Join this information session to learn more about our upcoming September - October Learning Tours!
The Big Lie” spun by Donald Trump and his supporters about the 2020 election is currently reshaping American voting rights laws. This shares much with another Big Lie, the “Lost Cause” ideology created by Southern leaders after the US Civil War. In that era, white Southerners forged a narrative of a noble, patriotic white aristocracy that seceded and fought the good fight against an arrogant North, and that the South would have won the war if it had more men and resources. From one Lost Cause to a new one, we can learn a lot about the path forward.
This Common Power 2021 learning tour in Virginia will both (a) examine some of the violent battles and educational and legal characteristics that have defined Virginia from the Civil War to the Civil Rights era to today, and (b) see and hear about a new Virginia that in early 2021 enacted the first state-level Voting Rights Act and became the first Confederate state to ban the death penalty. Virginia is one of the 7 core Common Power states of long term investment, and with this learning tour we seek to further understand the past in order to better shape our future.
This learning tour will be led by David Domke and AJ Musewe, and will include CP We the People Public Scholar Fellow Dr. Terry Scott and civil rights hero Bob Zellner. Dates for travel will be September 22 through 28. CP on-the-ground fieldwork with voters in Virginia will commence Sept 30, and we encourage volunteers to join the learning tour and stay for the work! (But that’s optional for everyone, fyi.)
David and AJ will host information sessions on this Zoom link that will cover information about learning tour goals, itinerary, costs, and preparation, and be a time for Q and A. All of these will be the same, so pick one and please join us:
● Friday, June 18, 930-1030 am PDT
● Monday, June 21, 700-800 pm PDT
● Tuesday, June 22, 1200-100 pm PDT
● Wednesday, June 23, 400-500 pm PDT
If you have questions we might address, please contact David and AJ at david@commonpower.org and aj@commonpower.org
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