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Let's Keep Fighting for Them

Here’s the Pro Public piece.

As we fight for the rights of immigrants, we fight for our own families, as there is no difference between us.

Call your rep today.

It just takes a handful of us to move them.

Thanks to our friend Laura Conwesser:

There is so much going on, it’s difficult to know where to start. Let’s begin with the Republican attempt to include ICE funding in a reconciliation bill that would only require a simple majority in the Senate. The Senate Parliamentarian has said that is not legal, so the Rs must rewrite in a way to make it fit the rules. It is not clear that can be done. However, we must keep up the pressure. If you have a Republican Senator, Indivisible has a simple TOOL for calling your Senator. If you have a Republican member of the House, you can do the same HERE. If your reps are Democrats, urge them to hold the line. You can email them HERE. While you’re at it, let’s add some numbers to the ACLU action.

Next up is the War Powers Resolution. On February 28, Trump attacked Iran without Congressional approval. He has continued to bully and bluff his way, continuing the war with the help of Congressional Republicans, plus Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) and Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA). Some Republicans have started to see the light on this issue, so we really need to keep up the pressure. Let’s make sure no Dems switch over and let’s convince enough Rs plus Fetterman and Golden to stop this illegal war. Call your Senators and House member and tell them to support the War Powers Resolution. It could come up again within the next day or two, so please don’t wait. When you are done with that, please use Indivisible’s TOOL to send a message to your Senators and House Members telling them not to authorize another penny for this illegal war.

Congress is considering a dangerous bill that would let big banks and other financial institutions deploy risky artificial intelligence while dodging major civil rights, consumer protections, and financial stability laws. H.R. 4801, the deceptively named Unleashing AI Innovation in Financial Services Act, would unleash dangerous AI test projects on unsuspecting customers and the economy by granting them so-called “sandboxes” that would exempt them from federal laws and regulations. Financial companies could request exemptions from rules that protect people from discrimination, fraud, predatory lending, market manipulation, and other financial harm. Please call your House Member and tell them to vote NO on H.R. 4801. At the moment, other actions regarding AI data centers are still pretty localized in the communities that will be directly affected by the proposed sites. Stay tuned for more information as the need for our voices grows.

The horror of SCOTUS’s decimation of the Voting Rights Act is metastasizing. Louisiana changed the House district map for primaries in which tens of thousands of ballots have already been cast.

1. Alabama has an election today and is trying to reinstate maps that were declared unconstitutional 2 years ago, on the premise that the SCOTUS Callais decision now makes it illegal not to use them. People will vote today, only to have the State Legislature invalidate their votes by redistricting and calling a new election in August.

2. While candidates were already declared and campaigning for their Congressional primaries, Tennessee has redrawn their maps to eliminate the only Black majority district in the state in Memphis. Keep in mind that they eliminated another majority Black district in Nashville in February 2022.

3. In South Carolina, there is a move to break up the only Black majority district, but there may be some opposition to that move because Jim Clyburn has been so effective in Congress, to the benefit of the entire State. Even some Republicans think he might be worth keeping around.

4. Other states are looking to redistrict for the 2028 elections. The most glaring example is Georgia, where Gov. Brian Kemp called a special legislative session to redistrict on every level, not just Congressional districts. He wants to destroy Black representation in the State Legislature, too.

The situation on the ground is changing by the day, if not by the hour. Please set aside June 27 for a national day of action. You can take a preliminary look HERE, but rest assured that I will be sharing more information as it becomes available. Looking towards the midterm elections, check HERE to be sure that you are registered to vote. Then share that link with everyone you know, particularly if they live is a critical swing district.

For those of you in NY State, Planned Parenthood is asking us to reach out to the legislative leaders and ask them to prioritize rights that are currently under attack nationally. Passing these bills in NYS will protect the reproductive rights of people in NY. PPNY has made it very easy; just use this FORM.

Last week, New Yorkers Against Gun Violence asked us to contact our NY State legislators about Francesco’s Law. Many of you did, and it passed in the Assembly. Well done! Now, NYAGV is asking us to use their easy TOOL to look up your State Senator and send them an email and/or call, urging them to support Francesco’s Law which would require proper storage of guns. While you are at it, you can sign their petition.

​As many of you are already aware, Citizens Bank is continuing to finance GEO and Core Civic as they build and operate ICE facilities across the country. Other financial institutions that had financed these groups have stopped because they saw the community revulsion over what was being done with their money. But not Citizens! They must hear from all of us. If you have an account at Citizens, please try to move your money to a different bank and let Citizens know why you are doing it. Also, on Saturday June 6, there will be actions across the country at local bank branches, advising customers about how their money is being spent. My local Indivisible group will be outside at the branch at 95th and Amsterdam in Manhattan from 10-11:30. Feel free to join us. You can read more about this and look for other actions near you HERE.

​

On the question of ICE detention, Amnesty is asking for our help in obtaining the release of Andrea Pedro Fransisco, a 23 year-old Guatemalan woman who was kidnapped by ICE on February 5, during their occupation in Minneapolis . Andrea has a large ovarian cyst and was scheduled for surgery when she was detained and sent to Texas. Her condition has deteriorated and she is in a great deal of pain. Amnesty has a MESSAGE for you to sign, urging that she be released as soon as possible.

​Thank you all very much,

Laura\

More tomorrow.

Steve