Tag: Indivisible Ventura

Fri 7/26: Sign up for this lunch hour “History of Criminalization” webinar series. Starts today! July 26- Oct. 25

We invite you to join the the History of Criminalization Webinar Series (see flyer attached below) co-presented by the ICE out of CA Coalition and Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB)! We’ll kick off the series with Part 1 on Friday, July 26th from 12pm-1:30pm which will cover the history of police, policing, and caging in the United States. The webinar features Amber-Rose with CURB and Mohamed with Critical Resistance.

History-of-Criminalization.png

 

 

 

Thurs 7/25: Sen. Rand wants to “offset the costs” of the 9/11 responders bill. Sure. But first, rescind the 2017 TaxScam’s lovely “departing” gift to the uber-wealthy.

Action: YAY for the “DEATH TAX”, our most progressive tax! Tell your legislators to support bills that raise estate taxes to the 2009 level or higher. 

Two GOP attacks on the poor and sick this week… Senator Rand Paul stated that “Any new spending (est. $10.2 billion for the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund bill) should be offset by cutting spending that’s less valuable”…like Medicaid. Meanwhile, millionaire Agriculture Sec. Sonny Perdue is proposing eligibility rules that would remove 3 million people barely above poverty level from the food stamp program, with an average annual “savings” of $2.5 billion. You can discuss that with him here.

It’s been such an exciting race to the bottom, we may have missed just how much money has been removed from our coffers by the deficit-inducing 2017 TaxScam, including the bloating of the estate tax exemption from $5.5 million to $11 million ($22 million per couple). Returning to the pre-2017 rate would pay off Rand and Perdue’s demands, with a lot left over – see our easy “explainer” below. We need to let our legislators know that restoring a rational estate tax isn’t just some arcane issue, but a critically important step towards safeguarding democracy. That there are at least SIX GOP bills (listed below) to kill what’s left of it is a great tip-off as to how important this is to people like our president, who stated…

“The point is that you can’t be too greedy.”

Here are some bills we need our legislators to support NOW!

  •  H.R.3922/S.2231 – the “American Opportunity Accounts Act,” which would use the increased revenues to mitigate our wealth gap by creating savings accounts for every American child
  •  S.1950 – “Strengthen Social Security by Taxing Dynastic Wealth Act“, which concentrates on strengthening Social Security and expanding benefits.
  • S.309  – “For the 99.8%” is a multi-tiered expansion that taxes the rich according to their degree of wealth. Bernie Sanders’ team estimates that it would raise around $2.2 trillion from 588 billionaires within 10 years.
  • Not posted yet – Senator Kamala Harris proposes to return the estate tax rate to $5.5 million, close tax loopholes, and give the new funds directly to teachers, who, unlike heirs to multi-million dollar fortunes, may be working second jobs.

Minimal script for reps: I’m calling from [zip code] and I want Rep. [___] to cosponsor ALL bills that raise the estate tax to pre-2017 TaxScam level, and preferably to the 2009 level, including  H.R.3922– “American Opportunity Accounts Act“.

Rep-check for H.R. 3922 here.  Reps. Brownley and Carbajal are not yet cosponsors.

Minimal script for senators: I’m calling from [zip code] and I want Sen. [___] to cosponsor ALL bills that raise the estate tax to pre- 2017 TaxScam level, and preferably to the 2009 level, including: S.2231 – “American Opportunity Accounts Act“, S.1950 – “Strengthen Social Security by Taxing Dynastic Wealth Act“, and  S.309 – “For the 99.8%.” Continue reading “Thurs 7/25: Sen. Rand wants to “offset the costs” of the 9/11 responders bill. Sure. But first, rescind the 2017 TaxScam’s lovely “departing” gift to the uber-wealthy.” →

Thurs 7/25: Volunteer training for citizenship fairs – 6:00 pm TONIGHT!!!

Action! – Come get trained to help make people citizens! It’s fun!

Always wanted to voluteer at local citizenship fairs, including Swap Meet Justice, but couldn’t make our regular 8:30 am Sunday training class at Oxnard Swap Meet?

Now, there’s an option! Come tonight!

Volunteer Training:

  • Teens welcome!
  • We need biligual speakers, but “English-only” welcome and necessary too.
  • Once you’re trained, you are welcome at all our citizenship fairs!
  • You’ll get to practice what you learn almost immediately, as Ventura County has TWO citizenship fairs THIS WEEKEND! Information here!

