Weekly Update 06.25.18
"If you are more fortunate than others build a longer table, not a taller fence."
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Many of you have been asking for ways you can support ending the Zero Tolerance Policy locally. Here are some ideas:
-June 25th: First Day of No School Rally, Montpelier, VT (see listing below)
-June 30th: Not in Our Name Rally on the Brattleboro Commons in Brattleboro, VT (see listing below)
-Join the Keep Families Together Postcard Avalanche
A Simple, Strong Action You Can Take Right Now organized by Laura Lynette Chapman, Laura Casey, and the Putney Huddle.
The Plan: In addition to donating funds and calling our representatives, plan to bombard the Border Patrol Offices along the Mexican border with postcards appealing directly to border patrol agents' humanity. We will use the internet to amplify our voices by photo documenting and sharing our postcards in our event on FB, on our Facebook feeds, Twitter and Instagram. Use the Hashtags #FamiliesBelongTogether #TheWholeWorldIsWatching #USBorderPatrol
Why: Ripping children from their families is deeply unethical, something associated with slave owners and Nazis. While we wait for our congress to take some action to stop these atrocities, we want to let border patrol agents know we are watching, that they have a choice, and that they can stop this by refusing to participate. Our action will also let Congress know that citizens are horrified by what our government is doing.
How: On your own or with friends and family create and send personalized postcards to the Border Patrol Offices along the Mexican border. These messages CANNOT be hateful. We may be angry, but our anger will not be effective; it will alienate us from the agents. Instead they must be appeals to the agents as human beings.
Message Ideas:
- You can stop this.
- You have a choice.
- No one can make you take a child from their family.
- Will you go home to your family tonight? These families love their children just like you love yours.
- You are brave. You are kind. You are compassionate. Please don't take children away from their families. It goes against everything you believe in.
- I'm sorry you are facing a moral dilemma
- This must go against your values
- This must be hard, don't let this harden your heart
- Please be compassionate, don't become a Nazi
- Treat others as you would wish your family to be treated
Postcards with the Families Belong Together logo and pre-addressed labels will be available for free at Everyone's Books and the Putney Co-op by Thursday, 6/21/18 or you can make your own. Simply cut a piece of cardstock into four pieces. Postcards can be 3.5” x 5.5” or 4” x 6”. Decorate the front and place the address and stamp on the back. Don't forget to photo document and share your postcard in this event, on your Facebook feed, Twitter and Instagram. Use the Hashtags #FamiliesBelongTogether #TheWholeWorldIsWatching #USBorderPatrol
Addresses-
U.S. Customs & Border Protection
IPL/CBP INFO Center
1300 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W., MS: 1345
Washington, DC 20229
U.S. Customs & Border Protection
109 Shiloh Dr., Suite 300
Laredo, TX 78045
U.S. Customs & Border Protection
2323 S. Shepherd #1200
Houston, TX 77019
U.S. Customs & Border Protection
9400 Viscount Suite 104
El Paso, TX 79925
Please share to spread the word. Here is the event link for easy sharing...
https://www.facebook.com/events/2576769782548112/?ti=cl
Thank you for every action you take, big or small.
HAPPENING THIS WEEK, MONDAY, JUNE 25th, 2018-SUNDAY, JULY 1st, 2018
First Day of No School Rally: Stopping Family Separation Now
Monday, June 25th, 2018 at the Vermont State House (115 State Street, Montpelier, VT, 05602). 6pm-7:30pm.
Children being ripped from their parents is an inhumane act and we are going to show up in solidarity with the families and to demand the end to the practice of family separation.
Our children will also be there in solidarity with the children separated. There will be an art making session for the children and speakers for the adults.
We will be sharing about national and local efforts to stop this atrocity.
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Mother Up! Monthly Meet-Up
Monday, June 25th, 2018 at KidsPLAYce (20 Elliot St., Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 5:30pm-7:30pm. A vegetarian meal and childcare for ages 8 and under will be provided. RSVP helpful, but not required. Contact Abby Mnookin for more info at [email protected].
