An Urgent Note About Florida Action: 6/10/2019 - 6/30/2019
ASK: Join the on-the-ground Florida effort taking place June 10th - June 30th as we race towards a July 1st deadline to register as many Floridians who’ve recently had their voting rights restored before a law takes effect making it much more difficult for many of them. Sign up here: https://forms.gle/3EPeUSeWyKDessdA8
We have an opportunity, a defining chance to make a difference. We are writing to ask us as a community to step forward and act.
Here’s the situation: Last year, one of our most-important outcomes was that we worked to pass Amendment 4 in Florida, which restores voting rights to people formerly incarcerated for felony offenses. Since January 1 thousands of returning citizens have been regaining the right to vote, but the Republican-controlled legislature in Florida just passed a new law that will require all formerly incarcerated folks to ALSO pay all court costs/fines before they can regain the right to vote. It’s a spot-on horrible act of voter suppression. We as an org are all-in to fight these actions. The bad news is that when the law goes into effect July 1 it will become very, very difficult for hundreds of thousands of formerly incarcerated citizens with significant court costs/fines to ever regain their right to vote.
But we have a month until the law takes effect.
Our Florida partners, working with the Florida Rights and Restoration Coalition, have sent us a red-alert bulletin asking us to come and do voter-registration work before July 1. (see a snippet of one of their emails at the end of this message.) Their lawyers believe that everyone registered to vote before July 1 will *not be subject to the new must-pay-all-fees voter suppression law.* Our partners are identifying all of these returning citizens, building a voter-registration strategy that incorporates these citizens but does not uncomfortably target them, and they tell us they need every person possible to do the work. NOW. NOW. NOW.
On Friday we told our partners that we will do *everything possible* to mobilize Common Purpose volunteers to come to Florida from June 10 through June 30. Specifically, we will work in Pinellas County, which is the Tampa area, where there are at least 1600 returning citizens who are eligible to be registered to vote. We will have at least one Common Purpose leader there for every one of those dates who will be our point persons, so that every CP volunteer coming from Seattle will know where to go, with CP LEADERS making sure we are fully integrated with our partner organizations and working in the CP way to support them.
If there is any way you can be on the ground in Pinellas County between June 10 and June 30, this is a defining chance to make a difference. It’s as concrete of an action in the service of a just and inclusive democracy as we can offer. We can truly change people’s lives. And – although this is not the primary motivation for us to do this – we have every reason to believe that the progressive longterm effects on elections, including the 2020 presidency, will be real.
To pull this off may require changing plans, missing events, spending dollars that are un-planned and be a real stretch. We will need to walk through ambiguity and uncertainty as we build this on the fly. But our work in 2018 and our already-happening mobilization for 2019-20 assure us that we can do this. And indeed, this is why we do this work. Our Common Purpose leadership is fully mobilized, and we are asking you to join us. If you can’t go, please consider recruiting someone you know who might be interested, and paying their costs.
As a sign of our commitment, we will provide reimbursement costs of up to $500 for any person who signs up, if you wish.
If you are open to doing this, please sign up to join our Florida team right now. Here’s the Florida team page signup:
https://forms.gle/3EPeUSeWyKDessdA8
If we can address questions, please let us know at hello@cpnow.org.
Let’s go. Democracy is a verb. We need to risk and sacrifice if we’re going to bring about real change.
The CP leadership team
CP May Workshop: 2020 Launch Recap
We had a terrific positive workshop this past Saturday. We want to highlight items 3, 4, and 5 as they are the heartbeats of how we go forward over the next 18 months. Please become familiar with our organizational website, cpnow.org. It is the place for information on our WA state civic engagement, our across-the-country state teams, and our educational events. We will be updating this site regularly!
Democracy is a verb. It requires action. We have a lot to do. Start now with the fieldwork options on tap, noted in Session 4 below.
Rather watch a recap than read one? Check out the video below.
