We are in a historic emergency of democracy, as Republicans in all too many states move to disenfranchise voters in order to consolidate racist, oligarchical power. The 2020 election was far too close, even after we gave it all we had. If Democrats in Congress, President Biden, and Vice President Harris don’t manage to enact and enforce strong voter protections to thwart redoubled Republican oppression, we could well lose the country entirely to despotism (and the planet to runaway warming). The situation really is that dire, and we need to shout it out and to get our political leadership to stop business as usual. And it has to happen now, in time to make the 2022 election fair and legitimate.
That means we all need to get out of our own business as usual too! Conservatives’ power is in fear and greed; ours is in togetherness and love. Please join one of the dozens of Deadline for Democracy actions across the country, coordinated by Indivisible and others. (I’m not in any way affiliated with Daily Kos staff, but it is one of the national partners.) If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, come to our outdoor rally after work tomorrow in downtown Oakland and make yourself heard:
Wednesday, July 7th, 2021, 6:00-7:00 PM PT
Oscar Grant/Frank H. Ogawa Plaza
200 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, CA 94612
Hosts: Indivisible East Bay, Indivisible San Francisco
Partners: East Bay Activist Alliance, Bay Rising, Indivisible Sonoma County, Indivisible Livermore, Rise Up To Action SF, Sister District Marin, Swing Left Marin, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club, Equal Justice Society, Contra Costa MoveOn, Indivisible ReSisters Walnut Creek
Speakers:
- Elisha Crader, northern California organizer from the Working Families Party
- Bruce Hartford, field organizer for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Alabama and Mississippi, webspinner for the Civil Rights Movement Archive
- Queen Jackson, grassroots leader with Community Change Action and MoveOn.org
- Rebecca Kaplan, Oakland City Council Member-at-Large and Vice Mayor
- Janani Ramachandran, social justice lawyer, artist/activist, running for California State Assembly in District 18
- Aisha Wahab, Mayor Pro Tempore & City Council Member of Hayward
Plus your participation as well as movement music from Alissa Friedman, who writes songs to inspire activism for a just and sustainable world
The bare necessities to reclaim democracy and justice for all include ending the filibuster, passing national voting protections (the For the People Act, and more), expanding the Supreme Court, and conducting thorough congressional investigations and federal prosecutions of the Trump regime and of coup attempt plotters. We can give our political leadership from California—Speaker Pelosi, Senators Feinstein and Padilla, and the rest—a healthy shove into embracing the confrontations with Republicans that we need them to take and into wielding our hard-won majorities on the public’s behalf, for justice and democracy for all.
Event details:
- Please wear a mask if you are not vaccinated. Masks for all others are welcome though not mandatory at this outdoor event.
- Transportation:
- Accessibility:
- Accessible Drop Off Location: the roundabout where San Pablo Ave. meets the plaza, between the City Office Building and the Rotunda Building.
- Small seated section available.