Dear Reader,
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of slipping on a deceptively tractionless mound of maple leaves. As I hit the soggy dirt, soaking my pants and tush, I thought “squishy” – thus, the theme for this months newsletter.
And why not keep going with a good metaphor? A fallen leaf is a testament to growth and change that has been let go, from which new things can arise. And what is squishy mud but an example of something being soft and yielding only to leave a mark? As we head into the darker months, may we all let go of the things we don’t need and not be afraid to get a little messy while doing it.
INTERTWINED
We are just 13 days away from Intertwined, our annual community celebration and fundraiser! This year we are celebrating our 10-year anniversary; 10 years of building climate justice and community in Seattle. Have you got your tickets yet? We sold out last year, don’t wait til the day of! Get those tickets here.
Intertwined: 350 Seattle’s Annual Fundraiser Event
Saturday, November 18, 2023: Doors open at 6PM, program begins at 7PM
Metropolist, 2931 First Ave. S, Seattle 98134, + livestream
With food, music and more!
Send us photos for Intertwined! We want to celebrate all of the amazing things we have done this year. Submit your best images to our Photo Library to share them with our community for use in our organization’s storytelling, including our outreach, communications, and fundraising efforts. Here are our guidelines and the email address for submitting photos to our library editors.
SOLIDARITY BUDGET AND THE CASE OF THE GHOST COPS AT CITY HALL
Last week a contigent of Solidarity Budget Ghostbusters went to City Hall to try to get to the bottom of all these ghostly unfilled cop jobs lingering around our city’s budget. Here’s a video of what happened.
What is #ShotSpotter and why is Mayor Harrell fighting to include it in the 2024 SPD budget?
Tune in at 5:30 pm on Wednesday Nov. 8th to learn why we are fighting this addition to the budget. (And save the date 11/13 at 5pm to give public comment against this racist and ineffective surveillance technology!)
#ShotSpotter Webinar & Discussion
Wednesday, November 8th, 5:30-6:30PMPM
Livestreaming here on Seattle Solidarity Budgets Facebook page and on Youtube.
DO YOU WANT TO BE 350 SEATTLE’S CAMPAIGN DIRECTOR?
Because if you submit a resume and cover letter by Nov.12th to jobs@350seattle.org, you may have that opportunity! We are looking for a sharp strategic thinker, a creative tactician, and skilled organizer. And someone that we are all excited to hang out with in our close knit lil staff collective family.
Annual salary set at 80K for all full-time staff. Excellent Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life insurance, unlimited paid time off with a min 30 days off per year, and retirement benefits with a 2% employer contribution. Full details here.
BLOCK THE BOATWar in Gaza has cast a pall over the world this month and its weighing on us heavily. But as usual, this community is showing up when it counts, including supporting blockades at the entrances to the downtown federal building demanding Sen. Murray call for a ceasefire last Friday, and marching with thousands of others in Olympia yesterday.
For people who are interested in joining a working group for future Palestine solidarity actions or other anti-war organizing, please email Ben, or reply to this newsletter.
The latest arc is the Cape Orlando, a vessel heading toward the Port of Tacoma where it will be loaded up with weapons to be shipped to Israel. Organizers have called for people to block the boat.
If you can’t make it today, you can get updates by:
– Joining a WhatsApp group at this link: Tinyurl.com/seattlepalwhatsapp
OR Text GAZA to (833) 5841848 for text updates.
LAST CALL FOR APEC ROUND 2: CALIFORNIA EDITION
Remember in July when diplomats from around the world descended on Seattle to craft exploitative and unfair trade deals? That event was a preliminary meeting for an even bigger and more stupid stupid meeting in San Francisco in November: The APEC Leader’s Week and CEO Summit, aka the Super Bowl of World Economies (puke).
So obviously, our friends in San Francisco are organizing counter-demonstrations, marches, webinars, a counter summit and more. Check out this landing page for more info, we will have more information about ways for Seattle folks to be involved in this soon.
ANTIWAR X CLIMATE
The AntiWar X Climate work group works in the intersection of US militarism and the climate crisis. Like everyone reading this, we are deeply troubled by the killing, destruction, and displacement in Israel and Palestine and in Ukraine and in all places of ongoing war and oppression.
Seattle AntiWar Coalition (SAWC) is one of the local antiwar groups 350 Seattle is a member of, and SAWC will hold a discussion of Israel and Palestine. Protests calling for a ceasefire and other demands in Israel and Palestine are taking place in Seattle at least every week. Please let Mary know if you want to receive Action Network alerts from SAWC about these.
Israel and Palestine Discussion
University Branch, Seattle Public Library, Sunday, Nov 12th, 12-2PM
Email Mary P to register.
Organizing to cancel the Blue Angels fighter jets and demilitarize Seattle’s annual Seafair celebration continues. The Seafair Climate Action coalition meets every 1st and 3rd Monday at 5:30pm and includes members of 350 Seattle’s Aviation workgroup as well as the AntiWar X Climate workgroup, Veterans For Peace, South Seattle Climate Action, and XR Seattle. Interested in helping with legal and scientific research or outreach to communities impacted by the Blue Angel fighter jet air show? Please email marycpaterson@gmail.com or sign up for the “newsletter” at the website https://seaclimateaction.info/
AVIATION TEAM
The Aviation Team is gearing up for some 2024 state legislation, as well as continuing to participate in two local community coalitions opposing the health and climate impacts of airport expansions.Contact Laura for more information or to get involved with other Aviation Team activities. Or register here for our Team meeting on December 12 from 7-8 pm.
