Join Our Revolution TONIGHT, May 10th at 8:30 p.m. ET for our National Organizing Call focused on voting rights and filibuster reform. We'll be joined tonight by Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Sen. Jeff Merkley and a panel of movement leaders who will tell us what we need to do to defend our democracy.
RSVP NOW
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News from the Frontlines of the Political Revolution!
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Our Revolution is carrying out our 5-Point Plan to Win on Filibuster Reform by:
- Mobilizing our national network of local Our Revolution groups to tell their senators they want them to end the filibuster and get the Senate working again;
- Holding our elected officials accountable to backing filibuster reform - especially senators who are standing in the way of enacting critical legislation that the country needs and the people want;
- Electing progressive champions who will call out the filibuster as an anti-majoritarian relic of Jim Crow that needs to be abolished;
- Fighting for policies like filibuster reform and voting rights; and
- Pushing the Democratic party to hold accountable its elected officials who are standing in the way of passing President Biden’s agenda and fulfilling the promises made to the American people.
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IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE: Katie Porter and Jamaal Bowman join our PRO Act rally; Maryland passes its first Medicare for All resolution; progressives prevail in Texas, Ohio, Michigan, and California; and we’ve got a NEW SURVEY!
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TAKE THE SURVEY!
Our Revolution is on the front lines of the push to eliminate the filibuster, fix the broken Senate, and push a progressive agenda through Congress.
We’re polling Our Revolution members to ask: what issue are you most passionate about? Top responses will be presented on next week’s call.
TAKE THE SURVEY HERE!
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The PRO Act was the theme of our Monday Organize to Win Call, with Congressman Andy Levin [MI-09], a longtime champion for workers’ rights, as our featured guest.
Rep. Levin was part of a Congressional delegation that traveled to Bessemer, Alabama to support Amazon workers who were organizing to form a union. He called working conditions there “dehumanizing” and commended the bravery of the employees who stood up for their rights.
“The Amazon campaign in Bessemer taught the world what employers do to workers who are just trying to have a seat at the table.”
The PRO Act, he said, would not only strengthen unions, give more power to workers, and help reduce America’s staggering income inequality, it would deliver wage justice for women and people of color. “We’ve got to get this done. It would be transformative.”
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On International Workers’ Day, Our Revolution held an in-person rally across from the Alexandria, VA home of U.S. Sen. Mark Warner - one of 3 Democratic senators who hasn’t signed on to the PRO Act. There were hundreds of attendees and thousands more online, and an amazing lineup of speakers from unions like The Communications Workers of America (CWA) and The Amalgamated Transport Union (ATU) and other allied organizations like the Democratic Socialists of America, The Sunrise Movement and Greenpeace USA. We delivered thousands of signatures to Sen. Warner calling on him to co-sponsor the bill, which the House passed and which President Biden is waiting to sign.
Two days later, Sen. Warner was feeling the pressure! After our weekend of actions, he went on the defensive when asked by the media about his stand on the most meaningful labor reform legislation in decades: “There’s a lot to like in the PRO Act,” he said, before listing his excuses for not yet supporting it.
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Following the rally outside Sen. Warner’s house, we hosted a May Day Pass the PRO Act Virtual Rally with Rep. Katie Porter [CA-45]. Rep. Jamaal Bowman [NY-16], and movement leaders to urge the Senate to pass the landmark labor reform legislation.
Rep. Katie Porter praised grassroots organizers for staying engaged in an “off-year” to hold government accountable on delivering pro-worker policies. “There is no off-year in the fight for American workers. Who benefits when we're told ‘now is not the time to push’? Corporate special interests, who drown out the voices of everyday people. Lobbyists don't have an off-year and neither can we."
Rep. Jamaal Bowman believes it should be “a human right” of every worker to organize, strategize, and mobilize in their workplace and to collectively bargain. He called the PRO Act "a bridge” to passing Medicare for All and a Green New Deal. “Passing the PRO Act is a must. We have the House on board. We have the White House on board. Now it's time to get the senators on board.”
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The Prince George's County Council unanimously approved a Resolution in Support of H.R. 1976 - the Medicare for All Act of 2021 on Tuesday. Sydney Jacobs, Chair Suchitra Balachandran, and John Spillane, from Our Revolution Prince George's, put an extraordinary amount of time and energy into this endeavor.
The COVID-19 crisis has hit Prince George's harder than any other Maryland county. This may have prodded the Council to become the first in the state to pass such a resolution. Proclamations, like this, are key to the fight to make healthcare a human right in this country. A plurality of House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's constituents live in Prince George's County and this resolution puts him on notice that they are demanding Medicare for All.
READ THE COUNCIL’S PRESS RELEASE HERE
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A coalition of progressive organizations within New Jersey’s first congressional district, led by Our Revolution Gloucester County have made Medicare for All an immediate priority and are calling on Representative Donald Norcross to cosponsor Pramila Jayapal’s Medicare for All bill in Congress.