Mother Up!: Families Rise Up for Climate Action is a project of 350Vermont that brings together families to talk about the tough realities of climate change and to participate in the transition to a healthier and safer world. Kathy Urffer, MU! parent and River Steward with the Connecticut River Conservancy, will be joining us to talk about our local watersheds, how these watersheds are connected to the climate, and what we can do to support their health.
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Brattleboro Democracy Forum: Learn Songs for the Peaceful Revolution
Wednesday, June 27th, 2018 at the River Garden (157 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 12pm-1pm.
Get ready to sing in the 4th of July Parade! Woody Bernhard and Susan Kunhardt, who created the "We Celebrate Democracy / Civil Rights For All" banner, and their daughters Maggie and Rose Bernhard will lead you in singing these simple marching songs for the Peaceful Revolution. Come and learn the simple pro-democracy / civil rights songs we will sing in the parade, plus some new ones.
The We Celebrate Democracy/Civil Rights For All Banner will be in the Brattleboro Fourth of July Parade. Forty of us marched with the banner in the 2017 parade and for me it was a joyous experience, singing with a group of people about something I truly love right on Main Street. I recommend it! In these times when our government is being destroyed before our very eyes by a tyranny of bullies, it is really important for all of us to stand up in public for Democracy and Equal Civil Rights For All People. We have the advantage of numbers, but only if we work together. These are the words to some of the songs we will sing:
1.) What the world needs now is love sweet love, That's the only thing that there is just too little of
2.) Nonviolence is the power of the people who occupy the world, We're going to stand together all the people going to stand together, We're going to unite we're not going to fight we stand on common ground
3.) Democracy is love na-na-na-na-na, democracy is love na-na-na-na-na, democracy is love, Love, democracy is love. democracy is all we need. democracy is all we need, democracy is all we need.
4.) I am because we are, I am because we are, I am because we are / Ubantu, ubantu, ubantu
5.) May the love democracy be our way, that is what we have to say, Yes, yes , yes, oh yes. Let it be your way
6.) We are coming when we hear the call, To help the people one and all, Help. help. help. help,- help everyone, Help, help, help, help- everyone help, Help everyone, everyone help, help everyone, Everyone help, help everyone, everyone help….
7.) Listen to your heartbeat, Come together, We are one
8.) We are singing for democracy, democracy, democracy-We are singing for democracy and civil rights for all…We are marching for democracy... etc.
You are welcome to bring a simple positive pro-democracy song to share. Marching in the parade is a powerful way to show the bullies who've taken over our world that we want our civil rights back, Learn the songs. Carry the banner in the parade. "Get up! Stand up!" in public for democracy and civil rights for all people.
WE CELEBRATE DEMOCRACY / CIVIL RIGHTS FOR ALL
positive nonviolent public action for democracy and equal civil rights for all people
Funded by small local donations to
"WCD/CRFA", POB 6231, Brattleboro VT 05302
[email protected] 802 464 3154
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Candidates Forum
presented by The ACLU People Power, Putney Huddle, and Rights and Democracy
Wednesday, June 27th, 2018 at Putney Meadows (17 Carol Brown Way, Putney, VT), in the Common Room. Snacks at 6pm, forum begins at 6:30pm. All are invited. Please use street parking.
Call or email Laura Chapman with any questions. @ 802-380-4379 [email protected].
Get to know the platforms and positions of candidates running for the two Vermont District 4 House of Representatives, Nader Hashim, Cindy Jerome, and Mike Mrowicki.
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Action Festival to Celebrate the First Day of Primary Voting
sponsored by the Committee to Elect Emilie Kornheiser
Friday, June 29th, 2918 on the Brattleboro Town Common (Park Place, Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 4pm-6pm. For more information, visit emiliekornheiser.org
The Committee to Elect Emilie Kornheiser will sponsor an Action Festival on the Brattleboro Common on Friday, June 29, the first day of voting in the primary election. The festival, a celebration of democracy, will include music, food, activities for kids, and opportunities to take action on community and national issues.
