Newsletter #62, Thursday, June 7, 2018
82 weeks down, 22
weeks
to midterm elections
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Greetings!
PEG is a non-partisan volunteer organization whose mission is to assure that our government will treat all Americans with equality and acceptance. We do our work by recruiting, educating and nurturing supporters for worthy organizations, actions and events that reflect our beliefs.
Click here to see us on Facebook and our frequent posts
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We believe that there is a limit to what we can accomplish trying to get many of our elected officials to reflect our values of equality and acceptance. Consequently, we will be emphasizing events and actions that will lead to replacing those elected officials.
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One act of resistance you can do today
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Children are being torn from their parent’s hands
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Perhaps the most disgusting thing this administration has done to date is implementing the "Zero Tolerance" policy, taking children from their parents in order to "deter" asylum seekers from arriving our borders. They aren't just taking these children, they are jailing them "in cages" according to Oregon Senator Jeff Markley.
Call Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen to express your outrage over the refusal and separation of families. You can leave a message for her on the DHS comment line at (202) 282-8495
Please also call the Office of Refugee Resettlement at (202) 401-9246 to demand access to detention facilities for Senator Merkley and others to do oversight.
Background:
Over the weekend, Senator Merkley traveled to an immigration detention facility and was denied entry. New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez also tried to tour the same facility and was refused.
Watch the video here.
Let Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen know that we find both the refusal and the separation of families unacceptable. It is time for this policy to stop and that we demand Secretary Nielsen appear before the House Judiciary committee to answer questions on the oversight of these children and families, many who come seeking asylum, which has never been considered a crime before now. She was scheduled to appear, but mysteriously cancelled without rescheduling.
Leave a message for Secretary Nielsen on the DHS comment line at: (202) 282-8495.
Support ACLU
’s efforts to stop the abuse of immigrant children.
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Events and things to do that can help elect candidates who share our values
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Friday, June 8. Candidates Meet & Greet at the Geddes Lake Clubhouse
Contact Margaret Bennet
at
[email protected]
for more information and to help out. 5:30–8 pm
Saturday, June 9. Voter Registration Training
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Help boost turnout in the August 7 primary
The Detroit Free Press
launched a major initiative
to draw attention to the August 7 primary election. They're asking everyone to join the "10-5-1" campaign. It works like this:
By July 1
: Send emails or postcards to 10 family members, friends, or acquaintances you suspect aren't planning to vote in the primary election, inviting them to join you at the polls August 7.
By August 1
: Have phone or face-to-face conversations with at least 5 of those you contacted, renewing your invitation to vote.
On or before August 7
: Take 1 of the people you contacted with you when you go to cast your own vote or absentee ballot.
Why does turnout matter in the August primaries? The
Freep
puts it like this:
"For the majority of Michigan voters who reside in congressional and legislative districts stacked decisively in favor of one party, November may be too late to play a meaningful role in deciding who'll represent them in Washington and Lansing.
For those voters, the more important election will take place August 7, when a small subset of those who cast ballots in the November election will choose the Republican and Democratic nominees for Congress, governor and the state Legislature."
Read more about the
Freep
's 10-5-1 campaign
. Thanks to CivCity for this article and the great work they do.
Friday, June 15. Fundraiser for Voters Not Politicians
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Donate to support the lawsuit to end gerrymandering--or hold a fundraiser!
Your help is needed. This federal court lawsuit brought by the League of Women Voters and some others challenges the gerrymandered districts in Michigan.
Read more here.
The attorneys are not charging for their services but there are other costs involved. Funding needs are great, and we have been asked to help. If you are interested in following the case or donating, go to the website
www.endmigerrymandering.com
. If you prefer, send a check (in whatever amount!) payable to Goodman Acker Law Firm with memo “gerrymandering” in the memo line, and mail it to Attorney Mark Brewer, Goodman Acker, 17000 W. Ten Mile Rd, Southfield, MI, 48075. You will know you have helped.