“Well before the pandemic, our for-profit healthcare system was characterized by GoFundMe campaigns, medical bankruptcies, and deaths due to rationing medicine and avoiding care due to costs,” said Mario De Santis, lead organizer with Our Revolution Gloucester County. “COVID-19 has only exacerbated these injustices. Any reform that does not permanently guarantee healthcare as a human right is inadequate.”
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Last Saturday was a good day for Our Revolution-endorsed candidates across Texas. Eight candidates, including Our Revolution member Alison Maguire, and one ballot initiative to create ranked choice voting in Austin all won! Many other OR-backed candidates had strong showings and advanced to the runoff election that will be held June 5th.
Deborah Peoples, who Bernie called “a true progressive”, was the top vote-getter in the race for Mayor of Fort Worth. She will now face a Republican challenger in the runoff.
In Arlington, another Our Revolution member, Diana Saleh, was the top vote-getter and is headed to a runoff for City Council.
Finally, in San Antonio, 4 progressive OR-backed candidates placed first in their respective districts and will head to the runoff. This is a big opportunity to make a real impact in a single city council!
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Tuesday was a good day for Our Revolution in Southwest Ohio. Our Revolution-endorsed candidate Aftab Pureval was the top vote getter in the race to become the next mayor of Cincinnati advancing to the general election in November. The son of immigrants, Aftab was the first democrat elected as Hamilton County Clerk of Courts in over 100 years. He has made access to justice a priority by launching a Help Center to assist self-represented people with legal resources so that more people can utilize our court system.
Up the road, Shenise Turner-Sloss also came in first place in the race for a city-wide seat on the Dayton City Commission. Shenise is running on a platform that aims to reduce wealth and racial inequality, support criminal justice reform and make our environment safer and healthier for the next generation. She will now also continue on to the November election.
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Our Revolution Ohio kicked off its Neighbors for Nina Canvassing Operations last Saturday. Ohio activists knocked on hundreds of doors in Cleveland Heights and spoke to over 50 voters. Most said they are planning to vote for SNT!
In addition, yesterday May 7th marked the 100th week of OROH’s Honk and Wave! For the past 100 weeks, every Friday afternoon from 4 to 5, members have been hanging Our Revolution banners and waving from the pedestrian bridge overlooking route 315 in Columbus.
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This week, Our Revolution Michigan's endorsed candidate Kelly Stec won her City Council race by a landslide. As the candidate with the most votes, she is the new Mayor Pro-Tem of the City of Wyandotte! Our Revolution Michigan members enthusiastically supported and campaigned for Kelly as a bold progressive leader with a strong commitment to responsive governance.
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Congratulations to the Troublemakers Slate!
On May 1, the entire 11-person slate of Our Revolution members and supporters known as the Troublemakers Slate won the California Democratic Party’s Progressive Caucus officer elections in a blowout, in spite of party attempts to rig the rules. Our Revolution Long Beach member Fatima Iqbal-Zubair - a CDP delegate and a Troublemakers champion - joined our Monday Organize to Win Call to talk about their mission.
“Our state went for Bernie, and we are pushing the party to be responsive to what people want — to endorse single payer, get big money out of politics, limit corporate influence, and other progressive positions. We were almost suspended by the party for causing too much trouble, but in my mind that's a good thing."
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With Joe Biden in the White House and a slim Democratic majority in both the House and the Senate, Democrats are in the best position possible to accomplish everything they set out to. On the line right now is a $15 minimum wage, the PRO Act, and our first steps towards universal health care.
But right now, something is standing in our way.
Arizona Democrats, we urge you to contact the Arizona Democratic Party to urge them to declare and affirm its support for the immediate elimination of the Senate Filibuster.
Show your support for ending the filibuster.
SIGN ON HERE
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Are YOU a Movement Builder? Make a recurring monthly donation of $5 and become an official member of Our Revolution!
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By winning a multi-billion dollar judgment against Chevron for poisoning indigenous peoples and despoiling Amazonia, Attorney Steven Donziger placed himself in the crosshairs of the fossil fuel industry by winning a multi-billion dollar judgement against Chevron for polluting the Amazon. After over 600 days under house arrest, Steven is set to be tried by a private law firm with ties to Chevron on a bogus contempt of court charge.
Our Revolution and our affiliate - the New York Progressive Action Network - are rallying Monday morning at the Federal Courthouse in Manhattan on the first day of trial. We’re partnering with other progressive political organizations and environmental groups.
RSVP HERE
Join Our Illinois Revolution and special guests Rep. Marie Newman and Rep. Chuy Garcia for our monthly virtual meeting.
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Join Our Revolution Arizona and PDA Arizona for an Emergency Meeting as we work to mobilize to put pressure on Sen. Kyrsten Sinema to do the right thing and help us end the filibuster.
RSVP HERE
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The New York Health Act, a plan that would guarantee comprehensive healthcare to every New Yorker, has the votes to pass - but we need to mobilize NOW. Join Our Revolution and the New York Progressive Action Network (NYPAN) for an action packed call with the latest updates about the bill and ways we can ensure it gets signed into law!
RSVP HERE
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