmembers@lwsd.org
      • Eric Laliberte, President, elaliberte@lwsd.org
      • Mark Stuart, Vice President, mstuart@lwsd.org
      • Cassandra Sage, Legislative Representative, csage@lwsd.org
      • Chris Carlson, ccarlson@lwsd.org
      • Siri Bliesner, sbliesner@lwsd.org

    Sample letter-please cut & paste body of letter. Send to Superintendent Holmen and CC everyone else above.

    “Dear Dr. Holmen,

    I am a concerned community member writing to you today in support of our teachers. The national rhetoric happening at our schools and at school board meetings is troubling, but hearing that something similar is being spread by local media personalities like Jason Rantz has prompted my letter today. 

    The report from Jason Rantz in September put our administrators, staff, and students in danger. If this happens again, it is almost certain that danger will escalate. If we want our teachers to lead with equity, we must be willing to protect them loudly and clearly as they engage in that work. As a district, the safety of our staff and students, particularly those most marginalized, must be our unwavering priority. 

    Here is what all teachers in the district need:

    • An unequivocal statement to the Lake Washington School District community that makes clear teachers in this district lead with equity for every kid, every day. To ensure the community understands that the mission and vision of the district includes engaging in “abolitionist teaching as we unite to disrupt the systems that threaten the educational freedoms of our community.” 
    • Future messaging written in consultation with the highly-trained equity teams and representatives at the district level. To ensure that the voices of our most marginalized staff and students are uplifted and protected in whatever messaging is put forth. 
    • Transparent communication from district officials so that the entire Lake Washington School District community is fully informed in a situation like this, especially knowing that the consequences of Rantz’s articles put the safety of everyone at Eastlake, students included, at risk. Students, parents, and staff within the district have a right to know what is happening to our teachers at this moment and in any future instances that may arise.
    • Listening to the authentic needs of teachers. This includes listening honestly to teachers at Eastlake about the harm that came from the lack of clear district messaging in September. Listening to the perspectives of teachers and affected community members will help us move forward as a stronger unified voice. It should be noted that in a situation where one reporter’s actions have previously put staff in danger and threaten to do so again, inviting that person into the school with staff and students present is a safety issue rather than a solution. 

    Teachers carry a paramount responsibility to create a safe environment in our schools. Similarly, as a district, it is your responsibility to create a safe environment in which teachers can follow through on the goals you have set for them as equity-focused, abolitionist educators. Please assure this community that you will take proactive measures to protect our teachers as they continue to lead with equity. 

    Thank you.

    [NAME]”

    ✊ Action 2 – Build Back Better

    Progressive Reform Network

    The US Congress is on the verge of passing a historic bill that could transform the lives of families all over the country. As Democrats in Congress negotiate over what will be included in the Build Back Better Act, some politicians are trying to cut important items for children and families. Tell your member of Congress that families across the country are counting on them to make sure that the original $3.5 trillion bill is not cut. This bill could be a GAMECHANGER for our children and families. Already we’re seeing the expanded child tax credit lift millions of children out of poverty — this would go even further.

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

    Sample Email:

    “Dear [Senator/Representative Name],

    Please pass the Build Back Better Act as soon as possible — American families are struggling and desperately need support. I urge you to make sure the bill contains all the important policies outlined in the Biden Administration’s original $3.5 trillion proposal and in particular includes:

    • A PERMANENT child tax credit so checks keep coming until children turn 18. 
    • Universal preschool for all 3 and 4 year olds so children can get a great start and parents can work.
    • 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave for ALL workers.
    • Direct support to families to cut child care costs and a fair wage for child and eldercare workers; direct home and community based support for seniors and the disabled community; and paying a fair wage for home care workers so families can stay together.
    • Lower prescription drug and health insurance costs, and filling the Medicaid gap to cover health care for low income families.
    • A pathway to citizenship for DREAMers and essential workers.
    • Forcing big corporations to finally pay their fair share in taxes to make all this possible!

    Thank you for fighting on behalf of our families.

    Sincerely,

    [NAME]”

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Candidate Forums:

    Calendar of Events

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Oct 11, 2021 

    ? Election reminders:

    • Voter registration can be checked and online registration done here.  
    • Ballots are mailed on Oct 13. If you don’t receive yours by Oct 18, contact King County Elections at 206-296-VOTE.
    • Ballot drop boxes open Oct 14.  
    • Online and mail voter registrations must be received by Oct 25. 
    • You can register to vote in person during business hours and any time before 8:00 p.m. on Election Day. Check here for Vote Center locations.

    ? Postcards WA cards need to be mailed by Oct 12 so if you have any sitting on your counter, get them done today! Please complete and log your cards here. 

    ? Join us tomorrow, Oct 12th for the Washington Indivisible Network Town Hall with Attorney General Bob Ferguson.  Some of the topics are: The Texas abortion ban, federal voting rights, dark money in politics, immigrant rights, enforcing the banking tax, Kathy Lambert’s racist campaign, protecting Hanford workers, and protecting the 2024 election. There is A LOT to talk about!

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Vote Early!!

    King County Elections will be mailing ballots out this Wednesday, Oct 13th. They should be in your mailbox Friday, or over the weekend, so why not take a few minutes to fill it out and drop it in the mail or ballot drop box? Don’t leave it hanging out on the counter where it might accidentally join a pile of recycling. If you’re stumped on how to vote, check out Fuse Washington’s comprehensive Progressive Voter’s Guide. Ballots can be dropped in the mail without postage or into one of 73 ballot drop locations around the county. Deadline is 8pm on Tuesday November 2nd. 

    ✊ Action 2 – Sign up to attend School Board Meetings in your area

    As you are probably aware, School Board meetings are not what they used to be. There are groups with anti-equity and racist agendas across the country organizing to influence elections from the ground up, often under the guise of re-opening schools or not wearing masks. They are anti-public school and definitely anti-union (as we have heard in candidate forums in Bellevue recently), with nefarious long term goals which include depriving schools of tax dollars, to be directed instead to private schools. 

    One important way to know how Eastside school districts are managing equity issues and who opposes them is to do research. Would you like to help with this region wide effort by spending 2 hours a month attending a school board meeting and filling out a note-taking document outline? We are asking our members in Bellevue, Lake Washington, Northshore, and Issaquah school districts to sign up to attend meetings (two people per meeting), either online or in person (districts vary) and take notes. We do not expect anyone to confront other attendees but just to report back. Progressives must meet the moment to push back against the well coordinated and funded right-wing anti-equity movement. 

    Use access code ‘eastside’ to sign up for one of YOUR school board meetings HERE. Learn about meeting dates, and attending or participating in Eastside School Board meetings HERE. You don’t have to have children at school, but just to want to help to stay ahead of this worrying trend.  

    ✊ Action 3 – Comment on King County Redistricting Maps

    We recently had actions to comment on the redistricting that is taking place for the state in adjusting our Legislative and Congressional Districts, but did you know that there is redistricting happening at the county level as well? The 2021 King County Districting Committee is responsible for redrawing King County Council Districts using 2020 Census data. By law, district boundaries must be realigned every 10 years to reflect changes in population distribution. This means that your current King County Council District and Councilmember may change. Find out how you can get involved  and contact the committee about how district boundary changes might impact you and your community on the participate page. There will be four Town Halls to provide input on the proposed maps on Oct. 17th, 19th, 20th and 21st. 

    More information HERE. 

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Candidate Forums:

    Calendar of Events

    Save the Date:

    • Thur Nov 4, 7 pm – League of Women Voters Forum – King County’s Behavioral Health System (link to come)

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Oct 4, 2021

    ? Election reminders:

    • Voter registration can be checked and online registration done here.
    • Ballots are mailed on Oct 13. If you don’t receive yours by Oct 18, contact King County Elections at 206-296-VOTE.
    • Ballot drop boxes open Oct 14.
    • Online and mail registrations must be received by Oct 25.
    • You can register to vote in person during business hours and any time before 8:00 p.m. on Election Day.

    ? Postcards WA are in the final push to get postcards completed in time for the election. Cards need to be mailed by Oct 12 so if you can help please contact them asap! If you signed up to write, please complete and log your cards and request more addresses. Watch this video to hear from a school board candidate on how impactful postcards can be!

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Comment on the proposed maps for new Legislative and Congressional Districts

    From Tina Podlowski

    The once-a-decade redistricting process is almost complete in Washington State.  The draft maps have been published and there is a very limited time period for the public to comment. The deadline to come up with final maps is Nov 15. The GOP is bombarding the Washington Redistricting Commission with comments in support of their versions, where they have made every effort to draw districts to their political advantage. In just about every swing district in the state, they gerrymandered the district to move it from a swing district to lean Republican. The commission is supposed to draw districts that are compact, contiguous, follow the boundaries of cities and counties, and reflect communities of interest on the ground. Across the state, the Republicans ignored this almost without fail. They illegally drew districts with sections that don’t actually connect.

    They broke up cities and counties however it took to get the results they wanted. They ignored the Voting Rights Act and how it requires the representation of ethnic groups. They redistricted many Democratic incumbents out of their districts, while drawing lines to just barely keep Republican incumbents in theirs. You can read more, and see this clearly on the Seattle Times’ interactive map, especially in the 8th CD, where they have drawn Rep. Schrier out of her district and added more conservative areas. One of their plans would also push Rep. DelBene out of her 1st LD.

    This is your last chance to testify on the new maps. Testimony has to be short – under 90 seconds – so you have to be crisp, concise, and address your key issues quickly. If the commission can’t come to agreement and the Supreme Court has to draw these maps, then public testimony could be hugely important. It’s also important to be submitting written testimony in parallel with your verbal testimony, and this training video, put together by the Redistricting Committee of the WA State Democrats, provides some great examples of how to keep written letters concise and impactful. You do need to register to provide testimony, but not to watch. Please sign up today to help to ensure that the maps that will be used for the next ten years are fair and equitable. The public meetings are on:

    ✊ Action 2 – Sign up to attend School Board Meetings in your area

    As you are probably aware, School Board meetings are not what they used to be. There are groups with anti-equity and racist agendas across the country organizing to influence elections from the ground up, often under the guise of re-opening schools or not wearing masks. They are anti-public school and definitely anti-union (as we have heard in candidate forums in Bellevue recently), with nefarious long term goals which include depriving schools of tax dollars, to be directed instead to private schools.

    One important way to know how Eastside school districts are managing equity issues and who opposes them is to do research. Would you like to help with this region wide effort by spending 2 hours a month attending a school board meeting and filling out a note-taking document outline? We are asking our members in Bellevue, Lake Washington, Northshore, and Issaquah school districts to sign up to attend meetings (two people per meeting), either online or in person (districts vary) and take notes. We do not expect anyone to confront other attendees but just to report back. Progressives must meet the moment to push back against the well coordinated and funded right-wing anti-equity movement.

    Use access code ‘eastside’ to sign up for one of YOUR school board meetings HERE. Learn about meeting dates, and attending or participating in Eastside School Board meetings HERE. You don’t have to have children at school, but just to want to help to stay ahead of this worrying trend.

    ✊ Action 3 – [Governor Inslee] Ask the Governor to restore Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Affirmative Action policies

    From Washington Equity Now!

    The EQUITY NOW! campaign is asking Governor Inslee to sign an Executive Order to rescind Governor’s Directive 98-01 (from 1998) and allow the legislature to implement I-200, as passed by the voters in 1998 and interpreted by the Washington State Supreme Court and the Washington State Attorney General. GD 98-01’s language drastically differed from I-200. Instead of staying within I-200’s stated intent of simply prohibiting “lesser qualified candidates from being selected over more qualified candidates based on race or gender for a public job, contract or a seat in a public college”, GD 98-01 directed all Washington state agencies to immediately cease all Affirmative Action programs. These are any programs that use race or gender as factors for selecting candidates for public employment, public contracting and public college admissions (unless the programs are for outreach and recruitment only). Governor Inslee can sign an executive order now to restore all Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Affirmative Action policies that lie within the stated intent of I-200. More detailed information can be found at the WA Equity Now website.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Dear Governor Inslee:

    Please sign an “EQUITY NOW!” EXECUTIVE ORDER to RESCIND GOVERNOR’S DIRECTIVE #98-01 and restore Affirmative Action for women and BIPOC communities in Washington state.  

    You’ve got my 100% support to make Washington the land of opportunity for ALL!

    Sincerely,

    [NAME]”

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

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Candidate Forums – save the date – links to come:

    Calendar of Events

    Save the Date:

    • Thur Nov 4, 7 pm – League of Women Voters Forum – King County’s Behavioral Health System (link to come)

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Sep 27, 2021 

    ? National Voter Registration Day is September 28th and we encourage you to find something you can do to help people get registered to vote. Ballots drop on Oct. 15th so this is a great time to connect with unregistered voters or anyone who needs to update their address in advance of ballots going out for 2021 local elections. Do you know anyone who has moved lately and might need to update their address? Voter registration can be checked and online registration done here.  Online and mail registrations must be received 8 days before Election Day (Oct 25). You can register to vote in person during business hours and any time before 8:00 p.m. on Election Day. 

    ? Are you upset about the recent moves in Texas and elsewhere to attack reproductive rights? Do you want to rally in support of those rights? There are several local events on Oct 2, as part of the Women’s March for Reproductive Justice. The Seattle event is at Westlake Park and the Eastside one is in  Kirkland, both on Sat Oct 2 at 2 pm.

    ? It’s not too late to write GOTV postcards for great Washington candidates through Postcards4WA. Help complete the final 25% of addresses before the Oct 12th deadline to give these candidates a leg up in the November election. If you signed up to write, please complete and log your cards and request more addresses.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Spread the word about problematic school board candidates

    If you were at our group meeting on Sept 19th or have been following our Facebook page you will have read about two dangerous candidates who are running for Bellevue School Board. Faye Yang and Gregg Smith are working as a team to undermine teachers, dictate what will be taught and dismiss the equity policy in place at the district as discriminatory to white students. There is an urgent need to get the word out to voters in the district who may not have heard about their views on equity and racial justice. 

    ✊ Action 1a The first part of this action is to acquaint yourself with these two candidates.  If you haven’t already done so, please read and share the recent article in The Stranger about Ms Yang’s racist views, based on her emails that were obtained through public records requests. You can see an example of Gregg Smith’s views on critical race theory and equity in screenshots on our Facebook page, as well as documents here. They believe that any discussion of racial equity, Black Lives Matter, systemic inequalities, and even Social Emotional Learning (a basic component of K-12 education today) are examples of critical race theory. This Washington Post article provides background about the issue. 

    Even if you are not a Bellevue resident, you probably know people who are. Please reach out to them and let them know that they should learn about these candidates. The groups who are helping to organize and fund these campaigns are the same ones who sponsored the efforts to overturn the affirmative action initiative I-1000 a few years ago. They also recently tried to prevent the Lake Washington School District from implementing an equity policy. These efforts are by no means limited to Bellevue or the Eastside, and should serve as a warning that right wing organizations are gearing up to fight elections at every level. We all need to pay attention.

    ✊ Action 1b The second part of this action is to lend your support to the two candidates who will help Bellevue to provide equitable access to a high quality education for all Bellevue students. Jane Aras and Joyce Shui are committed to supporting the kind of education that every student deserves. Please go to their websites and consider how you can help them to win these races that are so important for our community, whether you have children in school or not.

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Provide assistance to newly released asylum seekers 

    The Seattle Immigrant Rights Group is raising funds to procure and assemble toiletry kits for asylum seekers and others being released from the Northwest Detention Center (NWDC) in Tacoma. They feel that this is a small thing we can do to help restore some dignity and order to the lives of people who have been through an awful lot, and still have a lot of traveling and uncertainty in their days ahead.

    SIRG has been assembling these kits for AID-NW, a non-profit organization in Tacoma that assists folks when they are released from the NWDC. They previously delivered 450 kits to AID-NW, but they report that they are running out of kits due to the high number of people who have recently been released from the NWDC (as many as twenty per day).

    When detainees are released onto the streets of Tacoma, they are expected to find their own way to family and sponsors across the country. AID-NW provides assistance to these folks, which includes necessities like a backpack and toiletries. Because the first round of toiletry kits are running out, SIRG hopes to get a new batch to AID-NW by early October.

    Each kit includes a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, skin lotion, deodorant, and a shaving kit. They have sourced the materials, and have verified that the kits they have delivered before are acceptable to AID-NW. 100% of the proceeds from this GoFundMe will go to purchasing supplies for more kits.

    You can donate to this effort at the Go Fund Me link. Please help if you can.

    ✊ Action 3 – [President Biden, Sec. Mayorkas] Ask the Biden administration to add protections for Haitian refugees

    From NAACP

    You may have seen pictures last week of officers from the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) attacking Haitian refugees at the southern border with whips (they were apparently reins but were being used as whips). It was a sickening sight and thankfully, these officers have been removed from their duties working with refugees and are on administrative duties, pending an investigation. While we applaud Secretary of Homeland Security Alexander Mayorkas for his swift action and will be watching for the outcome of this investigation, concerns remain about the Biden administration’s approach to refugees from Haiti. 

    The NAACP is demanding the following swift and decisive action to protect Haitian refugees:

    •  A meeting between NAACP leadership and the Biden Administration to discuss protections for those seeking refuge.
    •  An enhancement to the Temporary Protected Status for Haitians.
    • An immediate investigation into the U.S. Border Patrol practices against refugees, and implementation of punitive measures against patrol agents who use excessive force.

    Please support the NAACP’s request by letting President Biden and Sec. Mayorkas that you support these demands. There is a quick and easy link to add your voice to this campaign. It just takes a minute.

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Candidate Forums – save the date – links to come:

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Sep 20, 2021

    ? A message from our Indivisible Regional Organizer Nina Moussavi: “I want to give a big kudos to you all for the progress you have made with Senators Cantwell and Murray already. In the last six months, you have made strides. Senator Murray even tweeted her support for filibuster reform explicitly just two weeks ago. She has actually tweeted about it 3-4 times now. YOU DID THAT! We are almost there with Senator Cantwell. Keep up the pressure on Senator Cantwell and make sure to ask Senator Murray to urge Leader Schumer to bring S1 and S4 to a vote before it is too late!” See Action 3 below.

    ? Congrats to Rhiannon Probert-Baker (Indivisible Eastside) who aced out Olympia Indivisible and Indivisible WA-8 in the battle of the Indivisibles last week!!! You rock Rhiannon!!! Thanks for a hilarious time. If you missed it you can watch it HERE. Some really funny answers by the three contestants.

    ? It’s not too late to write GOTV postcards for great Washington candidates through Postcards4WA. Help complete the final 30% of addresses before the Oct 12th deadline to give these candidates a leg up in the November election. If you signed up to write, please complete and log your cards and request more addresses.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US House] Win an Inclusive Recovery in the House

    From Indivisible.org

    Congressional committees are drafting the budget reconciliation package, the legislative vehicle for passing an inclusive recovery package. This means we’re in a key moment for advocacy as we fight to win the most progressive reconciliation bill possible. The House is moving on the bill first. Contact your Representative and make sure they’re supporting essential progressive policies.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] I am a member of Indivisible Eastside from [CITY, ZIP]. Please let Representative [MoC NAME] know I want her/him to fight for inclusion of popular policies in the recovery package – specifically:

    • Lower drug prices and expand Medicare to cover vision, dental, and hearing, and lower the eligibility age to 60 years old;
    • Investments in Climate, including a Clean Energy Standard (with no fossil fuels!) and a Civilian Climate Corps;
    • A pathway to citizenship for millions of immigrants;
    • Investments in the Care Economy, including universal child care, federally guaranteed paid leave for all, and creating good jobs in the home and community based-care sector;
    • Investments in housing, especially deeply affordable housing and housing for unhoused populations; and
    • Address extreme wealth inequality by taxing the ultra rich and big corporations so they finally pay their fair share.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 – [Afghan Evacuees] Donate Airline Miles or Travel Vouchers

    Do you have some spare airline miles or travel vouchers? Use them to help fly evacuees from Afghanistan to their new homes. Indivisible WA-8 founder Chris P. has been helping Miles 4 Migrants scale up their systems and processes to prepare to help transport 50,000+ people. They need donated airline miles to take Afghans from military installations to different locations all around the country.

    Alaska Airlines, United Airlines, and Air Canada miles can be pooled with miles from other donors. Miles from other airlines can be pledged and then you’ll be contacted when an opportunity to use them is available.

    Explore the Miles 4 Migrants website to learn more, donate miles, travel vouchers, or money.

    Email hello@indivisibleeastside.com and let us how many miles you pledged so we can report a total in a subsequent newsletter!

    ✊ Action 3 – [US SENATE] Support the Freedom to Vote Act and the John R Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act 

    From Indivisible Statewide Action Group

    The John R Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act  is a crucial protection against racist voter suppression tactics that we’re seeing in Republican controlled states. The Freedom to Vote Act improves access to the ballot for Americans, advances commonsense election integrity reforms, and protects our democracy from emerging threats.

    The Brennan Center for Justice wrote on September 14th:

    “Today was a big day at the Capitol.

    Senate Democrats, led by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, introduced the Freedom to Vote Act. The bill is a successor to the popular For the People Act, which passed the House in March but hit a Republican brick wall in the Senate. It is a strong bill that should be passed without hesitation by all members of Congress.

    This bill has new momentum, real momentum. It’s our best chance for democracy reform in years. Sponsors with Klobuchar include several Democratic colleagues, including, yes, Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia. He worked intensively on this over recent weeks. According to NBC News, President Biden has said he’ll work to change filibuster rules to pass this bill.”

    Contact your Senators

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME]. I am a member of Indivisible Eastside from [CITY, ZIP]. Now that we have two voting rights bills that all Democrats can get behind, we must pass them NOW. We must pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John R Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act as soon as possible. I urge the Senator to come out publicly by explicitly calling for a filibuster exemption. The Founding Fathers did not include a filibuster because it is not democracy when a minority holds the majority hostage.

    For Senator Murray:

    I appreciate the Senator’s repeated calls to pass voting rights using every legislative tool, but we need her to be 100% clear. The Senator needs to take those tap dance shoes off and get her golden tennis shoes back on. We need her to use her leadership position to make needed changes and get this legislation passed.

    For Senator Cantwell:

    I am glad to hear Senator Cantwell is healing from her broken arm. It’s time to help the country heal as well: I am asking her to use her power to move this legislation forward, and to speak out publicly as Senator Murray has been doing.

    Thank you for taking my call.”

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Candidate Forums – save the date – links to come:

    • Tue Sep 28, 5:30 pm – IACS / APIC East King County Candidate Forum for Bellevue City Council.
    • Wed Sept. 29th – Bellevue School District candidates (in Spanish with English translation). Hosted by the WA State Commission on Hispanic Affairs and Safe Haven
    • Thur Sep 30, noon – 1 pm – Meet the Candidates: Bellevue City Council Forum.
    • Thur Sep 30, 5:30 pm – Kathy Lambert vs. Sarah Perry for Metropolitan King County Council District 3 – one of the Seattle Times Homelessness Debates. Register for Zoom link
    • Tues Oct 5th – Asian Pacific Islander Coalition (APIC) – King County Council
    • Thur Oct 7, 7:00 – 8:30 pm –  Lake Hills Candidate Forum
    • Sun Oct 10 – Indivisible Kirkland – Kirkland CC, LWSD, Houghton
    • Mon Oct 11 – APIC – Redmond City Council Candidate Forum
    • Thurs Oct 14, 6-8 pm – Bellevue School Board candidate forum, hosted by PTSA
    • Fri Oct 15, 6:30 – 8:30 pm – Newport Hills Community Candidate Forum.
    • Thu Oct 21, 7-8 pm – Bridle Trails Community Club Candidate Forum

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of Sep 13, 2021

    ? Addressing Activist Burnout – Panel Discussion was recorded and was excellent! The panel acknowledged that pandemic-imposed isolation has been a big contributor to burnout. Here are three opportunities to reconnect with your Indivisible Eastside friends. We hope you’ll join one or all events:

    ? Cheer on our own Rhiannon Probert-Baker as she competes against Indivisible Washington’s 8th District and Olympia Indivisible in Sound Off, Washington! The Indivisible News Quiz. Tune in Tuesday at 7:00 pm to catch it live on Facebook. Fun guaranteed!

    ? Register To Attend the Indivisible Eastside Group Meeting Sunday 4:00 pm to reconnect and hear what members are working on such as:

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Donate to Grassroots Dems HQ to Stop the Recall

    The California Recall election is Tuesday, Sep 14th, and ballots have arrived in voters’ homes.  Grassroots Democrats HQ has completed 219,000 postcards, mailed 1,400 postcards kits, made over 175,000 phone calls, knocked on hundreds of doors, and has created toolkits for canvassing, tabling, and general action items for volunteers and partner organizations to use. You can help Grassroots Dems HQ continue its work to #StopTheRecall and keep Governor Gavin Newsom in office by donating or phone banking.