Peter Siegel and Friends, Moxie, and other bands will provide music, food trucks will supply food, and political parties and activist organizations will have information on how to step up and take action. Participants are invited to vote at the Town Clerk’s office (before 5pm), then stroll up Main Street to the Common for the party.
Democracy works best when we're all paying attention. Let’s celebrate our small town politics, direct democracy, and respectful conversations. Election season can be an opportunity to talk about what matters—to connect with our neighbors about the issues, and talk joyfully about taxes instead of the weather.
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Building a Progressive Movement in 2018 and Beyond: Coffee and Conversation with Nina Turner and Andru Volinsky
hosted by the Monadnock Progressive Alliance, a Rights and Democracy Fundraiser
Saturday, June 30th, 2018 at Keene State College (83 Blake Street, Keene, NH, 03431) in the Mabel Brown Room. 10am-12pm. Order Tickets: $15 in advance | $20 at the door | $27 special “feel the Bern” price.
Join the Rights & Democracy Education Fund for coffee and conversation with Our Revolution President Nina Turner and special guest Andru Volinsky - Buy your tickets here!
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Not in Our Name: A Families Belong Together Solidarity Gathering
produced by Everyone’s Books, The Putney Huddle, and Brattleboro Rights and Democracy
Saturday, June 30th, 2018 on the Brattleboro Common (Intersection of Park Place and Route 5 in Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 2pm. Sign up through Moveon and get updates here.
We hope to gather in solidarity on the Brattleboro Common and display 2,000 pairs of children's shoes to represent the children of Asylum seekers that walked through our border seeking refuge only to find themselves torn from their parents and imprisoned without any contact.
We are currently collecting children’s shoes for the "empty shoes" visual exhibit at the Brattleboro event at the Common. They can be dropped off at Everyone's Books and at 7 West Street, Putney, VT, directly behind Putney Post Office. There is a bin in the drive with "Families Belong Together" postcards as identifiers.
By participating in this event, you agree
(i) not to engage in any act of violence or violation of any applicable law,
(ii) to obey the orders of authorized event marshals and law enforcement authorities, and
(iii) that event organizers and sponsors will not be responsible for any injury or damage to your person or property resulting from or occurring in the course of your participating in the event, and you agree to release and forever hold harmless event organizers and sponsors, and their respective officers, directors, employees, and agents from liability for any such injury or damage.
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Carry the ‘Civil Rights for All’ Banner in the Fourth of July Parade
Wednesday, July 4th, 2018 at Brattleboro Union Hugh School (131 Fairground Rd, Brattleboro, VT 05301), in the Parking Lot 131. 9am. RSVP:[email protected] or call 802 464 3154.
March with the "Civil Rights for All" Banner in the Fourth of July Parade! Meet at 9 am, Wednesday, July 4th, at the Brattleboro Union High School student parking Lot, 131 Fairground Rd, Brattleboro, VT.
Can we make our 4th of July Parade stand up to Trump’s 4th of July military parade down Pennsylvania Ave? Let's do our best. Civil rights is the answer to the tyranny of bullies. "Get up! Stand up!" and march for our civil rights. You are invited.
Forty of us marched with the banner in the 2017 parade. We sang songs and carried signs praising democracy. For me it was a joyous experience, singing about something I truly love & cherish right on Main Street. You don't get to do that very often. As it says on one of the signs we carry: "Democracy needs you". Marching in the parade is a powerful way to show that we want to fix our democracy. Plus it feels good. Lets stand up together, in public, to the bullies who are taking over the world. We have the advantage of numbers, if we work together.
WE CELEBRATE DEMOCRACY / CIVIL RIGHTS FOR ALL
positive nonviolent public action for democracy
and equal civil rights for all people
To Donate: "WCD/CRFA", PO Box 6231, Brattleboro, VT, 05302
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Green Mountain Gala
hosted by Defend Our Future and the Brattleboro Museum and Art Center
Saturday, July 14th, 2018 at the Brattleboro Museum and Art Center (10 Vernon Street, Brattleboro, VT 05301). 7pm-10pm.
