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9/15/2020 0 Comments Announcing Teens Elect 2020! Hi everyone! Big announcement today: We're mobilizing youth to call and text voters across the country in the last 7 weeks before election day. Here's how to participate: STEP 1: THE WHYNeed some convincing on why working on an election or two is a worthwhile way to spend time this year? STEP 2: THE TEAMLet's make this fun. Pick a few friends and form a team and commit to calling and texting voters together! You can make it as casual or not-casual as you'd like (from just doing it at the same time to Zooming with mute on while you call voters)-- you just have to commit to calling for a certain amount of time per week (seriously no commitment is too small). STEP 3: THE CANDIDATES You and your team can pick the candidate(s) you want to phonebank for: from Joe Biden & Kamala Harris all the way to your local city council election. To make things simple, we've created a curated TR list of some extra-special House and Senate races for you to choose from if you'd like. Our list includes bios and, of course, easy links to sign up to volunteer. STEP 4: CALLING & LOGGINGThen, you call! Every time your team makes calls, fill out our short log so that we can keep track of the calls we collectively make and give your team credit when you make a lot of calls! We'll be posting the team that makes the most calls each week on social media, and will be sending out free Teens Resist stickers to teams periodically. CREDITS:
Teens Elect Main Organizers: Lily Seltz, Kate Griem, Sonia Chajet Wides, Delilah Shapiro Teens Elect Writers: Hailey Dickinson, Tali Natter, Declan Gunn, Claire Hedberg, Elliot Granik
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Hi everyone! We've been on summer break for a little but we're back and have a really important topic to cover. As the summer nears an end, election season is upon us. We'll be unveiling a special project related to elections across the country very soon. But it's essential that we address this before anything else. Voter suppression has been an issue in the United State since... forever, and it's been used to limit the votes of various groups that could threaten the powerful. It's also an especially pertinent issue now. The pandemic and the role of the postal service in the election has left lots of room for voter suppression. Also, Trump knows that there is a lot of discontent with him, and he's scared! Any conversation about this year's elections would be incomplete without talking about voter suppression. So let's go! The History:When the United States began, only property-owning white males were allowed to vote. Over time, the wealth requirement was done away with. In 1869, the 15th Amendment was passed amid Reconstruction and after the Civil War. It granted every citizen the right to vote regardless of race. Immediately following the ratification of the 15th Amendment, voter turnout of Black men in the South increased. However, as with many other policies, Southern states soon found ways to circumvent the 15th Amendment and prevent Black men from voting using voter suppression. These politicians wanted to stay in power and hang onto the pieces of the slavery system that they could. That meant preventing Black men from voting because they knew it would unseat them and legitimize a movement that threatened them. Historical voter suppression tactics:
Sources: https://people.howstuffworks.com/voter-suppression2.htm https://www.aclu.org/facts-about-voter-suppression https://felonvoting.procon.org/state-felon-voting-laws/ https://www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/voting-in-2020/blocked-from-the-ballot-box/ Spotlight on Gerrymandering:
Voter Suppression in 2020While voter suppression has been an ongoing issue in the United States, it has been exacerbated by the current COVID-19 pandemic, as more people are unable to leave their homes and go to voting centers. According to CBS news, 70% of voters have expressed a desire to vote by mail in the upcoming November election. With a record number of voters now planning to use mail-in ballots, President Trump has (inaccurately) argued that it will lead to massive voter fraud. Earlier this month, Trump admitted to blocking additional funding for the United States Postal Service in order to complicate the process of voting by mail. Additional funding was requested by states in order to handle the expected increase in mail-in ballots. Lack of funding is already dramatically slowing down the United States Postal Service, indicating that many mail-in ballots may not arrive in time to be counted for the general election in November. It is being recommended that people send in their ballots as soon as possible to decrease the chance of their ballot being disregarded. Already in the 2020 primary election, 65,000 ballots weren’t considered because they arrived late by mail. This indicates how big a threat the suppression of the United States Postal Service really is. This intentional sabotage of the postal service not only threatens people’s right to vote, but it also slows down other services that people across the country rely on, such as receiving medication in the mail, something which is very common, especially in more rural communities and throughout the current pandemic. In addition to a lack of funding, the current postmaster general, Louis Dejoy, who Trump appointed earlier this year, is a big Republican donor. Dejoy has introduced changes into the postal service, such as alterations in worker schedules and working hours, which significantly affect the swiftness of the postal service. Additionally, Dejoy reportedly enforced the removal of mailboxes and other mail equipment in order to delay postal service. Throughout all of this voting turmoil, uncertainty is growing on both sides of the issue, as people across the country are losing confidence that their ballot will be considered, and in the validity of those votes that are counted. Equally as important are the devastating effects that these USPS delays are having on many Americans. The USPS is the largest employer of veterans, and its union has the most Black union-members of any union in the US. Many Americans are dependent on the USPS for medicine and other necessities, especially those who can't go outside due to the pandemic. Trump putting these people's lives at risk to rig an election in his favor is purely evil. Articles to read for additional information: Trump's USPS attacks are already undermining confidence in vote by mail Can the Post Office Handle Election Mail? Why the Recession Could Actually Help Take ActionSaving the USPS: - Super quick action: Text USPS to 50409 to send a letter to your reps (using Resistbot, one of our favorite tools). - Urge your Senator to pass H.R. 8015, which the House just approved. It would halt Trump's changes to the USPS until after the election and increase the USPS' budget (read more here). Phone number: 202-224-3121 (ask for your Senator) Script: Hi, my name is ____ and I'm from _____. I'm calling to ask you to please support H.R. 8015, the Delivering for America Act, to help protect the USPS. During this pandemic, it is simply not safe for many Americans to vote in person and they must vote by absentee ballot instead. President Trump has admitted to trying to hurt the postal service in order to interfere with these absentee ballots. This blatant act of fascism is not only threatening voting rights, it's stopping Americans from receiving their postal service with important things like medication. We cannot let Trump's selfishness get in the way of the essential work of the USPS. Please vote for the bill when it comes to the floor, and co-sponsor it if you have not yet done so. Thank you." - Sign this petition (there are also actions to take in the description!). - Buy some stuff! Here is a link to the USPS Stamp Store, which has lots of cool collections. And here is a link to some literal USPS merch. - Stay updated with Save The Post Office, a movement to do, well, just what the name says! Fighting Voter Suppression: - The incomparable Stacey Abrams and her organization Fair Fight are doing incredible work to end voter suppression. Please consider donating to them or volunteering nationally or in Georgia! Find all the links here. - Volunteer with When We All Vote for some voter-registration-specific action We'll see you soon!
Peace and Power, Teens Resist Contributors to this list: Leo Levine, Miranda Licardo, Christopher Giang, Rivka Stasavage, Sonia Chajet Wides, Kate Griem 7/6/2020 0 Comments Early July Action!Hi everyone! We hope you're doing well and having a good summer. Usually in the summer we only do two lists, but we're planning on putting out resources more frequently this year. We also have some big plans for 2020 election action that we are going to be rolling out over the next few weeks and months. So please stay tuned! We also wanted to say that for this summer, if you're not already subscribed to Resistbot, it's a great resource. Text RESIST to 50409-- you can send it texts that it turns into letters that get mailed to your reps. Also: This amazing student-made website designed especially for students of color at competitive NYC high schools was shared with us recently. You can find their opportunities page here. There's a lot going on and a lot of action to take. So let's get started! Bills & Rules: Breathe Act: This week, the Movement for Black Lives released plans for a groundbreaking piece of legislation supported by Reps. Ayanna Pressley & Rashida Tlaib called The Breathe Act. The Breathe Act is a lengthy piece of legislation that aims to divest governmental funding from harmful carceral systems and put resources towards community-based solutions-- it also includes some other major pieces of policy related to environmental justice, immigration, and economic justice. The Breathe Act is long, so we have clarified its contents into a table that can be found at bit.ly/trbreathe. We would highly recommend at least skimming it to see what it contains. It's a pretty huge piece of legislation, and even having it be discussed in Congress would advance issues forward in our government (it's also a reason why the 2020 Congress elections matter so much). This is something we want to call your attention to right now, and we will continue to provide updates on it. What You Can Do: - Read through it! The full summary of The Breathe Act can be found here, and our breakdown of that summary can be found here (it was too long to put fully in the list). - Watch the full press conference announcing it here. - If you like what you see, the Movement for Black Lives is asking people sign on as community co-sponsors which would mean taking small actions and using a provided toolkit to talk with people in your community about The Breathe Act. If that's something that interests you, sign up here. Emmett Till Act Emmett Till was a 14-year old African-American boy who was lynched in 1955 after being accused of offending a local white woman in a grocery store. His death acted as a catalyst for the emerging civil rights movement, and H.R. 35 — an antilyching bill named in his honor — just passed the House of Representatives. The bill establishes a new criminal civil rights violation for lynching. Specifically, a person who conspires to commit certain civil rights offenses (e.g., a hate crime act) would be subject to criminal penalties. Call your senators & tell them to vote yes:
Walking While Trans The #WalkingWhileTrans ban, officially New York’s Loitering for the Purpose of Prostitution law, allows police to arrest individuals for conditions like ‘being in an area for a certain amont of time’ and ‘‘wearing provocative clothing.’ It also allows condoms found on someone to be used as evidence towards assumed prostitution, among other absurd qualifications. It has been disproportionately enforced against women, women of color and transgender women specifically. It’s essentially a Stop and Frisk 2.0 — an archaic mechanism that law enforcement uses to oppress marginalized communities via our legal system. The majority of the New York State Senate has recently signed on to co-sponsor a bill to repeal the ban and Cuomo has signaled that he’d sign it, meaning it has a real chance of getting passed. To bring the bill to the top of your representatives’ priority lists and ensure that they vote to repeal:
New ICE Rule As you've probably heard, there is a new ICE rule that says that international students who attend college or university in the US that is going to be continuing with remote-only learning in the fall have to either transfer to a school with in-person classes, or be deported from the United States. You can immediately sign this petition at this link. You can stay updated on efforts against this policy with WCL If/When/How's Instagram. Asylum Rule There's a new, really bad asylum rule. You can read more and sign a petition here. You can also submit a public comment, which slows down the government significantly. Here is a link to all the materials you need for creating one — instructions, tips, sample comments, etc — via @undocu_pdx Say Their Names
