Indivisibles,

This Friday, the House is expected to pass a historic bill ([ [link removed] ]H.R. 51)
that would grant statehood and full congressional representation to the
District of Columbia’s 700,000+ residents. This move is, at its core, a
matter of racial justice and a crucial first step in redefining the
political landscape: if D.C. is granted statehood, it would be the only
state in the nation to have a plurality of Black residents. 

This is much bigger than one moment -- granting D.C. statehood would
undermine historical efforts to keep Black Americans living in the
District powerless. History is repeating itself now: Trump and the GOP are
comfortable treating D.C. residents as second class citizens because it's
part of their greater strategy to hold on to power.

[ [link removed] ]Whether you live in D.C. now, have family and friends who live there,
or simply support D.C. statehood -- take action now and call your
Representative! 

A historically-Black city, D.C.’s lack of statehood is a remnant of
Reconstruction when racist white politicians sought to prevent the
District’s majority-Black residents from gaining political power. GOP
Senators are echoing this history even now, and have made it clear that
this bill will die in the Senate. A popular GOP talking point is that D.C.
statehood is unconstitutional, but we know their opposition is politically
and racially motivated. Need more proof? President Trump [ [link removed] ]offered some
insight: 

“You mean District of Columbia, a state? Why? So we can have two more
Democratic — Democrat senators and five more congressmen? No thank you.
That’ll never happen."

It makes sense that Trump and the GOP wouldn’t want to risk more
opposition in the Senate -- a disenfranchised D.C. is easier to control
and manipulate. Unlike anywhere else in the country, Congress approves
D.C.’s budget and can even override local laws passed by D.C. residents
and its actual elected local officials. That includes denying D.C. the
right to spend its own local funds on reproductive health care for
low-income people, denying the District’s efforts to legalize marijuana,
forcing a failing public school voucher program onto residents, and
attempting to overturn D.C.’s Death with Dignity law.

Take action this week to demand justice for D.C. residents: 

 1. [ [link removed] ]Call your Representative and tell them to vote YES on the D.C.
Statehood bill (H.R. 51).
 2. Check to [ [link removed] ]see if your Senator is already cosponsoring the bill. If
they’re not, [ [link removed] ]call your Senators to demand that they add their name
to the list. 
 3. [ [link removed] ]Read and share our resource about why D.C. statehood is a racial
justice issue.

We’re just as frustrated as you are that this won’t move forward in the
Senate this year, but we’re keeping our eyes on 2021. If we win a trifecta
in November -- a Democratized House, Senate, and Presidency -- we’ll have
laid the groundwork for extending equal representation for over 700,000
Americans. 

In solidarity, 
Indivisible Team

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