In 2019, every city council seat is on the ballot. This year, Saint Paul voters and residents have the opportunity to elect progressive leaders who will work hand-in-hand with community to fight for strong public education, clean air and water, housing for all, and safety beyond policing.
The first step in electing progressive champions is the DFL Precinct Caucuses on March 10th. Precinct Caucuses are neighborhood meetings where community members come together to elect delegates who will vote to endorse candidates for city council. Caucusing is a powerful way to make your voice heard and have a say in which candidates are on your ballot in November. This training will cover why caucuses matter, how to caucus and become a delegate, and how to use caucuses to build progressive power in your city.
The training is free and all are welcome. Refreshments will be provided. Contact Joelle (joelle@takeactionminnesota) with questions.… Continue reading »
At TakeAction Minnesota, we believe people are the center of politics. If you are new to activism and politics, join us to talk about opportunities that the new year will bring. We will discuss the work done by our Womxn of Color table, Justice4All, the African Voting Bloc, our healthcare team, and the rest of TakeAction Minnesota. This is an exciting opportunity to meet other folks ready to lead during the legislative session and build a political home.
Lunch will be provided.
Childcare and transportation available upon request.
Want to learn about what the African Voting Bloc is all about? Well, this is an invitation to join us this Saturday at our monthly meeting. We will be discussing the amazing work we did as a collective this year and layout our vision for next year and the opportunities ahead. We will be meeting at the Brooklyn Park Library Shingle Creek Room.
If there are any barriers to attending, please reach out to Fatu at 612-636-7306.
Angela Conley was born and raised in South Minneapolis. A leader and mother, she not only worked with people directly impacted by the services controlled by the Board of Commissioners during her 20-years as a Hennepin County employee—she used them herself. She knows how the over two billion dollar budget that the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners operates fits into a bigger picture of housing assistance, accessible transportation, mental health care, and public health. “That’s twice the size of Jay-Z and Beyonce’s net worth,” she often liked to remind people on the campaign trail.
Angela’s win for Hennepin County commissioner really was a win for all of us, because she ran a campaign centered on all of us. A campaign that stated, again and again, that “experts are those with lived experiences.” In a system where people are so often pushed to the margins, Angela offered a way in. That’s what inspired TakeAction Minnesota member leaders to make phone calls, knock doors, and text their friends to get out the vote for Angela. And it worked.
In a system where people are so often pushed to the margins, Angela offered a way in.
Hear directly from TakeAction Minnesota member leaders about what Angela’s campaign and election has meant to them.… Continue reading »
THE ORGANIZATION: TakeAction Minnesota is a statewide people’s network that brings democracy alive in communities across our state. We connect individuals and organizations to each other, creating a powerful force that makes change happen where it wasn’t possible before. Since its founding twelve years ago, TakeAction Minnesota has grown its breadth and depth. Our membership has grown 10-fold and touches every legislative district in the state. Our social media presence is robust. Our grassroots leadership is well-trained and shapes and implements the strategy of our various campaigns. As a result, TakeAction Minnesota has a track record of increasingly bold victories that change people’s lives for the better: the defeat of a photo ID constitutional amendment, massive public health care expansions, ban the box legislation, winning back $100million from HMOs, more than $400 million in corporate tax loopholes now closed, grassroots leaders running for – and winning – elected office.
POSITION SUMMARY: TakeAction Minnesota is seeking a Political Director to build durable and independent progressive political power. The work of this position is highly integrated and connects issue campaigns, electoral politics and grassroots organizing. We seek a long-term strategic thinker who understands politics as a means to social change and an implementer who can run and win volunteer driven campaigns to elect progressive champions to office and advance a bold issue agenda.… Continue reading »
Dear Friends,
In this 90 second video, Ricardo Levins Morales explains that when it comes to political change, the soil is more important than the seeds. That means, the political landscape we're working in matters. And we can cultivate the soil -- that is, the values, narratives, and ideas -- so that more is possible in the future.
During midterms, TakeAction Minnesota members, member leaders, and volunteers showed up joyfully and powerfully.
And it paid off.
At TakeAction Minnesota, we’re working toward a bold, progressive vision for our state and a people-centered democracy. Going into this election, we committed to electing leaders who are ready to co-govern and share our vision for a Minnesota for all of us. A Minnesota where we all have affordable and accessible health care. Fair wages. Clean air and water. Affordable housing. Safety and liberation.
Over 600 volunteers across the state—including St. Paul, Duluth, and St. Cloud—dreamed and mobilized for that vision of Minnesota with us. Together, we reached out to 300,000+ progressive voters, on the doors, by phone, and by text.
Together, We Won Big
TakeAction Minnesota made over 24 endorsements—and together, we wonbig.
Tim Walz and Peggy Flanagan will be our next Governor and Lt. Governor. Peggy is the first Native American woman to be elected Lt. Governor in our state—and we’re thrilled.
