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Lizbeth Estes

SWIMMail JULY NEWSLETTER

FOR OUR PROTECTION, EVENTS MAY NOT BE ON SOCIAL MEDIA!!!

Copy and share ONLY with your members to avoid Zoom intruders. 



SWIM AND PARTNERS UPDATES

See SWIM's website here for more news and events! 


SWIM BI-MONTHLY MEMBER MEETING - CANCELED!  We will not hold our regular Member Meeting in July, but have several alternative activities.  We’re excited to announce a special upcoming event that promises to be highly informative. For group leaders, Save The Date for August 28 from 7-8 pm ET for a joint SWIM/Grassroots Collaboration Project "Forum on Michigan".  We'll bring together out-of-state leaders with resources and volunteers to spare who want to help in Michigan and group leaders here who need resources and extra hands to reach voters in your districts.  This has been a very fruitful conversation in other battleground states (OH, PA, MT)!  Does your group need more help?  Make sure your group leaders are aware of this forum!Keep an eye out for more details coming your way soon!


WHAT'S UP WITH OUR MICHIGAN SENATORS?

Meet with Senator Peters Staff:  Join us on August 15 at 11:00 am to discuss what is going on in Washington with the members of Sen. Peters staff. These meetings are always informative and in the rapidly changing political climate, more important  than ever. You can register here.  Please send along any specific questions you have so we can send to the Senator ahead of  time. You can send questions to  info@statewideindivisiblemi.com.


Meet with Senator Stabenow: We have only TWO more sessions with Terry Campbell, Senator Stabenow's unparalleled Regional Manager, as the Senator is retiring at the end of the year.  Don't miss these always-enlightening discussions.  The next-to-last meeting is September 5 at 11amRegister here!  Earlier this month, Terry discussed the impasses due to Congressional obstruction, highlighting that the all-encompassing Farm Bill is stuck, with the best scenario being another one-year extension and the worst case scenario is that 41 million Americans lose their SNAP food benefits.  Just another reason to make sure we're ALL IN to Get Out The Vote and retake the House! Check out information on successful programs from the Senator's office on our website here.



CALLS TO ACTION 


JOIN AN ANTI-PROJECT 2025 RALLY

Distill Social is organizing rallies across the state to build awareness of Project 2025. Find one in your area and register here.

During a recent webinar with Heather Cox Richardson, we learned that the majority of voters (70% or more!) are unaware of the content of Project 2025. It is important that all of us following this devastating document inform our friends, neighbors and relatives. Thanks to our resident spreadsheet queen (the amazing Terri McCormick) we have a resource for you so you can access multiple styles of analyses with this information to share with voters. You can find it here.


JOIN MICHIGAN WOMEN FOR BIDEN HARRIS 2024 FACEBOOK PAGE

Join Michigan Women for Biden Harris 2024 Facebook page to get the latest news and resources on the Biden Harris events happening in Michigan and other important events. You'll need to answer some questions to join this private page. Tell them SWIM sent you.


MICHIGAN MEGAPHONE-PROGRESS MICHIGAN

June 24th marked the second anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, overturning the critical precedent of Roe v. Wade. This year, Michigan Megaphone teamed up with Planned Parenthood in Lansing for a Healing in Action Summit to fight for comprehensive reproductive health care, expanded access to abortion, sex education, gender-affirming name change policies, paid family leave and Black maternal health care as part of a broader movement for social justice.Wait! There's more! Click this link for their Google folder that is full of pre-made graphics for you to use.

If you would like to learn more about digital advocacy, reproductive freedom, and social justice,  follow the Michigan Megaphone campaign on social media or click here to get involved!


INDIVISIBLE NATIONAL'S Neighbor2Neighbor Canvassing Tool

Neighbor2Neighbor might just be the most impactful and easiest way to make a difference this election – by talking to your own neighbors.

As a Neighbor2Neighbor volunteer, instead of being given a long list of strangers, you’ll get a short list of your own neighbors, along with a simple script, some best practices, and a printable handout. There’s no app to download and you can have these conversations on your own time. When you’re done, just sign up to receive the next 10 closest doors! Read more about the program here. An informative video can be accessed here.Join thousands of Indivisibles across the country. It’s going to take neighbors talking to neighbors to fight back against MAGA extremism and secure our rights.Great Scott (Ickes) to the rescue: Bring him your concerns or ideas you need help with!

Scott Ickes with Indivisible National is the definition of a great Regional Organizer who works hard on our behalf.  He has prepared everything from an upcoming Michigan Leaders meeting with Ezra Levin, Indivisible Co-Founder on June 25th from 7-8 (register here) to information on weekends of action and the tool kits to support these activities. You can access the full list of resources here.

Reach out at scott@indivisible.org, with any questions you may have.



MICHIGAN NEEDS MORE DEMOCRACY MVPS!

