indivisibleebadmin Actions, Events, Get Involved, Meetings, Mueller report, newsletter action, Our Impact, Rallies & Protests, Uncategorized, Volunteer Opportunity

Reclaiming our time: model impeachment hearing

By Ann G. Daniels and Larry Baskett

Deadline: Save it or lose it –

UPDATED: the October 13 event we refer to in this article is over, but you can see Larry’s  impeachment presentation at this pdf.

It is, alas, not explicitly stated in the Constitution that you can remove the President for losing every single marble in the toy store. However, Indivisible East Bay has been saying for quite a while (see our list at the bottom of this article) that there’s more than enough undisputed evidence to impeach the Current Occupant. Now – finally, finally – Nancy Pelosi has come around, and dare we hope that things might actually happen? 

Since we’ve been ahead of the game the whole way, let’s keep going with our very own model House Judiciary Committee impeachment hearing, a “people’s impeachment hearing” to show Speaker Pelosi and Committee Chair Nadler how it should be done. IEB is excited to pair with Indivisible SF and others to create this very real exercise in democracy, which we’ll hold with a live audience (of us!) and capture on video to distribute online. The model hearing, to be held on a date TBD before Election Day (November 5), will answer such important and frequently asked questions as:

  • Why impeach the president, in general? 
  • What offenses and actions – not just statutory crimes! – could be included in articles of impeachment? 
  • Why impeach in the House even if the Senate might not convict and remove the president? 
  • What is key to making impeachment in the House a success for the country? 
  • What is key to obtaining conviction in the Senate?

Here’s the thing: we need YOU to help make this happen. It takes a village to raze a childish, corrupt president – can you or folks you know help us fill these roles? Sign up at this link!

  1. Lawyers or legal eagles! Specifically, people knowledgeable about constitutional law or congressional procedure 
  2. People who’ve been directly impacted by Trump’s abusive policies (to give testimony). Think immigration, LGBTQ + rights, repro rights, worker safety and rights, environmental issues, federal workers …
  3. People interested in “adopting” an article of impeachment or two, to help script and organize a segment of the hearing – great for folks who’ve already dug deep and those who’d like to!
  4. People willing to act the parts of Members of Congress or witnesses. Theater folks welcome!

We also welcome anyone interested in helping organize or participate in ways we haven’t mentioned. You can also get in on the discussion on the #impeachment channel on IEB’s Slack. For an invite to join Slack, email info@IndivisibleEB.org

Can’t wait that long for impeachment action? Get out on the streets of San Francisco THIS SUNDAY, October 13, noon to 1:30 PM. IEB’s own impeachment expert Larry will speak, and the event will feature Spanish translation! Event details here. Also, check out this new website for impeachment rallies nationwide this Sunday, and pass it on to everyone you know across the country! 

Get up to speed by reading our earlier articles, with background and more actions you can take on impeachment, investigations, and the Mueller Report:

“Impeachment of the President – Ticket circa 1868,” graphic by Seth Anderson 

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.

Larry Baskett is a mechanical engineer who spent a year as a Science and Technology Policy Fellow with the California State Senate.

 

indivisibleebadmin Actions, Events, Get Involved, Ice cream, Meetings, Uncategorized, Who We Are

Now Serving: ImPeach-Mint at the AMM

By Ward Kanowsky

For a change of venue, we held Indivisible East Bay’s September All Members Meeting in CA-15 at Dublin’s IBEW Union Hall. Several allies from Livermore Indivisible (LI) chapter joined us for a full slate of speakers on a wide variety of topics, as well as resistance activities!

