Welcome to The Revolution Report — the weekly e-newsletter of the political revolution!
SPECIAL REQUEST: This is a critical moment for our movement. Chairman Sanders needs people power to fight for $15 and other progressive priorities in Washington DC. Our Revolution doesn’t take money from corporations and billionaires - we depend on small donors like you to build our movement.
We just kicked off our 2021 Movement Builder membership drive. Are you ready to get Bernie's back and organize to win a progressive America?
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Don’t miss our next National Organize to Win Call on Monday, February 15 at 8:30pm ET, featuring U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Jackie Traynere, an Our Revolution member running for mayor of her city, and other progressive champions!
RSVP NOW!
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IN THIS ISSUE! Jim Hightower on the Democratic establishment, Rep. Ilhan Omar on student debt cancelation, and the latest from our leaders from California to Maine!
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Bernie asked, “Are you willing to fight for that person you don’t know as much as you’re willing to fight for yourself?” That’s why he created Our Revolution - to give the people who answer “YES!” the chance to build a movement that fights for dignity and justice for ALL people.
Our new 2021 Movement Builder membership card reminds us that Our Revolution’s mission is to “Fight for someone you don’t know.” And when you become a sustaining member of Our Revolution, you’re doing just that.
JOIN OUR MOVEMENT -
FIGHT FOR SOMEONE YOU DON'T KNOW!
Your monthly donation - of $5, $10 or whatever you are able to afford - is a downpayment on transformational political change. Since 2016, we’ve been building national network of local organizers who support volunteer-run state and local groups focused on electing progressive champions to represent our movement from city councils to the Capitol; fighting for progressive policies to raise the minimum wage to $15, pass single-payer healthcare, and stop pipelines at every level of government; and transforming the Democratic party into a party that represents working people, not corporations.
We have made incredible progress in a short time - and now is the time we must organize to win concrete victories.
JOIN US! We’ll send you a Movement Builder membership card featuring original art by renowned illustrator and Our Revolution Nashville leader Lauren Rolwing.
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Since we kicked off our 2021 Membership Drive on February 1st, we’ve raised enough money to onboard a NEW organizer! Kristin Hoffman, a West Point grad and veteran, is hitting the ground running as Our Revolution Virginia’s first state organizing coordinator. She’s committed to stopping endless wars and scaling back the Pentagon budget, as well as organizing our local groups to flex progressive muscle in June’s statewide elections for Governor and the state legislature.
Over 100,000 progressives read The Revolution Report every Saturday. If just 100 readers become sustaining donors, we can onboard another state organizer. Will you invest in helping us organize people power state by state?
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READ MORE BELOW -
WE’RE FIGHTING FOR PEOPLE WE DON’T KNOW!
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Our movement is moving the President! Our Revolution and our allies have been holding Joe Biden accountable, and the pressure is working. The New York Times writes about the wins progressives have achieved in this first month of the Biden administration, quoting Our Revolution Board Chair Larry Cohen: “None of the people we were afraid of got into this cabinet.” In fact, Biden nominated several progressives for administrative positions - including Deb Haaland, who was our pick for Interior Secretary.
Our ideas are now Biden’s ideas. The Times writes, “There’s plenty of overlap between Mr. Biden’s agenda and his left flank,” pointing out that he has signed over 40 executive actions on issues including racial justice, climate change, and immigration, and adopted parts of the Green New Deal. “The administration hasn’t tried to smuggle in progressive proposals; it has simply rebranded them as its own.”
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Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar - a champion for student debt cancellation and College for All - joined our Monday Night Organize to Win call to discuss the impact the student debt crisis is having on students and their families. “Young adults with student debt are graduating college with a negative net worth, while their parents are jeopardizing their retirement to pay off their children’s loans.” Highlighting the importance of an inside-outside strategy to winning, she called on Our Revolution members to keep the pressure on Joe Biden and Congress. “It’s important that organizers continue to lift their voices and help us push for progressive policies that help everyone and don’t leave anyone behind.”
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On our Monday Night Organize to Win call, Our Revolution New Jersey member Gabriella Ambroise - a college student who owes nearly $100,000 in student loans - called on President Biden and Vice President Harris to cancel student debt. “I struggled so much with paying for college that there were days when I thought I might have to drop out and give up on my dreams.” Gabriella pointed out that cancelling student debt would do more than eliminate the burden of debt for students. “Most borrowers are Black women, and cancelling student debt means addressing the racial wealth gap.”
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Student loan debt is at crisis proportions: 45 million Americans owe $1.7 trillion in student loans, making it the second-largest category of consumer debt in the U.S. President Biden has paused student debt payments during the pandemic, but pausing isn’t enough. That’s why Our Revolution supports the #CancelStudentDebt resolution introduced by Rep. Omar and other progressive champions this week calling on Biden to use executive power to cancel $50,000 in student loan debt for federal student loan borrowers.
Hey Joe, STUDENT DEBT has got to GO!
Sign here if you agree.
