Will You Stand Up for Democracy Tomorrow?
Hands Off! poster
Hands Off! April 5th (Noon-1:30 pm)
Three IMV Rallies: All the Details You Need
IMV is host to three Mohawk Valley rallies. All three are set for April 5th, 12pm-1:30pm rain or shine. Expect rain. Commit to showing up to save democracy from the Trump-Musk-Republican coup no matter the weather. Cory Booker fasted from food and water for days so he could last 25 hours speaking on Senate floor. We can certainly wear hooded raincoats or bring an umbrella to an outdoor event for 1.5 hours!
Oneida Square Roundabout in Utica (Genesee Street and Oneida St.--at the statue) (Do NOT park at Munson--they have an event occurring same time). Try side streets or the Stanley parking lot, a few blocks down. REGISTER HERE.
4645 Commercial Drive in front of At Home (where Kmart used to be). This is a high visibility location on Saturday and perfect for those concerned about parking or who have mobility issues. Park directly in front of the sidewalk in the parking lot, and then stand on the sidewalk with your sign. REGISTER HERE. (This is is the same link as the Utica event--just go to the Commercial Drive location.)
Herkimer at NY5 and NY28. Parking is in the Bassett parking lot. Park close to Hannaford side of road. REGISTER HERE.
Thank you to everyone who has registered in advance. That helps us know how many to expect. IMV Steering Committee members and volunteer safety marshals will be at all three sites. We have nearly 500 people already registered for our rally locations!
What is "Hands Off!"?
Indivisible has reached an incredible milestone: more than half a million people across the country (and the globe!) have registered for a local event this Saturday--and there are more than 1300 of them. From major cities to small towns, we are ready to stand up collectively to Trump and Musk’s unprecedented power grab. Together, we will declare: No more looting, no more stealing, and no more billionaires raiding our government while working people struggle to survive.
Whether you are physically attending one of our local rallies Saturday, attending a rally somewhere else in New York or around the country, or you are cheering us on from home or work, please use #HandsOff to spread photos and videos about this mass mobilization event. Hands Off! is an all-in moment for the pro-democracy, pro-worker movement—a demand, a warning, and a rallying cry that responds to the primary reasons for our mobilization:
Trump and Musk are attempting an illegal power grab is a crisis we must stop.
Trump, Musk, and congressional Republicans are gutting services, raising prices, and racing towards slashing Medicaid, Social Security, and more.
Trump, Musk, and congressional Republicans are on this path of destruction for the benefit of their billionaire allies.
Posters/Signs
Thank you to Teresa (Poster Party Host) and everyone who came to the poster making party on Wednesday. The posters are fantastic! Many people brought extra materials. So many of those who attended were new to Indivisible Mohawk Valley and some woill be going to their first demonstration tomorrow. Way to go! Signs can say "Hands Off __________ and fill in the blank with things like "Social Security" "Medicaid" "Our Jobs" "Our Personal Data" "Cancer Research" "Libraries." "The Courts," You get the idea. If you have not made your poster yet, you can use this resource for ideas to print a sign: http://brandfolder.com/s/trktmftbhrcpqjrmcjgk5cxm.
Weather and Safety for Saturday
Dress for the weather. Wear a hooded raincoat. If you bring an umbrella please be aware that it might make it hard to hold your sign.
We had about 50 responses on our Facebook page a few days ago asking people to commit to attending even if it was raining. Every person who posted said they would come out in the rain. They said they would not miss this; it's too important.
One longtime IMV member, Bonnie, wrote: "My dad dropped into Normandy and fought in the trenches night and day for many days before relief came. He did this to protect the world from the authoritarian regime of Nazi Germany. I certainly can stand in the rain in my rain boots and rain slicker with an umbrella. I will have a sandwich sign that I wear around my neck so that my hand is clear for my umbrella. We need to show the world where we stand. We can do this now to prevent things from getting worse." Amen to that, Bonnie!
Please commit to safety and de-escalation. Keep sidewalks clear for pedestrians. Do not get too close to the street or step into traffic.
We do not respond to taunts from rude drivers. We do not engage with counter protesters (if there are any). We are focused on keeping the envrionment peaceful and non-violent. Use language appropriate for young chidlren. Our language and behavior reflect our values and our values are what draw people to our side.
We can't wait to see everyone at the rallies on Saturday! We are not ready to surrender our constitutional democracy and an ecomomy that works for all of us to the richest man on the planet and his greedy-for-power lackey in the White House. We are going to fight.
We mobilize so we can organize. And when we organize, we can win.
