4-28-25 Newsletter

 

Be a good neighbor. Stay on the sidewalk, don't block pedestrians, and keep driveways clear. Keep it peaceful, and don't engage with counter protesters.  Invite a friend. Let’s have fun! MAY DAY STRONG ASTORIA A rally to protect democracy Thursday, May 1  •  4:30 pm - 6 pm 17th and Marine Drive, Astoria We're organizing for a world where every family has housing, healthcare, fair wages, union protection, and safety—regardless of race, zip code, or immigration status. We must expand our democracy community to include even more union members, faith communities, migrant communities, and others.   This is a 100% nonviolent event. Do not park in the Maritime Museum or Coast Guard parking lots. Keep driveways clear and cross only in crosswalks. Bring your signs! - - - - -  MAY DAY - NORTH AND SOUTH PACIFIC COUNTY  Read the entire OPB article here.  Thank Attorney General Rayfield for his leadership in protecting Oregon's economy here: Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield 503-378-4400 AttorneyGeneral@doj.oregon.gov MORE YOU CAN DO You can help save the planet from Trump's billionaires and extremists. April 22 was Earth Day, and most people know every day is Earth day. Try these climate-saving suggestions from Chop Wood, Carry Water, on Substack: Pick a good environmental organization and join its local chapter. Outstanding local organizations include North Coast Land Conservancy and North Coast Communities for Watershed Protection. Compost. It's really not that hard and it makes a HUGE difference. Combatting Climate Change - US Composting Council Cut back on plastic in every way you can. It's a petroleum product and therefore a massive driver of the climate crisis.  Help turn out environmental voters! One organization is working on that—the Environmental Voter Project. Please help them with either a donation or your volunteer time—they offer regular postcarding, phone banking, and canvassing opportunities. They are data-backed and effective! Reduce the size of (or eliminate) your lawn. Instead plant native, pollinator-friendly plants to benefit wildlife and the ecosystem. Never use pesticides or artificial fertilizers—pesticides harm beneficial insects and human health, and fertilizer runoff leads to toxic algae blooms in rivers and lakes, and seaweed overgrowth in the ocean, which can choke out other aquatic life. Subscribe to great climate newsletters like DeSmog, Grist, Climate ChangeResources. They'll help you know where to focus your advocacy and send you lots more ways to make a difference. Kudos to Cheryl, Bob, Del, and Karen for cleaning up Harbor Drive in Warrenton. Local Indivisibles have made this an INCO service project for several years. For info about this and other INCO service projects, contact Bruce at b42wzz@gmail.com. COME TO THE COINvention Join fellow Oregon Indivisibles in Salem, Oregon on June 6-9.  Registration is now open for the 2025 COINvention.  Fed Up? Stand Up! UNITE!  Register here for the COINvention! Friday evening, June 6 - optional no-host social gathering. Saturday and Sunday,  June 7-8 - inspirational speakers, training, break-out sessions, and some fun activities. Monday June 9  -  optional lobby day at the state capitol, a time to meet with our state legislators and their staff to urge them to pass our priority bills before the session ends later in June. More details will be provided after you register.  WHAT'S THE PLAN? Thursday, May 1  *  noon -1, via Zoom Updates and Q&A with Indivisible co-directors Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin.   ARE WE READY FOR A NATIONAL CIVIC UPRISING? Remember all the Hands Off! protests on April 5? We need to multiply those numbers until America's democracy community is bigger and solid enough to create change. When will that be? Leah and Ezra, Indivisible's co-founders and co-directors, explain strategy and plans every Thursday; also available on YouTube after the live Zoom call.  Check out this column by Robert Reich for another perspective about mass movements.  