April 12, 2024
Voting by mail, over-the-counter contraceptives, letter-writing event, and more!
Contact all members of Congress:
By phone: (202) 224-3121
By email: democracy.io
By US mail: Representatives / Senators
By fax: Representatives / Senators
By Resistbot: Resist.bot
Contact White House or other federal agencies:
PROTECT VOTING BY MAIL
Utah is the only consistently Republican-voting state that sends a mail-in ballot to all voters. Republican lawmakers are doing what they can to undermine the system, despite its popularity with voters: 76% say it produces fair outcomes. If we vote in Utah, let's contact our local legislators—particularly if they include State Representative Norman Thurston (district 62)—and tell them the Utah vote-by-mail system is working and doesn't need their restrictions. If we vote in California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, or Washington—the other places with automatic mail-in ballot systems—let's also contact our local legislators with a preemptive message to protect our vote-by-mail system.
VOLUNTEER BLUE AND HEATHER COX RICHARDSON
Today, April 12 at 3 – 4:15pm EDT, Volunteer Blue, a new joint effort of 15 highly committed organizations, is hosting historian Heather Cox Richardson in a virtual Zoom event on why democracy needs us. Richardson will speak about the stakes of 2024 elections and what we can do to defend democracy. The afternoon will include a Q&A with Heather, as well as a discussion of key races and chances to find important opportunities to volunteer. Let’s sign up here.
MAKE OVER-THE-COUNTER BIRTH CONTROL PILLS AFFORDABLE
Over-the-counter contraceptive pills are now available in the U.S. This is an important Biden-Harris achievement for reproductive healthcare. At $90 for a 6-month supply, however, many people can't afford this option. Under Obamacare, birth control pills obtained by prescription are often covered by insurance but coverage of over-the-counter pills isn't always clear. Let's push for equitable access to this medication with a message to the White House to companies cover over-the-counter, nonprescription birth control pills without out-of-pocket costs. We can contact Perrigo, supplier of the first over-the-counter pills, and press them to launch a promised assistance program that truly makes the medication accessible to all consumers. We can also ask our senators to prioritize the Affordability is Access Act (S.1698) which includes additional protections for over-the-counter contraceptives, and support the broader Right to Contraception Act (S.1999).
VOTE FORWARD LETTER-WRITING EVENT
Vote Forward, the organization that helps volunteers like us to reach out to voters in swing states, has launched its Big Send campaign to wrote 10 million letters to voters in 2024. As part of that effort, on Wednesday, April 17, 8-9 p.m. EDT, Vote Forward will be co-hosting with Stand Up America and NY Congressman Pat Ryan a virtual event to write letters to voters in competitive U.S. House districts in California and New York. Let’s register for this event and join with other letter-writers from across the country to urge likely Democratic voters to go to the polls.
STATE-SPECIFIC ACTIONS
AZ - SPEAK OUT AGAINST A BILL THAT WOULD MAKE KILLING UNDOCUMENTED MIGRANTS “TRESPASSING” ON PROPERTY LEGAL
The Arizona legislature has advanced HB 2843 which would allow the use of deadly force against anyone trespassing on people’s property, whether occupied or not. This addition to a current law that legalizes killing people who enter your home puts undocumented migrants at more risk, who often must walk across large ranches on the U.S./Mexico, even when their intent is to turn themselves into border patrol and request asylum. Let’s reach out to our state legislators and tell them this bill goes too far in disregarding the value of human life. Let’s also make sure that Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs knows that if the bill reaches her desk, we want her to veto it.
Will the interview with Heather Cox Richardson be recorded? TY