  • Dennessa Atiles, who recently took on the role of Indivisible National’s Senior Regional Organizer for the West Coast from Chloe Stryker and Zacharie Boisvert, introduced herself and talked about how the national group provides support to the local chapters like IEB and LI, as well as how National prioritizes issues that will have a nationwide focus. The current impeachment inquiry is the top priority, ensuring that the House moves swiftly on a vote. Defunding Hate also remains a priority so there are no budget increases for ICE or CBP.
  • Kyoko Takayama from Organizing for Action, who has recently been working with the Alameda County Census Outreach team in preparation for the 2020 census, discussed the census ambassador program. People who sign up for the ambassador program will be trained to conduct outreach such as assistance in completing questionnaires or educational outreach, and then report back to the Alameda County Census office to track and monitor progress. For more information on the program, visit www.acgov.org/Census2020 or contact Casey Farmer, Executive Director, at casey.farmer@acgov.org. For more info on how you can help ensure a complete count, read our recent article.
  • IEB’s impeachment guru Larry gave a presentation bringing us up to speed about the fast moving impeachment situation. Since his (Sunday!) update, we’ve had the whistleblower revelations about Trump’s repeated tries to use $250 million in public money to extort Ukraine into investigating false and debunked allegations related to his political rival, former VP Joe Biden, and his son Hunter Biden. And we’ve had the House finally bring a formal inquiry; Larry outlined other potential impeachment articles such as obstruction of justice, abuse and violation of immigrants’ rights, attacks on freedom of the press, etc).  Here’s a link to Larry’s impeachment presentation. He also urged us to keep calling our Members of Congress to ask that the scope of articles be broad to deal with all of the corruption and abuses of power; to bring as overwhelming a portion of the public along as possible; and to strive for a real chance of conviction and removal. See our recent article for talking points and contact info.
September 29, 2019 All Members Meeting, photo by Linh Nguyen
AMM, photo by Linh Nguyen

After the speakers, attendees chose from several activities. CA-15 team co-lead LeAnn led a breakout using Vote Forward’s Voter Registration by Mail tool, and people churned out 100 letters to Arizona residents not currently registered to vote, but who would likely vote Blue in the 2020 elections. CA-11 team co-lead Ted oversaw the East Bay Activist Alliance phone banking to help support Cheryl Turpin for Virginia State Senate and Alex Askew for the Virginia House of Delegates.

And best for last! We served everyone ice cream sundaes, the most popular of course: ImPeach-Mint!

Mueller (mis)fortune cookies, photo by LeAnn Kanowsky
Mueller (mis)fortune cookies, photo by LeAnn Kanowsky

And we gave out Mueller (mis)fortune cookies; a typical fortune read, “While this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.”  Hear hear!

Ward Kanowsky is co-lead, with LeAnn Kanowsky, of the Indivisible East Bay CA-15 Team

Larry Baskett contributed to this article

Photographs by LeAnn Kanowsky, Ted Lam and Linh Nguyen

Heidi Rand Actions, Call and Email MoCs, Call Scripts, Meetings, Mueller report, newsletter action, Our Impact, Uncategorized

A Republic. If you can keep it.

Deadline: Save it or lose it –

Over the past year or more many of you have marched, made calls, read the Mueller Report, and in other ways stepped up to educate friends and Members of Congress about the urgent need to impeach the Criminal-in-Chief. At long last, the dam broke on Tuesday, September 24; as we watched the number of House Democrats jumping on board soar, Speaker Nancy Pelosi finally announced a formal impeachment inquiry under the umbrella of the six House Committees already investigating the wide range of Current Occupant’s high crimes and misdeeds.

We’re energized by this tectonic movement, and ready to push to keep the pressure on Congress, to keep the momentum going, and to unite to fight what is already coming: trolling, lying, and pressure from the forces of evil ON STEROIDS.

What you can do:

1. Take direct action! The coalition of groups that organized a lot of the most effective impeachment events and rallies has called for people to show up together at Town Halls and in-district events. Sign up here to get latest updates, and see whether there’s an event near you (or organize one!) Pledge to take action here.

