For those who were able to attend the rally/demonstration event at the Westborough Rotary last Saturday, thank you! The rally/standout was organized by the Willows and they were a very enthusiastic bunch and very willing to do it again!! They even brought extra signs, we received lots of favorable honks and people who spontaneously joined in!! On a Westborough FB site, there were at least 20 people wanting to be a part of future rally events. It would be wonderful to partner with The Willows for the next one… they are fired up!!
There seems to be some effort afoot to refer to the activism activities as “PROTECTORS OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY”, rather than “protestors”. This is taken straight out of indigenous Hawaiian activist playbook. The indigenous Hawaiians realized, long ago, that words matter and the word “protestor” is triggering in the American context. It is being suggested we emulate this, because we are not being “Protestors of American Democracy” but rather “Protectors of American Democracy”, and to correct anyone who says otherwise. It takes a critical mass of people to do this but once accomplished, it changes the entire dialogue and perspective in our favor. So let’s continue PROTECTING wherever we can!!
Every action is a building block – success is measured by expanding participation, bringing in new constituencies. Building widespread popular opposition is essential to pressure institutions: the judiciary, law firms, universities and more. We are following other Indivisible Facebook Pages, and some of their information has been used within this newsletter.
Some good news:
- America’s colleges, universities, and scholarly societies are banding together to push back against the administration’s efforts to bully and defund them. Read more about it here (AACUA.org).
- The Trump Administration reversed abrupt termination of students’ US visa registrations. Read more about it here (Politico).
BOYCOTTS
- April 21-28: General Mills Blackout – Exposing food industry corruption.
- May 6-12 Amazon Boycott 2
- May 20 -26 Walmart Boycott 2
- June 3-9 Target Boycott 2
- June 24th – 30th McDonalds Boycott
ACTION ITEMS: IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL EVENTS
- April 26th In Person: Hosted by Great Assabet Indivisible Network (GAIN) April 26th 3pm – 5pm at the First Parish Church 40 Church Street, Northboro. Defunding NIH and What it Means For You. Keynote speaker is Dr. Rachel Sirianni, Biomedical Eng., Professor & Vice Chair of Research for Neurosurgery at UMass Chan Medical School. GAIN is very welcoming and positive in wanting to partner with us!
- MAY 1ST IS THE NEXT “PROTECTING AMERICAN DEMOCRACY” RALLY DATE – We hope to provide more specific info of local events scheduled. We will send a follow up email with specifics if we find local events to participate in.
- Virtual: May 7, 2025 – DEMOCRACY IN PERIL – join this discussion with two renowned experts on this very topic, it’s free and the link provides registration information/process. (Feel free to forward to others as well.)
- Our Group Meetings will be the 2nd Tuesday of the month @6:30pm
STAY STRONG, STAY ENGAGED!! WE KNOW, IT CAN BE EXHAUSTING. BUT WE ARE MAKING PROGRESS!!!
- SOCIAL SECURITY: Visit the official Social Security website – https://ssa.gov.
- If you haven’t done so already, it is suggested to CREATE an account or sign-in and download/print your personal Social Security Account information. This will show your work history, contributions and your anticipated pay-out schedule based on your retirement age(s).
- Downloading/printing will provide you with physical information, in the event you need it someday.
- CREDIT FREEZE: The three credit bureaus offer “Credit Freeze” at no cost/charge. Given the breaches to our personal data during this administration’s activities it is suggested to protect ourselves as best we can. Visit each of their separate websites and opt to “Freeze” your credit. This can easily be reversed in the event you are applying for credit, a loan or mortgage. The three bureau websites are easy to navigate:
- TransUnion
- EquiFax
- Experian
westboroughindivisible.org 
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