Now what? After yesterday’s failure to reform the filibuster and pass the Freedom to Vote Act

 

Our advocacy moved the needle, but not far enough. Apparently nothing was going to get Senima and Manchin to reform the filibuster. Here’s what Indivisible USA says about this discouraging turn of events.

So what now? This fight for a real democracy has been part of America since its founding. Nor is using the filibuster to block pro-democracy, pro-civil rights legislation anything new. After the Civil War, southern segregations popularized and weaponized the filibuster to prevent the Senate from taking up democracy legislation. The 1964 Civil Rights bill overcame a weeks-long filibuster, and the 1965 Voting Rights Act faced its own filibuster threats as well. Those bills were decades in the making — the end successful result of decades of failed attempts.

So what can we do after losing a hard fight? Here are the options:

  • We can give up.
  • We can keep building power.

That’s it. End of list. And I’ll be damned if I’m going to let the fascists win in a forfeit.

On January 24th at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT, we’re pulling together pro-democracy supporters from across the country to strategize about next steps. If you would like to be part of that conversation, please sign up to join Monday’s Movement call here. And if you have any thoughts to share ahead of time, please reply to this email with them (yes, to “no-reply” we do read it!), or feel free to reach out to me directly on Twitter at @ezralevin (I really try to respond!).

I’m sorry that we lost tonight, but I am so damn proud that we fought. I’ve said time and time again: we’re not fighting for our democracy because we know we’ll win. We’re fighting for it because we know we have to win. And we will win.

No ICM Meeting Tonight! See you February 7th

There’s no Indivisible Cedar Mill meeting tonight. We will restart our monthly meeting the first Monday in February.
On Thursday, come to a vigil marking the anniversary of the Insurrection. You can attend the one across from the Beaverton Library at 5 pm or the one in St. Johns that will be bigger. Look at Mobilize.us for information.

No January Meeting! But here’s something simple you can do every day- CALL YOUR MEMBERS OF CONGRESS

Calls to our Members of Congress are the way to keep the pressure on. First we need to get the Senate to PASS the Build Back Better package. Then we need to get the Congress to PASS the Voting Rights Act. Our democracy and the next election are at stake! Keep on, keeping on with your calls. This is the best holiday gift you can give to yourself and your children.

 

sign up to organize a vigil on Jan. 6th an ICM member urges

Nobody Is Above the Law Hosts,

Join us tomorrow for a call to learn about hosting a vigil on January 6 to mark on year from the attack on our Capitol.

It’s been nearly one year since armed right-wing militants attacked our Capitol and tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

Since that time the same extremist politicians who incited the attack have tried to block the investigation into the violence, state legislators have passed one anti-voter bill after another, local election officials have faced death threats, and the potential for future election sabotage has only grown.

We must not forget what happened — and we must demand action from our leaders to prevent another attack on our democracy.

That’s why we’re organizing candlelight vigils across the country on Thursday, January 6, to lift up our voices and say:

We are One America. This can never happen again. The Senate must act to pass legislation immediately to protect our democracy.

Join us tomorrow for a call to learn about hosting a vigil near you.

No matter our color, background, or party, most of us believe that people who betray our nation and endanger our lives have no business governing in our name. That’s why we must stand together in this moment.



In 2020, we turned out in record numbers, made sure our votes were counted, and that the will of the people prevailed. Throughout 2021, we’ve organized to protect the freedom to vote, stop partisan gerrymandering, and prevent election sabotage. It’s been a long, hard fight, and we’re closer to the finish line now than we’ve ever been.


But we can’t stop now –– we need to keep up the momentum for our freedom to vote.

Sign up to join us tomorrow to learn how you can host a candlelight vigil in your community on Jan. 6!

ICM is thankful for YOU!

On this day after Thanksgiving, we want to say “Thank You, one and all” for taking action over and over again. We couldn’t have written over 45,000 Vote Forward letters, 3,000 Reclaim Our Vote postcards, called our Members of Congress over and over and worked with COIN and Indivisible USA to push the needle toward people, not corporations, toward Justice, and toward democracy in a time when it is threatened–without you!

Let’s continue to do all we can to get everyone the right to vote in Americans, to work for justice for those who are marginalized, and to address our threatened planet.

There’s no meeting in December. Take time to rest, refresh and reflect and come back ready for mid-term actions!