Hope is an action verb
Thanks for finding me! We know the stakes are so high this election but dread alone doesn’t help us. I started this newsletter because a good and caring friend shared with me that she wanted to do something to help Kamala Harris’ campaign but wasn’t sure what she could do beyond vote. And while some of us have participated in organizing, many are juggling jobs, caretaking, are new to this and not sure what to do.
I’ll share a few actions each week. If you have ideas or events you are leading, feel free to email me and I’ll include them in the next week. The format may evolve. As a good friend with deep organizing experience shared, “Just get started, Lisa. Don’t overthink it.” So that’s what I’m doing.
Actions for the Week
#1: Make sure you and your friends are registered to vote
If you are not registered, you can go here to see by when you have to register. Are your friends and family registered? Make sure to send them this. In general, if you register 30 days in advance, you should by fine.
If you are registered (or are not sure), check that you are listed correctly through this site. We’ve notoriously seen voter names be purged from lists. Voter suppression is real. Check it out now so you have time to fix it. And send it to 5 friends (bonus points if they are in a swing state). You can even cut and paste this script:
Hey! It takes less than a minute to make sure you are registered to vote and that your details are correct. Can you check here? And if not, this link will help you to get registered (that should take only two!
#2 Get educated: the economy
This Washington Post article, written by a conservative, clearly walks you through why the Republican platform is not only NOT conservative but deeply problematic. Read it for yourself (it’s well written and quick, and will give you the talking points you need to combat misinformation). A few points:
“The new platform would push Washington’s $2 trillion deficit even higher with new tax cuts and significant spending expansions for defense, veterans and a border wall. It also pledges opposition to any reforms scaling back Social Security and Medicare’s terrifying projected 30-year cash shortfall of $124 trillion.”
“The platform endorses Trump’s aggressive trade war and tariffs, which would drive up prices at an annual cost of $1,500 for the typical U.S. household.”
“The platform’s “Largest Deportation Program in American History” approach of undertaking a door-to-door roundup of up to 20 million illegal immigrants is totally infeasible and would lead only to chaos and cruelty. Old laws meant to vet potential immigrants for anti-American and revolutionary intentions would be resurrected, the platform promises, and twisted into religious and political ideological tests for immigration applicants. The platform accuses Democrats of plotting to “add tens of millions of new illegal immigrants to the rolls of Medicare,” which suggests that all 10 million Medicare-age seniors in Mexico, and possibly all such adults in Central America, would emigrate to the United States, receiving full amnesty and benefits.”
#3 Donate
Not the splashiest, but donating is the best way to support the campaign and all who are working on it. Even $5 helps. The link is here.