Safiya Satchell: Safiya is a 33-year old Black woman who was beaten and tasered by a police officer named Jordy Yanes Martel. On January 14th, after Safiya argued with staff at a Miami strip club, and management ordered Martel to give her a warning for trespassing. Martel confronted her and blocked her from leaving, only to forcibly pull her from her car, restrain her by kneeling on her neck, and tase her several times in the stomach. Safiya, pregnant at the time, suffered many wounds to her arms, legs, and stomach from the assault. On June 29th, five months after this incident, Martel was arrested and charged with four counts of battery and two counts of official misconduct. While this may be a victory for Safiya, it’s still not enough to end the brutality that affects countless other Black Americans. Extra Info:Supreme Court Update (as of July 4) *A number of important decisions have been put forth by the Supreme Court in the last few weeks. The four cases below involved reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ employment discrimination, and the rights of DACA recipients. Some justices strayed from the political beliefs of the presidents who selected them, reminding the American public that the Supreme Court is not as partisan as we may think.* On June 15th, the Supreme Court released the majority and dissenting opinions for Bockstock v. Clayton County Georgia. This case was decided in conjunction with two similar cases, Altitude Express Inc. v. Zarda, and R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes v. EEOC as specified by Ballotpedia. All three cases dealt with the definition of the word “sex” as used in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This section prohibits employment discrimination. The Court ruled in a 6-3 majority that the word “sex” as used in Title VII includes sexual orientation and transgender status. The majority opinion was written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, a Trump appointee. This ruling not only established employment discrimination protections for the LGBTQ+ community, but also set a precedent that includes sexual orientation and transgender status in cases of discrimination on the basis of sex. The ruling in Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California was announced on June 18th. The case was centered on the fact that the DHS’s attempt to end DACA did not follow proper procedure. This resulted in a 5-4 ruling in favor of the Regents of the University of California. The ruling determined that the attempt to end DACA could be legally reviewed by the Supreme Court and was in violation of the law. The majority opinion was written by Chief Justice Roberts, a Bush appointee. While this decision supports the continued existence of DACA, the DHS maintains power over the program. The Supreme Court's ruling in June Medical Services v. Russo (previously known as June Medical Services v. Gee) was announced on June 29th. June Medical Services challenged a Louisiana law (Act 620) that required doctors performing abortions to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of their facility. While this case made its way to the Supreme Court, a similar case from Texas (Whole Women’s Health v. Hellerstedt) was heard in 2016 wherein the Supreme Court declared a similar law unconstitutional. In a 5-4 ruling, Act 620 was also declared unconstitutional, following the precedent of the 2016 case. The majority opinion was written by Justice Breyer, a Clinton appointee. This decision enforced the precedent that extreme burden cannot be placed on a person’s right to choose. Because admitting privileges are difficult to get for abortion providers, a law requiring them places extreme burden on a person seeking an abortion. Chief Justice Roberts who was a dissenter in the 2016 case, respected the precedent set by the court and sided with the majority opinion. On July 8th, 2020, the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in Little Sisters of the Poor v. Pennsylvania that the Trump administration can allow employers to deny contraception coverage to female workers on religious or moral grounds under the Affordable Care Act. According to government estimates, as a consequence of the ruling, anywhere from 70,000 to 126,000 women could lose contraceptive coverage from their employers. In 2014, the Court addressed a similar case with Burwell v. Hobby Lobby and ruled similarly on the side of religious freedom. However, one of the “cardinal distinctions,” as Justice Ginsburg put it in her dissent, between Burwell and Little Sisters is that the former provided another option for coverage: if an employer claimed an exemption, the government or insurance company would pay. With Little Sisters, the Court struck that accommodation, agreeing with the religious right’s argument that it would make employers “complicit” in granting their employees contraceptive access. In summary, it’s a horrible ruling for women’s control over their own bodies, the separation of church and state, and the countless poor women of color who are disproportionately affected. Support Planned Parenthood and similar orgs in any way you can !! Instead of a puppy video this week, we are recommending this channel, Nomadic Ambience, which has tons of gorgeous relaxing videos in a variety of locations-- seriously recommend watching to decompress and take a breath!
Be well! Peace & power, Teens Resist Hi everyone! First of all, happy Juneteenth! Juneteenth commemorates that on June 19, 1865, enslaved people in Galveston, TX were alerted that they were free from slavery. It is widely acknowledged as commemorating the abolition of slavery in the US and celebrating Black liberation. However, in the words of Bryan Stevenson, "Slavery didn't end in 1865, it just evolved." Part of celebrating Juneteenth is a recommitment to fighting the systemic racism of the United States criminal justice system, education system, medical system, etc. We'd also urge you to use this form to urge Congress to make Juneteenth a national holiday! To our Black community members, we're wishing you a joyful day of celebration! We're back to our biweekly list schedule for now, but please be aware that our past two lists have resources that are relatively current and will continue to be helpful. Hopefully everyone is wrapping up their school years well. We're wishing everyone a wonderful start to summer. We're going to jump right in but will outline the list first so you can jump around:
Let's jump in! As always, if it's your first time doing some of these actions, feel free to check out our Basics page and Index by the Issues for background help. You can also watch our IGTV for an explainer of calling reps. Say Their Names Oluwatoyin “Toyin” Salau: Toyin was a 19-year old Black woman on the front lines of the Black Lives Matters protests. Toyin was found dead on June 13th in the home of Aaron Glee Jr, who has been arrested before, in Tallahassee, Florida. A week earlier, on June 6th, Toyin had gone missing a few hours after she tweeted that she had been sexually assaulted that morning. Toyin’s close friends said that she had been assaulted a few days earlier as well and had spoken to a lawyer and police about it. Toyin was a powerful activist and spent her final days fighting for Black liberation and for Black trans liberation following the murder of Tony McDade in Tallahassee. - Petition for full investigation into Toyin’s murder: http://chng.it/wG8zDRQX57 - Donate to Justice For Black Girls, an organization which started the Oluwatoyin Salau Freedom Fighters Fund, which provides funds to young Black women fighting for change: https://www.justiceforblackgirls.com/oluwatoyin-freedom-fighters-fund - We also urge you to read this article, "We All Failed Oluwatoyin Salau," by Clarkisha Kent.  Na’kia Crawford: On June 14th in Akron, Ohio, Na’kia Crawford, an 18-year old young Black woman, was shot while she was driving to run errands with her grandmother. Na’kia had graduated high school just 2 weeks earlier. Na’kia’s family believes that the incident was racially motivated. No matter the final conclusion, Na’kia’s death is a reminder that this country systematically puts the lives of black women at risk every single day. Na’kia Crawford had just graduated high school would be a freshman at Central State University studying computer science in Fall 2020. - Sign the petition here. - GoFundMe here.  Dominique “Rem’Mie” Fells: Dominique “Rem’Mie” Fells, a 27-year old Black transgender woman, was found on the banks of the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, brutally attacked and murdered. Authorities have identified a suspect in the case. The Humans Rights Campaign cites Rem’Mie as the 13th transgender or gender non-conforming person murdered in just this year. We mourn Dominique's life and will honor her with justice. - GoFundMe started by Rem’Mie’s family: https://www.gofundme.com/f/dominiquefells - Petition for justice for Rem’Mie: http://chng.it/mCcvBY6xc5 - There is an extensive list of places to donate to in support of Black trans lives at the end of this list.  Riah Milton: Riah Milton was a 25 year old Black trans woman and home health aide who attended the University of Cincinnati. Riah was shot and killed during a robbery in Liberty Township, OH. Two people have been arrested and charged with her murder. She and Dominique Fells were murdered within the same 24 hours, a dangerous reminder of how at risk Black trans women are in our nation. The life expectancy for trans women of color in the United States is 35 years old. - The official GoFundMe made by Riah's family has now completed, but you can donate to an organization that protects Black trans people-- we have an extensive list at the end of this list. - Petition for justice for Riah.  Rayshard Brooks: On Friday, June 12th, 2020, Atlanta police murdered Rayshard Brooks. They had been called because of a report of a man sleeping in his car in a Wendy’s parking lot. After an altercation, they shot him twice in the back, injuries from which he later died. His family later said that his daughter was excited to see him the next morning for her skating birthday party. Though the video is widely available, you don’t need to see the graphic, sensationalized footage of his death in order to empathize. The officer who shot him was fired and charged with felony murder. The Atlanta Police Chief resigned. - Petition here. - More details and updates here. - GoFundMe here.  Robert Fuller: On Wednesday, June 10, Robert Fuller, a 24-year-old Black man, was found hanging from a tree in Palmdale, CA. His death was ruled a suicide by the Los Angeles County Sherrif’s Department, a determination which received lots of backlash from the community and Fuller’s family, who argue that Fuller was not suicidal. In the wake of recent and historic racist violence against Black men across the country, Fuller’s family, other members of the Palmdale community, and activists across the nation are calling for an independent autopsy. Officials from the city of Palmdale have supported the community (and more vocal protestors who have been demonstrating outside of Palmdale City Hall) in their demands. On Monday, June 15 the Sheriff's Department held a press conference in which they maintained their conclusion that Fuller’s death was a suicide (which came from their autopsy report) but alluded that further investigation may lead to a different outcome. The public outcry against Robert Fuller’s death also drew attention to the death of Malcolm Harsch, a 38-year-old Black man whose body was found in a tree on May 31 in Victorville, CA, roughly 45 miles away from Palmdale. The similarity of the two cases drew suspicion and furthered both respective calls for justice. - To read: this column from the LA Times. - Petition here. - GoFundMe here. Justice for Breonna TaylorThis week, we saw the police who murdered George Floyd as well as Rayshard Brooks be charged with murder. We're still waiting for Breonna Taylor's killers to be charged. Here's how to take action:
Script: Hello, my name is [your name], and I’m contacting your office with regards to the murder of Breonna Taylor. I am demanding that you immediately arrest and charge Brett Hankison, Jonathan Mattingly, and Myles Cosgrove. We cannot continue to allow police to act with impunity, as they violently brutalize our Black siblings/us. Accountability is essential, and I want to remind you that the entire nation is calling on you to act and get justice for Breonna and her family. Thank you. Numbers: Gov. Andy Beshear: (502) 564-2611 Mayor Greg Fischer: (844)-298-2731 Sen. Rand Paul: (202)-224-4343 / (270)-782-8303 DA Tom Wine: (502) 595-2300 AG Daniel Cameron: 502-696-5300 To email: When emailing, we advise paraphrasing the above script or writing a couple sentences on your own in case they are filtering forms like this one. Daniel Cameron: https://ag.ky.gov/Contact-Us/Pages/default.aspx Andy Beshear: https://governor.ky.gov/contact/contact-us End the War on Children March ToolkitWe were proud to be a partner for the End the War on Children March, a youth-led action on Juneteenth organized by The Gathering for Justice. If you couldn't make it (or even if you did), we’ve put together a toolkit with actions addressing each of the march’s demands. It's similar to our toolkit from last week with Coalition Z in that it's like a self-guided phonebank/action list. 1. DEMAND 1: Defunding the NYPD: cut $1 billion from the NYPD budget and redirect funds into safety nets and key needs for Black & Brown communities. 2. DEMAND 2: Police Free Schools: The City of New York and The Department of Education MUST cut all ties between the NYPD and New York City public schools. We demand the immediate removal of police and an end to routine police practices in New York City schools. 3. DEMAND 3: Investing in education: “New York State MUST adequately fund public schools by allocating the $4.1 billion dollars in Foundation Aid indebted to New York Public School students. The Department of Education should prioritize both physical and psychological safety by increasing access to counselors, social workers, nurses, and psychologists. As well as employing effective disciplinary policies that center restorative justice practices.” TOolkit for Protecting Black Trans Lives:We’ve adapted this section from this resource doc: Actions for Solidarity: #BlackTransLivesMatter. We have adapted some scripts and info for more of a step-by-step. Please check the full version out if you want more details!! Some context--The current moment is a contentious one for overarching federal protections/regulations regarding gay and transgender individuals:
First: Some GoFundMes for Black trans lives lost this year: Nina Pop, Monika Diamond, Tony McDade, Dominique “Rem’mie” Fells, TeTe Gulley, and Riah Milton. JUSTICE FOR LAYLEEN POLANCO Layleen Polanco was an Afrolatinx trans woman found dead in solitary confinement at Rikers’ Island last year. Last week, the NYC DOI concluded that staff members there were not responsible for her death. Here are some brief actions, via the Anti-Violence Project:
ORGS TO DONATE TO & SUPPORT If you have the means, donate to one or more of these amazing organizations, which are laid out by topic. Otherwise, uplift their voices on social media and in your everyday life. If you would prefer to make a mass donation to a variety of orgs: Split donations page to donate to support Black trans futures Police Violence and Incarceration
Training Black trans women to be community leaders
Economic and Housing Stability
Immigration
Sex Work
Intimate Partner Violence
Healthcare
**And, last but not least, voting** (ACTIONS, NOT JUST DONATIONS): this is part of how we fight systemic efforts by federal and state governments to strip the rights of trans individuals. Local elections are particularly important.
