NEWSLETTER 8/18 — Volunteer Opportunities Up the Wazoo! + special event sneak peeks
How many days until
Election Day (Nov 2, 2021)?
75 Days!
Last newsletter, we shared with you our powerhouse list of NJ 11th for Change endorsed candidates. They impressed us then, and as we see them pounding the pavement to meet potential voters, they impress us even more!
T.C. McCourt, out canvassing for Morris County Commissioner.
NJ 11th for Change proudly endorsed this entire slate.
But candidates can't do it alone! They need support from volunteers like US. NJ 11th for Change has encouraged all of our endorsed candidates — from all corners of the 11th Congressional District — to share their campaigns' volunteer opportunities with us. We've got a nice array this week, and there will be more to come each week, from now until Election Day! If you miss canvassing, or phone banking, or text banking ... NOW IS THE TIME! Please check below in the EVENTS & VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES section of this newsletter, and in upcoming editions. Every week, we promise there will be new options, and more and more candidates you can support.
Newsletter 8-4-21
This week, NJ 11th for Change proudly released its 2021 candidate endorsements!
What?!? MORE elections? you ask.
Yes, more elections. It’s New Jersey. We like elections here.
For politicians and for activists, that means one thing: no rest for the weary.
Top of the ticket in 2021 is the race for governor, and there are lots of state, county and municipal races that require our attention, too. NJ 11th for Change chose to endorse in the races for:
- GOVERNOR
- COUNTY COMMISSIONER (for the counties in CD11 territory)
- STATE SENATE (for the legislative districts in CD 11 territory)
- STATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY (for the legislative districts in CD 11 territory)
That amounts to twenty-four different races, with seventy-seventy different candidates to consider. GULP.
Happy 4th of July! We Have Not Yet Begun to Fight!
1776.
American schoolchildren have long been raised to feel pride in that date. We were raised to believe that 1776 means many things: Victory. Democracy. Independence. We think of that as the date when America became America.
And yet, 1776 wasn’t the end of the fight. It wasn’t the beginning of the fight, either.
—It was 1775 when Patrick Henry declared “Give me liberty or give me death!” in an attempt to rouse troops to fight in Virginia.
—It was 1775 when Paul Revere took his ride, when the battles of Lexington and Concord were fought, and the Battle of Bunker Hill.
—It was 1779 when John Paul Jones declared “I have not yet begun to fight!” before losing his ship, but ultimately winning.
—It was 1783 when the Treaty of Paris ended the Revolutionary War, and we could begin the hard work of creating a functioning nation.
So what was 1776? It was just a point along the process, a single year in a long, long fight.
Fast forward to 2020.
Read moreWATCH IT HERE! Defending Democracy — "I.C.E. in N.J.: How It Affects Our Community & What We Can Do About It"
Did you miss our powerful, moving Zoom discussion (6/22/21) about I.C.E. in N.J., with advocate Kathy O'Leary and refugee/activist Carlos Sierra? Watch it here!
Kathy O'Leary explains how I.C.E. functions here in NJ, the lack of oversight and accountability they take advantage of, and current legislative solutions we can support to keep them in check.
Carlos Sierra, a refugee and activist, discusses the impact of I.C.E. on immigrant families, and the hardships and injustices he faced during the two and a half years he spent incarcerated at the Essex County Detention Center.
WATCH IT HERE! Defending Democracy — "REPARATIONS: What You Need to Know"
Did you miss our Zoom Q&A session about REPARATIONS, with Ryan Haygood of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice? Watch it here!
NEWSLETTER: Tues 6/22 Defending Democracy Event— I.C.E. in N.J.: How It Affects Our Community & What We Can Do About It
Join us on TUESDAY, JUNE 22 @7:00 pm.
More info below. SPACE VERY LIMITED!
Register here to get the Zoom link!
Dear Supporter —
I.C.E.'s abuse of power is not a problem just in border states — it's a problem right here in New Jersey! But what can we do about it?
