Windham County Action Network (WeCAN)

"Everything yields to diligence." 
Antiphanes

Woah! It's mid-July already....how did that happen, Fam?! The date on the calendar means we are putting out the call for August-October event submissions from our truly incredible leaders, organizers, and neighbors. This includes Save the Dates for future events, updates on any on-going projects, and updated group meeting times and locations.
A kind reminder: please submit all images as JPEGS and include all event information (Who, What, Where, Why, How) in text in the body of the submission email. All submissions (and any questions!) can be sent to: [email protected] Thank you so much for your continued readership and community support. We look forward to updates from across the County! 

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HAPPENING TODAY, SUNDAY, JULY 15th, 2018

Share the Harvest
sponsored by Edible Brattleboro
Sunday, July 15th, 2018  at the Turning Point Garden (the corner of Elm Street and Frost Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 11am-1pm. Please bring your own bags.
Join Edible Brattleboro from 11am-1pm in our garden at Turning Point, on the corner of Elm and Frost Street (diagonally across from New England Youth Theatre) for free, locally grown veggies, herbs, and more. Please bring your own bags. All produce is free thanks to the generosity of local gardeners and farmers. We welcome donations from your garden.

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Guilford Community Picnic
hosted by Guilford Recreation
Sunday, July 15th, 2018 at Fort Dummer State Park. 12pm-3pm.
Hello Guilford Folks! 👋 We are so excited to see you all this Sunday! We have a few updates: 
-Please bring a picnic blanket or camp chairs as we will run out of table space for eating.
-We will have our Guilford Recreation shirts available to purchase if anyone would like one. Youth and Adult sizes! 
The Guilford Recreation Commission invites all Guilford Residents to attend a Guilford Community Picnic at Fort Dummer State Park on Sunday, July 15th, 2018 from 12:00pm-3:00pm. Fort Dummer State Park is donating the use of their event field for our Community Picnic! 
The Guilford Recreation Commission is providing the food for the grill: hamburgers and hotdogs (both meat and vegetarian options), condiments, beverages and utensils. Please bring a side dish or a dessert to share, if you can.
Family friendly activities will include: Badminton, whiffle ball, horseshoes, disc golf putting, giant slingshot and corn hole. 
We hope you will come and enjoy an opportunity to explore Fort Dummer State Park and socialize with your friends, neighbors and community members! Visit GuilfordRecreation.org to see what the Guilford Recreation is up to!

“…The final straw has been the separation of children from their parents at the Southwest border. This is child kidnapping, plain and simple. Seizing children from their parents in violation of the constitutional rights of both is bad enough (mentally harmful to the children and infinitely painful to both the parents and children), but doing so without creating proper records to enable family reunification shows utter depravity on the part of the government officials involved. Although it is I who am resigning in protest against these policies, it is you who should be tendering your resignation instead. Sincerely, Elizabeth Holtzman”
 a Resignation Letter from Elizabeth Holtzman, a Trump White House advisor, to the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen, July, 16th, 2018

    Have you or your group considered spear-heading a Vermont Voter Registration Drive in anticipation of the November Primaries? Here is some helpful information to get you started from the Vermont Secretary of State website:

Step 1: Be Prepared!

To organize your voter registration drive:

• Set up a time and place for the drive: voter registration drives work well at large public events with lots of people such as music and art festivals, parades, community events, etc. Arrange to have a table and a video player available (if an electrical outlet is close by) for the drive. If you are a high school student, speak to your student activities or principal’s office for permission to set up the drive. Speak to the social studies department to see whether you could visit classes.

• Get voter registration forms: call 1-800-439-VOTE or email [email protected] to order voter registration forms, or contact your local town clerk.

• Order buttons, stickers, flyers, bumper stickers, videos, and other materials: call 1-800-439-VOTE or email [email protected]. Attach the order form to your email to place your order.

• Make sure you have all other necessary supplies: pens, clipboards, and volunteers.  Don’t be shy—have some volunteers standing with clipboards and registration forms in-hand, ready to ask passers-by if they are registered to vote.

• Assist voters in filling out the voter application to the checklist. The voter must include his or her Vermont driver’s license number. If a person does not have a Vermont driver’s license number, he or she must include the last four digits of their Social Security number.

Step 2: Get the Word Out!

There are many ways to get the word out. You may contact us and we can send you a voter registration poster or you may design your own. Many local radio stations will run free public service announcements, and you can ask governmental, civic, and religious organizations to announce the drive in their bulletins and at their meetings. Also, be sure to set up in a prominent location. If you are a student, ask teachers to make an announcement to their classes and set up in a prominent location in your school!

Step 3: Have Fun!

You are helping the citizens of Vermont fulfill one of their most important civic responsibilities—feel good about what you are doing!

Step 4: After the Drive

Return completed registration forms to the town clerk where the applicant lives prior to the election. View contact information for all town clerks (Excel). 

     We look forward to seeing you at the polls this November 6th!

"I will not have my life narrowed down. I will not bow down to someone else’s whim or to someone else’s ignorance." 
bell hooks
(Gloria Jean Watkins, better known by her pen name bell hooks, is an American author, feminist, and social activist.)

Friends,

     Before we dive into this week's Email Update we'd like to send a big ol' THANK YOU to those that used their bodies and voices to protest against ICE in Williston, VT this weekend. A dozen or so activists chose to risk arrest and block the road to ICE's call center, which is located in our state. While some were arrested by a sympathetic Williston Police contingent, approximately 200 people attended the legal rally, calling attention to the dubious practices ICE has been a part of -- especially since the Trump administration took office. 
Civil liberties advocates say hotlines, like the one Homeland Security operates from Vermont, can lead to racial profiling, escalate over-policing and cultivate an environment of fear*. For more information check out this story from Local 22 WVNY and mychamplainvalley.com HERE.
Thank for speaking up and speaking out for those that do not have a voice, Vermonters! You are truly inspiring. 

* https://vtdigger.org/2018/07/01/tipsters-call-ice-phone-rings-vermont/

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"The Democrats do fine in presidential elections; their problem is they can't get out the vote in the midterm elections." 
The Honorable Ruth Bader Ginsburg

  The August Primaries are upon us and we here at WeCAN want to make sure you are registered to vote! Let the words of Justice Ginsburg inspire you to bring TWO FRIENDS to the polls with you this election season and create the change we want to see in our Brave Little State. Did you know that as of January 1, 2017 eligible persons may register to vote on any day up to and including the day of the election in the state of Vermont? Registration is available during all normal business hours of your town or city clerk's office in the days running up to the election AND during polling hours on Election Day. You may also register to vote online and you can find more information here. 
Is this your first time registering by mail or online? If you are registering to vote in Vermont for the first time by mail or online, you must include a photocopy of an acceptable form of ID. Acceptable forms of ID are:

• Valid photo ID (driver’s license or passport)
• Current utility bill
• Current bank statement
• Another government document

Vermont Voter Application

We look forward to seeing you at the polls!

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