New Resources (see past lists for more)
We're sending you lots of love and light!
Peace, power, and solidarity, Teens Resist Hi everyone! We usually don't do lists this close together but we wanted to consolidate all the resources we have seen and created into one list. So this is a follow up! Please refer to our list from a few days ago for more starter actions. That list includes tons of links, resources, and more. Our content elsewhere this week:
Where to get protest info: For NYC: @JusticeForGeorgeNYC on IG is posting daily schedules and compiling all the protests going on. Please be sure to find a near location to you-- don't go on the subway!!! Direct help to protesters from home: If you can't protest, here are some ways to help from home:
Things in this list that are urgent: - The repeal of 50A in NYS is being voted on imminently - NYC Budget gets finalized July 1st! So defunding police is urgent. Also: make sure you're taking some time to take care of yourself. If we all get burnt out, this will never work. This Instagram post by Jenna Wortham includes lots of healing resources that are free for Black people right now-- if you are Black, please utilize! A few key points before you dive in:
say their names:
First things first: DIY PHONEBANKWe made this Masterlist with Coalition Z and it's full of resources. Take a half hour to guide yourself through this phonebank on your own or FaceTime a friend or host a Zoom and do it together. legislation: Safer Ny ActThe SAFER NY ACT is a package of bills aimed at increasing increase NYPD transparency and accountability. First component of the Safer NY Act: Repeal 50-A
Click here for a one-pager on the full volume of bills in the Safer NY Act. The other bills in it are:
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| Organizations and antiracist resources are found extensively in the relevant sections of our last list (though they're by no means exhaustive), as well as in some of the resource docs linked in the buttons below. **Before donating, make sure that an org is still accepting money!** One addition: if you don’t have the means to donate, Zoe Amira, a Black woman, posted a video to raise funds for BLM causes — just clicking on the link and letting it play will generate ad revenue. - For nonblack allies, another important "place" to donate is to the Black educators helping you learn right now. Black educators on social media like Rachel Cargle will often include their Venmo, CashApp, etc. in their bio and posts. If you're learning from them, financially compensate them! |  |
Some more petitions:
- https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/#petitions — a ton of petitions
- Advocate for the City Council’s passing of the chokehold bill
- Advocate for the Hands Up Act, which would punish police for shooting unarmed citizens
- Demand that Amazon stop selling facial recognition software to the government, which disproportionately impacts people of color
- Earlier this year, Amazon came under fire for supplying ICE with surveillance information in order to aid agents in terrorizing immigrant communities and deporting individuals
some other phenomenal resources worth checking out
George Floyd action doc (via @botanicaldyke):
Legal aid and places to donate to, indexed by location.
Resistance Resource Hub (via @avyisabel):
Extensive research on how police departments nationwide are funded; live and constantly being made more comprehensive by a coalition of organizers.
26 Ways to Be in the Struggle Beyond the Streets
Who’s Taking Cop Money?: A living document aimed at exposing which NY state legislators have taken money from police institutions. Has already caused five NYS incumbent politicians to swear off taking contributions from the PD and pledge to donate the funds to BLM causes.
Neighbor Handout (adapted from @kristadelany): A note calling neighbors to action, basic statistics about police brutality in the US, petitions, places to donate to, script to defund NYPD.
Student Anti-Racism Resources (from @hchsgo): Concrete actions, orgs to donate to, and books, shows/movies, articles, and podcasts to educate yourself.
Campaign Zero (@campaignzero): website for this amazing organization, which is dedicated to finding effective policy solutions to fight police brutality.
Legal aid and places to donate to, indexed by location.
Resistance Resource Hub (via @avyisabel):
Extensive research on how police departments nationwide are funded; live and constantly being made more comprehensive by a coalition of organizers.
26 Ways to Be in the Struggle Beyond the Streets
Who’s Taking Cop Money?: A living document aimed at exposing which NY state legislators have taken money from police institutions. Has already caused five NYS incumbent politicians to swear off taking contributions from the PD and pledge to donate the funds to BLM causes.
Neighbor Handout (adapted from @kristadelany): A note calling neighbors to action, basic statistics about police brutality in the US, petitions, places to donate to, script to defund NYPD.
Student Anti-Racism Resources (from @hchsgo): Concrete actions, orgs to donate to, and books, shows/movies, articles, and podcasts to educate yourself.
Campaign Zero (@campaignzero): website for this amazing organization, which is dedicated to finding effective policy solutions to fight police brutality.
Some Background (further reading) on why 50-A is relevant: examples of how different police misconduct laws function in 2 other states
| Records of police misconduct are confidential in 23 states; the relative level of protection of these documents varies across those states. For example, some states make the personnel records of any public employee exempt from disclosure, while New York, California, and Delaware have specific laws that prevent the public from knowing if a law enforcement officer has a history of misconduct. In California, there is a specific procedure that a defendant in a criminal case must follow in order to gain access to an officer’s record. This is called a Pitchess motion, and all of the following criteria must be met:
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However, in September 2018, a California Senate bill was passed which makes a Pitchess motion unnecessary in some cases; these include records relating to an incident, or investigation:
- involving a police officer shooting his gun at a person;
- involving a police officer using force against a person and resulting in death or great bodily injury;
- in which there was a finding that a police officer engaged in sexual assault; and,
- where there was a finding that an officer acted dishonestly.
In Washington, the “use of force” bill (House Bill 3003, signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee in March, 2018) helps hold officers accountable and prevents the use of deadly force in police altercations except under certain specified circumstances.
- While such bills help prevent deadly interactions, especially in the midst of current protests going on in Seattle, there have still been violent and abusive altercations between protesters and police officers.
- In Seattle, over the weekend, a police officer maced a child, and used black tape to cover up his badge number so bystanders could not file a complaint against him, despite officers being required to show their badges all the time. However, through photo analysis, individuals have identified the officer as Officer Jared Campbell and are working to get a complaint through to the police department.
- Email the Seattle Police Department at opa@seattle.gov or call 206-684-2489 in order to demand that Campbell face repercussions for his actions, including macing a child and refusing to show/supply his badge number when requested.
With that, we'll sign off.
Peace & Power,
TR
Peace & Power,
TR
 |  |
Both art pieces by @shirien.creates
Hi everyone! We still have a regular list coming out next week with some updates on a few other topics (abortion access, vaccines, some Trump stuff, election, etc.), but social media has been overwhelmed these past few days with images and actions regarding the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis. In light of George's story, there has also been a lot of sharing of the stories of other victims of police violence, including Breonna Taylor, whose story we cover in this list.
This list is going to have some emergency actions, split into a few sections. You can take note of the links to documents that are updating more frequently than we are.
Remember, if this is your first experience calling or emailing about something like this, you can always look to our Basics page for help and/or email or DM us if you need help. You can also look to our Index by the Issues page for some of our previous coverage on police brutality and institutional racism.
This list is going to have some emergency actions, split into a few sections. You can take note of the links to documents that are updating more frequently than we are.
Remember, if this is your first experience calling or emailing about something like this, you can always look to our Basics page for help and/or email or DM us if you need help. You can also look to our Index by the Issues page for some of our previous coverage on police brutality and institutional racism.
What HAppened
 | George Floyd: On May 25th, 2020, a 46 year old Black man and Minnesota resident George Floyd was murdered by a white police officer by the name of Derek Chauvin. A video recorded by a bystander and streamed on Facebook Live circulated the internet following the incident; it depicted Floyd pinned to the ground by Chauvin’s knee on his neck, and you can hear Floyd pleading with the then-officer and repeating, “Please, I can’t breathe,” until he stops moving altogether. Bystanders can also be heard begging the policemen to let Floyd stand up, telling them to, “get him off the ground” and “let him breathe.” The pleas of the individuals were ignored by the officers involved, including Chauvin, who kept his knees to Floyd’s throat for four minutes after his body went limp. A new video recently surfaced of the scene and it seems to portray three officers on the ground with him. Following the incident, the policemen involved claimed that the detainment was conducted after Floyd had “physically resisted arrest,” but surveillance video of the interactions that led up to the moment of his death demonstrate that that had not been the case. The four responding officers— Derek Chauvin, Tou Thao, Thomas Lane, and J. Alexander Kueng— were fired by Minneapolis police chief Medaria Arradondo the next day. Many are calling for charges to be pressed against these officers and for Chauvin specifically to be jailed for murder. As of 2:30pm on Friday, May 29th, Derek Chauvin is in police custody but only to protect him from "serious threats against his life"-- he has not yet been arrested or charged with any crimes. |
The killing of George Floyd incited major public unrest: the Twin Cities riots began the next day at the site of his death in protest of the Minneapolis police. Although initially peaceful, the riots quickly became violent—the MPD 3rd Precinct was vandalized, an Autozone and a Wendy’s was set on fire, and a nearby Target was looted. The Third Precinct was set ablaze as well. Police responded by firing rubber bullets into the crowds and deploying tear gas. Mayor Jacob Frey officially declared a state of emergency in Minneapolis on May 28th. Individuals in other cities throughout the country mobilized quickly as well, with marches against police brutality occurring in places like Denver, Phoenix, New York City, Louisville, and Columbus. President Trump tweeted in response to these riots by threatening Frey with sending in the National Guard if he doesn’t “get his act together and bring the city under control,” adding, “any difficulty and we will assume control, but when the looting starts, the shooting starts.
 | Breonna Taylor: Breonna Taylor was a 26-year-old EMT in Louisville, Kentucky. In the middle of the night on March 13, two police officers and one sergeant forcibly entered her apartment with a search warrant related to a narcotics investigation. Taylor herself was not a suspect in the investigation; the officers were there because they believed her home had been used to aid the sale of drugs. Thinking that people were breaking into the home, Breonna’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired a shot, which hit the sergeant in the leg. In response to this, the police fired 20 shots, 8 of which hit Breonna, killing her. None of the officers have been charged. Walker was originally arrested and charged with first-degree assault and attempted murder, but the FBI has since opened an investigation into the murder and dropped all of Walker’s charges. At the time of her death, Breonna worked as an EMT at hospitals saving lives. She dreamed of becoming a nurse and starting a family. More info on Breonna and her story: https://www.standwithbre.com/ |
Petitions
The easiest action to take is signing and sharing petitions, which takes around 30 seconds.