Guess who is going to be our next Governor and Lt. Governor?!
TakeAction Minnesota Celebrates State and Local Victories
Over 600 volunteers powered a people’s wave
St. Paul—Today, TakeAction Minnesota celebrates progressive victories up and down the ballot. Since June, over 600 Minnesotans volunteered with TakeAction Minnesota to reach out to hundreds of thousands of progressive women, millennials, LGBTQ Minnesotans, and people of color. This people-powered wave was an important part of securing statewide and down ballot wins, including Tim Walz and Peggy Flanagan for Governor and Lt. Governor and Keith Ellison for Attorney General.
“Elections are a starting point—this is just the beginning. We’re thrilled by the powerful, community-driven organizing work it took to win progressive races at the state and local level,” said Elianne Farhat executive director of TakeAction Minnesota. “Today, we’re celebrating the big wins, like Angela Conley, a graduate of our public leadership institute. We’re celebrating the countless hours our member leaders put into calling, texting, door knocking, and building power in communities. The real work begins now as our member leaders continue to mobilize and fight for a care agenda, women’s rights, clean energy, criminal justice reform, and more. We look forward to fighting alongside our newly-elected progressive leaders.”
TakeAction Minnesota made over 24 endorsements, including Ilhan Omar for U.S.… Continue reading »
When we started Win The Day, we knew we’d need to play some defense. (See our recent post after the anti-Semitic violence in Pittsburgh.) But we also knew we’d need to go on the offense. And while there is much celebrate after last night’s elections, there is even more work to do. How we do that, who we talk with, who we center, what language we use -- that’s what our narrative work is focused on.
Tomorrow we vote.
And the day after that, we’ll rest. (Actually, we’re going bowling.)
And then, win or lose (and it’s usually some of both), we’ll keep organizing. However things go on Tuesday, we’re still in. We have to be. There’s too much at stake: how we care for each other, what we build together, the future we’re leaving for those who follow.
The Politics of Joy have kept us grounded this year.
We’re both scrambling for the win and dreaming about what’s possible. We can hear the dog-whistlers, we can name them, and then we go prove them wrong. Yeah, we’re on the team that sings.
My name is Aliya, and I am TakeAction Minnesota’s deputy communications director.
I’m excited to vote for candidates who will stand for reproductive freedoms this November—candidates like Tina Smith, Tim Walz, Peggy Flanagan, and Keith Ellison. They’ve pledged to fight for the rights of all Minnesotans so that no matter your gender, race, or zip code, all of us are able to make our own decisions about our bodies and our health care.
My mother grew up poor, in rural Pennsylvania, living part of her childhood with her grandmother because her parents didn’t have enough to make ends meet. Intergenerational trauma and poverty significantly limited the choices my mother had— and the choices that she even knew were possible.
My father immigrated from Pakistan, raising me and my sister in a small town in the Midwest as a single parent. I’m grateful for the sacrifices he made, but I wish he had more tools and resources so that he didn’t have to sacrifice so much.
I grew up in drastically different circumstances than either of my parents, with more resources and choices than they had. I believe that everyone should have access to the choices and care they need, not just a select few. … Continue reading »
At TakeAction Minnesota, we can imagine a state where everyone is able to live free, joyful lives. As a people’s organization, we’re dedicated to building a democracy that represents and reflects who we are as Minnesotans.
Since June, TakeAction Minnesota endorsed U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison and embarked on a three month journey with member leaders, centered on gender justice that reaffirmed our wholehearted support for his campaign. (Read about it here.)
Now it’s almost Election Day.
With each passing week, the vicious political attacks against Rep. Ellison have mounted, driving fear based on his race and religious beliefs. Through this time, Rep. Ellison has continued to show up with tenacity, moral courage, and on the side of the people, just like he always has. Rep. Ellison has stood up for our rights, our freedom, and our future.
Now it’s time for us to stand with him.
It’s never been more important to stand in solidarity with one another and focus on the love, goodness, and decency in this world. It’s all around us, we just need to make the choice to embrace it. pic.twitter.com/nYhDQ8yB4v
— Keith for Attorney General (@EllisonCampaign) October 28, 2018
When we started writing this blog eight weeks ago we thought we had a pretty straightforward purpose: to inoculate against dog-whistle politics. It seemed obvious that some politicians were going to race & gender code words to try to divide voters, to build their own careers.
Then last week happened.
Our hearts go out to families and communities in Pittsburgh. And Louisville. And New York, and D.C., and Florida, and California.
The line from dog-whistles to hate-speech to right-wing political violence is unmistakable. And sadly predictable. Politicians have been warned. Studies have been published. Survivors have spoken out. Still, some politicians hide behind false equivalencies, whataboutism, and plausible deniability.
