Dear OSTPDX Members,
As the Trump Shut Down grinds on and the country continues to suffer over Trump’s tantrum, there seems to be no end in sight. Mitch McConnell refuses to acknowledge the will of the people, with 63% of Americans wanting to reopen the government without funding for the wall. House Democrats actually approved Mitch McConnell’s very own bill signaling their commitment to a bipartisan solution to reopening the government but Trump and McConnell’s refusal to bring it up for a vote, show how little they care for the American people as they continue their political games. Republicans own this national embarrassment. We won’t let them forget it either.
Let’s stand up to Trump and McConnell now, in whatever way possible, on social media, Letters to Editors, and by contacting our representatives, to send a unified message that we want to put political partisanship aside, an end to the cruelty of holding federal employees hostage, and the government reopened now with zero funds for a border wall.
Announcements
Thank all of you who attended last week’s meeting on Turning Progressive Policy into Law-it was a huge success and we packed the Subud Center again. For those of you who couldn’t make it, here is a video of the meeting.
Here is your chance to do One Small Thing (or something slightly bigger)!
We have been busy getting ready for the new year — planning our large group meetings, the Legislative Task Force is studying bills and the executive team is collaborating with other Indivisible groups across the state to get the progressive message heard.
We need additional help to achieve our goals for 2019. If you are interested, please respond to this email and Sara McKinney or Jacque Abel will respond and set up a time to review your interests, skills and amount of time you have to commit to help OSTPDX be a more effective grassroots organization.
Some areas we currently are in need of extra help include:
*organize and coordinate volunteers
*database manager the the Legislative Task Force
*manager for content of statewide Slack Channel
*Administrator for our Facebook and Twitter accounts
Please let Jacque or Sara know your interest!
OSTPDX’s next meeting will be co-hosted Nasty Women Get Shit Done
Please join us on February 17th at 6pm at Lagunitas Community Room (237 NE Broadway) for:
At this meeting, co-hosted by NWGSD and OSTPDX, Rep. Barbara Smith Warner will give us a quick civics review (how does a bill become a law, again?) and then Hilary Uhlig of Moms Demand Action will instruct us on how to become effective citizen lobbyists. We will then break into small groups to learn more from Salem insiders about key legislation in the areas of Gun Safety, Education Reform, Family Leave, Housing, and Climate Action and to find out ways we can #StayEngaged to make 2019 a productive year.
The event is FREE, but space is LIMITED, so you must REGISTER here in order to attend: https://form.jotform.com/83524989156168
Join us at 6 pm to socialize, enjoy some free pizza (sponsored by NWGSD), and purchase beer (donated by Lagunitas) or cider (donated by Reverend Nat's). Program starts at 6:45. All ages are welcome.
Reclaim MLK March Sunday January 20th & Change of Date for Portland Women’s March
We have been collaborating with Nasty Women Get Shit Done on for the Portland Women’s March, Ali King, president of NWGSD, sent us some information we would like to share with you about the change in date of the Women’s March...
"As you might have heard, there has been a lot of controversy with the National Women's March and, here in Portland, the date of our march conflicted with the long-standing Reclaim MLK March.
Our committee thought long and hard about what it means to be allies and we decided to separate our march from the National Women's March and to change the date to avoid conflict with the MLK March.
We encourage you to march on Jan. 20th in solidarity at the Reclaim MLK March.”
The Reclaim MLK March will be held Sunday January 20th 1:00 to 5:30 PM at Peninsula Park 700 N Rosa Park Way. We hope to see you there.
A new date for the Portland Women’s March has been confirmed. The event will be held on Sunday, March 3 from 12-3 at the PSU Park Blocks. Visit www.womxnsmarchpdx.com for more information.
OSTPDX Activist Reading Group’s next meeting
What: The reading will be: “Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World” by Anand Giridharadas.
Lenny Dee recommends this video that summarizes the book: "A fabulous half hour speech by the author of Winners Take All: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IP7HajXJD3s"
When: Thursday, January 31 7:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m. at:
Where: 3082 NE Regents Dr, Portland, OR 97212
Activities & Actions
Actions by Indivisible Oregon:
OSTPDX, along with other local progressive grassroots groups, are collaborating to help Indivisible Oregon highlight their Tuesday action call of the week in email communications and across social media. We ask that you visit their website indivisibleor.org/actions every Tuesday morning where the action of week will be posted by 6AM, take the action and share on social media and/or via email with your circle.
Topic of the call this Tuesday: Families belong together. The wall is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the racist policies at the border. While the Tornillo camp is shut down other camps are open, asylum seekers are being denied rights, TPS recipients are losing their status which will separate families. First we want the government to reopen with NO money for the wall and then we want Congress to 1) reunite families with bills like the REUNITE ACT, Families Not Facilities Act 2) reinstate tps status, 3) investigate abuses at the border.
Be sure to visit the Indivisible Oregon website Tuesday morning for the action item.
Activities:
Jumpstart your activism for the new year and join us for the 2019 Fair Shot Activist Summit this Saturday, January 19th from 10-3 at Seiu Local 6401 SE Foster Rd. This is a great opportunity for new folks and seasoned activists alike wanting to get involved. At the Summit, you'll:
Learn more about Fair Shot for All's work to advance racial, gender, and class justice in Oregon
Learn more about legislative process
Attend workshops for each policy priority
Meet other activists from around the state
RSVP by Jan. 17 here: http://www.fairshotoregon.org/activist-summit/
Other Upcoming Events:
George Lakey will be at Powell’s on Tuesday, Jan 15 at 7:30pm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Lakey#Academic_career Beginning as a trainer in the civil rights movement of the 1960s, George Lakey has been on the front lines of social change for decades. Now, in his timely and down-to-earth guide, How We Win: A Guide to Nonviolent Direct Action Campaigning (Melville House), he passes the torch to a new generation of activists hitting the streets. He looks to successful campaigns across the world to help us see what has worked and what hasn’t: from choosing the right target, to designing a creative campaign; from avoiding burnout within your group, to building a movement of movements to achieve real progressive victories. Drawing on the experiences of a diverse set of ambitious change-makers, How We Win shows us the way to justice, peace, and a sustainable economy.
Articles
Check out our website – www.onesmallthingpdx.org – like our Facebook page -- https://www.facebook.com/One-Small-Thing-150519055702228/ -- follow our Twitter account -- @onepdx.
Regards,
Sara McKinney
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