2. Speaking of in-district events:

  • If you’re a constituent of Representative Eric Swalwell (CA-15), join him for a conference call on Friday, Sept. 27 at 10:30 am, to talk about the impeachment inquiry into Trump. Dial in: 1-800-719-7514 using code 635790. You’ll be able to ask questions on the call, but can also submit questions in advance to afielding@ericswalwell.com.
  • Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11) is holding two recess town halls: Oct. 1, 7-8:30 PM in Pittsburg, info & RSVP; and Oct. 3, 6:30-8 PM in Richmond, info & RSVP.

3. Indivisible National, By the People, and many other groups who’ve worked tirelessly in the impeachment coalition have their own sets of demands – many but not all overlap. We provide a list; please choose those which you agree with, and call to thank your Representative for coming out in favor of an impeachment inquiry (all East Bay Reps have done so – if you’re passing this article onto friends in other districts, they can find out if their Representative is in favor by looking at CNN’s list of House Democrats calling for an impeachment inquiry.

  • The House should cancel the October recess and begin to hold public impeachment hearings immediately.
  • The Judiciary Committee and other committees should hold frequent public hearings that make the case to the public in a persuasive, organized presentation.
  • Cover the full range of impeachable offenses, beyond just what’s in the Mueller Report or involving Ukraine. Mention a couple of examples that are important to you personally — there are many to choose from at these sources:
  • The House should take action on its own authority, rather than waiting for responses from the courts or from the administration.
  • The committees should use the House’s inherent power to punish contempt and to compel testimony.

Contact info:

4. If you’re able and want to support vulnerable Democrat House members who have stepped up to call for impeachment, you can donate to their reelection campaigns through the Courage to Impeach Actblue page. Options to donate to them collectively, or select one or more individually.

5. Talk to your friends and relatives about impeachment. Not sure what to say? Get up to speed by reading our earlier articles, with background and more actions you can take on impeachment, investigations, and the Mueller Report:

 

“Whistle” graphic by Gramzon

Larry Baskett contributed to this article. Larry is a mechanical engineer from Berkeley who spent a year as a Science and Technology Policy Fellow with the California State Senate.

 

 

clumston Actions, Events, Get Involved, Ice cream, Meetings, newsletter action, Our Impact, Uncategorized

Change the Regime with Ice Cream!

Nothing’s better than eating ice cream with friends! Now’s the time to reach out to that neighbor who’s upset about immigration or climate change and doesn’t know what to do, and bring them to Indivisible East Bay’s All Members Meeting in Dublin on Sunday, September 29, from 1-3 pm! Tell them to bring their charged up phone + laptop or other device because we have the solution to existential dread — taking action!

To get your new resistance friend up to speed on how Indivisible National works with chapters like ours, we’ve invited Dennessa Atiles, Indivisible’s new organizer for Northern California, Alaska and Hawaii to come share her thoughts. She’ll give an update on priorities for 2020 and her goals for organizing. If you ever wondered how Indy staff helps support all the chapters, now’s your chance to find out.

You and your buddy will be inspired by tireless Livermore community organizer extraordinaire, Kyoko Takayama. One of the leads for Tri-Valley Grassroots Organizing (Tri-Valley GO), Kyoko is now certified as an Alameda County Census 2020 Ambassador and will share more about the outreach efforts in Alameda County and what we can do to help out.

Now that you and your ally in (bare) arms (and hey, we’ve got a t-shirt for that!) are ready to go, you’ll have your choice of our favorite resistance flavors — phone banking, postcarding, or registering voters by mail! We also know it’s the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, and our phone calls will end exactly at 3 pm. Oh, and ice cream, too, because hey, it’s Sundae!

RSVP here (not required but it’ll help us plan how much ice cream to bring!)

Ice cream solves everything, photo by Brendan Church

indivisibleebadmin Actions, Events, Get Involved, Meetings, newsletter action, Our Impact, Uncategorized

Face to face with Sen. Feinstein’s state director

Our Q&A with Senator Feinstein’s new state director is coming up next Monday, September 23, and we’ve got plenty to talk about!

