A busy week full of hearings, conversations with Councilors and strategizing with other activists and next week is even more packed with actions, beginning today at 2:30. We need a big turnout to ensure the City knows we are serious about RCV. A week with hearings, trainings, speakers, and reflection on last week’s blogs
The Monday recap of the past week and forecast of the coming one has become our most popular blog….and thankfully, it is pretty easy to assemble (yeah). Make sure to comb over the actions and events that follow the blog summaries with links as there is information on many opportunities this week, including: To hear from a heroic Palestinian Dr, to make your voices heard at two hearing on Monday, and get tickets to hear Nomi Prins before tickets are gone (going very fast). And stay tuned this week as the blog will feature a story about how the City is being challenged by the Rio Grande Foundation (a right-wing group purportedly funded by the Koch brothers) who are threatening the City with a lawsuit if we do not rescind our Disclosure law and allow outside money to be spent without any disclosure on future ballot measure votes. Stay tuned.
Last Week’s Blogs
A Path to Justice: Just When You Might Have Been Thinking to Give Up. Sun. Dec. 3. While Trump’s Tax Plan amounts to Class War, for 50 years both parties have been feeding the rich and starving the rest of us, year-by-year. We are the frog in the pot of subtly increased heat, but now the water is boiling. This blog tells that story and poses some solutions by presenting a series of blogs published over the last 4-5 months that together tell a tale worth telling, a story of how we might retake the democracy we’ve never had. Click here to review the series of blogs that are presented. If you missed this one, don’t. It provides a path to a future of which we could be proud.
Still Need One More City Council Vote for Ranked Choice Voting. Mayor and Three Councilors Commit to Moving Forward. Th. Dec 1. Emergency City Council Meeting, Monday at 3:30. Rally at City Hall at 2:30. Despite constant calls from constituents and personal contacts from folks who know the Councilors, we are one vote short of finally achieving Ranked Choice Voting. Ten years to get to today. We need a huge turnout on Monday and calls/emails today. And breaking news: Flynn Pleads Guilty. Details included. Click here for the blog..
Judge Rules Santa Fe Must Implement Ranked Choice Voting. Wed. PM, Nov 30. In a stunning victory, Judge Thomson announced an unequivocal order for the City to move forward with RCV for Mar, 2018. But we MUST begin contacting the Mayor, Councilors and City Attorney asking them to cease legal actions, not appeal to Supreme Court and get to work. Details and contact info. Click here to review the blog. Click here to read the full blog.
Judge to Rule at 8:30 This Morning on Ranked Choice Voting in Santa Fe. Wed. AM, Nov 30. The lawyer for the constituents went high and argued logic, facts, and precedent, while the City Attorney went low excerpting testimony out of context and using precedent with no legal standing. You should not be pleased with your City this morning. The blog included detailed description of the eight hours of expert testimony in the hearing on Tuesday. Click here to review the blog.
The Shameful, Too Often Silent Sexual Exploitation of Women. Tuesday, Nov. 29. Writing about the sexual exploitation of women should come from a woman, and so today’s blog comes from Roxanne. We also provide a video that educates men on the meaning of consent. Lastly, we include links to local organizations who work with women and girls who have suffered from sexual abuse. Click here to read the blog.
Events, Actions & Opportunities
Ranked Choice Voting Rally at City Hall. Monday, December 4, 2:30PM. Judge Thomson has clearly directed the City to implement RCV. The City Council has scheduled an emergency meeting at 3:30pm on Monday and will be meeting in closed session to discuss their thinking. We need to make sure they know what their constituents want before and during that meeting and then at 3:30pm for the public meeting. Click here for background info, speaking points, and contact information for the Mayor, City Attorney, and City Councilors. And call / email them today. With five candidates and no RCV our next Mayor could be elected by less than 25% of the vote and there are four progressives running who could split the vote and yield a totally unacceptable result.
Monday, Dec. 4, 5pm. LeFarge Library. Early Neighborhood Notification meeting. This sounds boring and innocuous, but it will be neither. A local developer is looking to change the zoning of four properties adjacent to Hopewell Mann from residential to commercial. This is the first step in the process. While the developer has made claims to the goal be to increase child care programs, we have our doubts as that being the real goal. Not much profit to be made there and last time I checked we are still operating under capitalism. I smell gentrification and deception.
Wednesday, Dec 6, 6:30 p.m.at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Santa Fe, 107 W. Barcelona Road. Dr. Mona El-Farra, director of the Middle East Children’s Alliance Gazan medical team. Born in Khan Younis, Gaza, a physician by training and a human and women’s rights activist by practice, she dedicates herself to efforts to improve health quality and linking health, cultural and recreation services. As health chairwoman of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society of the Gaza Strip and as a member of the Union of Health Work Committees, she has changed the lives of many thousands of Gazans, focusing on the children. Offering a crystal-clear perspective on the costs to life under a 10-year siege, El-Farra has reached out internationally to spread the truth of conditions under which Gazans live. Any caring person’s responsibility is to hear her words
This place isn’t progressive enough. Let’s change that.