Petition for County Attorney to arrest and charge the officers who murdered George Floyd
Petition to the mayor of Minneapolis for the officers who murdered George Floyd to be arrested and charged
Justice for Breonna Taylor (extensive list of demands can be seen at link)
Breonna Taylor petition (2)
White House Petition
This link will take you to an extensive list of petitions for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and other victims of police brutality
Sign this petition to support the publicly proposed Hands Up Act which would punish police for shooting unarmed citizens
Petition for County Attorney to arrest and charge the officers who murdered George Floyd
Petition to the mayor of Minneapolis for the officers who murdered George Floyd to be arrested and charged
Justice for Breonna Taylor (extensive list of demands can be seen at link)
Breonna Taylor petition (2)
White House Petition
This link will take you to an extensive list of petitions for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and other victims of police brutality
Sign this petition to support the publicly proposed Hands Up Act which would punish police for shooting unarmed citizens
Scripts
Calling various people in power works because the sheer number of calls puts pressure on them. Learn more about calling here.
SCRIPTS (via The Gathering for Justice)
1. Contact Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman
Call: (612) 348-5550 *Leave a voicemail if unanswered*
Email: citizeninfo@hennepin.us
Script: Hello, my name is [your name], and I’m contacting your office with regards to the murder of George Floyd. I am demanding that you immediately arrest and charge the responsible officers - Derek Chauvin, Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J Alexander Kueng. We cannot continue to allow police to act with impunity, as they violently brutalize our Black siblings/us. Accountability is essential, and I want to remind you that the entire nation is calling on Michael Freeman to act and get justice for George’s family. Thank you.
2. Contact Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey
Call: (612) 673-2100 *Leave a voicemail if unanswered*
Script: Hello, my name is [your name], I’m contacting your office with regards to the murder of George Floyd. I implore Mayor Jacob Frey to make the necessary requests to arrest and charge the officers who are responsible: Derek Chauvin, Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J Alexander Kueng. I’m also asking that your office redirect funding from the Minneapolis Police Department to community programs that will help reduce the amount of violence in Minneapolis. Floyd should be alive today, and Minneapolis needs Mayor Frey to stand with the community in demanding accountability. Thank you.
3. Contact the Minneapolis Police Union
info: the Minneapolis Police Union has consistently resisted reform and kept offering "warrior-style police training" even after it was banned in the city.
Call: 612-788-8444
Script: Hi, my name is _____ and I'm calling because I demand action for the racist murder of George Floyd by your police officers. I demand that you hold Minneapolis Police Officers accountable now and in the future to assure that this never happens again. This includes stopping your offering of warrior-style police training. Furthermore, the union should assure that all officers involved face criminal consequences for his murder. George and his family and all people affected by irresponsible police violence deserve justice. Thank you.
4. For Breonna Taylor: The Action Pac has a calling hotline that will walk you through instructions and help you call this list of people:
- Public Integrity Unity of the Louisville Metro PD
- Commonwealth AG Tom Wine
- Kentucky AG
- State, local, and federal officials
You can click here to call for her.
5. Email script: click here.
1. Contact Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman
Call: (612) 348-5550 *Leave a voicemail if unanswered*
Email: citizeninfo@hennepin.us
Script: Hello, my name is [your name], and I’m contacting your office with regards to the murder of George Floyd. I am demanding that you immediately arrest and charge the responsible officers - Derek Chauvin, Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J Alexander Kueng. We cannot continue to allow police to act with impunity, as they violently brutalize our Black siblings/us. Accountability is essential, and I want to remind you that the entire nation is calling on Michael Freeman to act and get justice for George’s family. Thank you.
2. Contact Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey
Call: (612) 673-2100 *Leave a voicemail if unanswered*
Script: Hello, my name is [your name], I’m contacting your office with regards to the murder of George Floyd. I implore Mayor Jacob Frey to make the necessary requests to arrest and charge the officers who are responsible: Derek Chauvin, Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J Alexander Kueng. I’m also asking that your office redirect funding from the Minneapolis Police Department to community programs that will help reduce the amount of violence in Minneapolis. Floyd should be alive today, and Minneapolis needs Mayor Frey to stand with the community in demanding accountability. Thank you.
3. Contact the Minneapolis Police Union
info: the Minneapolis Police Union has consistently resisted reform and kept offering "warrior-style police training" even after it was banned in the city.
Call: 612-788-8444
Script: Hi, my name is _____ and I'm calling because I demand action for the racist murder of George Floyd by your police officers. I demand that you hold Minneapolis Police Officers accountable now and in the future to assure that this never happens again. This includes stopping your offering of warrior-style police training. Furthermore, the union should assure that all officers involved face criminal consequences for his murder. George and his family and all people affected by irresponsible police violence deserve justice. Thank you.
4. For Breonna Taylor: The Action Pac has a calling hotline that will walk you through instructions and help you call this list of people:
- Public Integrity Unity of the Louisville Metro PD
- Commonwealth AG Tom Wine
- Kentucky AG
- State, local, and federal officials
You can click here to call for her.
5. Email script: click here.
Organizations
PLACES NOT TO DONATE TO: Don't donate via change.org and don't donate via Shaun King or his organizations-- he has a history of mishandling funds and stealing the work of Black women activists. (Link to article explaining this)
PLACES TO DONATE TO:
PLACES TO DONATE TO:
- Official GoFundMe for George Floyd's family
- Minnesota Freedom Fund (bail for protesters in Minnesota)
- Black Visions Project (protest organizers)
- Reclaim the Block (organizers in Minneapolis)
- North Star Health Collective (medics for protesters)
- Louisville Community Bail Fund (bail for protesters in Louisville)
- Support Sybrina Fulton's campaign for congress. Sybrina Fulton's son, Trayvon Martin, was murdered by police in Florida.
- GoFundMe for Ahmaud Arbery's mother (look at our most recent list for info on Ahmaud)
- More places to donate can be found at the link above (in the big white button)
If you go to an in-person protest:
PLEASE make sure to continue to social distance as much as possible and wear a mask at all times (to protect against COVID-19 and to protect your identity). If you have loved ones at home who are vulnerable, consider not going. Make sure to stay healthy and safe and remember, there are always things to do from home.
Further Antiracist resources
Another video went viral this week: it was recorded by Christian Cooper, a Black man who is a birder in Central Park. Cooper was in the Ramble, a birding area in the park, when he encountered Amy Cooper (no relation) whose dog was off-leash. Christian asked her to put her dog on the leash because it is dangerous for the birds (and required by the park rules) and Amy Cooper did not comply; he began to film the situation and she demanded he stop filming as she stepped towards him. She then threatened to call the police, saying "I"m going to call the cops and tell them an African-American man is threatening me." You can watch the video yourself, but it is a chilling reminder of how racism is weaponized. This is why changes to the institutional systems are not enough. Amy Cooper was weaponizing the police because she knew that it was a threat to Christian and would put him in a potentially deadly situation like the one we saw with George Floyd. That desire to weaponize racism would have come through no matter what the medium was-- in this case, the police.
This is precisely why tackling this requires deep introspection and anti-racism on the part of white people in this country who can change the deep-seeded attitudes and sinister undercurrents of the culture of this country. Here are some resources for anti-racism.
This is precisely why tackling this requires deep introspection and anti-racism on the part of white people in this country who can change the deep-seeded attitudes and sinister undercurrents of the culture of this country. Here are some resources for anti-racism.
- FREE Online Yale University Open Course: African American History: From Emancipation to the Present
- Thread of documentaries to watch
- Mental health resources for Black youth
- Anti-racism resources for white people
- Rachel Cargle posts excellent anti-racist resources on Instagram. If you use or learn from her work, Venmo or CashApp her if you can!
- ShiShi Rose is an activist who posts roundups of GoFundMes to donate to regularly
Some currently proposed policies to fight police brutality
Below, we’ve listed concrete policies every state legislature and/or local police department should implement to fight police brutality.
As a disclaimer, we want to clarify that these policies are still not enough (see above section) and a police institution founded on racism cannot ever be "reformed" enough. One concrete action you can take is asking your mayor to defund the police and invest in other areas.
As we wrote in last week's list, NYC mayor Bill De Blasio proposed a budget that cut the NYPD budget only minimally but cuts hundreds of millions of dollars from public schools. You can click here to take action on this.
That being said, there are policies that can help with these issues, even if they don't solve them — this section is for you if you are feeling helpless, and are especially empowered by research and data. Research what policies your area has, then call and email your police chief and state legislators to demand they implement those they lack. If you’re unable to figure out specifics, list them all; ask for accountability in enforcing the policies, as well as in publicizing them. We've previously covered nonviolent de-escalation tactics-- find link here.
First, has your local police department implemented these eight use of force policies? A 2016 policy analysis by Campaign Zero examining 91 of the 100 largest police departments in America found that the policies tangibly reduce the number of individuals killed by police. (You are three times more likely to be killed by police if you are Black than white.) The report found that the average police department reviewed had adopted only three of the policies, and not a single one had adopted all eight.
Other key policies:
A more detailed community action manual for combating police brutality from the ACLU is here.
As a disclaimer, we want to clarify that these policies are still not enough (see above section) and a police institution founded on racism cannot ever be "reformed" enough. One concrete action you can take is asking your mayor to defund the police and invest in other areas.
As we wrote in last week's list, NYC mayor Bill De Blasio proposed a budget that cut the NYPD budget only minimally but cuts hundreds of millions of dollars from public schools. You can click here to take action on this.
That being said, there are policies that can help with these issues, even if they don't solve them — this section is for you if you are feeling helpless, and are especially empowered by research and data. Research what policies your area has, then call and email your police chief and state legislators to demand they implement those they lack. If you’re unable to figure out specifics, list them all; ask for accountability in enforcing the policies, as well as in publicizing them. We've previously covered nonviolent de-escalation tactics-- find link here.
First, has your local police department implemented these eight use of force policies? A 2016 policy analysis by Campaign Zero examining 91 of the 100 largest police departments in America found that the policies tangibly reduce the number of individuals killed by police. (You are three times more likely to be killed by police if you are Black than white.) The report found that the average police department reviewed had adopted only three of the policies, and not a single one had adopted all eight.
