Action Alerts: Midweek Edition

More Opportunities for Activism

Welcome to our August 20 Midweek Edition of Action Alerts!

By Abbi Lichtenstein

Here is a list of action alerts you can take to help save our country! You’ll be able to find something that is good fit for you.

“Democracy is not a static thing. It does not stand still. If we don't keep finding ways to expand and deepen democracy, we will see it diminish.” — Vincent Harding

Town Halls

The August recess is a great opportunity to attend town halls in your community and hold your Republican MoC accountable for the big, ugly bill they passed and other issues you are concerned about.

From Citizens’ Impeachment: Here is a calendar of scheduled town halls around the country.

If you don't see a town hall scheduled near you, click here for instructions on how to contact your MoC and to urge them to speak at one. Script is included.

Rallies/Protests

1. Join the National Senior Citizens Day in a national protest against cuts to Medicare and Medicaid on Thursday, Aug. 21. The GOP Congress passed the big, ugly bill which includes cutting one trillion dollars in Medicaid and triggering a 2010 Pay As You Go Act (PAYGO) requiring an automatic $500 billion in Medicare cuts from 2026–2034. Together these will negatively impact seniors, children, people with disabilities, rural hospitals, senior living facilities, and families nationwide. We the Seniors (WTS), an alliance of 38 senior-led organizations, will launch a 5Calls campaign to get in touch with our members of Congress (MoC) to raise our voices against these egregious cuts. Click here on Thursday, put in your ZIP code, and follow the easy steps to call your MoC. Script is included.

2. Join Indivisible in a statewide protest in Pennsylvania on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2–4 PM ET, to demand the closure of the Moshannon Valley Processing Center ICE facility, one of the largest in the Northeast. Click here to sign up.

3. May Day Strong is on Labor Day, Sept. 1. Join thousands of communities across the country who will be standing up against billionaires taking over our country! We will be in the streets, outside the offices of the corporate criminals who are behind the attacks on our freedoms, and at congressional offices. Together we will demand a country that puts workers over billionaires. To learn more about the event, click here.

4. Action Network is organizing Tesla Takedown protests every week. Find a protest near you by entering your ZIP code here.

5. The Big List of Protests will help you find a rally near you.

Boycotts

Click here to find out which chain restaurants to boycott (and why you should avoid them) and which chains you should support instead. You will also find boycotts against major retailers and information on how to find the companies that align with your values.

Events

1. Join The Power of Numbers: Taking a Deeper Dive into the 2024 Election on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 7:30–8:30 PM ET. In 2024 voters did not show up in numbers for Kamala Harris like they did for Joe Biden in 2020. Lake Research and Way to Win did a deep survey of those voters. Join Volunteer Blue to hear Celinda Lake, Jenifer Fernandez Ancona, and Mike Podhorzer explain what the survey found, who these voters are, why they did not vote, and how we can reach them for the upcoming elections. Sign up here.

2. On Wednesday, Aug. 20, 7:30 PM ET, join a national virtual call — Defending the Rule of Law in our States and learn how state and local leaders are stepping up and defending our communities. For more information and to sign up, click here.
   

3. Join Invisible’s Speaker series: Advancing Our Values — Solidarity in Action Training Series. You will learn how to better support marginalized communities from experts in the field.
   
   Here’s a preview of some of what’s to come:
   
   Creating Mutual Aid/Community Response Teams, with Stephanie Rearick — Sept. 15, 7 PM
   Understanding Systemic Oppression and Privilege, with Tim Wise — Oct. 21, 7 PM ET

4. Join Red Wine & Blue, Rally Together: How We Fight Back and Win in 2025 on Thursday, Aug. 21, 7:30–8:30 PM ET. Learn why stopping extremism starts in our own backyards and why local elections are where we have the power. You will receive training and resources you need to have a big impact on upcoming local elections while building power for the future. Sign up here.

5. Red Wine & Blue has more events scheduled. Click here to sign up for them.

6. Join the Center for Common Ground and the Workers Circle for the next installment of their Effective Advocate series, Aug. 21, 7 PM ET. Learn how to build and sustain coalitions in your community. Hear inspiring examples of coalition-building efforts gaining momentum across the country and walk away with tools and knowledge to drive meaningful change. Sign up here.

7. Join weekly sessions with Black Voters Matter, Voicing Our Power: A Conversation Series with Volunteers on Wednesdays, 6 PM ET. Discussions serve to give volunteers a voice and discuss issues that matter to them including mental health, our communities, protecting DEI, and more. Sign up here.

8. Join Organize Summer with the DNC. This summer, the DNC is laser-focused on building power for Democrats and making sure Republicans are held accountable for their dangerous and unpopular policies. Join them in organizing your community, getting involved with your Democratic state party, and building long-term infrastructure to support Democrats who fight against Trump and Republicans. Get involved here.

9. Join Know Your Republic: How Our Government is Supposed to Work from Promote the Vote PA. On Sept. 17, experts will speak on the Labor Movement. Click here to sign up.
   