To this we say: we see you. Your dog-whistle is disqualifying. Your anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant, anti-LGBTQ, anti-woman rhetoric is more than irresponsible; it is a contribution. It is participation. It is a building block of political violence.
But while we are angry; we can’t act out of anger. We won’t demonize or name-call. We also won’t act out of fear (though we’ll admit we do feel that too).
The people being targeted by right-wing hate are the very people who inspire us. People and communities who experience oppression, but still show up, still act together, they have something we want. That’s why we’re so invested in political healing. Developed by women of color, like Cara Page, it’s an active, deliberate response to the historic & everyday trauma that too many communities have lived through.
THE ORGANIZATION: TakeAction Minnesota is a statewide people’s network that brings democracy alive in communities across our state. We connect individuals and organizations to each other, creating a powerful force that makes change happen where it wasn’t possible before. Since its founding twelve years ago, TakeAction Minnesota has grown its breadth and depth. Our membership has grown 10-fold and touches every legislative district in the state. Our social media presence is robust. Our grassroots leadership is well-trained and shapes and implements the strategy of our various campaigns. As a result, TakeAction Minnesota has a track record of increasingly bold victories that change people’s lives for the better: the defeat of a photo ID constitutional amendment, massive public health care expansions, ban the box legislation, paid sick time, minimum wage increase, more than $400 million in corporate tax loopholes now closed, grassroots leaders running for – and winning – elected office.
POSITION SUMMARY
TakeAction Minnesota is part of Our Minnesota Future (OMF), a long-term 22-member alliance that seeks to build the power govern so that people at the grassroots can change structures of racial, gender, and economic inequity. The coalition strives to put the voices of every day Minnesotans at the decision-making table by integrating grassroots organizing, political education, policy advocacy, strategic communications, and civic engagement.… Continue reading »
It’s so simple—enter your address and you can read more about each of the candidates running in your district. Like a candidate? Add them to your sample ballot to print or email to help you remember. You can also get a reminder to vote and help finding your polling place.
We know—it’s so easy. So awesome.
We Support Tim Walz for Governor. Here’s Why.
In Minnesota, we believe that we’re better off together and we’re #GreaterThanFear. We want a democracy that’s inclusive and elected officials who are close to the people.
TakeAction Minnesota is a progressive people’s organization. Our member leaders endorsed Tim Walz for Governor. His opponent, Jeff Johnson, is a Hennepin County Commissioner who doesn’t align with our values. (You can learn more about him on his website. He’s a Trump guy. We’ll leave it at that.)
Tim Walz is a former 20-year classroom teacher, coach, and member of Congress who served 24 years as a member of the Army National Guard.… Continue reading »
If one of us is not free, none of us are free. We have to move away from mass incarceration system that fractures our communities and toward a healing liberation that centers community, justice, and restoration. Join TakeAction Minnesota for our Justice 4 All Day on Thursday, November 1. We’ll be working to get out the vote for candidates like Tim Walz and Peggy Flanagan, who will fight for a more just criminal justice system and a better, more holistic future for all of us. Sign up for a shift today.
Our families, friends, and communities are stronger when everyone has the healthcare that they need. Quality, affordable healthcare is out of reach for many Minnesotans right now. But this fall, we have the opportunity to elect politicians who will fight for more affordable and accessible healthcare. Join us on Tuesday, October 30, as we work to get out the vote for candidates like Tim Walz and Peggy Flanagan who will fight for single payer health care for all Minnesotans. Sign up for a shift today.
When Minnesotans come together across race, religion, and zip code, we can do anything. That’s how we’ve tackled tough issues in the past, and we’ll do it again in the future. However, many politicians would rather divide us, making us afraid of our neighbors because of what they look like or how they worship. Especially right now, we are being bombarded by messages of anger and fear. But we know there is another way. Our politics can be joyful, restorative, and visionary. They can be a space for us to come together and heal. Join us on Wednesday, October 29 as we put our values into action and get out the vote for Tim Walz and Peggy Flanagan who will build a joyful kind of politics with us. Sign up for a shift today so that we can start healing Minnesota.
With just over two weeks left till Election Day we know that political campaigning is only going to get hotter and louder. And some politicians would also like to make it scarier. But we see through that.
First, the fear-mongering is super obvious. Dog-whistle politics is dated, tired, transparent, and bogus.
Second, not all politicians use it. When we speak and act from a different, values-grounded narrative, it breaks through, and rings true.
This 2:00 minute ad from the Walz-Flanagan campaign is the perfect example.
Join us to make phone calls for TakeAction endorsed candidate for Hennepin County Commissioner Angela Conley. Talk to folks about electing this incredible progressive champion to a critical office in our state. Training provided, please bring a laptop and phone if you’re able.
Join TakeAction members to text out the vote! We’ll be reaching out to voters who share our values to make sure they get out to the polls on November 6th. Training provided on the tools and technology. Please bring a laptop computer if you’re able.
