FEATURED IN THIS MVCAN NEWSLETTER (8/14/22)

UPCOMING EVENTS

1. AIRLIFT SPECIAL MOVIE SCREENING WITH GRASSROOTS LEADERS IN LIVE DISCUSSION - Tuesday, Aug 16, 5pm-6pm

2. SAVE THE DATE: MVCAN MIDTERMS MOBILIZATION MEETING ONLINE - Sunday, Sept 18 - 4pm- 5pm

3. UPDATE ON OUR PUBLIC RECORDS ACT (PRA) REQUEST AND DENIAL FROM MILL VALLEY CITY COUNCIL

4. SUSTAINABLE MILL VALLEY “BIG IMPACT” EVENT - Tuesday, Aug 16, 6pm Online

5. JOIN CANVASSING IN TRACY FOR CONGRESSMAN JOSH HARDER-WEEKENDS IN AUGUST

6. POSTCARDING TO VOTERS IN SWING STATES IS GOING GREAT - JOIN IN!

WHAT WE DID

1. COMMUNITY TURNS OUT for ANTI-GUN VIOLENCE RALLY IN MARIN CITY LAST MONTH

2. AIRLIFT HOSTS CARRIE SANTORO, “PA STANDS UP” EXEC DIRECTOR and JACKIE PAYNE FROM GALVANIZE ACTION

3. MILL VALLEY CITY COUNCIL VOTES ON 8 YEAR HOUSING PLAN  

UPCOMING EVENTS

1

AIRLIFT MOVIE NIGHT WITH COMMENTATORS FROM THE FRONTLINES - Tues. August 16, 5pm- 6pm

Airlift is proud to announce our own screening of the film:

August 16, Tuesday, 5 pm PT / 8 pm ET

Followed by discussion and Q &A with leaders from grassroots organizing groups in voter suppression states

REGISTER HERE

Yes, there is voter fraud; however, it is being perpetrated by the Republican Party. In Georgia, Republicans wrote the vote suppression handbook that is now being replicated in numerous states where they dominate state legislatures. This movie looks at voter suppression and sabotage in Georgia, Florida, Texas and beyond.

We will watch an excerpt from the film and then have a lively discussion with leaders of our partner groups on the frontlines in Florida, Arizona and Texas. We’ll talk about what it takes for people of color to vote and what's being done to protect and reclaim the right to vote:

Bernice Lauredan, Dream Defenders

Tomas Robles, LUCHA

Claudia Yoli Ferla, MOVE Texas

2

SAVE THE DATE - MVCAN MIDTERM MOBILIZATION MEETING - Sunday, Sept 18 - 4pm - 5pm

Find out important information on what you can do to help Democrats get elected and hold the House and the Senate in key swing states and districts. Featuring Susan Bolle and speakers from Airlift!

3

MILL VALLEY CITY GOVERNMENT DENIES MVCAN AND MVFREE CALIFORNIA PUBLIC RECORDS ACT (PRA) REQUEST

After months of a hiring process for a new Mill Valley city manager, during which the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) experts were excluded from meaningful participation, the city’s new hire as city manager is an ex-policeman with no stated record of involvement in DEI policy. In late June the Mill Valley City Council announced the hire of the current Corte Madera town manager, a white man who has spent the majority of his career in Marin Police Departments. The City council has shared no specific information about experience and qualifications with respect to DEI.

In response to numerous questions and requests from the activist community, the City Council has completely refused to lend insight into the massive lack of transparency and contradictions regarding the hiring process. Therefore, the members of MVFREE’s Government Working Group and MVCAN leaders were compelled to submit a formal Public Records Act (PRA) request on July 6 for documents related to the hire - to provide transparency and explanations that the residents of Mill Valley deserve, and to help us learn how to avoid similar situations in the future.

