Quid Pro What Now?: Oct. 24-Nov. 12 2019

Hi Teen Resisters! Welcome back. We're back with a list breaking down some of the major stories making the rounds in the media and social media this week. We want to help clarify things for you and let you know how you can have an impact.
FIRST, A NOTE:
As we're publishing this, it's just been reported that the Supreme Court is considering supporting Trump in his decision to end DACA benefits for Dreamers. For now, you can read this article, this article, and our DACA briefing to understand the issue, and we'll be back soon with action.

Without further ado, let's jump in!

What Went Down:

News from the 2019 Election: Tuesday, November 6th was election day for several states. 
In Virginia, Democrats won a trifecta (control of the governor and both chambers of the state legislature) for the first time in 20 years! Now Democrats can pass a wide array of progressive legislation, from gun control to raising the minimum wage to education reform, and can make sure racially gerrymandered district lines are redrawn to ensure fair elections in Virginia for decades to come. The flip of VA has also led to new discussions about potentially ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment.
In Kentucky, Democrat Andy Beshear seems to have won a narrow victory over Republican incumbent Matt Bevin in a state that gave Trump 62% of the vote in 2016. 
In New York City, voters passed five ballot measures, one of which established ranked-choice voting as the system that will be used in future primary elections. New York is the largest city in the US to adopt the system, which many see as more democratic and has been shown to help more candidates of color gain office. 
In Mississippi, Republican Lt. Governor Tate Reeves won against centrist Democrat Jim Hood. This is definitely a disappointment, but the lesson to take away from this is not that historically deep-red states like Mississippi are unwinnable. (Case in point - Kentucky!)
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Progressive victories in these off-year elections are really important and really encouraging. Not only does it mean that Democrats can pass progressive legislation -- it’s also a huge indicator of the way the political winds are blowing prior to the 2020 nationwide elections. 
Trump is scared, and he has reason to be. He spent much of the weeks before Tuesday’s elections holding rallies and writing tweets in support of Republican candidates. He knew that victories for Democrats like Andy Beshear would send a very bad message about his reelection prospects -- and that’s exactly what happened. 
Democratic candidates in many districts received a greater share of the vote than their district’s partisan lean. In English, that means that more people are voting for Democrats than they would in a neutral political environment -- that people are more excited about Democrats now than they are normally. And people are excited about voting in general! Turnout was through the roof in the 2019 elections, and the same is expected for 2020. 

What You Can Do: 
This is all really good news, but we cannot rest on our laurels. Let’s get excited, too -- to work hard. Trump and his Republican cronies, from Washington to our local governments, absolutely can’t gain or retain control in 2020. We need to elect more progressive candidates who can help our country confront the immense challenges we face -- from the climate crisis to deeply embedded racism, sexism, and inequality --  and help us create the world we envision. 
The 2019 elections have come and gone, which means we’re even closer to 2020. It’s not too early to start planning how you’ll help bring a brilliant, progressive and diverse crop of candidates into Washington next November. 

1. Voter Registration. While there is still almost a year until ballots are cast in the 2020 elections, the time to register to vote is now. Start close to home; remind your friends, family and members of your community to make sure they’re registered. Then, check out Michelle Obama’s fantastic organization When We All Vote for plans and resources to get even more people registered. 
2. Learn about candidates and make a plan for how you’ll support them. 

Some things you can do right now: 

• Sign up to write letters to voters through Vote Forward. You can write them now and send them closer to the election. 
• Learn about candidates in districts near you so you can be ready to support them in a few months. 

Stay tuned for plenty of election-related resources, guidance, and big plans from Teens Resist, put together just for teenagers like you. Get excited!! ​

Democrat Andy Beshear after his win for Governor of Kentucky.

Maps showing the difference in election results in VA between 2015 & 2019, via the New York Times.

​Free Rodney Reed: In 1998, Rodney Reed was convicted for the rape and murder of Stacey Stites. His sentence was death. Reed first got involved when the police conducted an autopsy on Stites and found Reed’s DNA. There was no other evidence that tied Reed to the crime. Reed confessed to having an affair with Stites, and witnesses corroborated this as a reason for why his DNA was found. Medical and forensic evidence against Reed has been debunked. 
However, perhaps the most disturbing piece of information from his case is a more convincing culprit: Stites’ former fiance, Jimmy Fennell. A former policeman, he has power within the police community. What’s worse is that he has a troubling history of violence against women: in 2018, Fennell was released from jail for kidnapping and raping a woman while on duty. During his jail time, a man who was in the same facility as Fennell, Arthur Snow Jr., reported that Fennell had told him that he murdered Stacey Stites. 
    Reed’s story has gained traction online recently because his execution date of November 20 is quickly approaching. The action resulting from this attention has been directed at contacting Governor Greg Abbott of Texas, where Reed is set to be executed. Governor Abbott has the ability to pardon Reed and either stop his execution or delay it by a month to allow for more litigation. During his time in office, Abbott has stopped 1 execution while allowing 47 others to be completed. 
Reed’s case is about life and death, but it will also set a precedent around wrongful conviction, the death penalty, and mass incarceration. 
What You Can Do:

1. Go to this website to do the following:
   
   1. Sign a petition (which is almost at its goal!) asking to free Reed.
      
   2. Call and contact Governor Abbott. (We strongly recommend this, and if it’s your first time making a call, you can always head to our basics page for some guidance)
      
   3. Learn more about the case via media coverage and Reed’s lawyers.
      
2. Bare minimum: you can join the #FreeRodneyReed movement on social media!
   
3. Share this story and action! This is an issue that has a clear deadline and very high stakes.
   

Rodney Reed, via CNN

Impeachment Update & Quid Pro Quo: First, a quick recap:
On August 12th, an unknown member of Trump administration -- the “whistleblower” -- filed a report on President Trump’s corrupt dealings with Ukraine. As Trump’s opponents for the 2020 presidency were getting their campaigns underway, the president had started to get antsy, the report read. And in the same way that he’d requested dirt on Hillary Clinton from Russia, Trump contacted Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky to ask that the Ukranian government investigate Joe Biden (and his son) and turn over the uncovered dirt for political gain, twisting the country’s (metaphorical) arm by threatening to withhold the US’ planned $200 million of aid.

