Transgender Student Protections

Greetings, gentle readers. It’s been another shitty week. I don’t feel up for listing everything he did because it would take an entire post just to get through it. I’m going to focus on one specific thing: Donald’s attack on transgender rights.

President Obama and the Lynch justice department put protections in place after bathrooms became the newest battleground for transgender rights. The protections allowed transgender children to use the bathroom that corresponded with their gender identity. Now, the power to make schools safe is once again in the hands of the states. This is horrifying. It will lead to bullying and discrimination, empower transphobes, and in general make things a hundred times more difficult for one of America’s most vulnerable populations.

If none of that makes you feel anything, consider that it won’t bring back any jobs. Do you care now?

I’ve compiled a list of contact information for the school boards and superintendents in Maryland, along with this list of talking points (or mailing points if you’re sending an email.

When calling, you can mention these laws passed in Maryland to protect their transgender population:

• Senate Bill 212, or the Fairness To All Marylanders Act of 2014, bans anti-transgender discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations  
• This Baltimore Sun article has good information on  Maryland’s transgender protection.
• The Maryland Department of Education allows students to use the bathroom that agrees with their gender identity

Remind them that transgender students are counting on them, especially now. They’ve been elected to

Allegany

• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Anne Arundel
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Baltimore County
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Baltimore City
• General contact information
• Calvert
• School Board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Caroline
• School board contact information: (410) 479-1460
• Superintendent contact information: Dr. Patricia Saelens (410) 479-3250
• Carroll
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Cecil
• School board contact information: 410-996-5400
• Superintendent contact information
• Charles
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Dorchester
• School board contact information: (410) 228-4747
• Superintendent contact information: Email: wagnerh@dcpsmd.org Phone: 410-228-4747 ext. 1002
• Fredrick
• School Board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Garrett
• School board contact information
• Harford
• School board contact information: (410) 838-7300
• Interim Superintendent contact information
• Howard
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Kent
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information: (410) 778-1595
• Montgomery
• School board contact information
• Prince George
• School board contact information
• Queen Anne's
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information: Gregory J. Pilewski (410) 758-2403
• Saint Mary's
• School board contact information: 301-475-5511
• Superintendent contact information
• Somerset
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information: Dr. John B. Gaddis (410) 621-6249
• Talbot
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information: Kelly L. Griffith (410) 822-0330
• Washington
• School board contact information
• Superintendent contact information
• Wicomico
• School board contact information: 410-677-4400
• Superintendent contact information: Dr. Donna C. Hanlin (410) 677-4400
• Worchester
• School board contact information: (410) 632-5000
• Superintendent contact information: Louis H Taylor (410) 632-5000

Sanctuary Cities

You might have heard that Howard County is considering becoming a “sanctuary county.” In these counties, police and county employees would be unable to enforce immigration law or target immigrants who came to America for a better life. Well, update. The Howard County executive vetoed the bill because he thinks it was "reckless." This even after the county council stripped down the legislature to avoid Donald's wrath.

Now, many have said that that’s a job that should be left to the federal government. In normal times, there might be an argument to be made about this. But this is not normal. The executive branch is targeting specific groups of people because of their race and religion, and yeah, it's about those two things. It's not about "crime" or "terrorism," and I can tell you that for certain because facts back it up. And I believe in facts. Donald wants people to think that Muslims are terrorists and Latinos are violent criminals, but things don't become true just because he wants them to be.

We live in a time when doing the right thing is going to be hard. It's hard to face threats of destruction from the executive branch of government. It's hard to speak your mind when you're afraid you might face an online mob threatening your life and the life of your children. You have every reason to be scared. It's easy to look away from people who are suffering and make excuses for why--like saying legislation to protect immigrant residents of your county is "hastily filed," so you're going to veto it, even though we all know that's not what this is about.
So what are sanctuary cities? Well, Full Frontal has a great video that will give you a basic explanation. (I wish they featured the mayor of Baltimore, though)

Because this is Maryland, we’ve already got some sanctuary counties and cities. Montgomery County has some laws in place to protect immigrants. Takoma Park has sanctuary laws in place, and Prince George’s County is a sanctuary county. Baltimore City is a sanctuary city.

The issue of states taking matters into their own hands is often thought of as a conservative one. However, I think it’s time that blue states started using the powers granted to states to protect their residents. No one can guess what the next four years are going to bring, but we know we will be tested. There will be times when we will be tempted to look away from the horrors that will unfold. We cannot.