Become an Election Inspector:

Share this resource with your networks to make sure this election has enough poll workers to shut down claims of fraud!  Working an election is the best way to understand how secure our process really is.  Even Rs can learn things by doing this!


Become a Poll Challenger:  Poll challengers must be credentialed by a certified organization.  This can be a political party group, such as the Democratic or Republican Party or another group such as Promote the Vote. Promote the Vote is recruiting nonpartisan poll challengers for the August 6 Primary Election. Challengers monitor the election process at polling places, early voting sites, and absentee counting boards statewide. Challengers have the right to challenge the actions of poll workers if the challenger believes that the poll worker is not following the law. Challengers must be registered to vote in Michigan and will be credentialed by Promote the Vote after receiving training. Please sign up for a shift and to get training here! If you have any questions, please contact bailey@promotethevotemi.com.


Become a Board of Canvassers Observer:  At 7:00 pm on July 22, we are offering a Board of Canvassers (BOC) observer zoom training with Attorney Mark Brewer. For the past several years, we have been using the recording of the 2022 training, but we all need to be aware of the 2024 updates. You can register here.


RED WINE AND BLUE QUICK REFERENCE FOR UPCOMING ELECTIONS

Voting season is in full swing!

So much is on the ballot this year, from reproductive rights to freedom to read to freedom to be safe from violence. It’s so important that you make your voice heard, so we at Red Wine & Blue - Michigan wanted to make sure that you have all of the information you need to make sure your vote is counted.

 

Here’s a quick and easy graphic that you can pin to your desktop – and forward to friends and family – with the important dates coming up:

This is a statewide email announcing the beginning of "voting season" in Michigan! We have many new options to make voting easier in Michigan - both for the Primary Election on August 6 and the General Election on November 5. We've included a graphic that summarizes the important dates and where to get more information. 


Your next step is to make your voting plan for the August 6 primary!

Will you be voting with a mail-in ballot? Make sure to request your ballot right away. Will you be voting in-person? Find your local clerk’s website so you can see where to vote.

 

In the upcoming weeks, we’ll give you lots of ways to share information with your circle and help us turn out the vote, but for right now, make sure you have your plan in place!

Let’s go, Michigan!


NEED HELP LEARNING ABOUT CANDIDATES?

It is often difficult to know who to vote for, especially in the down ballot races.  Here are some of the voter guides available. 


GRASSROOTS COLLABORATION PROJECT: Four Initiatives in Four Months

Our partners at GCP believe we're Better Together, and have identified four initiatives over four months - that will each only take a few minutes of your time - to help us all reach the finish line on November 5 together and successfully!  These initiatives fill holes that activists across the nation have identified in the efforts of the Dem party. 

In June, they launched “Man Up”, to recruit more male grassroots volunteers.  July is focused on making the case for combining registration and canvassing.  Among other innovations, a new app allows canvassers to combine voter registration and canvassing. Find more details here.



POSTCARD WRITERS UNITE!


SWIM AND FIELD TEAM 6 PROTECT THE HOUSE PROJECT

SWIM and Field Team 6 are partnering to help likely Michigan Dem or left-leaning folks get registered to vote.  We are holding postcarding events targeting Michigan House Districts where our incumbent Democratic Representatives won by less than 2000 votes.  Our outreach will increase voter registration with these low-propensity voters - we need this demographic to win in November!


The House Districts targeted are 27, 31, 38, 44, 58, 61, 103 and 109.  For extra credit we are also trying to flip Republican-held House Districts and you can write to those folks in districts 28, 29, 54, 55 and 57.   If you're in one of those district, or want to help out in those districts, sign up for one of our Postcard Parties on Sunday nights from 6 - 7 pm.  Here's a special link for SWIM members to register.


POSTCARDS TO SWING STATES WITH MICHIGAN WOMEN FOR BIDEN-HARRIS 2024

Michigan Women for Biden Harris is organizing postcard writing to re-elect Biden-Harris 2024 through Postcards to Swing States.  Don't miss out! Sign up NOW so we can let you know about your area's events, volunteer opportunities and more - including postcarding underway now! Sign up here.


AND MORE POSTCARD ORGANIZATION OPPORTUNITIES

When talking with member groups, it was evident that postcarding is something all groups enjoy. Here is a list of other organizations providing postcard opportunities. There are some great postcards and materials available for order on line - other lists to check out are here and here


VOTE FORWARD

We all know how important it is to get "souls to the polls"! Vote Forward's data shows that letters can boost voter turnout by as much as 3.4% This is BIG! Want to become a writer? Sign up with Vote Forward's well-established campaign here.



OTHER WAYS TO TAKE ACTION


INDIVISIBLE'S NEW MEMBER PIPELINE

If you missed this in previous newsletters and emails, be sure to sign your group up for National's New Member Pipeline - easiest sign-up ever. National will forward contact info for folks in your zip code who sign up with them. Do it today!



