“Now let us begin. Now let us re-dedicate ourselves to the long and bitter, but beautiful, struggle for a new world.” -- Martin Luther King Jr.
".... We are now officially the resistance, the opposition, and the defenders of democracy. Let’s lean into our new role with confidence and determination that our cause is just." -- Robert Hubbell, Today's Edition, January 20, 2025
* * * INCO ACTION * * *
INCO members started these teams at recent INCO meetings. With your participation, they can be even more active and effective. What do you want to work on?
PROTECTING PEOPLE AT RISK Immigration • Trump's immigration policies and local students. Cindy has info from Astoria School District. If you get info from other districts, contact incoregon@gmail.com.
• If you get info about Clatsop County policy regarding the state's sanctuary status, please contact incoregon@gmail.com.
• Regarding ICE (Immigration and Custom Enforcement): The Rural Organizing Project (ROP) advises this if you are concerned about ICE activity in Clatsop County: "The first thing I'd say is to verify that there's actually ICE activity before amplifying information. We've been hearing a lot of rumors about ICE in the last week that have all turned out to be false alarms, which is understandable - people are freaked out. That can look like members of your group going to the place in question and just observing whether ICE is actually there. In the case of true ICE activity, I'd point you to this tool from the ACLU of Oregon. It includes information on the Sanctuary hotline where you can report incidents, and a lot of important additional know your rights information."
Other • Public health: Reproductive healthcare, vaccinations • Other communities targeted by the Trump administration
SERVICE TO HELP OUR NEIGHBORS AND UPLIFT OUR COMMUNITY • Painting at the Columbia Inn emergency shelter: Clatsop Community Action (CCA) has decided they would like to wait until spring to paint the doors. They're concerned about the overall project - power washing the doors and then having water on the ground that could freeze and the safety issues around that, and simply painting when it’s cold not being the best for a lasting paint job. They thank us for our enthusiasm and would love to reconnect in the spring for this project. Sign up with Bruce at incoregon@gmail.com
• To volunteer for the CCA Food Bank, contact Bruce at incoregon@gmail.com.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING • The May 2025 local district elections -see below
LOCAL GOVERNMENT WATCH • Attend city, county, and local district meetings - in person or via Zoom. Many meeting schedules are here. Contact Julia at incoregon@gmail.com to join this INCO team.
• If you attend, please tell INCO what these councils and committees are deciding about taxes, budgets, policies, and community values and goals.
PARTNERING WITH OTHER GROUPS • COIN, CCA, Clatsop Dems, Rural Organizing Project (ROP), and ???
COMMUNICATIONS • Social media, INCO website, newsletter, monthly hipfish column, press releases, and more
• "Writing Effective Letters to the Editor" training, Thursday, January 30, 6 pm, via Zoom. REGISTER HERE. Hosted by Oregon League of Conservation Voters.
To participate on a team or suggest another area you'd like to work on with INCO, please contact incoregon@gmail.com.
"I really enjoyed our uplifting gathering this morning with the opportunity to meet the awesome people of our community and the opportunity to learn. I had a very happy sunny day!" -- Vicki, after INCO's service and support gathering at Columbia River Coffee Roaster, January 20, 2025
*Attend INCO's next Community Meeting on Saturday, February 15, at the Astoria Senior Center, 11th and Exchange. Doors open at 11; we'll start shortly after that.
MAY 2025 LOCAL DISTRICT ELECTIONS
Voters fill important positions in Clatsop County in our odd-year elections. People in these positions decide about policies, taxes, and budgets that directly affect our lives. Some districts serve the entire county, like the college, transportation district, and the Port of Astoria. Others include local school boards, fire departments, and health districts. The list of positions up for election in May, 2025 is here.
The first day to file for these positions is February 8. Additional information about district elections from the Clatsop County Elections Department is here.