Since Senator Feinstein was reelected, many of us at Indivisible East Bay who track her see signs that she’s losing touch with her constituents and losing a sense of urgency about resisting the GOP agenda. From distancing herself from bold action to address climate change, to voting to send extra money to the border with no guardrails, to her underwhelming response to the new Kavanaugh evidence, it looks like she’s forgetting what we sent her back to Washington to do.

We know she’s capable of much more, but we need to push her!

Jim Lazarus, Sen. Feinstein’s current state director, wasn’t around in early 2017, or during the health care fight, or the Kavanaugh hearings, or the Blue Wave. He has no idea what the resistance is capable of, and his boss appears to have forgotten.

Let’s show both of them by turning out in force for this meeting, bringing our tough, thoughtful, probing questions, and a powerful call to resistance and action. Join us on Sept. 23 from 5:15 to 7:30 PM, at the Berkeley Public Library Main Branch.

A climate contingent plans to attend with banners, signs, and t-shirts of the organizations they’re representing. They invite others to meet in front of the Library at 5 PM to grab signs and coordinate questions. You can let Leana know at leanarosetti@gmail.com if you want to join them.

You can RSVP here (not required, but helps us plan), and whether or not you can make it, please call Sen. Feinstein today and say:

My name is ___, my zip code is ___, and I’m a member of Indivisible East Bay. I’m calling to ask Senator Feinstein to Defund Hate in this year’s budget by cutting funding for ICE and CBP in the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill, prohibiting funding transfers to ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, and including provisions to protect migrants.

  • Sen. Dianne Feinstein: (email); (415) 393-0707 • DC: (202) 224-3841

The meeting is free and open to the public. The Berkeley Main Library is at 2090 Kittredge Street (near downtown Berkeley BART, cross street is Shattuck Avenue). The meeting room is upstairs in the third floor administrative wing, and is accessible. Children are welcome.

IEB’s meetings with Members of Congress and their staff are run according to the Indivisible Guide, which tells us to treat our MoCs, their staff, and all event participants with civility and respect. We encourage people to be assertive and express your opinions – even your frustration, if that’s how you feel! – but please remember that these are intended to be venues for thoughtful discussion and community sharing. Tirades, hate speech, violent speech of any kind, and excessive profanity will not be tolerated. In addition, Congressional staff is not permitted to discuss electioneering, and it is our policy not to bring it up or ask questions they can’t answer. Anyone comfortable with this approach is welcome to come.

This meeting is scheduled in the evening, and in the East Bay rather than San Francisco, to make it more accessible for working people and families. We really hope to see you there!

Read our article about IEB’s most recent meeting with Sen. Feinstein’s staff in June 2019, and our article about the last Q&A discussion we had in Oakland with Sen. Feinstein’s former state director and field representative, in August 2018.

If you have questions, please email us at info@indivisibleeb.org

 

Ion Y Actions, Events, Get Involved, Meetings, newsletter action, Our Impact, Uncategorized, Volunteer Opportunity

2019 National Election Integrity Conference

The National Voting Rights Task Force, a non-partisan voting rights organization, will host its third National Election Integrity Conference on October 5-6, from 10 am to 6 pm in Berkeley, at the South Berkeley Senior Center, 2939 Ellis Street, corner of Ashby Avenue, near the Ashby BART station.

Entitled The Coming 2020 Election Crisis: In Paper We Trust, the conference features more than 20 nationally-recognized leaders in the election integrity movement, covering crucial issues, sharing ideas, solving problems, and creating a strategy for the future of our elections system. The focus is still mainly on cybersecurity, voting machines, and election audits, but it has expanded to include open source election system software and the wider issues of both voter suppression (registration problems, gerrymandering, purging of voter registration rolls, hindrances to getting out the vote), and voter misdirection (deceptive election day announcements, fraudulent Facebook ads, and the organized campaigns like that of Cambridge Analytica). Election activists are investigating and uncovering these problems, fighting them by publicizing, litigating, organizing, and explaining what we all need to know and can do to help everyone be able to vote, have all the valid votes counted as cast, and verify that the real winners are the ones reported by the election systems in all the states.