    DONATE | PHONEBANK

    ✊ Action 2 – [Cascade Behavioral Hospital] Put patient and worker safety over corporate profits

    From SEIU Healthcare

    The nurses and healthcare workers of SEIU Healthcare 1199NW and UFCW 21 at Cascade Behavioral Health in Tukwila care for some of the most vulnerable psychiatric and chemical dependency patients in our community. But instead of prioritizing safe patient care or treating workers with respect, Cascade parent company Acadia has fostered an abnormally unsafe work environment, with severe understaffing, decrepit facilities, a shocking lack of COVID-19 protections, and no security for staff and patients.

    Stand with nurses and healthcare workers who are calling for safe working conditions, living wages, and a fair union contract that respects their service to our community.  Sign their petition to urge Cascade Behavioral hospital to put patient and worker safety over corporate profits.

    SIGN THE PETITION

    ✊ Action 3 – [PCC Board of Trustees] End PCC’s Support for the Criminalization of Poverty in the Puget Sound

    Under the guise of concern for staff safety, PCC has chosen to use its considerable influence to advocate for short sighted and inhumane responses to the Seattle region’s housing and poverty crisis. PCC workers are dismayed at management’s anti-houselessness political lobbying efforts and are demanding that the employees who are actually tasked with dealing with the sometimes unsafe working conditions inside stores, be centered in any decisions made regarding store security, and be consulted prior to any political lobbying done in our name.

    Chief among objectionable tactics is the inhumane and ineffective policy of sweeping encampments, an action that serves only to humiliate and further traumatize the most vulnerable members of our community, while doing nothing to alleviate the underlying issue of chronic poverty and income inequality that has led to the housing crisis in the first place.

    Read more about this issue, and SIGN THE PETITION

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Candidate Forums – save the date – links to come:

    • Tue Sep 28, 5:30 pm – IACS / APIC East King County Candidate Forum for Bellevue City Council.
    • Thur Sep 30, noon – 1 pm – Meet the Candidates: Bellevue City Council Forum.
    • Thur Oct 7, 7:00 – 8:30 pm –  Lake Hills Candidate Forum.
    • Fri Oct 15, 6:30 – 8:30 pm – Newport Hills Community Candidate Forum.
    • Thu Oct 21, 7-8 pm – Bridle Trails Community Club Candidate Forum.

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of August 30, 2021 

    ? Our thoughts are with the people affected by Hurricane Ida. You can donate to the Red Cross HERE. 

    ? Muslim Association of Puget Sound (MAPS) in Redmond has launched a donation site to directly support Afghan refugees coming to our area. Donate HERE. And HERE are more ways you can help. 

    ? Bellevue Utilities is offering more free “Greener Living” community classes this fall and winter, including in-person classes at the Bellevue Botanical Garden indoor education conference room (12001 Main St) and live virtual classes via Zoom. Register to attend. 

    ? Don’t forget to register for our online group meeting at 4:00 on September 19th. We’re looking forward to re-connecting, so save the date and then join us on Zoom. 

    ? Here are your actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 –  [President Biden] Voting Rights legislation will save our Democracy!

    From Washington Indivisible Network & Indivisible Truth Brigade

    The House passed the John Lewis Voting Rights Act (H.R. 4) last week on a strictly partisan vote. It now moves to the Senate where Republicans have vowed to filibuster any voting rights legislation. The only way to pass either of the voting rights legislation bills is to get rid of the filibuster. We can only do that by getting all of our Democratic legislators on board. President Biden spoke out about voting rights, but never mentioned the filibuster. Pressure needs to come from the top, so today’s action is to contact President Biden asking him to come out publicly to urge Congress to get rid of the filibuster. 

    Action 1A:

    To contact the White House:

    The White House comment line is FINALLY OPEN. Call 202-456-1111 – Hours are Tues-Thurs 11am-3pm Eastern (8-noon Pacific).

    OR go to whitehouse.gov/contact and fill in the form with your statement.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME].  I live in [CITY, ZIP] and I voted for you in 2020. President Biden, I want you to wield power now to let Senators know that failing to reform the filibuster and protect voting rights enables Republicans to cheat their way to power for the next ten years. Use your bully pulpit, reach out to Senators and urge them to make filibuster reform and passage of voting rights legislation their number one priority when they return from recess. Thank you.”

    Action 1B:

    Write a Letter to the Editor (LTE) Calling on our Senators to push every Democratic Senator to change the filibuster rule so Republicans cannot block voting rights legislation.

    This month is absolutely critical to take a stand against what Republicans are doing to suppress our voting rights and cheat their way back into power! They are using the Senate’s filibuster to stop the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of free and fair federal elections. 

    The Senate must act to set national standards to counter what Republican state legislatures are doing to “rig” election systems. Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell must do everything in their power to persuade fellow Democrats to stop hiding, stand up, and change the filibuster rules to protect our freedom to vote.

    Submit a Letter to the Editor to your local paper right away! Here’s a link bit.ly/LTE_Sep21 to a LTE Toolkit with sample wording to help you with your letters. We’ve been tracking Indivisible LTEs that get published, so once your letter is published, let us know by emailing us at FilibusterLTE@indivisibleeastside.com and we’ll add it to the list!

    Action 1C:

    Submit a comment on Senator Murray and Cantwell’s web forms to tell them to help eliminate the power of dark money. The proposal in S.1 is that for presidential or Congressional candidates, every dollar raised from small donations would be matched 6:1 by the federal government. The maximum small donation that could be matched would be capped at $200. This program isn’t funded by taxpayer dollars; instead, the money would come from adding a 4.75 percent fee on criminal and civil fines, fees, penalties, or settlements with banks and corporations that commit corporate malfeasance (think Wells Fargo).

    Ensure that the elections financing remains in voting rights legislation.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Thank you for your previous efforts to strengthen our democracy. Elections should be easy to vote in and hard to buy off. Republicans might say “election integrity,” but by opposing democracy reform, their actions yell “voter suppression.” We need the For the People Act/John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to amplify the power of small donations.”

    ✊ Action 2 – Push back against false narrative about new policing laws

    The Washington Coalition for Police Accountability (WCPA) advocated for several bills as a comprehensive approach to change the culture of policing. The goal of these bills is to reduce violence and increase accountability, yet we see that across the state, some police agencies are intentionally misinterpreting the new laws and choosing to not respond at all to calls. Republican legislators have asked Governor Inslee to call a special session to “fix” the legislation. The City of Olympia, who have implemented a Crisis Response Unit, put out a positive statement in response to other police departments claiming the new laws are hampering their ability to respond. We need to let legislators know that we support their efforts at police reform. 

    Action 2A)

    Read through the Talking Points from WCPA and then write a Letter to the Editor of your local paper, or the Seattle Times. 

    Action 2B) 

    Representatives Johnson and Goodwin have filed a request for an opinion from the Attorney General with 6 detailed questions about the legislation. The AG solicits input from the community within 30 days prior to giving his opinion. We believe 30 days is too long to wait while police around our state refuse to respond to calls as retribution to legislation that they disagree with. 

    Contact Attorney General Ferguson  |Contact Form|  360-753-6200

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I am calling to urge the Attorney General’s office to devote the necessary resources to complete the Opinion Docket No. 21-08-02 requested by Representatives Johnson and Goodwin, and get the results into the field. The lack of clarity is heightening tension amongst providers, fire depts, law enforcement and the community at a time when we need to be working together towards better solutions.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 3 – [President Biden] Nominate a Climate Leader as Fed Chair

    From 350.org

    During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Reserve — the United States’ central public bank — bankrolled fossil fuel companies to the tune of billions of dollars. We need a central bank that supports BIPOC communities fighting on the frontlines of COVID-19, racial and economic injustice, and climate destruction. Instead, the Federal Reserve is neglecting to regulate the banks financing oil, gas, and coal expansion projects, actively funding the climate crisis. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s term is up in early 2022. Watch this informative video about 350.org’s campaign. 

    To contact the White House:

    The White House comment line is FINALLY OPEN. Call 202-456-1111 – Hours are Tues-Thurs 11am-3pm Eastern (8-noon Pacific).

    OR go to whitehouse.gov/contact and fill in the form with your statement. The same form applies for both the President and Vice-President.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. We need a central bank that supports BIPOC communities fighting on the frontlines of COVID-19, racial and economic injustice, and climate destruction. Under Jerome Powell’s leadership, the Federal Reserve pumped money into fossil fuel companies during a climate emergency. Fossil fuels are an existential risk to our climate, communities, and economy. The Federal Reserve must act on its key role in tackling the climate crisis. I’m asking you to nominate a candidate that is a true climate champion to replace Chairman Jerome Powell when his term is up in 2022. 

    Thank you.”

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

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    • Bellevue City Council Position 2:Doorbell with Dexter Borbe by signing up HERE. 
    • Bellevue City Council Position 4:Indivisible Eastside’s own Ruth Lipscomb is running for Bellevue City Council. You can see all her upcoming events on the Take Action Network’s Ruth Lipscomb for Bellevue City Council page and sign up to attend HERE. Additionally, you can volunteer to write Postcards for Ruth’s campaign by Signing up for Postcards4WA. Postcards and postage provided – you just volunteer your writing skills. 
    • Bellevue School Board Positions 3 & 5:Volunteer with Jane Aras and Joyce Shui’s campaigns by signing up HERE. 
    • Redmond City Council Position 4:Sign up to canvass or sign wave with Melissa Stuart HERE. 
    • Looking for other opportunities to volunteer? Here are some Take Action Network searches you can explore:

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of August 23, 2021 

    ? Join us for the virtual Washington State sister event to the national March On for Voting Rights on Saturday, August 28th, 12pm. Join us for rousing speakers, great music by local artists, and more. Co-produced by Washington Indivisible Network, the Washington State Indivisible Podcast, Fix Democracy First, and League of Women Voters of WA. Register at  bit.ly/MarchOn_WA

    ?On August 14th, 2021 the people of Ayiti/Haiti experienced another devastating earthquake that has left more than 1,200 dead and hundreds of thousands injured. Haitians are growing desperate — Donate to local organizations to help. 

    ?The Bellevue City Council is seeking candidates for a vacancy on Bellevue’s Environmental Services Commission (which deals with water, sewers, and garbage). Interested residents can apply online. Applications are due by Friday, Aug. 27.

    ? Don’t forget to register for our online group meeting at 4:00 on September 19th. We’re looking forward to re-connecting, so save the date and then join us on Zoom. 

    ? Here are your actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 –  [US Senator, President and Vice President] Voting Rights legislation will save our Democracy!

    The Senate will reconvene after Labor Day and this will be the last opportunity to pass S.1, the For the People Act. We must pass this important voting rights legislation to ensure the 2022 election is not rigged to favor the Republicans. It has long been known that Senators Manchin and Sinema oppose getting rid of the filibuster in order to pass legislation, but it has recently come to light that Senators Coons and Carper are resistant to changing the filibuster. Our two Democrat Senators need to hear from constituents thanking them for protecting our democracy, and urging them to put pressure on these four colleagues to do the same. 

    To contact your Senators:

    To contact the White House:

    The White House comment line is FINALLY OPEN. Call 202-456-1111 – Hours are Tues-Thurs 11am-3pm Eastern (8-noon Pacific).

    OR go to whitehouse.gov/contact and fill in the form with your statement. The same form applies for both the President and Vice-President.

    ☎ Sample Script for all contacts:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. Thank you for speaking out on the need to save our Democracy by passing S.1, the For the People Act.  We are running out of time to pass this important legislation. Please do everything in your power to convince Senators Carper, Coons, Manchin, and Sinema that we must abolish or change the filibuster to act now. Without strong voting rights our future looks bleak for any other legislation that constitutes the platform of the Democratic Party. Without strong voting rights our future looks bleak for democracy. Please act now. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ?Bonus Action: Phone bank with Common Cause to support S.1, For the People Act. 

    ✊ Action 2 – Help Afghan refugees

    From Seattle Indivisible & MAPS AMEN Redmond

    The situation in Afghanistan has forced thousands to flee their homes in fear of retribution from the Taliban. Many are arriving in the Seattle area, and one way to help these people in crisis is to donate to or volunteer for an organization that is working to support refugee resettlement in the Seattle area.

    MAPS AMEN Redmond:

    MAPS-AMEN is working with Afghans/Afghan-Americans and coordinating with organizations and elected leaders in WA state to address the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and help support the incoming Afghan refugees.  If you want to learn of ways to help, take action, and stay engaged, please fill out this Google Form: www.tinyurl.com/WAHelpAfghans.  There is also an Emergency Fund currently run by trusted organizations on the ground such as MCRC Seattle, SCM Medical Missions, Kits For Peace and other organizations to support the incoming refugees where % of donations go to the refugees (not to any admin/overhead costs).  Contribute here:  www.tinyurl.com/WAAfghanFund    

    WorldRelief Seattle: https://worldrelief.org/seattle/get-involved/afghan-allies 

    * Volunteer: Become a host home volunteer, donate hotel stays, or rent to a family long-term. Email infoseattle@wr.org to help provide housing. They are also looking for volunteers to help out as “cultural companions” to new refugees, and a variety of other roles – see their website for more details.

    * Donate: Donate through their website to support their operations or make donations in the form of gift cards to give money straight to families in need. “Gift cards to Amazon, Fred Meyer, Safeway, Target, and WinCo help families get on their feet after leaving home in a moment’s notice. Mail gift cards directly to our office at 23825 Pacific Hwy S, Suite 100, Kent, WA 98032”

    International Rescue Committee Seattle: https://bit.ly/WelcomeToWAFund 

    * Donate: Contribute to the “Welcome to Washington” Emergency Fund to help newly-arrived families meet critical needs, including safe and stable housing.

    Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service: https://lirsconnect.org/get_involved/action_center/siv

    * Volunteer: If you are able to help with airport pick-ups, apartment set-ups, or even bringing a meal, sign up to volunteer in the Seattle Area.

    Afghan Health Initiative: https://afghanhealth.org 

    * Volunteer: If you can host a new immigrant family for 3-7 days, they are looking for help ASAP – sign up here https://forms.gle/aQfLRCF8zZN6RkhY6. They are also looking for volunteers to act as refugee “buddies” to help newly arrived refugees navigate their new environs.

    * Donate: Donate through their website to support emergency operations, or donate food or lightly used items like furniture, kitchen items, and clothes.

    Jewish Family Service/HIAS (JFS): https://www.jfsseattle.org/give-email 

    * Volunteer: Sign up to be a flexible on-call volunteer if you have a very flexible schedule, a reliable vehicle and ability to lift 50 pounds; be patient, needs are ever changing, and volunteers are called on a first-come basis.

    * Donate: Donate to JFS through their website to support refugees, or buy items from the Amazon Wish List for JFS Refugee & Immigrant Services (RIS): https://www.amazon.com/registries/custom/30OKQF4EANM4V/guest-view

    ✊ Action 3 – Phonebank for California Recall Election

    From CBFD Indivisible San Diego & Stop the Republican Recall

    Opponents of California Governor Gavin Newsom have gathered enough signatures to trigger a recall election on September 14th. The State Democratic Party decided to focus on pushing for a “no” vote on recalling Gov. Newsom and to forgo putting up a viable candidate for successor should the vote succeed. Voters will be given the option to select a successor candidate regardless of whether they vote for or against the recall. It is critical that the recall effort fails.

    CBFD Indivisible San Diego has put together a series of phone banking and text banking opportunities over the next few weeks. Please consider joining these events to help keep the California Democratic trifecta. Learn more about the Republican Recall and ways to help HERE.

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    • Bellevue City Council Position 4:Indivisible Eastside’s own Ruth Lipscomb is running for Bellevue City Council. You can see all her upcoming events on the Take Action Network’s Ruth Lipscomb for Bellevue City Council page and sign up to attend HERE. Additionally, you can volunteer to write Postcards for Ruth’s campaign by Signing up for Postcards4WA. Postcards and postage provided – you just volunteer your writing skills. 
    • Bellevue School Board Positions 3 & 5:Volunteer with Jane Aras and Joyce Shui’s campaigns by signing up HERE. 
    • Redmond City Council Position 4:Melissa Stuart will have a Campaign Kickoff event on Sunday, Aug 29th in Redmond. For more information on that and other events sign up HERE. 
    • Looking for other opportunities to volunteer? Here are some Take Action Network searches you can explore:

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of August 16, 2021 

    ? It’s only August, but preparations are already underway for the 2022 State Legislative Session. Join Stephan Cox and the Washington Indivisible Network on Tuesday, August 17th at 7 pm for a conversation about what to expect in the upcoming Legislative Session. Register HERE. 

    ? Calling all renters: King County is recruiting to fill nine positions on a new advisory board being formed to provide input to policy, procedures, and protocols for rental assistance and eviction prevention programs and services. Deadline to apply is Tuesday, August 17th. More information and application form is HERE.

    ?The statewide use of force data program was established by Senate Bill 5259.  The program will create a publicly accessible database to track law enforcement metrics to promote transparency and accountability, improve confidence in policing services, evaluate specific areas of concern such as biased policing and excessive force, and ultimately improve the quality of policing services. The Legislature required the Attorney General’s Office to create an Advisory Group to help design the program.  At this time, they are especially looking to fill a spot for a community member who is knowledgeable about the use and role of data related to interactions between law enforcement and the community. If you know of a qualified person who would be interested in representing the public’s interest in transparent, expedient access to information, and who can invest time in this group, please refer them to this application form. Questions?  Email Kelly Richburg.

    ? Don’t forget to register for our next online group meeting on September 19th. Save the date and then join us on Zoom at 4:00 on Sept. 19th. 

    ? Here are your actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 –  [YOU] Keep up the pressure on voting rights!

    Census data has just been released, which means that in states without non-partisan commissions, gerrymandered districts will begin to be drawn. The Arizona “audit” report is expected to be released soon and will simply be a tool for legislators to use to craft more restrictive voting legislation. And Republicans in our state are organizing to sow doubt in our WA state elections. It is more imperative than ever to keep the pressure up on national level legislation to protect the right to vote across the country. On August 28, 2021, the 58th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, jr.’s March on Washington, people from around the country will March for Voting Rights. 

    Join us for the virtual Washington State sister event to the national March On for Voting Rights on Saturday, August 28th, 12pm. Join us for rousing speakers, great music by local artists, and more. Co-produced by Washington Indivisible Network, the Washington State Indivisible Podcast, Fix Democracy First, and League of Women Voters of WA. Register at  bit.ly/MarchOn_WA

    ✊ Action 2 –  [US Senators] Ask our Senators to advance bold climate investments

    From the Call4Climate campaign

    As scorching heat waves break records and take lives across the US, we need Democrats in Congress to meet this moment with bold action for climate, jobs, and justice. The recent IPCC report makes it very clear: to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, the global community must cut greenhouse gas pollution in half by 2030, and eliminate carbon pollution by mid-century. The Senate recently passed a $1 trillion infrastructure package, but that package is only a “down payment” toward the climate investments that are really needed. To address this, President Biden, House Speaker Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Schumer have committed to advancing bold climate investments through “budget reconciliation” this summer. Now it’s up to us to make sure our leaders deliver.

    Please call or email both of our senators.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I am a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. I am very concerned about climate change, especially after the release of the recent IPCC report. I’m calling to urge you to support bold climate investments through budget reconciliation this summer. The following investments are essential:

    • A Clean Electricity Standard that cuts pollution and modernizes our grid.
    • Directing 40% of funding to frontline communities.
    • No more subsidies for fossil fuel corporations.
    • A Civilian Climate Corps that puts people to work.

    Thank you for your previous efforts to address the climate crisis. We are at a crucial moment. Please press for bold climate investments now.”

    [If you want to add more items to the list above, look at Call4Climate’s “other key climate investments”—scroll down on the page.]

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

    A note about carbon pricing: If you want to ask for carbon pricing in addition to or instead of climate investments, Citizens’ Climate Lobby recommends calling your representative to ask them to put a price on carbon in this year’s budget reconciliation when it arrives in the House. For a script, see Indivisible Eastside’s previous action from August 2, Action 1, but call your U.S. representative—and it wouldn’t hurt to call your senators also, even if you already called them about this.

    ✊ Action 3 – [King County and City Councils] Speak out in support of the homeless community

     King County has purchased the former Silver Cloud Inn in Redmond to provide housing to people experiencing chronic homelessness. This is the fourth purchase in County Executive Dow Constantine’s Health through Housing initiative to provide supportive housing for people experiencing chronic or long-term homelessness. There has been a lot of community backlash and a misinformation campaign on Nextdoor and other social media in Bellevue and Redmond, since it is located in the Overlake neighborhood which borders both cities. You can read the FAQ’s about the initiative. 

    Let’s show our support for the county’s efforts to help the homeless community by voicing our support of the Health through Housing initiative.

    You can use the ‘EMAIL’ links below to generate prefilled emails. Please carefully review the email and fill in your name, city and zipcode before sending.

    • King County Council EMAIL.
    • Redmond City Council EMAIL.
    • Bellevue City Council EMAIL.

    ? Sample Script:

    “Dear Councilmembers,

    My name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I am writing to voice my support of the Health through Housing initiative purchase of the Silver Cloud Inn in the Overlake neighborhood of Redmond. The housing crisis in our area has forced an untenable number of people out onto our streets. Thank you for recognizing the humanity of these people and providing them an opportunity to have a safe place to stay and access to supportive services needed to lift them up. 

    Thank you for caring for our community’s most vulnerable. 

    Sincerely,

    [NAME]”

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    • Bellevue City Council Position 4:Indivisible Eastside’s own Ruth Lipscomb is running for Bellevue City Council. Ruth is out in the community talking with voters most days, and would love your help. You can see all her upcoming events on the Take Action Network’s Ruth Lipscomb for Bellevue City Council page and sign up to attend HERE. Additionally, you can volunteer to write Postcards for Ruth’s campaign by Signing up for Postcards4WA. Postcards and postage provided – you just volunteer your writing skills. 
    • Bellevue School Board Positions 3 & 5:Volunteer with Jane Aras and Joyce Shui’s campaigns by signing up HERE. 
    • Redmond City Council Position 4:Melissa Stuart will have a postcarding event on Thursday, Aug 19th in Redmond. For more information on that and other events sign up HERE. 
    • Looking for other opportunities to volunteer? Here are some Take Action Network searches you can explore:

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of August 9, 2021 

    ? Stock up on  Forever Postcard  Stamps!  The postcard stamps will go up from 36-cents to 40-cents each starting August 29th. Buy them now and, since they are “Forever,” you can use the 36-cent stamp no matter how high the rate rises.  The USPS  website has stamps available for purchase.  You can order online from their website or buy them in post offices.

    ? Are you a fan of Wait Wait, Don’t tell Me?  Join WIN on Tuesday, August 10th at 7pm for a different kind of quiz show, called Sound Off! The Washington State News Quiz. Stephan Cox (Washington State Indivisible Podcast) will quiz elected and notable Washingtonians on WA news, people and events. Register to attend.

    ? Don’t forget to register for our next online group meeting on September 19th. Save the date and then join us on Zoom at 4:00 on Sept. 19th. 

    ? On the whole, there were some very good results from the primary election and there are some great candidates to support going forward, but statewide turnout was a very low 26.6%, as of Aug 6. Now is the time to help progressive candidates by door-belling, texting, phone-calling and postcard writing. Let’s beat the 2019 general election 45.19% turnout and elect progressive candidates!  Go to your local candidate’s website and sign up to volunteer.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 [US Senators, President Biden, Vice President Harris] – Contact the White House,  Senator Murray and Senator Cantwell to Keep Pressuring Them to Pass the For the People Act.

    Senators Murray and Cantwells’ state directors have encouraged WA State Indivisibles to keep phoning their DC offices to pass S.1, the For the People Act. End Citizens United and Let America Vote Again have released an ad to push President Biden to take a more aggressive concrete stand on overhauling the filibuster to pass federal voting legislation. (Nick Corasaniti, New York Times, Aug 5, 2021.) The ad includes a clip of the Rev. Dr. Martin King, Jr at a 1963 press conference, speaking of “Senators who will use the filibuster to keep the majority from even voting—and certainly they would not want the majority of people to vote because they know they do not represent the majority of the American people.”

    Senator Amy Klobuchar is leading negotiations involving Majority Leader Schumer, Senator Merkely, Senator Manchin, Senator Warnock and others to come up with a bill that will pass by abolishing or changing the filibuster.  Tell our Senators, President Biden, and Vice-President Harris  they cannot let the filibuster or anything else get in the way of saving our democracy! 

    To contact your Senators:

    To contact the White House:

    Go to whitehouse.gov/contact and fill in the form with your statement. The same form applies for both the President and Vice-President.

    ☎ Sample Script for all contacts:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, ZIP]. It is critical to  pass S.1, the For the People Act.  We must abolish or change the filibuster rules to act now! 

    This is a legacy moment! With the Congress and the Presidency in Democratic hands, do you want to be known as the elected officials who turned their backs on what state legislatures are doing to restrict the right to vote?

    Do not let the filibuster, vacations, recesses, or anything else get in the way. People have died to keep our right to vote as a sacred duty. Doing so now will honor their sacrifice. It’s time to pass the For the People Act now.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 –  [You] Write 20 Postcards for Candidates in Washington State’s Nov. 3rd General Election.