Despite Trump’s repeated claims that the request was not quid pro quo (which would mean Trump was leveraging the US’ aid to Ukraine in order to get the dirt he wanted), certain high-ranking White House officials have said otherwise. Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the European Union, testified on October 17th (despite attempts by the Trump administration to prevent this) that there was in fact quid pro quo: that Trump had been attempting to bribe Ukraine into investigating Biden. And while this may not seem particularly damning, under Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution bribery is an impeachable criminal offense.

On October 31st, for only the third time in the history of the United States, the House of Representatives officially voted to start impeachment inquiry proceedings. Notably, the rules and regulations outlined in this specific inquiry are more protective of the president than were regulations by Republicans in the impeachment of Bill Clinton (although this hasn’t prevented accusations -- or all-caps tweets -- of “Witch Hunt!”). This suggests that House Democrats are confident in their case against Trump; why else give him so much protective leeway?

There were three important developments last week. First, on November 3rd, the whistleblower who first blew the lid off the Trump-Ukraine scandal confirmed through a lawyer that he would be willing to answer written questions directly from Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee. Second, on November 4th, the Department of Justice released a memo to the Trump administration confirming officials’ complete immunity from subpoenas by the House. As a result, the number refusing to testify more than tripled -- some 14 people didn’t show up. Third, on November 6th, ex- New York Governor Rudy Giuliani stepped back from President Trump’s defense team, though he remains the president’s personal lawyer. Instead, as a central character in impeachment hearings, Giuliani’s hired some lawyers for himself.

Next week marks the beginning of public testimonies in the inquiry: US special envoy to Ukraine Bill Taylor and deputy assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs George Kent will testify Wednesday; we will hear from former US ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovich on Friday.

All this damning evidence, though, may be for naught. President Trump may very well be impeached in the House, yet it would mean nothing if he were acquitted in the Senate, and this scenario is a very real possibility. The results of this inquiry are unclear, so keep a watchful eye. Updates will follow.

What You Can Do:

• Impeachment proceedings are pretty much up to our elected officials. What you can do is stay informed about what's going on and not get numb to the torrent of news about impeachment all the time.
• You can also refer to our section on the elections above, because getting the right people in office is a big part of this!

Anti-Immigrant Hate Crime in Wisconsin: Just under two weeks ago, Mahud Villalaz was racially profiled and attacked by 61-year-old Clifton Blackwell in a taqueria parking lot in Wisconsin. Villalaz, 42, later revealed that he had gone to the taqueria after work for food when he was approached by Blackwell. Villalaz immigrated to the US from his native country of Peru significantly before the episode, and became a US citizen nearly a decade ago, in 2013. Despite this, Blackwell confronted him with complaints that Villalaz was parking too close to a bus stop. Blackwell then said: “Why did you invade my country?” and “Why don’t you respect my laws?” Villalaz eventually moved his car, after which Blackwell followed Villalez up to the restaurant’s entrance and the verbal assault turned physical, with Blackwell to Villalaz as an “illegal” and throwing battery acid in his face. Villalaz, unfortunately, sustained second and third-degree burns on his face and neck, along with severe irritation in his right eye.    
Authorities later found a multitude of chemical products in Blackwell’s possession, following a search of his home. Blackwell now faces charges of first-degree reckless injury, hate crime, and the use of a deadly weapon. Wisconsin state law also allows an additional fine of up to $5k and a maximum of five more years for victim-based crimes, where the perpetrator intentionally selects the victim based on race, religion, etc. Apprehended just last Wednesday, Blackwell’s next hearing is due for this Friday, the 15th of November. If convicted, he could face up to 35 years in prison.
Villalaz recently spoke up about the attacks. Speaking Spanish at a recent press event, he says: "It has been wonderful to see that there are many people who worry about others, not only Latinos but white people... everybody," and "Let's unite and live in peace with our neighbors." It is unsure whether or not he has decided to sue Blackwell at this time. 
While deeply disheartening, these incidents and instances are not nearly uncommon, and far from isolated. Hate crimes are an epidemic and should be addressed as such. 
Blackwell’s comments and his use of the word “invade” connect to the growing movement of white nationalism, which seeks to create a white ethnostate that subjugates people of color, gay people, and other marginalized groups. Traditional white nationalism teaches that the groups mentioned above are infiltrating the United States and that this infiltration is orchestrated by Jews seeking to destroy the white race. While the core ideology is extreme, its extreme and less extreme echoes can be seen in the violence in Charlottesville, El Paso, Pittsburgh, and even in Christchurch, NZ, where the man who killed 51 in a mosque referenced American white nationalist ideology. 

What You Can Do:

• This site and this site refer you to a number of resources aiding in immigrant aid and relief, as well as education, safety, and more. You can also apply advocacy in your community through:
  • creating safe, engaging, and welcoming environments
  • be up to date and vocal about issues concerning your (and other) communities
  • donate, petition, and protest to and for causes 
  • support art, movements, and works that directly benefit communities
• Support organizations like the Southern Poverty Law Center and Western States Center that do work to fight hate crimes and the scourge of white nationalism. You can support them monetarily if possible, and also become familiar with their resources and follow with their action opportunities.

Mahud Villalaz after the attack took place. Photo via the New York Times.

We hope these were helpful!
Sending lots of love and light,
​Us

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