Conference speakers include:

Click here to register. Conference tickets are $30 per day, or $50 for both days if purchased in advance, with discounts for seniors, teachers, students, and educational administrators or staff members. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.

For background and an idea of what to expect you can look at the 2017 National Election Integrity Conference, which includes summaries and videos of every presentation. And read our article about the 2017 conference.

If you want to learn more about Indivisible East Bay’s Voter Rights & Election Integrity team, and how you can help, email us at info@IndivisibleEB.org, or join the #voting-issues channel on IEB’s Slack. For an invitation to join Slack, email: info@IndivisibleEB.org

Graphic: National Voting Rights Task Force

Heidi Rand Actions, Call and Email MoCs, Call Scripts, Meetings, Mueller report, newsletter action, Our Impact, Uncategorized

Impeachment’s getting real

Deadline: Right now –

Congress is back in DC post-recess, and we hope their ears are ringing from hearing loud and clear from you and many others who want them to push hard for impeachment! House Judiciary Committee Chair Jerry Nadler has announced an imminent vote on the procedures for the committee’s inquiry, so it’s a critical time to tell your member of Congress what YOU think should be included in the articles of impeachment.

What you can do:

Take direct action! On September 21- 23, many groups and individuals are gathering in Washington D.C. to demonstrate the massive support for impeachment among the American people. Join them there, or here, or virtually!

  • Sat. Sept. 21, 12-1:30 PM: Join the Solidarity March in San Francisco for the We The People March taking place in DC and nationwide. Gather at the Federal Building, 90 7th St. for a “First Amendment Assembly” in solidarity with the DC March to showcase the power of the people featuring music and rousing chants.
  • Mon. Sept. 23: By the People, the umbrella grassroots impeachment advocacy group, will hold a mock hearing in the halls of Congress: The People Vs Trump. If you know anyone who lives near DC, share this link so they can join in.
  • NOW! Support By the People’s hearing and communicate your ideas for articles of impeachment to the folks demonstrating, using By The People’s great tool.  You can submit written testimony at that link (they have a great list of questions to guide what you write), or record a quick selfie video where you talk about your story and upload it at this link.

Call your Representative, and also call the House Judiciary Committee, to push these specific objectives for the inquiry:

  • Don’t wait for responses from the courts or from the administration to move the public inquiry forward.
  • Start public hearings in earnest immediately.
  • Cover the full range of impeachable offenses, beyond just what’s in the Mueller Report findings. Mention a couple of examples that are important to you personally — there are many to choose from at these sources:
  • Declare a specific date by which they will bring articles of impeachment to the House floor.
  • 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
  • House Judiciary Committee:  (202) 225-3951

For more information about impeachment, including views of MoCs leading the charge, like Representatives Al Green and Rashida Tlaib, take a look at the Impeachment University webinar series (archive viewable on YouTube). To keep up with nationally-coordinated actions, sign up with By the People. 

If you’re meeting with your Member of Congress’s staff, or with them personally, the IEB impeachment team would be glad to coordinate with you beforehand on the latest messaging and goals. Join the discussion, and post any questions or thoughts you have, on the #impeachment channel on Indivisible East Bay’s Slack. For an invitation to join Slack, email info@IndivisibleEB.org

Help us spread the word: Do you know of a group that we could visit to present a 30- to 60-minute impeachment information and discussion session? We’ve got one all ready to go, so let us know on Slack or by email. 

Talk to your friends and relatives about impeachment. Not sure what to say? Get up to speed by reading our earlier articles, with background and more actions you can take on impeachment, investigations, and the Mueller Report:

It’s incredibly important for the House to impeach Trump, regardless of what the Senate does, to officially and publicly find him unfit for office and dangerous to the country. More and more MoCs come out in support of an inquiry every week. Let’s make sure they do it right! 

