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May 25, 2020

Writer's picture: One Small ThingOne Small Thing

Dear OSTPDX Members,


Oregon’s vote by mail system allowed voters to safely exercise their right to vote during a pandemic which resulted in the highest voter turnout in the state’s history with over 46% of eligible voters casting their ballots! Oregon’s vote by mail system is a successful model that could be replicated in other states for the 2020 election to allow voters to safely cast their ballots in the midst of the COVID crisis. 



Earlier this month, in response to the global pandemicCalifornia Governor Gavin Newsom announced that registered voters would receive mail-in ballotsfor the 2020 general election while also leaving in-person voting as an option. Today theRepublican National Committee has filed a lawsuitto prevent voters in California from mailing in absentee ballots in November while claiming that Democrats are using the pandemic as a ploy to illegally grab power.There is no evidence that votingby mail favors one party over another therefore these efforts by the RNC must be exposed as partisan attacks on democracy with the goal of suppressing votes. Voting safely in the 2020 general election must be a priority nationwide!



RSVP nowto join our virtual town hall & livestream on May 27, 2020 at 5:00 PM ET with Elizabeth Warren and special guests on how we can take action in every state to demand safe voting during the pandemic.


Announcements Get Informed – Stay Engaged OSTPDX Virtual Meeting Framing the Progressive Message and Activism in the Time of COVID Tuesday June 16 5:30 PM


Now that the Oregon primary has passed and we have all had a chance to take a breather, June will be the time to re-connect and re-engage with OSTPDX as we look towards the historic November general election. 


We will be hosting a teleconference with Dr Larry Wallack, emeritus professor of public health at the University of California, Berkeley, and the former dean of the College of Urban and Public Affairs at Portland State University. He will be back for an encore presentation on framing the progressive message. His presentation will prepare us to use values-based communications with voters, especially important in these divisive times.


Erica Goldman, PNW Regional Organizing Coordinator for Swing Left, Co-Founder of Indivisible Oregon and former group manager with Moms Demand Action will share with us Swing Left’s effective strategies and how you can get engaged for the November Election.


There will be plenty of time for Q&A or you submit your questions ahead of time on the RSVP, linked below.


Look forward to seeing everyone on June 16, pleaseRSVP here


Actions & Events

OST-PDX Activist Reading Group

Our next meeting will be Thursday, May 28, 7:00-8:30pm via Zoom. 


We will discuss 2 topics:


1. The Oregon May 19 primary elections and QAnon

1a. Jo Rae Perkins is a far right Republican who will be running against Jeff Merkley in November:


1b. “We Need to Speak Honestly About the GOP’s Evolution Into a Conspiracy Cult


2. The Oregon State Budget (effects of the current recession/depression)



If you are interested in joining our meetings, contact Ken Rosenberg atrosenbergkd@yahoo.com.


Contact your City Council and County to adopt the Oregon Worker Relief Fund!

As COVID-19 continues to ravage low-wage employees, we continue to see a high level of unemployment in our communities. Many contributing immigrant Oregonians have lost their jobs because of the pandemic and have no access to any wage replacement program such as Oregon's Unemployment Insurance program. This has immediate harsh impacts such as housing and food insecurity. 




How Milwaukee Could Decide the Next President - An Indivisible 9 Salon:This video features Angela Lang, Co-Founder and Executive Director ofBLOC (Black Leaders Organizing Communities). Watch and consider supporting BLOC’s incredible work. 


Sign IP 57 Petition to End Gerrymandering in OR



Oregon will be redrawing its district boundary maps (“redistricting”) when the 2020 census is completed, a process that recurs every 10 years. We expect to gain a sixth U.S. Congressional seat this time, based on population gains. Nationwide, a huge concern with redistricting is gerrymandering, a practice intended to establish an unfair political advantage for a particular party or group by manipulating district boundaries.


Under current law, Oregon politicians draw the boundaries for their own state and congressional districts, which of course represents an inherent conflict of interest. It allows them to draw districts to serve their interests, not those of our communities - like a fox in charge of a henhouse. We see this in places like Clackamas, Salem and Eugene where gerrymandering has divided each up into multiple oddly shaped districts to protect incumbent legislators.


The OR League of Women Voters and People Not Politicians have launched a statewide signature gathering campaign for IP 57, a ballot measure to create an impartial and fully transparent redistricting process. It will replace the legislator “foxes” managing redistricting with an independent, citizen-led redistricting commission. The commission would be made up of 12 citizens: 4 Democrats, 4 Republicans, and 4 people who are not affiliated with either party.


Help stop gerrymandering in Oregon. Sign the IP57 petition.


It’s easy! Here’s how:

• Visit thePeople Not Politicians websiteandreadInitiative Petition 57.

• Enter your information to get your petition.(Also available right here.)

• Print, sign and send in your signature sheet via USPS.

• Don’t have a printer? Emailsign@peoplenotpoliticiansoregon.comand they’ll send you a petition sheet in the mail.

Virtual Swing Left & Vote Forward Letter Writing


Vote Forward and Swing Left are working together to increase civic participation by sending letters to voters. If you’re interested in printing and writing letters on your own,click herefor more information. Listed below are some virtual letter writing events and you may search for othershere.


Write Letters to Voters Virtually:

Indivisible National has createdthis resourceon how to host your own virtual events and more information on letter writing parties specifically can be found here. 

Digital Events

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Visit our website –www.onesmallthingpdx.org– like ourFacebook page-- follow our Twitter account -- @onepdx.









OSTPDX will not be endorsing any candidates before primaries. All content included in our newsletters is informational in nature and should not be considered an endorsement. 


Regards,


Sara McKinney

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