Where/When/How to I access all this fun?

Tues 7/23: Join Food & Water Watch at the VC Government Center at 1:30 TODAY – No new oil wells in Oxnard!

Action – Join Food & Water Watch to fight for environmental justice today

Facebook page here.

(Food & Water Watch) “An oil company wants to drill new polluting oil wells in the Cabrillo Oilfield right next to Oxnard residents’ homes and within 2 miles of 8 schools!

Send a message to your Ventura County Supervisor urging them to deny these new oil wells: https://fwwat.ch/stop-renpet

This is a frontline community that has already been a sacrifice zone subject to heavy pollution for decades. Enough is enough! We need Ventura County Supervisors to deny these new oil wells!

Renaissance Petroleum’s proposal would add four new oil wells, an oil and gas processing facility, and a flare to burn off gas produced at the project. The production facility is being built to separate oil, water and gas for a minimum of 20 permitted oil wells, causing more air pollution and truck traffic in the area.

According to the State of California residents in this area are in the top 100 percentile for pesticide pollution, 97 percentile for impaired water and 91 percentile for pollution burden percentile.

We must fight back with all the people power we’ve got! Help demand environmental justice for Oxnard communities before the vote by sending a message here: https://fwwat.ch/stop-renpet or calling your County Supervisor! And then attend the hearing on July 23rd at 1:30PM”

Steve Bennett (805) 654-2703
Linda Parks (805) 214-2510
Kelly Long (805) 654-2276
Bob Huber (805) 955-2300
John Zaragoza (805) 654-2613

Send a message to them easily here: https://fwwat.ch/stop-renpet

Mon 7/22: Tell our county supervisors to just say “NO” to Operation Stonegarden’s bait.

Action – Tell your supervisor to turn down Consent Agenda Item #39 – “Operation Stonegarden” at tomorrow’s board meeting. (7/23)

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is dangling a $390,000 Operation Stonegarden grant in front of our sheriff’s department to tempt our local law enforcement personnel into performing federal immigration enforcement operations, possibly even contravening CA’s own laws, and they’re trying to sneak it through on the “Consent Agenda”. (Tomorrow’s agenda here.)

Pima Co. – 2018: The Board of Supervisors in Pima, AZ, turned down a new contract with Operation Stonegarden, along with a new $1.4 million incentive in Sept. of 2018. (tucson.com) “Pima County Sheriff Mark Napier questions why the Board of Supervisors decided to drop Stonegarden funding after 12 years and a $16 million seat at the Stonegarden table. The question he should be asking is why he and his predecessors failed to use that seat to address the simmering public resentment and outrage that has grown out of Stonegarden enforcement priorities, priorities that have more to do with padding local wallets and pensions than ensuring public safety in underserved areas of Pima County.” Continue reading “Mon 7/22: Tell our county supervisors to just say “NO” to Operation Stonegarden’s bait.” →

Mon. 7/22: Mark your calendars – You can’t phone this in. On July 29th – come out and show your support for SV Councilwoman Ruth Luevanos

On Mon. July 29th – Stand Indivisible with Simi Valley City Councilwoman Ruth Luevanos! 

(alert from Indivisible Conejo)” Simi Valley City Councilwoman Ruth Luevanos  – shown here (on the right) at last week’s Lights for Liberty protest — is under vicious attack from Trump Trolls in Simi after she posted an “explainer” video about immigration policy to her Facebook page last week.

Ruth is the first Latina to serve on the SV Council, an award-winning educator who mentors other teachers, and a volunteer for both the Girl and Boy Scouts as well as for at-risk youth. She is a terrific person and colleague in our activism, and the rare progressive to hold elective office in Simi Valley (which alone is reason enough to go to the barricades on her behalf!). But these extremists are demanding a recall election (or her arrest) and have even threatened her life … all based on pure “send her back” racism and their misunderstanding of the basic facts Ruth noted in her video.”

What does “law and order” really mean?: “Even as demographics in Simi have shifted, “(Luevanos) is going to find out pretty quickly that they haven’t changed that much. It’s still a law-and-order city,” fellow Council member Mike Judge said, representing those in a city who don’t want to follow SB 54, an actual California law. “Law-and-order” fans in Simi apparently also feel free to threaten their elected officials lives. (FYI: In CA, threats of death or physical harm that cause “sustained fear” can be prosecuted under Penal Code 422 PC, even if the threatener says they were just “letting off steam”.)

