Call Your Senators (& Other Easy Actions)

[callyoursenators]

It’s primary time!!!

Friendly reminder to vote in your primary election this May! You can look up a sample ballot on vote.org or through your Secretary of State’s website.

This is a great opportunity to support candidates who actually represent us. Look out for candidates who are grassroots funded and support loud, unapologetic change for the people.

[cowboyhatesithere]

Hey just a heads up to all my friends who maybe don’t follow fashion/trade news too closely:

Estée Lauder, the cosmetic brand, is owned by multi billionaire Ronald Lauder. This guy is a scumbag, and also the primary guy who convinced Trump to start all the Greenland bullshit. Lauder also owns a lot of smaller cosmetic brands underneath the umbrella of Estée Lauder. We should all be boycotting these brands at all costs (they’re cosmetic brands. You very likely don’t need them to begin with)

Anyways. Lauder is currently in motion for a major merger with Puig, which is the parent company of a great many fancy perfume brands. Again, these are luxury products you certainly don’t need in the first place, but I strongly urge you to redirect any cosmetic purchases you may make towards alternatives.

Voting with your wallet matters, and trimming down their sales is the strongest method any of us have to forcibly change a company’s behavior without legal action. Boycotts matter, and in this case, it really will save you money, actually.

[henstomper]

dude it's just politics, it doesn't matter. all it does is shape every single aspect of the society you live in from the second you are born until forever

[brucesterling]

[callyoursenators]

The Fight For Section 230

It’s so so so so important to be fighting for the protection of Section 230, which enables the internet as we know it.

Please call your representatives and ask them to protect Section 230 and push for data privacy protections and greater enforcement of antitrust law for big tech companies.

[wolfliving]

[callyoursenators]

View this post on Instagram

Have a RING camera? You should know how your footage is being used.

[callyoursenators]

Liam Ramos is Sick in ICE Detention

5 year old Liam Ramos is sick in ICE Detention, seemingly because of the lack of access to clean food and water.

Now is the time to call your representative (find yours here) and push them to abolish ICE. Ask them what they are doing to get Liam and other children like him out of these concentration camps.

Calls make a difference. They give your representatives a picture of what their constituents want and they are much more likely to make a move if they feel that strong support from the people.

[callyoursenators]

Did you need another reason to cancel your Amazon Prime subscription?

Welp… here it is. Send a message to Amazon that their collaboration with fascism won’t fly. Cancel your Amazon Prime asap!

[humanerrers]

x

[humanerrers]

stop spreading despair and nihilism

stop buying into the idea that nonviolent activism is useless, rather than (by far) the most effective form of protest

stop falsely claiming that BLM accomplished nothing and that most citizens “don’t care” when people are murdered by the state

start understanding that most of your neighbors care about your rights, and their own

start noticing that most people are moved by injustice, including against people who look nothing like them

[callyoursenators]

Trying to quit Amazon?

EarthHero is a great marketplace that stocks sustainable products in a variety of categories.

Even if you don’t buy from their storefront, it’s a great resource to discover smaller sustainable brands. Many of the brands on this site are independently owned!

Next time you want to go to Amazon, check EarthHero first and see if there’s a sustainable swap!

(not sponsored or affiliated with EarthHero, I’ve just used and enjoyed them for years!)

Eco-Friendly & Sustainably Made Products

EarthHero wants to make sustainable shopping so easy everyone does it. Shop eco-friendly products on the one-stop shop for everyone who love

[ellewantsrevenge]

MASTER LIST OF WAYS TO HELP IN MINNEAPOLIS

(this list is mainly ways non-locals can donate but by extension offers a lot of resources and places to volunteer in the Twin Cities + there are specific ways to donate time under the cut which can be adjusted to your local neighborhood)

full credit to cataloo from r/minnesota [x]

🩵Immigrant support

Immigrant Defense Network – coalition of 90+ groups organizing rapid response and collecting evidence.

Immigrant Law Center of MN – free immigration legal representation to low-income immigrants and refugees.

COPAL – advocacy, organizing, phone hotline. Focus on Latine community.

Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) – education and protest organizing.

Interfaith Coalition on Immigration – advocacy, aid, events.

Monarca MN – training and phone hotline.

Unidos MN – education, protests, advocacy.

Center for Victims of Torture – advocacy and mental health services for immigrants and refugees.

International Institute of Minnesota – refugee resettlement group that provides support and legal help to vulnerable new-to-country families.

Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota – offers services to refugees, including legal aid to non-citizens.