    Electing a progressive and diverse group of candidates who support our Indivisible goals is more important than ever this year.  There are other candidates whose policy preferences include shutting down multiculturalism, cutting back on environmental standards to serve special interests, or denying the reality of mental health needs in policing.  Indivisible Eastside members are writing in support of  candidates including school board, city and county council, and judge races.  Indivisibles have set up the Postcards4WA program to give you a list of candidates, voter addresses, and scripts to support Washington’s progressive candidates.  Postcard writers cover the cost of postcards and stamps for most of the campaigns.

    We currently have addresses from over 5 campaigns and are adding more regularly. View the FAQs, set a personal goal, sign up today, and a friendly Postcards4WA organizer will reach out to you with next steps.

    ✊ Action 3 –  [You] Donate to the Fair Fight Bond Fund

    Fair Fight Bond Fund gives immigrants held in the Tacoma ICE processing center a fighting chance.  The bond money allows a detained immigrant to go back to their lives and families while they build a case to gain status.  The Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN) reports that in the last two and half months, there has been a 900% increase in requests for bond support since the beginning of the year.  Just the 21 requests received since mid-May totaled $221,000. 

    The number of people who can be helped is dependent upon tax-deductible donations to the Fund.  You can help meet this need by donating HERE.

    Campaign Volunteer Resources:

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of August 2, 2021 

    ? We will be resuming our online group meetings on September 19th! Save the date and then join us on Zoom at 4:30 on Sept. 19th. Please register to attend.

    ? One more day to vote! Please drop your ballot at a drop box before 8 pm on Aug. 3rd to ensure that it gets counted. You can find the location of your nearest one here. There’s also a voting resource section at the end of the newsletter. If you’re interested in turnout across the state compared to 2019 you can check here.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US Senators] Ask our Senators to put a price on carbon

    From Citizens’ Climate Lobby

    Senate Democrats are signaling that they are focused on climate change right now. An economy-wide price on carbon would be one of the fastest ways to reduce America’s carbon pollution. We need to price carbon if we want to hit the Biden Administration’s goal of 50% emissions reductions in the next decade. It has to be part of any serious climate solutions. Find out more about why to put a price on carbon. 

    Because of current filibuster rules in the Senate, Senate Democrats must either gather 60 votes (requiring at least some bipartisan cooperation) or, where possible, use budget reconciliation, where adjustments to spending and revenue can be made with 51 votes. The recent $1 trillion infrastructure deal was bipartisan, but included very limited climate-related expenditures. To support the many climate actions left out of that deal, Senate Democrats plan to create a separate bill that can be passed through budget reconciliation. Budget reconciliation has strict requirements, but a price on carbon meets those requirements. So the Senate can and should include a price on carbon in the upcoming budget reconciliation.

    Please call or email both of our senators and ask that they make this a priority. Note that if you ask to put a price on carbon in this year’s budget reconciliation, they’ll know what you mean.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I am a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. Climate change is one of the biggest threats to our future. I’m calling to urge you to include carbon pricing in this year’s budget reconciliation package. Carbon pricing is one of the most efficient mechanisms for reducing carbon pollution and would go a long way towards this administration’s goals on emissions reductions. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Tell the League of Women Voters not to support the Compassion Seattle initiative

    The League of Women Voters does not endorse candidates for office but does provide guidance on King County ballot measures. They have been asked to support the initiative known as Charter Amendment 29, ‘Compassion Seattle’,  which is a campaign to change Seattle’s city charter in response to homelessness.  The initiative will be on the November ballot. The League is asking for feedback on which position (support, oppose, or neutral) to take.

    CA-29 would force the mayor to create 2,000 shelter or housing spaces within a year, budget 12% of the city’s general fund for homelessness and human services, and when there is enough housing or shelter for people living outside in Seattle, keep public spaces such as parks and sidewalks free of encampments. 

    A recent article in Real Change explains that CA-29 provides no dedicated funding for permanent housing. While CA-29 technically calls for a 1% increase in the human services budget from the city’s general fund, the vast majority of the funding for this plan would be taken from the existing human services budget, with ongoing impacts to existing social and human services that low income and unhoused people rely upon, including health services, food security programs and utility assistance. The Chamber of Commerce — one of the primary architects of this charter amendment — recently filed an unsuccessful legal challenge against the Jumpstart tax, which the Seattle City council passed in 2020 to tax large corporations to build deeply affordable housing.

    The initiative would also enshrine sweeps of homeless camps, where people are displaced and frequently lose tents and other belongings, including medication and legal documents. Sweeps do nothing to address root causes of homelessness and only exacerbate suffering and trauma. 

    The ACLU opposes the initiative and has written a detailed statement about how the initiative does not address the long-term solution to homelessness, which is permanent, affordable housing. 

    Action 2 – communicate with the League of Women Voters:  Go to seattlelwv.org/advocacy/current ballot issues by August 4th and oppose CA-29. This initiative is not a good plan for providing real help and solutions for the unhoused population.

    ✊ Bonus Action – add your voice in support of the Redmond “Health Through Housing” project:

    Recently King County Council announced the purchase of 7 hotels to house people who are homeless in Seattle, Redmond, Renton, Auburn, and Federal Way as part of the Health Through Housing initiative. This project will provide 800 rooms, which is more supportive housing than the County was able to build in 2019 and 2020 combined. While nowhere near enough to accommodate the entire homeless population of the county, this project gives a quick and easy way to get people experiencing chronic homelessness off the streets and provide on-site staffing and support services. 

    On Monday August 2, there will be a meeting hosted by King County and the city of Redmond to share information and answer questions on the Redmond project, which will be housed at the Silver Cloud Inn, 2122 152nd Ave NE, Redmond. We encourage you to join the meeting to let King County and Redmond know that you support this approach to helping our homeless neighbors. There is predictable and vocal opposition to the project and it is important to let both agencies know that they have community support for this important initiative. 

    You can join the meeting via this link, also available via the Redmond website. Questions and requests for translation services can be made by messaging health.through.housing@kingcounty.gov.

    ✊ Action 3 – [Bellevue residents] Participate in a survey on Bellevue’s transportation priorities

    The City of Bellevue has  a survey out to establish priorities and help to consolidate several existing transportation plans. This survey is important because it will affect how the city prioritizes transportation projects. Make sure to share your experiences navigating our city & tell Bellevue that it should prioritize the needs of people walking, biking, and taking transit. Staff documents show that there’s still a long way to go before we achieve that. You can read about it in detail at this report in completesteetsbellevue.org.

    The survey (https://bellevuewa.gov/city-news/mobility-plan-questionnaire) is available for your input until August 13. Reach out to Bellevue’s Transportation Commission and tell them that data shows we should prioritize investments in walking, biking, and transit infrastructure

    Voting Resources:

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of July 26, 2021 

    ? We will be resuming our online group meetings on September 19th! Save the date and then join us on Zoom at 4:30 on Sept. 19th. Please register to attend.

    ? If you haven’t already done so, please VOTE by Aug. 3. As you know, local races are as important as state and national races. Of particular concern are the concerted efforts to get candidates who support harmful ideologies elected to school board and local councils. This is happening in our area! Please refer to the voting resource section at the end of the newsletter for links to reliable voting guides and candidate forums. The small scale of local races means that your participation can make a big difference!  Turnout and awareness tend to be low in years with local elections – so your vote, and every vote you encourage, can make a big difference. So please, review the Voting Resources below and VOTE! 

    ? Postcards4WA is ready for volunteers to sign up! In 2020, volunteers wrote over 59,000 postcards in support of 22 candidates across the state, and we have set a goal to write even more in 2021! Indivisible Eastside has assumed organizing responsibilities this year and it’s headed up by Christy B, Elizabeth S and Louise P. We currently have addresses from 3 campaigns and are adding more regularly. View the FAQs, set a personal goal, sign up today, and a friendly Postcards4WA organizer will reach out to you with next steps. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Use your voice to protect voting rights for all Americans

    The Washington Indivisible Network has organized a campaign to broadcast the urgency of changing the filibuster rule in order to pass key federal voting rights legislation. The 12 Days for Democracy campaign is a state-wide effort by multiple Indivisible groups to provide quick and easy actions for you to contact your Senators and let them know that this is a ‘Must Pass, No Excuses’ situation. The urgency to pass it before the scheduled August recess grows as Republican states continue to introduce bills that reflect the cultural and racial priorities of Trump’s base. As outlined in this Fresh Air podcast, they also plan to gerrymander districts as soon as census data is released, putting them out of reach of future legal challenges.

    Indivisible Eastside is providing two of these actions. On Monday July 26 (or whenever you can do it) we are asking you to call the White House and tell the President and Vice President that we would like to see a forceful statement in support of voting rights using whatever means necessary, including getting rid of the filibuster. We need vocal recognition of the seriousness of the situation from our leaders. Recent speeches saying that we should ’out organize’ these attempts to suppress votes are not enough. Please use the TAN (Take Action Network) link to the action and it will take you through the process and provide a script.

    On Saturday July 31st we will be providing the last action of this campaign and it promises to be a fun one! Click back on the preceding link on that date to see the action and directions on how to take it. 

    If you’d like to take any of the other actions for this campaign they are all available for an extended period. Just click on an action for a particular day from the same TAN link. Be sure to click the ‘I took this action’ button afterwards.

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Participate In and comment on redistricting plans

    From the League of Women Voters-WA

    Washington State’s Redistricting Commission will be working on new maps of congressional and legislative districts in the next few months. This happens every ten years and is based on the results of the census. Due to delays in that process under the last administration, final population figures will not be delivered until August. Draft maps are due in September and need to be finalized by November. These are the districts that will be in place for the midterm primaries in March of 2022. As you can see, the timeline is very tight.

    Our state has one million people more than it did ten years ago when we last went through this process. Because of the need to keep districts balanced, almost all districts will change due to this population growth. 

    The redistricting commission has been holding public information sessions over the last few months and are now presenting the second round of them. You have an opportunity to have input into the process by participating in an online forum. Is there something that has always bothered you about how your district is drawn, or is there something in particular about it that you like and would like to keep? Does it feel representative of the population or are there arbitrary cutoffs of communities with shared interests, such as ethnicity, economic, or environmental characteristics? This is your chance to have your say.

    On July 31st there will be sessions devoted to Districts 8 and 9. (Previous sessions for other districts can be watched on the website. District 1 was on July 24). Registration is not needed to watch the meetings but is required for public comment. Detailed instructions for public testimony are available here or you can watch previous sessions for examples. You might hear one about your own district that resonates with you!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Learn about a proposal to create an alternative to Puget Sound Energy on the Eastside

    From East King County PUD

    Did you know that PSE’s electricity accounts for 25-30% of Eastside greenhouse gas emissions? Did you know that, instead of investing in renewable energy, PSE is planning to build a new methane power plant in 2026? Did you know that we can fire PSE and form a public utility district (PUD) that can prioritize action on both climate and environmental justice?

    The Yes to East King County PUD campaign will be holding an informational webinar in September (date TBD) where you can learn more about how we can take control of our energy future and create a power provider we can be proud of. Register for the webinar here, or email info@ekc-pud.org to get involved today.

    We will also be joined by Barbra Chevalier from the EKC PUD campaign at our group meeting on Sept. 19th so please join us to learn more about it.

    Voting Resources:

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of July 19, 2021 

    ? This week is a lot about elections, but don’t miss action 3 – helping healthcare workers at UW Medicine get a fair contract.

    ? Postcards4WA is ready for volunteers to sign up! In 2020, volunteers wrote over 59,000 postcards in support of 22 candidates across the state, and we have set a goal to write even more in 2021! Indivisible Eastside has assumed organizing responsibilities this year and it’s headed up by Christy B, Elizabeth S and Louise P. We currently have addresses from 3 campaigns and are adding more regularly. View the FAQs, set a personal goal, Sign up today and a friendly Postcards4WA organizer will reach out to you with next steps. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Three reasons to vote in the August 3 primary election

    From Elizabeth S

    Local races ARE AS IMPORTANT AS state legislative and federal races because:

    • Many politicians start their careers, gain experience, and build name recognition at the local level. The people who are elected now will have a better chance to move into more influential positions in a few years.
    • Most local races are nonpartisan and candidates receive relatively little scrutiny, which makes it easier for people with harmful ideologies and affiliations (white supremacists, anti-vaxers, etc.) to slip through.
    • Many political and social justice issues at the forefront of public attention are actually most immediately handled at the local level.  For example:
      • City councils make decisions on the funding of police departments vs. funding of social services, environmentally sustainable city growth and transportation, and responses to COVID-19.
      • School boards make decisions on how racism is addressed in classrooms, whether transgender students are allowed to play school sports and use bathrooms that match their identity, and how to respond to COVID-19.

    The small scale of local races means that your participation can make a big difference!  Turnout and awareness tend to be low in years with local elections – so your vote, and every vote you encourage, can make a big difference. 

    ✊ Action 1a: Review the Voting Resources below and VOTE! 

    ✊ Action 1b: Once you’ve voted, let people know. Mention it when you’re talking to friends, family, and colleagues. Talk about it on social media. Email the Voting Resources to friends. This kind of positive peer pressure is one of the most effective ways to remind and encourage other people to vote! 

    Voting Resources:

    ✊ Action 2 – Volunteer for Ruth and other local campaigns

    Indivisible Eastside’s own Ruth Lipscomb is running for Bellevue City Council. Ruth is out in the community talking with voters most days, and would love your help. You can see all her upcoming events on the Take Action Network’s Ruth Lipscomb for Bellevue City Council page. Additionally, you can volunteer to write Postcards for Ruth’s campaign by Signing up for Postcards4WA. Postcards and postage provided – you just volunteer your writing skills. 

    Looking for other opportunities to volunteer? The 3 reasons to vote in Action 1 apply to supporting candidates as well! Here are some Take Action Network searches you can explore:

    Canvassing for candidates

    Building The Blue Wave

    Get Out The Vote

    ✊ Action 3 – [UW Medicine] Healthcare workers are heroes. It’s time to treat them that way.

    As UW Medicine has grown, it’s begun to operate more like a for-profit corporate healthcare giant, prioritizing profits over giving front-line healthcare workers the resources they need to give the best care possible. 

    The 4,000 SEIU Healthcare 1199NW caregivers of Harborview Medical Center, Northwest Hospital and the UW Neighborhood Clinics just experienced the hardest year of their careers, but through it all they did everything they could to provide the best quality care to our community. During the worst of the pandemic, UW Medicine administration failed to provide them the PPE they needed to stay safe. UW Medicine administration also furloughed vital caregivers, including respiratory therapists. 

    Now that caregivers are bargaining for a fair contract, UW Medicine has offered their front-line healthcare heroes paltry 1% raises and has refused to consider COVID hero pay in recognition of their tremendous work and sacrifice during this unprecedented healthcare crisis. While other hospitals are offering generous raises and incentives for taking extra shifts to cover staffing shortages, UW Medicine seems content to let their caregivers struggle. Meanwhile, UW Medicine continues to fundraise off the pandemic, asking for donations to “support healthcare workers”—but healthcare workers haven’t seen a penny. 

    Stand with caregivers by signing the SEIU petition calling on UW Medicine administration to respect the sacrifice of its healthcare workers, protect them and their patients from COVID-19 and future pandemics, and pay them what is necessary to recruit and retain the top-quality caregivers our community deserves.

    ✊ Sign the Petition

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of July 12, 2021

    ? We have some exciting news! Bi-monthly in-person postcarding is starting back up Sunday July 18th! See the EVENT for all the details. Additionally, Joan will update the Indivisible Eastside Postcards to Voters Campaigns google doc every couple of days to include the most up-to-date postcard writing campaigns. Bookmark the file and check it from time to time to learn about new opportunities (shh – Postcards4WA is coming soon!). We’ll link to it in the Resources section of the newsletter each week.

    ? It was great to see people IN PERSON at the Deadline for Democracy rally at Redmond Saturday (see YouTube Video). Lots of great photo ops with cardboard senators Maria and Patty. This was part of over 400 events around the country calling on our Senators to pass the For The People Act.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Get Ready to Vote in Aug 3rd primary

    From Indivisible Plus Washington

    1a. Double-check your registration info — or register if you need to. Ballots will be mailed out July 16th, so See this article for links and all the details.

    1b. Pay attention to school board races. Why are they so important? Right-wing organizations such as Citizens for Renewing American are actively promoting through toolkits “… on how to combat Critical Race Theory and reclaim your local school board. This expansive packet is good for parents, teachers, school board members, neighbors, and Americans who are fed up with State Sanctioned Racism.” Learn more about the coded language candidates may use signaling their support for banning discussions of the harmful and long-lasting effects of historical and current racism on society. Combat this infiltration of our school boards by learning about the candidates, voting in the primary August 3rd, and the general election November 2nd.

    ✊ Action 2 – [President Biden] Don’t return low risk prisoners in home confinement to prison.

    From ACLU

    Over 4,000 people currently serving sentences at home under the CARES Act could be forced back to prison on the basis of a last-minute Trump legal memo. Urge President Biden to prevent this crisis by using clemency to commute the sentences of these individuals now.

    The CARES Act of 2020 broadened the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) authority to release people to home confinement to protect lives from COVID-19 risks, but nothing in it states that they should be sent back to prison once the emergency of the pandemic is over. Everyone released was determined to be a “low risk.”

    Use this ACLU Tool to contact President Biden with this request for clemency and reduce the prison population. 

    ✊ Action 3 – Submit a comment on proposed rules to stop Ghost Guns

    From Everytown for Gun Safety

    Ghost guns may be the scariest and fastest growing gun safety threat in the country, allowing anyone to make an untraceable weapon in less than an hour.

    Now, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is asking for the public to weigh in on a proposed rule that will help stop the spread of these ghost guns and save lives.

    Use Everytown’s website to comment directly on the proposed rule – talking points provided.

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of July 5, 2021

    Help Wanted:

    ? 4 more people are needed to each complete 25 Postcards to Swing States to be mailed by Wednesday July 7th. These have short messages, cards are provided, no donation needed, just your own stamps. Please contact Elizabeth S at postcards@indivisibleeastside.com to pick up cards and addresses from her home in Kirkland.

    ? 10 more people needed for the Alphabet Resistance action in Bellevue on July 8th from 5-6pm. Sign up HERE to attend (forecast is a comfortable 78 degrees) 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – Sign up and attend IE’s Deadline for Democracy Rally in Redmond

    Indivisible Eastside is hosting a Deadline for Democracy event on Saturday, July 10th, from 10:00am till 12:00 noon at the Redmond Downtown Park, 16101 Redmond Way. Our elected representatives are on summer recess and they need to hear from us.

    Following last week’s disastrous decision by the Supreme Court to further gut the 1965 Civil Rights Act, passing the “For the People Act” into law is the only failsafe we have to override the court’s draconian decision and protect our democratic right to vote.

    Come to our table and take your picture with our life-sized “Cardboard Senators” holding the “thought-bubble” of your choice, demanding their support for filibuster reform and passage of the “For the People Act” immediately upon their return to Washington, DC. 

    We can’t wait to see you! 

    ✊ Action 2 – [Port of Seattle] Don’t pave paradise to put up a parking lot

    Join over 1,500 community members and sign the KCTreeEquity.org petition calling on the Port of Seattle not to destroy an estimated 11 acres of old forest in North SeaTac Park for a 1,500-space employee parking lot. 

    Paradise Woods is a better name for this threatened forest than “Surface Lot L06” – the Port’s name. And it is a paradise – old forest with majestic, towering trees that clean and cool and quiet the air of the community under the roar of SeaTac Airport. Please Sign The Petition.

    ✊ Action 3 – Attend or Donate to the Red Road to DC Totem Pole Journey

    The Lummi Nation House of Tears Carvers and the Red Road to DC Totem Pole Journey team is transporting a 5,000-pound totem pole to D.C. from the Pacific Northwest. 

    On Sunday, July 11th from 3:00 to 5:00 the House of Tears Carvers will make a stop at East Shore Unitarian Church for a Blessing Ceremony. On July 14th, they will begin a national tour, transporting the newly carved Totem Pole across the country, making multiple stops to promote the protection and restoration of sacred lands, landscapes, and waterways.  These stops include  Nez Perce traditional lands, Bears Ears Monument; the Grand Canyon, Chaco Canyon, the Black Hills of South Dakota, and where the Dakota Access Pipeline crosses the Missouri River.  The journey will end in Washington DC on July 29th when the Totem pole will be presented to the Smithsonian Institution and the Biden administration.  The tour aims to highlight the urgency of climate action, environmental protection, and tribal rights and sovereignty.  For anyone interested in environmental justice, this is a significant event for the Eastside.  East Shore Unitarian is the only non-indigenous site visit planned for East King County.  

    For more details see: Red Road Flyer | Facebook event | TAN event

    To help cover the cost of food, gas, and lodging for the 6-15 person team, please consider donating to this effort:  DONATE HERE.

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of June 28, 2021

    ? 18 Indivisible Eastside members and friends logged an impressive 100 of the approximately 800 calls  this past week to Senators Murray and Cantwell on behalf of our most recent Deadline for Democracy event, the weeklong Call-A-Palooza. Washington Indivisibles joined callers from all over the country passionately advocatIng for elimination of the Senate filibuster to pass the For the People Act (S1). The pressure continues to build for the Senate to pass S1 by this summer – with more Deadline for Democracy events coming soon…

    ? Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) Eastside will be buying supplies for preparing for dealing with smoke during the wildfire season, to aid Eastside residents in need. Venmo: @SeattleDSA, CashApp: $seattledsafund Include note: ESRA so they know what it is for. Message @SeattleDSA_East on Twitter to donate supplies!

    ? Starting today, and through the fall, Vote Forward volunteers will be writing and stockpiling 1.5 million letters to voters in Virginia in advance of the general elections on November 2. Virginia’s off-year elections tend to serve as a bellwether for the midterm elections, so boosting turnout is crucial.  Please visit your Vote Forward dashboard to “adopt” your first Virginia voters.

    Local Campaign Information

    ? Jane Aras is running for Bellevue School Board Pos. 5, and has two opponents in her primary race. If you would like to do some local doorbelling, please SIGN UP HERE! Or donate to her campaign HERE.

    ? Ruth Lipscomb is running for Bellevue City Council Pos. 4. You can sign up to volunteer for her campaign HERE. Or donate to her campaign HERE.

    ? Melissa Stuart is running for Redmond City Council Pos. 4. You can sign up to canvass with her campaign HERE. Or donate to her campaign HERE.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Make a Plan to Help Save Democracy!

    This week Senator Schumer brought a vote to the floor of the Senate on whether to begin debate on the For the People Act (S1). Every single Republican voted against that, filibustering even the ability to consider the bill. The Republicans don’t want federal legislation protecting our constitutional right to cast a ballot.

    Democratic Senators and the White House need to be vocal about their support for voting rights, to add to the pressure from progressive politicians and grassroot activists.

    Congress is now on recess and senators will be in their home districts for two weeks. Nationally, Indivisible is planning on using this time to show our elected officials what we expect of them in the months ahead. We have some actions in the works that will give you an opportunity to make your voice heard.

    Action 1a: Be part of a statewide effort to write Letters to the Editor (LTE) calling for passage of the “For the People Act.” Use this Tool Kit to learn how to do it. Get the word out that it’s time to pass this law to protect our fundamental voting rights!

    Action 1b: We are planning some in-person events! Save the dates.

    ? Join us for an Alphabet Resistance in Bellevue on July 8th from 5-6pm. Sign up HERE to attend.

    ? Join us for our Deadline for Democracy Rally with Alphabet Resistance at the Redmond Downtown Park on July 10th from 10am-12pm. Save the date and email hello@indivisibleeastside.com if you would like to help with planning.

    ? Or join other Deadline for Democracy Events by searching your zip, state, or a keyword.

    ✊ Action 2 – [MOC] Support legislation to ban the use of facial recognition

    From WA State Wire

    Representative Pramila Jayapal worked with other members of Congress to introduce bicameral legislation recently to ban the use of facial recognition software by the Federal Government. Seven other members of Congress have signed onto the Facial Recognition and Biometric Technology Moratorium Act. As this technology continues to proliferate, experts have found that facial recognition tools are significantly less accurate when analyzing biometric data from vulnerable and marginalized populations. Members of Congress that represent our area have not yet signed onto this legislation.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling to ask you to support the Facial Recognition and Biometric Technology Moratorium Act that has recently been introduced. This technology has been found to be significantly less accurate when analyzing biometric data from vulnerable and marginalized populations. Black, Brown, and Asian individuals are up to 100 times more likely to be misidentified than white male faces. More than 40 leading civil rights and privacy groups have called for a moratorium on law enforcement entities’ use of this technology. I am asking you to co-sponsor this bill as your colleague Representative Jayapal has. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Advocate for fair redistricting!

    From LWV

    Redistricting only happens once a decade. To ensure that our Congressional and Legislative District maps take into account as many local ideas as possible, the League of Women Voters of Washington needs to hear from you. You are invited to attend a Tuesday mapping listening session. Alison McCaffree, the redistricting issue chair for the LWVW, will host sessions focused on areas in King County.

