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#BLM protests and other antiracist things to do…

Indivisible Ventura

Protests

Thurs 6/4: Ventura –  NAACP Solidarity Rally Honoring George Floyd “Standing up for Injustice”

Ventura County Government Center, 800 S. Victoria Road, corner of Telephone/Victoria. It’s sponsored by our local chapter of the NAACP as well as the MLK Committee of Ventura County, and will feature speakers including county Supervisor John Zaragoza, supervisor candidate Carmen Ramirez, local NAACP president Regina Hatcher-Crawford, and more. ALL attendees must wear masks! 

Friday 6/5: Oxnard –  March for George Lloyd

Student-led protest, Wilson Park 255 Palm Dr. (2 pm)

Sat 6/6:  Simi Valley – Simi Valley Silent Protest Solidarity March.

Corner of Cochran and Sycamore (10 am-1 pm) 

Facebook event page here. VERIFY details before you go! “This is a black youth lead event with support from leaders of many local faith-based, law enforcement, and social justice organizations. The organizers of this event are not affiliated with any particular organization, they are caring and concerned Simi Valley residents who wish to show their solidarity with the black lives matter movement.

There will be speakers and an optional march route. We encourage people to bring their own signs and masks, and to practice social distancing at the event.

*this event is being shared by Camarillo Cares, at the request of the local Simi Valley organizers”

Note from Simi Valley’s Mayor

Date: 06/01/2020

Mayor Keith Mashburn

Members of our community have contacted me, the Police Department, and City Hall and are expressing deep concern about Saturday’s scheduled protest. Thank you for your involvement and taking the time to reach out. I would like to assure you that I met with the Police Chief and the City Manager throughout the weekend and first thing this morning. I want you to know that we are aware of the messaging on social media and keeping a close eye on it and the City is well prepared to address any issues that may arise out of Saturday’s event. Members of the Simi Valley Police Department have been assisting in other jurisdictions throughout the weekend and are well trained to respect the rights of protesters and the property rights of our local businesses. The safety of our community members continues to be my highest priority. The Police Department will be present to assist those exercising their free speech rights to obey all laws and to remain safe while protecting the rights of all Simi Valley citizens and business owners.

Community members with information, or who have a question regarding the Saturday, June 6 protest, may call the Simi Valley Police Department’s Tip Line at (805) 583-6984. Department personnel will evaluate the messages and follow-up as appropriate.

Sun 6/7: Ventura – “White Coats for Black Lives”

(6/4 – Update) Ventura County Government Center, 800 S. Victoria Road, corner of Telephone and Victoria. (12-2pm)

Sun 6/7: Ventura – “Ventura County Blackout”

(6/4 – Update) Ventura CountyGovernment Center, 800 S. Victoria, corner of Victoria and Telegraph  (12-5pm). Masks and social distancing required.

Tues 6/9:  Westlake Village/Thousand Oaks – March & candlelight vigil to mark George Floyd’s funeral.

Organized by Women United for Change. Gather at the Westlake & Thousand Oaks Boulevards at 6:30; march begins about 7 p.m. to the Civic Arts Plaza. Bring a sign & a battery-operated candle.

Online TODAY! (See future online events below!)

Petitions

Sign this petition for the NAACP!

Justice for George Floyd: Sign the Petition

Sign this petition for CAUSE!

blob:https://www.facebook.com/77092f82-5289-418e-9e22-9901bfc17bc0

Dear CAUSE friends, This pandemic has brought the nation’s attention to the difficult, dangerous, and underpaid work of farmworkers, who are always essential, but too often treated as disposable.

Dozens of farmworkers at Rancho Laguna Farms in Santa Maria went on strike several weeks ago for a ten cent raise per box. Their frustration with a long pattern of poor working conditions reached its boiling point when the company squeezed them to work harder for the same low pay, while they struggled to pay for the rising cost of groceries and childcare during the pandemic. They were met with immediate retaliation for organizing, with supervisors calling the sheriff on them and firing them.

Farmworkers have risked everything to continue to feed the world through this crisis.  Now it’s time for us to have their back.

Click here to sign a petition in support of the brave farmworkers at Rancho Laguna.

Sign this petition for Mariana, one of our own!

America is happy to extract the labor of immigrants, but we won’t give the hardworking essential workers who make our lives more comfortable the basic dignity and security they need. Sign the petition for “Mariana” here.