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Jim Peggs, MD and Sonya Lewis, MD, MPH, will be speaking as representatives of the Michigan based physicians' organization, Physicians for the Prevention of Gun Violence (PPGV).
Drs. Lewis and Peggs will share some startling data comparing gun violence in America to other highly developed nations and discuss basic steps that health professionals and all members of our community can take to decrease the prevalence of death and injury from gun violence.
Special emphasis will be placed on vulnerable populations such as children, people managing mental health concerns, and people who are victims of intimate partner violence. The discussion will also extend to ways in which we can promote a safer world in the presence of guns.
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Gun Violence and Firearm Safety
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LOCATION
Jewish Community Center (JCC), 2935 Birch Hollow Drive, Ann Arbor
DATE AND TIME
06/24/18
3:00pm -
06/24/18
4:30pm
Gun violence is one of the leading causes of death in America! Come to learn what you can do about it.
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The PEG event calendar is provided as a community service to its readers, and is based on information provided by the event sponsors. Inclusion of material does not imply endorsement by PEG.
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Thursday, June 7. WeROC June Meeting of the Whole
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Thursday, June 7, 14, 21, 28. Fundraiser to support League of Woman Voters Poster Contest
Every Thursday evening in June Alley Bar, a local "boisterous hangout lures locals with its craft cocktails and cold brews served in a hip atmosphere" will be donating 10% of the evening's receipts to LWVAAA in support of their poster contest.
On June 7, at 8 p.m., Ann Arbor musician Judy Banker will perform. You can read her bio
here
. Come discover a new place, join in the fun, and support a good cause. Alley Bar,
112 W, Liberty St, Ann Arbor
. 7 pm
Thursday, June 7. WCDP Call to Activism Party
A chance to chat with like-minded people over dinner. Makeake calls to fellow strong Democrats to let them know about legislative issues and actions and have fun while making a difference!
Click
here
to sign up. Feel free to call Margaret Schankler at (734) 945-0901 or e-mail [email protected] with any questions.
418 W. Michigan Ave, Ypsilanti
. 6:30–8:30 pm
Friday, June 8. Citizens Protecting Our Michigan Water (PMW) reception
Saturday, June 9. Citizens' Climate Lobby general membership meeting
They will join the national conference call starting promptly at 1pm. Following the call they will discuss local actions, including their participation in the 4th of July parade. Ann Arbor District Library
,
343 S. Fifth Ave, Ann Arbor.
12:45 pm
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Saturday, June 9. Citizens' Climate Lobby general membership meeting
They will join the national conference call starting promptly at 1pm. Following the call they will discuss local actions, including their participation in the 4th of July parade. Ann Arbor District Library
,
343 S. Fifth Ave, Ann Arbor. 12:45 pm
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Monday, June 11. Rally in support of the Poor People's Campaign
On May 14, there was an uplifting and powerful show in Lansing, joining protesters in 29 other states that had simultaneous rallies and civil disobedience actions. The focus is creating a compassionate and just society that centers poor people. The campaign is non partisan and is seeking to, among other things, push for a living wage and health care for all, LGBTQA rights, voting rights, fair housing, immigration rights.
For more information including the time of the
rally’s click here.
This is the schedule of the rallies.
- Monday, June 11. Theme -- Everybody’s Got a Right to Live: Jobs, Income, the Right to Organize, and Housing
- Monday, June 18. Theme -- A New and Unsettling Force: A Fusion Movement Rising Up
Monday, June 11. Attend a MI-Resistance calling party
Tuesday, June 12. Attend a MI-Resistance calling party
Wednesday, June 13. Attend a MI-Resistance calling party
Wednesday, June 13. Poor People’s Campaign Washtenaw Art Build
Come create hand-made signs registering your consternation, irritation and disgust with what has been accepted for too long in Michigan. Share your voice for change. Address the lies, the greed, the injustices of our government, corporations, our employers and a damned sight more. Church of the Incarnation,
3257 Lohr Rd, Ann Arbor
. 6–8 pm
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Join the president of Temple Beth Emeth, the senior warden of St. Clare's Episcopal Church, and the president of Genesis of Ann Arbor as they publicly sign a joint declaration of support for the nationwide Sanctuary movement.