    Click on a date below to register on Zoom.

    July 6, 5:30 p.m. North Seattle/North King County

    Will focus on Legislative Districts 1, 21, 32, 36, 43, 45, and 46

    July 20, 5:30 p.m. Bellevue/East King County

    Will focus on Legislative Districts 1, 5, 11, 31, 37, 41, 45, and 48

    The goal of the meeting is to hear the needs of community members on how their local districts’ lines affect them and their communities, and their ability to elect people they want to represent them.

    In addition, the Washington State Redistricting Commission is holding public outreach meetings to hear what you think about both your Legislative and Congressional districts. They are held by Congressional Districts and below are the ones relevant to King County. Click on a date below to sign up to testify at that meeting.

    CD 8 – June 28 at 7-9 pm

    CD 1 – July 24 at 10 am to noon

    CD 9 – July 31 at 10 am to noon

    Go to the Redistricting website for more info about outreach meetings, or to watch them.

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of June 21, 2021

    ? It’s not too late!! Sign up NOW for Call-a-Palooza!

    ? New Democratic voters in key US Senate races in 2022 will receive postcards in such states as AZ, CO, GA, and PA using our Postcards to Swing States program. We want to keep them engaged and make voting a habit.   We have eye-catching postcards, addresses, and instructions available for pickup in Bellevue and Kirkland.  No donation required.  You just add the $0.36 stamp and mail NO LATER than July 7th.  Email postcards@indivisibleeastside.com to order your packet of 25, 50, or 75.  Join us at our Postcard Party on Sunday, June 27th at 7 pm and keep writing!

    Local Campaign Information

    ? Jane Aras is running for Bellevue School Board Pos. 5, and has two opponents in her primary race. If you would like to do some local doorbelling, please SIGN UP HERE! Or donate to her campaign HERE.

    ? Ruth Lipscomb is running for Bellevue City Council Pos. 4. You can sign up to volunteer for her campaign HERE. Or donate to her campaign HERE.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Make a Plan to Help Save Democracy

    This week Senator Manchin put out a proposal as an attempt to garner support from Republicans on the Voting Rights Act and Stacy Abrams quickly endorsed it. Her endorsement was barely out of her mouth when Mitch McConnell dashed any hopes of that compromise.

    What must happen now is that Senator Schumer must stick to his guns about failure not being an option for this and other bills. In addition, Democratic Senators and the White House need to be vocal about their support for voting rights, to add to the pressure from progressive politicians and grassroot activists.

    We have to show up ‘creatively, forcefully, and in big numbers to encourage this Democratic trifecta to finally act.’ On June 28th Congress will go into recess and senators will be in their home districts for two weeks. Senator Schumer is expected to introduce the voting rights bill shortly before that. Nationally, Indivisible is planning on using this time to show our elected officials what we expect of them in the months ahead. We have some actions in the works that will give you an opportunity to make your voice heard.

    Action 1a: Sign up NOW for Call-a-Palooza!  From June 21 – 25 you can choose a half hour time slot to call both of our senators. A suggested script will be provided. (When you call please mention that you are with Indivisible for tracking purposes.) Sign up today to tell our elected officials  to stand up and vocally support our democracy!

    Action 1b: Be part of a statewide effort to write Letters to the Editor (LTE) calling for passage of the “For the People Act.” Use this Tool Kit to learn how to do it. Get the word out that it’s time to pass this law to protect our fundamental voting rights!

    Action 1c: We are planning some in person events! Save the dates.

    Watch out for an opportunity to join an Alphabet Resistance in Bellevue on July 8th. If you have not participated before and are interested in joining please send us a message at  alphabet@indivisibleeastside.com to be added to the contact list. If you have not seen us in action you can check out our YouTube channel to see short videos of previous actions. The more people we have, the longer the message we can use!

    We are planning a Deadline for Democracy Rally with Alphabet Resistance in the Redmond Downtown Park on July 10th. Save the date and email hello@indivisibleeastside.com if you would like to help with planning.

    ✊ Action 2 – [Gov Inslee] Ask Lawmakers to Support SAFE Alternative for Hanford’s Nuclear Waste

    From Heart of America Northwest

    Untreated nuclear waste is threatening the groundwater that will eventually reach the Columbia River. There are proven methods of treating this waste (beginning pg. 26) that are not only safe, but will save hundreds of millions of dollars. Lawmaker’s support is needed.

    Hanford’s top managers and Washington’s regulators need to hear from you that they need to take action on the leaking High-Level Nuclear Waste tank and answer when they will start using the SAFE Treatment alternative.

    Take Action HERE.

    ✊ Action 3 – [MOC] Defend the Human Rights of Palestinian Children and Families Living Under Israeli Military Occupation

    From MAPS

    Recent violence between Israel and Palestine has reminded us of the long conflict in the area. Millions of Palestinians have lived their entire lives under the systemic oppression of Israel’s military occupation.

    Israel is a U.S. ally and for the past 25 years, Congress has focused on providing Israel security funding while passing resolutions supporting a two-state solution. During this time, Israel has been strategically expanding settlements, committing flagrant violations of human rights against Palestinian children and families, and aggressively undermining any prospects for a Palestinian state.

    U.S. assistance intended for Israel’s security should foster peace and must never be used to violate the human rights of children, demolish the homes of Palestinian families, or to permanently annex Palestinian lands.

    Representative McCollum of Minnesota has introduced H.R. 2590, The Defending the Human Rights of Palestinian Children and Families Living Under Israeli Military Occupation Act. The bill has support from 27 co-sponsoring representatives, including WA State’s Pramila Jayapal.

    Area organizations are also in support of this bill to promote and protect the human rights of Palestinians living under Israeli military occupation and to ensure that United States taxpayer funds are not used by the Government of Israel to support the military detention of Palestinian children, the unlawful seizure, appropriation, and destruction of Palestinian property and forcible transfer of civilians in the West Bank, or further annexation of Palestinian land in violation of international law. Ask your member of Congress to support this legislation.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. U.S. assistance intended for Israel’s security should foster peace and must never be used to violate the human rights of children, demolish the homes of Palestinian families, or to permanently annex Palestinian lands. I am asking you to support H.R.2590  to protect the human rights of Palestinians living under military occupation. As your colleague Represenative Jayapal said, “…we love the Jewish child and the Palestinian child.” Please join her in co-sponsoring this bill. 

    Thank you.”

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

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of June 14, 2021

    ? This week sees a plethora of events to celebrate Juneteenth, both in person and virtually. On the Eastside, there will be a special event featuring performing artists and celebrating Black students at Redmond Downtown Park. Starting in 2022, Juneteenth will be a state holiday, thanks to the passage of HB1016 in the legislature this year.

    ? More news on openings on boards and commissions:

    • The Puget Sound Regional Council is an organization which develops policies and coordinates decisions about regional growth, transportation and economic development planning within King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap counties. They help secure funding for transportation and are instrumental in many decisions affecting our lives. Currently they are looking for people to join their Equity Advisory Committee. If you or anyone you know would be a good fit for this, it would be a great opportunity to work on equity-based decisions affecting our region. Applications are due by June 28.
    • Right now the King County Parks Levy Oversight Board has an opening for a District 6 resident. The board reviews parks levy expenditures and makes recommendations for implementation of the levy. This is a great opportunity for someone with a passion for parks, trails, and open space and who is interested in making our Parks Levy a success. If you are interested in applying or have any questions, please reach out to the  community liaison for Claudia Balducci (our District 6 Rep), Madeline Cavazos, at madeline.cavazos@kingcounty.gov.

    ? Are you on social media? The Indivisible Truth Brigade is a group of volunteers who share messages there to counteract the propaganda and misleading messages that are all too common. Check out the #truthbrigade and amplify messages by sharing or creating your own. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Make a Plan to Help Save Democracy

    The intransigence of a couple of Democratic senators should not hold up the plans for important new laws supported by a majority of the population. Many of you will have read the message from Ezra Levin, Indivisible’s co-founder, in which he explains Manchin’s thinking in writing his op-ed opposing the For The People Act. In a nutshell, the op-ed is Manchin’s attempt to protect himself in the upcoming fight.

    What must happen now is that Senator Schumer must stick to his guns about failure not being an option for this and other bills. In addition, Democratic Senators and the White House need to be vocal about their support for voting rights, to add to the pressure from progressive politicians and grassroot activists. As Levin says, ‘Manchin is not the king of the universe — he’s a single senator working within a complex political system. And in that system, hard legislation never gets done unless key political leaders prioritize it.’

    This is where we come in. We have to show up ‘creatively, forcefully, and in big numbers to encourage this Democratic trifecta to finally act.’ On June 28th Congress will go into recess and senators will be in their home districts for two weeks. Senator Schumer is expected to introduce the voting rights bill shortly before that. Nationally, Indivisible is planning on using this time to show our elected officials what we expect of them in the months ahead. We have some actions in the works that will give you an opportunity to make your voice heard.

    Action 1a: Sign up for the next calling campaign. Do you remember the Call-o-Rama we held a few months ago? Get ready for the new and improved Call-a-Palooza!  From June 21 – 25 you can choose a half hour time slot to call both of our senators. A suggested script will be provided. (When you call please mention that you are with Indivisible for tracking purposes.) Sign up today to tell our elected officials  to stand up and vocally support our democracy!

    Action 1b: Watch out for an opportunity to join an Alphabet Resistance rally in downtown Bellevue in early July. If you have not participated before and are interested in joining please send us a message at  alphabet@indivisibleeastside.com to be added to the contact list. If you have not seen us in action you can check out our YouTube channel to see short videos of previous actions. The more people we have, the longer the message we can use!

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Explore an exciting opportunity to support new candidates of color in local races

    The First Mile Project is a donor circle organized by Washington Progress Alliance that brings attention and dollars to progressive BIPOC candidates in local races around the state.

    The circle invests in the campaigns of Black, Indigenous, and people of color leaders running for local office (such as city council, mayor, port commission, school board) across Washington State in 2021. Communities of color are poorly represented at this level of government, and BIPOC candidates often struggle to get donor attention and raise funds. Local office is one way leaders gain credibility, exposure, and experience. Building on successful giving circles and election victories in 2019 and 2020, the First Mile Project is organizing to support candidates in primary and general elections again this year. There is no minimum pledge, and any donation goes a long way for these candidates in smaller races.

    Candidates are selected by a team from community partners. They look for ‘progressive candidates who truly represent and are accountable to their communities’. You can check out their innovative funding process at their website.

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Celebrate the end of Keystone XL – and help end Line 3!

    Keystone XL is finally dead! On Wednesday June 9, the end of the Keystone XL pipeline project was announced by Canadian fossil fuel corporation TC Energy. It’s time to celebrate, and then redouble efforts to bring an end to Enbridge’s toxic Line 3 in Minnesota.

    The existing (old) Line 3 is an Enbridge pipeline that spans northern Minnesota, crossing multiple reservations and treaty areas, and has had numerous ruptures and spills.  Instead of cleaning it up, Enbridge wants to simply abandon it and cut a brand new energy corridor through lakes, wetlands, wild rice beds, and Ojibwe/Anishinaabe treaty territory. The proposed new Line 3 would be the largest project in Enbridge’s history and carry up to 915,000 barrels per day of one of the dirtiest fuels on earth, tar sands crude. Clearly, there are many serious issues with Line 3.

    Last week, water protectors gathered for protests in key locations in Minnesota, demanding an end to the pipeline, even before we knew that KXL’s end was (finally!) official. Nearly 250 water protectors were arrested, bringing the issue to national attention. Now is a great time to send support if you are able, and raise your voice. President Biden made a big difference in stopping Keystone XL—it’s time to do the same for Line 3.

    There are many ways to support efforts to #StopLine3. Here are a few:

    “My name is [NAME] and I live in [CITY, STATE]. I urge you to do everything you can to stop the Line 3 tar sands pipeline. Your administration did the right thing when it cancelled the permit for Keystone XL. 

    The permits for expanding Line 3 and placing it in a new corridor were issued without proper review. Even though Line 3 would cross hundreds of bodies of water including the Mississippi headwaters, the Army Corps of Engineers refused to prepare a federal Environmental Impact Statement for the project. It is time for you to revoke or amend Line 3’s presidential permit, as you did for Keystone XL, and direct the Army Corps of Engineers to immediately reevaluate and suspend or revoke the Line 3 project’s Clean Water Act Section 404 permit.

    To respect young people’s right to a stable climate, respect indigenous rights, and protect Minnesota’s pristine wetlands from toxic spills, it’s time to Stop Line 3. Instead of allowing investments to be poured into destructive projects such as Line 3, I urge you to create good jobs by investing in clean water and clean energy for all our communities. 

    Thank you.”

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the Date:

    • Tues July 6, 7-8 pm – WIN Town Hall – King County Council candidates.

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of June 7, 2021 

    ? Every Friday is #FilibusterFriday! We have until August to pass the For the People Act in order to protect our elections. Senators must put our democracy first and end the Jim Crow filibuster. Let’s get every progressive Washingtonian to join with others nationwide in taking action every Friday. Details on emailing, calling and digital media for #FilibusterFriday are HERE. 

    ? The Sound Transit  Overlake Village Light Rail station is opening in 2023! Join MoveRedmond for a walk and talk to discuss transit access June 23rd at 5pm.  Register HERE. 

    ? In 2017 with the help of Sister District Puget Sound and Indivisible Eastside members, Josh Cole was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates, helping to secure a Democratic majority. He’s up for re-election and SDPS is supporting him again. Please consider attending a meet and greet with Del. Josh Cole Thursday, June 10 at 7:30pm. Register to attend, or if you’re unable, consider donating to his campaign and help Virginia keep its Blue Trifecta!

    ? Jane Aras is running for Bellevue School Board again, and has two opponents in her primary race. If you would like to do some local doorbelling, please SIGN UP HERE! Or donate to her campaign HERE. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US House] Pass the Global HER Act to End the Global Gag Rule for good!

    From Planned Parenthood 

    The global gag rule is devastating for people who already face barriers to care around the world. It cuts off access to many of the best health care providers. It denies women and girls lifesaving health care services. And evidence shows this restriction placed on funding meant to help people around the world is actually directly responsible for increased deaths, from unsafe abortions and pregnancy complications.

    The Biden administration has already taken action to rescind the global gag rule for now, but Congress must pass the Global Health, Empowerment, and Rights (HER) Act to end the global gag rule for good.

    The global gag rule severely restricts access to lifesaving care around the world. It targets international organizations that work on U.S.-funded health projects and fight to expand access to contraception, prevent and treat HIV/AIDS, combat malaria, and improve maternal and child health. Under the global gag rule, groups are banned from all U.S. government global health funding if they provide, counsel, refer, or advocate for safe and legal abortion — even with their own funding.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling to ask you to pass H.R.556 – Global Health, Empowerment and Rights Act now to make sure the Global Gag Rule is rescinded permanently. Global health funding from the U.S. government shouldn’t restrict access to life saving care. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Give your input on a public health insurance option

    From Washington State Wire

    Washington Senator Patty Murray sent out a letter last week asking for public input on how to structure legislation to develop a public health insurance option. Murray and Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. laid out eight key questions they are trying to answer via public input, from how the public option’s benefit package should be structured to the way it interacts with Medicaid and Medicare. 

    They are asking for information on public option legislation that would expand quality coverage

    to more Americans, improve affordability for families, and lower health care costs. The goal is to ensure that every American has quality affordable coverage regardless of income, age, race, disability, or zip code.

    In light of these goals, please respond to the following questions by emailing your answers to Saha Khaterzai with the House Committee on Energy and Commerce at publicoption@mail.house.gov and Colin Goldfinch with the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions at publicoption@help.senate.gov by July 31, 2021.

    1. Who should be eligible for the public option? Should a federally administered plan be available to all individuals or be limited to certain categories of individuals (e.g., ACA Marketplace eligible individuals, private employers and individuals offered employer coverage)?
    2. How should Congress ensure adequate access to providers for enrollees in a public option?
    3. How should prices for health care items and services be determined? What criteria should be considered in determining prices?
    4. How should the public option’s benefit package be structured?
    5. What type of premium assistance should the Federal government provide for individuals enrolled in the public option?
    6. What should be the role of states in a federally-administered public option?
    7. How should the public option interact with public programs including Medicaid and Medicare?
    8. What role can the public option play in addressing broader health system reform objectives, such as delivery system reform and addressing health inequities?

    ✊ Action 3 –  [King County Council] Let King County Council know you support Ranked Choice Voting!

    From FairVote-WA

    Our King County Council is considering putting Ranked Choice Voting on the Nov. 2021 ballot. Ranked choice voting (RCV) is a simple improvement to the way we vote. With RCV, you can rank candidates on your ballot in the order you prefer: 1st choice, 2nd choice, 3rd choice, and so on. If your favorite can’t win, your vote counts for your next choice. Ranking your choices on ballots for local elections will:

    • Give voters more voice & potentially render gerrymandering ineffective
    • Motivate candidates to run positive, issues-focused campaigns
    • Take power away from political parties and moneyed interests
    • Eliminate the need for primaries, making elections less expensive for taxpayers and increasing voter participation
    • Create an environment of a contest of ideas, not fundraising
    • Ensure that elected bodies better reflect the communities they represent.

    Email the King County Council to express your support. You can click on the email link below to generate a prefilled email. Please review the email carefully, add your name, city, zipcode as well as one or two reasons you personally support Ranked Choice Voting, and sign your name before sending:
    Council@kingcounty.gov

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m writing to give my support for putting Ranked Choice Voting on the November ballot for voter consideration. RCV is important to me because [select 2 or 3 from above bullet points or write your own reason]. Improving our elections is an important step we can take at the local level. Thank you for considering giving us this option.”

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of May 31, 2021 

    ? On this Memorial Day there is an event in Seattle to mark the 100 year anniversary of the Tulsa Massacre to honor Black Wall Streets, hosted by King County Equity Now, Black Dot, and Africatown. From 1 -7 at 23rd and Jackson in Seattle, you can support Black businesses and learn about tactics that have been used to destroy thriving Black businesses and communities across the country, such as redlining, highway construction, and ‘urban renewal’. 

    ? Thank you to all who have donated to Indivisible Eastside over the past years – your generosity has been amazing. With a recent large donation, the steering committee found that we had a substantial surplus, and decided to put our values into action by supporting organizations doing the work we promote.

    ? A good way to get involved in your local community is to attend civic engagement classes that many local cities offer. If you live in Bellevue the class, called Bellevue Essentials, will start a new session in September. There are two information sessions for these popular classes coming up, on June 2 and 3. Please check the calendar for details.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Learn about and comment on decisions by the State Redistricting Commission

    Washington redraws the boundaries of voting districts every 10 years so they reflect our state’s changing populations. The Washington State Redistricting Commission (WSRC) has launched its new website, where residents of Washington State will be able to participate virtually in the redistricting process by submitting testimony, attending open public meetings, and engaging in public outreach. Public meetings have been scheduled, by congressional district, where you can watch and submit testimony if you wish. 

    In early June, the WSRC will launch a virtual mapping tool (integrated into the website) utilizing the same software the Commissioners will use to draw the new maps. For the first time ever, residents from across the state will have the opportunity to draw and submit maps, identify communities of interest, and leave comments directly on draft maps from their computers. Commissioners will be able to access and analyze these submissions as they take on the task of drawing final maps for submission to the Legislature by November 15.  

    From Tina Poslowski – “We want to remind ALL the commissioners of the importance of listening to communities of interest. We also need to make sure that groups like Washington’s BIPOC voters can come together as a voice for needed change, so their geographic communities won’t get split up between multiple districts — as was done to so many groups back in 2011.”  This is a unique opportunity to speak up about equitable representation.

    Please take the time to watch the meeting for your district, live or recorded, and be fully informed about the changes that may well impact you and your community.

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Comment on proposed changes to the USPS before June 22

    From nytimes.com

    Thank you to new steering committee member Yvonne and member Marlene for suggesting this action.

    The US Postal Service, as part of a ten-year plan under the direction of Louis DeJoy, recently proposed major changes to their ‘service standards’. These include longer delivery times, reduced hours and increased prices. Purportedly to improve the USPS’ role in package shipping, these changes will drastically decrease service for first class mail. Guaranteed delivery times will drop from within 3 days to within 5. This will adversely affect those who live in rural areas, and anyone who relies on the mail for delivery of medication, bill payment, and other business. Veterans, the elderly, and small business owners will be severely impacted. 

    There is a short window where the public can comment on these proposals. Please send your comments to the Federal Register before June 22. Please mention how these changes will adversely affect you, your family, and your business and let them know that this continued degradation of the USPS is unacceptable. The US mail is not for sale!

    Email comments, containing the name and address of the commenter, may be sent to: PCFederalRegister@usps.gov, with a subject line of “Service Standards for Market-Dominant Mail Products.”

    ✊ Action 3 –  [YOU] Ask your cable company to drop Fox News

    Tucker Carlson has been spreading falsehoods on Fox News for some time now, but his most recent anti-vaccine and anti-mask rhetoric has plumbed new depths and may well have cost lives. According to the social media activism group Sleeping Giants, he barely has any advertisers left. Fox operates his show at a loss when it comes to advertising revenue. They pay for him through carriage fees, which are what we contribute to through our basic cable fees. 

    According to the Popular Info newsletter, “14% of cable TV subscribers watch Fox News regularly. But every cable TV subscriber pays an average of $1.72 a month to receive Fox News. In contrast, 31% of cable TV subscribers regularly watch FX (owned by Disney) but the channel adds just $0.81 to an average cable bill. This means, for every actual viewer, Fox News receives a $7.75 subsidy from people who never watch Fox News.”

    It seems to be time to get serious about dropping Fox News in order to stop subsidizing the avalanche of misinformation and racist rants. 

    Action A: Call your Cable TV provider and ask them to drop Fox News Channel from their basic lineup.

    Who is your provider?

    Comcast: 800-934-6498

    Dish: 866-949-0480

    DirectTV: 844-605-1327

    ☎  Sample Script:

    “Hi, I have been a customer of yours for cable TV viewing, and I am asking you to offer cable TV packages that exclude Fox News so my monthly subscription doesn’t subsidize a channel whose hateful content I don’t want to support. Verizon FIOS offers a basic cable package that excludes Fox News, and I urge you to do so as well. If you continue to support Fox News by including it in the basic channel line-up, I will have to drop your service.  Please pass my comments up the chain to management so they know they have an unhappy customer. Thank you.” 

    Action B: Cut the cord. Here is a good article (and video) on how to Cancel Cable TV.  

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of May 24, 2021 

    ? Indivisible Eastside Steering is pleased to welcome Yvonne Brandon to the committee! Yvonne has been engaged with Indivisible Eastside for the last four years, championed the highly effective SwingLeft Letterwriting project to IE, contributes to the monthly CD1 Indivisible meeting with Rep. DelBene’s staff, and has been part of the Postcard and Letters team as well as the Rally team. Her future involvement will include Social Media posting of Indivisible’s Truth Brigade campaigns. Welcome Yvonne!

    ? Filing week has ended with some awesome people stepping up to run for city, county or school board positions, including our own Ruth Lipscomb. Check out the Who Has Filed page to see who you can support, and check in with your LD Dems to see who they are endorsing and why. Look beyond incumbents for diverse progressive voices.

    ? The Eastside Democrats are holding their 35th annual fundraiser Thursday June 3rd from 5-6 pm. This will benefit election activities such as the distribution of endorsement guides by the Dems in the 5th, 41st, 45th, and 48th LDs. This year’s event will be virtual, and includes participation by Sen. Patty Murray, Rep. Kim Schrier, and State Sen. Manka Dhingra. Purchase your tickets to attend, or simply donate at EastsideDemocrats.org. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Health & Human Services] Tell the Biden-Harris Administration to Repeal the Title X Gag Rule

    From Planned Parenthood Action

    Trump’s 2019 gag rule forced Planned Parenthood to leave Title X, the nation’s only federal program focused on providing affordable birth control and other essential reproductive care to people with low incomes. Some patients were forced to find new providers — and others were left with nowhere to turn for care at all.

    We MUST dismantle the Title X gag rule — and your voice can make a difference.

    Use Planned Parenthood’s Webpage Tool to send a comment to Health & Human Services urging the Biden-Harris administration to swiftly end the Title X gag rule. 

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] End Qualified Immunity

    From ACLU

    May 25th is the sad anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. Please urge congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to end qualified immunity without exception.

    Cops shouldn’t have a “get-out-of-court-free” card, whether they’re using lethal force, making unlawful arrests, or racially profiling people. But that’s what qualified immunity lets them do.

    Qualified immunity shields police officers and other government officials from liability by requiring proof an official violated “clearly established law” – putting the burden on victims to find a nearly identical court case that found the action unconstitutional. This is a key element of the architecture of impunity that amplifies police power and keeps them above the law, and disproportionately impacts those targeted most by law enforcement including people of color, particularly Black people, people with disabilities, and LGBTQ individuals.

