Rally, Organize & Don't Cooperate with Authoritarianism
What is Strategic Non-Cooperation?
Find Out With #OneMillionRising
Nearly 40,000 people joined Wednesday evening to continue building toward training one million people in strategic non-cooperation. Two-thirds of the way through this series, we are seeing so much excitement for this form of resistance on these calls and in the wider world (One Million Rising got a mention in the New York Times and was trending on Bluesky on Wednesday).
Between today and the August 13 call is crunch time. It's time to host a Community Resistance Gathering to spread the word about strategic non-cooperation. It’s simple. It’s fun. It’s low pressure. And, it’s the way we build the power we need to defeat Trump’s authoritarian breakthrough.
If you missed the second call breaking down Community Resistance Gatherings, you can catch up on the video here.
Community Resistance Gatherings are, at their core, a small group of people from a shared community (think: church members, people who work in your field, your neighbors) getting together and learning about strategic non-cooperation.
Everything you learned in the first call and heard again on the second call, is what you’re going to share with your guests:
We’re in a moment of authoritarian breakthrough where a would-be authoritarian (Trump) attempts to rapidly consolidate power, eliminate checks on that power, and operate with impunity.
We need to chip away at his power from the bottom, rather than the top
That means identifying the pillars of support upholding that power and putting pressure on them to oppose this regime.
The pathway to doing that is through identifying the power of your community and activating those around you.
If we can say it in four bullet points, you can host a meeting talking with your community about it. You don’t need to be an expert. The point is for you to share your new knowledge with your connections so that you can learn, and resist, together.
IMV is excited at the number of people who have attended #OneMillionRising trainings and are hosting Community Resistance Gatherings meetings! If you would like to attend one, but are not sure how, email IMV@indivisiblemv.org. We can connect you up with someone who is hosting one.
If you want to register to host a Gathering (this is a small number of people in a coffee shop, library meeting room, or your home–and there are resources for how to do it!) but you are a little nervous about jumping in and want some help, email IMV@Indivisiblemv.org.
What will the actual gathering look like? There's a Community Resistance Gathering Host Guide to help you navigate these get-togethers complete with goals, materials, details, and an extensive agenda.
Sign up to host a gathering even if it is just for a handful of your friends. It's about building a community of mutual support for non-cooperation:
Register your event here on Mobilize,
Then, Register for Session 3: Wednesday, August 13 at 8pm ET
Rallies Everywhere!
Utica on Thursdays: Thanks to everyone who continues to show up at our weekly rallies in Utica on Broad Street at 4:00 pm.
Saturday, August 2nd, 12:00-1:30 pm, “Rage Against the Regime” Rome Rally, Corner of Black River Blvd and E. Dominick Street, Sidewalk near Ft Stanwix National Monument. Bring your best or favorite signs to call out administration overreach, Medicaid cuts, immigration atrocities etc. (In solidarity with the 50501 Movement).
Friday, August 8th at 4-5 pm there is a rally on the Clinton Village Green
Meet Antonio Delgado for Governor
Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado published an Op-Ed in the NY Times on July 30th titled “This is the Moment Democrats have been Talking about for Years.” In it he mentions Invest in Our New York, a coalition that Indivisible Mohawk Valley and Indivisibles across NYS have been a part of and helped shape for years. IONY is also working on an organizing plan to call for a special state legislative session for Gov Hochul and the Democrats to address the budget gap from the Big Ugly Bill, and pass the NY for All Act and Dignity in Detention Act. Be on the lookout for more updates on what we can do to push Democrats to do the right thing. Delgado put out a video message about this.
Sensing the deep unpopularity of Kathy Hochul, and knowing that Elise Stefanik for Governor is a real threat, Indivisibles across the state are looking at Antonio Delgado, who is connected to many Indivisible groups and has announced that he will challenge Hochul.
If you have not had the opportunity to meet Antonio Delgado yet, we encourage you to attend his virtual activist meet-and-greet on Monday, August 18th starting at 6:00pm. Remember that storytelling is our greatest super power as activists, and being able to share your own story about meeting Delgado will be impactful.