Larry Baskett contributed to this article. Larry is a mechanical engineer from Berkeley who spent a year as a Science and Technology Policy Fellow with the California State Senate.

Graphic: By the People 

 

indivisibleebadmin Actions, Events, Meetings, newsletter action, Rallies & Protests, Uncategorized, Volunteer Opportunity

Join us for Defund Hate Week!

Immigrant families are under an all-out assault: from caging children and families at the border and refusing them access to basic necessities like showers and toothbrushes, to launching raids that rip people away from homes where they’ve lived for years or even decades. Fueled by racism, hatred, and fear, the Trump administration has continued to pursue these unpopular and harmful policies – and Congress has continued to fund each and every one. As an official member of the Defund Hate Coalition, Indivisible East Bay stands with immigrant families to focus our collective power on defunding hate. 

Now, IEB is collecting creative messages from Bay Area members and allies to put together into a collage which we’ll add to a Border to Border with Love Petition, addressed to Congressional Democrats, as it makes its way down the West Coast to San Diego. There, we’ll get together with Native, Indivisible and local leaders for a rally to #DefundHate. Join us in this project! And keep reading to find out about more activities going on during Defund Hate Week, September 9-13.

What you can do:

Create a message!

Create your own messages to add to our collage! This action is both about defunding hate (specifically Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection) and celebrating and welcoming immigration – feel free to focus your piece on either or both. 

The only requirements are that the piece must be:

  1. six inches or smaller and flat
  2. made of paper or an equally light substance
  3. On-message: pro-immigrant and anti-hate!

Possible messages might include how immigration enforcement affects you personally, or our demands for Congressional action. For example:

  • Cut funding for ICE and CBP
  • Vote NO on any Department of Homeland Security funding bill that doesn’t prohibit funding transfers to ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (see our article)
  • Vote NO on any DHS funding bill that doesn’t cut ICE and CBP funding to fiscal year 16 levels
  • Require the DHS Inspector General to monitor detention and enforcement spending and report to Congress 
  • Support alternatives to detention: close the camps and end immigration detention 
  • End the “remain in Mexico” policy and dangerous “safe third country” agreements

For more complete guidelines and talking points, look here and here. 

Spread the word:

Better yet, do this with your friends and families! Create cards with like-minded coworkers during lunch, or bring some paper and markers to your book club or your kid’s soccer game. Be sure to collect contributors’ email addresses on a separate sheet so we can send everyone a photo of the final product!

Drop off pieces for the collage:

  • Any time (during open hours) before noon on Tuesday 9/10, leave your pieces in our drop box at the Rockridge branch of 1951 Coffee at 6021 College Ave, Oakland.
  • Any time (during open hours) before noon on Tuesday 9/10, leave your pieces in our drop box at Sports Basement Berkeley, 2727 Milvia St, Berkeley
  • Bring them to our special event on September 10 in Oakland (see below)!

Defund Hate Week Events:

  • Come to our main event: Tuesday, September 10, 5:30-7:30 PM at IFPTE Local 21, 1440 Broadway, Suite 610, Oakland, CA – we’ll be assembling the collage, writing postcards, and learning about other actions we can take. RSVP appreciated, but not required; we’d love to have you help out at the event, too!
  • Find us at Oakland Pride on Sunday, Sept. 8 (details and RSVP). 
  • Call your Member of Congress on the Defund Hate Call-In Day, September 9. Call script and details here.
  • Participate in Indivisible SF’s Defund Hate National Week of Action event, Friday September 13 in the plaza near the Ferry Building in SF.

