Save the Date for IMV's February 25th Meeting

Mark your calendar now so you don't miss IMV's February 2024 meeting. If you made it to our January meeting, you know what a great experience it was to work together in small groups to develop our messaging skills as we head into this critical election year. We have more meaningful activities planned for this month's meeting. Please join us:

IMV February 2024 Monthly Meeting
Sunday, February 25th
2-4 pm
New Hartford Public Library (Sammon Room) 
2 Library Lane, New Hartford
Bring a Friend!
 

Indivisible's Persuasion to Power Zoom on Wednesday, Feb. 21st

Please join Indivisibles from across the country to learn from veteran activist Loretta Ross, who was featured in Anand Giridharadas's book, The Persuaders: At the Front Lines of the Fight for Hearts, Minds, and Democracy.  This is the second installment of Indivisible's Persuasion to Power series: Know Your Audience. It will be on Zoom Wednesday, Feb. 21st at 8:00 pm.  Please sign up here. 

"Everyone we speak to, whether neighbor, friend, community member, or family, carries a slightly different set of values and expectations. In organizing conversations, it’s up to us to listen well and make strategic, thoughtful assessments of how to move our goals forward by taking into account the other person’s responses. On this call, we’ll learn from Loretta Ross how we can assess and adjust our communication approaches based on the person we’re talking to and how closely they already align with our goals.

This means employing strategies such as storytelling, framing issues in relatable terms, and active listening to understand the concerns and values of those we seek to engage. By honing our communication skills and staying rooted in our shared goals of justice, equity, and inclusion, we can effectively navigate the political landscape and advance our agenda. 

As Indivisible gears up for a big year of building power and achieving progressive wins, it’s important that we focus on the conversation and messaging tactics that can help us persuade the uncertain. Sign up HERE for the call. 

Together, let's harness the power of dialogue to create meaningful change, and build a more just society for all.
 

Arrogant, Condescending, Interrupting Rep. Brandon William Does it Again

A CNN host was trying to interview a member of Congress representing central NY on the subject of immigration policy. Lies, rudeness, and arrogant snark ensue. Welcome to Brandon's World.  In case you missed it, here's an overview and the clip, from MSNBC. 

Let's keep working on how we talk to people about immigration policy. It's a complex and real issue that concerns most Americans to some degree.  The challenges faced at the border are series. Lives are at stake, and families and children are impacted daily.  American workers, whether in the border patrol, in federal and state facilities, or court and social workers, are struggling to keep up with the workload and maintain their mental health and compassion.  Countries do need to monitor who comes over their borders.  All true. But Republicans in Congress refuse to address the issue because Trump wants to keep the chaos alive in an effort to score political points. Let's stay on message!

Note that Tom Suozzi's ability to stay on message on this topic rather than running from it helped him win in a very purple Long Island district, with some similarities to NY22.  And one of our members, Carolyn McAleese, had a great LTE on the topic published in The Daily Sentinel this past week, showing that we don't have to let MAGA Republicans own the issue.  She took on immigration head on and reframed and messaged using facts and the values important to her and to all of us.  Keep those letters coming!

Congratulations to NY03 Indivisibles and all the volunteers across the state who helped flip the first congressional district in 2024.  Let's learn everything we can about working together to do the same in NY22.  

 IMV Climate Crisis Working Group 

Easy Email Action for Climate

The NY Heat Act would counter the fossil fuel status quo by transitioning the state’s energy grid to renewable heat, and capping energy bills at 6 percent of a household’s income in the process.

The oil and gas industry has run unabated in our state for decades, polluting our air and water and producing record emissions levels. No more! Can you take action today and email NYS legislative leaders and members of the legislative Environmental Conservation Committee, asking them to pass the full NY Heat Act this year?
 

Good News for the Packaging Reduction & Recycling Infrastructure Act

There are now a MAJORITY of cosponsors in both the Senate (34 cosponsors) AND the Assembly (76 cosponsors) for the Packaging Reduction & Recycling Infrastructure Act: S.4246-A / A.5322- which makes the bill much more likely to become law.  And on Tuesday, the PRRI Act passed out of the Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee, 21-8, clearing another critical hurdle on the road to becoming law in NY State.  Help get these bills passed by joining IMV at Beyond Plastics lobbying day on February 27 Advocacy Day in Albany for the Packing Reduction Act and Bigger Better Bottle Bill. See the IMV calendar for details about joining. Contact Maggie Reilly @ margaret_reilly@mac.com if you plan on attending.
 

Our voices and actions matter:

The IMV Climate Crisis Working Group is a partner of several environmental action groups, including NY Renews. We, and 17 other NY Renews partners,  recently wrote letters asking various Democratic legislators to sign on to three key budget letters on climate and environmental justice (NY Heat Act, the Climate Change Superfund Act, and the Climate, Jobs and Justice Package.) IMV CCWG chair, Maggie Reilly, received an email today that one of the assembly members she wrote to, AM Sillitti has signed off on all three budget letters. This is one of the small victories that add up to the change we all want. Keep up the emails, calls, LTE’s and lobbying! 
 