- Require officers to de-escalate situations before resorting to force
- Limit the kinds of force that can be used to respond to specific forms of resistance
- Restrict chokeholds
- Require officers to give verbal warning before using force
- Prohibit officers from shooting at moving vehicles
- Require officers to exhaust all alternatives to deadly force
- Require officers to stop colleagues from exercising excessive force
- Require comprehensive reporting on use of force
Other key policies:
- Does your local police department outfit all on-duty police officers with a body-worn camera and require that it be turned on immediately when officers respond to a police call? What about gun cams, dash cams, and taser cams?
- Camera malfunctions during a fatal incident are intolerable and should be career-ending. If you can’t operate a camera, don’t operate a gun.
- Has it established an early warning system to identify officers who are involved in an inordinate number of inappropriate physical force incidents? Does it pay close attention to those warnings? (Multiple use of force claims had already been filed against an arresting officer involved in Floyd’s murder.)
- Does it employ evidence-based police de-escalation trainings?
- Does your city or town have a civilian review board? They investigate incidents of police brutality, and should have independence, adequate funding, and diversity of membership.
- Has it instituted shoot back protection, or legal immunity for citizens resisting illegal or errant lethal use of force by cops?
- Has it eliminated non-civilian weaponry (including military surplus) from domestic law enforcement?
A more detailed community action manual for combating police brutality from the ACLU is here.
With that, we're signing off.
We love you and hope you're doing well.
Peace, power, and solidarity,
Teens Resist
We love you and hope you're doing well.
Peace, power, and solidarity,
Teens Resist
5/12/2020 0 Comments
Weathering the Curve: May 2020
Hey Teen Resisters!
Hope that everyone is staying safe, sane, and healthy — sending love & support to anyone whose family or friends have been affected. Our advice remains the same: forgive yourself, find any and all silver linings, stay connected! Take care of yourself: exercise, sleep, eat, do something, or do nothing. We've included some quick COVID-19 actions via a link to an earlier list (volunteer, donate, stay updated, stay busy) and some urgent info on NYC Mayor De Blasio's atrocious new budget plan, which guts funding for public schools. We also linked a few good articles/websites, in case you want to read something but opening the news is too overwhelming. Happy activisting :)
Peace & power,
Teens Resist
Hope that everyone is staying safe, sane, and healthy — sending love & support to anyone whose family or friends have been affected. Our advice remains the same: forgive yourself, find any and all silver linings, stay connected! Take care of yourself: exercise, sleep, eat, do something, or do nothing. We've included some quick COVID-19 actions via a link to an earlier list (volunteer, donate, stay updated, stay busy) and some urgent info on NYC Mayor De Blasio's atrocious new budget plan, which guts funding for public schools. We also linked a few good articles/websites, in case you want to read something but opening the news is too overwhelming. Happy activisting :)
Peace & power,
Teens Resist
before you dive in:
Some Quick Resources: What can you do re: COVID-19, in general? We outlined a ton of feasible and impactful actions in our first quarantine list — including how to find places or sites to volunteer, places to donate to, how to stay updated, and how to stay busy. Check it out here: Quaranteens Resist. And here’s the link for places to get aid from, if you need a quick reference.**
| NYC: Mayor De Blasio's Proposed Education Budget Cuts NYC is doing some budget adjustment, and the mayor's proposal cuts 827 million dollars from the NYC education system. This cut would get rid of tons of much-needed resources and important programs for a school system that people rely on for education, food, and many other resources. Obviously, now is a particularly bad time for the cut to happen; more than ever, public schools need adequate funding to continue to support people through this pandemic. Other city departments are receiving far smaller budget cuts. Education must be prioritized. The idea that when kids return to school they will have even fewer resources than they had pre-COVID, at a time when so many need more, is simply wrong. |  |
After months of compromised learning and, for many students, tremendous loss in their families and communities, children will need additional academic and socio-emotional support - but the proposed budget cuts will guarantee they get less.
There are many competing needs in our city right now. If school funding is not prioritized in the upcoming budget, it will be an unmitigated disaster - not only for the next school year, but for the long term. Please read & sign this petition, directed to Corey Johnson, Speaker of City Council, to stop Mayor DeBlasio's proposed cut, and circulate it far and wide.
There are many competing needs in our city right now. If school funding is not prioritized in the upcoming budget, it will be an unmitigated disaster - not only for the next school year, but for the long term. Please read & sign this petition, directed to Corey Johnson, Speaker of City Council, to stop Mayor DeBlasio's proposed cut, and circulate it far and wide.
Some Notable Links
- This website is tracking instances where people have invoked antisemitism during the COVID-19 outbreak. You can look through the instances as well as actions to take. An essential read is Eric Ward’s “Skin in the Game: How Antisemitism Animates White Nationalism.”
- “These Are the Things That New Yorkers Most Achingly Miss"
- "College Campuses Must Reopen in the Fall. Here's How We Do It," by Christina Paxson, president of Brown University
what went down
| Ahmaud Arbery’s Murder Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was out jogging near his home in Brunswick, Georgia on February 23, 2020, when two white men — Gregory McMichael and his son Travis McMichael — rode up behind him in their truck, wrestled him, and shot him twice, killing him. Gregory McMichael used to be an officer for the Glynn County Police Department, the county that Brunswick is in. William Bryan, a third accomplice in the case, recorded a video of the murder. In the video, he can be heard cocking his gun as he drives up behind Gregory and Travis McMichael’s truck, boxing Ahmaud in. After a massive public outcry and pressure from millions in the nation, Gregory and Travis McMichael were arrested on Thursday, May 7th, over a month after Ahmaud was killed. They are both being charged with murder and aggravated assault. Bryan has not yet been arrested. Although this horrifying act was clearly one of white supremacy, Georgia is one of only four states that do not have a hate crime prevention law, meaning it can only be investigated and charged as a hate crime on a federal level. |  |
That the McMichaels were arrested is a testament to the power of the people. But there is so much more work to be done:
People all over the country ran this past weekend, May 8th-10th, 2.23 miles (to remember the date he was killed). Ahmaud’s 26th birthday would have been May 8th. The hashtag #IRunWithMaud was used to support his mother and to remember him.
- Sign the petition here to pressure officials to arrest Bryant and ask the FBI to consider this modern-day lynching as a hate crime.
- Sign the petition here to demand that Jackie Johnson, the Brunswick District Attorney who refused to initially issue an arrest warrant, resign. This is not the first time Johnson’s legal decisions regarding police brutality have been biased (see more on that here).
- If you call the number 770-800-0689, The Action PAC (an organization cofounded by Shaun King...you might remember they did a lot of work on the Rodney Reed case and have been steadfastly organizing since) walks you through numbers to call and instructions on how to do so.
- Pressure lawmakers in Georgia to pass a hate crimes prevention law (Governor Kemp has indicated he would be open to supporting it)
People all over the country ran this past weekend, May 8th-10th, 2.23 miles (to remember the date he was killed). Ahmaud’s 26th birthday would have been May 8th. The hashtag #IRunWithMaud was used to support his mother and to remember him.
| Big Company Strikes Amidst some of the most unprecedented times we have ever experienced, everyone has been subject to some measure of self-isolation. The extent of that measure, though, varies greatly, based on the role we fulfill in our day-to-day lives. Functions that satisfy our basic needs are still necessary to keep our society running, and the force behind those needs are essential workers. Never before has there been such a necessity for them, whether they are grocery store cashiers, pharmacists, or delivery service employees. As essential workers are subject to intense pressures and skyrocketing demand, it is more vital than ever to consider the state of their working conditions. |  |
Those conditions are largely terrible. In fact, on May 1st, workers at companies such as Walmart, FedEx, Target, Amazon, and Whole Foods went on strike, raising complaints of unsafe working conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic. The issues they cited included a lack of protective equipment, as well as just time to wash their hands. It gets worse: Whole Foods, for example, requires their employees to test for COVID-19 if they show symptoms, but does not 1) cover the cost for the test, 2) provide any way for them to get tested, or 3) enforce that policy. Even when workers do test positive, the company doesn’t close that location. Instead, they clean the store and notify workers, but not the customers. Already, grocery store workers have begun to die from COVID-19.
The May 1st strike shook the entire essential industry, emerging as one of the most impactful strikes in recent history. There’s a couple reasons why that could actually turn out to be a really good thing. Workers’ rights have been ignored for years, with employees frequently fired for merely speaking up. However, right now, firing isn’t exactly an option for companies. As grocery stores and delivery services like Amazon are top priorities, the workers that are the backbone of those companies are everything. Because essential workers aren’t easily replaceable right now, companies are more likely to have to comply with the demands of strikes; their alternative is risking major profit loss and an inability to supply millions of waiting customers. Safe conditions for workers isn’t just important to companies — it should be important to us as well, both on basic principles of human rights and to ensure that we, especially those among us who are the most vulnerable, have access to necessary materials.
What can you do?
The May 1st strike shook the entire essential industry, emerging as one of the most impactful strikes in recent history. There’s a couple reasons why that could actually turn out to be a really good thing. Workers’ rights have been ignored for years, with employees frequently fired for merely speaking up. However, right now, firing isn’t exactly an option for companies. As grocery stores and delivery services like Amazon are top priorities, the workers that are the backbone of those companies are everything. Because essential workers aren’t easily replaceable right now, companies are more likely to have to comply with the demands of strikes; their alternative is risking major profit loss and an inability to supply millions of waiting customers. Safe conditions for workers isn’t just important to companies — it should be important to us as well, both on basic principles of human rights and to ensure that we, especially those among us who are the most vulnerable, have access to necessary materials.
What can you do?
- Recently, there’s been a Senate proposal for an almost $2000 monthly pay raise for essential workers, nicknamed the Patriot Pay Plan. Call your state senators to voice your support for the passage of this legislation here: https://www.senate.gov/senators/How_to_correspond_senators.htm
- Support front-line and essential workers! Tip them, give them a thank you card, or even spread the word for awareness on social media. Let them know how much you appreciate all their hard work.
And, finally....
4/24/2020 0 Comments
Stay Sane(Itized): April 2020
Hey Teen Resisters!
Happy a few days late Earth Day, and we hope more than anything that you and your families are all staying healthy and safe. This is an absolutely unprecedented time, and right now we say: stay sane — watch a trashy show, take care of yourself (by exercising, sleeping, doing something, or doing nothing), and don't lose hope. Unity is vital right now, even when we're separate! So is forgiving yourself!
We've included a statement on Biden below, linked our last list/some general action items, and then covered some COVID-19 news. It's often difficult to even open the news right now, so this is something good to read if you just want a couple of bite-sized pieces of important info.
Peace & Power,
TR
Happy a few days late Earth Day, and we hope more than anything that you and your families are all staying healthy and safe. This is an absolutely unprecedented time, and right now we say: stay sane — watch a trashy show, take care of yourself (by exercising, sleeping, doing something, or doing nothing), and don't lose hope. Unity is vital right now, even when we're separate! So is forgiving yourself!