For tickets: www.membership.onlineaction.org
Join Defend Our Future and special guest speakers for a night of community celebration and fun at our first ever Southern Vermont Fundraising Gala!
With a ticket, gala-goers can look forward to a night of live music, catered treats, and a photo booth! There will be a cash bar with beer and wine from Windham Wines available.
This fundraiser will be the first of its kind for Defend Our Future, bringing together local environmentalists and the Vermont community of all stripes to support the next generation of climate leadership.
All proceeds from the event will be used to expand and deepen the campus organizing work that Defend students and staff are able to do in their communities. Through hosting educational events, meeting with elected leaders, and organizing voter registration and education drives, our teams are helping to develop environmental activists across the country and you can help!
Tickets come in three levels: silver, gold and platinum. In addition to admission, gold and platinum sponsors will receive a special gift. Tickets can be purchased on the Defend Our Future website and above.
All gifts to Defend Our Future are tax-deductible.
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Southern Vermont Sister District Summer Soup Subscriptions Are Now Available and Summer Update!
The words Summer and soup may not sound like a good match, but our chef team (including WeCAN's own Joanna Wilson Phillips) is coming up with a selection of delicious warm-weather delights for the June - September subscribers. Sign-up to enjoy tasty homemade soups or “gift” your soup subscription to our local food shelf. ALL proceeds go to supporting progressive Democrats in strategic swing races. Sign up now as these subscriptions go quickly!
You can link directly to the order form here: Soup Subscription Form.
Raising money and providing support to progressive Democratic candidates in strategic races.
By subscribing to our SisterDistrict Soup Project you will receive delicious homemade soup selections from June through September, one per month. You also have the option to gift your subscription to the Putney Food Shelf (a popular choice for out-of-town supporters). Soup chefs volunteer their time and donate ingredients which means that ALL $$ goes to help move our political structures in the direction of sanity, compassion and justice. Currently our two "sister" race is a state level race in Pennsylvania that is critical to make blue inroads in the state.
More information about our PA sister candidate Melissa Shusterman can be found here: https://www.melissashusterman.com/about/
More information about SisterDistrict strategies can be found here: https://www.sisterdistrict.com/. Please sign up for SisterDistrict's email list while you're there so that the Southern Vermont SisterDistrict team can keep you informed about our work and ways that you can plug in.
About our soups: In addition to raising $$ to help get our nation onto a better trajectory, we are also committed to providing you the most delicious and locally-sourced soup that we can. All soups are vegetarian, gluten- and dairy-free, and delicious! There is no reason that you can't eat well and resist at the same time!
In other news: Save Our Nation Vacation (another Southern Vermont Sister District Project) is having an orientation for folks who want to share a meal (provided by the SONV team) with like-minded people who are committed to taking a(nother) small personal step that can have a LARGE, collective impact on flipping strategic races BLUE. Come learn about the project and get all the resources and support you need to find just ONE property for our fall catalog. The “Summer Sampler Catalog”, that lists available vacation properties, can be found at SaveOurNationVacation.org. Orientation will be at Putney Friends Meeting, June 3rd, 4:00pm-5:30pm, followed by shared meal. Join us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SVTSisterDistrict/.
