Benton County Democrats

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Faith Action Network Update 12/16/2022

Posted on December 16, 2022

Preparing for the Legislative Session

Our attention continues to turn to the 2023 Legislative Session, and next week our legislative agenda will be finalized for approval by FAN’s Governing Board. We will share it with you soon!

One way you can get ready for the legislative session is to make sure you know your legislative district after 2022 redistricting. Meanwhile, we encourage you to register for our pre-legislative-session trainings that will take place the first week of January. Please share in your communities:

Thursday, January 5, 6-7pm, online, FAN 2023 Legislative Preview, an overview of what to expect this session and FAN’s legislative agenda. Register for Zoom link here.

Sunday, January 8, 2-3pm, online, FAN Advocacy 101, presenting advocacy tools to use during the session. Register for Zoom link here.

Eastern Washington Legislative Conference: Caring for our Common Home, Saturday, January 21, 8:30am to 3pm, at Spokane Valley United Methodist Church and online. The day will include plenary sessions, legislative briefings, and workshops. Register here.

Interfaith Advocacy Day, Thursday, February 9, 9am-3pm, in Olympia. More details and registration soon.


Protect Dreamers and Other Immigrants

With our national partners at ELCA Advocacy and Interfaith Immigration Coalition, we are highlighting International Migrant Day this weekend as the culmination of a week of action for immigrant justice. With only a few more weeks left in this 117th Congress and an impending court ruling on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Congress has a narrow window of opportunity to pass legislation protecting Dreamers and their families, as well as other undocumented immigrants.

The United Nations has declared December 18 International Migrants Day, asserting: “Mounting evidence indicates that international migration is usually positive both for countries of origin and of destination.”

We can help make a difference for these neighbors who strengthen our communities! Please write now to our Senators using the template linked here.

The House has passed the Dream and Promise Act (H.R. 6), which would provide a pathway to citizenship for qualifying Dreamers, as well as Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) holders living in the United States. Undocumented farmworkers should also be included in this legislation. The Senate needs to act, by advancing H.R. 6 or a different bill. 

Some facts/resources to support your letters to Congress:

The National Interfaith Immigration Coalition Toolkit has resources for how we can take action for citizenship now.  

Immigrants Boost Economic Growth: The 10.2 million undocumented immigrants in the US have lived here for an average of 16 years, and putting undocumented immigrants on a pathway to citizenship would increase U.S. GDP by up to $1.7 trillion over the next decade, raise wages for all Americans, and create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, advancing the country’s economic recovery.

Immigrants Are Essential to Agriculture: Immigrants make up 72.6% of the farm workforce in Washington.

Our partners at ELCA Advocacy and AMMPARO shared this toolkit in Spanish with social media posts.

Grounding advocacy in our faith traditions:

Take Action

Faith Voices For Workers

FAN has a long relationship working for justice with organized labor. We are grateful for FAN’s office to be located in SEIU Local 6 building in Seattle, where we see and hear their members’ struggles every day. We have historically teamed up to get minimum wages in SeaTac, Seattle, then statewide.  We have also participated in many labor actions to create better working conditions.

In the year ahead, we plan to re-establish regular faith-labor discussions and joint work.  Please respond to our Economic Justice Working Group co-leader Steve Claggett at economicjustice@fanwa.org if you would like to be informed of and/or participate in this effort. Are you a member of a union and a faith community? We’d love to have you in the conversation!

Meanwhile we will share opportunities for solidarity as they arise, and this week we highlight the following efforts. The United Food and Commercial Workers, UFCW 3000, has requested our presence at informational picket labor actions next Wednesday December 21, in three locations for workers who launder linens and uniforms everyday for restaurants, hospitals and other industries, and have been at the bargaining table since September.

Kent: 9:00-11:00am at Aramark, 7810 S 228th St, Kent, WA 98032. 

Tacoma: 11:30am to 12pm, at 6445 S Adams St, Tacoma, WA 98409.

Everett: 9am to 10am, 7200 Hardeson Rd, Everett, WA 98203.

