#GrabYourWallet and Boycott 45

​My Fellow Resisters,

Here are new updates and recommended actions from PAGE (Progressive Action Global Exchange) followed by inspiring reading/watching/listening suggestions from our own Kathy Sherretts (STOP, LOOK, LISTEN).

In solidarity,
Sage


PAGE Update

Just like every week under the Trump presidency, this has been a big one. First, take a moment to breathe a sigh of relief — and congratulate ourselves for every email, fax and call to our Members of Congress — because Obamacare is safe (for now) from legislative dismantling (see here for a rundown of the whole confusing process). But the repeal & replace effort has been a frightening demonstration of our degraded legislative process — rushed votes on mystery legislation, secret men-only committees, and outright lies to reporters — in the service of a bill which would deprive tens of millions of Americans of their health insurance. Let us not forget : THIS IS NOT NORMAL.

This week, we’ll be focusing on using our economic clout to withdraw our economic support for Trump, Jivanka, and the companies that tolerate this administration.
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PAGE Priority Actions

• Write a thank-you message to someone who fought for healthcare! We stopped the ACA repeal because so many worked so hard. Take a few moments to send an email or some social media love to someone you know who worked hard on this. Some ideas: ADAPT (a disability rights group which traveled to DC, fought for the ACA, and got arrested), and Repairers of the Breach, one of the faith-based organizations who organized hard on this.
  • Get creative! Draw a picture or make a piece of art expressing your gratitude!
  • Amplify your thanks on Twitter! Post your words of thanks to @NationalADAPT and @BRepairers and tag us at @SevillaResist so we can retweet you!
• #GrabYourWallet and Boycott 45 By now, you’re probably heard of Shannon Coulter and the phenomenon that is #GrabYourWallet. But have you grabbed yours?
  • Read up. Find out more about the #GrabYourWallet movement. Some two dozen retailers have dropped Trump products since the beginning of the movement. A new, similar initiative called Boycott45 focuses on bringing the pain to companies that rent real estate from Trump & Kusher.
  • Discuss the boycott movement with your family, friends & fellow resisters. What opportunities do you have to boycott from your country of residence? What will you achieve if you all work together to boycott companies that work with Trump?
  • Now take action. Look at the companies listed on the #GrabYourWallet and Boycott45. It may be hard to give up brands you genuinely love - but don’t you love democracy more? Get in touch with these companies and tell them that they don’t represent your values, and that you will stop patronizing them for that reason. Post on Facebook pages and tweet at businesses that support Trump or carry Trump products. And most importantly — ACTUALLY STOP BUYING THEIR PRODUCTS.
    Get digital support. Download digital tools to help you fight Trump while you shop, using the Boycott Trump app or the #GrabYourWallet Chrome plugin.

 

• Sign up for some social accountability. Once you’ve taken these steps - tell the world about it! Post a message on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and tell the world how you’ve finally cut the cord and stopped buying from Amazon, chewing Trident gum, etc. This will not only inspire others to do the same - it will also keep you honest and encourage you to stick to your personal boycott.
  
  

Bonus Actions

• Take a picture to the world you’re #NotTooFarAwayToCall. Action Together Zurich and Americans Resisting Overseas are organizing a social media campaign called #nottoofarawaytocall that will launch on Sept. 6. This campaign will feature Americans abroad calling their Members of Congress from locations around the world. For example, someone in Switzerland could call her Senator from the top of the Cathedral in Zurich or from a cable car or from in front of an Alpine cow.  Photos can also be funny  (i.e. calling from outside an IKEA in Sweden). Photos will be shared on social media, and a one sentence description of the call, e.g. "Calling Senator Chris Murphy from the Great Wall of China to thank him for supporting increasing the number of overseas refugees resettled in the U.S."
  • • Photos will be shared between September 6th and September 14th under the hashtag #nottoofarawaytocall - so start taking photos now!
    • Questions? Get in touch with Alexandra Dufresne at Action Together: Zürich, CH.

 

• Donate to Organizations Supporting Trans Rights. As you probably heard, Trump Tweeted this week that he would no longer allow Transgender people to serve in the military in any capacity. It’s clear that this policy is designed to exclude, marginalize, and frame Transgender people as “a burden.” Now is an important time to support organizations which work for Transgender rights.
• ​

STOP, LOOK, LISTEN! by Kathy Sherretts

The Philistines be upon us. 
I have found myself thinking about this James Thurber short story from 1931, and after some digging not only turned up the original story, but a short piece by a writer who was smitten with the protagonist's resemblance to Donald Trump well before the election…

Read Thurber's story here, or listen to it read by Keith Olbermann; Part 1 is posted above.

Podcast:
WNYC: On the Media: The messaging War over Single-Payer Health Care (12 min.)
For over 100 years, single-payer healthcare has been associated with a fear-mongering campaign over socialism. Florida State University's Jill Quadagno leads us through the hundred-year messaging war over universal healthcare in the U.S., including a recent rise in public support for a single-payer system.

Article:
Washington Post: I’m blowing the whistle on the Trump administration by Joel Clement
Removing a civil servant from his area of expertise and putting him in a job where he’s not needed and his experience is not relevant is a colossal waste of taxpayer dollars. Silencing civil servants, stifling science, and endangering communities have never made America great. 

Article:
The Conversation: Give and Take: A look at anti-panhandling measures by Brendan O'Flaherty and Gwendolyn Dordick 
The courts are saying that down-and-out Americans have a right to seek curbside alms despite efforts to ban the practice. Two scholars have come up with an alternative to anti-panhandling ordinances.