Some Upset And Some Joy

Happy Friday, Activists!

We hope you've had a good week and will enjoy your Juneteenth weekend.  You may have heard that yesterday, the day before Juneteenth, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the trial court's ruling, and now the regime can remove the original slavery exhibits from the President's House exhibit on Independence Mall.  

You can watch this post with photos of the exhibits that are still there - until they're removed - taken this morning by our Matt. (Turn on the sound!)

As upsetting as this is, we also have the joy and a reminder what it's like when we have a president and first lady who so vividly display the American ideals we treasure.  You can see the videos of President Obama's and Michelle Obama's uplifting speeches from yesterday's opening ceremonies for the Obama Center in Chicago.  

Here are some Juneteenth celebrations you can enjoy today.  

  SIGN UP TO READ THE ORIGINAL PRESIDENT'S HOUSE PANELS! 

You can tell the regime what you think about their pathetic actions by signing up for this project.  Remember when we told you about Sheri Utain, who was featured when Rachel Maddow profiled this project, as Sheri read passages from the President's House panels aloud?  You can sign up to do it too! 

The Old City Remembers project is how you do it.  Volunteers take shifts at the President's House site on Independence Mall, reading the text of the original panels aloud, and inviting passers-by to do the same.  The organizers will continue to need more volunteers as tourist season heats up!  

Check out the project at this link, then click the included link to review the onboarding slides and take the quiz, then tell them you're interested in being a volunteer!  It's all at this link.

CALLS TO ACTION

Call to demand opposition to Trump's mass surveillance.  We made calls a week ago about not reauthorizing FISA until Bill Pulte was removed as DNI nominee.  FISA is the War-on-Terror era legislation that authorized mass surveillance.  The pressure worked and it expired on June 12. 

As currently written, FISA allows warrantless backdoor surveillance of people in and out of the country; offers little to no protections against the administration targeting critics, activists, religious minorities, or communities of color; and actively chills our freedoms of speech and association.

And now if it's reauthorized as written it could be even more dangerous since Stephen Miller wants to deploy AI to supercharge the surveillance. 

Our Members of Congress have a choice to make: Uphold the Constitution and protect freedom of speech, or greenlight more of Trump’s authoritarian power grabs. Call our senators and House members and demand they hold the line and reject any effort to move FISA forward without serious privacy guardrails. 

Here are the contacts to call and write:

Sen. McCormick – Phila office 215-405-9660; D.C. office 202-224-6324; email link

Sen. Fetterman – Phila office 215-241-1090; D.C. 202-224-4254; email link

For outside PA:  Find your senators’ phone numbers and emails at this link

Rep. Evans – D.C. 202-225-4001; Phila. office (215) 276-0340; email link

Rep. Boyle – D.C. office 202-225-6111; Phila office 215-335-3355; email link

Rep. Scanlon -- D.C. office 202-225-2011; Chester office (610) 626-2020; email link

Outside Philadelphia?  Find your Representative here.

JOIN OUR LEAFLET PHILLY PROJECT!

You can take a walk in your neighborhood at the same time!

Join hundreds of your fellow Indivisible Philadelphia activists making a real difference! Just one time every month you’ll hang one hundred eye-catching leaflets on doors in your neighborhood.  We give you your walk list (near your home), the instructions, and our beautiful door hangers!  Sign up here.

These impactful leaflets ensure that every time Philadelphians vote they remember the harmful consequences of MAGA’s actions.

SIGN UP FOR OUR TWO LETTER-WRITING PROJECTS

THEY MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

And don't forget!  Sign up for our two important letter writing campaigns

1) Our Detention Camp Labor Project where you'll join over 860 other letter-writers in pushing companies to commit to not use detention camp labor.  The DCL Team emails volunteers weekly lists of a few corporations or organizations to send letters to. These emails will include details about how to address your letters and key talking points. 

2) Our Citizens Bank Letter Project, where you'll write directly to Citizens Bank and other of their partners, demanding they stop their financial relationship with detention camp companies GEO Group and CoreCivic. These letters are a adjunct to all of our other Citizens Bank protest efforts.  

REGISTER VOTERS!

Come out and register voters with us on Wednesday, June 24 to start to get folks ready to vote in November.  The info is below.