Here is how you start. Contact your state legislators here (In the right hand corner, there's a link labeled "Who represents me?" that will connect you to the people who directly represent you.) You can find your county executive here. I've also re-linked to my Inauguration Day post with contact info for your congresspeople and senators.
Someone else you should reach out to is your school board. Undocumented familes are often afraid to send their children to school because they worry that the ICE will find them there, or track down their parents through school documents. It should be obvious that that is horrific. These articles have good information about what schools can do to protect their students. Share the points with your principals and board members at the next town halls, or call their offices, or shoot them an email.
Resist. Stay strong. And fight back

Protesting the Muslim ban

Donald's Muslim ban has been enacted. He called for it a year and a half ago, and it was condemned. People are being stopped in airports for their religion. Families are going to be separated. Muslims will lose their green cards, face violations of their human rights--violations that stand in direct opposition to the American Constitution.

I really can’t describe the depth of how evil and horrific this is. You’ve seen it. You know. So what do we do now?

We protest. Tonight, I stood in the BWI airport with my friend and fellow activist, DeJia. The airport is bears the name of Thurgood Marshall, who would have been horrified by the Islamophobia that defines Donald’s new regime. At the international gate, a crowd of people screamed out against fascism, racism, and the religious registry.

Representative John Sarbanes shook our hands. He had come to protest. So had Representative Elijah Cummings, who spoke to the crowd of protesters and encouraged us to keep fighting. They promised to stand up to the tide of right-wing nationalism in the House.

Apologies for the position, Blogger does not like videos. Credit for filming goes to DeJia.

I believed them, because they showed up. Democrats have to get tougher--the country depends on it. And they have to keep showing up. Representative Jamie Raskin came too, as did Martin O'Malley and C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger.

Governor Hogan has been silent, something Maryland has noticed. One of our chants was “Larry Hogan, where are you?” But our elected congressional representatives showed up.

Keep calling your congresspeople and senators. You can check out the inauguration post for information on how to get in touch with them.

You can also call your county legislators and executives and tell them you want to either keep your county a sanctuary county (in the case of Prince George’s County, Baltimore City or parts of Montgomery County) or make it one. I’m going to post more about that soon.

http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/webmga/frmmain.aspx?pid=legisrpage&tab=subject6

This website is also a good one to have bookmarked when you want to call your elected officials

Remind Governor Hogan that Marylanders won’t put up with his silence.

There will be more protests. Keep an eye out for ones in your area, and be ready to protect the people around you.

So this is what life is going to be like for the next four years, huh?

There are reasons to keep going forward. There is hope.
It's hard to keep believing that. Today, every single time my phone buzzed, I flinched in terror, knowing there was another story about Donald. He reinstated the global gag rule for women seeking healthcare. He's trying to build the wall. He wants to declare martial law in Chicago. He's attacking sanctuary cities. He wants to build the Dakota Access Pipeline.
I'm terrified. I see fear everywhere too--on my Facebook feed, on my Twitter timeline, in the eyes of my loved ones, in the eyes of strangers on the street.
And Democrats in Congress are shaken. Only Senator Gilibrand voted against all of Donald's Cabinet picks. Senator Sanders (he's not a Democrat, but he's a progressive so I'm including him) praised Donald's executive action ending the TPP. Divisions between the left and moderate wing of the party are growing.
Resistance to Donald is crucial and it falls in the hands of us, the power behind the Democratic Party, to fight back, in every possible way. But you all knew that.
I've got some more websites for you, gentle readers. Please take care of yourself too. Have a cookie, pet a dog, let yourself cry--this isn't a sprint, it's a marathon.
Both of these websites offer information on resistance and getting in touch with your elected officials. Make sure to bookmark them.
Indivisible Guide
5 Calls

Resist.

A Disappointing Veto

     It's time for another LoyalOpp Pop Quiz(TM). Imagine you're the executive for one of the most expensive counties in the country, and the county council has just passed legislation raising the minimum wage to 15 dollars. Do you...
     A) Approve the legislation
     B) Veto it
     Ike Leggett, Montgomery County's county executive, picked B. Montgomery County's minimum wage will remain at $10.75 until July, when it will rise to $11.50.
     Montgomery County is expensive to live in, and this country is headed for an economic disaster like we haven't seen since the 1930s. Families need this money. It's a matter of survival. The minimum wage is supposed to help people live past their paychecks and plan for the future.
County Executive Leggett argued that the new wage is bad for businesses. However, there is ample evidence that the opposite is true.
     The County Council does not have enough votes to override the veto, but Ike Leggett has announced he will not be seeking a fourth term. Let's elect an executive who will improve the economic situation for low income workers.
If you'd like to contact County Executive Leggett, here's his contact information.

     Before I close, another veto has happened. Governor Larry Hogan vetoed a clean jobs act that encouraged sustainable energy, like wind and solar power. If you can, contact your state legislator and encourage them to override this veto.