🩵Food support

If local, food donations are welcome, otherwise monetary donations help these types of orgs source what is most needed

VEAP

Second Harvest Heartland

Every Meal

The Food Group

Meals on Wheels MN

Find a local food shelf

🩵Mutual aid funds & community support

Community Aid Network

Twin Cities Trans Mutual Aid

Leo's Tow (Venmo @leostowingmn) is towing cars back to families if a car is stranded when someone is detained.

🩵More links

MN50501 Mutual Aid Linktree – well-organized list of various Twin Cities groups.

Mplsmutualaid Linktree – many neighborhood and individual GoFundMes listed here.

Mpls.St.Paul Magazine – see Food Drives and Fundraisers.

Stand with Minnesota – extensive list of organizations, mutual aid, and crowdfunding campaigns.

🩵Donate blood

Memorial Blood Center declared a blood emergency on Tuesday, Jan 13. MBC is the blood supplier for both tier 1 trauma hospitals in the metro area (Hennepin County Medical Center and North Memorial Health).

American Red Cross

🩵Donate food or other goods

Mpls.St.Paul Magazine – see Food Drives and Fundraisers.

Volunteer your time (under the cut)

🩵Mutual aid

Reach out to your neighbors – especially if you know they are staying home right now – and ask if they need groceries or toiletry items. Offer to pick up prescriptions, give rides, or shovel their driveway. If you know them well, bring them a treat that you know they'll enjoy. Or just ask them how they're doing and let them know you are there to support.

Connect with any of the orgs above and see if they are looking for volunteers.

Connect with a church or mosque in your area. From u/MuddieMaeSuggins: "I know a lot of regular Redditors are not religious (myself included) but like it or not this is a where a lot of community organizing happens, especially in immigrant communities."

Connect with your local school's admin office and/or their PTA. It's ok to reach out even if you don't have kids at the school. PTAs are organizing mutual aid for school families, safe rides, school observers.

🩵Activism

Find an official protest or other event via Indivisible, 50501, FREE AMERICA, or MIRAC. Students at many high schools are staging walk-outs; if your local school is doing this, reach out to school leadership or the PTA and ask how you can support as a community member.

Join the effort to stop Hilton from housing ICE by booking hotel rooms and then cancelling at the last minute. This action can be done from home! The effort is being organized by Sunrise Movement, who are telling activists to target specific hotels one-by-one. More info: SHUT DOWN HILTON

Find people in your area who are actively monitoring ICE and/or stationing themselves in high-traffic areas and ask how you can help. Check for local FB events where people are organizing and just show up.

At minimum, read the COPAL Handbook before you go out to observe. The DFL, Monarca, and other orgs have been hosting online trainings for constitutional observers (though these fill up quickly).

When you see ICE in action, start recording. Be as loud and as disruptive as possible: honk your horn, set off your car alarm, blow your whistle. Let people know that ICE is in the area. If you see someone being detained, try to get their name and a phone number to call their emergency contact.

If you do not feel comfortable observing ICE in person, there are ways you can support from home. Just ask the people who are organizing in your area. I have social anxiety, and I had never participated in any kind of political action before this past Saturday. If I can do it, you can!

Local organizers are requesting that people who help monitor ICE DO NOT participate in 1-to-1 mutual aid efforts, as these can put the families you are helping at risk.

If you have friends/acquaintances who are sympathetic but not politically active, reach out to them. Show them that they're not alone in feeling helpless. Pick a few low-commitment actions from this list and do them together.

[callyoursenators]

Here’s a script from Indivisible to call your senators about the DHS funding bill.

Church Schumer has said that Dems will not vote for the bill, but they’ve been known to fold at the last minute, so it’s important that they continue to hear from the public.

If you’re not sure about your senator’s phone number, you can call the congressional switchboard at [phone] and an operator will connect you to your senator.

If you’re too anxious to talk to someone on the phone (totally fair), you can call after office hours and leave a message. You can also send them an email (contact forms are usually available on senator’s website).

You’d be surprised by how much phone calls from constituents sway your representative’s behavior. Let’s fill up their voicemails and let them know we won’t stand for more ICE funding.

[auntjessie]

Did you know that Spotify is running ads for ICE recruitment?

If this displeases you, cancel your subscription, stop using Spotify, and switch to a different service.

Personally, I’m using Tidal and it’s been pretty good. They pay their artists well and have most major artists available to stream. It’s not perfect, but serviceable under the circumstances.

[auntjessie]

UPDATE: ICE ads are no longer running on Spotify.

Their statement on it is pretty vague and it's unclear if they're willing to run more ads in the future, but thought it was important to share this update.

Personally, I'm sticking with Tidal. They pay their artists a much better cut and they're not associated with Daniel Ek.