We had a plan for an audio recording of the workshop. It didn't work out. So you're getting this super awesome video instead. Enjoy.
RECAP OF 5-18-2019 WORKSHOP
Kickoff for 2019-20
Session 1: Three key leadership team members – Maria Abando, Larcy Douglas, and Bert Greenwood -- talked briefly about why they are part of Common Purpose and their work for the organization. Their remarks provided valuable insights into how we are growing as an org.
Session 2: Maria led us through a community session in which participants talked with 3-4 others about “One civic action that you have done for the first time, or the first time in a long time, with Common Purpose.” To start this exercise, on 3x5 cards people chose civic action categories, and then elaborated in writing on the meaning of one of them. They then engaged for a few minutes in small-group discussions. Afterward, people put their first names on cards if they were fine with doing so, and we collected them. If you were not at the workshop and are willing to take 2-3 minutes to share about your civic actions with CP, please click here: https://commonpurposenow.org/cpfirsts. Special thanks for CP Community member Douglas Coutts who helped us think through and build this activity!
Session 3: David introduced the community to an overview of our 2019-20 voter fieldwork plan. The “2019-20 plan” is a document we handed out to workshop attendees. This document is intended as a summary to be kept at home in a folder or on a refrigerator. It has the framework (four lanes of action) for our voter fieldwork, a listing of workshop dates, and the states of focus. Please also see the “WA State 2018-19 Voting Justice Laws” document created by our Washington State Strategist Jamielyn Wheeler, which shows what our progressive pro-democracy work can achieve.
Here’s a little about our states with upcoming plans for 2019 activity.
Session 4: This was an introduction of the leadership for our key national states over the next 18 months. The attachment “2019-20 states summary” is a document we handed out to workshop attendees. We have two key GOTV states for 2019: Virginia and North Carolina; for these, we spent a few minutes discussing partner orgs and planned dates of travel, in this coming August, September, and October. We will continue our work in Virginia and North Carolina in 2020, along with 11 other states. For all of these we will be engaging in LOTS and LOTS of voter registration over the next 16 months, followed by a 2-month all-in push between Labor Day and Election Day in 2020. Our first voter-registration trips will be in Florida and Maine! Please go to our Fieldwork tab and add your names to states that you might be interested in working in.
David goes in-depth on 2020 focus states, and gives a little motivation as we head into action.
Session 5: This was a final community session, led by AJ Musewe and Audrey Vaughan. The focus was on “risk and sacrifice” – specifically, what are each of us going to risk and/or sacrifice over the next 18 months to help us toward a just and inclusive democracy? Both of the Audreys had powerful words calling us to step forward and up.
CP April Workshop: Recap
WELCOME — Another CP Workshop, another Community Building session led by the Audreys (Audrey Musewe + Audrey Vaughan), this time continuing a theme of personal and mental work each of us navigate when taking civic action: Courage & Risk.
CIVIC MODULE — David Domke put on his favorite “hat”, one of the professor, and walked everyone through a light civic module focusing on voter suppression in America. Amy Sommers tied this to current events, specifically in Florida with the continued disenfranchisement efforts of citizens who’s voting rights have been recently restored. Being Common Purpose, there was also an element of how we’re planning to affect positive change in Florida later this year.
FIELDWORK UPDATES — Charles Douglas III brought us a message about fighting and losing, and fighting again in Wisconsin after the defeat of Lisa Neubauer in the State Supreme Court race. In this imperfect world, even the most noble efforts find failure. And still we persist…. Maggie Rittenhouse was joined by Audrey Musewe to introduce Maggie as a new leader as well as a new more comprehensive approach to our operations and relationships in Virginia.
WASHINGTON ACCOUNTABILITY — Jamielyn Wheeler updated everyone on the progress of efforts here in Washington State, and highlighted a few community members who then spoke about their own individual and team efforts during the recent legislative session.
JOIN US NEXT MONTH FOR THE MAY WORKSHOP! SATURDAY, MAY 18TH AT WASHINGTON HALL!