Grab Bag Post

Hey, gentle readers! I’ve got a big post coming up about sanctuary cities, but there’s so much going on this week that I thought I’d put together a “grab bag post” about Maryland and the new administration in the White House.

First: I’ve gotten some questions on swing districts. If you’d like to know about the closest swing district near you and how you can get involved in making it blue, check out this nifty website. It’s designed to get wonderful activists like you involved in taking back the house. As elections get closer, there will probably be some carpooling groups that I’ll share.

Stay Woke has designed an official resistance manual. It’s comprehensive and a good jumping off point for anyone who wants to learn more about standing up to fascists. It’s been endorsed by Deray McKesson.

Check out here. It’s got a list of all the legislation that the 115th Congress has introduced. Some of it looks fine--I’d love some Muhammad Ali coins myself. However, some bills, like H.R.586, which seeks to establish that life begins at the moment the sperm and egg collide in the woman’s uterus, are big red flags. Make a list of bills to keep an eye on.

The protesting crackdown is happening, and it is terrifying. While this isn’t in Maryland, it fits a larger pattern, and poses a threat to resistance movements across the country. Support social justice groups that are blocking this bill, call the ACLU and make sure they’re ready to take it on and watch your local legislature.  This ties directly into the next news item.

The Dakota Access Pipeline is back. Donald’s new administration wants to push it through. Since the building of the pipeline was stopped in early December, we’ve seen multiple oil spills from similar pipelines and it is highly likely that the pipeline builders are going to once again take aggressive tactics against the Standing Rock protesters. The bills mentioned above further suggest this. Here are some links you can use to support the resistance in South Dakota. Listen to the people there. Donate. Remember, online petitions have maybe 1% impact.

Finally, an answer to this week’s burning question--Is it okay to punch nazis?

Yes. Whenever possible.

A Balanced Budget

Pop Quiz, gentle readers. Imagine you’re the governor of Maryland and you have to balance the state budget. That means that there have to be budget cuts. Where do you want to make the cuts?

1. Cut a from each county budget equally.
2. Cut from the wealthiest county budgets--they can handle the cuts best because they have the most money to begin with.
3. Cut from the aid package that was put together to help Baltimore City, specifically from programs to help schools, neighborhoods and libraries. Also reduce support for state workers, Maryland’s disabled residents and Prince George’s Hospital.

If you answered C, you must be Governor Larry Hogan. Hi, Governor. I didn’t know you read this blog, but I’m flattered.

Maryland’s ~super moderate~ governor balanced the state budget this year. Hooray! Of course, he did it at the expense of Baltimore City, just weeks after he spoke at the inauguration of new Baltimore mayor Catherine Pugh and swore commitment to improve the city after the civil unrest that followed Freddie Gray’s death. One of the governor’s spokesmen said the proposal reflected the governor’s priorities for minimal spending. Fair enough. But wouldn’t it be wiser to cut from a place that isn’t as vulnerable as Baltimore City?

Gov. Hogan announcing his new budget. Photo courtesy of YouTube. 

I’ve got some quotes from the governor himself and I thought I’d share them with you. Afterwards, if you’re so inclined, call his office and read them to him. Let’s remind the governor of his commitment to Baltimore City. And if he’s unwilling to listen, let’s elect a new governor who will dedicate himself to defending the people of Baltimore.

"I want you to know that you do have a partner,”--Gov. Hogan to new mayor Catherine Pugh

"With a renewed partnership between the governor's office in Annapolis and the leadership in the city of Baltimore, we can truly change Baltimore and Maryland for the better."--Gov. Hogan at Mayor Pugh’s inauguration

“We've got to do something about it.”--Gov. Hogan about the violence problem in Baltimore

“[My budget will include] no serious cuts to any agencies or programs"-- Gov. Hogan about his 2018 budget proposal

You can contact Governor Hogan here

For more information on Hogan’s budget and his promise to check out these Baltimore Sun articles:

Hogan balances his budget on Baltimore's back

Gov. Larry Hogan touts smaller Md. budget, no 'serious cuts'

Gov. Larry Hogan, Annapolis leaders praise new Baltimore mayor

Hogan budget would cut aid to Baltimore

A Rally to stop the Repeal

This Sunday, my family and I attended a rally for healthcare at Bowie State University.

Maryland senator Chris Van Hollen 

Democratic Whip and District 5 representative Steny Hoyer

Anthony Brown, representative for Maryland's 4th district (apologies for the horrible lighting.) 

It was an amazing event. Maryland’s elected congressmen, senators, county officials and citizens called for protection of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare. Being there felt like breaking out of the cycle of fear and isolation that has defined existence as an American with a conscience since November 8th. I took some notes on how to protect the ACA at the rally, and I’m going to share them with anyone who wasn’t able to make it.