Saturday, December 9, 9:30 am to Noon. New Mexico State Capitol, Room 322 League of Women Voters of New Mexico‘s Annual Roundhouse Advocacy Workshop. Learn tips from legislators and a professional about how to approach legislators, craft an effective message and plan your time wisely. League members will also provide tips on speaking for LWVNM. Featuring:: Senator Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, District 25; Senator Sander Rue, R-Albuquerque, District 23 and Jim Jackson, Chief Executive Officer of Disability Rights New Mexico. I’ve attended this twice and it is excellent.
Saturday, Dec. 9 11am. Retake Our Democracy, KSFR 101.1. FM. Paul Gibson interviews Heather Ferguson, Legislative Director of Common Cause, NM, with a focus on yet another City Council issue. Rightfully, so the City is concerned about mounting legal fees in defending various actions. Now the Rio Grande Foundation is suing the City, demanding that they alter its disclosure regulations to eliminate disclosure requirements on all ballot issues, i.e things like the soda tax while remaining in tact (for now) disclosure laws related to candidates. The problem here is that disclosure rules are far more important on ballot measures. Local candidate elections rarely draw much outside money and even if they did, at least candidates have a track record to counter negative outside ads. Ballot measures have no pre-history and are far more likely to draw outside funds as industries want to defeat early manifestations of any policy that might actually curb the wanton greed of corporations or that might impose restrictions on big money. I am going to blog on this on Tuesday the 5th but have recorded the show and it is very good. If you miss any of the shows, they are available on the KSFR website by podcast, so you can go back and binge listen to Retake Our Democracy by clicking here. It usually takes a few days for a new show to be posted, so be patient.
Retake Takes Action. Dec. 12, 6pm-7:15pm RSVP for location. Retake’s Local Research and Activism Team is shifting from research to direct community service. Join Jennifer Johnson & Tracey Enright who are co-chairing this shift and explore options for direct community group service on projects in Santa Fe, with a lens on under-served communities. This is the kickoff of what could become just another way that you can get in the game and work with others to advance justice in New Mexico. RSVP by writing to Jennifer Johnson at gridded@mac.com.
December 14 and 28, 5:30-7:30. Roundhouse Advocacy Team. New Energy Economy Conference Room. 343 E Alameda St, Santa Fe, We will begin identifying Roundhouse districts in which Retake wants to support Democratic candidates who are incumbents and face stiff challenges in 2018, a very limited number of Democratic Primary candidates who might challenge seated Representatives who have not been consistently supportive of progressive legislation; and new Democratic candidates seeking to take GOP seats. We are also going to begin planning for advocacy in the 2018 session, as despite this being a short session, there are a number of bills we will be pushing. Come find out how you can get involved. RSVP by writing to me at paul@retakeourdemocracy.org.
January 24, 7pm, The Lensic. Nomi Prins. $8. Tickets went on sale Saturday and the floor is half sold out already. Prins is a writer, investigative journalist, and public speaker. The author of six books, she is well-known for the exposé It Takes a Pillage: Behind the Bonuses, Bailouts, and Backroom Deals from Washington to Wall Street and All the Presidents’ Bankers, a narrative about the relationships between presidents and key bankers over the past century and their impact on domestic and foreign policy. Her new book, Collusion: How Central Bankers Rigged the World,which explores the rise of central bank power and influence in the global financial, economic, and geopolitical hierarchy, is forthcoming in 2018. Clck here to purchase tickets.
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Good Morning Paul,
My name is Esther Armijo (a Social Worker and Activist) from Las Cruces. I am hoping to come to Sante FE to Lobby with Wolf Pac this January, to get the Money out of Politics. I was wondering if you or anybody there could point me in the right direction to obtain more attention to this much needed cause (so that we can build more support from the community in Sante Fe) as I believe Action Causes Change. I would appreciate any and all help. Please call me at 575- 650-3339. Thank you. Esther Armijo, LMSW
Whether its city state or feds, yhey do what they want unopposed , continued lack of consequences for voting corporate power not public protections on any level. What measures are taken to change that?
I heard on radio this.morn repubs passed tax bill saturday. Now what?
Esther Armijo, LMSW
I am working with the group Wolf-Pac from Las Cruces, to come to the Roundhouse this January 2018. I need some help to direct me to people that are interested enought in Sante Fe, to get the money out of Politics and get ideas on how to increase our number as we stand for the country in this most urgent need. Any at all interested? My email is earmijo@zianet.com My phone number is 575 650-3339. Thank you.