10. Fight Back With Friends is a monthly call to action with Indivisible. Please join this national program designed to help you activate your community! Using their Empower app, they’ll equip you with tools to connect with friends, family, and neighbors who need your voice to get civically engaged. Join them on the fourth Tuesday of every month for a one-hour training session, where they’ll introduce calls to action that make a real impact. Sign up here.

11. Attend What’s the Plan? A Weekly Discussion with Indivisible’s Co-Founders every Thursday, 3–4 PM ET. Discuss what is happening in the chaos of the White House and learn about the plan to stop it. Please sign up here.

Contact Congress/Attorneys General/Governors/State Legislators

1. From Free DC: Over the last week, Trump has occupied Washington, D.C., and sent in the National Guard. He has redirected MPD resources to harass residents and bulldoze encampments of the unhoused — without knowing where they will send the people living there, other than somewhere far away. Thousands have stood up to Trump and have protested to Free DC and let him know that we will fight him and protect our city. House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Robert Garcia, and Sen. Chris Van Hollen have introduced resolutions to terminate the emergency period in D.C. and end Trump's use of force. Contact your MoC and demand they support and vote for this bill.

2. Trump is trying to steal the 2026 midterm elections by making his Republican state minions gerrymander the districts. Check out Indivisible’s guide on how to fight back against Trump/MAGA’s redistricting coup from any state with their new toolkit. Click here to learn more about how to fight back.

3. Last week was the 90th anniversary of Social Security becoming law. We have contributed to it with every paycheck and rely on it so we’d be able to retire with dignity. But now, the Trump regime has made cuts to the Social Security Administration, including slashing funding and firing staff which will have a negative impact on us, especially in Black and Latino communities. Write to Congress and demand they restore funding, rehire staff, and protect Social Security.

4. From Indivisible: Call on blue state Democrats to fight fire with fire by redrawing new congressional maps. If red state Republicans rig the midterms by redrawing their maps to steal seats, blue state Dems must even the playing field by responding in kind. Use our tools to demand that Democratic governors and legislators act now. Click here for more information and to contact your governor and state legislators.

5. Millions of Americans have relied on Medicaid for paying medical bills and getting vital health care without going bankrupt. Seniors use Medicaid to help pay for living at a senior facility. Now the Republican Congress and the Trump regime have slashed Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy, and those who rely on Medicaid won’t be able to get the life saving health care they need. Demand that Congress members reverse these cuts and restore Medicaid. Write to Congress here.

6. From The Workers Circle: No government law enforcement agency should conduct arrests in secret and hide behind masks to conceal their identity. Yet ICE agents have been doing exactly this, while violating constitutional requirements for due process. Democrats in Congress have introduced three bills that would stop these illegal practices, The Visible Act, The No Masks for ICE Act, and The No Secret Police Act. Please urge your members of Congress (MoC) to vote for these bills. For more information about these bills and to contact your MoC, Click here.

7. From The Workers Circle: Tell Congress to stand up for voting rights and block any proposal that defunds our freedom to vote! Congress just released a budget bill that provides just $15 million for election administration in 2026 — less than $300k per state — which will heavily affect Native American communities. We’re calling on Congress to increase that funding to at least $825 million in FY26, the same level allocated in 2020, so election officials can protect our vote, upgrade infrastructure, and ensure every eligible voter can access the ballot box. To learn more and to write your members of Congress, click here.

8. From a More Perfect Union: Write to your senators and tell them to pass a bill to ban congressional stock trading. Click here for more information and to contact them.

9. From Indivisible: Tell your members of Congress to release the Epstein files now! The Trump regime is trying to bury the files and Mike Johnson dismissed Congress early for summer break to prevent a vote to release them. What are they hiding? Click here for instructions on how to reach your MoC. A script will be provided.

10. From Rogan’s list: Reach out to your members of Congress, especially those on the Senate Judiciary Committee, and ask them to publicly endorse Sen. Durbin’s demand for release of the Maxwell interview. Insist that she does not receive pardons or commutations and that they back a subpoena if the Justice Department does not cooperate. (If they’re House members, also ask them to sign the discharge petition for the Khanna–Massie effort to make the DOJ reveal everything they have). Phone language here; Resistbot letter here.

11. The Department of the Interior has proposed an 83% cut to Tribal college funding. If Congress signs off over $100 million will vanish, destroying institutions that provide higher education and cultural lifelines to Native communities. To learn more and to write a letter to your member of Congress demanding they not cut 83% to Tribal Colleges, click here.

12. From the ACLU: DOGE is feeding our data to unvetted AI to surveil us and consolidating our data, putting us at massive risk of cyberattacks and misuse. It's a major violation of our privacy. Send a message here to your MoC and demand they stop DOGE from invading our privacy.

13. Alligator Alcatraz is an immigration detention facility built on swamp land that flooded soon after construction. Conditions inside are inhumane: immigrants are fed only once a day, and that food is often infested with maggots. The lights are kept on 24/7, there is no access to bathing, and extreme overcrowding worsens the suffering. To make matters worse, some Republican officials are profiting from this catastrophe by selling merchandise at the expense of detainees’ dignity. This is unacceptable. To learn more about the ongoing abuse and to take action by telling your Member of Congress to shut down Alligator Alcatraz click here.

