We’re changing the formatting of our weekly actions. Let us know what you think!
This is looking like quite a week. On top of the ongoing threats to DACA and DREAMers, ACA repeal — in the form of the Graham-Cassidy bill — once again threatens the lives of millions of Americans. Oh, and the president is tweeting crazy shit again.
Before we get started with upcoming actions, read how your voices made a difference last week. By popular demand, we’re bringing back this regular feature!
Calls to make this week
Call #1: Zombiecare 3.0
Trump and the Senate Republicans have been put on a tight deadline if they have any hope of passing TrumpCare. They’re making one last push on TrumpCare—a bill known as “Graham-Cassidy”—and it should be taken seriously to make sure we defeat TrumpCare for good.
Sample Script for Senators:
I want Senator [Cruz/Cornyn] to oppose Graham-Cassidy. The bill is just like other TrumpCare bills in that it destroys Medicaid by turning it into a capped system. This hurts children with disabilities, seniors, and even victims of natural disasters like Harvey and Irma. It also takes away funding to help people afford health insurance through the marketplace, and it punishes states that did the right thing for their residents by expanding Medicaid.
Call #2: DACA
There are several bills under consideration (the Washington Post has a good comparison), but the one that we and our friends in United We Dream and other advocacy groups support is the DREAM Act. The DREAM Act has bipartisan support and does the most to protect DREAMers. Continue calling your Senators and House representatives and insist on its passage.
Special Call to Action for constituents of Rep. Michael McCaul (TX-10) and Rep. John Carter (TX-31): McCaul and Carter are part of an informal working group in the House, focusing on DREAMers. It’s especially urgent to call these two reps!
Sample Script for Senators and House Representatives:
There are 138,440 DACA recipients in Texas alone, and each year they contribute $313,095,000 in State and local taxes. Donald Trump has betrayed our values and unraveled our promise to these young immigrants who grew up calling the United States home. Now it’s up to you to stand up to Trump’s hateful decision and secure the futures of DACA recipients with a legislative fix: The DREAM Act (S.1615 / H.R.3440).
Visit standup.indivisibleguide.com for more information on how to support immigrants in our communities.
Call #3: CHIP
Children’s Health Insurance Plan funding expires on Sept. 30, and the health insurance of more than 9 million CHIP kids is in jeopardy without immediate Congressional action. The Senate has made a bipartisan agreement to extend funding, and the House needs to get on board. This is a call your representative’s office will be happy to take! CHIP has always had broad bipartisan support.
Sample Script for Senators and House Representatives:
- Thank you for voting in 2015 to reauthorize CHIP funding (all area reps voted for CHIP in 2015)
- Please take action now to authorize a five-year funding extension for CHIP
- CHIP helps keep 400,000 Texas kids healthy, and is very important for Texas now in the aftermath of Harvey
Read more about the Texas CHIP program and the impact of CHIP funding on the state budget
Call #4: Demand Texas Secretary of State Pablos Enforce High School Voter Registration Requirements
Under the Texas election code, high school principals are required to provide at least two opportunities for eligible students to register to vote every year. However, data from the 2016 election shows that too few high schools are providing their students with the opportunity to participate in the democratic process.
On September 5, 2017, our partners at the Texas Civil Rights Project delivered a letter to Texas Secretary of State Rolando Pablos demanding that he not only comply with the state law, but that he do so in a way that takes substantive steps to actually empower Texas high schools to get their students registered.
Read the full call-to-action on the TXLEGE Indivisible Website
Upcoming Events
Monday, Sept. 18
- 7:15 p.m.TX-25 East Weekly Meeting. Weekly meeting in Windsor Park, at Memorial United Methodist Church, 6100 Berkman Dr.
Tuesday, Sept. 19
- 6 p.m.: Civics 101: How To Get Involved. Presented in partnership with KUT Austin, YNPN Austin, AIA Austin Emerging Professionals, Young Invincibles, GivingCity, and in.gredients. 2610 Manor Rd.
Thursday, Sept. 21
- 1:30 p.m. Ted Cruz Zombie Trumpcare 3.0 Rally, 300 E. 8th St.
- 8 p.m.: Texas Solidarity Singalong. In solidarity with singers across the nation, we sing songs of resistance in the Texas Capitol rotunda every Thursday evening.
Friday, Sept. 23
- 8 a.m. John Cornyn speaking on UT campus. Show up to protest at the corner of MLK and Lavaca.
Sunday, Sept. 24
- 8:30 a.m. Tell Cruz and Cornyn NO to ZombieCare, TrumpCare! (Corner of 24th and Guadalupe); Action Network link for people not on Facebook
- 2 p.m.: Mayor’s Task Force on Institutional Racism & Systemic Inequities. Huston-Tillotson University, 900 Chicon St.
Thursday, Sept. 28
- 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (NOTE: there was a mistake in the weekly email; this ends by 12:30, not 2 p.m.): Indivisible Austin Women’s Coffee Meetup, NeWorlDeli, 4101 Guadalupe. This is intended as a safe space to get to know each other, network, discuss our activism activities, check in about how we’re holding up, and see if we can offer help, resources, and connections for our various resistance activities
Tuesday, Oct. 3
- Various times: Deputy Voter Registrar Training. Travis County Tax Office, 5501 Airport Blvd. For further information or to schedule a group training, call (512) 854-9473.