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Lizbeth Caceres works at the McDonald’s inside the Pentagon, where she makes just $11.50 an hour. She works hard serving food to top brass while struggling to put food on the table for her own family. Even though she works for a profitable federal contractor, she has to use Medicaid for her health care. Lizbeth has gone on strike to Fight for $15 multiple times since 2013, and on our Monday Organize to Win call, she spoke through an interpreter in Spanish about the hardship of making ends meet. “My poverty wage isn’t enough to feed my kids or even pay the rent and utilities. Workers like me who serve our troops shouldn’t have to struggle to survive.”
Our Revolution successfully pushed members of the House Education and Labor Committee who were on the fence to include the $15 minimum wage increase in the COVID relief package. As the package moves through Congress, we are organizing to make sure centrist Senate Democrats stand-up for America’s low-wage workers.
JOIN US IN THE FIGHT FOR $15!
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Sign-up to stand-up for Lisbeth and all working people!
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Three Our Revolution-endorsed Congressmen - Jamie Raskin, Joe Neguse, and Ted Lieu - are leading the charge to hold Donald Trump accountable for inciting an insurrection. Raskin, an expert in constitutional law, is a frequent guest on our calls and will be joining our Monday Organize to Win Call on March 22 (RSVP here). In his closing statement to the Senate, he reminded them of the role of an elected official: “All of us who aspire and attain a public office are nothing but the servants of the people … the moment that we no longer act as servants of the people but as violators of the people's rights, that is the time to impeach, remove, convict, disqualify, start all over again.”
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TRUMP'S IMPEACHMENT TRIAL IS UNDERWAY -
SIGN HERE TO CALL ON THE SENATE TO CONVICT TRUMP!
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Our Revolution Executive Director Joseph Geevarghese spoke with National Journal on how we are investing in building robust campaign infrastructure and organizing to elect Nina Turner in Ohio, Karen Carter Peterson in Louisiana, and other progressives up and down the ballot in 2021. “In Ohio, we’ve already recruited 350 Our Revolution volunteers, and we’re kicking off a Neighbors for Nina precinct organizing program.” Recruiting and training volunteers is critical to making sure our endorsed candidates have the best chance of winning: “Losing races only sends a single message to the establishment: 'We ain’t got the support for progressive policies.’”
Become a sustaining donor and help Our Revolution elect progressive champions like Nina and Karen in special elections and all year long!
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Our Illinois Revolution announced a key endorsement in the upcoming Bolingbrook mayoral election during their state Organize to Win Meeting. Jackie Traynere, who is running with a slate of progressives on the Bolingbrook United ticket, joined the meeting to talk about her campaign to fight the privatization of public services. Traynere, an Our Revolution member and member of the Will County Board, previously ran in 2017 and narrowly lost to a longtime Trump-supporting mayor who stepped down this past summer.
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Our Revolution Maine’s 2021 Kickoff featured local organizer and State Rep. Grayson Lookner and his colleagues in the Maine House, Seth Berry and Sophie B. Warren. Seth talked about how we’re fighting corporate monopolies in Maine by supporting the Maine Power for Maine People initiative, which would convert the Central Maine Power monopoly into a consumer-owned utility, calling it “essential for our climate, economic justice, and ultimately, our future.” The call was covered by ABC 7 / Fox 22.
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State Sen. Robert Peters joined Our Illinois Revolution’s Monthly Organizing Meeting to update local activists on a massive criminal justice reform bill approved recently by the state legislature — and is awaiting the governor’s signature. Sen. Peters sponsored the historic bill to eliminate cash bail — making Illinois one of the first states to end wealth-based detention. “So many people have lost jobs, housing, and so much more, not because they’ve been found to be a danger to anyone’s safety but because of the size of their bank account.”
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This week, Our Revolution New Jersey organized to pass the 5th Medicare for All resolution in the state! Dover is the latest town to send a strong message to New Jersey’s congressional delegation - only one supports MFA - that the grassroots and elected leaders want healthcare for all. "Passing this resolution calling for universal, single-payer healthcare during a pandemic is more than a symbolic act, it’s a clear statement that in Morris County, nobody should be left behind,” said Charlie Baranski, founder of Our Revolution Morris County.
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Our Revolution Ohio activists joined in solidarity with the IUE - CWA union members to protest the closing of GE’s Bucyrus plant, which manufactures LED bulbs exclusively for Walmart. GE plans to offshore these good American jobs to China, but Our Revolution Ohio and IUE-CWA are fighting back by organizing Wal-Mart customers to Buy American. The next round of protests is set for Saturday, February 20th. Sign the petition and join the fight!
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Our Revolution Texas co-hosted a press conference with the Texas Justice Advocacy Coalition featuring Bernie 2020 co-chair, federal civil rights attorney and co-founder of Grassroots Law Project Lee Merritt. “The research has demonstrated that 5 out of 8 people who are incarcerated can go home today. These include individuals who have become senior citizens in prison, folks who are very close to their time of release — many of whom have served over 20 years.”
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Our Revolution is calling on President Biden to fight corporate monopolies and support a waiver to the WTO TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) patent rule that limits access by governments to affordable COVID-19 treatments. TRIPS benefits Big Pharma by giving medicine monopolies control over where and how much vaccine is made, creating a barrier to adequate and affordable supplies. The fastest and most humane way to end the pandemic is to make COVID-19 vaccines and treatments available worldwide as quickly and affordably as possible.