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Southern Vermont Dance Festival Announces Early Registration and Performance Tickets Available:
Early Registration for the Southern Vermont Dance Festival is now open! Early Registration allows everyone to get the classes that they want before they sell out. Advance tickets for all the performances are now on sale including the Midsummer Night's Picnic and Promenade which will take place at the Retreat Farm nature trail. Southern Vermont Dance Festival was designed as a long term economic driver for the community as a response to Tropical Storm Irene. The festival returns for a 6th season with an exciting round of dance classes, community events and performances hosted in the one and only Brattleboro, VT. Festival attendees are invited to attend dance performances each evening as well as a choice of many different classes each day. For people who want to experience the beautiful town of Brattleboro, there are community events with live music and dance performance throughout the 4 days. For the third year in a row, SVDF will offer a Mid Summer Night's Picnic and Promenade, using Vermont's natural beauty as a stage for top notch performance. There are early registration discounts, advanced ticket prices and group discounts as well as opportunities to volunteer and sponsor the festival. Volunteers will be able to take classes and see performances. In addition there are internships available for people of all ages. see more at http://www.southernvermontdancefestival.com.
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RESOURCE FOR WeCAN: Rapid Response Text Alert System.
When WeCAN began, Song & Solidarity set up a Rapid Response Text Alert System for WeCAN Groups. Directions for signing up are on WeCAN's website, here: https://www.wecantogether.net/rapid_response We were reminded of the Rapid Response text alerts system as President Trump moves towards firing Mueller. In the event Mueller is fired, MoveOn is planning a nation-wide simultaneous protest. The trick will be to get the word out fast if/when the time comes. We are grateful to Song and Solidarity for providing this service.
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STANDING REGULAR MEETINGS
Lost River Racial Justice, Black Lives Matter-South, and People Of Color Caucus Regular Meeting
Reoccurring racial justice organizing meetings every 2nd Monday at The Root Social Justice Center (The Whetstone Studio of the Arts, 28 Williams Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301) on the First Floor. 6pm-8pm. Childcare provided. Fragrance & nut free space.
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Alternatives to Suicide meets every Wednesday 6pm-7:30PM at the Hive Space (24 Flat St, Suite 202, Brattleboro, VT, 05301). Second Floor, up one flight of stairs.
Alternatives to Suicide is a mutual support group open to anyone who has experienced thoughts of suicide. The group is guided by a charter of values provided by the Western Mass Recovery Learning Community. The group is non-clinical and does not link suicide with illness. Participants are free to talk about and find meaning in their experiences in/on their own terms.
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Youth 4 Change
Meetings are held on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of the month from 5:30pm-8pm.
Upcoming: June 18th, Aug 6th, Aug 20th
For more information please contact Youth 4 Change at [email protected].
Agenda:
5:30pm: Drop in homework time and art making
6:00pm: Food
6:30pm: Meeting and Organizing
Youth 4 Change is for local-area youth 12-22 interested in political organizing around local/state/national social justice issues that are important to them. Brattleboro area advocates and educators are holding a space, and assisting youth in building a strong personal tool kit to organize for change. Using a variety of creative methods, we aim to enable youth with tools for resilience, courage and compassion, while fostering their ability to speak up about issues that matter to them, and to take action in the name of love and liberation for all people. Come explore issues of racial, economic and gender justice through art, movement, first-hand accounts and contemplative practices. Connect with area youth around the issues that matter to you and strengthen your tool kit for action!
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ONGOING EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING
Indigo Radio
Sundays at 12pm on Brattleboro Community Radio 107.7FM
To stream live: Visit www.wvew.org
Indigo Radio, deepening understanding and making connections! IndigoRadio is a group of area educators seeking to learn through engaging with others in our community and throughout the world. We will be talking about educational and social issues both globally and locally and connecting them to our lives and Brattleboro community. Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/indigoradiowvew/. For archive recordings of past shows: https://soundcloud.com/user-654648353
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Democracy, Eventually
WVEW 107.7FM, Brattleboro Community Radio Station
You can listen to recorded and archived episodes here: https://soundcloud.com/democracy-eventually and you can find us on Facebook here https://www.facebook.com/democracyeventually/ and on Twitter here @Democrazeee.
We are Democracy, Eventually a radio show covering local, state, and underreported national news stories from a progressive analysis. We air live on WVEW 107.7FM LP Brattleboro Community Radio Station.
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Thank you for every postcard, phone call, and political action you took this week, Friends. Keep going, keep focused, and stay hopeful. We are all in this together.
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