Happy New Year, LWVOR Members and Supporters!
I hope you had wonderful holidays and are excited to get to work in the new year! LWVOR’s top priority is voter education and advocacy, and we need volunteers to support the 2022 midterm elections. Watch for more information in the winter 2022 LWVOR VOTER, coming in early February.
Please remember, as a grassroots organization, League work begins with you! Please reach out to friends and colleagues who may be interested in our work and invite them to join our work!
IN THIS MONTH’S NEWS…
Voter Education, contact your rep to help locally with Vote411 and campaign events
Action never pauses. Our 2022 legislative advocacy needs your help.
Studies are progressing and some are thinking about new ones!
Have you seen our SHOP?
The above photos were taken at Deschutes County League’s Holiday Party!
VOTER EDUCATION
Voter Education Reps will meet this month to coordinate nonpartisan candidate outreach for VOTE411.org. We are already answering new requests; we do not endorse candidates and we do not support or oppose candidates or political parties. After primary election candidate filing closes on March 7th, we will invite all Oregon candidates whose filings include contact emails to publicize their information on our VOTE411 site. Please encourage and remind your candidates to look out for their VOTE411 invitation! If you enjoy event planning (forums) and/or database work (harvesting data from county and municipal elections websites), contact us at lwvor@lwvor.org for information on how to help with this critical work.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Please see the LWVOR calendar for local and other events as we receive them.
LWVOR Council The Lincoln County League will host, June 17-19, hoping for in-person, subject to change as needed. More soon.
LWVUS Convention 2022 The “first call” for June 23-26 and other information is posted. Note the end of January deadline for your League’s membership roster to get full delegation voting access!
LWV Webinar: WED January 19, 10 am: Democracy, Disinformation & Distrust: How do we Break Through to Advance Truth & Build Trust? Explore ways to build resilience to the impact of mis / disinformation. LWV Civil Discourse Network & the National Institute for Civil Discourse.
Civics Education partner events
The LWVOR has met with Oregon State Library staff to facilitate federal funding to underwrite Oregon Libraries Civics ED presentations later this year, partnering with the Oregon State Library and League member Donna Cohen, who would present them. These would be designed for attending library patrons. You may recall Donna’s Fall Workshop presentation several years ago, not recorded at her request. Her topics and schedule are on her website, www.civicthinker.info. For example:
Misinformation, Fake News, and Political Propaganda (registration listings at the individual libraries). Thursday, January 20, 6:30-8 pm, Tualatin Public Library
Tuesday, February 1, 7-8:30 pm. Albany Public Library
Wednesday, February 16, 6:30-8 pm. Cedar Mill Public Library
Sunday, February 27, 2-3:30pm. Hillsboro Public Library
ACTION
Advocacy at the BALLOT BOX!
The League is on firm ground to defend and push for these national and global efforts:
Voting Rights, safeguard our elections
Climate change, prepare to adapt where prevention deadlines have elapsed
The Right to Choose
League leaders are Chief Petitioners pushing Redistricting and Campaign Finance Reform initiatives to Oregon’s November 2022 ballots. See “People Not Politicians” (IP 34), and see Honest Elections, Fight Political Corruption and Require Transparency, parts I (IP 43), II (IP 44), and III (IP 45).
Please watch for volunteer calls to collect petition signatures.
Our Voter Education volunteers will research state ballot measures certified in August and prepare Voters’ Guide and Speakers’ Bureau coverage for voters. The Action Committee will decide which measures may merit taking a League position, then forward those recommendations to the board. Our Voter Education never simultaneously presents any League measure positions.
Please SHARE: The League never supports or opposes candidates or political parties. Sometimes, we support or oppose ballot measures based on our studied, nonpartisan positions.
Legislative Advocacy
Action volunteers virtually attended 2022 pre-session hearings last week. We need more volunteers to observe hearings and report to us, and to help with research. We need your expertise (or willingness to learn) about issues including health care, broadband, and many others listed in our Legislative Reports (Subscribe). Our member experts write testimony to influence legislation by applying League positions and perspectives. Please apply your knowledge! Step up and find a way to help.
STUDIES
Most of our study committees took some holiday time and are still on track with timelines.
Recommended Reading
For directly sourced reading instead of interpreted analysis, here’s the Congressional January 6th Report.
From Kathleen Hersh, with thanks:
Our Marion and Polk County book group started in 2000. Each year in August participating members suggest a book they have read and think others might enjoy. Some years the group agrees on an overall theme such as Oregon authors, and other years our list is eclectic. We have two rules: the member must have read their selection and our library should have at least one copy of the book on its shelves. In years past we met on the first Wednesdays, usually at a member’s home, shared tea and treats, and time to discuss the book. For the past two years, we’ve held a Zoom gathering. The member whose book is featured leads the discussion and begins with a brief explanation of why they selected the book. Then we do a round-robin, one minute for each member to talk about their major impression of the book. After that, the group begins discussion with the leader sometimes offering prompting questions.
In October we read The Lathe of Heaven, a novel by Oregon author Ursula K. Le Guin. It was published in 1971 and is a science fiction classic. Le Guin set the story in Portland in the late 20th or early 21st century. She refers to many places we all know. The world is dealing with exponential population growth, pollution, racism, climate change, decimation of the land and its natural resources, warming of the atmosphere, and war between nations.
The story is about a man, Orr, who is frightened when he realizes that his dreams can become reality, and about his therapist Doctor Haber, who is trying to treat him. The doctor, in an attempt to cure Orr’s problem, realized that he is able to alter the world through his suggestions to Orr when he enters a dream state. Haber can “improve the world” and his own life as he treats his patient. All this leads to many unintended consequences, such as every person being the same shade of gray, millions of people suddenly vanishing from the earth, and an alien invasion as a way to bring all the nations of the world together.
Although it was written 50 years ago, these are contemporary problems for us today. Our discussion covered many topics such as unintended consequences of our actions in our own world today. Who has the authority or right to implement changes? What is ethical behavior? Are there solutions to our problems? How do we remain true to our core values in changing times?
Whether our book is a work of fiction, or a book about the life of birds, or US diplomacy, we never lacked for discussion.
LWVOR Store
We’ve got new merch! Our store was looking a little bare and dusty, so we designed some new swag for you to show your League support! Check it out here.
Thank you for reading this newsletter! You can Manage Your LWVOR Subscriptions yourself for this monthly President’s Newsletter, the Legislative Reports, beginning again in February, and the quarterly VOTER.
Again, Happy New Year! From my desk to yours, please take care and find something to appreciate every day. That can be knowing you are making a difference with the League!
Becky Gladstone, President, LWVOR