    Subject: End qualified immunity once and for all

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling to bring an end to qualified immunity for police officers. Following the murder of George Floyd and the historic protests last summer in response to countless police killings of Black people, at least 20 states have proposed or passed bills to end or limit qualified immunity in state courts. But Congress has the power to eliminate this doctrine across the country. As your constituent, I urge you to promote legislation that will end qualified immunity without exception.

    It’s time for Congress to eliminate this doctrine for good – and begin funneling resources away from law enforcement and into community services like housing, education, accessible health care, and violence prevention programs. 

    Please, close the loophole allowing government officials to escape accountability for violating constitutional rights: Pass legislation that ends qualified immunity once and for all.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 3 – [Donate and Amplify] Help Activist organizations in West Virginia!

    From Indivisible

    As we continue this fight for a bold democracy reform agenda, West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin is playing a pivotal role in blocking the advancement of life-changing legislation. We know that many of you are eager to get involved in the work in West Virginia. We’re happy to say that your fellow activists in West Virginia are hard at work organizing calls to action to convince their Senator to support these democracy reform bills, just like you are! We are focused on providing the resources that West Virginians need to do this work and we are putting an emphasis on West Virginians talking to their friends and neighbors. This is why for now, we are asking out-of-state groups to respect the process in West Virginia by not organizing any phone banks or postcard programs into West Virginia. The good news is, there are even more powerful ways to help West Virginians on the path to bold, progressive legislation! Instead, consider donating to the efforts on the ground. We are following a similar approach to the one we took in the highly successful Georgia Senate Runoff. Rather than spending money on postage for postcards, consider donating to one of these amazing organizations on the ground in West Virginia: 

    When you donate directly to the work on the ground, your dollar goes even further than it would on a stamp. It goes right to talented activists taking on the task of shifting the progressive landscape for good. 

    You can also play a pivotal role in giving the movement in WV some traction through social media. A simple retweet can go a long way, as can checking on the work before asking a question. Here are some Twitter accounts to follow:

    @WVCCE * @WVCAG * @WVWorkingFams  * @letsunpac * @unpacmu * @unpacwvu * @ourfuturewv * @wv_our * @WVCantWait * @NewJobsWV

    There may come a time in the future where WV activists decide to request strategic and precise support from out-of-state activists, and rest assured, you’ll be among the first to know if that time comes. For now, we are focusing our resources into strengthening the capacity of your fellow Indivisibles in West Virginia.

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of May 17, 2021 

    ? It’s not enough to be not racist. We must be anti-racist. One way to do that is to elect leaders at the city and county level who can bring diversity of experience, perspective, and talent to these important decision making bodies that hold great sway over their police departments. Changing up city councils is an important part of the equation to ending police violence, and reducing harm to those living while Black, or experiencing mental, behavioral, or substance use crises.

    Hand in hand with this is the work of the 2021 State Legislature, which was one of the most diverse in Washington’s history. The impact of that diversity can be seen in the bills that were sponsored, championed, and passed. The governor is signing bills each day that will make a positive impact on people’s everyday lives including: 

    • SB 5293 to support, not criminalize mental health (Sen. T’wina Nobles – elected 2020)
    • HB 1078 Restore the right to vote (Rep. Tarra Simmons – elected 2020)
    • HB 1297 Tax credit for working families (Rep. My-Linh Thai)
    • SB 5055 Remove barriers to police accountability (Sen. Joe Nguyen)
    • SB 5051 Oversight of police use of force (Sen. Jaime Pederson)
    • HB 1088 Transparency on police misconduct and complaints (Rep. John Lovick)
    • HB 1054 Ban violent police tactics (Rep. Jesse Johnson)
    • HB 1267 Mandate statewide independent police investigations (Rep. Debra Entenman)
    • HB 1310 Make deadly force last resort for police (Rep. Jesse Johnson)
    • SB 5405 Racial equity analyses on ALL legislation (Sen. Bob Hasegawa)

    Many of these lawmakers came up with city and county council experience. Let’s do our part to help keep that diverse pipeline moving by supporting and electing progressive changemakers at the local level.  Filing week for City and County councils begins today. Incumbents will be watching closely to see if their seat is being challenged. To see which races will be on the ballot for cities in King County, see the Scheduled Races page on VoteWA.gov. Each day, information will be updated on the King County Elections Who Has Filed page. Get informed, stay informed, volunteer, and donate. We’re here to help in the weeks and months ahead.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [KING COUNTY COUNCIL] Say NO to Face Surveillance! Ask King County Council to Ban Government Use of Facial Recognition Technology 

    From ACLU and Indivisible Plus Washington

    Facial recognition technology poses unprecedented civil liberties, equity, and privacy concerns. It is highly inaccurate, particularly when analyzing people of color, women, youth, and trans and gender non-conforming individuals, and even when accurate, invades privacy and fuels discriminatory surveillance.  Researchers compare it to plutonium: so toxic that most uses need to be prohibited. Cities including Portland, Boston, and San Francisco have banned government use of facial recognition technology.

    Now King County has the chance to pass the first county-wide ban on government use of this flawed technology – Ordinance 2021-0091. The Council’s Committee of the Whole will be voting on the ordinance on May 19th. The vote’s likely to be close, so please ask your councilmembers to support the ban.

    Click here to email the King County Council

    Or, if you’d prefer to phone, here’s a script.  Click here to find your Councilmember and their phone number.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Dear Councilmembers,

    Facial recognition technology poses unprecedented civil liberties, equity, and privacy concerns. The problems go far beyond today’s facial recognition systems’ huge accuracy and bias problems. More and more cities across the US and the world are banning this technology. Please protect King County residents and visitors and support Ordinance No. 2021-0091.

    [NAME, CITY, ZIP]”

    Find out more on the King County Ordinance:

    ✊ Action 2 – [Governor INSLEE] Tell Governor Inslee to stop separating families

    Today’s action is adapted from one by the good folks with La Resistencia: https://www.facebook.com/LaResistenciaNW/posts/4081934075200775

    In July 2019, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) separated single father Carlos Rivera from his 7 year old son Enrique near the US/Canadian border in Blaine, WA.

    CBP dispatched Carlos to detention at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, sending his son to foster care. After months in detention, ICE deported Carlos to Honduras, even though he had legal status in Canada and returning him to Honduras violated US and international law.

    Carlos returned to Canada by December 2020 desperate to be reunited with his son – but Washington state’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) wouldn’t let him.

    Even the court-appointed child welfare advocate agrees that to stop compounding the severe trauma caused by continued separation, Carlos and Enrique should be immediately reunited. Yet Washington state’s DCYF continues to oppose reunification – and to invent new requirements, not based in law, to justify ongoing separation.

    DCYF has:

    • Refused to place Enrique with family members when his father was detained, saying their undocumented status made them unfit;
    • Belittled Carlos’ concern for his son’s welfare and his efforts at reunification
    • Invented conditions for reunification not required by law, such as a mental health evaluation due to Carlos’ having experienced the traumas of “incarceration and family separation” (which they’ve caused);
    • Demanded endlessly more background checks despite proving it’s a safe home

    Governor Jay Inslee 360-902-4111 | EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “I have heard about CBP’s 2019 separation of a father, Carlos Rivera, from his young child, Carlos, and that Washington’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families is now complicit in keeping them apart. Why is the state of Washington deepening the trauma caused to this family by ICE and CBP? Washington state agencies should not be an accessory to abuse. Stop separating families, and instead:

    1. Replace the social worker on their case, and order the new one to reunify this family within a week.
    2. Stop using the excuse of background checks; they’ve already shown clean records!
    3. Order DCYF to stop denying custody to families based on undocumented status.
    4. Demand effective oversight of CBP and ICE activities, including transportation and detention of minors and family units in WA state. We must ensure compliance with meaningful child welfare standards and prevent family separation.

    [NAME, CITY, ZIP]”

    ✊ Action 3 – [US HOUSE and SENATE]  Broadband Access for All NOW!

    From ACLU

    Broadband access is about more than the internet. It’s an issue of systemic equality. For communities living without broadband, the pandemic has only exposed and exacerbated an already growing digital divide – placing critical resources like telework, virtual learning, telehealth, and even vaccine access completely out of reach for millions across the country.

    The deepest rift in this digital divide is when it comes to race: People without broadband access are disproportionately Black, Latinx, Indigenous, rural, or low-income. The Accessible, Affordable Internet for All (AAIA) Act can help bridge this gap and expand broadband access to unserved communities nationwide.

    The AAIA provides an additional $6 billion in funds for the Emergency Broadband Benefit – an FCC program created to help households struggling to afford broadband during the pandemic. It also improves data collection and transparency on broadband access, expands digital inclusion and equity efforts, and preempts state laws that prevent municipalities from expanding broadband access. Not to mention, the AAIA also prioritizes providing access for communities who are most unserved, including Tribal lands. 

    Tell your Member of Congress to support this critical legislation today.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. As your constituent, I urge you to pass the Accessible, Affordable Internet for All (AAIA) Act to help sustain equitable broadband access for all – both now and after the pandemic.

    Broadband access is about more than the internet. It’s also about racial justice and systemic equality. U.S. residents who lack broadband access are disproportionately Black, Latinx, Indigenous, rural, or low-income.  This means they are shut out of critical resources for employment, education, and even vaccine access.    

    The AAIA provides much-needed funding for broadband, improves data collection on broadband access, and takes other important steps to provide access to the communities who are most unserved. Please, help ensure equal broadband access for all: Support the AAIA today.

    Sincerely,
    [NAME]”

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of May 10, 2021 

    ? PCC Community Markets held their Board of Trustees elections and despite an active effort by the corporate office to sway the membership to vote their incumbents back onto the board, the membership instead voted for union backed worker candidates Donna Rasmussen and Laurae McIntyre. Membership also voted in Rodney Hines onto the Board, finally adding a Black man for a small step towards diversity. Thanks to all who signed the petitions to nominate Donna and Laurae and for voting. 

    ? The City of Bellevue is mobilizing a community-led coordinating team to advance the newly adopted Communities of Color Initiative. They are recruiting candidates who live or work in Bellevue representing Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian and Pacific Islander communities. Three information sessions for potential candidates will be held Tuesday, May 11, 4-5 p.m, Thursday, May 13, 6-7 p.m and Saturday, May 15, 12:30-1:30 p.m. Register to attend. You can find more information HERE. 

    ? Bellevue’s Good Neighbor Agreement Advisory Committee (GNAAC) will be meeting Wednesdays, 6-8 PM; 5/12, 6/2, 6/23, 7/14, 9/1, 9/29 to create an agreement related to the men’s shelter. The meetings will be held virtually via Zoom. Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device. Please click this URL to join: https://cityofbellevue.zoom.us/j/93882908969 Passcode: 472280. Or join by phone by calling (253) 215-8782, Meeting ID: 938 8290 8969, Passcode: 472280.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [YOU] Attend the Town Hall with Senator Maria Cantwell on May 14th at 12 noon

    From Washington Indivisible Network

    Senator Cantwell, who hasn’t held a Town Hall in over 4 years, has agreed to her first one with Washington Indivisibles! We are at a crossroads in our nation with democracy itself at stake. Republican legislatures across the country are restricting voting in their states. The slim control we have in the Senate does not allow us to pass crucial legislation. The “For the People Act” voting rights bill (H.1/S.1), and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act would protect the integrity of our elections going forward. The filibuster is preventing Congress from passing this legislation along with all the other important legislation we Progressives want like the Green New Deal,  healthcare reform, and the American Jobs Plan.

    Senator Cantwell has recently come out to indicate she supports filibuster reform, but we need to be loud and clear that the filibuster has got to go, because reforming it will not be enough. 

    We need a BIG turn out for this town hall to show Senator Cantwell how important we feel this moment is. Read historian Heather Cox Richardson’s take on where we are right now as a nation.

    Register to attend the Town Hall on Friday May, 14th at 12 noon HERE

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] 103 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice

    Following the conviction of Derek Chauvin, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.  We must keep in mind, however, that although justice was served in this one case, the systemic structures that have been in place for 400+ years continue to harm BIPOC communities. 

    Read through this list, and choose 2, 5, 10 things or whatever number is manageable for you to do to continue to support racial justice in our inherently racist society. 

    If you missed the Racial Equity-Bellevue Team’s forum on Crisis Response Models: Moving beyond police response to behavioral/mental health crises. Over 200 people attended to hear from experts in the field of crisis response on where we are, what research is telling us, and where we can go from here. After watching the forum, complete this 2 minute form to join a continuing discussion on Thu, May 13 @ 7:00 pm or to join our email list to receive occasional updates on this topic.

    ✊ Action 3 – [King County Council] Ask for Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht’s resignation

    From Not This Time and various news sources

    In 2017 Tommy Le was shot 3 times and killed by a King County Deputy, Cesar Molina. The family was seeking an investigation into his death last July. The county recently settled a civil rights lawsuit by the Le family for $5 million, and Sheriff Johanknecht told staff that the settlement was “not a reflection of how I view the actions” of Deputy Cesar Molina in a private email that was leaked to the public. In 2017 Mi’Chance Dunlap-Gittens was killed by King County Sheriff Office’s Deputies in a botched sting operation. During a King County council meeting about his shooting in Feb. 2020 the Sheriff chose to leave early, before hearing from Dunlap-Gittens’ mother, because the Sheriff had to get to her “next thing”. These actions by the Sheriff are building a strong case to call for her resignation, as King County Executive Dow Constantine already has. Voters last November changed the sheriff’s position to be appointed by the executive and approved by the King County Council instead of an elected position. 

    Please contact the King County council and ask them to request Sheriff Johanknecht’s resignation immediately. 

    Email: council@kingcounty.gov (You can click this link to generate a prefilled email. Please review the email carefully, add your name, city and zipcode before sending)

    Phone: 206-477-1000

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I’m calling to ask you to publicly call  for the resignation of Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht immediately. The actions of the Sheriff have shown that she values police solidarity over public safety. Her office has failed to address the significant shortcomings and systemic problems that have resulted in the killing by police of Black and Brown community members. I am also requesting police reforms within the Sheriff’s office that protect these community members, and I seek assurance that a new Sheriff appointed by the council makes a commitment to these reforms. 

    Thank you.”

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

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources: 

    For the Week of May 3, 2021

    ? GOOD NEWS: Prancer the ‘Haunted Victorian Child Dog’ has been adopted!

    ? Despite having to re-work their whole method of passing legislation due to the pandemic, the state legislative session for 2021 was remarkably productive for progressive legislation. Check out the bills that passed by topic area: COVID Relief & Recovery and Climate Action & Resiliency (note that where it says “5254” it’s actually “5126”), Police Accountability and Justice Reform, Education & Opportunity and Childhood & Early Learning, Healthy Families & Community,  and A Just Economy for All.  You can check out the list of all signed bills here. Some could be on the Governor’s desk for signature for a while yet as he still has fourteen days to sign them. To everyone who took action on any bills via TAN this year, we thank you and look forward to your continued engagement on the platform.

    ? Our IE Racial Equity sub-group is co-hosting a Crisis Response Model Forum tomorrow, Tuesday 5/4 at 7pm. Register HERE to hear about how we can better handle mental health responses in our cities.

    ? Support the local South Seattle Emerald’s BIPOC-focused journalism. They are community-embedded, and paywall-free. Donate HERE.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [Gov Jay Inslee] – Demand. He. Sign.

    From Washington Black Lives Matter Alliance

    The legislature passed 25 BLM priority life saving bills by the cut-off on April 25th. As of this newsletter, 9 of them are still sitting on Governor Inslee’s desk. Email the Governor to demand he sign them. You can click the email link below to generate a prefilled email. Please review the email carefully and sign your name before sending it.

    jay.inslee@gov.wa.gov,

    karen.johnson@equity.wa.gov,

    jamila.thomas@gov.wa.gov,

    rashelle.davis@gov.wa.gov

    ?Sample Email: You can check HERE to see if any of these bills have been signed before sending.

    “Governor Inslee,

    Every single system and institution that Black people in this country interact with on a daily basis —including in Washington state—was designed to enforce, not end, oppression. 

    For all Black lives, we demand the following bills are signed into law:

    HB 1044 – Make pathways to post-prison education

    HB 1088 – Transparency on police misconduct and complaints

    HB 1194 – Strengthen parent-child visitation

    HB 1227 – Protect kids. Support families.

    HB 1267 – Mandate statewide independent police investigations

    HB 1297 – Tax Credit for Working Families

    SB 5135 – NO unlawful summoning of police

    SB 5293 – SUPPORT, don’t criminalize mental health

    SB 5405 – Racial equity analyses on ALL legislation

    This is Reparations for Black Lives.

    In solidarity with the Washington Black Lives Matter Alliance,

    [Your Name, City]”

    ✊ Action 2 – [US Congress and President Biden] Send help to India NOW!

    India is being ravaged by a 2nd wave of COVID-19 outbreak that is causing an unprecedented amount of death and despair. The House Caucus on India and Indian Americans has sent a letter to President Biden, thanking him for the assistance he has ordered so far, and urging him to send additional help immediately.  You can help by taking the following two actions.

    ✊ Action A: Contact your MoC asking them to support sending more supplies and increasing vaccine production.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP] and I am calling to urge you to support the people of India by  sending more supplies and facilitating increased production of the vaccine. Urge President Biden to use his executive powers to send additional help immediately. 

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action B: Donate to organizations on the ground helping in India. You can choose individual organizations to donate to out of this list, or donate as a whole to support all 19.

    ✊ Action 3 – [Change.org] – Rename Harney Channel 

    From Change.org

    A group of residents in the San Juan islands feel that General Harney does not deserve the honor of having the channel between Orcas and Shaw Islands named after him. Harney was responsible for a number of heinous incidents to Native Americans and black people which do not reflect the values we hold today – or even at that time. You can read his bio here.  Instead, the island residents would like to rename it for an Indigenous islander and 20th century fishing, maritime, and political leader, Henry Cayou (1869-1959). Henry Cayou lived in the San Juan Islands through his entire life of 90 years and was a major figure in both the Native American and white communities. He was truly a bridge between cultures.

    Sign the Change.org petition here.

    Calendar of Events:

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    For the Week of April 26, 2021 

    ? In the wake of the conviction of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd, as a predominantly white community, we want to acknowledge that this has been just one of an uncountable number of traumatic events for Black people, and not even the latest. In the words of the Indivisible Black Caucus, ‘What a painful thing it is, that just a trial, not even a conviction, is rare and a cause for celebration’.  We all must recommit to anti-racist work that creates social and structural change. We need to take our antiracism out of the abstract and put it to work in our lives. Black lives depend on it.

    ? By the time you read this, the state legislative session for 2021 will have wrapped up, at midnight on April 25th. For the most part it has been a successful session for the bills that we have been tracking. You can check out the list of all signed bills here. Some could be on the Governor’s desk for signature for a while yet as he still has twenty days to sign them. To everyone who took action on any bills via TAN this year, we thank you and look forward to your continued engagement on the platform.

    ? Exciting news – Senator Maria Cantwell has agreed to do a WIN Town Hall, on May 7. Register to attend.

    ? We are hosting bi-weekly Postcards, Letters and LTE meetings every other Sunday from 7-8 pm. Drop in to say hi, write some postcards, or just catch up with us! Register once and a reminder will be sent out automatically for each session. The next one will be on May 2nd.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Urge King County Councilmembers to ban government use of facial recognition technology

    From ACLU-WA

    Facial recognition is a privacy-invasive and racially biased technology that attempts to give the government the power to automatically identify, locate, and track people based on images of their faces. It is highly inaccurate, particularly when analyzing people of color, women, youth, and trans and gender non-conforming individuals, and even when accurate, invades privacy and fuels discriminatory surveillance. There is a growing movement across the United States to ban face surveillance. Cities including Portland, Boston, and San Francisco have banned government use of facial recognition technology.

    King County has the chance to pass the first county-wide ban on government use of this flawed technology. An ordinance (Ordinance 2021-0091) has been introduced to pass such a ban, which would extend to law enforcement. It will be considered at the next meeting of the council on May 5th.

    The ACLU tells us that the most important lawmakers to contact are Councilmember Lambert (District 3), Councilmember Balducci (District 6), and Councilmember Dunn (District 9). However, even if your councilmember is not listed, we encourage you to email them and let them know that you expect them to support the ban. The vote is likely to be close. 

    Click here to find your Councilmember. 

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Dear Councilmember,

    Hello, my name is [NAME], from [CITY, ZIP]. I am writing to urge you to support Ordinance No. 2021-0091 – an ordinance that would ban government use of facial recognition technology in King County and protect people’s civil rights and civil liberties.

    Facial recognition technology powers systemic racism and injustice, and even when accurate, invades privacy and fuels discriminatory surveillance. Many expert studies have found facial recognition technology to be less accurate at identifying people of color, women, youth, and trans and gender non-conforming individuals, increasing the risk of false matches. 

    King County can be a leader in protecting people’s civil rights and civil liberties and advancing racial equity. Please support Ordinance No. 2021-0091.

    Thank you.”

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Support the Duwamish Tribe in their demand for federal recognition

    From duwamishtribe.org

    Chief Si’ahl (Seattle) of the Duwamish and Suquamish Tribe of Indians was the lead signatory of the Treaty of Point Elliott in 1855. Settlers forced the removal of the Duwamish Tribe from present-day Seattle. The Duwamish Tribe maintains its efforts to hold the United States Government accountable for the promises it made in that Treaty to this day. Despite repeated setbacks, Duwamish Tribal members have persevered and maintained community ties. 

    The Duwamish Tribe’s leaders have fought long and hard for the Tribe’s rights in multiple forums. In 2001 the Bureau of Indian Affairs under the Clinton Administration found sufficient evidence to re-recognize the Duwamish Tribe, only to have it reversed by the Interior Department under the Bush Administration. 

    For many decades, Chief Seattle’s Tribe has been working to clarify their federal status with the government based upon the fact that it is a Treaty Tribe and that fact has never been invalidated. All the while, the Duwamish have also contributed to the environmental health and welfare of the citizens of Seattle and Puget Sound with an emphasis on marginalized populations.

    Please support the Duwamish Tribe’s quest for federal recognition by signing this petition and sharing it with your family and networks.

    You can also support the Duwamish by contributing to the Real Rent Duwamish program, which raises funds that go directly to Duwamish Tribal Services to support the revival of Duwamish culture and the vitality of the Duwamish Tribe.

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Have input into your city government by joining a city board or commission

    For anyone who has wanted to have a voice in important decisions that affect your city and work with others to make a positive difference in the community, many of our local cities have openings on their advisory boards and commissions.

    There are opportunities to fill vacancies for positions which are responsible for formulating new ideas, gathering information, hearing and receiving public comments, analyzing complex issues, and making recommendations for specific projects and policies.

    Kirkland residents can apply for a city advisory board position by May 4, 2021. 

    Redmond residents can apply for positions on a variety of commissions which have current openings.

    Bellevue has closed its application process for recent openings. If you live in another city please check their website for openings.

    Calendar of Events:

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    For the Week of April 19, 2021

    ? Some of the bills that we have been tracking in the state legislature have already been signed by the Governor. You can check out the list of all signed bills here. Others are in the no man’s land of being debated in committee to resolve differences between the two chambers over amendments, or still need to be signed by chamber leadership, or are on the Governor’s desk awaiting his signature. We are still closely tracking the progress of these important bills and will continue to send you actions if they need a final push before the end of session on April 25th. One of the bills that was signed was the Sale of Dogs and Cats Bill (picture above), initiated by Eastside high schoolers Novia Liu and Ava Finn, who spoke at our meeting two years ago when they first began this journey. Congratulations to them for their hard work in seeing this through!

    ? If you are a member of PCC and have not yet voted in the Board of Trustees Election you have until May 3 to do so. As a reminder, there are two PCC workers running for a position on the board. We support PCC’s effort in bringing racial diversity to the board by recommending Rodney Hines for one of the three open positions, and would like to see economic diversity by having workers’ voices on the board as well. View the PCC Progressive Voters Guide then sign in to cast your ballot now.

    ? Exciting news -Senator Maria Cantwell has agreed to do a Town Hall for the Washington Indivisible Network! Watch this space for more details.

    ? We hope you were able to join us at our group meeting on Saturday. View the meeting notes and recording HERE. Please note that this was our last meeting for a while as we are pausing the monthly meetings until September. Instead, we are hosting bi-weekly Postcards, Letters and LTE meetings every other Sunday from 7-8 pm. Drop in to say hi, write some postcards, or just catch up with us! Register once and a reminder will be sent out automatically for each session.

    We will still be keeping you up to date with our weekly newsletter through this period. 

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [US Senators] Keep pushing our Senators to support democracy and end the filibuster

    Our Senators have still not disclosed how they may act with regards to the filibuster, although it seems as though Sen. Patty Murray might be leaning towards overturning it, at least temporarily. In order to get critical legislation such as  S.1 (The For the People Act) and S.51 (the D.C. Statehood Act) passed, the filibuster must be abolished once and for all. 

    In the past few weeks we have shared several methods of contacting our senators to ask them to come out in support of eliminating the filibuster, such as emailing them directly or writing a letter to the editor of your local paper.