Join us to make phone calls for TakeAction endorsed candidate for Hennepin County Commissioner Angela Conley. Talk to folks about electing this incredible progressive champion to a critical office in our state. Training provided, please bring a laptop and phone if you’re able.
Join TakeAction members to text out the vote! We’ll be reaching out to voters who share our values to make sure they get out to the polls on November 6th. Training provided on the tools and technology. Please bring a laptop computer if you’re able to.
Join TakeAction members to text out the vote! We’ll be reaching out to voters who share our values to make sure they get out to the polls on November 6th. Training provided on the tools and technology. Please bring a laptop computer if you’re able.
It’s time to get out the vote this fall! In our last two and a half weeks of this election, our St. Paul office is transforming into a full-time Action Center. In St. Cloud and Duluth, we are folding in with our partners to make sure we elect Tim Walz, Peggy Flanagan, and other progressives up and down the ballot. We need you to join us. Not only will we be knocking thousands of doors and making thousands of phone calls, but we’ll also be building a joyful political home together.
We can imagine a world where everyone can live free, joyful lives, regardless of what they look like, where they came from, or how they worship. We can imagine a democracy that’s by the people, for the people, and is representative of the people. We can imagine a future where the feminine is highly respected, and no one is held back or harmed because of their gender or sexuality.
At TakeAction Minnesota, we believe achieving justice and strengthening our democracy requires us to take on some of the biggest challenges in our society, including systemic racism, unbridled corporate influence, and gender oppression.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) made it so that I could stay on my parents’ health insurance until I turn 26, and it has basically kept me alive this past year. But even with expanded care, there are still thousands of people in this country who cannot access the kind of care they need.
I believe everyone has a right to care for themselves, their families, and communities. But I believe in more than that. I believe that everyone has a right not just to live, but to live in joy. Those are the values that ground me and drive me to the polls each year.
This year, we have the chance to vote for representatives who will work alongside us to build a Minnesota where everyone has the care that they need. I’m hopeful that we have the chance (not a guarantee) to elect Tim Walz and Peggy Flanagan for Governor and Lt. Governor.
It’s the moments of togetherness—moments where our joyfulness, hope, and healing were more important than fear tactics and statistics—that have made this election feel different for me.
Tim Walz is a veteran and Minnesota school teacher. Peggy Flanagan is a Native organizer, activist, and trailblazer.… Continue reading »
So many of us live and breathe politics because we know that through politics – and organizing – so much more can be possible for our families and in our state.
We’re continuing to call out the dog-whistle politics we’re seeing this election cycle – including state Sen. Karin Housley’s racist dog whistle comment about Michelle Obama – and we’re glad that groups like CAIR and ISAIAH are connecting the dots between corporate backed GOP campaigns and anti-Muslim campaign attack ads.
For decades, some politicians have used race-baiting and scapegoating in an attempt to divide the political power and interests of working people.
We’re not falling for it. Minnesotans won’t be divided. Together, we can accomplish anything.
In Minnesota, We’re Greater Than Fear
A few days ago, a brand new ad came out from Minnesota’s #GreaterThanFear campaign. We love everything about this message and what this story represents. Politics shouldn’t be about fear, and in Minnesota, we’re stronger together.
To us, #GreaterThanFear also means being fearless in our progressive vision and direction. It means being clear and unapologetic about our values, analysis, and goals, so when it’s time to govern, we know where we stand and what we’re fighting for.… Continue reading »
"Go On With Your Story. We Are All Ears."
On Saturday I (Chris) took my daughter to see a show @pfunctionary gallery with @racingmagpie.
It’s a mixed media installation by three Lakota artists (all women) featuring 2-D images, sculpture, and recorded interviews with Lakota women.
St. Paul—Last week, nearly 11 million people watched as Dr. Christine Blasey Ford bravely appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to testify about a sexual assault committed by Brett Kavanaugh, U.S. Supreme Court nominee. Women and survivors across the country came forward in support of Dr. Ford, courageously sharing their own experiences of sexual violence.
At the same time, people watched as Brett Kavanaugh proved he is unfit to serve on the Supreme Court with antagonist responses, lies, and partisan conspiracy theories. Minnesotans joined Americans across the country to take to the streets and demand Senators vote no on Kavanaugh’s confirmation. Today the Senate failed to live up to their responsibility to listen to the people they represent and confirmed Kavanaugh to the highest court of our country.
Elianne Farhat, TakeAction Minnesota’s executive director, released the following statement:
“At TakeAction Minnesota, we believe that when our private pain is brought into public memory, we can work towards healing and justice. Our members are grieving today—and rightfully so. But just as we grieve together, we organize together. We are building a people-centered democracy because we refuse to settle for elected officials who play politics with our dignity and humanity.… Continue reading »
Make More Possible | October 15,2018
