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Dear John,
While selecting the stories for this week’s News Digest, I was reminded of an important truth — all struggle, and therefore all liberation, is interconnected. This week marked the two-year anniversary of Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza, paid for in large part by our U.S. tax dollars. Over 67,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, 2023. 170,000 more have been wounded. All Gazans have had their lives upended and forever altered. None of this violence has resulted in the release of the Israeli hostages or the safety that people in the region deserve. Here in the U.S., we have watched the violence livestreamed, and done our best to resist through protests, boycotts, refusals to commit our votes, and other mass disruptions. Despite the news that a ceasefire deal, backed by the Trump administration, has been reached, Palestinians on the ground remain skeptical that anything material will change soon. We won’t give up.
Meanwhile, Trump has seemingly declared war on American cities like Chicago and Portland. National Guard troops and ICE agents have been given free reign to occupy and terrorize residents into compliance. Twin Cities leaders and neighbors are thinking through how to prepare and keep each other safe if a similar occupation unfolds here.
None of this is inevitable or normal. As Gazan poet Raneen Azzazi writes, “I will not let myself get used to the sound of bombs.”
The fascist regime here in the U.S. is deeply aligned with that in Israel. Our resistances, too, must be aligned. We cannot be free while our tax dollars, rather than funding our basic needs such as healthcare and housing, fund a genocide overseas. We must keep watching, keep speaking, and keep fighting — for ourselves and our neighbors being targeted here at home, and for our fellow humans across the globe.
Here's what we're reading, watching, and listening to this week:
1. Gaza ceasefire deal
It was reported Thursday that Israel and Hamas both agreed to a US-backed ceasefire deal, which Trump boasted has “ended the war.” Sources in Gaza, however, told Al Jazeera that the reality on the ground hasn’t changed as Israeli forces continue to attack Palestinians.
2. Colorado's PDAB win
Colorado became the first state to cap the price of a prescription drug thanks to its Prescription Drug Affordability Board. TakeAction was part of the effort to establish a PDAB in Minnesota in 2023. Register here for an upcoming forum to discuss drug affordability – as the board gets started, it’s a critical moment to share your experience!
3. MN School Boards side with Feds over trans students
Forest Lake School Board became the latest in the state to vote in favor of complying with the Trump administration’s attacks on trans athletes. In light of increasing attacks on trans and queer students, we recommend this toolkit by Gender Justice.
4. Walz and Pritzker discuss National Guard occupation of Dem states
Trump deployed National Guard troops to Illinois on Tuesday. In a panel with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Gov. Walz predicted a similar occupation of the Twin Cities in the near future.
5. Minneapolis PACs
Several Political Action Committees are spending big money on the Minneapolis municipal election, with the largest amount going toward funding moderates like Jacob Frey and attacking DSA-aligned candidates. Could more public funding for elections be an alternative?
6. Shutdown continues
Today is the tenth day of the Federal government shutdown, and Republicans are placing the blame solely on Democrats, despite rejecting an alternative spending bill that would reopen the government without sacrificing healthcare for the most vulnerable Americans.
7. Landlord fined in doorknocking case
In a win for grassroots organizing, Minneapolis landlord John Wall was found by the court to have broken the law after denying Councilmember Robin Wonsley and Park Board candidate Michael Wilson access to canvass his apartment complex this summer. Wall cited his opposition to rent control in the email denying the campaigns access.
8. Defend the Boundary Waters
With the Trump administration recently introducing legislation to greenlight sulfide-ore mining in the BWCA, Amanda Hefner makes the case for fighting back to protect our natural resources.
9. Gaza Memorial Folio
Tuesday marked two years of the ongoing genocide in Gaza at the hands of the US-backed Israeli government. To honor the countless lives that have been lost and continue to be lost daily, Mizna released a literary memorial of poetry, essays, and artwork.
10. A primer on Christian Nationalism
One of my (admittedly stomach-churning) research interests is American Christian Nationalism and its ties to right-wing extremism and increasing fascism. Tim Whitaker and his organization, The New Evangelicals, are favorite sources of mine to learn more about the topic from a progressive Christian perspective — this video from May offers a fascinating introduction to the movement and the threats it poses.
That's a wrap!
Send us what you’re reading, watching, and listening to.
Until next time,
Charlie Bartlett
TakeAction Member
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