Wrapping Up May!
Where did this month go?!
Dear Fellow Democrat,
Let me start with an apology... It has been over three weeks since I sat down to write your weekly newsletter. Of course, you may not have noticed, if you've been as busy with All The Things as I've been! May is always a busy month for me as a Realtor, but I know that with school getting out, parents adjusting to new schedules, vacations starting, and life itself - a series of stuff that needs to be tended to - it's probably been a wild month for you, too. But we're still here and showing up as we can.
With the clean sweep of municipal wins, (YES! after all the mail in ballots were counted, our friend and RISD Trustee, Vanessa Pacheco won her race by only FOUR votes!),now we are moving on from showing up as voters and supporters of candidates into showing up in the CITIZEN space! We put so much emphasis on our responsibility as voters, but then often tend to check out after the election until the next election is on the horizon. The truth is, though, every day we are citizens of Richardson, of Texas, and of the U.S. and we have civic responsibilities to hold our elected officials accountable, as well as help them know how best to represent our interests. In Richardson, our city council meets Monday nights and there is usually something of importance to be aware of, informed about and to make our voices heard about! Justin Neth does a great job of keeping us updated on the Council meetings as well as some of the other Commissions and Boards meetings. Sign up for his updates! And keep reading this newsletter for highlights that we want to show up for!
Tomorrow morning, Garland Area Democrats is hosting Congressman Joaquin Castro at their weekly Zoom call! You can register to participate in the call and hear about what's going on behind the scenes in the House of Representatives! Click here to register and look for the Zoom link!
You may have heard about the Military Parade / birthday party for the would-be king (and, oh yeah, the Army's 250th birthday) on June 14th. I won't go into the horrific details, but what I DO want to inform you about is that WE will be showing up along with thousands of other protestors for the NO Kings Mass Protest in Dallas. RAD will be meeting at the Arapaho Dart Rail and going down to the protest together. You can sign up for details and to join us at this link. There will be over a thousand of these protests across the country. It is urgent that every able-bodied citizen, regardless of political affiliation, shows up to tell this out-of-control tyrant that WE ARE AMERICA, and in America, We Do Not Have Kings! JOIN US!!
The regular session of the Texas legislature ends Tuesday, June 3. It's been extreme, to say the least, this session. But there is some good news. Last newsletter, I asked you to call your representatives to voice your opposition to the hideous SB2880, that would have made abortion pills a crime, along with an awful smorgasbord of other (intended) consequences. Thankfully, that bill did not get voted in this session, so we have some small relief, and SB31 (the bill that clarified medical exceptions for the life of the mother) stands as a small but important victory. Please recognize that your voice Does matter!
Again... DON'T FORGET OUR MONTHLY HAPPY HOUR!! We meet every third Thursday of the month and in June we'll be focusing on WATER! We're still working on the program, but we know that former City Council member and retiring member of the North Texas Municipal Water District Board, John Sweeden, will be joining us to educate us and answer questions about our water sources! Thursday, the 19th, we'll be back at our favorite brewery, Four Bullets! SIGN UP HERE for details!
There's a lot going on... We have a lot of opportunities to Show Up as Americans, as local citizens, as the resistance... but don't forget or forego showing up for yourself.
~ See You Soon ~
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Once again, if you haven't done so yet, we invite you to join or renew your membership in Richardson Area Democrats. Your suggested donation of $10/month will help us continue to build this inclusive community! Thanks for all you do.
