Dear John,

This week marks five years since COVID lockdowns happened. It still feels so visceral for me to remember going from those first weeks trying to figure out how I could both work and parent full-time, to coming to terms with the reality that lockdown would last for months. Since then, it has felt like all we have known is change – changing politics, changing climate, changing culture, and changing movement. While these times are particularly intense, the reality is that change is always happening, and we can shape it.

We undoubtedly will face more hard times, but at TakeAction, we know we can shape that change for the better when we hold the hard and hopeful together.

Here’s what we’re reading, watching, and listening to this week.

1. Trump warns that arrest of Palestinian activist at Columbia will be ‘first of many’
Colombia University student Mahmoud Khalil who is a Palestinian immigrant and activist, was detained by federal immigration agents because he used his right to free speech to speak out against the genocide in Palestine. Khalil's detainment and the subsequent outrage from both sides of the aisle makes it clear: we must have a diverse coalition to fight back against facism. We cannot look away, we must fight for the protection of everyone’s speech — not what Trump deems acceptable.
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2. We are stronger than we think
United we stand, divided we fall rings truer than ever in the days of the overreaching and blatantly illegal actions of the Trump administration. The people can stand up to this, and we know as much because we’ve done it in the past. It takes folks from every community and background to fight back, and many of them are already on the ground, making their voices heard.
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3. Democratic Attorneys General Sue Over Gutting of Education Department
This week the Trump administration began gutting the DOE by laying off half of its workers, which will hurt everyone’s access to public education, including students who receive special education services that the federal government mandates. Their goal is to push our most vulnerable further into the margins and make it impossible for the department to have the resources to protect our students from his authoritarian rampage. 21 Democratic attorneys general, including Minnesota’s own AG Keith Ellison, are fighting back against this illegal power grab and suing the Trump administration. Attorney General Keith Ellison is leading the way and standing up for working-class Minnesotans and his cabal of unelected billionaires. AG Keith Ellison, Illinois AG Kwame Raoul, and Arizona AG Kris Mayes will be hosting a community impact hearing on March 20th in the Twin Cities to hear from the community and provide guidance on how we can take action in the face of illegal actions from the Trump administration. Sign up for the Community Impact Hearing here.
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4. Thousands of fired federal workers must be rehired immediately, judge rules
Turns out, the courts agreed that the Trump administration,his favorite unelected billionaire, Elon Musk, and his DOGE bros illegally firing thousands of government employees is not a way to make our government more efficient. U.S. District Judge William Alsup has made it clear you cannot sidestep the legal requirements to reduce the federal workforce, outlining the core issue with the efforts of DOGE: ignoring existing processes of our government doesn’t improve anything, it just causes chaos and confusion.
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5. USDA cancels $1B in local food purchasing for schools, food banks
In an effort to further cement monopolies in our country, the Trump administration has withdrawn funding that allowed schools and foodbanks to purchase food from local farms and ranchers. These programs sought to build a more resilient food supply chain and provide healthier options. Defunding these programs adds more stress to an already struggling system, removing $18 million of funding in Minnesota alone for farmers, schools, and food banks at a time when food costs are already sky-high and families are struggling to put food on the table. Our kids and food-insecure community members deserve access to locally made and healthy food.
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6. For Indian Country, federal cuts decimate core tribal programs
Indigenous communities, by law, receive services like health clinics, schools, and wildfire crews from the federal government. The Trump administration’s sweeping cuts to federal agencies and government programs is a direct violation of their legal obligation “under which the United States must protect tribal sovereignty and provide basic social services for tribal nations.” said Alex Brown at the Minnesota Reformer. Our tribal nations are just that, sovereign nations that our country legally must provide services to based on treaty rights. Abandoning these obligations is flat-out illegal and damages Indigenous communities that have already been abused for decades by our country.
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7. We can build a Democratic Party that represents our multiracial, working-class communities
We know the Democratic party has lost its way with young, working class and voters of color across the country who have been the backbone of their base for decades. How we got here is a long story, but voters want leadership that listens to them and takes action. We need a Democratic party that is stronger than ever, not one that allows the Trump administration to run wild and hurt Americans. As organizers, we’re familiar with this frustration and want to see a democratic party that stops the lip service and takes the big tent mantra as a directive to pull people in and not away. When we embrace our activists, we can take advantage of this moment and build the party for the people.
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8. Are Target Boycotts Starting To Take Their Toll?
We’ve seen many consumer boycotts take place over the last few years, and they’re becoming increasingly more common as we see companies move to eliminate DEI programs since Trump has eliminated them in federal agencies. There are multiple calls from different organizations to boycott places like Target, which temporarily removed its DEI programs before reinstating them due to backlash, clearly demonstrating that there is energy for boycotts. The boycotts have already taken a toll on Target, so there is potential for consumer boycotts to be a powerful action to push back against companies and the Trump administration if we can organize the American consumer into a collective force
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9. Bernie Sanders’ Tour Around America: Fighting Oligarchy
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has set out to talk to Americans nationwide, particularly in districts where Trump won. Thousands of folks are showing up to his rallies to stop the advance of authoritarianism and cuts to services like Medicaid that millions of Americans rely on. More Democrats are hitting the road in the next couple of weeks —including our own Governor, Tim Walz— as Republicans are being directed to hide from their constituents by refusing to hold town halls because they cannot take the blowback from their decisions. Now more than ever people need to be heard and know that their representatives are ready to listen and fight against the daily violations of their rights from the Trump administration.
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10. A time to come together: Here’s where you can celebrate Ramadan in Minnesota
Ramadan has begun, and our Muslim friends and neighbors are fasting from sunrise to sunset until Eid al-Fitr, expected between March 30th and the 31st. Across Minnesota, mosques and Islamic centers will be holding Iftars, charity events, and celebrations to celebrate Ramadan as a community.
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That’s a wrap!

As always, please send us what you’re reading, watching and listening to.

Until next time,

Amanda Otero
Co-Executive Director


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