SEIU Local 6 also invites our solidarity: SEIU6 airport workers are joining airport workers across the country in calling on Congress to stand with working people and sign the Good Jobs for Good Airports Act. Airport passenger service workers like wheelchair agents and cabin cleaners have been facing a crisis of corporate greed for decades. This largely Black, brown, and immigrant workforce is denied affordable healthcare here at SeaTac, and faces poverty wages at airports across the nation. Please join us in sending a message to Congress to pass the Good Jobs for Good Airports Act to raise wage and benefit standards for airport workers everywhere. 


The Longest Night for People Experiencing Homelessness

The Homeless Remembrance Project in Seattle will hold their annual Women in Black Solstice Vigil on the evening of Wednesday, December 21, starting with an informal ritual and reading of names at sunset (4:21 PM) at Seattle City Hall Plaza (4th/James), and moving into an hour-long candlelit vigil from 5-6 PM. They will be remembering more than 200 people who died this year while unhoused and marking national Homeless Memorial Day with a call to action. Anitra Freeman from WHEEL and the Remembrance Project shared why the vigil and your participation matters: What I hear again and again when deaths and vigils come up in writing workshops is “we’re dying and nobody cares.” And what I hear from friends and family of the people we stand for, and from homeless women who stand, is “You see us. You remember us. You care. Thank you.”

Other cities in our state also mark this longest night for people experiencing homelessness—if you know of another event we can share via social media, please let us know.

Our national partners at Lutheran Advocacy Ministry in Pennsylvania are helping produce a Homeless Remembrance Blanket Project art display and press event on the West Lawn of the Capitol in D.C. on Dec. 21, in which participants across the nation are taking part through blanket making, logistics, and follow up with lawmakers.  At the time of writing, over 1,500 blankets have been committed to the event, which will cover a considerable amount of area along the West Lawn of the Capitol. More information here.


We always post the E-News to our website each week at fanwa.org/news/.

Faith Action Network
3720 Airport Way S
Seattle, WA 98134
United States

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Trump team urged Ukraine to take U.S. deportees amid war, documents showBy Adam Taylor, SARAH BLASKEY and Siobhán O'GradyThe Washington PostThe Trump administration earlier this year urged the Ukrainian government to accept an unspecified number of U.S. deportees who are citizens of other countries, according to documents reviewed by The Washington Post, an extraordinary request of a nation at war and dependent on American military and financial support for its survival.The documents do not indicate how officials in Kyiv responded to the late-January proposal, relayed by a senior U.S. diplomat, that called for sending third-country nationals to Ukraine amid Russia’s deadly, devastating invasion — and despite the absence of a functioning airport there due to continual air attacks. A Ukrainian diplomat informed the U.S. Embassy only that her government would offer a response once it formulated a position, according to the documents, which show that similar proposals were issued to several other countries around the same date.Ukraine has not accepted any third-party nationals from the United States, and there is no indication that Kyiv seriously considered the American proposal. Two Ukrainian officials familiar with the matter, who like some others spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss interactions with the Trump administration, said the topic never reached the government’s highest level. One of the officials said he was unaware of any “political demands” made by the United States regarding its desire for Ukraine to take in deportees.The State Department said in a statement that “ongoing engagement with foreign governments” was “vital to deterring illegal and mass migration and securing our borders.” The agency referred questions about the Ukraine proposal to the Department of Homeland Security, which did not respond to requests for comment.These documents and others reviewed by The Post offer new insight into President Donald Trump’s attempt to dramatically expand deportations as he seeks to upend U.S. immigration policy using unorthodox and potentially controversial means. Dated January to May, they show that since taking office, his administration has worked aggressively, and often out of public view, to grow the number of nations that will accept third-country nationals from the U.S., routinely dangling incentives or leveraging the prospect of improved relations with Washington in pursuing its objectives.A few governments in Latin America, including El Salvador, Mexico, Costa Rica and Panama, have agreed to receive deportees who are not their citizens. The Trump administration courted some of these countries, granting Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele a White House visit and paying his government millions of dollars to house U.S. deportees in a notorious prison. Others it has bullied with tariff threats and other measures — including, in the case of Panama, threats to retake the Panama Canal.Yael Schacher, director for the Americas and Europe at the humanitarian organization Refugees International, said it appears the Trump administration is targeting governments “it knows want to curry favor and are under pressure.”Before and after last year’s election, Trump’s rhetoric repeatedly signaled his willingness to leverage Ukraine’s reliance on U.S. military aid, pronouncements that appeared to grow more brash once he entered office in January. Tensions peaked in late February, with a remarkable Oval Office argument between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, cooling slightly only after Kyiv conceded to some of the administration’s demands, including an agreement granting U.S. access to Ukraine’s critical mineral resources.Schacher, an immigration historian, also noted the administration’s efforts to woo Rwanda — an African nation with a poor human rights record that is also at the center of U.S.-led efforts to end a long-running conflict. Its leaders have agreed to take in third-country nationals deported by the U.S.Previous U.S. governments have worked with foreign nations to receive third-country nationals, Schacher said, “but the extent of this outreach is new.”“What’s unusual,” she added, “is the variety of arrangements, their ad hoc nature, their clear quid pro quos and the amount of money the administration will put behind them.” ... See MoreSee Less

