From CNY Solidarity Coalition:
Annual Membership Meeting: Jan. 8, 2023, In Person 2 PM at Bishop Harrison Center
· Annual Report on our activities
· Financial Report
· Coordinating Committee elections
· Updates from Committees and collaborating organizations
· Committee Meetings starting around 3:30 PM
Our plan for the winter months, dependent on health warnings:
· We will schedule one in-person meeting per month.
· An additional Zoom meeting each month will likely be scheduled, depending on issues.
· Meetings will start at 2 PM, followed by in-person Committee Meetings
· In case of inclement weather or other issues, a notification and a Zoom link will be sent no later than 10 AM on the day of the meeting.
Coordinating Committee needs members! Normally 2 phone meetings per month, with a few tasks in between. If you’ve been wanting to get more involved, here’s your chance! Send your name to cnysolidarity@gmail.com if you are interested in joining us.
ARTICLES OF THE WEEK:
January 6 Committee Recommends Charges for Trump
Download the Executive Summary Here (110 page pdf.)
Read Heather Cox Richardson’s cogent comments Here
The Energy Department’s fusion breakthrough: It’s not really about generating electricity
“Because of how the Energy Department presented the breakthrough… news coverage has largely glossed over its implications for monitoring the country’s nuclear weapons stockpile. Instead, even many serious news outlets focused on the possibility of carbon-free, fusion-powered electricity generation—even though the NIF achievement has, at best, a distant and tangential connection to power production.”
Read it in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: https://thebulletin.org And thanks again to Rebecca Solnit
Interstate 81, Traffic And Air Pollution: Experts Analyze Highway Teardown’s Effect On Residents
“The lawsuit’s plaintiffs, including Onondaga County Legislator Charles Garland, said they are concerned the community grid will lead to increased traffic that would worsen air pollution on the South Side.”
“… (a study found) tearing down cross-city highways cut traffic on three replacement boulevards by at least about 30%.” Read it at www.CentralCurrent.org . And you can Donate while you’re at it.
Syracuse’s Messy I-81 Teardown Fight Shows the Challenge of ‘Reconnecting Communities’
“(County Legislator Charles Garland) claims that many locals agree with him: in a survey he commissioned, just 18 percent of residents of the area near the highway said they supported its removal, compared to 39 percent who favored repairing it. Notably, though, that survey only included 138 people, compared to the more than 5,000 comments in support of the teardown that the NYCLU says it has collected.” Read it at https://usa.streetsblog.org
ACTION ALERTS:
Urgent! Clothing Needed for Ballantyne Residents
Syracuse Tenants Organizing for Power! (STOP!) and Syracuse DSA
People are cold! Neither government nor corporations are stepping up to meet the needs. We are calling for warm clothing donations (i.e. coats, socks, gloves, and hats) for the children and the adults at Ballantyne Apartments. Residents have been without heating in the winter cold for more than four days with no sign of it being turned back on yet. If you have warm clothing donations or information on bulk surplus clothing, immediately contact us on Slack or email syracusedsa@protonmail.com.
Help Unchained Give Kids With Incarcerated Parents In New York State A Special Christmas!We are requesting donations for purchasing gifts chosen by incarcerated parents for their children.
Since we started our annual fundraiser four years ago, Unchained has been honored to be able to give over 100 kids in New York presents on behalf of their parents in prison. Without this project, many parents would feel helpless, unable to provide for their children at a special time of year, and kids would be left wondering why there are no presents from Mommy or Daddy under the tree. You can help us change that and keep the family ties between children and their parents strong! GoFundMe Here
Unchained is a local organization (https://www.weareunchained.org) which organizes and advocates to dismantle the carceral state and guarantee access to dynamic and culturally-relevant education. We invest in people locked up by police and locked out of schools to build power and chart a path toward liberation by making racial and economic justice a reality.
Support The Invest In Our New York (IONY) Campaign Calling For $40 Billion In Public Investments To Transform New York. See Teach-in 12/23, below.
Invest in Our New York’s 2023 agenda will tax New York’s millionaires & billionaires to fund public programs that benefit working-class families, Black and Latinx communities, youth, and many others. The IONY Campaign is calling on Governor Hochul and the Senate & Assembly to pass a budget in April that puts our communities first by funding public education, childcare, increased access to housing and health, solutions to the climate crisis, and more.
If you represent an organization that can endorse the campaign, use this link.
Push Governor Hochul to Sign the SIGH Act! (from NYCLU)
Over 200,000 New York youth attend schools within 500 feet of a major highway. Almost 90% of these schools teach primarily Black or Brown students. Students as young as 4 years old are forced to breathe in toxic air pollutants while they try to learn, affecting their health outcomes and academic performance.
The Schools Impacted by Gross Highways Act, also known as the SIGH Act, would end the practice of building new schools within 500 feet of a major highway. The SIGH Act is a crucial step in the fight for environmental justice.
The bill lead by Senator Rachel May and Assemblymember Latoya Joyner passed in both legislative houses. Now Governor Hochul has until December 31st to sign the SIGH Act into law. Join us in demanding Governor Hochul end this environmentally racist practice and protect the health and well-being of New York’s youth.