Democracy Voucher Resources
Here are some resources to get you started…
Common Purpose Seattle City Residents!
The Democracy Voucher Program offers a new way for Seattle residents to participate in local government by supporting campaigns and/or running for office themselves. Beginning February 12, all registered voters, and eligible Seattle residents who applied, will receive four $25 Democracy Vouchers by mail. For more information about the program click here: https://www.seattle.gov/democracyvoucher/about-the-program
Candidates who have qualified for the Democracy Voucher Program thus far:
http://www.seattle.gov/democracyvoucher/i-am-a-seattle-resident/2019-participating-candidates
Learn about the voucher program candidates, get answers to commonly asked questions, replace your vouchers, and more at: https://www.seattle.gov/democracyvoucher
Behind-the-Scenes: Civic Accelerator Update
At my time at Starbucks hq I used to call them “Aha Moments”. Times when I gained a new and catalyzing level of understanding about something I was working on. I’ve had many of them along this journey with Common Purpose, and had an energizing one last week with Civic Accelerator.
Our primary description of Civic Accelerator has been tied to investing in new ideas for civic engagement methods, largely created by the next generation of leaders. Part of the goal is to further develop leaders, but another is to identify, support and grow new ideas of reaching communities and demographics who don’t show up in the civic space as much as others: young people of color, working Millennials, low income people, etc. My work in this space can be more focused on identifying & growing these ideas.
With this in mind, over the next few months I’ll be looking to form relationships with entrepreneurs and startup communities here in Seattle. I’ll be hoping to learn from them, build our network of possible future mentors, and gain insight into possible projects/platforms/products launching in the civic space. When Leadership Lab is ready to graduate a cohort into Civic Accelerator to build their own ideas or support ongoing ones, I’ll be ready.
Keep on…
CD3
Workshop Recap: Our WA work + Adrianne Shropshire
The first of what we hope to be many events held at the Northwest African American Museum brought sunshine, a new level of engagement and two special guests to our community.
A few highlights:
We: The Audreys (Audrey Musewe and Audrey Vaughan) opened us up with an interactive activity focused on the power of “We” both in our personal experiences and within Common Purpose.
Accountability: Jamielyn led us through updates on our Washington State Accountability Initiative for the Spring, along with highlights from the Captains who are assisting with the effort.
Represent: Common Purpose Advisor Kiana Scott welcomed State Rep Gale Tarleton as they closed out the WA-focused Accountability segment by reinforcing the power of contacting our elected officials directly.
Caucus: Continuing on-the-ground civic fieldwork as our major focus (even in electoral off-cycle years), we held our “mini-caucus” for CPers to speak directly with State Captains leading teams to Virginia, Florida and Wisconsin (sign ups here), as well as WA Accountability Captains and a local 2020 Census expert. All great avenues for individuals to make an impact locally or nationally.
Organizing: We closed our workshop with a Q&A with Adrianne Shropshire, founder and Executive Director of BlackPAC and friend of Common Purpose. A more candid conversation than her previous visit, Adrianne provided her genuine perspectives on the Presidential race, political upheaval in Virginia, insight on the future of Stacey Abrams as well as very relevant guidance to CP volunteers and leadership.
Be on the lookout for more info from us on upcoming Common Purpose workshops and events!
Begin again...
Common Purpose didn’t start in 2018.
It started with newly heard voices walking the streets of DC in 2017.
…with outstretched hands at an airport in Seattle
…with a pilgrimage to the south
and a university lecture.
It started in the living room of concerned neighbors.
And again after consoling a worried child.
It started with a conversation over dinner, and a promise between friends
…with a determined group of young leaders
…and with unsure feet to unfamiliar pavement, brave hands to waiting doors
Common Purpose didn’t start in 2018. It started again.
This January 2019, it starts yet again in an effort to continue helping people utilize their civic voice, and to help them become multipliers for others to do the same. Because ours is not to finish this fight, but to ready ourselves to continue, now and into the future.