SIGN THE PETITION
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Hey y’all! Our Revolution El Paso (Texas) held their February organizing meeting to talk about electing progressives in upcoming school board races. Our members are partnering with the El Paso Alliance for Just Schools and organizer Diego Carlos joined us to talk about the challenge ahead - “There’s the undue influence of money in politics and I’m talking all the way down to the very bottom level to school boards. We are going to change that.”
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HELP US FIGHT FOR PROGRESSIVE POLICIES ACROSS THE USA - BECOME A MEMBER OF OUR REVOLUTION!
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Our Revolution Board Member Jim Hightower writes in his popular newsletter, The Hightower Lowdown, that the Democratic party establishment is advising President Biden to “go slow” and not push big, bold ideas, claiming that it was his moderate incrementalism that got him elected. Not so, says Hightower: “The ones who carried Biden into the Oval Office, despite his 50-year career of political meekness, were the grassroots organizers and volunteers from unions, people of color activists, women’s networks, youth groups, and so many other rebels against the corporate order.”
Read more and listen to the podcast HERE.
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Our Revolution is building a more progressive party at all levels - and in California, we partnered with the Progressive Delegates Network in endorsing candidates (including over 100 Our Revolution members) for assembly district delegates in the California Democratic Party’s ADEM statewide elections. The results are still being tallied, but PDN reports that many of our endorsed candidates across the state have won, and many districts have flipped. For example, Our Revolution East Bay announced that all 14 of their endorsed candidates won in their Assembly District!
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Our Revolution Colorado leaders are getting elected to Democratic Party positions all across the state! In red El Paso County, Our Revolution Colorado state coordinator Anthony Maro was elected as district chair, and Our Revolution Colorado Springs treasurer John Durivage was elected as secretary. Colorado Springs has not elected a Democrat to the County Commission since 1972, something that John and Anthony are organizing to change. Anthony will also serve on the Colorado Democratic Party’s state central and executive committees.
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Mico Lucide of Our Revolution Atlantic County, NJ is one of the Plaintiffs on a landmark case challenging the undemocratic ballot design used in New Jersey elections. This design allows preferential ballot placement for establishment-picked candidates, pushing challengers & non-establishment candidates out of the view of voters. "The core of everything we do as progressives is transparent & accessible democracy. We don't get that in New Jersey - we get corporate-backed, establishment-ordained hacks because of this absurd incomplete spreadsheet of a ballot. With this lawsuit, we will join the rest of the country and achieve a fairer ballot!"
READ MORE HERE
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Our Revolution is calling on President Biden to make sure progressives are represented in key DNC leadership positions, such as at-large seats and committee, caucus, and council chairs.
Sign here to tell Joe Biden to make sure the progressive wing of the Democratic Party is represented on the DNC! You can see the list of champions we support and nominate a champion you know!
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Our Revolution is the only group working to transform the Democratic Party from the inside out. Will you support our work to unrig the rules so progressive candidates have a fair shot?
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Hello Somebody! We have an incredible opportunity to send our very own Nina Turner to Congress this year!
SIGN UP HERE TO PHONEBANK!
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Our Revolution has joined Stacey Abrams in endorsing Louisiana State Sen. Karen Carter Peterson in her race to represent Louisiana’s 2nd district in Congress. Karen’s election is on March 20 — SIGN UP to VOLUNTEER!
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This Tuesday, Our Revolution Florida is holding its 2021 kickoff with State Rep. Anna Eskamani,, City Commissioners Jack Porter of Tallahassee and Chad Albritton of Casselberry, and Richie Floyd, candidate for St. Petersburg City Council, to discuss our plan to stop Gov. DeSantis’s racially motivated anti-protest bill.
RSVP HERE
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This Wednesday, Our Revolution DC will discuss the fight for DC statehood with Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and key activists leading the fight to demand democracy.
JOIN US!
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Also on Wednesday! Our Revolution Oregon’s state meeting will focus on passing key criminal justice reform bills pending at the state house, as well as the implementation of Measure 110 - a successful Our Revolution-backed ballot measure that decriminalizes drug offenses.
RSVP HERE
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On Thursday, Our Revolution Texas will discuss reparations, the Vanessa Guillén Act and more! Speakers include US Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, LULAC National President Domingo Garcia, David Johnson with the Coalition to End Slavery and Changa Masomakali, Chair of the Dallas Community Police Oversight Commission.
RSVP HERE
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Our Revolution New Jersey is honoring Black History Month by organizing to end systemic racism. With opening remarks from Lt. Gov. Sheila Y. Oliver, the call will focus on racial disparities in our current healthcare system, drug policy and criminal justice system. Speakers include former Bernie 2020 national surrogate and family medicine expert Dr. Victoria Dooley, Rev. Dr. Leslie Harrison, Board Secretary of the NJ Harm Reduction Coalition and Zayid Muhammad from Newark Communities for Accountable Policing.
RSVP HERE
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LET'S GROW THE SQUAD - BECOME AN OUR REVOLUTION SUSTAINING MEMBER!