    We now have a brand new way that you can contact the senators in a coordinated way that makes it clear how strongly Washingtonians feel about the need to abolish this arcane procedure. 

    On Monday April 26 there will  be a statewide End The Filibuster Call-o-Rama! WA Indivisibles are organizing a call relay to Senators Murray and Cantwell’s DC offices to end the filibuster. It’s easy! Pick a time on the signup list to make your call — time slots are in 5 minute increments for one entire business day. If we can fill all time slots, both Senators will be getting calls ALL DAY LONG. Individual scripts for each senator are provided as part of the TAN action. 

    Saturating the phone lines is one way of bringing home how deeply Indivisibles from across the state care about this issue. Share this action with other people in your network.

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Register for Crisis Response Models for Mental Health Crises Forum — a learning event

    The United States is at a turning point in how we respond to behavioral and mental health crises. Everyone—from law enforcement to crisis counselors—agrees that standard police models aren’t working: law enforcement officers are forced to serve in ways for which they aren’t trained, which often results in harming the communities they seek to serve. There are a number of models that have been implemented, with varied results.

    Thanks to the hard work of members of the Racial Equity-Bellevue Team of Indivisible Eastside and WIN we are excited to announce that registration is now open for  Crisis Response Models: Moving beyond police response to behavioral/mental health crises. In this learning forum, we’ll hear from experts in the field of crisis response on where we are, what research is telling us, and where we can go from here.

    Guests include:

    Dr. Amy Watson, recognized national expert in crisis response, and co-author of multiple Vera Institute for Justice reports.

    Tim Black, Director of Consulting for Eugene, Oregon CAHOOTS program (Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets program), the successful 30-year program that is the model for $1b in federal funding included in the American Rescue Plan (Covid relief 2021-1).

    Manka Dhingra, Washington State Senator (LD45), Senior Deputy King County Prosecuting Attorney, mental health and crisis intervention expert. 

    Please register in advance and spread the word to your networks. For more learning on this subject please check out the many useful links at JusticeActionAccountability.org.

    ✊ Action 3 – [Gov. Inslee] Ask the Governor to release Washington residents from detention at the Northwest Detention Center

    From seattleindivisible.com

    Gov. Inslee recently signed HB 190 into law, banning private prisons from Washington State. That means that the Northwest Detention Center (NWDC) is closing its doors, thanks in large part to the tireless efforts of activists and immigration groups. We need to seize this moment to make sure that as the NWDC shuts down, the WA residents being detained there are released to their homes instead of being transferred to another facility. 

    NWDC is an immigrant detention center, which means that the people currently detained there are not being detained for crimes – only for their lack of American citizenship. Please contact Gov. Inslee, thank him for shutting down NWDC, and tell him to stop the transfers and allow WA residents to return to their homes and families while they await their immigration hearings.

    Calendar of Events:

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    For the Week of April 12, 2021 

    ? Since you’re reading this, you’re still engaged in the work that didn’t end when Joe Biden entered the White House. We want you to know, we appreciate this community of activists and thank you for sticking with it as we work to shine a light on injustices and use the privileges we each have to take action.

    Current projects include the Racial Equity Bellevue group, the Eastside Anti-Racism Learning discussion group, #AlphabetResistance holding our elected officials accountable, Postcards, Letterwriting and LTE meetings to GOTV for progressive candidates, Monthly group meetings, monthly meetings with CD1 Rep Suzan DelBene’s staff to keep progressive goals on her radar, support and collaboration with Indivisible groups around the state through the Washington Indivisible Network (WIN) and co-hosting with WIN some of the Town Hall events such as the 100 Days Congressional Town Halls and Crisis Response Models: Moving beyond police response to behavioral/mental health crises. Over the last 4+ years we’ve produced over 200 Actions and Events newsletters distributing via email, website, Take Action Network, and Facebook. Thank you for taking the suggested actions as we work to make the world a better place. 

    ? Please join us Saturday Apr 17th from 4:00 to 5:30 pm for Indivisible Eastside’s Monthly meeting. We are very pleased to welcome IE Member Janice Zahn as she shares her past experiences as an Asian American woman running for public office and her current experience as a Bellevue city councilmember. Click the meeting link to register and see additional agenda items.

    ? Last week’s Stand with PCC Works Action gave background and alerted us to the PCC Board of Trustees Election in which 2 PCC workers are running. If you are a PCC member, it’s time to VOTE. View the PCC Progressive Voters Guide then sign in to cast your ballot now through May 3, 2021.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [INDIVISIBLE] Take Part in Indivisible’s 2021 Census Survey

    From time to time, Indivisible sets a goal as a movement to evaluate our network and assess our impact, so that we can understand where we are right now, and where we are headed. Being able to tell the story of our work this year is a way that we show our power, but in order to do that, we need to build a shared understanding of who we are as a community — and to provide a way for you to share that with us directly. 

    Indivisible is working with Dr. Dana Fisher, a prominent researcher on American political movements, and her team at the University of Maryland to launch the Indivisible Census. This comprehensive, completely anonymous survey will help us learn more about:

    • Who makes up our nationwide network
    • What issues you care about
    • What activities or tactics you like to do

    Dr. Fisher has been tracking Indivisible’s work, and the work of our allies, since the 2016 election. The results should provide valuable insight not just for our network, but for national political and social movements yet to come.  A census is only as good as the number of people who respond to it, which is why we’re asking you to take part. Take the census today and help us find out even more about our movement. 

    <<Start the census now>>

    Thank you for your participation!

    ✊ Action 2 – [KING COUNTY METRO] Help plan the future of transit on the Eastside

    Do you live, work, go to school, and/or travel within Eastside communities, including but not limited to areas east and south of Kenmore; east of the I-90 and SR 520 bridges; north of east Renton, including Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Sammamish or Issaquah? By 2024 Sound Transit will open 12 new light rail stations connecting downtown Seattle and the Eastside. King County Metro and Sound Transit are initiating East Link Connections, which will integrate with and complement Sound Transit’s new Link light rail service, and, in the process, improve connections and minimize duplication of bus service with Link.  

    Please take the East Link Connections Transit Needs Survey (scroll down to What’s happening now for the button to the survey itself) by April 25, and provide input about where you want to go. 

    The survey is available in English, Spanish, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Korean, Russian, Vietnamese, Hindi and Tagalog.

    If you have any questions, or would prefer to have the survey emailed or mailed to you, please contact East Link Connections team at haveasay@kingcounty.gov or 206-263-1939.

    ✊ Action 3 – [YOUR CITY] Consider applying to serve on your city’s boards and commissions

    One way you can have a positive impact at a local level is to serve on one of your city’s boards or commissions. 

    Bellevue – The City Council is seeking candidates for vacancies on Bellevue’s Arts, Planning, and Transportation commissions, as well as the Library Board and the Parks & Community Services Board. You can apply online. Applications are due by 5 p.m., Monday, April 19.

    Read about positions for when openings become available. 

    Kirkland | Redmond | Bothell

    Calendar of Events:

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    For the Week of April 5, 2021

    ? Good News! Banning private for-profit prisons HB 1090 and Prohibiting open carry of certain weapons at protests and the state capitol SB 5038 are headed to the Governor’s desk! Thank you to all who took and are continuing to take action!

    ? Please sign up for one of the upcoming Indivisible “First 100 days” Congressional Town Halls that IE is co-hosting, for example, April 10th with Rep. Suzan DelBene or April 17th with Rep. Adam Smith. Both are at noon. See more Town Halls in the Calendar section.

    ? Last week we asked you to contact your City Council about rethinking their approach to public safety. If you received a response, please forward it to RacialEquityBellevue@indivisibleeastside.com. It’s helpful information for their work, and they can follow up with you on suggested ways you can continue the conversation with the City. If you haven’t had a chance to do this action, it’s not too late! Click the link above.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week.

    ✊ Action 1 – [WA State Legislature] Get bills across the April 11th finish line

    We have entered the last week of the State Legislature, whose regular session ends April 11th. Our Senators and Representatives have worked incredibly hard this pandemic session and many will be working harder this week as they finalize work on the state budget. Here are 10 bills that could use our help. These actions link to TAN, but you do not need a TAN account to take them – just enter your LD and you’re ready to go. Each one takes 1 minute.

    Funding

    Support HB 1406 ‘Wealth tax’ (House: In Committee (Finance)) – ask for a hearing

    • Promote HB 1406 to provide equity in our tax code.

    Criminal Justice and Police Accountability:

    Pull SB 5051 ‘restore trust in the criminal justice system’ out of House Rules for a floor vote

    Support HB 1054 – Police OfficerTactics and Equipment – vote it out of the Senate.

    • HB1054 is a priority bill for groups working on police accountability. It seeks to ban or restrict tactics and equipment that are misused most frequently against communities of color. It is currently on the House floor awaiting a vote. This bill is a priority of CAIR, WAISN, and WCPA.

    Support SB 5263 ‘Personal injury defenses’ for police accountability

    • This bill, SB 5263, is a plus for accountability. Current law is an obstacle for families who seek justice in excessive use of force cases for their loved ones. This bill is a priority of ACLU-WA.

    Data Privacy

    Submit comments on the Bad Washington Privacy Act (SB 5062) to tell your legislators to fix it — or nix it!

    • The Bad Washington Privacy Act is a weak, industry-backed bill that fails to protect our privacy and leaves us all at risk. Submitting comments on the bill via the legislature’s site is a powerful way to tell the legislature to fix it — or nix it. This action includes suggestions about what to write. Opposing this bill is a priority of ACLU-WA.

    Environment

    Support HB 1091 (Transportation fuel/carbon) Lobby members in the Senate Rules Committee

    Housing and Health

    Give HB 1220 ‘Emergency shelters & housing’ a vote on the Senate floor

    Help get a floor vote for SB 5160 ‘Landlord-tenant relations’

    • Help protect tenants during the eviction process and provide rental assistance for landlords. This bill is a priority of WAISN.

    Support ESHB 1236 Protecting residential tenants from arbitrary and discriminatory evictions

    • This bill provides significant protections against retaliatory and discriminatory evictions by requiring a legitimate business reason to evict and will go a long way to closing loopholes in state law that allow so many households of color to lose their housing.

    Give HB 1139 – ‘lead in drinking water in schools’ a vote on the Senate floor

    • School children should not be exposed to lead in their drinking water.

    ✊ Action 2 – [US Senators] Two Actions to End the Filibuster

    As we enter the second week of the Senate Recess, join a statewide effort to publicize the call to end the Senate Filibuster.

    Acton 2a: Join Alphabet Resistance Thursday 5-6 pm on the NE 4th St Overpass of 405 as we spell out:

    END THE FILIBUSTER / SAVE VOTING RIGHTS

    Action 2b: Write a Letter to the Editor (LTE) regarding Voting Rights and the need to End the Filibuster

    ✊ Action 3 – [PCC and community members] Stand with PCC workers

    Some of PCCs decisions during the pandemic like revoking appreciation pay during the height of the pandemic in July, and actively fighting against the city ordinances that passed recently, did not stand with the community values they purport to hold. It became clear to workers that their perspective was not part of decisions made by the company and the Board of Trustees. Indivisible Eastside Steering member Hanna, a PCC worker, has been active in helping two PCC workers become eligible to be candidates for the upcoming Board of Trustees election. We support PCC’s effort in bringing racial diversity to the board by recommending Rodney Hines for one of the three open positions, and would like to see economic diversity by having workers’ voices on the board as well.

    Action 3a. If you are a PCC member you should have received an email on Feb 25th announcing the Board of Trustees election April 8 – May 3 2021 entitled “PCC’s 2021 Election is coming up!”. On April 7th or 8th, look for an email from “ESC (Election Services Co.)” – this will be your ballot. There are five candidates for three spots.

    Please vote in the election and consider the value that the two petition candidates would bring to the Board of Trustees. Although the corporate experience the incumbents hold has value, the Board’s role is setting policy and oversight to assure that the co-op is living its vision, mission, and values. Can they do this without workers having a seat at the table?

    Action 3b. Join Hanna and others on April 14th from 3-5 pm at the UFCW21 Informational Picket at the Bellevue PCC to take action to win a fair contract that includes:

    • Workers on the PCC Board of Trustees
    • Respectful Wage Increases
    • Secure Retirement
    • NO TAKEAWAYS!

    Email Hanna at hello@indivisibleeastside.com if you’d like more information.

    Calendar of Events:

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    For the Week of March 29, 2021

    ?As we are faced with a mass shooting for the second week in a row, it seems as though there’s sadly nothing new to say that we haven’t already said so many times. Tina Podlowdowski, Chair of the Washington State Democrats sums it up.

    ‘It’s heartbreaking that, yet again, we must open this email discussing another terrible mass shooting, this time in Boulder, Colorado. As we honor and remember the 10 lives lost in this horrific event, we must redouble our commitment to preventing such tragedies that threaten our livelihoods daily. Remember that gun violence is preventable, and our children and grandchildren shouldn’t have to grow up in a world where these tragedies are acceptable. Republicans are working to sustain the cycle of gun violence that keeps us in fear and harm’s way. Just 10 days before this shooting, an NRA lawsuit blocked a ban on assault rifles and high-capacity magazines passed by the city of Boulder.

    ‘Voters in Washington have spoken again and again on this issue and we know that stopping gun violence is the necessary thing to do. Americans deserve better than an epidemic of gun violence in our homes, schools, and communities, and Democrats aren’t giving up.’

    Here are your 3 actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Contact your City Council about rethinking their approach to public safety.

    Resources are from justiceaccountabilityaction.org

    It has been apparent for a long time that many of the calls to 911 are for incidents that do not need a response from armed police. Many emergency calls can be handled by non-law enforcement first responders, as in cases of mental health issues, substance use disorder crises, health and safety check-ins, and the experiences of the unhoused. This is not a new concept. The CAHOOTS program in Eugene, OR has been in place for 30 years and has been taken up in other cities. There are many models for mental health response teams to choose from but the ideal scenario is one where such teams are independent of the police and are not merely accompanying armed officers in police vehicles to calls, which can exacerbate the crisis. They would provide a separate service, calling for police assistance if necessary (although in 2019, out of a total of roughly 24,000 CAHOOTS calls, police backup was requested only 150 times.)

    Some of our Eastside cities are beginning to think about setting up such teams. In most cases, they are looking at the models that are staffed by police officers who have received extra training (crisis intervention teams, or CIT), or those where mental health professionals would go out on calls with officers. It is important to let our local councils and police departments know as they start the process that there are real concerns about the effectiveness of CIT teams . A recent study showed that the CIT team approach shows little benefit in terms of arrests, officer injury, citizen injury, or use of force.

    In a few weeks you will have the opportunity to join us for a WIN (Washington Indivisible Network) online learning session about various mental health responses, with a panel of experts who will help us to understand the issues. In the meantime though, please contact your city council members and police chief and ask that they look at a wide range of models as they consider this topic. You can send them this spreadsheet showing a wide range of mental health responses, which was compiled by two of our talented Indivisible Eastside members. If you’re not sure of the status of this conversation in your city we encourage you to attend virtual council meetings and ask questions.

    Bellevue – City Council email

    Police Chief Mylett email

    Redmond – City Council/Mayor email

    Police Chief Lowe email

    Kirkland – City Council email

    Police Chief Harris email

    Bothell – City council email

    Police Chief Seuberlich email

    Issaquah – City Council email

    Police Chief Behrbaum email

    Sammamish – City Council email

    Police Chief Pingrey email

    Renton – City Council email

    Interim Police Chief Schuldt – no email listed. Phone number is 425-430-7500.

    ☎ Sample Script: (please edit as necessary).

    “Hello,

    I am a resident of [CITY] and am writing to ask you to consider developing alternatives to police responses to 911 calls that do not require armed responders. There are cities such as Eugene, Denver, and San Francisco that are using teams of mental health and health care professionals, including EMTs, that operate independently of the police very effectively, with better outcomes for members of the public in need of such services. Many police departments support the development of such teams as it frees them up to concentrate on the investigation of serious crimes. The independence of such mental-health teams is important. They contrast with crisis intervention teams or CIT teams, which include police within the teams. Doubts have been raised about whether the CIT approach is effective in terms of arrests, officer injury, citizen injury or use of force.

    We need to reimagine public safety. Over-reliance on police can prevent us from imagining and investing in other public safety tools. It would be great if [CITY] could be a leader in this region to implement meaningful and effective change in how we deal with people in crisis.

    Thank you.”

    ✊ Action 2 – [US Senate] Work to abolish the filibuster and support pro-democracy bills

    From Indivisible

    As important legislation such as S.1 (The For the People Act) and S.51 (the D.C. Statehood Act) moves forward to the Senate, their future progress depends entirely on one archaic senatorial process. The filibuster is often presented as a way to encourage debate and partisan decision making in the Senate, and that is often used as a justification for keeping it. As we know, that ship sailed with Mitch McConnell’s misuse of it as a way to block legislation over a period over a dozen years, except when it suited him to get rid of it for Supreme Court nominations. Far from fostering compromise, the current filibuster has given a unified minority party every incentive to block legislation, no matter how many Americans support it. It has historically been used as a tool to block legislation on civil and human rights.

    As Republicans are now intent on sabotaging the democratic process by introducing over 250 state-level bills to limit voting rights, the passage of S.1 and S.51 is critical to establishing laws that will protect everyone’s right to vote in a safe and fair manner. (The reason why S.51 is important in this context is because it would give representation to D.C.’s mostly Black and brown residents, who have been disenfranchised by Congress entirely). If the Senate does not pass these bills, democracy in this country will take a blow that it will take many years to recover from. For that to happen, the filibuster needs to be abolished. Reforming it will not be enough.

    Our Senators have not been clear about their intent on the filibuster, although it seems as though Sen. Patty Murray might be leaning towards overturning it, at least for this legislation. At this critical time, we need to let our Senators know that this is one of the most important decisions that they will take. Please let them know that you expect them to do everything they can to ensure that the filibuster is abolished and to vote to pass S.1 and S.51.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. I am very concerned about the attacks on our democracy by Republicans in state legislatures across the country and fear that the damage done will be long lasting and leave Democrats unable to pass much-needed legislation. In order to counter this, Democratic Senators need to move to abolish the filibuster and vote to pass important legislation such as S.1 and S.51. Our democracy, which must defend itself against minority rule, depends on it. Please do everything you can to ensure that this happens.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 3 – [Governor Inslee, State legislators] Do not re-criminalize drug possession

    From Seattle Indivisible

    The Washington Supreme Court recently declared the state law against simple drug possession unconstitutional. Right now, it is not illegal to simply possess drugs on your person, in your house or in your car. The ruling does not change other drug crimes, like manufacture, sale or possession with intent to sell — those things are still felonies.

    The case the ruling was based on, Washington State vs. Blake, hinged on the fact that Washington’s law, unlike other state drug possession laws, didn’t require the person being prosecuted to know about the drugs. It surprised many people in power that the whole law was declared unconstitutional, rather than just that part. There is already talk about a legislative “fix” to make drug possession illegal again. That should not happen.

    Washington State, our state, was a leader in the movement to legalize marijuana. We know the harm that drug prohibition and the war on drugs has done (for some history, see this article from the ACLU). Millions of people, mostly Black and brown people, have been imprisoned. Families have been broken up. Communities have been deeply disrupted. Police forces have grown to untenable sizes. Drug enforcement creates millions of police interactions with regular people, and we know that regular people who are not white are in danger in those interactions. It’s time to stop. Drug prohibition is a human rights issue. This decision has given our state an opportunity to lead again. Let’s not waste that opportunity on a “fix” to the current unjust law.

    Our lawmakers should take the right, just, and moral stance by explicitly repealing our existing, unconstitutional drug possession law, and decriminalizing possession.

    Please let Governor Inslee and your state legislators know that drugs should not be re-criminalized.

    Use the TAN Action Link for a quick and easy way to do this.

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    • Sun May 2, 5:30 dinner, 6:00 program – Fair Fight Bond Fund fundraiser, by Jewish Coalition for Immigrant Justice NW. Register to attend by Apr 25. Donations may be made at the link to benefit Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN).
    • Thu June 3, 5 – 6 pm – Eastside Democrats Fundraiser – details to come.

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of March 22, 2021

    ? The news from Atlanta last week about the shooting of eight people, six of whom were women of Asian descent, was devastating. We want to acknowledge unequivocally that these eight individuals were murdered because of a toxic combination of white supremacy, systemic racism, classism, and gender-based violence. The violent rhetoric espoused by Trump and his supporters over the past year, compounded by the fact that Asian Americans, particularly women, have been over-sexualized and dehumanized by white men for centuries is at the core of this. Attempts to explain the motivations of the shooter as ‘having a bad day’ are an indication of the depth of the problem. Please read this article about the intersectional nature of the tragedy in Atlanta. As Kimberlé Crenshaw says in the article, “To respond to this tragedy, we need a deeper commitment to understanding white supremacy and its various dimensions across the social plane.”

    To the many Indivisibles who are not Asian American: it is up to us to offer support and solidarity, to speak out, and to find solutions so that we can collectively stop these traumas from happening again.

    Please read and share the resources here to learn more about the issues. If you’re able, you can split a donation among eight organizations that are fighting to protect and support the AAPI community here.

    We need to acknowledge the eight victims by name. They are Soon C. Park, 74; Hyun J. Grant, 51; Suncha Kim, 69; Yong A. Yue, 63, Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33; Paul Andre Michels, 54; Xiaojie Tan, 49; and Daoyou Feng, 44. One man, Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz, was wounded. If you wish to help the families of the victims directly you may do so by donating here.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [State Legislators] Ask your legislators to ensure equitable reproductive health care access by increasing Medicaid reimbursement rates

    From Crosscut and Planned Parenthood

    Since the start of 2021, Planned Parenthood has had to close three clinics in our state, in First Hill, Kent, and Shelton. This has come about partly because reproductive healthcare providers were not eligible for relief money from the CARES Act that other providers could apply for in 2020, due to restrictions placed on organizations that provide abortions.

    However, family planning reimbursement rates for patients who use Medicaid have remained stagnant in Washington for many years and are, in fact, lower than they were in 2010. Currently Planned Parenthood loses $167 on every Medicaid patient that they see. Medicaid patients are disproportionately Black, Indigenous, and Latinx. Thousands of people are at risk of losing access to reproductive health care.

    Proposals for the 2021-23 state budget will be released shortly. Please ask your legislators to make sure that Medicaid reimbursement rates are increased in the budget, not just to head off this crisis but to make sure that a robust network of services is available to ensure equitable access to reproductive health care in the future. Governor Inslee has recommended raising reimbursement rates for common family planning services by 162%. Doing so would cost the state $5.2 million over two years, which would be matched with $10.9 million in federal funds. Please contact your state legislators and ask them to find the funds to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates for family planning services, which are a priority as part of a comprehensive health system.

    You can generate prefilled emails by clicking EMAIL links below. Please review the email carefully, and sign your name before sending.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “As you consider proposals for the 2021-23 biennial budget, please prioritize allocating funds to increase Medicaid reimbursements for reproductive service providers, including Planned Parenthood. Partly because of restrictions placed on them receiving funds as part of the CARES Act in 2020, their funding is in crisis. Clinics providing critical services to low income families have started to close, leaving many in rural areas with no local providers. Medicaid reimbursement rates are lower than they were in 2010, according to the Washington State Health Care Authority. Please work to ensure that reproductive health care remains accessible for all Washingtonians by incorporating the $5.2 million recommended by Governor Inslee in the two-year budget.”

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Explore new campaigns for letter and postcard writing

    • Letter writing With VoteForward

    VoteForward (link: https://votefwd.org/) has announced their first letter writing campaign for 2021 to write “thank you” letters to first-time voters in Georgia and Virginia. This particular campaign will be sending letters through April 1st. At this time, IE is not hosting any letter writing parties due to the short timeframe in which to mail letters out, but may do so in the future! We encourage anyone interested in this effective at-home voter outreach activity to check out VoteFwd.org for additional details. For letter writing resources from past IE letter writing parties, please visit http://indivisibleeastside.com/letterwriting-resources/.

    • Postcard writing with Flip the West

    On March 28 at 7:00 pm we will host a postcard writing session for a Special Election to be held in Texas’ 6th Congressional District on May 1st due to the passing of Republican Congressman Ron Wright. Postcard script and addresses are available from Flip the West, but you must buy your own postcards and stamps, and mail them from April 17-22nd. Please register in advance to attend.

    Supplies

    • Postcards are available from Etsy.com. When you buy postcards, please make sure that they are neutral and non-partisan. Most campaigns don’t want us to use anything that implies ‘Democrat’.

    ✊ Action 3 – [Senator Cantwell’s Staff] Ask them to fix their online contact form

    I’m sure many of you who have taken action with us over the past 4 years have noticed that one of the required fields used in Senator Cantwell’s contact form is “Message Topic” with a drop down menu of options. It is a required field, and the options seem outdated and very often don’t fit with the topics we have been writing about over the years. Let’s see if we can get someone on her staff to fix her topic choices to include more appropriate topics.

