Dear Markers For Democracy Community,
We have a number of special events outside of our normal postcarding hours coming up in the next few weeks that are highlighted below.
Join us and forward this invitation to your friends to invite them!
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Conversation with
Senator Cory Booker
Friday, March 25th at 11:00 am
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Co-hosted by Seniors Taking Action, Markers For Democracy, Team Min, The Downtown Nasty Women’s Social Group, and The Wednesday Group
Senator Booker, a member of the Judiciary, Foreign Relations, and Agriculture committees, is aptly suited to address the issues the nation faces at this critical moment and is committed to working this year to increase our margins in both houses of Congress.
Please mark your calendar and invite friends and colleagues to join us.
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Michael Waldman
President of the Brennan Center
Sunday, March 27th at 4:30 pm
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Join us on Sunday, March 27th for an important conversation with Michael Waldman, President of the Brennan Center for Justice and leading voice on issues of law, democracy, and justice about his recently reissued and updated book, The Fight to Vote. As Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock has said, voting rights are the fundamental rights in our democracy, and in the past two years, we have seen them come under attack by state legislatures around the country as well as the perpetrators of the Big Lie on the national stage.
The Fight to Vote traces the history of voting rights from the Founders’ debates, to the civil rights era, to the dire consequences of the Supreme Court’s gutting of the Voting Rights Act. The late Congressman John Lewis said of the book in 2016, “Waldman delivers a message every American needs to hear.” At a moment when American democracy stands at the precipice, the updated edition of The Fight to Vote puts the events of the last two years into historical context — and lays out their potential impact on voters and the country’s future.
You do not have to read the book to join the conversation, but if you would like to read it in advance, you can purchase it at: Bookshop.org, Greenlight Bookstore, and Amazon.
The Brennan Center for Justice is a leading voice in the fight for voting rights, democracy reform, and equal justice. A hybrid think tank, public interest law firm, and strategic communications hub, the Brennan Center crafts and advances vital solutions to build a democracy that works for all. Its expertise spans elections and redistricting, money in politics, mass incarceration, judicial independence, and beyond. Michael Waldman has led the Brennan Center since 2005.
If you would like to support the important work of the Brennan Center for Justice, donate here.
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Beautiful Country
by Qian Julie Wang
Obama Book Group (OBG) Discussion:
Thursday, March 31st at 8:00 PM (NEW TIME)
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In this extraordinary debut, civil rights lawyer Wang recounts her years growing up as an undocumented immigrant living in “the furtive shadows” of America. What sets Wang’s memoir apart is the narrowness of its scope: she covers a short period of time, from second grade through middle school, so you feel as if you’re traveling with her on foot instead of observing by drone, and, unlike other memoirists looking back through a scrim of nostalgia, Wang doesn’t romanticize her parents’ hard-knock decisions.
The narrative conveys the unique flavor and underlying beliefs of the author's Chinese heritage—and how they played out as both gifts and obstacles in the chaotic, dirty maelstrom of poverty. While Wang’s story of pursuing the American dream is undoubtedly timeless, it’s her family’s triumph in the face of “xenophobia and intolerance” that makes it feel especially relevant today. (320 pages)
If possible, please support your local independent bookstore when purchasing the book.
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Bill McKibben
Environmental Activist & Author
Founder of Third Act
Monday, April 4th at 7:30 pm
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Bill McKibben has been a leading voice of the movement to address climate change for several decades, and is the author of multiple books, including the forthcoming The Flag, The Cross, and the Station Wagon: A Graying American Looks Back at his Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened. He is a co-founder of 350.org, an international climate campaign that works in 188 countries around the world. His recent essay in the New Yorker, "In a World on Fire, Stop Burning Things," is a must-read about the urgency of ending large-scale combustion to save our planet.
He recently founded Third Act, an organization to engage "Experienced Americans ", the 10,000 people who pass the 60-year mark each day, which is the fastest-growing part of the population, and organize them for progressive change.
If you are 60 or over, approaching that landmark, or a younger fan of Bill McKibben from his decades of climate activism, we hope you will join us to hear from this inspiring leader. If you haven't read his op-ed in the New York Times, in which he talks about the importance of engagement and activism by the 60 and older crowd, it's worth a read.
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Kathryn Kolbert & Julie F. Kay
Reproductive Rights Attorneys
Tuesday, April 26th at 7:00 pm
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Many legal analysts expect that Roe v. Wade will be overruled or significantly curtailed this spring when the U.S. Supreme Court decides the pending case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health. When that happens, the battle for reproductive rights will move to statehouses, with many states with Republican majorities in their state legislatures -- including Arizona and Pennsylvania, the two states selected by the Markers For Democracy 2022 Giving Circle -- already introducing bills limiting abortions. But unlike the last 49 years, when the U.S. Supreme Court, bound by the precedent of Roe v. Wade, struck down similar state laws as unconstitutional, these new laws will not be struck down and will limit reproductive care for women in many states.
Markers invited Kathryn Kolbert and Julie F. Kay, leading lawyers and authors of the book, Controlling Women: What We Must Do Now to Save Reproductive Freedom to share what they've learned over five decades of legal battles, including the landmark case argued by Kathryn, Planned Parenthood v. Casey. They will also propose new strategies inspired by medical advances, state-level protections, human rights models, and activists across the globe whose courage and determination are making a difference. Please join us for this important discussion.
If you would like to purchase the book, you can buy it here or please support a local book store of your choice.
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Save the Date for our
Special Raffle Drawing on April 1st
Dear Markers For Democracy Community,
A big THANK YOU to the nearly 100 members who completed our first-ever Markers survey!! We truly appreciate you taking the time to give your input, and we're reading through all the results and comments thoroughly.
Save The Date for our live raffle of the ten prizes, Friday, April 1st during our morning postcarding zoom (time to be determined depending on whether we have a guest that morning, stay tuned). You don't have to be on the zoom to win your prize, but we hope you'll join in on the fun!
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