| Welcome to this month’s Six from SiX—your roundup of tools for state lawmakers. For 10 years, SiX has been the home base for a 12,000+ network, helping legislators team up and turn ideas into impact. Like what you’re reading? Forward this message to your legislative colleagues!
Not seeing what you need? Reach out at [email protected]. |
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A Juneteenth Note from EJ Juárez, SiX’s Executive Director
June 19, 1865. Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas to announce that enslaved Black people were free — more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Enslavers withheld the news.
That's the thing about state power — it can be used to suppress Black political power just as easily as it can be used to advance it. What happens at the state level has always mattered. It still does.
Freedom proclaimed is not freedom realized. Closing that gap requires people who show up every session, in every statehouse, and refuse to let rights exist only on paper. It also requires that those statehouses actually reflect the people they serve. That’s what keeps me in this work.
I’m proud of every legislator in our SiX network fighting for policies that make us more free. With battles over racial gerrymandering intensifying and determining who gets to have a say in how our country is run, this election season is more important than ever. Who shows up matters. Let’s bring ourselves and our communities to the polls this year so we can build stronger statehouses that will right the wrongs of the past.
Happy Juneteenth to all. |
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| SiX Launches New Tactical Advisory Network June 18, 4 pm ET / 1 pm PT |
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| From organizing community defense networks to building coalitions for structural democracy reform, state lawmakers are on the frontlines fighting authoritarianism. SiX knows lawmakers and staff want to coordinate tactics across state lines and make trackable progress protecting local freedoms and defending democracy.
That's why we're proud to announce the Tactical Advisory Network — a project-based organizing network designed to help lawmakers, legislative staff, and core partners develop, refine, and share anti-authoritarian tactics across state lines.
Join us to celebrate the launch and learn how your office can get involved! |
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| Join SiX and the National Center for Youth Law for Parental Rights Briefing Friday, June 26, 2 pm ET/11 am PT |
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| Join SiX and the National Center for Youth Law for a critical conversation on the growing movement to roll back fundamental rights and reshape public institutions. We'll unpack the extremist actors behind these efforts, their strategy before the U.S. Supreme Court in Mirabelli, the legislative and legal tactics being deployed nationwide, and the narratives fueling attacks on youth autonomy, civil liberties, and democratic freedoms.
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| Join SiX and the ACLU for
Webinar Spotlighting State-Level Voting Rights Trends
June 25, 3 pm ET/12 pm PT |
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Join SiX and the ACLU on Thursday, June 25th for a webinar spotlighting state-level voting rights trends after the Callais decision and updates from the ACLU’s Firewall for Freedom campaign. Last year, the ACLU launched the Firewall for Freedom campaign to equip state lawmakers, executive leaders, and local officials, with policy frameworks designed to block federal attempts to attack the civil liberties of our communities. During this webinar, the experts behind the firewall campaign will share an update on legislative developments, trends and learnings on issues such as bills that protect immigrant communities and LGBTQ patients’ privacy. |
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| Affordability for All: Making Lower Costs a Winning Issue at Netroots Nation
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| SiX state legislators were in full force at Netroots Nation. We were proud to feature two legislative champions for working families and small businesses: Minnesota Representative Emma Greenman and Pennsylvania Representative Chris Rabb, on a panel co-hosted with our partners Groundwork Collaborative and Local Progress. The conversation focused on how state and local elected officials are pioneering policies that deliver real material gains for working families. By taxing the super-rich, busting corporate monopolies, and raising wages, we can create an economy and democracy that works for all of us. Check out the joint report on how state and local officials are leading the way. |
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| Southeastern State Legislators Witness and Document Human Rights Violations |
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| | In 2025, the U.S. federal government withdrew from the United Nations Universal Periodic Review process. In response, SiX and the Southern Poverty Law Center co-hosted the first ‘UPR at Home-Southeast’ convening in Atlanta, Georgia, bringing together state legislators, directly impacted people, and social justice organizations to document intersecting human rights issues in the region. Human rights accountability cannot begin and end with the federal government, and the convening highlighted the commitment of state legislators in the SiX network to govern collaboratively and take bold action. |
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| Michigan Sustainable Farming Tour Shows Legislators Regenerative Agriculture Practices in Action |
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| Last week, SiX partnered with the ASPCA and the FACE Agriculture Network to host a farm tour for legislators and staff in Michigan Senator Sue Shrink’s district. Local legislators and staff joined, as well as Dr. Tim Boring, Director of the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD). The visit included a multigenerational farm that has been re-envisioned and brought back to life with regenerative agriculture practices, and the Argus Farm Stop in Ann Arbor, which is a model of cooperative selling that is allowing Michigan producers to access markets while receiving a fair price for their products. Read more about SiX’s Rural Livability Framework here. |
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