We've included a statement on Biden below, linked our last list/some general action items, and then covered some COVID-19 news. It's often difficult to even open the news right now, so this is something good to read if you just want a couple of bite-sized pieces of important info.
Peace & Power,
TR
| Our Statement on Biden: 2020 Election, Moving Forward One of the biggest things to happen in the past few weeks outside of the coronavirus news cycle was the news that Senator Bernie Sanders was dropping out of the race for president. This now leaves the Democratic party with an assumed candidate for 2020: Vice President Joe Biden. This primary started out with a record number of candidates with a variety of different backgrounds, and there are plenty of people, especially young people, that are not happy with Biden as the nominee. There are some people who are thrilled. Joe Biden hasn’t supported bolder and more progressive solutions to problems in this country that (generally) a lot of people in our generation support, and that we’ve supported in the past. That being said, as the past few months have shown us, we now more than ever need a president who has experience, knowledge, and basic common sense, all of which our current president (and Biden’s opponent) is deeply lacking in. |  |
Not only are we voting for a president, we’re voting for a cabinet, Supreme Court nominees, a huge number of federal judges, and a whole new administration. This election is also wildly important in other races besides the presidential one.
All of this is to say that we will be launching our previously planned 2020 youth-mobilizing programs in favor of Joe Biden and his campaign as well as for tons of other progressives around the country who we want to see be elected (just like we did with the midterms!). We also plan (and hope you do too) to hold Biden to high standards and push him on issues and policies we care about — whatever they may be — both during the campaign and hopefully once he is in the White House.
All of this is to say that we will be launching our previously planned 2020 youth-mobilizing programs in favor of Joe Biden and his campaign as well as for tons of other progressives around the country who we want to see be elected (just like we did with the midterms!). We also plan (and hope you do too) to hold Biden to high standards and push him on issues and policies we care about — whatever they may be — both during the campaign and hopefully once he is in the White House.
**Before we dive in: What can you do re: COVID-19, in general? We outlined a ton of feasible and impactful actions in our last list — including how to find places or sites to volunteer, places to donate to, how to stay updated, and how to stay busy. Check it out here: Quaranteens Resist. And here’s the link for places to get aid from, if you need a quick reference.**
what went down
| Trump Suspends WHO Funding On April 14, President Trump announced that he will be suspending payments to the World Health Organization (WHO), a United Nations agency, in response to its handling of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The president has been critical in recent months of the WHO’s unwillingness to hold China accountable for its role in the virus’ spread, echoing concerns of other countries’ leaders: Japanese Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso proposed in March that the WHO change its name to the “Chinese Health Agency.” This anti-WHO and anti-UN rhetoric among Republican politicians is not an isolated incident, however, and reflects decades of policies with the same sentiment: the US pays far too much towards the UN operating budget in comparison to other countries. |  |
The US’ annual contribution to the UN, totalling around $10 billion, makes up about 20% of the organization’s budget; this is more than twice that of the second largest contributor, Japan, which provides some 9.7% of the organization’s funds.
At the same time, contributions by the US are small in comparison to the size of its economy, making only a 0.26% dent in the overall federal budget. (Consider this in comparison to US annual military spending, which this year will exceed $934 billion.) And these contributions have a hugely positive impact on the world, funding vaccines and food for impoverished children through UNICEF, peacekeeping operations through the DPO, the protection of tens of millions of refugees through the UNHCR, and of course health services around the world through the WHO.
While there may be issues with the scale of funds provided by the US to the UN and WHO, the cessation of financial support in the midst of the largest public health crisis in a century is counterproductive at best. Certainly, the WHO is biased towards the Chinese government and significant changes need to be made (take the incident on March 30, when one of its Director-Generals, Bruce Aylward, refused to acknowledge the presence of Taiwan in an interview with Hong Kong journalist Yvonne Tong), but the time for these changes is when this pandemic ends. Recognizing this, many countries, among them the UK, China, New Zealand, France, Russia, and Germany, have spoken out in support of the WHO and pledged to maintain their own funding.
At the same time, contributions by the US are small in comparison to the size of its economy, making only a 0.26% dent in the overall federal budget. (Consider this in comparison to US annual military spending, which this year will exceed $934 billion.) And these contributions have a hugely positive impact on the world, funding vaccines and food for impoverished children through UNICEF, peacekeeping operations through the DPO, the protection of tens of millions of refugees through the UNHCR, and of course health services around the world through the WHO.
While there may be issues with the scale of funds provided by the US to the UN and WHO, the cessation of financial support in the midst of the largest public health crisis in a century is counterproductive at best. Certainly, the WHO is biased towards the Chinese government and significant changes need to be made (take the incident on March 30, when one of its Director-Generals, Bruce Aylward, refused to acknowledge the presence of Taiwan in an interview with Hong Kong journalist Yvonne Tong), but the time for these changes is when this pandemic ends. Recognizing this, many countries, among them the UK, China, New Zealand, France, Russia, and Germany, have spoken out in support of the WHO and pledged to maintain their own funding.
| Mail-In Voting With COVID-19 affecting our society and nearly every aspect of daily life, elections are also being impacted. There is a lot of debate around how local, state and presidential elections will occur in November, considering how dangerous it could be amidst the coronavirus pandemic. Despite these concerns, Wisconsin held their presidential primary as scheduled on April 7, which resulted in tens of thousands of voters showing up to a reduced amount of polling places across the state, risking their lives to participate in a basic part of democracy. To assure that this doesn’t happen again, many legislators have been advocating for mail-in voting in November; regardless of commonly voiced concerns about the logistical feasibility and personnel challenges of the system, it seems to be one of the only ways forward amid the current COVID-19 situation. |  |
President Trump included 400 million dollars in the recent stimulus package for states to use for election purposes. However, the bill didn’t specify any requirements for how the funding had to be used, and some legislators and advocates don’t think this is sufficient. Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) recently introduced the VoteSafe Act, a bill that would require every state to allow mail-in voting, without having to provide an excuse. This means that in states where mail-in voters have to provide a reason for why they aren’t voting on Election Day, this would no longer be required and anyone could vote by mail. Harris’ bill would also mandate that all states have at least 20 days prior to the election on November 3, when people can choose to vote early in-person. According to The Hill, Senator Harris introduced the VoteSafe Act to “ensure that voting is safe and accessible” for everyone, especially in the face of the current pandemic.
A few things that you can do:
A few things that you can do:
- Call your U.S. Representative and Senators and tell them to support the VoteSafeAct
- Support local mail-in voting efforts in your area to keep everyone safe during elections
- Share information on social media about the importance of mail-in voting and what it is to make sure that your friends and family are informed come November
| Stimulus Checks: What are they? What is the COVID-19 stimulus check? Issued as a part of the coronavirus relief package, eligible US residents can receive up to $1,200 from the federal government. Citizens who receive the stimulus are not required to pay taxes on the payment and the money would not be an advance on tax refunds. The amount that residents will get depends on their total income in 2018 or 2019. To find out if you or your family is eligible click here: (https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/coronavirus-stimulus-checks-going-out-now-find-out-if-youre-eligible-for-up-to-1200/) |  |
What’s going on:
As of April 16th, 2020, millions of Americans did not receive the COVID-19 stimulus checks promised to them by the federal government. U.S Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had instructed the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to deliver the payments as timely as possible to address the devastating effects of the coronavirus on working opportunities. Instead, millions of Americans who had filed their taxes through services like TurboTax did not receive their check when guaranteed as the IRS reportedly did not “have their direct deposit information on file”. According to consumer law expert Vijay Raghavan, up to 21 million tax filers could be impacted by this mistake.
To try to restore order, the IRS launched the “Get My Payment” service to aid people in tracking their stimulus payment. This seems to have had little to no effect, as many users are experiencing issues and confusion with the software. Similar problems are occurring with the IRS website itself, as the service locks people out who try to access their information many times throughout the day to avoid potential fraud.
The Washington Post also reports that a number of people are receiving the incorrect payment amount for dependent children. The Post also reports that people who owe $0 in taxes are having issues checking their payment status. The IRS’s condition is only made worse by the fact that there have also been reports circulating about stimulus checks sent to the addresses of deceased people. The IRS says they are aware of the many issues made apparent by the stimulus payments and are currently working to resolve them.
Go to the IRS website to get your payment or check the status of processing payments nationwide.
And, finally....
As of April 16th, 2020, millions of Americans did not receive the COVID-19 stimulus checks promised to them by the federal government. U.S Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had instructed the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to deliver the payments as timely as possible to address the devastating effects of the coronavirus on working opportunities. Instead, millions of Americans who had filed their taxes through services like TurboTax did not receive their check when guaranteed as the IRS reportedly did not “have their direct deposit information on file”. According to consumer law expert Vijay Raghavan, up to 21 million tax filers could be impacted by this mistake.
To try to restore order, the IRS launched the “Get My Payment” service to aid people in tracking their stimulus payment. This seems to have had little to no effect, as many users are experiencing issues and confusion with the software. Similar problems are occurring with the IRS website itself, as the service locks people out who try to access their information many times throughout the day to avoid potential fraud.
The Washington Post also reports that a number of people are receiving the incorrect payment amount for dependent children. The Post also reports that people who owe $0 in taxes are having issues checking their payment status. The IRS’s condition is only made worse by the fact that there have also been reports circulating about stimulus checks sent to the addresses of deceased people. The IRS says they are aware of the many issues made apparent by the stimulus payments and are currently working to resolve them.
Go to the IRS website to get your payment or check the status of processing payments nationwide.
And, finally....
4/1/2020 0 Comments
Quaranteens Resist: Resources
Hello Teen Resisters,
Thanks for sticking with us in this strange time-- we know it took us a little while. Our team is made up of teens and just like all of you, we've had a lot of adjusting to do with online school, etc. But now we're back. We figured that you're probably getting enough news all the time, and because things are so fast-paced, so we are leaning into the "list" structure and providing you with some resources.
You'll see that this list is sectioned into a few different mini-lists: resources for information, donations, financial support, political resources, etc. We will continue with our regular list coverage throughout the pandemic on a biweekly schedule. We will also probably be doing some workshops on Instagram Live (@teensresist) since we can't do in-person workshops.
Also- take the census, please! Tell your loved ones as well.
We are sending you all our love and support in this weird, confusing, disturbing period of time. Stay inside, stay distanced, and stay safe.
Peace, power, and health,
TR
Thanks for sticking with us in this strange time-- we know it took us a little while. Our team is made up of teens and just like all of you, we've had a lot of adjusting to do with online school, etc. But now we're back. We figured that you're probably getting enough news all the time, and because things are so fast-paced, so we are leaning into the "list" structure and providing you with some resources.
You'll see that this list is sectioned into a few different mini-lists: resources for information, donations, financial support, political resources, etc. We will continue with our regular list coverage throughout the pandemic on a biweekly schedule. We will also probably be doing some workshops on Instagram Live (@teensresist) since we can't do in-person workshops.
Also- take the census, please! Tell your loved ones as well.
