By Susan Heide
“I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore”
The good news is you don’t have to. Our country is stepping up to protest the madness of the Trump administration. There are several ways to get involved, take action and be heard. You don’t even have to leave the house! Here are some of our favorites.
Huddle
Huddle is a movement that is an extension of the women’s march. First, we march, now we huddle. These are small groups gathering in our neighborhoods to define next steps. Usually organized within the same neighborhood or community although there are no hard and fast rules on this. Participation is the key. Ideas include writing, calling, or emailing your congressional representatives, and participating in upcoming marches and rallies. The backbone of this movement is based on Indivisible Guide which was written by former congressional staffers. The goal is to complete 10 actions in 100 days. Transform the energy of the women’s march into local and national action. Information on how to form and conduct a huddle or how to join an existing one in the link below:
https://www.womensmarch.com/100/action2
https://www.indivisibleguide.com/
5 Calls
5 calls supports the approach that the best way to make your voice heard is to call your government officials, not tweeting or posting updates on Facebook. Using 5 Calls is easy: you enter your zip code, select an issue that’s important to you, and you’ll be given the phone number of your corresponding rep to call. When you choose an issue, you’re given a little explanation about what’s going on. You also get a script you can read if you’re not sure what to say. The site encourages you to a make 5 calls in 5 minutes every day.
Once you finish your call, you say whether you made contact, had to leave a voicemail, or if they were unavailable—then the tool moves on to the next representative for you to call. Besides actually dialing the https://www.indivisibleguide.com/https://www.indivisibleguide.com/phone for you, 5 Calls does everything you need to get involved without leaving the house. Key topics and contact information are continually updated.
The Resistance Calendar
This calendar is used to both locate existing, and post new events available for participation at both the local and national level
https://www.resistancecalendar.org/
People Power
The ACLU launched People Power to resist Trump policies in cities. It is recruiting volunteers to execute a plan to fight the Trump administration lawfully and systematically, not just by defending each individual as they are detained, harassed, or deported.
Stand up America
Stand Up America began in the weeks after the 2016. It is an online effort organize and resist Trump’s agenda. To date, they have made tens of thousands of phone calls to Congress to stand up to Trump’s agenda and to protect health care, the environment, and constitutional rights. Information on the specific issues and how to participate are available on their website.
https://www.standupamerica.com/
On the local level, these immigrant advocacy groups are looking for support:
One America
One America was formed right after 9/11 and advances the fundamental principles of democracy and justice at the local, state and national levels by building power within immigrant communities in collaboration with key allies. They are looking for support in engaging legislators on issues and pending initiatives to ensure they are representing you.
El Centro de la Raza
El Centro de la Raza is a 45 year old organization dedicated to supporting the lives and livelihoods of Latinos. Through their comprehensive programs and services, they empower members of the Latino community as fully participating members of society. They also work to raise awareness with the general public, government, business and civic leaders about the needs of the Chicano/Latino community in the United States. They are looking for help in the office and kitchen.
The Refugee Women’s Alliance
Refugee Women’s Alliance (ReWA) is a nationally recognized nonprofit that provides holistic services to help refugee and immigrant women and families thrive. They have volunteer opportunities available in their child advancement, child care and job placement programs
Never has the world been changed by people that chose to do nothing.