alliance4action Newsletter
November, 2021
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Big change coming--a4a version 2.0 is on the way!
alliance4action will be transitioning into a communications hub. Here are the details:
As you may remember from our newsletter and last meeting, alliance4action has been seeking people to become involved in leadership for the organization. Regrettably we have had no takers. This is understandable as life for most has become increasingly busy as organizations have resumed a more normal schedule.
Our a4a leadership team met and unanimously made the incredibly hard decision to end a4a as a Political Action Committee (PAC) by December 31, 2021. This means there will be no meetings, dues, monies to candidates, and no leadership team.
History has shown us that groups/organizations arise at a particular time to meet a particular need, serve their purpose, and run their course completing their task. A4a arose following the election of Donald Trump in 2016 with an intent to resist him, his cruel policies, and his grifter corruption by focusing on electing progressive candidates and promoting progressive policies.
We have been successful as we have had an influence in Green Valley, helping voters understand the issues and know the candidates. We are grateful to our action teams and their hard work to help us focus our understanding and give us ways to advocate for better polices in the areas of health care, immigration, climate change, education, and racial justice. We have also had a real visible GV presence with our rallies on the corner. Our last one, at the beginning of October, demonstrating for Our Bodies, Our Choice drew a great crowd with all of us enjoying a sense of community and solidarity.
And now for the good news! Although a4a will cease as a PAC, a4a will retain our communication functions to announce events and issue calls for action (Act Now)! Oversight for communications will be the responsibility of an advisory committee of 3-5 people, who will determine criteria for publicizing events and calling for actions through a4a.
A4a as a PAC has had a good run and good successes. Thank you to each and every one of you for making that happen! We value the friendships that have grown out of a4a!
As I am sure you are aware, the fight for our democracy continues. Please consider joining and supporting organizations that a4a has frequently partnered with and that share the same values and goals as a4a. These organizations include GV Democrats (https://greenvalleydemocrats.org), QC Democrats (www.qcdemocrats.org), and the American Association of University Women (AAUW, https://greenvalley-az.aauw.net) for those of you interested in educational issues and policies.
I know that each of these organizations are also looking for involved, committed folks to help in the fight. It is time to work at consolidating our energies and resources to provide a focused approach as we go into 2022. Bottom line is we must elect progressives up and down the ballot in AZ! And as I have said before, we are stronger together, so again, please consider joining these groups, attending their programs, working on their committees, and being an active voice for our democracy! And a4a will continue to announce the events and action items needed by these organizations so you can stay informed and involved!
I suspect some of you might be wondering about the monies that a4a has in its treasury. We will be sending out a poll to our members to determine which are the most popular candidates/organizations to give that money to. Once we have the poll back with your thoughts, we will then, per our by-laws, do a yes/no vote by our membership. The monies will then be distributed.
Again, this has not been an easy decision, but it is time. Thank you all for being part of a4 and we look forward to working together in other venues.
Arlynne Ostlund, Chair
alliance4action
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Our "Almost" Last Hurrah
Happy Hour
Join us on Sunday, November 7, 4:00 p.m.
for a no-host Happy Hour
at Grill on the Green
5800 S Camino Del Sol, Green Valley
Say goodbye to the old alliance4action and welcome the new a4a version 2.0!
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a4a Action Groups
Immigration
The a4a Immigration Action Group will be reviewing our options and exploring possibilities for next steps. If you are already on our listserv we will continue to contact you with information regarding our next steps. If you are interested in being added to our contact list please send us your name and email address and we will add you to our contact list.
Contact Judy at: [email protected]
Racial Justice
The a4a Racial Justice Group was re-instituted in early 2021 but did not find the momentum necessary to move forward with it's broad agenda. The members discussed multiple organizations working to address systemic racism and achieve racial justice. The partial list below may spark further interest for a4a general membership to pursue their interest in racial justice:
In addition, Sydney Chayes is available to organize a screening of The Long Shadow documentary for any groups you might belong to. Contact Sydney at: [email protected].
"The Long Shadow film follows former CNN Senior Producer, TED contributor, and Emmy-Award winning Director Frances Causey as she traces her family’s legacy of white privilege, placing it in the context of the history of anti-black racism in the United States that began with slavery and continues to impact our society today."
https://thelongshadowfilm.com
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