Where:  Park Towne Place, 2200 Ben Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia.  Park Towne Place includes multiple buildings and we'll meet in the South Tower in the vestibule/lobby.

When:  Wednesday, June 24, 5:00 - 7:00 pm 

Sign up here.

YOU CAN BE A PEACEKEEPER AT OUR JUNE 27 ICE OUT PROTEST

You can be a peacekeeper at this non-violent protest and be another visible presence for peace.  Have you never done this before?  No problem!  Training will be provided. 

Sign up below using the QR code or send an email to gsharppk@yahoo.com.

NEXT SATURDAY - TELL THE WORLD WE WANT ICE OUT!

Right now the eyes of the world are on North America - including Philadelphia. We have an historic opportunity to force the issue of ICE’s human rights abuses onto the global stage.  We'll be on Darien Street and Pattison Avenue on June 27th to do just that.

Project World Cup Spotlight is mobilizing non-violent protests, hosted by a variety of local organizations, in eight World Cup cities in the US, Canada, and Mexico to harness the power of the world’s media.  Our group is hosting this one, on the day of one of the six World Cup games in Philadelphia.

Media from across the globe will be present and local voices can shape international narratives. This is an opportunity to influence global perception and elevate our community's concerns.

We believe the principles of fair play shouldn’t stop at the stadium walls. A disregard for human rights is unacceptable, and we must make that clear to the world.

Where:  NOTE:  We have a slightly new location - down the block at Darien Street and Pattison Avenue on the sidewalk; across the street from Lincoln Financial Field (now called Philadelphia Stadium) on the side of Citizens Bank Park

When:  Saturday, June 27, 2:30 - 4:00 (the game begins at 5:00)

Sign up here.

MORE PROTESTS YOU CAN JOIN

1.  Springfield protest - Every Saturday, 1:00 - 2:00 at the intersection of Baltimore Pike and PA Route 320.  Bring your signs on your favorite topic!  

2. Tesla Takedown Protest - Every Saturday - 11:00 - Noon

Tesla Takedown Devon - At the Tesla showroom, 470 Lancaster Ave, Devon, PA 

3. Every Friday -- 11:15 am - Join Fridays@Fetterman's for the weekly Friday vigil for peace in Gaza/Palestine outside of Senator John Fetterman's office at 200 Chestnut Street from 11:15 am to 12:15 pm. Register here  

4.  Fitz Friday - 5:00 - 6:00 pm -- Protest at Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick's office at One Summit Square, Langhorne, PA. Bring signs about whatever you want. There's a lot to complain about!

5.  Every Wednesday  4:00 - 5:00 pm -- Join this resistance group at #WeThePeopleWednesdays for Singing for Sanity at High Point Cafe at Allens Lane.  More information is here.

6.  Every Thursday, 4:30 - 6:00 pm.  Join your Northern Liberties neighbors in peaceful protest at the corner of 2nd and Spring Garden Streets. Bring signs or borrow ours! 

7.  Every Wednesday at noon - Outside the Philadelphia ICE Office, 114 N. 8th Street.   Sponsored by New Sanctuary Movement.  This is a 40-week series of Interfaith Prayer Vigils.  

8. Every Monday at Noon - Monday at McCormick's -- Join our friends at Peace, Justice, Sustainability NOW for Monday's at McCormick's, in front of Senator McCormick's office at 20th and Market Streets.

9 - 11.  Vigils outside the ICE office at 114 North 8th Street: 

• Every Monday at 11:00 AM - Sponsored by State Senator Art Haywood and led by local clergy.

• Every Wednesday at noon -  Sponsored by New Sanctuary Movement.  This is a 40-week series of Interfaith Prayer Vigils. 

• Every Friday at 3:00 - Join this vigil

11. Are you outside the Philadelphia area?  You can see all the protests planned by Indivisibles in your area at this link. 

And A Few More Things:

We can send you our No Kings t-shirt! We fixed the links, below! 

1.  For the short sleeve shirt, make a donation of $35 and then  sign up for your choice of color.

2.  For the long sleeve shirt, make a donation of $45 and then sign up for your choice of color.

Your shirts will be mailed directly to you. 

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