    To gain the attention of staff, we all need to pick the same topic, so please select “Technology” and paste the following message into the form.

    ? Sen. Maria Cantwell: EMAIL

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Dear Technology Person for Senator Cantwell,

    Please consider changing your drop down menu of “message topics” which is a required field people have to select before they can submit their comments to Senator Cantwell. Some things that come to mind are Elections/Voting Rights and Democracy Reform. I have struggled to determine which category I should select, and think a refresh of the options would be appropriate at this time.

    Thank you for your consideration.”

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of March 15, 2021

    ? On March 13 we held our Indivisible Eastside Group meeting. We heard from The Right to Breathe Committee, who is working to ensure safety and respect for Black people in King County. You can read the meeting notes HERE.

    ? The City of Bellevue has an opening on the Civil Service Commission. The Civil Service Commission oversees the recruitment, selection and placement of firefighters and police officers below the level of chief. This page contains information and how to apply.

    ? Last year you may recall we had a presentation about Banning Puppy Mills by a couple of extraordinary local teenagers, Novia Liu and Ava Finn. They are back at it this year with a new bill HB1424: Concerning consumer protection with respect to the sale of dogs and cats. We are pleased to tell you that the bill has passed the House and will be heard in the Senate. Take this easy action to thank the legislators who have advocated for it.

    ? Here are your 3 actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [Bellevue City Council] – Demand a Mental Health Crisis Unit separate from BPD

    The City of Bellevue will be announcing a new program to address mental health crisis calls, however the program is staffed by police officers. Please consider commenting at Monday night’s council meeting in favor of a program to address these types of calls with a mental health team separate from the BPD. This article is an example of how police response has gone wrong in Bellevue. An example of a good collaborative program with police is CAHOOTS in Eugene, OR.

    To be added to the speaker list for oral communications, you must sign-up by 5:00 p.m. on March 15. Click the following link to sign-up:

    https://bellevuewa.gov/council-oral-comms

    You can submit written comments by 3pm on the 15th and email them to Council@bellevuewa.gov and bellevuepd@bellevuewa.gov.

    Please put “Written Comments” in the subject line.

    You can click on the email addresses above to generate a prefilled email. Please review the 2 emails carefully, sign your name before sending it.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME]. I believe mental health crisis calls should be handled by non-armed mental health professionals instead of armed Bellevue Police officers. Please consider a program like CAHOOTS in Eugene, OR, that collaborates with the police department, but is a separate entity. A deeper understanding of people in mental health crisis is required, beyond what limited de-escalation training provides. Please listen carefully to the Black voices in our community who have been disproportionately harmed by inappropriate responses to mental health crisis calls. Ensure that Bellevue follows a model that is more health provider centered.

    Thank you for your consideration.”

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE] – Contact Congress about Anti-Asian Hate Crimes

    From Anti-Defamation League

    Hate crimes, xenophobia, and discriminatory acts against Asians and Asian Americans have significantly increased in the U.S. since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Congress can take action by passing two resolutions that condemn this rising tide of hatred and aim to curb the damaging effects of hate, bias, and violence to society. Members of the House of Representatives have introduced H. Res. 151, led by Representative Grace Meng and H. Res. 153, led by Representative Michelle Steel, condemning all forms of anti-Asian sentiment related to COVID-19. The Anti-Defamation League urges Congress to speak out against bias and hate and support Asian and Asian-American communities by adopting these measures.

    Contact your Representative:

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. As your constituent, I am asking for your active support for House Resolutions 151 and 153, which condemn the rise in anti-Asian hate and call for intensified efforts to prevent it and hold its perpetrators accountable. I hope that you will ask the leaders of the House to schedule these resolutions for floor votes, and consider co-sponsoring both if you have not already done so. I appreciate your recognition of the importance of speaking out forcefully against racially-motivated attacks, and your collaboration with colleagues in Congress to speak out against bias and hate.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 3 – [Georgia Corporations] – Demand Georgia Corporations Protect the Vote

    From The New Georgia Project Action Fund

    Every citizen of Georgia should have access to a ballot—whether that’s early voting, absentee voting, or heading to the polls on Election Day. But right now, Georgia Republicans are attempting to push through legislation that would dramatically restrict the freedom to vote. This is the worst attack on Georgia voting rights since Reconstruction, with over 50 bills advancing in the Georgia state legislature that would roll back every aspect of voting access.

    The New Georgia Project Action Fund and its partners are working to ensure that these restrictions will never be enacted and that every registered voter in Georgia has access to the polls in every election.

    Over the past year and as recently as this year’s Black History Month, Georgia corporations have committed to standing up for Black Georgians, but a report this week from Judd Legum and Tesnim Zekeria exposed the thousands of dollars they have given to the Republicans pushing these bills.

    Tell Georgia Corporations to Protect the Vote using this action tool.

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    For the Week of March 8, 2021

    ? Tuesday, March 9th is the deadline for bills to pass their chamber of origin in the WA State Legislature. There are some important bills that need a big push from constituents. Some examples are getting rid of Tim Eyman’s Advisory Votes, passing a Capital Gains excise tax, Campaign Finance Reform, and Police Use of Force bills. Go to WILA on TAN to take any actions with a March 9th deadline. Those are the most critical right now.

    ? Join us March 13 at 4 pm for our Indivisible Eastside Group meeting. We will hear from The Right to Breathe Committee, who is working to ensure safety and respect for Black people in King County. These Black community members have been negotiating for policy changes with Eastside cities since the murder of George Floyd. The cities of Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, and Issaquah agreed to engage in dialogue with these leaders to address ongoing racial injustice. As a result, the group has compiled a Dashboard for each city which serves as a progress report. You can read more about the policy areas on their website. We look forward to learning about these Dashboards on March 13. Register to attend.

    ? There are often opportunities to get involved on boards, commissions, or leadership trainings. Here are a couple that might be of interest to some of you.

    Here are your 2 actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [US Senate] – Get rid of the filibuster, pass S.1 and S.51

    From Indivisible

    H.R. 1 — the For the People Act — officially passed the House! Now it’s in the hands of the Senate. Sixty-seven percent of Americans from across the political spectrum support the For the People Act, which expands voting rights, stops the flow of big money into our elections, and a lot more.

    But it could very well fail in the Senate.

    The problem? Democratic senators who’d rather collaborate with Mitch McConnell and protect the Jim Crow filibuster than move forward legislation that they themselves support. Read Ronald Brownstein’s article in the Atlantic “Democrats’ Only Chance to Stop the GOP Assault on Voting Rights: If the party doesn’t pass new protections, it could lose the House, Senate, and White House within the next four years.” The article also provides background for Action 2b below, concerning the filibuster.

    S.51, the DC Statehood Act, is also an important bill to support, along with S.1, which is why it’s included in this action.

    Action 2a:

    Contact your Senators and ask them to pass S.1 and S.51 now.

    Sample Script:

    “Hi, My name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. We have the opportunity to fundamentally change our democracy for the better. Please support S. 1 and S. 51, work swiftly to mark both bills up, and send them to the floor for a vote. Democratic Senators cannot let the filibuster get in the way. Please urge your colleagues to consider all options to get this legislation passed.

    Thank you.”

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

    Action 2b:

    If you’ve contacted your senator, you can go to an Indivisible “Virtual Phone Bank” page and sign up to connect with Arizona voters to explain how they should demand Sen. Sinema abolish the Jim Crow filibuster. Our democracy is at stake, and we must hold everyone accountable — including the Democratic senators who are holding up progress.

    Action 2c:

    Write a letter to the editor of your local paper explaining why the Senate should eliminate the filibuster in order to reform our democracy and pass the progressive policies we’ve been fighting for using Indivisible’s handy action letter writing template.

    ✊ Action 2 – [Secretary of State Kim Wyman] – Ask Kim Wyman to Support Vote by Mail

    From Olympia Indivisible

    Secretary of State Kim Wyman and Representative J. T. Wilcox have been invited to a Republican ‘Commission on Election Integrity”. This is an ideal opportunity for Wyman to promote the WA voting system, as a counterbalance to the Commission on Election Integrity’s emphasis on restricting voting rather than making voting easier.

    Especially concerning is this quote from the article Speaker Gunn Named To RSLC Election Integrity Commission: “While state Democrats defer to the radical federal legislative changes being pushed by liberals in Washington that will do irreparable damage to our elections, state Republicans are leading on this issue and are focused on producing commonsense results for the American people.”

    Please email Secretary of State Wyman with the script provided HERE.

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    • Tues, Apr 6, 7 pm – WIN Redistricting Deep Dive. Learn all about redistricting with DRA2020’s Dave Bradlee and League of Women Voters’ Alison McCaffree. Register to attend.

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    For the Week of March 1, 2021

    ? Join us March 13 at 4 pm for our Indivisible Eastside Group meeting. We will hear from The Right to Breathe Committee, who is working to ensure safety and respect for Black people in King County. These Black community members have been negotiating for policy changes with Eastside cities since the murder of George Floyd. The cities of Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, and Issaquah agreed to engage in dialogue with these leaders to address ongoing racial injustice. As a result, the group has compiled a Dashboard for each city which serves as a progress report. You can read more about the policy areas on their website. We look forward to learning about these Dashboards on March 13. Register to attend.

    ? In December, Bellevue’s City Council renewed its commitment to Vision Zero through the approval of $2.5 million in funding to improve safety on five of the city’s most dangerous corridors. The community now has the opportunity to guide the projects the city implements on NE 8th St – Bellevue’s most dangerous road. City staff have contacted Complete Streets Bellevue to conduct three walking audits of NE 8th St – and you’re invited to help!

    A walking audit is an event where residents, community leaders, and businesses can walk along a street and help CSB collect information about where the street might feel unsafe or uncomfortable to walk. The information will be forwarded on to city staff members, who will use the community’s notes to help decide which rapid-build safety projects to implement. CSB has split the corridor up into three separate parts (to limit the length of the walks), each with its own date and time:

    Mon, March 8, 6-7 pm Wed, March 10, 3-4 pm Sat, March 13, 11 am – noon

    PLEASE RSVP HERE

    To help ground CSB’s feedback and stories, each walk will be centered around a particular theme related to the establishments that are located nearby. For more information, please view the press release here. If you’re able to attend one walk (or more!), please RSVP – this will help CSB allocate volunteers & resources appropriately across the events.

    CSB is honored to have been selected by city staff to lead community engagement on this important endeavor. Because of Council’s leadership, staff’s resources, and the community’s involvement, we’ll be able to make meaningful improvements that will help make our streets safer for those walking, biking, & rolling.

    Here are your 3 actions for this week:

    ✊ Action 1 – [US SENATE] Tell Senators We want a $15 Minimum Wage and no Filibuster

    From Seattle Indivisible and Indivisible National

    On Feb 24th, the US Senate Parliamentarian made an advisory ruling stating that the $15 minimum wage couldn’t be part of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, because it does not relate directly to the budget. Under current Senate rules, budget legislation only needs a simple majority (50 Senators + Vice President Harris). For any other legislation, 60 Senators must agree to put it up for a vote. Failing to do so is called a filibuster. It is a rule that is unique to the United States, and that traces its history to compromises made with former confederate states to prevent Black Americans from gaining power.

    With this ruling, the filibuster can be used to block a pay raise that millions of Americans desperately need. It’s time to insist on the $15 minimum wage, and if the filibuster is in the way, to get rid of the filibuster.

    Washington’s Indivisible Regional Organizer Nina Moussavi wrote us all a great, inspirational note–check out the full note here. She addressed the note “To our dedicated and beloved Washington Indivisible Family,” and made a call to action to send a Letter to the Editor (LTE) calling for Senators Murray and Cantwell to support ending the filibuster. To simplify this action, Indivisible has put together an easy to use LTE tool. And if you’re wondering whether LTEs are an effective advocacy method, Nina Moussavi’s note shares how Indivisibles in CA are making big waves with LTEs.

    Action 1a: Using the super easy Filibuster LTE resources, customize a Letter to the Editor. The tool will send your letter to up to 5 papers in your area, or if you prefer, you can reach The Seattle Times at letters@seattletimes.com (include your full name, address, and telephone number for verification only; letters are limited to 200 words).

    Action 1b: Tell our senators that we want the $15 minimum wage. We need them to pressure Senate Majority Leader Schumer to get it done, and get it done now, whether that’s by ignoring the advisory ruling and keeping it in the American Rescue Plan, or by ending the filibuster and passing the minimum wage by a majority vote.

    Sample Script:

    “I’m reaching out today about the $15/hour minimum wage. Millions of Americans were already suffering from poverty wages before the pandemic, and the suffering is even worse now. It’s time to get this done. I am asking [SENATOR] to do anything in her power to pressure Majority Leader Schumer to pass the $15 minimum wage now. That might mean ignoring the non-binding advice of the parliamentarian and keeping the minimum wage in the American Rescue Plan, or it might mean finally ending the undemocratic filibuster, and passing stand-alone minimum wage legislation. However it gets done, please get it done now! Thank you. [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]”

    ✊ Action 2 – Vote in the King Conservation District Elections

    King Conservation District (KCD) will be holding its annual board election to fill an open Board of Supervisors seat in March.

    King Conservation District is an agency created to assist and guide conservation district activities in Washington State. It is led by an all-volunteer, five-member board of supervisors. Three of the members are elected while the other two are appointed by the Washington State Conservation Commission.

    Supervisors serve a three-year term and oversee the operations of KCD. Board members contribute local perspectives on important natural resource management and conservation issues, seek feedback about conservation programs from District residents, set KCD policy, and direct KCD’s work plan and budget.

    Ballots will be available to eligible voters online beginning March 1, 2021 at 8:00 a.m.

    Action: Read about the candidates and how to vote, online or by mail, on the KCD website. Then review the four candidates endorsed by King County Democrats – Kali Clark, Melissa Tatro, John Comerford and Brittney Bush Bollay Then Vote!

    You must submit your ballot by the deadline, which is March 23, 2021 for electronic voting (printed, mailed ballots must be postmarked by March 23, 2021).

    ✊ Action 3 – [WA State Legislature] Take action before the March 9th Cut-off date

    For the most part, bills that have not passed their chamber of origin (WA House or WA Senate) by March 9th will be considered “dead” for the 2021 legislative session. An exception is made for bills that are Needed To Implement the Budget (NTIB), or bills that, for one reason or another, get revived. Please review the actions that Indivisible Eastside promotes at https://www.takeaction.network/ie, and take those you haven’t yet. You can do this without a TAN account, but it won’t keep track of previously taken actions for you. To sign up for TAN go to http://indivisibleeastside.com/tan-signup-resource/

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    • Tues, Apr 6, 7 pm – WIN Redistricting Deep Dive. Learn all about redistricting with DRA2020’s Dave Bradlee and League of Women Voters’ Alison McCaffree. Register to attend.

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    For the Week of Feb 22, 2021

    ? Announcing IE’s Eastside Anti-Racism Learning (EARL) discussion group.

    As we work to recover from the horrors of the last four years, and the trauma of the election fallout, Indivisible Eastside is taking to heart Rep. Debra Entenman’s admonition for predominantly white liberal groups to work on anti-racism education and action within our group and community.

    Although last spring’s group meetings focused on anti-racism learning, we shifted to vital GOTV and election protection work to help secure a democratic trifecta nationally, and protect our democratic majority in Washington state while expanding the diversity of representation. It is time to return to the work.

    There are loads of opportunities to learn and grow individually in this work but much can be gained from collaborative discussion. Indivisible Eastside would like to foster learning among members who benefit from white privilege so that we can more intentionally bring a racial-equity lens to the work we do moving forward.

    Using “Me and White Supremacy” as a guide, we will engage in unlearning white supremacist behavior:

    • To recognize the harm caused by our perpetuation of this narrative
    • To change individual behavior that perpetuates the white supremacy narrative
    • To re-focus Indivisible Eastside’s actions toward racial equity

    Proposed discussion group meeting format: We’ll begin with a Feb 27 4:00 pm kick-off meeting which will go into more detail, establish group norms, set participation expectations and help you assess if this is the right opportunity for you. This will be followed by four monthly meetings, March through June, consisting of

    • Material to be completed prior to each meeting: Read, Reflect, Journal
    • 30 minutes group discussion on material
    • 30 minute facilitated small breakout groups – possibly organized around where people are in their anti-racism journey

    How to participate:

    • Complete the pre-meeting Survey which will help determine the scheduling of discussion meetings.
    • At the end of the survey, click the link to sign up for the Feb 27th 4:00 pm kick-off meeting.
    • You can read the Forward and Introduction on Amazon, but please purchase from a Black-owned bookstore such as Estelita’s Library Bookshop.
    • Allison has pre-ordered some extra books. If you’d like to purchase from her, or if you’d like to participate but funds are an issue, let us know on the survey.

    We hope you’ll join us on this journey!

    ✊ Action 1 – [State Legislature] Save six bills that will die today if not acted on

    Bills that sit in a Finance or Transportation committee must be acted on by 5:00 pm Feb 22nd or they are considered dead for this year. Please take action on the following six bills to advance progressive policy. You can do so even if you don’t have a TAN account, but signing up will help you keep track of which actions you’ve already taken, and will add to the collective power of the Washington Indivisible Network. Signup at http://bit.ly/TAN-IE-Signup-page

    If you want to dig into legislative details about a bill that you know the bill number for, you can look it up by using the Bill Information page, “Search by Bill Number” box on the state legislative website.

    DEADLINE: Feb 22 1:30pm, but please do ASAP

    • Support HB 1204, the Clean Cars Bill. Fight off the oil and auto industries as they try to kill it (In House Transportation Committee). The public hearing in House Transportation was great and it got some great national media coverage. HB 1204 is scheduled for a vote Feb 22 at 1:30, and we know the Oil and Auto industries are working to kill the bill in committee. Take Action on HB 1204

    DEADLINE: Feb 22 5:00pm, but please do ASAP

    • Support SB 5020 ‘Rx drug price increases’ (In Senate Ways & Means Committee). This bill would financially penalize drug companies who impose unsupported increases in drug prices. Take Action on SB 5020
    • Support HB 1220 ‘Emergency shelters & housing through local planning’ (In House Appropriations Committee). Require our cities and counties to plan for a diversity of housing options in their comprehensive plans to meet every income level. Take Action on HB 1220
    • Support HB 1264 ‘Equity impact statement’ (In House Appropriations Committee). Racial and Ethnic Impact Statements (REISs) are a tool sometimes used by policymakers to evaluate potential disproportional racial and ethnic impacts of proposed legislation or other policy proposals prior to adoption and implementation. Take Action on HB 1264
    • Support HB 1310 ‘Uses of force by officers’ (In House Appropriations Committee). HB1310 would set a strong statewide standard that requires police officers to use de-escalation tactics before resorting to physical force, and to use deadly force only as a last resort when all other alternatives have been exhausted. Take Action on HB 1310
    • Support HB 1496 ‘High valued assets tax’ (In House Finance Committee). Help fix our upside down tax code. Take Action on HB 1496

    ✊ Action 2 – [TEXAS] Help people harmed by devastating cold and government failure in Texas

    When utilities order rolling blackouts due to wildfire danger caused by extreme heat, or the recent extreme cold in Texas, they disproportionately affect low-income people who can’t afford generators and cause life-threatening situations for people who need refrigeration for their medication. While Ted Cruz was able to escape the cold by flying to Cancun, Texans were contending with no lights or heat, burst pipes and resulting damage to their homes, as well as unsafe drinking water.

    Texans who were lucky enough to have power, are likely to see a sharp increase — in hundreds or possibly thousands of dollars — in their utility bill as a direct result of electricity scarcity during February’s winter storm and the rules by which the Public Utility Commission operates. Wholesale electricity prices on the ironically named Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) market soared from $50 per MWh to $9,000 per MWh during the Texas snowstorm.

    Action: Please consider donating to some of the many Mutual Aid organizations providing assistance. The document is frequently updated.

    ✊ Action 3 – [Reality Winner] Advocate for Clemency for Russian Hacking Whistleblower

    Action suggested by Michaela and Yvonne

    Reality Leigh Winner is a 29-year-old US Air Force veteran who dedicated her career to serving the United States. Prior to becoming a federal NSA contractor, Reality served in the Air Force for 6 years, including as a language analyst — she speaks Pashto, Farsi, and Dari. Reality is currently serving a 63 month sentence at the Federal Medical Center Carswell in Fort Worth Texas where it was recently reported that Women, some sick with COVID-19, left ‘freezing’ without heat at Fort Worth medical prison.

    In June 2017, Donald Trump’s DOJ filed a criminal complaint under the 100 year old Espionage Act against Reality Winner, suspected of leaking an NSA document to The Intercept describing Russia’s attempts to hack the 2016 American election. The Intercept reported “Russian Military Intelligence executed a cyberattack on at least one U.S. voting software supplier and sent spear-phishing emails to more than 100 local election officials just days before last November’s (2016) presidential election.” A bi-partisan Senate Intelligence Committee report concluded that many state election officials learned about Russia’s hacking from the press—not the executive branch. Courts have historically refused to allow defendants facing Espionage Act charges to argue that their leaks were in the public interest, or mention their motive or any reforms that resulted from their disclosure. Faced with this inability to defend herself legally and the possibility of a 10-year jail sentence, Winner agreed to a plea deal.

    Action: Stand with Reality Winner by exploring the website StandWithReality.org, and signing the letter to President Joe Biden asking for clemency.

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    For the Week of Feb 15, 2021

    ? We are excited to announce that Senator Patty Murray will be the guest at the Washington Indivisible Network (WIN) Town Hall on Thur. Feb 18. Register to attend.

    ? PCC update – good news! Thank you to those of you who contacted PCC about their attempt to avoid paying its workers hazard pay during the pandemic. They have decided that they will extend the $4 per hour hazard pay to workers in all stores until June 2021, with a provision to extend it further if necessary.

    If you recall an earlier action, PCC employees are still organizing to get workers on the board of Trustees. For updates to this campaign, you can text ‘PCC’ to the number 52886. Elections will be held in the spring.

    ? Are you looking for ways to improve your environmental footprint? The City of Bellevue will be offering a series of classes on Greener Living that can help. Register to attend one or a combination of classes.

    ? At Saturday’s group meeting we announced a new Indivisible Eastside Unlearning White Supremacy Discussion group. There is a kickoff meeting scheduled on Feb 27 at 4:00. See the Anti-Racism Work in Indivisible Eastside PDF for details and how to sign up. Complete notes for Saturday’s are in Group Meeting Notes.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Tell your Members of Congress and DHS Secretary Mayorkas to cancel a dangerous last minute ICE union contract

    From Northwest Immigration Rights Project

    As we have seen with recent deportations that have occurred even after President Biden announced a 100 day moratorium in January, US Immigrations and Enforcement (ICE) continues to operate with impunity after being given a free rein during the previous administration. A union contract signed by the Trump administration in its last days could force the Biden administration to get the union’s consent before changing immigration policies. The agreement appears to give ICE agents the power to veto Biden’s rollback of the Trump administration’s harsh enforcement policies. The agreement also includes a provision that bars legal challenges to the contract for eight years—beyond the time that Biden will be in office.

    However, the agreement gives DHS leaders the ability to reject the agreement before Wednesday, February 17th. The Biden administration must get this right and cancel the contract immediately!

    Please contact the DHS Secretary and your Members of Congress and ask them to cancel this contract. ICE needs to be held accountable to the authority of the DHS and not be allowed to continue to operate in the unregulated manner to which it’s become accustomed.

    You can also sign this petition asking for the contract to be cancelled.

    Action for DHS Secretary Mayorkas

    Please call Secretary Mayorkas and ask him to make sure that the union contract with ICE is cancelled before the deadline.

    DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas:

    ☎ Sample script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP].

    I’m calling to ask DHS Secretary Mayorkas to be sure to cancel a contract made with the union representing ICE officers on the last day of the Trump administration. This contract appears to give the union the power to veto or at least stall President Biden’s rollback of harsh Trump immigration policies. It also includes a provision that bars legal challenges to the contract for eight years. This contract must be cancelled before the deadline of Wednesday, February 17th.

    Thank you for taking my call.”

    Action for Members of Congress

    Please contact your Members of Congress and ask them to ensure that the DHS Secretary takes the necessary steps to cancel the union contract before the deadline.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hello, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP].

    I’m writing to urge [Member of Congress] to ensure that DHS Secretary Mayorkas cancels a contract made with the union representing ICE officers that was made in the final days of the Trump administration. The contract’s existence was exposed by a whistleblower in the Department of Homeland Security. This contract appears to give the union the power to veto or at least stall President Biden’s rollback of the Trump immigration policies. It also includes a provision that bars legal challenges to the contract for eight years. This contract must be cancelled before the deadline of Wednesday, February 17th. Please have [Member of Congress] urge DHS Secretary Mayorkas to cancel this contract.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Please comment on the environmental impact of the 85th St Station Area Plan by Feb 19

    From People for Climate Action – Kirkland

    The City of Kirkland is in the process of producing a Station Area Plan to guide development of the area around I-405 and NE 85th Street for the next two decades. A draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) is available for public comment at the following site, along with a survey: NE 85th Street Station Area Plan – City of Kirkland (kirklandwa.gov).