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U.S. Senator Patty Murray is fighting to protect and ensure the Department of Education continues to serve our country. ... See MoreSee Less

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Knock knock.Who’s there?The annual Norm and Shirley Miller Leadership dinner with keynote speaker, Governor Bob Ferguson!Get your tickets at:secure.actblue.com/donate/nsmdld2025 ... See MoreSee Less

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Voters: "Can we please get lower grocery prices?"Trump: "The best I can do is mess with Canada." ... See MoreSee Less

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"So what if I'm violating the emoluments clause, I don't know about anything in the Constitution," said the openly corrupt official.www.axios.com/2025/05/06/trump-coin-democrats-crypto-stablecoin?fbclid=IwY2xjawKHMoFleHRuA2FlbQIx... ... See MoreSee Less

Exclusive: Democrats target Trump's meme coin, family's crypto empire

www.axios.com

Concerns over the Trump family's crypto ventures is threatening the passage of the bipartisan GENIUS Act.
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Party Calendar

May 2025

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1
  • Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    May 1, 2025  12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
    https://zoom.us/j/94107976607?pwd=qZeb9jUuH9e3DwVvukrhqxuwrNTWvv.1

    Join in and ask questions, get updates or just say hi! Zoom link below, let me know if you need the mobile version. These are held every Thursday at 12pm and occasional weekends.

    See more details

  • May Day!! Day of Mobilization

    May Day!! Day of Mobilization

    May 1, 2025  5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
    John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    Join us for this day of mobilization. We are standing to demand a country that puts our families over those with fortunes—public schools over private profits, healthcare over hedge funds, prosperity over free market politics.

    May Day 2025 we are standing united. We're organizing for a world where every family has housing, healthcare, fair wages, union protection, and safety—regardless of race, zip code, or immigration status.

    See more details

• •
2
3
  • Cinco de Mayo Booth

    Cinco de Mayo Booth

    May 3, 2025  8:00 AM - 10:30 AM
    Peanuts Park, 109 S 4th Ave, Pasco, WA 99301, USA

    Signup Here

    See more details

  • Cinco de Mayo Parade Walk!

    Cinco de Mayo Parade Walk!

    May 3, 2025  9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
    Meet near the Pasco police training parking lot, 204 W Clark St, Pasco

    The parade route is 1.1 miles. Please arrive early to make sure you can find parking and find us. A google map link will be posted on social media the morning of to help you find our exact staging location. Call or text 509-987-5472 if you need help finding us. The parade will start at 10am.

    Ok to bring Free Sergio signs - we will have handouts for the crowd. Please wear white, red, blue or green. Let's celebrate the day and share a handout about Indivisible TC.

