By Ann G. Daniels
Deadline: June 21, 2021 –
You’ve read our past actions and our earlier article about the For the People Act (S.1). Whether you’ve done anything before or not – it’s make or break time, and we need everyone to ACT NOW.
Why now? Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has said he’s going to bring the bill to a vote in the Senate the week of June 21. That means there’s time for us to make a lot of noise – but not a lot of time.
Why is this so important? You’ve probably heard that Sen. Joe Manchin, sorta-kinda-D-WVa, has said he won’t support the For the People Act because GOP leadership doesn’t like it. The irony: Manchin supported a voting rights bill back in 2019 … but anyway. Remember back in the Dark Ages, when we didn’t lose the Affordable Care Act? That was because we made enough noise to support Democratic leaders and even a few Republican Senators willing to do the right thing. We need to do that again now, right now, if we’re going to protect voting rights in this country. Make enough noise that Chuck Schumer and President Biden and all our leaders know – this isn’t negotiable, and it isn’t acceptable for a Democratic senator to cave to the GOP and dark money, including from the Koch network. Make so much noise that even the GOP knows – they can filibuster the For the People Act to keep it from coming to a vote, but their constituents want it. Tell our Senators to make this legislation a top priority. Tell your friends and relatives all over the country. It’s showtime – time to show up.
What you can do:
1. Call your senators, and keep calling. Senators Feinstein and Padilla already support the For the People Act, but that’s not enough. They need to fight for it, no matter what it takes. As Stacey Abrams says: “No matter where you live, no matter what your Senator has already said, I need you to call your US Senators every day in June to demand that Senators pass the For The People Act to protect our freedom to vote.” We want our Senators to take the lead!
What to say:
My name is __________, my address is _________, and I’m a member of Indivisible East Bay. I’m calling about the For the People Act. This bill is top priority, and I want the Senator to do everything possible to make sure it passes. I hope Senator _______ will get all their colleagues to support and vote for it, and let President Biden, Senator Schumer, and all leadership know it’s not negotiable. Any Senator who opposes voting rights or opposes this bill must know that their opposition is unacceptable. If passing the bill means reforming or getting rid of the filibuster — then that must happen.
Please contact both:
- Sen. Dianne Feinstein: (email); (415) 393-0707 • DC: (202) 224-3841
- Sen. Alex Padilla: (email); (415) 981-9369 • DC: (202) 224-3553
Don’t live in California? Call the Senate switchboard and ask to be connected to your Senator: (202) 224-3121
But wait, there’s more! Sign up here to take Indivisible National’s Pledge to Call for Democracy Reform. They’ll send you everything you need to call your Senators for five days during the week of June 21.
2. Take action with IEB: whether you love to text-bank, phonebank, contact your friends, write, tweet, or … you name it, join your fellow activists – activism is always more fun in community!
- Action Tuesday with IEB, 6/22 – sign up here
- Phone-bank with IEB to AZ to kill the filibuster (RSVP for 6/13 here, 6/20 here, 6/27 here, 7/4 here)
- And more: Join our allies to phone-bank to West Virginia and text-bank to support the For the People Act
3. Show up: Sign up here to take Indivisible National’s Pledge to Attend a Deadline for Democracy Event near you.
4. Pass it on: Tell everyone you know, all over the country! Send them this article, and especially the links for the Pledge to Call for Democracy Reform and the Pledge to Attend a Deadline for Democracy Event.
Nancy Latham and Heidi Rand contributed to this article
Ann G. Daniels’ checkered professional background includes practicing law, reproductive rights advocacy, creating web content for nonprofits and educational organizations, and teaching adult and family literacy. She also designs jewelry, teaches knitting, and sings second soprano.
