It appears that there may finally be an attempt early next week to vote in the Senate about the Freedom To Vote: John R Lewis Act. We expect that this attempt will be filibustered. If that happens, we expect the Majority Leader will propose a rules change to amend the filibuster, to prevent the voting rights act from dying. Senators Manchin (D-WV) and Sinema (D-AZ) appear to be prepared to side with all 50 GOP Senators to block any such rule change, and thus kill this opportunity to preserve voting rights.
Our UU 5th Principle calls for the “use of the democratic process …in society at large”.
This is an historic moment.
Please consider committing to one action this weekend to support voting rights. The easiest and most fun is to contact any long lost friends you have in West Virginia or Arizona and ask them to make 1 call to their Senator (numbers are below).
There are multiple other options, especially if you don’t know anyone in those states! Below are some options from UU the Vote and from UUs for Social Justice.
From UU the Vote:
Join a phonebank to voters in Arizona and West Virginia
The time for us to put our faith into action is now. You don’t need to wait until MLK Day to once again call your Senators and encourage others to call. Our partners are also hosting daily phonebanks to voters in Arizona and West Virginia. Sign-up here.
Join the National Call-in Day on January 14
Use the Side With Love Action Center to call them TODAY! We have a goal of hitting 400 calls by Friday, January 14. We can hit that goal if you and 3 friends join this final push. Make the call!
Host or Attend an MLK Day Action
You can find or host an event – both on the ground and virtual – in your community here, or bring the MLK Day of Action to our congregation. Use this MLK Day of Action Toolkit to help you organize your event. Whether you attend an action or not, everyone is asked to make advocacy calls now and from their events over the weekend and on Monday.
From UUSJ:
A: Call: 1-833-345-2551 – Ask your Senators to do whatever it takes to pass the Freedom to Vote Act (S. 2747) and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (S. 4).
B: Call: 1-833-345-2554 – Ask President Biden to do whatever it takes to pass the Freedom to Vote Act (S. 2747) and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (S. 4).
C: Show your concern, join Daily Vigils with Faith In Action: Faith In Action is holding a prayer vigil each day from 12:00 – 12:15pm ET, beginning this Thursday, Jan. 13, and ending Tuesday, Jan 18 when the anticipated vote is expected, the vigil will be live-streamed on Faith in Action’s Facebook Live. You can register here for a daily reminder. They will have an exciting lineup of guest speakers across faith traditions to lead each day’s prayer.
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