If you want to make an impact in your community, consider running for one of these positions, or find good people to be candidates. Thanks to INCO activists Cheryl Johnson and Mary Beth Cottle for this election information.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: TEN WAYS TO OPPOSE TRUMP INCO encourages you to read Robert Reich's suggestions for effective action you can do on your own or with INCO.
"Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield has tapped a dozen prominent Oregonians who work in areas like health care, law and labor to advise his office as it tries to defend againt potential threats to Oregon policies from the incoming Trump administration." -- The Astorian, January 2, 2025
Oregon has joined with 22 states in a lawsuit opposing Trump's attempt to cancel birthright citizenship, granted in the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution.
INCO encourages you to thank and encourage AG Rayfield at AttorneyGeneral@doj.oregon.gov.
Substack is an online platform hosting hundreds, of authors. INCO recommends the resources below to stay informed, get valuable perspective, and share your opinions, too. Go to Substack and search for these newsletters. You can read for free, and most have options to become subscribers to get additional features.
Robert Hubbell, Today's Edition Heather Cox Richardson, Letters from an American Joyce Vance, Civil Discourse The Contrarian - a variety of writers and topics, mostly about politics and saving democracy Jay Kuo, Status Kuo Ruth Ben-Ghiat, Lucid Jessica Valenti, Abortion.Every Day
• For excellent updates about court cases and legal issues, sign up for Democracy Docket (not on Substack).
• We will feature other resources in future issues. Send your suggestions to incoregon@gmail.com. More resources at our website, www.incoregon.org.
*INCO encourages you to sign up to get Indivisible news and action suggestions at www.indivisible.org.
POWER: FIGHT OR FOLD
• "So, my friends, it is up to us. No one is coming to save us. We must save ourselves. The first step in that process is to proclaim the imminent threat to democracy posed by Donald Trump. We must not relent, and we must ignore the voices telling us to “calm down” and “chill out.” The twin evils of accommodation and normalization are responsible for our current peril. We cannot repeat those mistakes." -- Robert Hubbell, Today's Edition, January 21, 2025
• "The silence of critics is essential to the growth of authoritarian power." -- Dan Rather
• "Fascists depend on convincing us to give our power away and fall in line, that the fight is over, and we lost. And while we must be clear-eyed about the threat, we must not do the fascists’ work for them by giving them powers they do not have. .... when we can generate backlash, we can delay, defang, and block some of the most dangerous parts of MAGA Republicans’ agenda." -- Indivisible
THE LAWYERS FIGHTING TRUMP'S EXECUTIVE ORDERS
Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, joins Marc Elias, of Democracy Docket, to discuss the legal efforts to fight against Trump's illegal and unconstitutional executive orders. Watch here.
Learn more about Trump's executive orders and their impact on our lives at Democracy2025.org.
"Executive orders are not a magic wand, though. The president can only use them to direct activity within the executive branch, he can’t make other entities, or private businesses, universities, podcasters, individuals or anyone/thing else that isn’t an executive branch entity or actor comply with his dictates. That’s one big limitation on his ability to act. Orders have to be in compliance with the Constitution and federal laws." -- Joyce Vance, Civil Discourse, January 21, 2025
PROJECT 2025: BLUEPRINT FOR TRUMP AND THE GOP
Historian Timothy Snyder wrote ON TYRANNY: TWENTY LESSONS FROM THE TWENTIETH CENTURY after Trump's election in 2016. INCO encourages you to read this brief important book.
Lesson 4. Take responsibility for the face of the world. (symbols, labels, and signs of hate)
INCO INSIGHTS "Continuing to believe in democracy is a profound act of resistance and courage in a moment like this when we are being told it no longer matters." -- Joyce Vance, Civil Discourse
Indivisible defends democracy by opposing authoritarianism, bigotry, and corruption. Comments, news, and photos to INCO at incoregon@gmail.com. Resources and other information at www.incoregon.org and www.indivisible.org. Encourage others to sign up for the INCO newsletter here. Look for the INCO column in Hipfish Monthly. We're on Facebook, too. INCO Weekly Newsletter • January 27, 2024