Get more information here.
Wednesday, June 13. Campaign Finance in Michigan Elections
Craig Mauger, of the
Michigan Campaign Finance Network
, will detail how the role of money in Michigan politics has changed over the last decade. The presentation will provide information on how campaign finance works in Michigan; what is dark money; how can a person identify dark-money funded campaign mailers and advertisements; and how can a person find out who's funding a TV ad.Tecumseh District Library,
215 N. Ottawa St, Tecumseh
. 6:30 pm
Friday, June 15. Indivisible Dexter monthly meeting
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Saturday, June 16. 2018. Michigan Progressive Summit
:The Persistence of the Resistance: Voices, Values, and Votes
Plenary speakers include Brandon Dasent, a Parkland school shooting survivor and student activist; Desmond Meade, head of the
Florida Rights Restoration Coalition; and Erica Ford, a leader in the fight against gun violence and founder of
LIFE Camp in New York City.
“We chose the theme because we know people are entering this space at different levels of experience,” McCampbell continued. “Whether you’ve been active for two years or 20 years, the Michigan Summit is the place for you. We want to make sure we are uplifting marginalized voices, connecting our shared values, and creating action at the ballot box and beyond.”
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Wednesday, June 20. Learn about the ballot proposal to end gerrymandering in Michigan
Voters Not Politicians will present an update on the ballot initiative to amend the Michigan constitution to create an Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission, including the background of the initiative, the status of the legal challenge, and plans for continuing work through election day in November. Q & A and group discussion will follow.
This event is open to the public, but attendees must be over 21 to buy/drink alcohol.
Sponsored by League of Women Voters. Pointless Brewery,
3014 Packard Rd, Ann Arbor
. 7:30 pm
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This newsletter contains many suggestions to contact your congresspeople. To acquire their contact information,
click here
.
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Check your voting status with your local clerk of court
The Bureau of Elections and local clerks regularly scrub the voter lists and during Johnson’s time in office, the Bureau of Elections has removed 1.2 million “ineligible voters.”
Rock the Vote
describes Michigan as a blocker state, meaning that the majorities of its policies restrict your right to vote!
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Tell Governor Snyder to oppose mandatory Medicaid work requirements
The Michigan House of Representatives and Senate are getting ready to pass SB 897, a bill to require Medicaid recipients to meet work requirements in order to get health care. You can read the bill and the analysis
here
. League of Women Voters Michigan opposes this bill.
Medicaid is a joint federal and state program that assists with medical costs for some people with limited income and resources. The bill is not finalized but as passed by the Senate contains a 29-hour-a-week workforce requirement for able-bodied adults on Medicaid. The requirement links work to health insurance coverage. Medicaid has never had a work requirement since the program was established in 1965.The result could be more people without insurance resulting in a higher use of emergency rooms and delays in getting health care.
Click here
to tell Governor Snyder to VETO SB 897, the bill to require work requirements for Medicaid
.
If you prefer, you can call Governor Rick Snyder at (517) 373-3400.
Urge these three Senators to keep speaking out, loud and clear
Three Republican Senators have spoken out to warn Trump against trying to pardon himself.
• Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine): "There’s no doubt that the president is not above the law. It would be a tremendous abuse of his authority if he were to do so, as well as remarkably unwise." Senator Collins: (202) 224-2523
• Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) stressed that the Constitution ‘doesn’t give carte blanche freedom to a president.’ Senator Moran: (202) 224-6521
• Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) also took issue with Trump’s claims. Senator Grassley: (202) 224-3744
Voters Not Politicians’ Anti-gerrymandering proposal at risk
The VNP proposal which garnered a record number of voter signatures in a record length of time faces significant challenges. First, according to
Michigan Radio
,
the Republican chair of the Board of State Canvassers unexpectedly canceled a meeting to certify their petition signatures as qualifying for the ballot.