To fall and rise again.
To win and begin again.
Join us.
A Movement, Not a Moment, in Pinellas County, Florida
By the time our four days of canvassing in partnership with Organizing For Action and Local 1199 ended, we had collectively knocked on 8,000 doors!…
From the start, Common Purpose committed to work alongside local partners wherever our teams deployed. This meant that finding a Florida organization willing to work with us my first challenge as state captain. This was back in the spring, during Wave 1. We had no track record, no online presence, no famous names or big pocketbooks behind us. What we had was a commitment from hundreds of volunteers who promised to be trained and were eager to work toward an inclusive and engaged democracy. We also had a clear philosophy about cooperating with local partners, with two core tenets: identifying partners who deeply know the communities we aim to serve, and taking a supporting role. While the local partners lead, we amplify and add capacity to their work.
Most of the organizations I contacted about working together never responded. Those that did were friendly enough, but didn’t seem to believe the offer of help, our promise to follow their lead, and our commitment to pay our own way. Time was tick-tocking along, but I still hadn’t found a local partner. Finally, Seanna Browder attended an Organizing For Action (OFA) training session, and asked the leader whether OFA might need help in Florida. Seanna’s question turned out to be a critical turning point.
OFA Florida Volunteer Lead Malanda Schmitz shared our commitment to inclusive democracy, immediately grasped our goals and welcomed Common Purpose to work with OFA. In June, twelve Team Florida volunteers spent a week registering voters in St. Petersburg, Pinellas County, 608 square miles with almost a million residents. Or trying to. In the economically disadvantaged neighborhoods where our team deployed, many of the people we encountered reported they couldn’t vote. All too soon, Common Purpose members learned “I can’t vote” was code for “I committed a felony and am banned from ever voting,” a topic we’ve written about here.
At the end of October, nineteen of us again touched down in Pinellas County. We spent the final days before midterms getting out the vote in economically disadvantaged communities filled with low-propensity voters. We canvassed for Andrew Gillum for Governor, Bill Nelson for U.S. Senate and Amendment 4, which would restore voting rights to people convicted of a felony who had served their sentence.
Knowing our goal was to serve under-served communities, ideally in collaboration with people of color, Malanda found the perfect partner for us: a local chapter of a healthcare workers’ union whose members are majority female and African American. 1199SEIU’s Regional Director, Clara Smith, turned out to be a compelling and savvy organizer who had grown up in St. Petersburg and knew how to enlist, train and deploy campaign workers. Team Florida was matched in teams with Local 1199 canvassers and sent out to cover turf that many of the local canvassers knew intimately. It didn’t take long for those in Common Purpose to find ourselves in awe of the talents, commitment and work ethic of those with whom we were knocking on doors.
• Steven, a poet/rapper, who at the conclusion of the first day brought a number of us to tears singing an a cappella song he had written about single moms staying strong.
• Emily, raising 4 kids on her own while working the night shift. After our work ended, she confided her fears that we might feel uncomfortable in our turf because Florida is in the deep South and there are a lot of older White people there who are still racist. She was surprised and pleased that we jumped in and ended up really enjoying the time with us. We were in awe of all that she was managing in her own life!
• Chuck, currently unemployed and eager to find work to support his wife and kids, won over everyone with his sweet smile and great work ethic. When a couple of Common Purpose members helped him look into job opportunities, the challenges he faces in terms of lack of access to and familiarity with technology brought home the barriers the working poor face.
• Jerome, an ambassador of sorts in his neighborhood, who everywhere we went seemed to encounter people who knew and liked him. He was relentless in engaging with potential voters about their right to vote. In addition to his talents of persuasion, Jerome was also a terrific source of restaurant recommendations. Over one of our delicious lunches, we asked how he became so aware of the importance of voting. He shared how when he was growing up during the Reagan years, an elementary school teacher had explained just how important voting was, and he had decided that when he grew up, that was something he was going to do. (Shout out to all you educators: your lessons really do matter!)