Defund Hate

And also… 

  • Want to help us get this project to its destination? Please consider chipping in a few dollars toward priority shipping costs. You can donate cash at any of our events, or use our secure ActBlue online donation site.
  • A huge thank you to our partners and the organizations helping us make this project happen:
    • 1951 Coffee, founded in 2015, is a non-profit specialty coffee organization that promotes the well-being of the refugee community in the United States by providing job training and employment to refugees, asylees, and special immigrant visa holders while educating the surrounding community about refugee life and issues. You can support them by buying a cup of coffee in their cafes, buying or gifting their merchandise and whole bean coffees online, donating to support their services like the Barista Training Program, or volunteering at one of their open houses.
    • Sports Basement, Berkeley is hosting one of our drop boxes, and has hosted so many of our other meetings. If you shop there, please mention IEB and thank them!
    • And thank you to the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) Local 21 for letting us use their space to assemble our collage.

Fiona Woods, Ann Daniels and Amelia Cass contributed to this article

clumston Actions, Meetings, Newsletter, newsletter action, Uncategorized

Don’t deport people getting lifesaving care

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services acknowledged the obvious this week: its decision to end the humanitarian “deferred action” program for immigrants receiving lifesaving medical treatment in the US would cost lives. Faced with growing public outrage – and likely not wanting such obvious blood on its hands – the White House announced on Labor Day that it’s reconsidering this terrible decision. We hope that the medical deferred action status program will be renewed, but it’s far from certain, and we need to keep the pressure up! This is literally a matter of life and death to at least one East Bay family, and to an unknown number of others here legally in the US for medical treatment – read on below to find out what you can do, and for the story of Concord’s own Isabel Bueso, and more.

What you can do:

1. Speak out, spread the word, share the stories. At this time our most powerful weapon is public pressure on the administration to revoke the decision to end the humanitarian medical deferred action program.  However you engage with people – in person, by email, phone, on social media – share this link to our article. We don’t often post petitions, but you should share this one: it was started by Isabel’s mother Karla, and nearly 80 thousand people have already signed! The petition includes a lot of valuable information about Isabel and her situation, and even has a useful link for you to tweet directly to Trump.

2. Thank our Members of Congress who are working on behalf of Isabel and other people affected by this cruel action (see below). Let them all know how important this issue is to you, and ask them to do everything possible to protect immigrants.

  • Read the powerful letter spearheaded by CA-11 Representative DeSaulnier and Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley (news about the termination letters was first broken by Boston media). The August 30 letter to the heads of DHS, ICE, and USCIS, condemning the cruel action and raising critical questions, was signed by over 100 Members of Congress including Senators Feinstein and Harris and Reps. DeSaulnier and Lee.
  • Rep. DeSaulnier  and Senator Kamala Harris have been actively pursuing avenues that might allow Isabel and her family to remain in the US, including sending a letter asking Acting DHS Secretary McAleenan to reconsider the decision.
  • On September 3, Rep. DeSaulnier also introduced a private bill to allow Isabel to remain in the country.  The legislation, H.R. 4225, would provide Isabel and her family with permanent resident status so they can remain without fear of removal.
  • 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

3. Join one of the rallies in support of Isabel and other migrants, planned for this week:

  • The California Nurses Association has organized an Oakland rally to support Isabel outside UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital on Friday, September 6 from 12:30-1:15 PM.
  • Join students at CSU East Bay rallying on the lawn at Hayward City Hall on September 6 at 5 PM. Contact asipresident@csueastbay.edu for questions or volunteer opportunities.

640 Migrant Rights Rally hayward sept 6 flyer

More information:

Before the administration’s change of heart/attempt to prove that it actually has a heart, the Concord family of Isabel Bueso received notice that they could no longer stay in the US for the lifesaving treatment that Isabel receives here and cannot receive in the family’s home country of Guatemala. The family would have to leave within about a month, they were told, or face deportation. It’s not clear how many families got rejection letters of this sort, which cited no basis for the rejection and provided no means to appeal. It still isn’t clear whether Isabel – or any of the other families – can stay or must leave.