    The City has committed to cutting greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030. This will be challenging given that development increases greenhouse gas emissions. To mitigate the increases, please use the “Email Us” button on the website to submit a comment asking that all construction in the Plan area be required to be 100% electric and net zero energy, and that existing buildings in the area be included in an aggressive energy retrofit and electrification program.

    This is a great opportunity to weigh in on future growth in Kirkland – not only the effects on climate, but also equity, affordable housing, and other factors affecting our City.

    Thank you!

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Ask for Joe Fain’s appointment to the State Redistricting Commission be withdrawn

    From crosscut.com

    Former state Senator Joe Fain has been selected to serve as a member of the Washington State Redistricting Commission by State Republicans. This body, which is in charge of redrawing the boundaries of the state’s congressional and legislative districts, will shape state politics for the next decade. His appointment is extremely problematic because of accusations of rape that were made against him but which were never investigated. He currently serves as the President and CEO of the Bellevue Chamber of Commerce. This attempt to further rehabilitate his reputation must be resisted.

    Please join the demands for Joe Fain’s resignation from this important public body by signing on to this letter from the National Women’s Political Caucus. He was voted out of office in 2018 because of these charges and should not be allowed to continue to downplay their importance by state Republicans.

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    For the Week of Feb 8, 2021

    ? We continue to support Black History Month and encourage everyone to take the opportunity to improve our learning and practice on racial justice. We are proud to share with you the Justice Action Accountability website put together by member Heather K, which contains a plethora of reading resources and other material on racial justice and many other topics.

    ? Celebrate! The Biden administration has come roaring out of the gate with a wide range of actions and appointments that are a good start in righting the wrongs of the past four years. There is a lot of hard work ahead but for now, take a moment to appreciate the executive actions, Senate committee chairs and other appointments and confirmations that will give Democrats the power to enact real change, with our help! As we saw with Vice President Harris’ tie breaking vote on the Covid relief bill, elections matter!

    ? Please join the Indivisible Eastside Group Meeting Sat, Feb 13 from 4-5:30pm. Register to attend. If you have an item you would like to speak about, please let us know so we can work you into the agenda. hello@indivisibleeastside.com

    ? Here are your three Actions this week

    ✊ Action 1 – [You] Contribute to the effort to recall the Snohomish County Sheriff

    You may have heard that a group of Snohomish County citizens is organizing a recall of Sheriff Adam Fortney. They are alarmed because in the short time that he has been in power, Sheriff Fortney has displayed a blatant disregard for the safety and health of his community by declaring he won’t enforce “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” orders, inciting members of the public to violate those orders, and endangering the public by re-hiring deputies investigated and fired for violent misconduct while on duty. On Jan 15 the state Supreme Court ruled that his public refusal to enforce the governor’s stay-home order did amount to inciting the public to break the law. Justice Mary Yu wrote “Fortney does not have the authority as Snohomish County sheriff to determine the constitutionality of laws. That is the role of the courts.”

    To hear the full story of why these ’constitutional sheriffs’ such as Fortney are of concern, please listen to this recent interview with Colin McMahon, chair of the Recall Fortney campaign, on the Washington Indivisible Podcast.

    In order to activate a recall, the campaign to recall him needs 50,000 Snohomish county residents to sign a recall petition by early March.

    Ways you can help:

    • If you live in Snohomish county, please visit RecallFortney.com, download and print the petition, sign it, and encourage friends and neighbors to sign it. Mail it in even if it only has 1 signature.
    • If you have friends in Snohomish County, forward this message to them and encourage them to sign the petition.
    • You can also help by donating to the recall campaign to fund signature gathering and campaigning.

    ✊ Action 2 – [You] Support grocery workers demands for hazard pay during the pandemic

    We heard this week that grocery store management both in our area and elsewhere have been pushing back against the proposal to pay workers in their stores hazard pay for working on the front lines during the pandemic. In many places this compensation was in place at the start of the pandemic but lapsed last summer. Seattle City Council has passed a proposal which will temporarily pay grocery store workers an additional $4 an hour. Trader Joe’s has introduced a nationwide $4 an hour increase (although at some cost to permanent benefits). However some employers are resisting and asking for concessions from their employees in return for paying this additional sum. At PCC the CEO sent a letter to Seattle City Council asking not to be included in the planned increase. Because of pushback from staff and customers, they are now proposing to implement this ‘temporary appreciation pay’ at all of their stores but are asking for staff to make permanent concessions in return. Workers at the stores are insisting that hazard pay should come with no strings attached.

    Please support grocery workers at PCC by signing the petition asking them to reinstate hazard pay for all PCC stores without having to make concessions. They have been feeding our families throughout this health emergency and deserve to be compensated accordingly.

    ✊ Action 3 – [You] Learn about the results of Bellevue’s Use of Force Review

    As Indivisible Eastside’s Racial Equity (Bellevue) group was starting our work last summer, the City of Bellevue began a process that was initiated by the Mayor and City Council after George Floyd’s death. They pledged to undertake an independent review of police use of force in Bellevue to identify whether any reforms are needed.

    Specifically, the city pledged to:

    1. Review police use of force policies.
    2. Engage the community by including a diverse range of input, experiences and stories in the review.
    3. Report the findings of the review to the community and seek feedback.
    4. Reform police use of force policies.

    The city hired a consultant, the Office of Independent Review Group (OIR), to review police use of force policy in Bellevue. OIR conducted an analysis of Bellevue’s police use of force policies and engaged the community in listening sessions in late 2020. The draft report has now been released by OIR and the community has the opportunity to review and take part in a survey.

    Please review the draft report and participate in the short survey to offer further input (it is not necessary to be a Bellevue resident). Feedback will be accepted through February 19, 2021. This feedback will be considered before publication of the final report so it is important to let them know of your concerns.

    We would be interested in hearing your views on the process and the recommendations. You can email us at racialequitybellevue@indivisibleeastside.com or you can join us at our weekly meeting (Fridays at 3:00) if you are interested in further discussion. Send us an email and we will contact you with the Zoom link before the meeting.

    Calendar of Events:

    Save the date:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    For the Week of Feb 1, 2021

    ? Today is the first day of Black History Month. Dedicate this month to more education on Black history by listening to the 1619 Project by Nikole Hannah-Jones. Or, if reading is more to your liking, here are some great works of fiction by authors of Color.

    ? Here’s an update on the situation with Bellevue educators. By a slim majority the union members voted on Jan. 25th to return to in-person instruction, following the negotiation of an updated Memorandum of Understanding by BEA and BSD. This vote has led to a feeling of betrayal by many teachers, particularly those grades who are already or will soon be back in the classroom. Of particular concern has been the lack of consideration given to the risks posed to BIPOC educators and students, whose voices were not widely heard in the discussion before the vote. Indivisible Eastside continues to stand by those educators who feel that it is unsafe to return to classrooms under current circumstances and before there is a reasonable chance of all school staff receiving a vaccine.

    ? Please join Indivisible Eastside activists interested in strengthening our state by signing up for Take Action Network. If you signed up before Dec 2020, please see the information at the bottom of the Indivisible Eastside TAN page to update your TAN profile. Then, view the new “I signed up for TAN – what do I do next” video to help you shape and track your activism.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week

    ✊ Action 1 – [State Senate] Amend SB 5161-Teaching Washington’s tribal history, culture, and government

    From Real Rent Duwamish

    SB 5161 may be coming up for a vote soon in the Senate. It states the history of a local tribe is to be taught in the public school. While we agree with the intent of this bill, it is leaving a prominent tribe out of picture, the Duwamish.

    It specifies FEDERALLY RECOGNIZED tribes. This would mean children in Seattle schools and surrounding areas that were once occupied by Duwamish Indians would not learn accurate history since the Duwamish Tribe is not federally recognized. This needs to be amended to leave out the words “federally recognized”.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. SB 5161 mandates public schools to teach local tribal history, however, it leaves out the Duwamish Tribe, since the bill only addresses tribes that are federally recognized. This bill needs to be amended to leave out the words “federally recognized” from the legislation. Seattle school children and children from surrounding areas should learn about the local Duwamish tribe despite the lack of federal recognition. Please vote no on this bill unless there is an amendment to be more inclusive.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] Write Postcards to our State Legislators

    Please watch this powerful video clip from Civil Rights Town Hall: Rep. Debra Entenman speaks on anti-racism work by progressive groups.

    Please express your support for the Black Caucus members to let them know we have their back. It is important for us as allies to show our support in not just getting more BIPOC people elected to office, but to make sure they know we will continue to support them once they have been elected.

    Write letters and postcards to our newly elected and re-elected State Legislators using these Addresses.

    ✊ Action 3 – [Sign Change.org petition] – Racial Justice at Seattle’s Children’s Hospital

    On December 31st, an article titled “Revered doctor steps down, accusing Seattle Children’s Hospital of racism” was published in Crosscut. Dr. Ben Danielson is a highly accomplished and revered physician in the Seattle Area. He was the Medical Director at the Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic located in the Central District of Seattle. He was the face of equitable healthcare, and served generations of black and brown families.

    Seattle Children’s hospital needs to be held accountable for the racism and anti-Blackness that not only Dr. Danielson, but hundreds of families and staff have experienced within this institution. They need to work on addressing the issues described by Dr. Danielson AND make substantial changes that eliminate racism and anti-Blackness in every aspect of the Institution and leadership. This includes holding racist providers and leadership accountable, making an examination of racist actions such as security being called more often on Black families, providing a non-judgemental pathway for families, children, and youth to report racism, and other important steps listed in the Change.org petition.

    Sign this Change.org petition today in support of Dr. Ben Danielson!

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Jan 25, 2021

    ? Woohoo! We have a new President and Vice-President!

    ? Dan Pfeiffer, an Obama White House Staffer turned podcaster wrote this aspirational memo to activists. We at Indivisible Eastside will strive to do the following to keep you inspired and motivated:

    • Keep people fired up and ready to go.
    • Invest in sustainable political infrastructure.
    • Recruit more people to run for office.
    • Focus on defending democracy.

    ? Please join Indivisible Eastside activists interested in strengthening our state by signing up for Take Action Network. If you signed up before Dec 2020, please see the information at the bottom of the Indivisible Eastside TAN page to update your TAN profile. Then, view the new “I signed up for TAN – what do I do next” video to help you shape and track your activism.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week

    ✊ Action 1 – [Bellevue School Board] – Keep Bellevue Students and Educators Safe

    From Bellevue Education Association

    Last Monday, against the memorandum of understanding between the teachers union and the school district, the Bellevue School District returned 2nd graders to in-person instruction, and will begin 1st grade January 25th. The union voted in favor of continuing asynchronous virtual instruction, and the school district has brought in non-union employees to provide in-person instruction. Please support our teachers by writing Superintendent Dr. Duran and the school board.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Dear Dr. Duran and School Board members,

    My name is [NAME] and I am writing in support of the Bellevue Education Association Educators.

    Last November, BEA negotiated an agreement in good faith to establish conditions for broader re-opening. BEA made repeated attempts to schedule bargaining sessions and reach agreement on the outstanding items, but the sessions have been largely inconclusive, and these issues remain unresolved. Instead, as district leaders, you’ve chosen to make arbitrary decisions, based on different interpretations of COVID-19 data than were used when the agreement was negotiated, and have since downplayed and delegitimized their concerns.

    Since the agreement, the state has updated its guidance, the availability of the vaccine has changed, a new variant of the virus has emerged, and our state has recorded the highest death and hospitalization rates of the pandemic. Help is on the way with vaccines, but they are still not widely available.

    Please pause expanding in-person schooling until you come to agreement with the BEA. Do not go around the bargaining process.

    Thank you.”

    [If you are a Bellevue resident- indicate that in your letter, however, please write the letter even if you are not, as all of this can also have an impact on other school districts.]

    ✊ Action 2 – [US Senate] Demand Senators Not Give in to McConnell’s Power Sharing Agreement

    From Indivisible

    Democrats won the Senate but Mitch McConnell is doing everything he can to obstruct democracy. This time, he’s attempting to stop the Democrats from enacting their agenda through bad-faith negotiation on the Senate Organizing Resolution.

    When the Senate is split 50-50 between the two parties, an organizing resolution (sometimes also called a power-sharing agreement) is put in place to to delegate or share authority, responsibilities, and committee leadership roles and resources. The agreement is passed in the form of a simple resolution, which would need to pass by unanimous consent or garner 60 votes.

    McConnell is demanding Democrats agree to a power-sharing agreement that makes it impossible to eliminate the filibuster during this Congress. This unprecedented demand would allow Republicans to control Congress and make it impossible to enact anything on the Democratic agenda. The worst part? McConnell’s threatening to filibuster the Organizing Resolution if he doesn’t get his way, hamstringing the Senate. Without an Organizing Resolution, the Senate is unable to go about their business. That means no COVID relief and no trial for Donald Trump.

    We need all Democrats to stay strong on the Organizing Resolution and refuse to give in to McConnell. If necessary, they must move quickly to eliminate the filibuster to stop McConnell from putting a stranglehold on our democracy.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I urge [SENATOR’S NAME] to stand strong on the Organizing Resolution and do not agree to McConnell’s obstructionist attempt to keep the filibuster. We have seen over the years that he has been the majority leader that he is willing to use every tool to obstruct the progressive agenda. We have let him control things for too long, we need to be bold for our democracy.

    Thank you.”

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

    ✊ Action 3 – [US HOUSE] Advocate for H.R. 1, The John Lewis Voting Rights Act, and D.C. Statehood Legislation

    From Indivisible

    H.R. 1 is an important first step towards building an equitable democracy, along with the D.C. statehood bill and John Lewis Voting Rights Act. Without a functional democracy in which everyone is included and represented, we can’t achieve any of our other progressive goals. Addressing all the issues we care about deeply — health care, immigration, ending wars, racial justice, climate change — requires a democracy that is responsive to the people, not just the powerful and wealthy. That’s why it’s so critical that we push for this legislation as early as possible. D.C.’s lone representative in Congress, Eleanor Holmes Norton (who has no vote on the House floor), has already introduced her D.C. statehood bill in the 117th Congress with 202 original co-sponsors — a record for the bill. Call your representative today.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I urge you to support the For the People Act (H.R.1), D.C. Statehood Legislation (H.R. 51), and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act that was previously introduced. Without a functional democracy in which everyone is included and represented, we can’t achieve any of our other progressive goals. Addressing all the issues we care about deeply — health care, immigration, ending wars, racial justice, climate change — requires a democracy that is responsive to the people, not just the powerful and wealthy. Please urge leadership to bring these bills to a floor vote, and vote yes to fix our democracy.

    Thank you.”

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

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Jan 18, 2021

    ? Today, we celebrate Martin Luther King Day, and we join the President’s inaugural festivities’ national day of service on MLK Day, Jan 18th. Indivisible Eastside encourages members to participate, if it’s workable for you, by donating generously to the Redmond School Break Food Box program.

    ? If you weren’t able to join the group meeting Saturday, here is a link to the 1-16-21 Meeting Notes which includes resources we discussed relating to State Legislature, Jamie’s Futurewise presentation about three bills to build more climate action and equity into the Growth Management Act, as well as the excellent presentation on Bellevue Police by our Bellevue Racial Equity group.

    ? Please join Indivisible Eastside activists interested in strengthening our state by signing up for Take Action Network. If you signed up before Dec 2020, please see the information at the bottom of the Indivisible Eastside TAN page to update your TAN profile. Then, view the new “I signed up for TAN – what do I do next” video to help you control your activism.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week

    ✊ Action 1 – [WA Legislature] Support HB 1099 – Updating the Growth Management Act for climate action

    From Futurewise

    Washington state’s Growth Management Act (GMA) hasn’t been updated since its creation 30 years ago. It influences land use planning, which affects things like sprawl, proximity of housing to jobs, and preservation of green space. As we heard from Jamie in our meeting on Saturday, Futurewise’s Washington Can’t Wait campaign is proposing state legislative changes to the GMA to address climate, housing affordability, and environmental justice. This is from their website:

    “We believe that by making our urban areas affordable and accessible to all through bold affordable housing policy, preventing disproportionate impacts of local pollution on communities of color, and ensuring that cities and counties are planning for climate change, we have the opportunity to transform the lives of Washingtonians and the natural environment around us.”

    Now is the time to make these crucial changes to the GMA, because Washington’s cities and counties are about to embark on their next comprehensive plan updates, which will lock in policy for the next decade. HB 1099 is the climate-related bill (HB 1220 is related to housing affordability, and a bill related to environmental justice is in the works) in the Washington Can’t Wait campaign.

    Action 1a – before Jan 19, 7:00 am, sign in to note your position on HB 1099 as “Pro”

    (You are not signing up to speak.)

    1. Click Here
    2. From the drop-down menu choose “Pro”
    3. Fill out the form.

    Action 1b – Call (360) 786-7952 or email Joe Fitzgibbon, the chair of the House Environment & Energy Committee, with the following message:

    “Hi, I’m [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP] thanking you for co-sponsoring HB 1099: Improving the state’s climate response through updates to the state’s comprehensive planning framework. Please add this bill to an executive session agenda so that it can get a committee vote.”

    Action 1c – Contact your representatives:

    ☎ Sample Script for Rep Davina Duerr:

    “Hi, I’m [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. Thank you for co-sponsoring HB 1099, which will strengthen the state’s climate response by updating the Growth Management Act. The need for updates is urgent as communities, particularly communities of color, face the negative impacts of climate change, such as extreme weather events and pollution. Thank you.”

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, I’m [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. Please support HB 1099, which will strengthen the state’s climate response by updating the Growth Management Act. The need for updates is urgent as communities, particularly communities of color, face the negative impacts of climate change, such as extreme weather events and pollution. Thank you.”

    Please let Indivisible Eastside know you took this action!

    ✊ Action 2 – [YOU] Register with WA State Dept of Health for Vaccine notification

    FindYourPhaseWA.org is the state-wide online form that everyone needs to fill out before they can get a COVID-19 vaccine. Please fill it out today, even if you aren’t yet eligible. Your contact information will be recorded, and you’ll be contacted when it is your turn.

    Read more on the Washington State Dept. of Health’s Vaccine page about the phased plan to roll out Vaccine delivery.

    Please let Indivisible Eastside know you took this action!

    ✊ Action 3 – Get Up to Speed on the New Indivisible Guide

    The slim Democratic majority in the Senate changes the landscape a bit for activists. Read Indivisible National’s guidance in an updated version of the Indivisible Guide: A Practical Guide to Fixing Our Democracy.

    The national Indivisible organization has scheduled training sessions for the new guide so you can help fellow Indivisibles put it into full effect. We know from our experience that it’s not the document but rather the movement that will determine the success or failure of Indivisible’s democracy agenda! Sign up for one of Indivisible’s upcoming guide training sessions on Zoom so you can be a more effective advocate for positive change:

    Please let Indivisible Eastside know you took this action!

    Calendar of Events:

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    For the Week of Jan 11, 2021

    ? The historic win of US Senators-elect Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff was only 6 days ago, but given the violent attack on the capitol at the urging of the outgoing president, it seems like much longer ago. The importance of securing Democratic control of the Senate cannot be overstated. Thank you to all who contributed to the effort, including members who wrote to 7,071 Georgia voters during the runoff election.

    ? Please join us Saturday January 16th at 4:00 as we celebrate our 4th birthday and all we’ve achieved these last 4 years. We’ll hear from Futurewise about the importance of updating the Growth Management Act to fight sprawl and protect our communities and our climate, and from our Bellevue Racial Equity group on the work they’ve been doing.

    ? Nine days until the inauguration of president-elect Joe Biden and vice-president-elect Kamala Harris! The Biden inaugural festivities are to feature a national day of service on MLK Day, Jan 18th. In alignment with this, Indivisible Eastside encourages members to participate to the best of their ability by donating to the Redmond School Break Food Box program. “Working with school counselors in participating Redmond schools, we provide boxes of supplemental food to families experiencing food insecurity. We shop in bulk for fresh produce and shelf stable items, engage the community with special requests, fill Food Boxes with nutrient-rich items and deliver to our families.” Steering member Linda K works her butt off packing food boxes but the program is running short of funds. Let’s help out this important community program. Donate here.

    ? Here are your three Actions this week

    ✊ Action 1 – [US HOUSE & SENATE] Thank our senators and representatives for their courage, and for calling for Trump’s removal from office

    At the end of a violent and deadly day at the Capitol, angered but undeterred, House and Senate members returned Wednesday night to complete their constitutional role to certify President-Elect Biden’s victory. In the early hours of Thursday morning, Vice President Pence declared Democrat Joe Biden the winner of the presidential election.

    By Saturday, with overwhelming Democratic and some Republican lawmaker support, and the support of House speaker Nancy Pelosi, a trio of Democratic lawmakers — Reps. David Cicilline (R.I.), Ted Lieu (Calif.) and Jamie Raskin (Md.) — prepared to introduce new articles of impeachment against Trump as soon as a Jan 11th, 2021 pro forma session. The articles would address both Trump’s role in the Capitol siege and his months-long refusal to accept his election defeat.

    Thank your Senators and Representative for their courage during this most difficult week and for speaking out in support of impeachment.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. First, I am thankful for your safety. I want to thank [MoC NAME] and all of the staffers for your courage. The House and Senate weathered a violent attack, and I am truly grateful that you all were able to stay safe, and that Congress reconvened to certify the results of our election of President-Elect Joe Biden.

    I also want to thank you for calling for the removal of President Trump from office, whether by the 25th amendment, or impeachment. His instability has resulted in violence, loss of life, and trauma.”

    ✊ Action 2 – [US HOUSE] Investigate GOP lawmakers who attempted to reverse the election

    In the aftermath of the violent insurrection at the US Capitol, Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania became the second Republican senator to say the president had committed impeachable offences and should “resign and go away as soon as possible.” Regarding Senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley, he said they were “going to have a lot of soul searching to do and the problem is they were complicit in the big lie, this lie that Donald Trump won the election in a landslide and it was all stolen. They compounded that with this notion that somehow this could all be reversed in the final moments of the congressional proceedings.”

    Republican objections to electoral college results failed. But Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley were prominent among 147 representatives and senators who continued to back the late-night effort on Wednesday, even after a mob incited by the president attacked the US Capitol. Senator Patty Murray has called for them to resign.

    Congresswoman Cori Bush of Missouri is direct: Republican members of Congress who have incited this domestic terror attack through their attempts to overturn the election must face consequences. She will be introducing a Resolution calling for investigation and their expulsion. Ask your Members of Congress to support this resolution.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    “Hi, my name is [NAME] from [CITY, ZIP]. I am angered and appalled by the Republican members of Congress who have incited domestic terror through their attempts to overturn the election. I urge you to support Representative Cori Bush’s resolution to investigate whether the actions of these representatives and senators, in attempting to reverse election results, violated their oath of office.

    Thank you.”

    ✊ Action 3 – Join Indivisible Eastside on Take Action Network

    Please join Indivisible Eastside activists interested in strengthening our state by signing up for Take Action Network. Once you’ve signed up, see how easy it is to contact your representatives to Prohibit the open carry of certain weapons at public demonstrations and the state capitol.

    Calendar of Events:

    • Wed Jan 20 – Inauguration of President Joe Biden!

    Previously Recorded Events of Interest:

    … and More:

    Resources:

    Welcome 2021!

    As we witness the clown show of Republicans backing Trump’s conspiracy theories, it has become abundantly clear that a strong Washington State government is needed to protect those harmed the most by the policies of the last four years, including the failed response to the pandemic. To that end, Indivisible Eastside will be tracking bills in the state legislature to ensure that good bills move forward and bad bills get no oxygen. You can help the 40 Bill trackers from 13 Indivisible groups in this work by signing up for Take Action Network (TAN). Three features will make taking action a pleasure for you.

    1. You’ll only be emailed when there’s an action relevant to your reps or senator.
    2. With one click, a pre-filled email will be created for you that you can quickly customize and send.
    3. You’ll see how many others around the state are taking each action and when you click “I took this action” you’ll spur others on to act by adding to that count. 

    Because of this very targeted approach, most of these actions will NOT appear in the Weekly Actions newsletter and will ONLY be available to those who have taken the step to sign up for TAN. 

    ✊ Join Indivisible Eastside on Take Action Network

    1. Watch this short TAN Video
    2. Sign up for TAN – invitation link
    3. Learn more about how TAN works

    That’s it! See how easy it is to take action by doing the Code Blue WA Action for Prohibit the open carry of certain weapons at public demonstrations and the state capitol and clicking “I did this action” to start tracking your activism.  You can also see any actions still active from Indivisible Eastside, and do them if you haven’t already. 

    NOTE: If you previously signed up for TAN, log in and then click the heart next to WA Indivisible Legislative Action (WILA) to add it as one of your Favorite Organizations in TAN. This is where the Indivisible Legislative Actions will be created. 

    Thank you for helping Indivisible Eastside and Washington Indivisible Network influence legislation in Olympia.

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