NEWSLETTER: Tues 6/15 Defending Democracy Event— "REPARATIONS: What You Need to Know"
Join us on TUESDAY, JUNE 15 @7:00 pm.
More info below. SPACE VERY LIMITED!
Register here to get the Zoom link!
Read more
Defending Democracy: Municipal Candidate Meet & Greet! —— Monday, June 7, 2021 @7:00pm ... and other upcoming events!
More info below. Register here to get the Zoom link!
Dear Supporters —
Over the past 4 years, NJ 11th for Change has launched dozens of political careers. We’re not just talking about Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, either, for whom we cleared a path by scaring off Rodney Frelinghuysen. We’re talking about our own grassroots members!
SCORES of you have run for office after becoming politically engaged with us, and we couldn’t be prouder. Our members now run for every office in New Jersey: from municipal party committee member to town council representative, mayor to county commissioner (formerly ‘freeholder’), New Jersey State Senator to General Assembly member.
This year, we’ve got a bumper crop of candidates, especially on a municipal level! Please join us on Monday, June 7 (the night before the primary election) at 7:00 pm for a très relaxé Defending Democracy open house (on Zoom, natch) to meet some of our favorite mayoral and town council candidates!
SPACE IS LIMITED! Register here, and we'll send you the Zoom link!
Among our guests will be:
- Cori Herbig
- Judy Hernandez
- Christy Lazarow
- Michael Soriano
- Kate Barry
- Mark Gyorfy
- Tara Olivio-Moore
- Kim Mazzie
... and more!
Who's that masked man? That's Parsippany mayor Michael Soriano,
with his running mates Judy Hernandez and Cori Herbig!
These wonderful people share our values and have long been our allies. We’re just crazy about them! Come hear what they all have to say about this year's race, what they plan to do in office, and why it’s SO DAMNED IMPORTANT to vote your ballot all the way down the ticket, not just the topline races.
Register here to get the Zoom link!
That's not all, folks!
NJ 11th for Change is getting ready to fill up your calendar in other ways, too — and soon! Here are some highlights:
Read moreVideo of Election Rules 101 for 2021
Missed our panel discussion with reps from each CD 11 county (Essex, Morris, Passaic, and Sussex) discussion election rules for 2021?
Never fear!
Click here to watch the recording of this lively and incredibly information discussion.
And don't forget to vote on Tuesday, June 8, 2021!
Defending Democracy: Election Rules 101 — Pre-Register Now for Zoom on Wednesday, May 12, 2021 @7:00pm
DAYS UNTIL
OUR NEXT DEFENDING
DEMOCRACY PANEL: 2
SPACE LIMITED! Register here
Don't forget to pre-register!
Dear Supporters,
Pandemic election rules in 2020 included lots of (sometimes confusing) innovations: universal mail-in ballots! brand-new secure drop boxes! in-person polling place closures!
But now it's 2021 and vaccination rates are increasing at a steady clip ...
... so this year's elections will be back to normal ... right?
Not necessarily!
Read moreDefending Democracy: Everything You Wanted to Know About Town Councils (But Were Afraid to Ask)
Did you miss last night's STELLAR panel discussion?
Do you want to share it with friends, family, and neighbors?
Did you enjoy it so much you just have to watch it again (and take notes this time)?
Here it is, on YouTube!
Start at 3:40 to avoid some less-than-entertaining Zoom set-up!
Read moreNEWSLETTER — April 21, 2021 — The Derek Chauvin Verdict & Actions YOU Can Take NOW
DAYS UNTIL OUR NEXT
DEFENDING DEMOCRACY PANEL,
ALL ABOUT TOWN COUNCILS: 1
Register here
The perpetrators of white supremacy in America have woven a self-serving narrative about Black people for centuries. They have woven that narrative in ways subtle and blatant, one interaction and accusation at a time.