By the time our four days of canvassing in partnership with OFA and Local 1199 ended, we had collectively knocked on 8,000 doors! The energy and determination of our partners had inspired us, and exciting ideas for cross-pollination and future collaboration bubbled up amongst OFA, Common Purpose and 1199SEIU leaders. After our week in Pinellas County, what resonates most is a sense of deep admiration for the local people we partnered with there.
The day after the election, Common Purpose General Manager David Domke wrote to Malanda and Clara Smith of 1199SEIU, “We were with you yesterday, and we’re with you today. And we’ll be with you tomorrow.” The campaign was ending, but as our Team Florida member Bobbi Geiger continued to urge, we are not engaged for a moment, but rather in a movement.
Written by Amy Sommers.
"It ain't over 'til the last vote is counted."
Team Florida was warned that first night (which seems like a lifetime ago), huddled in Andrew Gillum’s cramped, sparse strip mall campaign office. Marcus, the campaign manager for Pinnellas County, gave us the lowdown: “It ain’t over ‘til the last vote is counted.”
Florida swings on one percent of the vote. A mere 250,000 votes make or break a campaign, and will determine if Andrew Gillum is the state’s first African-American governor or Bill Nelson remains a moderate Democratic voice in the Senate. Team Florida was warned that first night (which seems like a lifetime ago), huddled in Andrew Gillum’s cramped, sparse strip mall campaign office. Marcus, the campaign manager for Pinnellas County, gave us the lowdown: “It ain’t over ‘til the last vote is counted.”
Volunteers Malanda and Shayne headed up the Organizing for America (OFA) effort, while Clara, the Local 1199 union rep, managed to get local volunteers from south St. Petersburg to pound the pavement with us. These women worked their butts off, morning to night, getting the vote out. Every morning they prepared the turf we were going to conquer that day.
It was hard work. Door after door in the heat, and when you finally got one that said “Yes, I’ll vote,” or “I’ve already voted,” you wanted to hug them. We hit neighborhoods three times. The first round was: “Did you get a ballot? Are you going to vote?”. Next was “knock and drag,” bringing a voter to the polls or helping them design a plan to vote. One of the doors I knocked on was answered by an older gentleman from Jamaica, who was visiting his brother. He spoke in a lilting accent. “The world is watching. We are all watching you,” he said. “This election is not about Donald Trump but about which direction this country will take.”
Election Day dawned hot and clear. We reported at 7:30 am to the temporary mission control across from Tropicana Field, where the Tampa Rays play baseball. Our mission: a no-holding back, no bullshit, no excuses, “get your butt to your precinct and VOTE!” effort. Malanda explained it was like wringing a wet towel: each time you squeeze, more water comes out. Every last drop is precious when there is less than one percent difference between winner and loser.
Amy Sommers and I paired up to tackle the turf further out toward the Gulf. This was a very suburban, well-kept neighborhood with a golf course running through it that required miles of walking, according to Amy’s Fitbit. Dang, we sure worked up a sweat, and by 9 am, we took shelter under a tree and assessed our strategy. As we cooled down, we waved to all the ladies driving by in their golf carts, heading to the links.
And of course, they waved back. We may have had our Andrew Gillum blue t-shirts on, but we were nice ladies just like them. This neighborhood didn’t scream Republican. In fact, the few political signs I saw were for Gillum or Second Chances, the initiative that would restore voting rights to felons. Why weren’t we knocking on their doors? Had all these people already voted?
This is the point where either I became delirious or had an aha moment. We need to get those women out of their golf carts and pounding the streets like Cynthia Issac, a lifelong resident of south St. Pete and my partner during the second half of the day. Cynthia cares for her ailing father and a special needs grandchild, as well as raising two other grandchildren. She took time out of her busy life to get out the vote because it’s the one thing that can make a difference and where color or income doesn’t matter. Cynthia believes that the vote is one way to change a system that isn’t working. At the end of the exhausting day, she turned to me and said “I want to do this some more. Where do I sign up? Where do I join a group like yours?”