“Mariana”, the head of the household for four children and valued essential worker, secured a Stay of Removal in the US in 2011, and every year since then on the basis of her good conduct and essential support of her family. She works in housekeeping at one of the Ventura hotels housing unhoused veterans, elderly and other vulnerable people under California’s Project Roomkey. And in the midst of the Corona-virus pandemic, when her children and community need her more than ever, her application for a Stay has been denied. She received her “bag and baggage” notice directing her to appear at the Camarillo ICE office on June 11, carrying no more than 50 pounds of baggage, to be sent to Mexico. Read more here.

Sign this petition from Color of Change.

Read and sign this Color of Change petition to local decision makers to acknowledge that policing is a violent institution that must end and  calling on them to adopt the following demands:

These are great points to put into calls and emails to your legislators on all levels. See “Contacts” at the bottom of this post.

(6/4 – Update) #8CantWait – Find your city’s record on police policies that cause death and call your mayor.

#8CantWait is an amazing resource from Campaign Zero showing which cities have adopted 8 strategies that are proven to reduce police violence by 72%. (Police manual on “Use of Force Continuum” here.) Look for your city on the pull-down menu to find your police department’s official stance on these policies and who to contact to voice your concern. If your city isn’t on the list, a chat box will ask you what city you’d like them to add. (We just asked it to add “Ventura”.) Here’s Oxnard’s report card…

It then suggests you call Mayor Tim Flynn and ask him to update his city’s policies to align with best practices.:

Call your legislators – this isn’t business as usual… 

At last count, there were 12 phone call or written actions in this. You don’t have to be on a sidewalk to have the power to make a difference. A phone, both as a camera and as a communication device, is an amazing tool for justice

Online actions

Fri. 6/19: On-line: Juneteenth Digital Diaspora: A Celebration of Black Histories and Futures – Join in.

Sat. 6/20: Online: Poor People’s Assembly & Moral March on Washington – A National Call for a Moral Revival– Join in here. Share English language flyer here, Spanish here.

Support Organizations doing antiracist work.

Vote with your dollars everyday. Stop supporting the businesses sending money to Trump

Phone Bank with SURJ 

Will you sign up to phone bank white voters on June 4th? The head of the Minneapolis Police Union sells “Cops for Trump” t-shirts, has been applauded by the President on Twitter, and spoke at a Trump rally. The violence people face will be worse, and the possibility to make the changes needed will only be harder, under another 4 years of the Trump administration. We need to show up big this election year to ensure white voters don’t re-elect Trump.

Be sure your power level is set to maximum by filling out your census form!

The most powerful political action you can take today is to fill in your census form online. #shapeyourfuture. If you haven’t filled yours out (busy!!!) or you know someone who may have questions, or is having trouble finishing it, check out our site or the official site here.

CA vote-by-mail makes Trump SOOOO mad!!! So register to vote by mail and then…DO IT!

“The bottom line is this: if we want to bring about real change, then the choice isn’t between protest and politics. We have to do both.” – President Obama

(Read“Trump made Florida his official residence. He may have also made a legal mess.)

Here’s the easy way. Here’s the official state site. You need to re-register to vote when:

To register to vote in California, you must be:

To pre-register to vote in California, you must:

Food Distribution

(Header image by Bruce Emmerling from Pixabay)

(6/4 – Update) More ways to stay safe at a protest

Contacts for Officials

Your elected officials: Remember, this is a long fight, so focus your energies on elected officials who know you can vote for them. THIS IS YOUR POWER! Don’t assume that just because they have a “D” behind their names, that they’re going to vote the most progressive way. The other side is calling them every day to influence their vote as well, and politicians like to be reelected. Call them with praise too, as they, like every other human being, appreciate being thanked.

Not-your elected officials: These officials owe you nothing. Their staff may listen to your call  politely, but unlike your own legislators, they won’t record your issues and their email systems won’t let non-residents send messages. Some activists have devised ways to falsely claim residency, but these stratagems go against our values. Trust that similarly-minded people, in Mitch McConnell’s district, for example, are doing the same work as you..

City of Ventura
Councilmembers may be contacted collectively via telephone at 805-654-7827 or by sending an email. Their individual email address are listed as follows:

Police

Ventura County Elected Officials

State Legislators:

Federal Legislators: 

Federal Executive Branch

We’re supplying the following information just to be complete. But as you most probably didn’t vote for Trump, and they know it, we’re not expecting huge results. Still, take some time to rattle his bunker minions.

President Donald Trump

The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111, Switchboard: 202-456-1414, Comments: 202-456-6213, Email

Attorney General Bill Barr

U.S. Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20530-0001
Dept. Comment Line: 202-353-1555, Dept. of Justice Main Switchboard: 202-514-2000,TTY/ASCII/TDD: 800-877-8339 (or Federal IP Relay Service), Email

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