The SIGH Act must be signed NOW! #CleanAirCantWait
Sign our petition and send a message to Governor Hochul.
Send a tweet to Governor Hochul: Sample Tweets
Governor Hochul: End Poverty in New York State!
New York is the most unequal state in the nation. A new report shows that ultra-rich New Yorkers (those with wealth over $30 million) hold a staggering $6.7 trillion in wealth. Meanwhile 8.6 million New Yorkers are poor and low-income. Inequality has cost too much and has hurt too many in New York State: when wealth concentrates at the top, it depresses economic activity and has an outsized influence over government decision-makers. Meanwhile, vital resources are kept from those who are abandoned in the midst of abundance.
Read more, sign a petition to the Governor, and support the Poor People’s Campaign Here
Volunteer needed: Help the CNY Solidarity Coalition add events to our Google Calendar! We are looking for a volunteer to enter the events listed in our weekly newsletter to our google calendar once a week. To volunteer, send an email to cnysolidarity@gmail.com with the subject Calendar Volunteer.
Volunteer needed: Help keep CNY Solidarity’s website up to date! We are looking for a volunteer to post our weekly newsletter to our website once a week. No experience needed, we will train you. To volunteer, send an email to cnysolidarity@gmail.com with the subject Website Volunteer.
EVENTS/ACTIONS CALENDAR
No new events for this week. Please check out the Action Alerts above.
Here’s a calendar of art and music events: https://www.syracusearts.net/default.cfm
SAVE THE DATES
Central New York NOW Annual Meeting
Dr. Chloe Schwenke on Transgender and LGBTQI+
Tuesday, January 3, 2023 at 6:00 pm – Email nowcny@gmail.com for a link
Our upcoming Annual Membership meeting (all are welcome) will feature Dr. Chole Schwenke, LGBTQIA+ Diversity and Inclusion Expert. Dr. Schwenke is the author of “Selfish: A Transgender Awaking”
More Info: https://cny-now.com/home/events/ or https://www.facebook.com/events/663093591954751
THE SUM OF US: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together
Heather Mcghee Virtual Speaking Event
Tuesday, January 17, 2023 7:00pm – 8:00pm EST
CNY Community Foundation
You’ll hear from Heather McGhee, New York Times best-selling author and one of today’s most insightful and influential thinkers. McGhee reveals the devastating true cost of racism — not just for people of color, but for everyone. Join folks from across the state to hear what McGhee learned from interviewing Americans of all races during her journey across the country. This virtual event is free. Registration is required.
ONGOING EVENTS:
Looking For Flexible — No Meeting, No Committee — Opportunity To Oppose War And Oppression And Work For Peace And Social Justice?
We call it STREET HEAT: an easy, uncomplicated way –in solidarity with a handful of others — to stand up and out for what we stand for. Greeting passing traffic at rush hour with hand-held signs, we want to get them thinking about the day’s crucial issues.
First Tuesday Of The Month…4 to 4:45 p.m.: Killer drones
Hancock AFB (home of the 174th Attack Wing of the NYS National Guard), 6000 East Molloy Rd.
across from the main gate. Park on the south shoulder.
Every Friday…4 to 4:45 p.m.
West sidewalk of the broad intersection of Erie Blvd East & East Genesee St. in De Witt (across from the Fire Dept.)
For years our focus has been on solidarity with the people of Palestine; while the invasion of Ukraine persists, we also address that tragedy.
Our current stalwart team: Julienne, Les, Leslie, Geoff, Ed, Ann, Peter…. To learn more: Ed or Ann 315 478 4571
CNY Solidarity Coalition
Check out our Website and our Instagram.
Sign up for this newsletter Here
Twitter: @CNYSolidarity and @IndivisibleNY24
Facebook: www.facebook.com/cnysolidarity/ and
www.facebook.com/groups/IndivisibleNY24
Mailing Address: CNY Solidarity Coalition, 2013 E. Genesee St., Syracuse, NY 13210
To contribute: Donate Here through PayPal. Or send checks to mailing address above
Our Committees: To sign up for each of the committee mailing lists, contact the person listed.
Indivisible Onondaga County (Formerly Indivisible NY24): Contact: Deborah Rose: dcurryrose@gmail.com
Climate Justice: Contact: Dick Kornbluth dick@dickkornbluth.com
SLAT (State/Local Action Team) Contact: Peter McCarthy – pmccar1100@gmail.com
Beyond War and Militarism. A joint committee of CNY Solidarity Coalition and the Syracuse Peace Council. Contact: Ron Van Norstrand; ron@vannorstrandlaw.com
CNY Solidarity Coalition contributes regularly to local progressive organizations: Syracuse Peace Council, National Action Network, and Urban Jobs Coalition, as well as to our mailing list provider, RiseUp. We also make occasional donations as needed to other local groups. We depend on our supporters’ contributions for this.
To contribute: Donate Here through PayPal. Or send checks to the mailing address above.