IC-SS Weekly Update: July 6, 2020
Tell Gov Pritzker to Free Survivors of Police Torture
The Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR) is calling on Governor Pritzker to “use his power of pardons to release all police torture survivors and the wrongfully convicted right now,” especially because “jails, prisons, and detention centers in Illinois … have become death traps due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
To do this week:
1. Sign CAARPR’s petition to Governor Pritzker2. On Friday, July 10, 4:00 pm, attend a car caravan or rally at Thompson Center
Spread the Word: Fair Tax for Illinois
November 3 is on our mind for the presidential race. But did you know that a state constitutional amendment is also on the ballot in Illinois?
A Fair Tax means fair funding for our communities. Passing the Fair Tax amendment means the wealthy will pay their fair share; it also means fair funding for every community and the important services we need now more than ever: health care, schools, human services, and jobs we need to strengthen our communities.
RIGHT NOW: Visit Vote Yes for Fair Tax and follow them on Facebook and Twitter. Inform other Illinoisans about the Fair Tax, and urge them to vote for the state’s Fair Tax amendment on November 3. Here’s a one-minute Fair Tax video to share with friends. And for folks with longer attention spans, share these resources:
- Vote Yes for Fair Tax
- Fair tax: the other most consequential vote Illinoisans will be making this November (Curtis Black’s perspective in The Chicago Reporter)
Phonebank with Verve
We fondly remember door-to-door canvassing, but in pandemic times, we must work in other ways to reach voters. Keep writing those postcards, and add in phonebanking to swing states.
Hesitant? That’s normal, but the citywide Indivisible Chicago Alliance has a great real-time online training to make you into an effective and confident phonebanker. Trainings are offered weekly at different times. Sign up here.
Already a seasoned phonebanker?
Phone voters in swing states Michigan and Wisconsin with Indivisible Chicago Alliance. You’ll receive written info on the particular project. Then, right before you start phoning, you’ll get a Zoom orientation and Q & A with helpful organizers. Sign up to phonebank here.
BWOP: Week of Advocacy
THIS WEEK: Black Women Organizing for Power (BWOP Chicago) presents a Week of Advocacy. Visit BWOP’s Facebook page for more info on these events.\
TONIGHT: Indivisible Chicago-South Side endorsed Robert Emmons, Jr for Congress in Illinois’s 1st District. Mr. Emmons didn’t win, but he’s continuing his work against everyday gun violence. Hear Robert Emmons along with Tio Hardiman tonight, Monday, July 6th, 7:30 pm at BWOP’s online Sip and Study.
Postcards: Turn ‘Em In & Do Some More
You got your pile of postcards, you’ve been writing to voters, now you’re done. As soon as you finish your first batch (whether 100 or 1,000), get in touch with Esther Peters, who manages the Hyde Park postcard hub, to arrange for safe drop-off or pick-up of your completed cards.
Write to Esther by replying to her initial email to you from her personal address, OR email us here. (If possible, please stamp your cards. But most important is to turn in your written cards.)
Remember – postcards won’t be mailed until October, so there’s plenty of time to do more. Order more here. And if you haven’t done any postcards yet? Just start NOW. See postcard project info in the SIGN UP box below.
Postcard writers: Share your postcard photos and stories to appear in the newsletter or on Facebook/Twitter. Just obscure or blur any addresses. Thanks for your work!
SIGN UP for ICA’s Postcard Posse
As part of Indivisible Chicago Alliance‘s 3 States/1 Mission project, IC-South Side is participating in the citywide Postcard Posse, writing postcards to voters in swing states. What to do for postcards:
1. ORDER POSTCARDS. Fill in the form at the Postcard Posse order page. Ask for 100 or more (in increments of 100) and select HYDE PARK as your pickup/delivery point.
 2. REGISTER. Register at the Postcard Posse registration page. Sign up to write on your own, or choose one of our two teams (by zip code): South Side Scribes, Local 15 or 37.
 3. IF YOU CAN, BUY STAMPS. You aren’t required to stamp your own postcards, but if you can afford to, you can order online: Here’s a link to postcard stamps at USPS.com.
QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS?
Contact us at Indivisible Chicago-South Side