RESOURCES TO AMPLIFY YOUR MESSAGING

PARTNER TOOL KITS


PROJECT 2025 IS THE REPUBLICAN MANIFESTO TO DESTROY DEMOCRACY!  SPREAD THE WORD!

Check out these exceptional resources, from deep dives to the 3 minute YouTube video to TikTok creators.  You'll find all the info you need to teach your voters how important it is to defeat the orange one in November and maintain global security!  The game is on (and has been 45+ years in the making), learn the rules!


IS YOUR GROUP LOOKING TO FORMALLY RECOMMEND CANDIDATES?

Indivisible Huron Valley has given a nod to "Blue Ribbon Candidates" for years.  Avoiding a formal endorsement, this is a path for progressives to promote the best local candidates for their community.  Check out their format here - they share because they care, so feel free to use and/or adapt!


ADD YOUR GROUP TO THE GRASSROOTS COLLABORATION PROJECT DIRECTORY

We've all been at that exhaustion point in the last 6 years; don't let it get to you this year - there's a lot to do!  But let's work smarter, not harder.  Collaboration is the key to getting many efforts off the ground and building effectiveness in what we do.  Networking helps us achieve that.  Sign on to the Grassroots Directory here and find other activists willing to help your project!


ALSO FROM THE GRASSROOTS COLLABORATION PROJECT: A NEW FUNDING OPPORTUNITY!

We are all familiar (and grateful!) for Indivisible National's GROW Grants!  Here's a new opportunity from Clean and Prosperous America for up to $2,500 to assist your grassroots efforts in Michigan for voter engagement efforts and state-level presidential and senatorial campaigns, as well as CD-7, CD-8, and CD-10 (looking at you, Lansing, Midland, and Macomb)!  Application looks easy, check it out!


NOT SURE HOW TO PHRASE MESSAGING OUR VALUES?

Check out this Guide to Messaging Our Freedoms from We Make The Future and ASO Communications (Anat Shenkar-Osorio).  They provide sample messages for a wide range of issues from our freedom to vote to our freedom to be our true selves.


And here is a link to Anat's latest toolkit: From the Indictments to the Courts: Freedom Over Fascism Toolkit!



USING THE POWER OF SOCIAL MEDIA TO AMPLIFY GOOD NEWS 

Use these terrific resources to pick up memes to spiff up your messages, use great .gifs in your newsletters and social media posts, and gather talking points for your discussions:  

  • Into Action Labs allows you to download and add your own message(s). 

  • MI Right to Read offers a toolkit of graphics.  

  • Demcast Michigan has a wealth of rich, sharable content.  

  • Field Team 6 takes the fear out of posting on social media with this fun video explaining simple step-by-step simple instructions to social storming - at whatever level you want to dive into!  FT6 also has a Field Team 6 Current Storm page with prepared posts that can be one-click shared across many platforms.

  • Indivisible's Trainings-to-Go include materials such as slides, handouts, or discussion questions, as well as facilitation notes/directions for the person leading the space. Start with a pilot batch of 3 Trainings-to-Go: Recruitment 101Indivisible 101, and Tools for Building Inclusive Groups - and more are coming! These are located in the Support Hub along with a lot more!  Questions or suggestions can be sent to training@indivisible.org.




STAY CURRENT ON SWIM ACTIVITIES AND PARTNERS' EVENTS

Here are some ways to share them with your network:


Bookmark the Websitewww.statewideindivisiblemi.com. New events from SWIM and our partners are posted regularly! The website is designed to be a central repository of the resources and network partners that SWIM  has amassed since 2016.  


Members: Send us your announcements, events, photos or writings by using the "Comment" link at the top of the homepage or click here! We need to share our successes.



Follow us on Facebook:  SWIM private group is open to all interested members. Simply answer a few simple questions on the page and you are in! This is a great way to keep current on events and issues in between newsletters. This is the sole Facebook page for SWIM so join the group today-our past public page has been archived.



Follow SWIM on X (Twitter) @SWIMIndivisible and Instagram at Statewide indivisible Michigan: We are always looking for members with experience on alternative social media platforms, so if you are familiar with Threads, Mastodon, WhatsApp, TikTok, Tribel, Post, etc. please contact our SWIM social media maven Vickie Gutowski at info@statewideindivisiblemi.com



STAY IN CONTACT

Contact Michigan House of Representativeshttps://www.house.mi.gov/AllRepresentatives

Contact Michigan State Senate: https://senate.michigan.gov/FindYOurSenator/

Contact the Governor:

Phone: 517-335-7858

Mail: PO Box 30013; Lansing, MI 48909

Contact the Attorney General

Phone: 517-335-7622

Mail: 525 W. Ottawa St. PO Box 30212; Lansing, MI 48909

Contact Members of Congress:

Phone: 202-224-3121

Using Fax Zero (a free faxing service):

Contact White House or Other Federal Agencies: usa.gov/federal-agencies




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