Van Jones brilliantly outlines the hubris of the Democratic Party while Nancy Pelosi acts as if nothing is wrong. Silicon Valley to help Trump build a Muslim registry. Read on, great insights from Jones, scary news from Silicon, and an opportunity to act.
Democratic Party in Need of Complete Reform. If ever there were clear evidence of the need for all of us to be active and participate in our Action Planning Meeting on Sunday (details at the end of this blog), I have it for you today. For some time, Retake has stated that we need to learn from this election. Apparently Nancy Pelosi has learned nothing. Click here to find out why she thinks the message from the election is: the American public does not want a new direction. You’ll also learn how our own DPNM appears to not have learned much either, and how you can join Sen. Martin Heinrich in supporting Keith Ellison as new DNC Chief.
In contrast with what Pelosi and the Democrats haven’t learned, Van Jones appears to have understood the voters message quite well, and his article echoes what Retake has been saying for weeks: Only a seething public could vote for Trump and the public is seething because BOTH major parties have been ignoring the needs of common people for 40 years.
Jones’ take goes something like this. “We have to build a bridge of respect to the Trump voters who don’t subscribe to every thing he ever said. For us, those crazy things were disqualifying. For a lot of his voters, they were distasteful but not disqualifying. We can overreact to that and say, ‘If you vote for a bigot, you are a bigot.’ That’s just not true. That kind of language – and that kind of approach – is actually helping Trump to build his coalition. We’re pushing people away from us by saying, ‘If you voted for him then you’re no better than his worst utterances.’ You’re giving away people who probably felt very conflicted voting for him. We need to build a bridge of respect, and part of it starts with actual dialogue.” Our Community Conversations strategies is designed to do just that. For more on Community Conversations, click here. Jones’ has many other astute observations worth taking in. To read Jones’ full interview, click here.
Donald Trump & Silicon Valley – Can We Really Be Months Away from a Muslim Registry? Could Silicon Valley really collaborate with Donald Trump to build a Muslim registry? According to a Fortune Magazine report, a meeting is being held next week that includes Trump and Silicon Valley executives on the topic of using personal data like that housed in Facebook and Google to create a Muslim Registry. Of the nine Silicon Valley execs contacted, only Twitter stated clearly they would not cooperate. Click here to read the full report. This is scary folks, and we are definitely going to need to form strategies to circle the wagons and protect our immigrants — Latino, Muslim, everyone. The New York Times published an interesting article illustrating how all of us can create resistance. Sisterhood of Salaam originated in New York, but now has chapters throughout the US with Jews and Muslims sharing Sabbath dinner together. At one such dinner, a Muslim woman asked a Jewish woman who had just recounted how her relatives had fled the Nazis: “When did you know it was time to leave?” Ms. Firdaus asked. “The ones that didn’t leave are the ones who went to Auschwitz,” was the chilling response. The Jewish women tried to convince her that they would not let it come to that. “If Muslims have to register, we’re all going to register,” said Mahela Morrow-Jones, who is helping to build the first West Coast chapter of the Sisterhood in Santa Barbara, Calif. “You’ve got to believe it, sister.” To read the complete article, click here. both-feeling-threatened-american-muslims-and-jews-join-hands-the-new-york-times.
Chaco Canyon Needs You. The BLM is taking testimony on whether to allow fracking on land very close to Chaco Canyon. For a good brief summary of the status of efforts to make this possible and with directions on how you can act, click here. And this is time sensitive, as the hearings close soon.
Verde Transmission Line. It is not Standing Rock, but this PNM plan is just another way of closing the door on renewables and enslaving us to coal and gas power generated in Four Corners. Click here to find out what you can do.
Action Team Meeting. If you don’t get active after hearing about the Democratic leadership’s refusal to see the need for a new direction, Trump’s plan for a Muslim registry, and the fossil fuel industry salivating to drill near our beloved Chaco, well, wait til next week, cuz the news keeps getting worse. Or get active and come to our Action Team Planning meeting at 2:30pm, Sun., Dec. 11. (NOT AT the Center for Progress & Justice, but at the Unitarian Universalist Church at 109 W Barcelona Rd.) Click here for information and to RSVP. RSVP is required as the space is small and we already have many signed up.
Categories: Actions, Activist Organizations, Activists Websites, Civil Disobedience, Four Corners, Immigrant Rights, State Elections
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