Second, according to
The Ballenger Report
,
as it abrogated four provisions of the current Michigan Constitution, the anti-gerrymandering ballot proposal faces significant legal challenges. Its legitimacy will undoubtedly be settled by the Michigan Supreme Court.
Last week, we asked you to donate to help fund the lawsuit. This week, we ask you to make a phone call for the ballot initiative. Before you call, here’s another article to read: “Redistricting group has signatures, still fighting to make ballot” in
The Detroit News
.
Ask Governor Snyder to stop the Board of Canvassers’ delay in certifying the anti-gerrymandering ballot initiative. Governor Snyder: (517) 335-7858. Call anytime. If after 5 pm, you can leave a message.
SUGGESTED SCRIPT
Hi, my name is _____, I live at _____. I'm calling to ask Governor Snyder to make the Board of Canvassers do its job, and hold a meeting immediately to certify the anti-gerrymandering initiative. The necessary signatures have been submitted. The Board has been delaying, and recently cancelled their meeting where they should have certified it. My contact information is ______. Thank you.
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Children lose in new ICE/DOJ policy of family separation
The new policy of Trump, Sessions, and the administration is designed as a deterrent to illegal immigration according to General Kelly. But after separation, the framework of child protection is starting to really fragment. Kids In Need of Defense (KIND) recently released
a report
documenting recent changes to immigration policy, titled “The Trump Administration’s Systematic Assault on the Protection of Unaccompanied Children.”
How to help the lost immigrant children
Since the news hit that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) admitted to losing track of nearly 1,500 children in their custody, social media has been inundated with furious citizens demanding to know what happened to the children. To see what they’ve learned, and what you can do about it, click
here
. -
PoliticalCharge.org
Opinion: Need a reason to care about a Line 5 spill? Here’s 6 billion
What would the cost to Michigan’s economy be of a major spill from the twin pipelines owned and operated by Enbridge Energy at the Straits of Mackinac? Although much has been said about the environmental impact, no thorough analysis of the potential economic costs has been done. Until now.
A new poll says the majority of Michigan voters want Line 5, the
64-year-old Straits pipeline which transports oil, to
shut down. A year ago,
Bridge
reported that legislators were increasingly in agreement that
Line 5 had to go
and that polls indicate the majority of Michiganders supported that decision. (Enbridge, the company which owns and operates the pipelines, disputes the accuracy of the polls.) Read
recent poll news here.
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michiganradio.org
Supreme Court won’t take up challenge to Arkansas abortion law
The Supreme Court declined to take up a case involving an Arkansas law that challengers say could end the use of medication abortions in the state. The law could leave one clinic, in Little Rock, to serve the entire state — and it would have to offer only surgical abortions.
Read the full story here.
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The Washington Post
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New report: LIne 5 is Michigan’s risk but Canada’s benefit
Michigan absorbs all the risk and reaps little benefit by allowing Enbridge, the Canadian energy giant, to operate the oil pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac. Groundwork Center for Resilient Communities, a nonprofit advocacy group based in Traverse City,
contends Michigan could shut down Line 5
with little economic disruption, due in part to the state’s shifting energy needs.
Read more here.
-Bridge
Democrats dodge California lockouts and other primaries results
The party has scrambled to avoid being shut out of the general election in three Southern California districts where large numbers of Democratic candidates split the party's votes. Under the state’s “jungle” primary system, that would have allowed two Republicans to advance to the November general election for seats Hillary Clinton carried in 2016.
Click here for more the complete story.
- Politico
The polls are alright (not all right!)
Polls are important, not merely in predicting a winner but in fighting complacency and directing elections. Nate Silver’s 538 blog reports that poll results are no better or worse than they have been historically, although changes in input could change that. For a thorough understanding of polls and their uses,
read more here
.