14. After the devastating floods in Texas which left people, including children, dead or missing — due in part to weakened warning systems caused by Trump-era cuts to NOAA and the National Weather Service —we must take action now. Use 5calls.org to urge your members of Congress (MoC) to fund U.S. Weather Prediction and Climate Science so future lives can be saved. Click here to contact your MOC. You can also use 5calls.org to contact your MoC about other issues you want them to vote on. Scripts are included.

15. From Indivisible Blue State Defiance — Safeguarding Civil Liberties: What Blue State Attorneys General Must Do To Stop ICE Overreach. Contact your blue state attorney general and tell them to fight ICE’s overreach. State attorneys general have both the authority and the responsibility to defend residents against federal overreach. Please click here to learn more including contact information for your AG.

16. Safeguarding Civil Liberties 2.0: How Blue States Can Fight Back Against Trump’s Immigration Crackdown and Secret Policing. If you live in a blue state, contact your governor and state legislators and demand that they pass legislation that would ban masks and require ICE to show proper ID. Click here for more information and how to contact your governor and state legislators. Script is included.

Phone Banking, Canvassing, Texting, and Postcard Writing

1. Organizing Summer, run by the DNC, is hosting a phone bank to call Texas voters to let them know that Republicans are ramming through gerrymandered maps to favor them and ignoring flood victims. Sign up here.

2. Silver Spring Progressive Action is hosting a phone bank to call Virginia voters on Monday, Aug. 25, 6:30–8 PM ET.

3. We will be phone banking for Abigail Spanberger for governor and Kacey Carnegy for VA House delegate. After all the harm caused by the Trump regime, it’s more important than ever to make Virginia bluer. Virginia needs to expand their 51-49 Democratic majority in the House of Delegates and elect Abigail Spanberger governor to deliver a Democratic trifecta. Whether you're a first-time caller or a seasoned pro, training will be provided. Please sign up here and let’s flip these seats!

3. On Thursdays, 6 PM ET via ZOOM, join Field Team 6 to get text training and register likely Dem voters in Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and other key swing states. Sign up here.

4. Join the Good Neighbors Fight for Home weekly virtual phone banks on Wednesdays, 6–8 PM ET, to talk with Virginia voters about threats to essential services and the importance of voting this year.​ This event is hosted with the Rural Caucus of the Democratic Party of Virginia, Red2Blue, Swing Blue Alliance, and others. Sign up here.

5. Join Black Voters Matter on Zoom at 6 PM ET on Tuesdays as they gather to drive change through digital organizing. Their texting campaigns will give you the opportunity to engage residents across the U.S. while empowering them to make a positive impact in their communities. For more information and to sign up, click here.

6. Join a Black Voters Matter Postcard Party on Zoom on Aug. 21 and Sept. 18, 6–8 PM ET, and create messages to remind people of the power they have in their communities. Sign up here.

7. Write Postcards for the Virginia, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania elections in November. Click here to sign up.

Donating

1. Texas Democrats are fighting back and trying to stop the Republicans from their illegal gerrymandering. Democrats left the state to break quorum to prevent a vote on this. These new districts were illegally drawn in a way that silences the voices of minority communities across Texas. It’s not about fair representation, it’s about Trump clinging to power. Please consider donating to support the Texas Democrats and to fight against this illegal takeover. Donate here or here.

2. From Rogan's List: Please consider supporting relief efforts in Texas. Find a list of vetted local organizations to contribute to via the Communities Foundation of Texas here, and GoFundMe has set up a page for verified fundraisers for those affected by the flooding here. Back local mutual aid efforts from Austin Mutual Aid here and Hands Off Central Texas here.

Other Action Items

1. Join Indivisible’s campaign to make Avelo Airlines’ deportation flights too costly to continue. Avelo profits off Trump’s terror tactics from secretive ICE flights that deport immigrants. We’re organizing to ground “ICE Air” by targeting the pillars that sustain Avelo’s business. Click here to learn more and fight back.

2. Sign up with Field Team 6 and help register Democratic voters. Click here to sign up.

3. The 14th Amendment which allows, “No State shall … deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws,” is under attack by the Trump regime. Included is the protection of rights like due process of the law and birthright citizenship. However, we can fight back and protect it. Click here on how you can join the fight and be a defender of the 14th Amendment.

4. From Network NOVA: Stay informed and take action on immigration and ICE.

5. Speak with Your Wallet: Find resources that will inform you about which companies and candidates support democratic values and those who oppose them. Also support candidates in the VA race and other congressional races. For more information click here.

6. From Rise Up, Federal Workers Defense Fund: If you've been fired from your federal government job or you're a federal worker concerned about your employment, Worker's Legal Defense wants to help. They will connect workers to free legal support through a network of pro bono attorneys. Click here for more information.

7. From Network NOVA, join the Virginia Election Protection Coalition to ensure that all Virginia voters can cast a ballot free of obstacles and intimidation. Click here to learn more and to sign up.

8. From Raise: If you see ICE sightings, call the hotline at 888-600-5762. More information here.

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Thanks for reading!

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