Isabel, a recent graduate of Cal State East Bay, has a rare illness, MPS-6, and was invited to our country from Guatemala with her family to participate in a clinical trial. For 16 years, she has received care at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland, and this care keeps her alive; read UCSF’s statement on Isabel’s possible deportation. Isabel and her family pay for her care through private insurance, and they renew their visas every two years. Since this treatment isn’t available in Guatemala, ending the deferred action program means cutting off Isabel’s ability to receive the weekly treatment that is keeping her alive.

Rachel Maddow ran a heartbreaking segment on Isabel’s story, and celebrities have taken up her cause. But it shouldn’t take celebrities or members of Congress to point out the obvious: it’s beyond outrageous to deport people who are legally in this country for lifesaving medical treatment most of them can’t receive in their countries of origin.

 

Ann Daniels and Heidi Rand contributed to this article

Photograph of Isabel Bueso by Garvin Tso

anngdaniels Actions, Fundraiser, Get Involved, Meetings, newsletter action, Uncategorized, Volunteer Opportunity, Who We Are

August All Members Meeting: what we did on our summer vacation

By Ann G. Daniels

On August 25, an enthusiastic group gathered at Sports Basement Berkeley for the Indivisible East Bay All Members Meeting, eager to hear about election activism, voting security, and impeachment – and to do some hands-on activism.

But first: we got our new beautiful rainbow logo t-shirts (union made of course), and a couple of IEB members displayed their handmade Blue Wave hats! 

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Want to wear your very own IEB logo rainbow shirt, and perhaps make a donation to benefit IEB? Get them while they last at IEB events!

On to the amazing presentations: 

Leanne Karns from Swing Left East Bay talked about the organization’s well-thought-out electoral strategy, including great information (and cool graphics!) about where in the country an electoral win would make the most difference, and why they choose canvassing as the most effective strategy. 

Leanne Karns of Swing Left East Bay, at 082519 AMM
Leanne Karns, Swing Left East Bay

Holly Scheider, representing our allies at East Bay Activist Alliance, told us about the importance of the upcoming Virginia election. We’re just a few seats away from being able to flip both of the state’s legislative houses to blue in November, and EBAA is conducting a phonebanking campaign to remind people to register to vote. Why is it so important to get involved in a state election on the other side of the country, you may wonder? Gerrymandering in Virginia, like in much of the country, has been an enormous problem – it isn’t an exaggeration to say it’s one of the great voting rights challenges. With the upcoming 2020 census, it’s absolutely imperative to have a Democratic state legislature to stop Republican gerrymandering intended to permanently lock up districts and nullify blue votes. 

IEB member Larry gave a brief but info-full update on impeachment: what’s happening in DC, what activists are doing and how you can join in, including calling your Member of Congress and the House Judiciary Committee and spreading the word by talking about impeachment and helping us find venues to present our information and discussion session. And that’s just the short summary: read much more in our article.

IEB member Ion gave a great briefing on election security issues and the need to provide funding for our state and local governments to defend the foundation of our democracy. Read his article for lots of great info about the webinar presented by several major pro-democracy organizations, and find actions you can take to ensure we get that funding.

Ion's presentation about election security, AMM 082519
Ion’s presentation about election security

IEB member Joaninha presented an astonishing wealth of options for people looking for something easy to do right here in the East Bay: from postcard parties (with popcorn!) to chocolate and dim sum fundraisers and more. Hmm, is there a theme? Of course there is: go out and do something!

Joaninha & Paula presentation about postcarding and more, AMM 082519
Joaninha & Paula: postcarding & more

And then – we phonebanked! Veteran phonebankers got right to it and Holly and other experienced folks trained the newbies, and we called 228 voters in Virginia Beach! Out of those calls, four people said they would support the Democratic candidates, Alex Askew and Cheryl Turpin. And that’s why phonebanking is worthwhile. 

Phonebanking led by East Bay Activist Alliance, at 082519 AMM
Phonebanking led by East Bay Activist Alliance

Couldn’t make it to the AMM? Allergic to meetings? Join us online where we do our planning and organizing— ask  info@indivisibleeb.org for an invite.

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.