Register for the NY22 Congressional Candidate Forum
Register for the NY22 Congressional Forum
Register for the NY22 Congressional Forum happening on Thursday, August 17th from 6-8pm at Mohawk Valley Community College at 1101 Sherman Ave, Utica. This event is for registered Democrats and WFP members only. It is co-sponsored by Indivisible Mohawk Valley, Citizen Action CNY, NAACP Utica & Oneida County, Oneida County Democratic Committee, Working Families Party, and Oneida County Democratic Women's Club.
All three Democratic candidates for NY22 have confirmed they will participate in the forum. Come hear all of them together on why we need to beat Brandon Williams at the ballot box in 2024 and how they plan to be the candidate to help us flip NY22 and take back the House.
The agenda includes:
Doors open at 5:30 pm for socializing. Check-in at the registration table. Get your goodie bag!
6:00 pm - Welcome and keynote
Why local elections matter in helping us flip NY22
United against MAGA
Congressional forum
Done by 8:00 pm.
Our goal is to have at least 200 people in the audience, so please register to join us for this event that is going to channel energy from the NY22 Summit forward.
Please email indivisiblemohawkvalley@gmail.com with any questions. We look forward to seeing you and your registered Dem/WFP friends on August 17th!
Annual Potluck Picnic a Success
Thanks to all those who brought so much delicious food as we celebrated our political activism at our annual potluck at Sherrill Brook Park on Wednesday. We heard from a number of 2023 local candidates and a couple of 2024 candidates as well. Photos are on the IMV Facebook page. If you couldn't be with us, just know that we missed you and hope we will see you in August at the NY22 Congressional Forum. Keep enjoying your summer for another few weeks and then get ready. We're going to hit the ground running to knock doors and support our candidates who are on the ballot this fall.
Two Oneida County Pride Association Events This Week
Oneida County Pride Association is hosting a Community Potluck at Kirkland Town Park on Sunday, July 23rd, 1-3 pm. There will be a brief agenda in the beginning to reflect on pride and to talk about volunteering. The rest of the time will be dedicated to food, music, and games. Any question can be directed to Ace Morreale at oneidacountypride@gmail.com. Join Oneida County Pride Association for some worthwhile reflection coupled with fun festivities. Reflect on this year’s Pride event, talk about opportunities for volunteers moving forward, and celebrate your allyship & meet others. All food should have an ingredient list available for safety purposes.
OCPA is also hosting a Queer Rights Rally to protest SCOTUS Decisions. Bring a sign and join in! The event will be held at the Intersection of Gen esee Street and Memorial Parkway in Utica on Saturday, July 29th, 12:00 pm. Supporters and safety marshals are needed for a successful rally. This event is allied with the national protest led by Queer Youth Assemble.
Volunteer Appreciation Dinner: An Invitation from Celeste Friend
"Over the last two weeks, everywhere I go, I hear about how our ground game made all the difference. We were, by far, the most visible campaign - purple lawn signs everywhere, purple t-shirts everywhere, purple posse everywhere. People power, YOUR energy and commitment, made all the difference, and we will never forget it.
We can never thank you enough, but that doesn't mean we can't try! So join us on Thursday, July 27th at 5:30pm for Andy's much-loved spaghetti and meatballs! Please wear your purple t-shirt (and if you don't have one, we are ordering 200 right now, so we will have one that night for you to pick up and put on). We will start by gathering on our porch for a bigger and better photograph, so we can show everyone what people power really looks like, and what a Utica for All of Us looks like too. So, 5:30 sharp for photograph, and then please stay for dinner. (But if you can only come for the photograph, that's okay too.)
So, whether you volunteered a lot or a little, we hope you'll come. And even if you haven't volunteered yet, we'd love to have you. Meet the team, feel how happy it makes people to know that their hard work is going to make this city we love better for every person who lives here.
Please drop me a line to let me know whether you can come. (Celeste4Utica@gmail.com) Even if you can only be in the photograph, that will be great. And if you let me whether you are coming, that will help me out too! Thank you everyone!"
Powering Progress National Campaign & LTEs
Last week on a national call, Indivisible staff shared the strategy behind an exciting new Powering Progress Campaign (slide deck here) We heard from Brenda Malloy, Chair of the White House Council on environmental Quality (the twelve person and first African American woman to serve in the position.) Additionally, the staff explored
the tangible benefits that the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) offers,
equipped folks with effective communication practices to effectively share these historic wins with our communities, and
provided a comprehensive set of tools, resources, and information to empower all of us to take action in August and celebrate the upcoming 1-year anniversary of the IRA being signed into law.
While IMV is not planning a tabling event or rally (the anniversary falls close to when we have our big NY22 Congressional Forum in August), we do want to get the word out in the form of Letters to the Editor. Feel free to use the linked templates from Indivisible to get started writing an LTE about Climate or Healthcare, two areas where the impact of the IRA for our lives and communities will be felt by most voters.
There's a Powering Progress website if you want even more information. The goal of this national campaign is to help neighbors, friends, and people in our community to understand the good that government can do and start believing in their power as voters to make a difference in their own lives.
A helpful resource for messaging that we have discussed before is Race Class Narrative (RCN). Indivisible is offering a two part RCN training on August 2nd and August 9th from 8-9 pm related to the Powering Progress Campaign. Everyone is encouraged to register at the links in the calendar.
Please start working on your LTE and plan to have those letters appear in newspapers or online media before August 16th, the one year anniversary of the date that President Biden signed the ambitious and transformative Inflation Reduction Act into law.
Rest & Relaxation
We hope that whatever your idea of R&R is, you are taking some this summer. In the midst of our political organizing we often say (echoing Valarie Kaur who quotes the midwife): "Breathe, then Push!" Well, now is a good time to breathe. Breathe deeply of the (mostly) fresh air outside and the many growing things. Enjoy family and friendship, food and travel, reading and gardening--whatever you do to unwind. IMV will be taking it a little easy for the coming weeks.
Remember to register for the Aug. 17th NY22 Congressional Forum, and share the link with your networks. And enjoy the glorious warm days of summer!
Follow us on Twitter using @indivisiblemv and of course our Facebook page and IMV Activism Group.