We are sending you all our love and support in this weird, confusing, disturbing period of time. Stay inside, stay distanced, and stay safe.
Peace, power, and health,
TR
Sparkly hand-washing, by Sara Shakeel
RESOURCE MASTER LIST
HOW TO STAY UPDATED (IN A MANAGEABLE WAY)
If there’s an abundance of anything right now in relation to COVID-19, it’s advice and information from all corners of the Internet. It’s really easy to get overwhelmed and end up feeling helpless — like just allowing yourself to stay in the dark about what’s going on is easier than trying to balance everything that’s happening. We’ve compiled a list of a few targeted sources that provide reliable, comprehensive, and often bite-sized information; hopefully, they will help you stay updated (if that’s what you want to do!).
News Updates
Health Guidance
Infographics
Elections
Where not to get information
If there’s an abundance of anything right now in relation to COVID-19, it’s advice and information from all corners of the Internet. It’s really easy to get overwhelmed and end up feeling helpless — like just allowing yourself to stay in the dark about what’s going on is easier than trying to balance everything that’s happening. We’ve compiled a list of a few targeted sources that provide reliable, comprehensive, and often bite-sized information; hopefully, they will help you stay updated (if that’s what you want to do!).
News Updates
- New York Times is a good starting place for Coronavirus news reporting.
- They’re offering live updates, as well as maps and an FAQ on the stimulus bill.
- The Washington Post is also offering free access to their Coronavirus content.
Health Guidance
- This video is a great one from Dr. David Price from Cornell-Weill Hospital. It's helpful, comprehensive, and easy to understand.
- The CDC is the top place for health guidance with resources on how to stay safe and what to do if you’re feeling sick.
- Here is a Coronavirus screening questionnaire if you or someone you know believes they are developing symptoms.
- An interesting article about how testing for the virus works.
- A comprehensive list about what you can do to stay safe and not spread the disease.
- There’s a especially helpful section about the differences between social distancing, shelter in place, self-quarantine, as well as a bunch of other terms that are being thrown about now.
Infographics
- The New York Times has a set of maps and infographics about cases world wide.
- Here is a quick link to statistics about cases in the US and in your state.
Elections
- Vote.org is keeping a great distilled page updating voters on how COVID-19 is affecting elections.
Where not to get information
- Social media posts and videos not from trusted sources and without cited sources
- Articles and videos claiming to have a new way to protect yourself that the CDC has not endorsed.
- Conspiracy theorists (though this should go without saying)
An empty Times Square during the NYC shelter-in
PLACES TO DONATE TO
We’ve listed, linked, and identified the focus of some aid programs below. Keep in mind that we’re also only scraping the surface — there are too many organizations doing phenomenal work to count. We also recognize that donating is not realistic for everyone! Do what you can and only that.
National:
Local, more generally:
NYC in particular (just a few — there are so many!):
For more detailed info, go here (NYT) and here (Charity Navigator).
We’ve listed, linked, and identified the focus of some aid programs below. Keep in mind that we’re also only scraping the surface — there are too many organizations doing phenomenal work to count. We also recognize that donating is not realistic for everyone! Do what you can and only that.
National:
- Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund, created by the United Nations Foundation and Swiss Philanthropy Foundation to support the work of the World Health Organization
- Focus: research on virus, care for frontline workers and patients
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s foundation and emergency response fund
- Focus: giving to local health depts, global response efforts, protective gear
- Partners in Health
- Focus: long-term care to patients in developing countries — test 200k+ patients, help international gov’t coordination and local health workers
- Direct Relief
- Focus: supply deliveries to US, China, Caribbean, South America, specifically to help protect medical professionals
- Feeding America
- Focus: help local food banks respond to outbreak
- No Kid Hungry
- Focus: emergency grants to food banks, networking with affected families
- Meals on Wheels (info about local programs, where to donate nationally)
- Focus: aid to older and homebound Americans
- National Council on Aging
- Focus: provide COVID-19 resources for senior centers
- Covenant House (donate to relief fund)
- Focus: provides young homeless people with meals and homes to mitigate impacts of COVID-19
Local, more generally:
- United Way Worldwide (find your local chapter’s fund)
- Focus: mobilizing the caring power of individual communities
- Call shelters in your area to find out how best to support them
- Google your city/area’s name and “COVID-19 volunteering” or “COVID-19 donation” to find localized efforts
- Give directly to your favorite local businesses/purchase gift cards for meals for once doors open.
NYC in particular (just a few — there are so many!):
- Citymeals
- Focus: food — donations specifically to help older people
- Women In Need
- Focus: largest provider of family shelter and supportive housing in NYC; working to maintain children’s health, safety, and education during COVID-19
- God’s Love We Deliver
- Focus: looking for volunteers and donations to sponsor emergency meal bags
For more detailed info, go here (NYT) and here (Charity Navigator).
PLACES TO GO FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
This document, compiled by Sonia Chajet Wides & Anya Shvarts for community members in Brooklyn, NY, is an excellent database to check out if you or someone you know (from a veteran to an older relative to a small business owner to a restaurant worker) needs financial assistance. For 22 organizations/programs, it provides the name, who is eligible, a link to information, and any additional caveats.
Adding one more to that list, Financial Assistance For Single Mothers helps financially struggling single mothers with finding grants and government assistance programs, free of cost.
This document, compiled by Sonia Chajet Wides & Anya Shvarts for community members in Brooklyn, NY, is an excellent database to check out if you or someone you know (from a veteran to an older relative to a small business owner to a restaurant worker) needs financial assistance. For 22 organizations/programs, it provides the name, who is eligible, a link to information, and any additional caveats.
Adding one more to that list, Financial Assistance For Single Mothers helps financially struggling single mothers with finding grants and government assistance programs, free of cost.
Legislative Explainer & Action
In addition to the massive impacts coronavirus is having on public health across the country, the epidemic is also inflicting severe blows on the American economy. Across the country, jobs have been deemed non-essential and people have been encouraged to stay home in the interest of containing spread; 3.3 million workers filed for unemployment benefits last week, with economists deeming the economy’s current recession one of the most severe in American history. Low-income families and individuals are especially susceptible to both the virus and this economic nose-dive, and are especially in need of economic aid.
On Friday, March 27th, in the interest of providing some of this economic relief, Congress passed (and Trump signed into law) the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES ACT), a 2 trillion dollar federal measure aimed at providing relief to American individuals, families, and businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The bill came after acute partisan in-fighting over whether the bill should be written in support of businesses or workers, with Democrats blocking a pro-business bill with little federal oversight from passing on Thursday. The CARES ACT is 880 pages long. Teens Resist is here with a brief breakdown of everything important about the bill, and everything you can do to make it better.
The CARES ACT, explained:
How can I improve the CARES ACT?
Separately, Congress also recently passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Employee Paid Leave Rights (FFCRA), which extends Title II of the Family and Medical Leave Act to provide that certain employers provide workers who are unable to work due to a quarantine order, a health care provider order, having coronavirus, or caring for a relative with coronavirus or a child whose school/place of care has been shut down.
How can I improve the FFCRA?
More things to stay active:
- This excellent email from Coalition Z
- Advocate for rent suspension-- it's the humane thing to do
- Advocate to not cut education budgets right now
- Sign up for The Broad Room's email list-- they send out great comprehensive updates
On Friday, March 27th, in the interest of providing some of this economic relief, Congress passed (and Trump signed into law) the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES ACT), a 2 trillion dollar federal measure aimed at providing relief to American individuals, families, and businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The bill came after acute partisan in-fighting over whether the bill should be written in support of businesses or workers, with Democrats blocking a pro-business bill with little federal oversight from passing on Thursday. The CARES ACT is 880 pages long. Teens Resist is here with a brief breakdown of everything important about the bill, and everything you can do to make it better.
The CARES ACT, explained:
- Ensures that all coronavirus testing is covered by private insurance plans
- Provides free vaccine coverage (within 15 days) when a vaccine becomes available
- Provides almost 1 trillion dollars for federally backed loans to businesses (small and large) for utilities, rent, mortgage, and payroll use
- Provides unemployment insurance to people who are out of jobs due to the pandemic (including $600 per week to each qualified recipient)
- Taxpayers with an annual income below $75,000 will receive $1200 (plus $500 per child) from the IRS, with a weighted reduction moving up to $99,000; this will reach millions of Americans across the country
How can I improve the CARES ACT?
- While federal unemployment insurance and loans are helpful, $600 a week is not enough to cover all of the many finances families and individuals have to account for every week. Especially in urban areas, rent is at the top of this list. Many municipalities have suspended evictions, but have yet to suspend rent payments and mortgages. If they haven’t already, write to and call your local representatives to demand that they work to suspend rent payments and mortgages through the end of April.
- If you live in New York, sign this petition to Governor Cuomo, Senators Schumer and Gillibrand, and the NYS Congressional Delegation demanding rent suspension: https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/reclaim-our-homes-rent-suspension-now
Separately, Congress also recently passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Employee Paid Leave Rights (FFCRA), which extends Title II of the Family and Medical Leave Act to provide that certain employers provide workers who are unable to work due to a quarantine order, a health care provider order, having coronavirus, or caring for a relative with coronavirus or a child whose school/place of care has been shut down.
How can I improve the FFCRA?
- The FFCRA’s paid leave only extends to private businesses with fewer than 500 employees, meaning that certain businesses can take advantage of exemptions and put in danger employees who are not economically able to vouch for their own rights. Call your representative and demand that they support state legislation requiring that employers provide paid leave for the reasons detailed in the FFCRA regardless of their number of employees.
More things to stay active:
- This excellent email from Coalition Z
- Advocate for rent suspension-- it's the humane thing to do
- Advocate to not cut education budgets right now
- Sign up for The Broad Room's email list-- they send out great comprehensive updates
QUARANTINE TO-DO LIST
With COVID-19 rampaging our country, and the circumstances only growing more and more dangerous, now is more important than ever that we take part in self-isolation. But we all know that spending extended periods of time inside can get dull pretty fast, so we’ve put together 10 ideas of things you can do to pass the time!
- Have a movie marathon or binge a new show! Make a list of your favorite movies or go through a series (e.g. Harry Potter, Star Wars, Marvel, etc.). No matter what sort of movies you choose, it’s always a fun way to pass your time. Netflix Party is a Chrome extension that allows you to watch anything on Netflix with your friends. Here are some of our recommendations for things to watch: Booksmart (Hulu), Jane the Virgin (Netflix), Glee (Netflix), Inception (Netflix), Someone Great (Netflix) and more.
- Jigsaw puzzles! Jigsaw puzzles are a super fun activity to do with your family, and if you get ones that are big enough, they take up plenty of time. You can also do virtual jigsaw puzzles online if you can’t get real ones. Here are a few links to ones you can do:
- Phone banking! The election cycle may have been shaken up a bit due to the virus, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t still ways for you to help from home. Whichever candidate you support, you can log onto their website and figure out how to support them through phone banking. You’ll be given a list of phone numbers to call and can get in touch with voters to try to convince them to support the candidate you do!