-
fivethirtyeight.com
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SOS Johnson: Michigan upgrades election security for 2018
On May 31, 2018, Ruth Johnson detailed how new voting equipment, $11 million in new federal security grants and extensive preparations will better protect Michigan’s elections system for the 2018 election cycle. “Most importantly, every voter across Michigan still will use a good, old-fashioned paper ballot to mark their choices…. But buying all new election equipment isn’t all we’ve done to safeguard our election system.”
Read more here.
-Michigan Secretary of State
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Project Blitz: the new ALEC for the religious right
ALEC is the nonprofit conservative organization that writes model bills for legislators. America’s Christian nationalists now have a plan to advance their legislative goals in the same way, writes journalist Katherine Stewart. The stated aim is to promote “religious freedom.” Not shy, they call it “Project Blitz.” In their
guidebook for state legislators and other allies
, the authors of the Project Blitz program group their model legislation into three categories: 1. symbolic gestures, like resolutions to emblazon the motto “In God We Trust” on as many moving objects as possible (e.g. police cars), 2. bills intended to promote the teaching and celebration of Christianity in public schools and elsewhere, and 3. legislation similar to Mississippi’s
HB 1523
, a 2016 law that allows private businesses and government employees to discriminate, against L.G.B.T. people and others provided that they do so in accordance with “sincerely held religious beliefs.” If you hold a different set of religious beliefs, like, say, a commitment to gender and L.G.B.T. equality, there is no liberty for you.
Read more here
-The New York Times
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2018 Election: Get ready, get set....
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Receive absentee ballot applications automatically
Registered Ann Arbor voters who qualify and regularly vote by
absentee
ballot, including residents over age 60, can sign up to automatically receive absentee ballot applications by mail for each election. Applications will be sent to those on this permanent list six to eight weeks prior to each election.
In order to receive a ballot, voters on the permanent list must still complete and sign the application each election. Call (734) 794-6140 or email the Ann Arbor City Clerk's Office at
[email protected] for more info or to sign up.
Even more valuable voter resources
Know when elections are happening, and have the information you need to vote with confidence.
Sign up
to receive election reminders, get registered to vote, and apply for your absentee ballot!
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Ensure you’ll have a ballot for 2018 primaries and midterms
Spend 60 seconds to verify your right to vote.
1) Check that you haven’t been removed from your state’s voter rolls (
check here
).
2) Ensure that you meet your state’s voter ID requirements (
check here
). If you need help with getting ID or transport, go
here
or
here
.
3) Put your state’s primary dates in your calendar (
check here
).
4) Make sure your polling place hasn’t been moved (
check here
).
5) Important: Share these steps on social media so your friends can also vote.
Ten podcasts to make you smarter about politics
Given the high interest level of the public into knowing everything that is going on with President Donald Trump's administration,news organizations that cover politics have plunged head-first into the audio space.
Here are 10
must-listen political podcasts to add to your list.
-Apple News
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Guide to Voter Registration in Michigan
for college students
Find out if a person is registered to vote
Congressional Districts by zip code
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Opportunities to meet with your representatives and candidates
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Saturday, June 9. State Rep. Adam Zemke coffee hour
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Saturday, June 16.
U.S. Senator Gary Peters’ community conversation
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Saturday, June 16.
Coffee hour with State Senate candidate Michelle Deatrick
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Looking for more information?
Check out the
equalityingov.org
webpage. Find out everything you want to know about who we are; the issues and organizations we endorse; an events calendar; and past issues of our newsletter and Facebook postings. It’s all there on the Web!
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To subscribe to this
free
newsletter go to our website by clicking
here
.
Thanks to Newsletter contributors:
Bernie Banet, Carolyn Christopher, Roger Rayle, Ellen Halter, Leslie McGraw, CivCity, Rick Price, Richard Gaeth, Jim Morgenstern, Ginny Morgan, Susan Ayer, and Chuck Newman
for their help preparing this newsletter. Write us at
i
[email protected]
if you would like to learn how you can help create our weekly newsletter. It’s fun and no ongoing commitment is required.
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