Continue reading “Mon. 7/22: Mark your calendars – You can’t phone this in. On July 29th – come out and show your support for SV Councilwoman Ruth Luevanos” →

Mark your calendars! Next weekend, 7/27-28, there are going to be TWO (2) citizenship fairs! Volunteer to help your neighbors become our newest Americans

Detail from antique engraved Victorian illustration of Statue of Liberty at night, 1878.

Someday, someone you’ve helped will be in a video like this…

…which they will proudly show their kids and grandkids and retell the story of how they became an American. As completely 100% an American as anybody else.

Ronald Reagan, in his surprising last speech as president, (watch it here) reminded his listeners that immigration is “the great life force of each generation of new Americans…”  (Quick timeline of the history of immigration here.)

Get trained to help!

We love to have bilingual people but English-only volunteers are also most welcome. Volunteers do not need to be citizens, nor adults. Interested teens make great volunteers! Continue reading “Mark your calendars! Next weekend, 7/27-28, there are going to be TWO (2) citizenship fairs! Volunteer to help your neighbors become our newest Americans” →

Fri 7/19: Thanks to everyone who wrote a comment in defense of wolves! You helped set a record.

Video from the Center for Biological Diversity. Their members wrote over 650,000 comments.

1.8 million people spoke up for wolves!

(From the Animal Welfare Institute) “Nearly 2 million Americans, joined by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and a broad coalition of animal welfare and environmental organizations, have registered their opposition to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) proposal to gut Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections for gray wolves across the contiguous United States.

The USFWS received more than 1.8 million public comments opposing the wolf delisting plan by its deadline yesterday. The total number of comments ranks among the highest ever submitted on a federal decision involving an endangered species. In addition, 86 members of Congress, 100 scientists, 230 businesses, and 367 veterinary professionals all submitted letters rebuking the administration’s plan to cede management of the species to state agencies.

Upon reviewing the submitted comments, the USFWS will prepare and publish a final rule in the Federal Register.”

This isn’t over yet…

Continue reading “Fri 7/19: Thanks to everyone who wrote a comment in defense of wolves! You helped set a record.” →

Thurs 7/18: TODAY – 3rd Thursday is going to be busy – Pizza, Camaraderie, & Postcards.

Action  – Meet at Santino’s for pizza, camaraderie, and social justice – every Third Thursday starting at 11:30 am

Where: Santino’s Pizza. It’s at 4231 Telegraph Rd., Ventura, 93003

When: Thursday, JULY 18th, 11:30am – 1:30pm.

RSVP: Nope. Just come. Invite your friends.

What to bring: We provide the pizza, postcards, stationary and stamps! If you prefer, you may bring your own stationary. Donations of stamps are always gratefully accepted.

Questions? Email indivisibleventura@gmail.org

We eat, we write, we talk, we plot, we share. Come and join in the fun!

Today’s agenda: Postcards to voters in Florida and North Carolina who’ve fallen off the rolls!

Wed. 7/17: Stop socialism for the rich! H.R. 582 – “Raise the Wage Act” is up for a vote tomorrow!

Action #1 – Call and thank your member if they’re one of the 205 current cosponsors of this bill HR. 582/S.150 “Raise the Wage Act”.

“There is no excuse for any company in America to pay their workers so little that they need food stamps, and Medicaid and rent assistance. This is bulls***.” “That’s not capitalism. That’s socialism for the rich.” – Nick Hanauer

“After nearly 10 years with no increase in the federal minimum wage, minimum-wage workers have suffered a 17 percent pay cut due to inflation,” said House Labor Chairman Bobby Scott, D-Va., who had introduced the Raise the Wage Act. “The result is that there is no place in America where a full-time worker who is paid the current federal minimum wage can afford a modest two-bedroom apartment.”

Minimum script: I’m calling from [zip code] and I want to thank Rep./Sen. [____] for their support of {Rep. – H.R.582/Sen. – S.150} – Raise the Wage Act. Continue reading “Wed. 7/17: Stop socialism for the rich! H.R. 582 – “Raise the Wage Act” is up for a vote tomorrow!” →