ICO Newsletter - 1/29/25

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Get ready: Shit hitting the fan faster than predicted 
Trump & MAGA Republicans are wasting no time unleashing a tsunami of vengeful, vicious, and crazy right out of the gate. If you’re feeling flooded—don’t panic! It’s intentional, and you’re not alone. Together we will take a stand and push back in defense of our democracy, common sense and common decency. 

Here’s how to get ready:
 

• Sign up HERE to sign our Rapid Response Readiness Pledge. Basically, this is an opportunity to be notified when we’re hitting the streets. If and when we decide to have a big protest rally in defense of our country and constitution, you will be the first to know.

• Sign up HERE to get calls to action in your inbox. We will email you with scripts and contact information when your calls or emails are urgently needed. It might be once or twice a week—maybe less. It depends how crazy and lawless Trump is on the daily. We’ll also post these calls to action on the group’s Facebook page, but this is a way to make sure you don’t miss the important stuff.    

• Sign up HERE to attend our 2025 Kickoff Meeting, Saturday, February 8, 1-2:30pm. We have over 300 people registered so far, and hope to double that before the event. Free on-site childcare will be available at the event! Fill out this form to let us know how many children you are bringing, and their ages. 

“No Trump Power Grab” Protest Today! 
Already ready to protest? Rick Neal (former Congressional candidate and all-around good guy) is organizing a protest for today, Wednesday, January 30, 3pm, 20 Cleveland Ave, Columbus. From Rick: “Come out and protest Trump's outrageous power grab - usurping Congress, blocking Federal funding, denigrating trans Americans, torching due process, tearing down our government. We'll be at the NE corner of E Broad and Cleveland Ave, in front of the Social Justice Park and across the street from the Columbus ICE Field Office. See you there!”

Federal Funding Freeze: TAKE ACTION
Use the script below to call Ohio legislators to tell them to take urgent action to block Trump’s federal funding freeze.

Sen. Moreno: 202-224-2315 (DC); 614-469-2083 (Columbus)
Sen. Husted: 202-224-3353 (DC) 
Rep. Beatty: 202-225-4324 (DC); 614-220-0003 (Columbus) 
Rep Balderson: 202-225-5355 (DC); 614-523-2555 (Pickerington)
Rep Carey: 202-225-2015 (DC); 614-927-6902 (Columbus)
(Not sure which one to call? Find your House Rep HERE.)

Cutting CRIS funding: Hitting where it hurts

The Trump team’s cuts are designed to hit where it will hurt. One of the most vulnerable populations are recently arrived refugees who are still getting their feet under them. CRIS is a fabulous local organization that works to make sure refugee families arriving for resettlement get off to a good start. 

This winter, a small group of ICO members have been serving as a Welcome Team for a Congolese family of 10 who arrived on December 19th. As we have helped our family settle in, we have seen first hand how vital CRIS's work is. 

Imagine our distress when we learned that a stop-order issued by the US State Department has put CRIS’s ability to fulfill its obligations to these families in jeopardy. Please take a moment to read about it HERE. 

We hope you will help us support their important work welcoming new members of our community. If possible, mention that you are with Indivisible Central Ohio! Together, we can have a real impact. 

Take Action this Week

1. Too many things happening too fast! Here’s a running list from Rachel Coyle of good and bad bills at the Ohio Statehouse, and actions you can take to support or oppose them. Bookmark this page! 

2. Track bills: A great way to track bills is by signing up for committee mailing lists. This guide will walk you through signing up for these mailing lists. Note: If you signed up last year or in previous years, you will need to re-sign up to continue receiving emails. 

3. First (and worst) out of the gate: SB 1 – Enact Advance Ohio Higher Education Act. This bill is very similar to the so-called “higher education destruction bill”/SB 83 that failed to pass in the last General Assembly – except it’s worse. See this statement from Sen. DeMora. Pending referral, SB 1 will receive a first sponsor/proponent hearing in the Senate Higher Education Committee on Weds., Jan. 29, 2:15 p.m., North Hearing Room.

