IT'S MARCH 16 AND HERE IS WHAT YOU CAN DO

Dear Friends,

What a difference a day makes. Or a week. Or two. Don’t know about you, but this all seems somewhat surreal.  All of a sudden, nothing’s open. All events are canceled. Schools and libraries are closed. And grocery stores are--OMG. And is this the first time you have become really obsessed about toilet paper, or ___________? You fill in the blank. For me, I was worried about not having balsamic vinegar. (Yes, I got some. There wasn’t quite the demand as there has been for paper products.)

Okay. Let’s all take a deep breath. We’re going to get through this. Some of us may contract the virus. Some of us may have to self quarantine because we have been exposed to someone who tested positive.  But breathe . . . .

Check out the website Flatten the Curve for more you can do to help mitigate the spread of the virus.  And pay attention to the Do’s  later in the webpage.

SO WHAT NOW?

Well, not that we had any doubt, but our President is sorely ill equipped to be in a leadership position and to deal with a global emergency.  My suggestion--avoid his press briefings, especially if you have high blood pressure.  But do watch the daily briefings from Governor Pritzker. Now that’s what we want from a leader!

Perhaps you voted early, or voted by mail.  You can still vote early on Monday, or vote Tuesday. But please vote.

DISTANCING?

So we are encouraged to practice social distancing (and of course forget the hugs or the handshakes). But how do you stay connected, How do you feel like a part of things? How do you not go crazy sitting at home, nowhere to go?

 

Here’s something I am going to suggest. Ask you to do, actually. Will you go to our blog and subscribe to it.? Go here. And then subscribe to the blog by entering your email address. 

Why? Because I think we need to stay connected. And I promise to have a new post every day this week (and with help from others ongoing). I want to focus on things we can do to keep our sanity during our confinement.  So please add your email!

If you want to help with this effort, write a blogpost or send ideas for what could be included, email me at westernfrontindivisible@gmail.com.

 

YOU DO HAVE A PHONE, RIGHT?

Well, there are a few calls you might want to make.

Support your neighbors’ health and economic stability.

Call: Senator Duckworth | DC: 202-224-2854 | Chicago 312-886-3506 and Senator Durbin | DC: 202-224-2152 | Chicago 312-353-4952

and your one House rep

Script: Hi. I’m calling from [ZIP], because I’m worried about the added stress that COVID-19 creates for the many people forced to work while contagious because they have no paid sick time. The Healthy Families Act (H.R. 1784/S. 840) would allow seven days’ paid sick leave and provide 14 more days during an emergency like the current pandemic. Can I count on [NAME] to support it?

Advocate for equal access to eventual COVID-19 treatments. 

Call or write: Alex Azar, Health and Human Services Secretary, 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201; 202-690-7000.

Script: I’m grateful that the government has already invested significant taxpayer dollars in research that could lead to vaccines and treatments for COVID-19. (Share your reasons for wanting life-saving medicines to be accessible to all.) When they become available, I ask that licenses be granted to multiple manufacturers, to avoid a monopoly that could create high prices. Thank you.

Support safe access to COVID-19 treatment for everyone. 

Write or Call: Chad F. Wolf, Acting Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 200 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20201; call via the DHS comment line at 202-282-8495.

Script: Hello, I’m from [ZIP] and want to express my concern about the impact of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) presence in public health institutions. As COVID-19 spreads, aspiring Americans currently face a troubling choice: seek treatment and risk ICE deporting them, or go untreated and risk spreading the disease in their homes and communities. This policy puts all Americans at risk, which is why I’m asking you to issue a public statement that healthcare facilities will be immigration enforcement-free zones for the duration of the outbreak.

If you want some more phone calls to make, go to our blogpage and keep on dialing.

LOOKING FORWARD

We will keep on meeting, but for right now, it will be a virtual meeting, through Zoom. Put on your calendar, Sunday, April 19th, 3 pm. And wait for instructions on how to access this virtual meeting. You’ll need either a phone or a computer.

And there will be postcards. Starting in May, there will be a campaign to send 2 million postcards to voters in Wisconsin AND Michigan. And you can be part of that. Because even if we can’t meet in person, we can get postcards to you to be working on.

So give your fingers a little rest, but be ready to jump back in . We will have successfully completed 3500 postcards to Wisconsin voters before their primary. How many shall we go for this time, for November? Twice as many? More?

UNTIL THEN

Stay well.

Stay safe.

Stay calm.

And reach out to your neighbors and make sure they are okay. And find something to laugh about.

We will get through this! And we will win in November!

All the best,

Etta

Please email us at westernfrontindivisible@gmail.com if you have any questions. Or comment on this blog.