REGISTER HERE for the next What’s the Plan call. Submit questions in the Chat during the event. Past sessions are on Indivisible's YouTube channel. CALL CONGRESS Senator Ron Wyden     202-224-5244  or  503-326-7525 Senator Jeff Merkley    202-224-3753  or 503-326-3386 Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici    202-225-0855  or 503-469-6010 Using the 5 Calls app is another way to reach your Members of Congress. VOICES: NEWS AND PERSPECTIVE WHAT IS THE RULE OF LAW? "In a rule of law system, people know what the law is—it’s publicly available in written form, and everyone is on notice of the rules. It’s enforced equally against all people and administered by an independent judiciary. No kings. As we used to say with certainty pre-Trump, no man is above the law." -- Joyce Vance, "Rule of Law?", Civil Discourse, April 22, 2025 - - - - -  Politics and people! What a combination! More about how we got here in these good books and summaries. - - - - -  GROWING OUR VIRTUOUS CIRCLE "... a virtuous circle can develop in defense of democracy: Ordinary people organize and protest; politicians and officials realize resistance is popular, they step up their defense of democracy; and their increased resilience in turn inspires more popular defiance. And so it goes, with increased momentum as one courageous action begets the next. (A side benefit: such defiance humiliates the politicians and civil society appeasers who claimed to have had no choice but to go along with the autocrat.)" -- Jennifer Rubin, The Contrarian, April 25, 2025 FIGHTING BACK AGAINST PROJECT 2025  Here's an in-depth analysis of the MAGA playbook by Indivisible Project 2025 Explained. - - - - -   TRACKING TYRANNY A few hardy souls are tracking Project 2025's timeline and goals. You can track the regime's resignations and firings here. There's also Tyranny Tracker on Substack, which gives more details about the latest regime horrors. These sites are worth checking out.  - - - - -  "COLLECTIVE STUBBORNNNESS" "So remember --- it is up to us to decide how we respond when they start demanding we conform and obey, not to them. Know your power, even as a regime tries to take it from you. Do not cooperate, especially as the cracks are starting to widen." -- Corbin, Reader's Comment, The Contrarian, April 25, 2025 “'All power-holders, even the most ruthless and corrupt, rely on the consent and coöperation of ordinary people,” Maria J. Stephan, who co-authored a book with (Erica) Chenoweth titled “Why Civil Resistance Works,” said. "The key to challenging authoritarian regimes, Stephan said, is for citizens to decline to participate in immoral and illegal acts. Stephan, who co-leads the Horizons Project, a nonprofit that supports nonviolent movements against authoritarianism, has a phrase for this mind-set: “I think of it as collective stubbornness,” she said." -- Julia Angwin and Ami Fields-Meyer, "So You Want To Be a Dissident?", The New Yorker, April 12, 2025 INCO COMMUNITY MEETING Saturday, May 17 10:30 - Mix and mingle, vent and validate                                     11:00 - 12:30 Meeting Grace Episcopal Church Parish Hall, 1545 Franklin, Astoria Self-care during these times: "Every night I hang out with my cat for a petting session and listen to soft 'cat music.'" -- Janie, INCO Community Meeting, April 26 FUN STUFF  INCO INSIGHTS "We were born into the opportunity to be aware, to care, and to create meaning in action."   -- David Lee Myers INCO defends democracy by opposing authoritarianism, bigotry, and corruption and by promoting civic engagement and building community. Sign up for the INCO newsletter here. Comments, news, and photos to INCO at incoregon@gmail.com.  Resources and other information at www.incoregon.org and www.indivisible.org. INCO is part of COIN, the Consolidated Oregon Indivisible Network. Get updates, track Oregon legislation, and learn about Oregon's 40+ Indivisible groups. Sign up here. Look for the INCO column in Hipfish Monthly.  Indivisible North Coast Oregon is on Facebook, Instagram, and Blue Sky. INCO Weekly Newsletter  •  April 28, 2025 Website Email Facebook Copyright © 2025 INDIVISIBLE North Coast Oregon, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in at our website or signed up at a community group meeting. Our mailing address is: *|766 Lexington Avenue, Astoria, OR 97103:HTML|* Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.