FEDERAL TEAM
On October 19th, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the GTN Xpress Pipeline. For over a year, 350 Seattle has fought the proposed pipeline expansion alongside wide-spread opposition by the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, dozens of grassroots organizations, thousand of community members, Governors Inslee and Kotek, US Senators Padilla, Merkley, Wyden, Cantwell and Murray, and Congressional Representatives Blumenauer, Salinas and Jayapal.
While we are dismayed by the news, we are not surprised: Since 1999, FERC has approved 99% of applications, and is widely seen as rubber stamp for oil & gas companies. Big on ‘Energy’, low on ‘Regulation’. But the fights not over.
Two of the leading members of the Stop GTN Xpress Coalition, — Columbia Riverkeeper and Rogue Climate — are gearing up for a legal battle. They are filing a petition for rehearing with FERC, and if that petition is denied, the groups will appeal the decision to the DC Court of Appeals.
If you want to get involved with the Federal Team, sign up for our listserv here. Or email Beth B.
350 WA CAT UPDATE
The Washington State Legislature section kicks off in January – are you ready to take action with us on sound and just climate policy?
350 WA Civic Action Team: Campaign Launch
Wednesday, January 3rd @ 6-7pm
RSVP
Join our campaign kickoff on January 3rd, and sign up to receive action alerts from the 350 WA Civic Action Team. We are here to make your legislative advocacy simple and effective.
We know it’s not going to take just one or two climate policies to address this global crisis locally. We’re gonna need many many climate and justice policies covering a wide range of issues in order to build resilient communities, resist fossil fuel companies, and address the harmful impacts of climate disasters and global boiling.
At the 350 WA Civic Action Team we work hard to make strong connections across many different policy areas including Housing, Building Electrification, Waste Management, Transportation, Forestry, Police Accountability and Criminal Justice Reform, Energy, and more.
And it’s not going to take just one or two activists – it’s going to take many many people working together to build the collective momentum we need. Last year hundreds of people in this campaign took a collective total of 37,927 legislative advocacy actions together – with you on our team we can build even more grassroots pressure to pass the climate policies we need here in Washington.
CLIMATE GRIEF AND EMPOWERMENT
How are you feeling about climate change these days? Are you even letting yourself feel? Or is it too big to process? Being overwhelmed by climate-related emotions is a shared reality. We can continue to act from a grounded state when we process these experiences together. You are invited to feel, digest, and move through grief together at the next Climate Grief and Empowerment gatherings.
Climate Grief and Empowerment Monthly Gathering
Saturday, November 11th, and Saturday, December 9th, from 10:00–11:45am
Online, register here separately for each one you’ll attend.
STORY CIRCLE
We’re starting a book club soon, to carry us through the winter! If you’d like to join us, please fill out this form to vote on which book you’d like to read and share your availability. Story Circle supports community-building and creative practice. We’d be delighted to have you join us for one or many gatherings.
And over the past few months, we’ve been busy distributing our latest zine, Homeward. We hope that Seattle residents are delighted to discover a copy in tiny libraries, like in this photo from member Joel Savishinsky.
CLIMATE ACTION FAMILIES
Open to youth, parents, and friends – Interested in taking action on climate in a family-friendly environment? Climate Action Families takes an intergenerational approach to climate justice. Our monthly meeting is a time for families and youth to come together, report back on projects and campaigns, learn about new ones, sing, make art, and create a temporary Island of Sanity in the storm.
Climate Action Families Monthly Meeting
Friday, Novermber 17th, 5:30-7:30PM
Bethany UCC, South Seattle.
More info
Please pass along, and contact us if you are interested in volunteering or partnering with us!
ARTFUL ACTIVISM TEAM
Join Art Builds and put art into Action!
*Sign up here for the Art in Action team to help deploy art at actions or public events.
*Sign up here to join an art build, and help build the art for beautiful community actions and events.
Join the Artful Team and Alerts list. Skills welcome, but not required. We look forward to welcoming you into a supportive and collaborative community.
Art Build for Intertwined!
Nov 11th, 1-4PM
Create interactive art for Intertwined, our 10 year birthday celebration and fundraiser, and finish the salmon/water project Claire is spearheading. Come have fun with us! No skills needed.
RSVP
Art in Action at Intertwined!
Saturday, Nov 18th, at Intertwined
1-5pm set up, and/or 6-9pm help attendees engage in interactive art, and/or 9-11pm take the art down
RSVP
We are growing both our art build team and our art in action team, where teams of volunteer leads help others participate. Maybe you’re experienced in performance or visual arts? Maybe you are super organized and want to clean up our photo library?
Whatever your skill set, the Artful Team has a place for you! Contact Lisa to get involved.
COMMUNITY RESILIENCE
Our community resource list encompasses some of the vast number of resources available in the Seattle area for 350 Seattle and the general community. Check out the resource list and share with others who may be interested.
Do you have a skill or service you would like to offer at very reduced or no charge to the 350 Seattle activist community as a way to take part in and support the work we do or do you know of BIPOC businesses in our community who might want to be added to the list linked here? All skills welcome.
Please fill out this form with your own offerings, or with other local Black, Indigenous, or People of the Global Majority (BIPGM) businesses we could be patronizing, or other entries we should add to the general resource list and we’ll get back with you! Thanks!
SHOUTOUTS
“Shoutout to Selden for your amazing leadership of our 350 Federal Policy team, indefatigable persistence in pressuring our elected officials to vote for greener policies and funding by meetings, marches and mass messages!” – Beth
“To everyone who has been showing up in solidarity with Palestine and to everyone who has contributed interally to guide how we are showing up!” – Ben
AND FINALLY,
We were interviewed by the Stranger with the prompt, “what would a city council of Sara Nelson’s mean for your group?” See our response here and remember ballots are due this week, finding a polling place near you!
Until next month,
<3 Ben