On August 1st, the city responded to our PRA request with a refusal to provide any and all previously unreleased documents related to the city manager search. They justified their refusal by using an overly broad application of the allowed legal exemptions in the PRA - stating generally that every single document we requested comes under one or more of the fairly narrow number of exemptions. Defying common sense, somehow these exceptions for withholding public records just happen to encompass everything we asked for, no matter how much they would serve the public interest.

To counter this refusal from the city, we are now re-submitting the PRA request with language modified to accommodate the City’s reasons for withholding the documents.

We anticipate a much more robust document response this time, so community members can start to figure out how the flawed process resulted in the City violating its own stated values and commitments to its residents. Our goal is to assist all parties in improved future collaborations and respect for the centrality of DEI issues.

In terms of actions on this issue, we request that our readers please stay tuned for updates. It is likely that we will be reaching out to concerned residents in the fall to communicate their personal views to the Mill Valley City Council.

To learn more details of this issue, link here to our full original PRA request of 7/6/22: City of Mill Valley Public Records Act Request. Or, as usual, please email us at info@mvcan.org.

Join MVCAN and Swing Left Marin fellow activists, as we participate with The Democratic Club of Greater Tracy in canvassing and contacting registered Democrats in Tracy and Mt. House. Help to keep Josh Harder (CD9) in Congress and help put Democrats in local offices!

We worked to get Josh elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2020. Now, after redistricting he faces a tough race in the new CD 9 against a tough opponent. The Republicans have targeted this district for a win.

Now more than ever, we are doing the important work of engaging and informing voters of the importance of electing and keeping Democrats in office – AND GETTING OUT THE VOTE.

REGISTER HERE TO CANVASS

Upcoming dates in August:

Sun, Aug 14, 9:00am–1:00pm

Sat. Aug 20   9:00am–1:00pm

Sat, Aug 20, 9:00am–1:00pm

Sat, Aug 27, 9:00am–1:00pm

Sat, Aug 27, 2:00pm–6:00pm

Sun, Aug 28, 9:00am–1:00pm

Before you depart for Tracy:

PDI App: Download to your cell phone the "PDI Mobile Connect" app from your phone's app store - you cannot canvas without it. Do not try to set up a UN and PW as you will be given that information during training.

Check the weather forecast and dress accordingly. Bring water and a fully charged cell phone.

Training:

You will be provided with training if you are new to canvassing or rusty. You will also be trained on using the PDI app.

The Tracy Dems will get you registered and assign a partner if you do not have one. New volunteers can be assigned to an experienced canvasser. You will be given an assigned area to cover, scripts, and material to distribute.  

QUESTIONS?

Contact Bill Jansen, Canvassing Coordinator for MVCAN and Swing Left Marin

Phone: (415) 516-1112           Email: billjpolitics@gmail.com

6

WRITING POSTCARDS TO VOTERS IS GOING GANGBUSTERS! JOIN US!

As we have in recent months, we will continue reaching unregistered (but likely Democratic) voters in key battleground states with the help of Field Team 6. We've updated our scripts to reflect how Democrats are fighting for reproductive rights.

Our wonderful postcard writers have been working hard these past few months - here are the FANTASTIC results from July:

POSTCARDS sent in July:

GA - 39,984

AZ - 360

PA - 285

This easily breaks our prior monthly record of about 30k in June, and brings our total registration work to date to almost 212,000!

Our postcard plans are to continue to register Democrats through August. Then, around September 1, we will switch to Get Out The Vote (GOTV) postcards for the midterms.

Please join in- it’s easy! To get voter addresses and scripts for postcarding, please contact: politicalbobh@gmail.com.

WHERE WE’VE BEEN AND WHAT WE’VE DONE

1

REPORT BACK FROM ANTI-GUN VIOLENCE RALLY IN MARIN CITY

On July 29 more than a hundred community members participated in the "Stop the Trigger" march in Marin City against gun violence.

This followed a gun fatality that took place the preceding weekend, but more generally, the march was seeking healing in communities from all gun violence.

The event was powerfully led by Rev. Floyd Tomkins of St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Marin City.