    See more details

  • Cinco de Mayo Parade

    Cinco de Mayo Parade

    May 3, 2025  9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
    Pasco City Hall, 525 N 3rd Ave, Pasco, WA 99301, USA

    See more details

  • Cinco de Mayo Booth

    Cinco de Mayo Booth

    May 3, 2025  11:00 AM - 7:30 PM
    Peanuts Park, 109 S 4th Ave, Pasco, WA 99301, USA

    Signup Here

    See more details

• • • •
4
5
6
  • TCD Democrats Protest Tuesday

    TCD Democrats Protest Tuesday

    May 6, 2025  3:45 PM - 5:45 PM
    John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    "Protest Tuesday" at John Dam Plaza on GWay in Richland from 3:45pm to 5:45PM. Bring your own sign or flag or one will be provided. Join our stalwarts and protest whatever is bothering you most that day.
    https://www.facebook.com/events/999996418325987/999996484992647/

    See more details

  • Free Sergio Eat in

    Free Sergio Eat in

    May 6, 2025  5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
    7425 W. Clearwater, Kennewick

    Join us to support Sergio and Gabby!!
    We will be having an “Eat In”.
    When: Tuesday, May 6th 5-7pm
    Where: at their food truck, 7425 W. Clearwater
    We must stand together for this family!! And have some delicious food.
    #FreeSergio
    In solidarity!

    See more details

  • Richland City Council

    Richland City Council

    May 6, 2025  7:30 PM - 8:30 PM
    Richland City Hall, 505 Swift Blvd, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    See more details

• • •
7
  • BCDCC Organization Committee Meeting

    BCDCC Organization Committee Meeting

    May 7, 2025  6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
    Richland Public Library 955 Northgate Dr, Richland, WA 99352

    Agenda:

    PCO Recruiting

    Votebuilder Training (VAN Training #1)

    Postcards

    See more details

  • BenCoDems Organizing Committee

    BenCoDems Organizing Committee

    May 7, 2025  6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
    Richland Public Library, 955 Northgate Dr, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    Conference room A

    See more details

• •
8
  • Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    May 8, 2025  12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
    https://zoom.us/j/94107976607?pwd=qZeb9jUuH9e3DwVvukrhqxuwrNTWvv.1

    Join in and ask questions, get updates or just say hi! Zoom link below, let me know if you need the mobile version. These are held every Thursday at 12pm and occasional weekends.

    See more details

  • Labor Unions 101 Training

    Labor Unions 101 Training

    May 8, 2025  6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
    https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/IW21k8gUSS2xkg-ladIbRA#/registration

    Osta Davis from the Washington State Labor Council will be joining us to teach democrats about how unions interact with the political ecosystem and how to collectively organize!
    May 8th at 6 PM

    See more details

• •
9
  • Tri-City Democrats Meeting/Potluck

    Tri-City Democrats Meeting/Potluck

    May 9, 2025  6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
    For current location please visit https://www.facebook.com/TriCityDems/

    See more details

•
10
11
12
  • Benton County Executive Board

    Benton County Executive Board

    May 12, 2025  6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
    Meeting details will be provided over email from the Benton County Democrats Chair.

    See more details

•
13
  • TCD Democrats Protest Tuesday

    TCD Democrats Protest Tuesday

    May 13, 2025  3:45 PM - 5:45 PM
    John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    "Protest Tuesday" at John Dam Plaza on GWay in Richland from 3:45pm to 5:45PM. Bring your own sign or flag or one will be provided. Join our stalwarts and protest whatever is bothering you most that day.
    https://www.facebook.com/events/999996418325987/999996484992647/

    See more details

  • Kennewick City Council Workshop

    Kennewick City Council Workshop

    May 13, 2025  6:30 PM - 8:00 PM

    See more details

• •
14
15
  • Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    May 15, 2025  12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
    https://zoom.us/j/94107976607?pwd=qZeb9jUuH9e3DwVvukrhqxuwrNTWvv.1

    Join in and ask questions, get updates or just say hi! Zoom link below, let me know if you need the mobile version. These are held every Thursday at 12pm and occasional weekends.

