By Heidi Rand
Deadline: Right away, stop the hate –
Thanks to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s November 12, 2019 Hatewatch report revealing over 900 emails from White House senior policy adviser Stephen Miller to Breitbart editors in 2015 and 2016, we’ve gained valuable if horrifying insight into Miller’s hate-filled mind. Miller is the architect behind the administration’s cruelest anti-immigrant policies, including Trump’s Muslim travel ban and family separation policy. The emails are ugly — Miller repeatedly espouses white nationalist beliefs and vilifies communities of color and immigrants — but we owe it to those communities to not look away.
Quickly following the release of the emails, civil rights groups called for Miller to be fired, and lawmakers called for him to resign. On November 14, leaders of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Congressional Black Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and Congressional Progressive Caucus called for Miller’s resignation in a joint statement, including this:
It’s clearer than ever that Stephen Miller is a far-right white nationalist with a racist and xenophobic worldview. His beliefs are appalling, indefensible, and completely at odds with public service. . . . As documented by the Southern Poverty Law Center, Stephen Miller has embedded himself in white nationalist doctrine for years, including promoting racist propaganda from fringe sites like VDARE and InfoWars. And as the chief architect of the Muslim Ban and cruel family separation policies, Stephen Miller has spent the last three years turning his bigotry into policy — with President Trump’s blessing.
As of November 15, Huffington Post reported that it had contacted the offices of all 435 members of the House of Representatives to ask whether Miller should resign; more than 80, all Democrats, said he should. Of our three East Bay Representatives, only Barbara Lee (CA-13) appeared on the list. However, Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11) spoke out publicly on November 19, and HuffPo will likely issue an updated list. And on November 21, more than 100 House Members, including Lee and DeSaulnier, signed a letter to Trump, formally requesting that Miller be removed. We are surprised that Eric Swalwell (CA-15) is not on HuffPo’s list, and that he did not sign the November 21 letter — and to date we have not found any public statements by Swalwell, or by Senators Feinstein or Harris, demanding that Miller resign or be fired.
What you can do now:
Thank Representatives Lee and DeSaulnier for calling for Miller’s removal, and urge our other Members of Congress to do so as well, ASAP.
What to say if your Representative is Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11) or Barbara Lee (CA-13):
My name is ___, my zip code is ______, and I’m a member of Indivisible East Bay. Stephen Miller represents white nationalism and supremacy, violent extremism, and hate, and it’s long past time for him to be removed from the White House. Thank you for publicly stating that he should resign. Please continue to demand that he should resign or be fired.
What to say if your Representative is Eric Swalwell (CA-15); and for all Californians, to Senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris:
My name is ___, my zip code is ______, and I’m a member of Indivisible East Bay. Stephen Miller represents white nationalism and supremacy, violent extremism, and hate, and it’s long past time for him to be removed from the White House. Please join many other Members of Congress in demanding that he resign or be fired.
- Sen. Dianne Feinstein: (email); (415) 393-0707 • DC: (202) 224-3841
- Sen. Kamala Harris: (email); (415) 981-9369 • DC: (202) 224-3553
- Rep. Mark DeSaulnier: (email); (510) 620-1000 • DC: (202) 225-2095
- Rep. Barbara Lee: (email); (510) 763-0370 • DC: (202) 225-2661
- Rep. Eric Swalwell: (email); (510) 370-3322 • DC: (202) 225-5065
Do you live outside California, or have friends or family in other states? Check whether your Rep. is included in HuffPost’s list. You can find contact info for your Members of Congress at https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials. Or call the Capitol Hill switchboard at (202) 224-3121, ask to be transferred to your MoCs, and say this:
My name is ___, my zip code is ______. Stephen Miller represents white nationalism and supremacy, violent extremism, and hate, and it’s long past time for him to be removed from the White House. Please join many other Members of Congress in demanding that he resign or be fired.
After you contact your MoCs:
We don’t often list petitions, but these would be effective if you want to add your name:
- The SPLC petition reads: “Stephen Miller clearly believes that immigrants of color are a danger to our country and should not be allowed in — a white supremacist idea that’s become the Trump administration’s policy. He has no business in the White House.”
- Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s petition demands Miller’s immediate resignation.
Photograph “Stephen Miller, Trump’s Refugee-Refusing, Baby-Snatching Policy Chief” by Mike Licht
Heidi Rand fights the evil empire with skills gained as a Ninth Circuit staff attorney and civil rights lawyer, using words to resist, and to inform and inspire others to take action.
