Dear League members, partners, and friends,
The Leadership Team is honored to be elected by our members to guide LWV SLOCO as we confront the challenges of these tumultuous times. We are inspired by your confidence in our ability to lead our local efforts to empower voters and defend democracy. We are encouraged by the level of engagement our members and community partners have shown in supporting our work.
We begin our term at a pivotal moment in our country’s history. We are confronted by direct threats to the foundations of our democracy and we are facing a constitutional crisis. Executive overreach, defiance of the judiciary, attacks on the rule of law, and the failure of Congress to act have created fear and chaos in our communities. The League at all levels – national, state, and local – is striking back.
At the national level, LWVUS has launched the Unite & Rise 8.5 Initiative to mobilize 8.5 million voters to oppose the autocratic, unlawful, and inhumane policies and actions of our current government. We will support this initiative locally and you will hear more about this effort in the coming weeks.
Also locally, our membership has given us clear direction on the use of our resources. At our biennial meeting in May, members adopted a program focused on civic education and information literacy; housing and homelessness; environmental stewardship and climate resiliency, and immigration and civil rights. We will follow local issues in these areas and inform you what’s going on through public forums, webinars, Lunch with the League programs, and Voter articles.
These two critical elements – Unite & Rise 8.5 on national issues and our local program – will form the basis for our activities. We will build on what we’ve done before and take on new challenges. We cannot do this alone. We call on our members, community partners, and everyone committed to defending democracy to stand with us and protect the America we love – an America based on law, science and truth, human rights and civil liberties, decency and respect for all people.
Yours in League,
Janice Langley, Kim Gravell, Joanne Schultz, Wendy Brown, Jacquie Canfield
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