- Write letters! We’re all so interconnected through social media and our phones, but sometimes it’s nice to take a minute to reach out to the people you care about through good, old fashioned snail mail. Let them know why they’re important to you or just that you’re thinking about them! It’s nice to spend some time writing, and your friends and family will be so excited to get them.
- Arts and crafts! Pick up knitting or drawing or painting, anything creative! Doing something artsy helps to focus you and relieves anxiety. It’s a good time to develop your skills, and you can make fun things for yourself, your friends, or maybe even your teachers to give to them once school’s back in session.
- Exercise! With everything that’s currently happening, anxiety and stress are on the rise for everyone. Even just 10 minutes of daily exercise can help clear your mind and kick start your endorphins so that you can have a better day.
- Video calls! It’s important that everyone does their part contributing to social distancing in order to flatten the curve of infection rates. However, spending all the time at home can get tiresome and lonely. Keep in touch with family and friends through group FaceTimes, Zoom calls, Google Hangouts, Skype, and more.
- Journaling! Because we’re so often overwhelmed with the amount of work we usually have to do, this is actually one of the best times to sit down and self-reflect. Whether it’s letting out months of built-up distress, figuring out new goals and motivations, or just writing to pass time, putting your thoughts into words can help you feel mentally fresher.
- Tiktok- watch, make, dance, waste time, etc.
- Self-care! We’ve mentioned slowing things down in order to make ourselves feel emotionally better, but now is also a great opportunity to take part in a physical break too. Take a long bath, light a candle, put on a face mask! Whatever you usually rarely do, you can now dedicate a whole night or even day to just recharging your body.
- Learn! At first glance, it sounds absolutely ridiculous to spend this time willingly educating ourselves out of school, especially for most of us who have online school anyways. But hear us out: after hours of watching Netflix, Youtube, and more, entertainment honestly gets less and less entertaining. Quarantine inevitably becomes painfully boring because of the lack of physical and mental stimulation. If school isn’t too busy, try researching something you’ve always been curious about. Oftentimes our school education doesn’t always provide learning for the sake of learning, so now is the best time to do so!
Hey Teen Resisters!
First of all, happy Super Tuesday (live updates HERE)! Second of all, it's been a long and somewhat scary few weeks--with the primaries in full heat, coronavirus spreading, and craziness in Washington continuing, we wanted to clarify a few key topics.
Before you dive in, we wanted to bring your attention to an incredibly consequential case that the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments for Wednesday (tomorrow), June Medical Services LLC v. Russo. The case deals with a state law in Louisiana requiring doctors to have admitting privileges to a nearby hospital to be allowed to perform abortions; if it were found constitutional, all of Louisiana's three abortion clinics would shut down. The ruling has the potential to gut abortion access nationwide while, by name, upholding Roe v. Wade -- empowering conservative states to take away women's right to choose everywhere but preserving liberal complacency on the abortion issue at the same time. Read more about it here, and try to follow the case as it progresses.
Happy activisting!
Peace & power,
TR
First of all, happy Super Tuesday (live updates HERE)! Second of all, it's been a long and somewhat scary few weeks--with the primaries in full heat, coronavirus spreading, and craziness in Washington continuing, we wanted to clarify a few key topics.
Before you dive in, we wanted to bring your attention to an incredibly consequential case that the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments for Wednesday (tomorrow), June Medical Services LLC v. Russo. The case deals with a state law in Louisiana requiring doctors to have admitting privileges to a nearby hospital to be allowed to perform abortions; if it were found constitutional, all of Louisiana's three abortion clinics would shut down. The ruling has the potential to gut abortion access nationwide while, by name, upholding Roe v. Wade -- empowering conservative states to take away women's right to choose everywhere but preserving liberal complacency on the abortion issue at the same time. Read more about it here, and try to follow the case as it progresses.
Happy activisting!
Peace & power,
TR
what went down
| Primaries Update!! The most decisive moment in the 2020 primary race has come: today is the long-awaited Super Tuesday, the day when fourteen states and one territory cast their votes in the Democratic presidential primary election. In a rapid twist in the saga yesterday — labeled my many as a last-ditch effort to unify the moderate wing of the party in opposition to the current leader on the more progressive side, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders — South Bend mayor Pete Buttigeg and Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar dropped out and endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden. That means that the only candidates remaining are Senator Sanders, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, former VP Biden, billionaire and former mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg, and Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard. Notably, Biden was also endorsed by Beto O’Rourke. |  |
Prior to today, Bernie Sanders was the leader of the race in terms of delegates. A brief sketch of the trajectory of the race up to this point: Sanders and Buttigeg came out on top in Iowa and New Hampshire, which also marked the end of the campaign for candidates Andrew Yang and Michael Bennet. The candidates continued on the campaign trail to Nevada for the February 22 caucuses, in which they participated in another debate. For the first time, billionaire and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg joined the stage. Sanders left Vermont with another victory under his belt, while Biden held on to hope with his second place finish. On the other hand, Trump has maintained a strong lead over his few opponents. Nevada and South Carolina have cancelled their Republican caucus and primary, respectively.
However, with results still incoming, Biden has taken the lead (check the chart here for an updated delegate count per candidate as the night continues). Candidates need 1,991 delegates to secure the Democratic nomination; the majority of the remaining delegates will be awarded today. What can you do to involve yourself?
MORE LIVE Super Tuesday UPDATES HERE.
However, with results still incoming, Biden has taken the lead (check the chart here for an updated delegate count per candidate as the night continues). Candidates need 1,991 delegates to secure the Democratic nomination; the majority of the remaining delegates will be awarded today. What can you do to involve yourself?
- Find out where the candidates stand on issues that matter to you. A few ways that you can learn more about the candidates' stances on various issues include by checking out their campaign website, watching a debate, or doing additional research.
- If you are of voting age, VOTE. Find your polling place at your secretary of state's website.
- If you feel really passionate about a certain candidate, volunteer with the campaign's local chapter. Information about volunteering in your area is usually available on the campaign's website. As the race narrows more and more, actions like this one become more and more impactful.
MORE LIVE Super Tuesday UPDATES HERE.
| Racialization of Coronavirus As of March 3 2020, there have been over 90,000 cases worldwide of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). The global death toll has risen to over 3,000, with sudden spikes in a number of countries (read more here). The U.S. death toll for the virus is currently nine, with a recent outbreak in Washington and more than 120 cases reported nationwide. New York City subways are being sanitized every 72 hours; limits on testing foreign travelers were just lifted; statistics change so frequently that they are not accurate even hour to hour. |  |
Facilitated by misinformation, fear of the coronavirus is being used as an excuse to attack Asian-Americans across the United States. Recently, an Asian woman was viciously attacked at a New York City subway station for wearing a surgical mask. In Indiana, two Asian men were denied a room at a motel because the employee believed falsely believed they were from China and had the virus. Asian community leaders fear that hate-crime and discrimination will increase if the pandemic continues. Small businesses in Asian-American commercial areas, such as New York City Chinatown, are suffering because of the virus. Misunderstanding of the coronavirus has led many people to irrationally fear shopping in Asian stores and restaurants.
In the wake of the recent pandemic, it is important to realize that as long as human ecological disturbances continue to worsen every year, viruses like the latest coronavirus that originate from zoonotic spillovers, or harmful pathogens spreading from animals to humans, will continue to devastate our world. Zoonotic spillovers are not exclusive to China, and can take place anywhere on the globe, including the United States. Therefore, it is imperative that we take the necessary steps of preventing the next pandemic by protecting Earth’s natural environments and keeping human ecological disturbances at check. Just like now, once there is a pandemic, there is very little we can do but hope that scientists will be able to come up with a solution.
What you can do to help:
In the wake of the recent pandemic, it is important to realize that as long as human ecological disturbances continue to worsen every year, viruses like the latest coronavirus that originate from zoonotic spillovers, or harmful pathogens spreading from animals to humans, will continue to devastate our world. Zoonotic spillovers are not exclusive to China, and can take place anywhere on the globe, including the United States. Therefore, it is imperative that we take the necessary steps of preventing the next pandemic by protecting Earth’s natural environments and keeping human ecological disturbances at check. Just like now, once there is a pandemic, there is very little we can do but hope that scientists will be able to come up with a solution.
What you can do to help:
- Find and support, or create local campaigns similar to “Show Some Love for Chinatown” in New York City that helps small businesses in Asian-American commercial areas that have been affected by the public’s fear of coronavirus
- Report hate-mongering and misleading social media posts, and if you notice a hate crime, be more than a bystander
- Support organizations that protect natural environments from human disturbances, such as the Sierra Club in the United States. Protection of the environment is the best way to reduce chances of future zoonotic pandemics
- Right now, stay safe; listen to what your schools/the CDC is saying, and do everything you can to stay hygienic
| Roger Stone Pardon In the latest installment of our saga of foreign interference and executive power abuse in the White House, Trump advisor Roger Stone was sentenced to three years and four months in prison for witness tampering and lying to Congress in relation to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s special investigation into Russian interference during the 2016 Trump presidential campaign. That’s a mouthful. Here’s the Stone saga, explained: |  |
- Who is Roger Stone?
- Stone is a former member of the Libertarian Party who loves to flaunt the tattoo of Richard Nixon enshrined on his back (?!), and who has worked for political leaders from Nixon to Ronald Reagan to Donald Trump. Stone first suggested that Trump run for president in 1998.
- (Fun fact...ish...: Stone looks back fondly at his beginnings in politics in high school, when he directed the ouster of his student govenrment’s president in order to get himself in office.
- Stone joined the Trump team as a political campaign advisor in 2015. While Stone quit the campaign amid controversy in 2015, he remained an informal advisor and media surrogate to Trump throughout his campaign. During this time, Stone was banned from appearing on CNN and MSNBC due to a series of racist and misogynistic Twitter posts disparaging news personalities.
- What has Stone been accused of doing?
- During Mueller’s investigation of Russian interference in 2016, Stone was accused of and admitted to conspiring with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in order to find and publish damning information from Hillary Clinton’s email records. Senior officials within the Trump administration stated that Stone had communicated directly with them about his WikiLeaks escapades.
- News and congressional investigations have found connections between Stone and Russian operatives who hacked the Democratic National Committee, Breitbart News affiliates, and the principle promulgator of conspiracy theories over Barack Obama’s American citizenship
- Text messages between Stone and prosecution witnesses in the Mueller investigation reveal Stone attempting to blackmail witnesses into not testifying
- What’s going on now?
- In November 2019, Stone was tried and convicted on all counts of indictment: obstruction, making false statements, and witness tampering
- A judge denied a defense motion for acquittal, saying that the testimonies of senior officials in the Trump administration sufficiently supported allegations that Stone lied to Congress
- On February 20th, 2020, a D.C. District Court judge sentenced Stone to 40 months in federal prison and a $20,000 fine for his crimes
- In November 2019, Stone was tried and convicted on all counts of indictment: obstruction, making false statements, and witness tampering
And, finally...
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