First off, if you want to sign up for healthcare: marylandhealthconnection.gov can help you find good health insurance at an affordable price. They have financial help for people who might need it. Enrollment deadlines are soon, so make sure to have a look at it today if you need insurance.

Currently, the voting on repealing the ACA is split down party lines in a 48-51. If three senators cross party lines, then they can block the repeal. The rally workers handed out lists of people to lobby. If you know someone in these states, encourage them to contact their senator and tell them they will be held accountable at the ballot box if they take away 22 million people’s healthcare.

Marylanders can also call Governor Hogan and tell him to defend the ACA. Yes, Hogan is a Republican, but he’s also a supposed moderate, and other “moderates” have condemned the planned repeal. Ohio governor John Kasich is a great example.

Remember, it’s better to call or handwrite your officials.

http://governor.maryland.gov/contact-the-governors-office/

    There are going to be more rallies and protests as the year goes on. Keep in touch with your local officials--follow them on Twitter and Facebook and check in on what they're doing. A good page to follow is Together We Will--Maryland, which can keep you updated on what's going on in our state. Remember, we can fight back. And as long as we can, we must.

Inaguration Day

Well, it’s here.

Inauguration month.

Charles M. Blow has published a truly great article about what to do on the day that the winner of the electoral college gets sworn into office, which I’ve linked to here.

http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/05/opinion/the-anti-inauguration.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0

I thought I’d add some more detail to his ideas for people in the Maryland area who want to join the anti inauguration.

Places To Volunteer In Maryland

VolunteerMatch

http://www.volunteermatch.org/search?l=MD

This organization can get you in touch with different places around the state where you can help out. You can adjust, depending on what you’d like to do. You can pick up trash in the park, help young people with learning the alphabet, or serve food at a soup kitchen.

Maryland Food Bank

https://mdfoodbank.org/volunteer/

This food bank organization has several offices around Maryland. It’s necessary to fill out some forms and attend a brief orientation before you go, but it can connect you with several places where you can help others.

Donation Town

http://donationtown.org/maryland-donation-pickup/

This is a directory that will tell you places where you can donate clothing and furniture in Maryland.

Donations for Vets

http://www.clothingdonations.org/schedule-a-pick-up-by-state/donate-clothes-in-maryland/

This organization doesn't serve every county in Maryland, but it’s a great way to help veterans and you can both drop donations off and schedule a pickup

Purple Heart Pickup

http://www.purpleheartpickup.org/

This is another organization that helps veterans who were injured and earned a Purple Heart medal. They will pick up your donations.

Donating

LoyalOpp has made a list of organizations around the country that plan to take on Donald’s administration and I plan to expand it further in the upcoming weeks. If you have any ideas for places that could use donations, just suggest them in the comments section and I’ll add them to the masterlist.

Representatives:

If you’d like to spend the day contacting your representatives, remember that phone calls and handwritten letters are the best way to do it. I’ve compiled the contact info for our reps here, in case you want to spend Hell Day reaching out to the people who work for you.

Congress

• District 1: Andrew P. Harris
• https://harris.house.gov/contact-me
• District 2: Dutch Ruppersberger
• https://ruppersberger.house.gov/contact-dutch
• District 3: John Sarbanes
• https://sarbanes.house.gov/
• District 4: Anthony Brown
• https://anthonybrown.house.gov/contact
• District 5: Steny Hoyer
• https://hoyer.house.gov/contact-info/
• Hoyer is also the Democratic Whip--here’s how you contact him that way
• https://www.democraticwhip.gov/content/email-whip
• District 6: John Delaney
• https://delaney.house.gov/contact
• District 7: Elijah Cummings
• https://cummings.house.gov/contact
• District 8: Jamie Raskin
• https://raskin.house.gov/contact

Senate

• Chris Van Hollen
• Phone: 202-224-4654
• Email: info@vanhollen.org
• Office: 10605 Concord Street, Suite 202, Kensington, MD 20895 USA
• Ben Cardin
• https://www.cardin.senate.gov/contact/

Staying safe:

If you’re going to one of the many rallies and protests happening around the area, good on you. Here are some links on protest safety and preparation.

https://right-to-protest.org/protect-your-protest/

This is mostly a general overview of how to prepare for a protest, defend your rights, and stay safe.

http://www.paperrevolution.org/street-medic-guide/

This is a more detailed guide on how to provide medical aid to your fellow protesters and yourself, along with information on how to handle getting arrested

If you witness police violence or other forms of civil rights violations, here is a link to the Maryland chapter of the ACLU’s complaint line.

http://www.aclu-md.org/help

Resist. Don't give in to despair, and don't let this become normal.