    See more details

  • Norm and Shirley Miller Democratic Leadership Dinner

    Norm and Shirley Miller Democratic Leadership Dinner

    May 15, 2025  5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
    Riverfront Hotel, 50 Comstock St. Richland, WA.

    Join us early at 5:00 pm for socializing with many who share the same views and values!
    A select no-host bar will be available throughout the evening.

    Dinner and program begins at 6:00 pm.

    Keynote Speaker: Governor Bob Ferguson
    Purchase tickets here: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/nsmdld2025

    See more details

  • Realities of Running for Office Panel

    Realities of Running for Office Panel

    May 15, 2025  6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
    https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/lthQudirR-eRa8pLV0Otuw#/registration

    This training will be a panel of candidates and consultants moderated by Jessica Forsythe from Emerge WA, about what the realities of running for office are like and how to be a good candidate!
    May 15th at 6 PM

    See more details

• • •
16
17
18
19
20
  • TCD Democrats Protest Tuesday

    TCD Democrats Protest Tuesday

    May 20, 2025  3:45 PM - 5:45 PM
    John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    "Protest Tuesday" at John Dam Plaza on GWay in Richland from 3:45pm to 5:45PM. Bring your own sign or flag or one will be provided. Join our stalwarts and protest whatever is bothering you most that day.
    https://www.facebook.com/events/999996418325987/999996484992647/

    See more details

  • Richland City Council

    Richland City Council

    May 20, 2025  7:30 PM - 8:30 PM
    Richland City Hall, 505 Swift Blvd, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    See more details

• •
21
22
  • Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    May 22, 2025  12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
    https://zoom.us/j/94107976607?pwd=qZeb9jUuH9e3DwVvukrhqxuwrNTWvv.1

    Join in and ask questions, get updates or just say hi! Zoom link below, let me know if you need the mobile version. These are held every Thursday at 12pm and occasional weekends.

    See more details

  • How to Fundraise Training

    How to Fundraise Training

    May 22, 2025  6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
    https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/-L-HU3JhS7-OeBxnVMvtAQ#/registration

    Learn how to effectively fundraise and raise money for your local organizations. Joe Barden, The state party Development Director will teach you about the ins and outs of the process!
    May 22nd at 6 PM

    See more details

  • BCDCC General Public Meeting

    BCDCC General Public Meeting

    May 22, 2025  6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
    Meeting details will be provided over email from the Benton County Democrats Chair.

    See more details

• • •
23
24
25
26
27
  • TCD Democrats Protest Tuesday

    TCD Democrats Protest Tuesday

    May 27, 2025  3:45 PM - 5:45 PM
    John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    "Protest Tuesday" at John Dam Plaza on GWay in Richland from 3:45pm to 5:45PM. Bring your own sign or flag or one will be provided. Join our stalwarts and protest whatever is bothering you most that day.
    https://www.facebook.com/events/999996418325987/999996484992647/

    See more details

  • Richland City Council Workshop

    Richland City Council Workshop

    May 27, 2025  6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
    Richland City Hall, 505 Swift Blvd, Richland, WA 99352, USA

    See more details

• •
28
  • How to Build a Message Training

    How to Build a Message Training

    May 28, 2025  6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
    https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/wuf_qJ9sTAytiGwdaakqnw#/registration

    This training will be led by Be Clear, a messaging firm who helps political organizations effectively message their policies and causes to the public. This training will cover best practices for messaging the important work you do to the public.
    May 28th at 6 PM

    See more details

•
29
  • Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    Indivisible TC - Founder Hour, Thurs

    May 29, 2025  12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
    https://zoom.us/j/94107976607?pwd=qZeb9jUuH9e3DwVvukrhqxuwrNTWvv.1

    Join in and ask questions, get updates or just say hi! Zoom link below, let me know if you need the mobile version. These are held every Thursday at 12pm and occasional weekends.

    See more details

•
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