Trans Right Rally Boasts 300 Activists in the Rain
Thank you to the 300 people who showed up in the rain last Saturday for the Trans Rights Rally at Oneida Square in Utica. The media coverage was excellent --and colorful! Oneida County Pride Association did a great job organizing, and IMV was proud to be a co-host and assist with rally logistics and participation. Let's keep up the positive energy and community when we gather tomorrow for Hands Off!
Blake Gendebien Town Hall in Rome
Last night Blake did a town hall in Herkimer, well attended by IMVers from NY21. He'll be in Rome on April 24th, 6-7 pm. Please register HERE. Get to know the citizen farmer who will challenge Elise Stefanik in 2026 (or whoever runs as a Republican if she steps down for any reason before the midterms).
Climate Crisis Working Group Actions for Climate
Save the Date: May 7th Albany Lobby day; Plastics Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Bill.
Make Calls for Climate to be Included in the Budget
As usual, the New York State Budget is late. Which means we have another window to PUSH AS HARD AS WE CAN to pass the NY HEAT Act in the budget!
Currently, the Assembly is the obstacle to NY HEAT. So, please make these calls as often as possible. Change the message to fit your situation.
If your member is a Democrat who is not a sponsor (Marianne Buttenschon):
Call: 518-455-3791
"Hello, I’m [name] and I live in [municipality]. I'm a constituent of Assemblymember Buttenschon and I’m calling to ask that she support the passage of the NY HEAT Act, A.4870A (Simon) in the budget. My utility bills keep going up and I don't want to keep paying more for gas pipes that we don't need. Can I count on Assemblymember Buttenschon to support NY HEAT in the budget?"
If your member is a Republican, call Speaker Heastie:
Call: 518-455-5454 or 325-732-1055
"Hello, I’m [name] and I live in [municipality]. I'm calling to ask Speaker Heastie to put the NY HEAT Act, A.4870A (Simon) in the budget. My utility bills keep going up and I don't want to keep paying more for gas pipes that we don't need. Can I count on the Speaker to support NY HEAT in the budget?"
You can also email
Don't have your Assemblymember's number? No problem! Use this tool to call and email your own Assemblymember.
Motivation and Ways to Stay Connected
It has been a long 10 weeks! We know that it sometimes seems hopeless. Trump throws so much insanity at the wall every day you don't even know how to keep up or what to worry about the most. We encourage people to watch Rachel Maddow and see how she frames her reporting each night (or listen to the podcast recording the next day) . She highlights what thousands of Americans like us are doing every day to fight back. She calls people like us--people who are protesting and attending town halls, and demanding more from their elected representatives, "America's leaders." She explains all the ways that Trump has bad day after bad day as court rulings go against him and as world leaders dismiss him and government officials defy his crazy exeutive orders. You can begin to see the impact our work is having.
It's also good to follow the elected Democrats who are standing up and speaking out. Sen. Cory Booker foremost among them, but not just Booker. NY22 freshman congressman John Mannion cheered Booker on as he stood on the Senate floor, and regularly releases videos on social media criticizing the way that Republicans are harming workers, threatening the health and wellbeing of central New Yorkers, and damaging our standing around the world. Subscribe to Heather Cox Richardson's daily newsletter delivered to your email inbox if you want to know what happened every day that is really important from a historian's perspective but don't want to be glued all day to the TV.
Manage your intake of news so that you can devote more of your energy to effective action. But know that we are not going to succeed in our efforts in just a feew weeks or months. This is a long fight, and our persistence and resilience are going to be just important as our energy and courage. We need to look to even small victories as crticical building blocks. Cory Booker stopped all action by Senate Republicans for 25 hours. Wisconsin voters elected a liberal judge to their supreme court, beating Elon Musk and the MAGA candidate by 10 points. In Florida Democratic candidates improved electoral performance in two bright red congressional district by double digit points. Piece by piece we will fight the worst of what is happening until it's time to knock doors in the midterms, and then we will keep going. We will not give up.
Join IMV members at CAFE Fridays on Zoom (in the calendar) if you want to connect. Or join Indivisible national's co-founders, Ezra and Leah for their weekly updates (in the calendar). Keep inviting your friends to join you and show up for our monthly meetings. Let us know if you want trainings on any aspect of political action--we will organize and provide it! One of the main ways we stand against the rise of authoritarianism if by building community and showing up physically in person together. We will stick together.
Democracy is not a spectator sport.
No one let go of anyone's hand.
Breathe, then PUSH.
See you on Saturday. Even in the rain.
Follow us on Bluesky: @Indivisiblemv.bsky.social, on Instagram's Threads.net/@indivisiblemohawkvalley, on X (Twitter) using @indivisiblemv and of course on our Facebook page and IMV Activism Group.