Community Circles
IMV Community Circles allow us to come together and meet each other, talk about political actions we can take, and build a strong community movement to protect democracy and stand up to MAGA. Thanks to everyone who has hosted or attended a community circle so far. We have loved receiving the many creative ideas you have generated and the teams you are developing to make political activism local, bite-size, and fun. There are a lot of people signed up for the Rome circle, and the Herkimer group is committed to meet again in August!
ROME
Wednesday, August 27 (Please note this isn’t a new date because of the conflict with Rome Democratic Candidate Meet & Greet on Aug. 13)
6:00 PM -7:30 PM
Rome Art and Community Center
308 W. Bloomfield Street, Rome
Register here to let us know you're coming.
HERKIMER COUNTY
Tuesday, August 12 and August 26
6:00 -7:30 pm
German Flatts Community Center
555 Rt 5-S, Mohawk
There is ample parking --meet at the outdoor pavilion.
Get Some IMV Gear (and Your LTE Published!)
IMV member David Laguerre publishes a media website called Mohawk Valley Voice (VoiceMV.com). He accepts Letters to the Editor, so if you are writing one, be sure to send it to Mohawk Valley Voice as well: News@voiceMV.com. David has also set up a site to order IMV gear–like the hats you see many IMVers wearing. To shop for hats and tshirts, canvass bags and mugs, in a variety of colors and all with the Indivisible Mohawk Valley logo: IMVshopnow.com.
Sum Up and Inspiration
Kudos to LTE writers, Carolyn McAleese, Susan Eilenberg, and Margaret Thickstun, who were all published this week in The Daily Sentinel.
Kudos to the Rome Democratic Committee, which continues to hold meet and greet events for candidates and other gatherings to build community and connection in the City of Rome. Their candidates were well represented at the IMV Potluck Picnic on Tuesday. Be sure to meet them in Rome on August 13th!
Our IMV Potluck Picnic was a huge success in spite of high heat! The pavilion was in a shaded area and we had room for the 80 people in attendance. There was way too much to eat (thanks to everyone bringing so much good food!) and lots of fun conversation.
In case you missed it, here are a few key highlights from the picnic:
Rep, John Mannion stopped by to say hello and give us some updates (and real talk) about what it's like in Congress now. He recognized Indivisbles for all our resistance activism and electoral efforts. You can support him at an upcoming fundraiser reception at Hart's Hill Inn, Whitesboro.
5th Judicial District Supreme Court Justice candidates Judge Candace Randall and Elizabeth (Betsey) Snyder-Fortino have been everywhere meeting voters, and both spent Tuesday evening with IMV at our picnic. The 5th district is Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Oneida, Onondaga, and Oswego Counties. If we can elect them, we will get to keep courts local so that people in our community can access justice without going to Syracuse. Both Candace and Betsey are Democrats and share our values and commitment to equal justice and fairness under the law. Please tell everyone you know that even though you can vote for 4 candidates in November, it is critical that you vote only for the Democratic candidates. Otherwise, you dilute your vote.
Our local candidates for Oneida County Board of Leg and various city and town councils are excellent. We can't wait to help support them by knocking doors and talking to friends. And of course, contributing to their campaigns. More to come!
Thanks to the efforts of Kathy Wojo on the Steering Committee, IMV has found an insurance policy so that we can start renting large venues again; they typically require a Certificate of Insurance. We hope to have a big September meeting with hundreds in attendance. Date coming soon!
Keep showing up! We know that the news every day is frustrating, depressing, and infuriating. That's why we show up together at the weekly pop up rally, CAFE Friday Zoom, and all our other events. When we're together:
we can plot creative and strategic non-cooperation
& flex our power to elect Democrats who will resist MAGA authoritarianism and Project 2025--starting at the local level.
Friends, check out this article in Rolling Stone about how we're planning to beat back authoritarianism by refusing to support its mechanics.
They are relying on popular passivity and compliance.
We are not going to give it to them.
Democracy is not a spectator sport.
Website: indivisiblemv.org
Follow us on Bluesky: @Indivisiblemv.bsky.social, on Instagram's Threads.net/@indivisiblemohawkvalley, on X (Twitter) using @indivisiblemv and of course on our Facebook page and IMV Activism Group.