Help get Sarah Klee Hood on the ballot

Team SKH is excited to hit the ground running collecting petitions. The first day to collect signatures is February 27th so sign up here to join us via zoom to get all the details on how to collect valid petition signatures -- and have fun doing it!!

WHAT: Training on how to collect valid petition signatures and answer any questions you might have about the petition process.
WHEN: Sunday, Feb. 25th @ 5pm.
WHERE: Zoom(zoom link sent upon RSVP and again the morning of the training).
**Email Caroline Cranford at caroline@sarahkleehoodny.com if you have any questions beforehand.
 

Herkimer County Democratic Committee Update

Herkimer County Democrats are grateful to the folks who have stepped up to ensure that our committee remains constituted according to Election Law.  We would welcome more! If anyone is interested or has a friend in Herkimer County who might be interested, have them contact us at HerkDems@gmail.com

We will be doing a Zoom training on petitioning on both February 20 at 6:00 and after our (postponed) meeting on February 27th.  Most monthly meetings are on Zoom. Event notice for the meeting on the 27th: https://www.facebook.com/events/901516401452209
 

Message from Celeste Friend: Come Meet James Meyers

"I must say, it is very encouraging when one of your own volunteers decides to step up and run for office! I'm very happy to support James Meyers, who is running to challenge longtime Republican State Senator Joe Griffo. James was one of our co-captains in the Sixth Ward, and many of you know him from our campaign.

Now, it's his turn to run. Please join Andy and me at our home this Sunday at 2 for a casual "Meet and Greet" - a chance to meet James if you haven't already, hear his plans for his campaign, and stay engaged in our political movement for a better, stronger democracy.

Join us at 37 Emerson Ave this Sunday, February 18th, at 2 pm. Light refreshments will be served. See you then!

Redistricting Update from Jon Lipe

On Thursday, New York State’s Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC) approved a new congressional map, which makes dramatic changes to New York’s 22nd Congressional District. 

Following a court order last year, the IRC reconvened this winter to draw a new congressional map to replace the court-drawn map that was used for the 2022 election. This new map was drawn by the IRC and approved by a bipartisan 9-1 vote on Thursday. While the 2022 map included all of Oneida County, Madison County, and Onondaga County in the 22nd Congressional District, this new map splits Oneida County into two districts, with the southern half of the county in NY-22 (currently represented by Brandon Williams) and the northern half of the county in NY-21 (currently represented by Elise Stefanik). 

The towns in the new NY-22 are Whitestown, Westmoreland, Vernon, Kirkland, New Hartford, Augusta, Marshall, Paris, Sangerfield, and Bridgewater, as well as the southern tip of Verona and the entire City of Utica. Everything north of Westmoreland and Whitestown, including the entire City of Rome, are in the new NY-21. 

The new NY-22 would now also include the cities of Auburn and Cortland. It would change from a seat with Democrats having a 20,000 voter registration advantage over Republicans to a 30,000 registration advantage. 

The proposed map now goes to the state legislature for approval. If the legislature approves the map and it is signed by the Governor, it would take effect immediately and be used for the 2024 election. The state legislature can also opt to make changes to the map. 

For local Democrats, the next biggest deadline is February 27, when petitioning begins for candidates seeking the Democratic Party line this year. If a new congressional map is not finalized by then, petitioning for the congressional race may be impacted. 

-Jon Lipe, System Analyst, Oneida County Board of Elections
 

A Poem About Voting & a Metaphor From Stacey Abrams

Thanks to Margie and Bill Thickstun who spotted and shared this poem by Evie Shockley. Try reading it aloud, perhaps in honor of both Black History Month and Women's History Month. It's titled: “women’s voting rights at one hundred (but who’s counting?)”  You'll note the shout-out at the end to Stacey Abrams and her organization, Fair Fight. 

For those of you who had the chance to hear Stacey Abrams speak at the CNY Labor Council's Legislative Breakfast in Utica last Friday, you know what a treat that was. A little nugget from Stacey: "Elections aren't magic; they're medicine for society's ills."

IMV friends, you know already that 2024 is the election that will end in the last gasp of a body politic weakened from the daily assaults of the disease of MAGA extremism or whether democracy will get the medicine it needs to recover and begin to heal.  We will all need to focus our attention fully on making sure that this patient---our functional democracy--survives the year.  You are a critical part of democracy's "medical team."  Plan your goals now for carrying petitions (Feb 27-March 28), phone banking and texting voters, reaching out to friends and family to get them involved, writing letters to the editor, and much more.  Elections aren't won by magic and... 

Democracy is not a spectator sport.  

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