Here is a link to the Marin IJ article about the march: Marin City Residents March For Peace In Aftermath Of Shootings.  

2

AIRLIFT SPEAKER JACKIE PAYNE FROM GALVANIZE and CARRIE SANTORO, “PA STANDS UP” - July 12

At the Airlift zoom meeting on July 12 more than 80 people attended. We heard from Jackie Payne from GALvanize Action about their mission to persuade rural women to "vote their values" -- which are often at odds with those of their Fox-watching husbands. Jackie shared GALvanize Action’s application of communications and behavioral research in developing messages that move rural women who are ambivalent about abortion to support Reproductive Choice. We also heard from Carrie Santoro, Director of Pennsylvania Stands Up about midterm elections issues in Pennsylvania.

Below is a link to the recording of the Airlift "From the Frontlines" event. It’s well worth a watch! The video includes the targeted ads that Jackie’s group developed.

Video: Reproductive Rights and the Mid-Terms

3

HOUSING ELEMENT PLAN IN MILL VALLEY:

MILL VALLEY CITY COUNCIL MEETS TO APPROVE

Last week the City met to evaluate the milestone housing elements plan for the next 8 years.

Cities and counties in California are required to update housing policies and programs in line with production goals set by state and regional bodies. Mill Valley has been allocated a goal of 865 new housing units to be built in the City over the next 8 years (2023 to 2031) of which 539 units must be for moderate income and below. The City of Mill Valley currently has 6,628 housing units.

The City Council has just approved a draft of the Housing Element plan for a total of 945 units and submitted it to the State for review. In the last stage of the process, the City Council made several changes to the plan in response to suggestions from community members, including a number from MVFREE focusing on the need to strengthen policies and programs to address Mill Valley as a segregated community and also in response to suggestions from MVCAN members.

The draft Housing Element designates three portions of Mill Valley for modified development standards that will allow more units per site, less parking, and taller building heights. Additional provisions of the Housing Element focus on encouraging mixed use housing in commercial areas, adaptive reuse of current commercial properties, accessory dwelling units, micro-apartments and non-traditional housing.

Stay tuned for information on the State of California’s response to Mill Valley’s plan, which should arrive in the next few months.

Again, if you have any questions, please email us at info@mvcan.org

**

JOIN AN ACTION TEAM

WANT TO GET MORE INVOLVED in a specific issue or support area? Much of MVCAN's work is done in one of our action teams. Click the team name to read their latest news and find their next meeting.

Civil Rights/Immigration battles for justice and fair treatment of women, immigrants, working people and followers of all faiths.

Communications works on strategy, branding, messaging and program development for MVCAN. They are looking for bright ideas and people who want to make them happen.

Eco Team are engaged in change at the local, state and national levels, to impact the CA carbon tax, climate change, and community outreach and action.

The Economic Action team runs AIRLIFT, our first national project. AIRLIFT funnels money to grassroots groups in winnable 2018 districts. These are seriously vetted groups that work all year round in their communities–they get tangible results without blowing through millions of dollars. Read about Airlift in the Huffington Post .

Electoral The Electoral Team is phone banking, texting and sending postcards to pass voting rights legislation in Congress and win Special Congressional Elections-- all laying the groundwork for the 2022 Midterms. Our team of experienced electoral leaders will coach you from start to finish, providing you with the background you need to talk with voters.

The Events team creates special events to engage our friends and neighbors to take political action with MVCAN.

Tech supports MVCAN through technology.

NEW TO MVCAN?

Visit MVCAN.org to learn about the organization and strategies, join a team, read past MVCAN newsletters, and gain helpful Resistance tools.

WANT TO VOLUNTEER YOUR SKILLS OR TALENTS?

Numerous positions and jobs are available – one-time or ongoing.  Contact volunteer@mvcan.org.

Thank you for all you do!
– June, Bernard, Eileen, Rebecca, and everyone at MVCAN

MVCAN News brought to you by June, Annie and Eileen