What can you do now?
Contact your senator and these members of the Senate Higher Education Committee to say you OPPOSE this bill:

• Kristina Roegner, chair - 614-466-4823; roegner@ohiosenate.gov

• Jerry Cirino, vice chair (and bill sponsor) - 614-644-7718; cirino@ohiosenate.gov

• Catherine Ingram, ranking member - 614-466-5980; ingram@ohiosenate.gov

NOTE: After you have made your calls, take 10 seconds and record the call HERE in our Action Report. Use this form every time you reach out to an elected! Bookmark the link for future reference – or find it pinned at the top of our Facebook group page. 

Ideas and Inspirations for You

• A “Leaflet Every Doorstep” idea 

• What you can do, Robert Reich

• On Tyranny, Timothy Snyder

• Jon Stewart interviews AOC

Upcoming Events (Calendar view) 

Thursday, 1/30/2025: Thursday Action Group Meeting, noon-1:30. This week, let’s get together for an informal Zoom meeting. We will discuss what we learned from Joe Mas, as well as how we can turn despair into action by, 1) urging school boards, superintendents and city councils to enact policies that can protect our immigrant neighbors; 2) urging school boards to consider factors when drafting or revising RTRI policies; 3) encouraging school districts to sign on to the Vouchers Hurt Ohio lawsuit; 4) advocating for or against Statehouse bills. Join the Zoom call HERE. 

Thursday, 1/30/2025: Ramp Up for Repro Zoom training, 6pm. This training from Abortion Forward will further acquaint you with political advocacy tactics, repro lingo, and help you find the best way to get involved. Every month, we dive into movement ecology, abortion messaging, the current landscape of abortion access, and provide next steps for you to take action! 

Thursday, 1/30/2025: Science Lecture Series: Psychology & Climate Change with Dr. Susan Clayton, 6-7:30pm, Battelle Fine Arts Center, 170 West Park Street, Westerville. 
This talk will review several ways in which psychological research and expertise can help us to understand reactions to climate change, and to encourage more positive responses. Dr. Clayton will discuss how to better understand the ways in which people perceive the risks of climate change, the ways in which climate change threatens psychological well-being and undermines social justice, and how behavioral interventions can be used to encourage adaptive responses.

Tuesday, 2/4/2025: Westerville City Council: Pass a Conversion Therapy Ban! 7pm, 229 Huber Village Blvd, Westerville. Join us at the Westerville City Council to support passage of a conversion therapy ban. This council meeting is tentatively scheduled as the second reading of the ordinance.

Saturday, 2/8/2025: Indivisible Central Ohio 2025 Kickoff Meeting, 1pm, First UU Church, 93 W Weishheimer Rd, Columbus. Are you ready to take action? Join Indivisible Central Ohio for their 2025 kick-off meeting. We're ready to orient and engage new members, as well as refresh and re-energize those who have been with us from the beginning. All are welcome! With Trump back in office, there is much work to be done, at the local, state, and federal levels. Join fellow activists to learn how we can keep working for the world we want to see and pushing back against the nonsense.  RSVP at this link! 

Wednesday, 2/12/2025: Fair Districts All Volunteer Huddle, 6pm, via Zoom. At the Huddle we’ll take a look at what’s ahead in 2025 for redistricting in Ohio. We’ll touch on local Ohio redistricting efforts (recent and upcoming).

Wednesday, 2/12/2025: Documentary “BAD FAITH” with Upper Arlington Progressive Action, 6pm, Phoenix Theaters, Lennox Town Center, 777 Kinnear Rd, Columbus. BAD FAITH is a must watch documentary for those who want to learn the history behind the rise of Christian Nationalism in the United States, and the dire implications it could have if they succeed in their goals. Join UAPA members and friends for a FREE screening of this important movie, followed by discussion. See the trailer. Read the Variety review.

Saturday, 2/22/2025: Ramp Up for Repro Columbus in person training, noon. This training from Abortion Forward will further acquaint you with political advocacy tactics, repro lingo, and help you find the best way to get involved. Every month, we dive into movement ecology, abortion messaging, the current landscape of abortion access, and provide next steps for you to take action! 
 

Mia for the OHCentral Team

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Find us at our website indivisiblecentralohio.org. Follow us here and on our public and closed Facebook pages to stay current with all our activities. Add our Indivisible Central Ohio Google Calendar so you can follow all our events. You can also follow us on Threads, Instagram, Bluesky, and YouTube.