V-eekly Update

Week One: How This Re-Election Campaign Is Different

First of all, thank you to everyone who helped put together our launch event this weekend and to everyone who attended- deep gratitude for taking time out of your Saturday to join us!

I can feel the energy of this campaign, and it is wildly different than 2022.

That is in large part because:

1. Supervisors in three counties (Johnson, Blackhawk, and Story) were districted by the state legislature. Here is an article explaining the change in this law.
   

2. The Trump Administration's increasing authoritarian tactics have destabilized our democracy in dangerous ways, and people are hurt/afraid/scared/angry/outraged.

   
   

The intensity of this moment is palpable, and I feel incredibly honored to be running for re-election right now. In response to this political moment, we have turned this campaign into a community-organizing hub. At every event, we will have our ICE Out whistle packets and organizing toolkits. On our website, we have listed mutual aid organizations and why it's vital that we directly assist our neighbors. I will continue to use my voice and platform to highlight the grave danger our democracy is in right now and ask that we come together to shape what comes next.

This is not a new moment; we are fortunate to stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. In the spirit of Black History Month, I am highlighting not only our hard-working local heroes (see my social media post about Fred Newell and Dream City), but also encourage folx to take a long, hard look at the Black Panther Party.

Yes, they are most notably known for meeting state and police violence with self-defense (are we there yet?). What many may not know is that they spearheaded life-saving mutual aid projects, including free food distribution hubs, health clinics, schools, and transportation. Here is a snippet from the National Museum of African-American History & Culture:

To Serve the People

Local chapters of the Panthers, often led by women, focused attention on community “survival programs.” They organized a free breakfast program for 20,000 children each day, as well as a free food program for families and the elderly. They sponsored schools, legal aid offices, clothing distribution, local transportation, health clinics, and sickle-cell testing centers in several cities. These activities provided concrete aid to low-income communities and drew support for the Panthers. Two women partake in the Black Panther-organized People’s Free Food Program, Palo Alto, Calif., 1972 Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

May we all be inspired by the Black Panther Party and, continue to carry on this legacy of care and resistance.

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This week:

I will be speaking at the James Theater on Friday night (2/6) at the 'Community Care over Coward (ICE) fundraiser for Minnesota Mutual Aid. I hope to see you there!

If you would like me to come and speak to a group or at your home with neighbors, please don't hesitate to reach out!!!