To inspire people, to empower people to make a difference is the power of groups like Common Purpose and Organizing For Action. It’s how we are going to turn this country around. It’s not just one person, one group, one party that will right the course but many of us working together that will make a difference. While I hope the results in Florida, Georgia, and Arizona swing toward blue, I am ready to go again. This battle is more than one election.
Written by Seanna Browder.
"Now, you vote. You vote for me because I can't." Restoring Voting Rights in St. Petersburg
James is a lifelong resident of St. Pete, and has been my partner for the past two days in getting out the vote. James is adamant while talking to voters. “Now, you vote. You vote for me because I can’t vote. It ain’t right. I made a mistake and I’ve been paying for it all my life. I want to vote. That is why I am out here. You gotta vote for me.”
James is a lifelong resident of St. Pete, and has been my partner for the past two days in getting out the vote. He’s part of the Local 1199 group, which has teamed up with Common Purpose’s partner Organizing for Action to bring people to the polls in Pinellas County, Florida. It’s exciting times here in Florida. Andrew Gillum is running for governor and could be the first black governor in the state---EVER!
Making history is fun, but for James it’s real. He committed a felony in his youth and hasn’t been able to vote in 30 years. He’s only cast one vote in his entire life. This makes him the best spokesperson for ballot amendment #4, Second Chances, that will give the right to vote back to 1.4M Floridians who have committed felonies and served their time. James knocks on doors wearing his T-shirt that reads, “Florida believes in second chances. It’s the right thing to do.”
James is adamant while talking to voters. “Now, you vote. You vote for me because I can’t vote. It ain’t right. I made a mistake and I’ve been paying for it all my life. I want to vote. That is why I am out here. You gotta vote for me.” Often, people behind the screendoors we approach are in the same predicament as James. “I can’t vote,” they mumble or snarl, but when they hear James’ story, they open their screens.
A St. Pete resident for more than 56 years, James knows everybody, it seems. His mother and grandparents live here. We cruise the streets and he yells out the window to folks or they yell to him. I am riding with a celebrity and start to wave out the windows, too. One time we go by a group of his buddies and I shout, “Go vote!” James chuckles and tells me I am messing with them.
We encounter all types of people as we knock doors east to west, south to north. There is the caretaker whose elderly charge wants to vote, but she is confused about where. No wonder: voting in Pinellas County is tricky. You only have so many days to mail in your ballot - which costs 71 cents in postage, by the way. You can early vote in person at the courthouse or in Gulfport but that ended November 4. You can’t vote Monday, November 5. And if you vote on Election Day, you can only vote in your precinct. Voter suppression is subtle.
Late Saturday afternoon we hit a huge apartment complex, maybe 500 apartments, with a numbering system that makes no sense. I’m ready to throw in the towel, but James won’t quit. We find a young man who hasn’t voted because he didn’t know where to vote. We give him the necessary information and he thanks us, shaking my hand. I almost cry. All my frustration and fatigue disappear in that moment. Convincing young people that their vote counts has been the biggest challenge. His response was a gift.
It’s not all work. James takes me to the best hole-in-the-wall restaurants for lunch. The deal is, I pay for lunch and he pays for gas. Saturday, I had a blackened shrimp salad, and Sunday, short ribs in a Jamaican place. Ice cream trucks come down the streets of the “good” neighborhoods and I get so excited because I won’t see an ice cream truck until July. I discover flip cups: frozen cups of juice that you drink until you flip the frozen mass over to create a slushie. So delicious! Good thing we are walking a lot.
Now it is Monday, one day before Election Day. I will be missing my wingman, as James returns to his day job, but hopefully the education he gave me over the weekend will pay off as we hit the streets once again.
Written by Seanna Browder