What does a digital community look like? And how can that community create lasting progressive change? These are the questions at the heart of Stand Up America’s work, and they’re even more important as we head towards the most consequential American election, possibly, ever. 

This community began as a Facebook page in November 2016. Back then, we were a quickly-growing circle of progressives working to resist Trump’s dark vision for America. Today, we’ve grown into a vibrant online community working on multiple platforms to reform our rigged political system and protect the right to vote. With a network of two million progressives, 3,000+ volunteers, and 18 full-time staff, we’ve only scratched the surface of what we can achieve together.

We ask so much of you -- to make calls, send letters to the editor, text unregistered voters, phonebank -- and every day we are blown away by your commitment. That’s why we created Read Up, Stand Up, a monthly newsletter to celebrate your wins, tell stories of your organizing, and create a direct line between what happens at HQ and activists like you. We want you to be a part of the conversation. Because we’ll need each other, during this election -- and for whatever comes after.

If you want to say hi, send us a message introducing yourself by replying to this email. We’re excited to hear from you!

Now let’s get to the good stuff:

We’re excited to announce some additions to the Stand Up America team!

Tracy Adair is Stand Up America’s first ever Communications Fellow. Before entering the role, Tracy assisted with communications at Economic Security Project. She’ll be helping out with all things media and making sure the rest of the Stand Up team is up to speed on breaking news. 

We’re also thrilled to announce that Reggie Thedford has joined our team as Deputy Political Director. Reggie is a lawyer by training who’s worked as a policy consultant for organizations like Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin. He’s hit the ground running managing and growing our partnerships, researching our campaigns, and much more.

Now, it’s time to talk about a BIG campaign victory: We passed automatic voter registration in New York! This win belongs to our New York community -- everyone who made calls to Albany (nearly 9,000 calls in total!), sent emails, and spoke out on social media to demand this long-overdue reform. Once the governor signs this legislation, New York will be poised to add over a million voters to the rolls by automatically registering eligible voters when they interact with government agencies. It will become the 18th state to do so, and we’re committed to passing this reform nationwide! We love to see it! 🎉🎉

The New York Times: Together, You Can Redeem the Soul of Our Nation
John Lewis -- the congressman, civil rights giant, and lifelong champion of voting rights -- passed away on July 17th. Shortly before his death he wrote this essay, which was published on the day of his funeral. It’s an homage to voting, the struggle for justice, and a call to action in these unprecedented times. 

The Washington Post: Refusal to Concede? Vote Count Delays? Lefty Groups Prepare for the Worst
Stand Up America is one of those “lefty groups” that The Washington Post is referring to. In fact, we are one of the core groups taking the lead on mobilization in the event that Trump refuses to accept the lawful results of the presidential election. Read more about this project and then sign up for alerts here: www.ProtectTheResults.com.

Call to demand Congress allocate four billion in election assistance funding
The Senate’s version of the latest COVID-19 relief bill includes nothing (yes, nothing) in election assistance funding for states. Make a call to demand the Senate include $3.6 billion for things like expanded absentee and early voting, which will aid safe voting during a pandemic. 

Request your absentee ballot early (i.e. now)
The post office is suggesting voters give their materials at least two weeks to arrive at its final destination. Better safe than sorry -- request your absentee ballot ASAP!

The Stand Up America social media team has been honing an important skill recently: original meme creation. We’re especially proud of how this turned out:

Follow us on Instagram for more expert meme-ry!

Thanks for tuning in.

Eloise and Sami

P.S. This is our very first send of Read Up, Stand Up -- we want to hear your feedback about it! Reply to this email or send us a message at [email protected] with your thoughts.