Grassroots North Shore's Annual Meeting

On February 6 (7pm - 8:30pm), Grassroots North Shore will hold an informative virtual event — School Boards Under Attack — featuring Barbara Miner (Wisconsin-based Education Journalist) and Robert Peterson (Milwaukee Public Schools Board President.) Joining the featured speakers will be residents of communities that have recently succeeded in containing the siege on school board members and programs. Sign up and plan to attend!

Two school boards in Ozaukee County — Cedarburg School District and Mequon-Thiensville School District — are experiencing this kind of attack right now. Both will have will have primaries on February 15 and a general election on April 5. If you live in one of those school districts, it is especially important that you come to this event. AND YOU MUST VOTE. Actually, that goes for everyone this newsletter reaches. You can request absentee ballots (i.e., ballots to be mailed to you) for the whole year at myvote.wi.gov.

Before the start of the main program, the Annual Meeting will begin with a short presentation reviewing the work of the past year, outlining our plans for this year, and voting to affirm the selection of steering committee members for 2022. Anyone who has paid their membership dues in 2021 or 2022 can vote for the slate. If you have not yet become a member, now would be a perfect time. You can do it online or mail a check to Grassroots North Shore, 5600 W. Brown Deer Rd, Suite 116, Brown Deer, WI 53223. Memberships are $5 for students, $20 for an individual, and $30 for a family. Up your political game and become a member!

Wisconsin in the News

Senator Ron Johnson has at last announced that, despite his original vow to resign from the Senate after two terms, he's going to run for re-election this year. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel covered Johnson's announcement, and also included brief responses from four key opponents. A lot of national media considered his announcement an important story too. NPR coverage is here. Here's the Washington Post's take. And here's the New York Times's piece. The last two of these outlets use their subheads to note that Johnson tells numerous lies about the 2020 election and covid. Meanwhile, Kathy Bernier, a Republican state senator who has "stood up to attacks on the 2020 election results from other Republicans", has announced that she will not run for re-election. Aside from Talking Points Memo the story was not generally picked up. News of the Big Lie and its impact is everywhere, but vocal opposition is not.

And you should take the time to read an Ezra Klein op-ed in the New York Times and a Greg Sargent post in the Washington Post, both about election strategies and both with quotations from Ben Wikler, Chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party.

COVID News

WISN is reporting that the positivity rate for Milwaukee County from December 31, 2021, to January 6, 2022 was 36.2% while in the city of Milwaukee, over approximately the same time period, it was 41.2%. These are extremely high percentages. And it means your chance of encountering an infectious person is also extremely high if you are out and about. The director of the CDC, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, made the bad kind of news when she went on Good Morning America on Friday and "said that the majority of Omicron fatalities had occurred in people who already had other medical conditions at the same time — known as comorbidities" (Newsweek, Jan 10, 2022). She implied that those who have died were sick anyway, so.... Not what she meant, apparently, but that's the way it came across.

Spring 2022 Election Information

As we always do, Grassroots North Shore will provide you with the information you need about upcoming elections on our website. This year for the first time, we will be including links to candidate information — or at least such online information as we can find — for school board, municipal, and judicial elections in the North Shore and Ozaukee Counties. You will also find links to information about drop boxes (unless the GOP succeeds in outlawing them!) and in-person early voting. Many communities and school boards will not have primaries on February 15. The Cedarburg School District and the Mequon-Thiensville School District are the only two we currently know about. Information about what's at stake and who the candidates are (with links to the online information that's available) should be up by Monday, January 17.

You can request absentee ballots for the whole year by going to myvote.wi.gov. And you should. Do it now while the link is in front of you. Unless you've moved since you last voted, you should be registered to vote. But you can check that too when you're on the site. As we get closer to an election date, you can also see a sample ballot for your voting district.

EVENTS

Drinking Liberally MKE, 6:30pm - 7:30pm
Zoom
Drinking Liberally MKE will be virtual during the winter months. More information. Zoom link.

350 Milwaukee Virtual Meeting, 7pm - 8:30pm
Online
350 Milwaukee is part of the global organization building a grassroots movement in 188 countries to address global warming and solve the climate crisis. 350 Milwaukee usually meets every month on the second Tuesday. Check the following link for information on whether a meeting will occur. More information.

League of Women Voters-Public Issues Forum, 7pm - 8:30pm
Online
Milwaukee City-County Climate and Equity Plan. Registration required. Register here.

Wed Jan 12, 2022

Grass Roots South Shore Virtual Meeting, 7pm - 9pm
Online
Check the link to see if Grass Roots South Shore will have a virtual meeting. More information or call Jim Balk, 414-218-5944.

Thu Jan 13, 2022

Voter Protection 101 Training, 5pm - 6pm
Virtual
Join our Wisconsin Voter Protection 101 Training to learn the basics of Wisconsin election law so you can help people exercise their right to vote, and learn how you can get involved protecting democracy in your community! Register here.

Mon Jan 17, 2022

Celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.2pm - 3:30pm
Online
With Waukesha United and the League of Women Voters. Voting is the single most powerful tool we have. Voting is a right of all citizens, thanks to voting rights activists like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Not registered to vote? Join Us for a virtual live voter registration where you can follow along to become registered to vote in Wisconsin in mere minutes. Already registered? You will learn other valuable tools that registered voters can use. Activate your power! Register for this event.

Wed Jan 19, 2022

Suspended: Southwest Region Dems Meeting, 7pm - 7pm
TBA
Southwest Dems (Region 5) cover Franklin, Greendale, Greenfield, Hales Corners, Milwaukee (Southwest), West Allis, West Milwaukee. For information on when a meeting may be held check here or contact [email protected].

Thu Jan 20, 2022

Voter Protection 101 Training, 5pm - 6pm
Virtual
Join our Wisconsin Voter Protection 101 Training to learn the basics of Wisconsin election law so you can help people exercise their right to vote, and learn how you can get involved protecting democracy in your community! Register here.

Sat Jan 22, 2022

Community Brainstorming, 8am - 11am
Suspended
Community Brainstorming Conference will suspend its monthly breakfast forumsuntil further notice. More information.

Mon Jan 24, 2022

Milwaukee Dems Meeting, 6pm - 8pm
Zoom
Milwaukee County Democrats meet monthly to discuss party business, hear speakers on current topics, pass resolutions, and network with other progressives. All interested Democrats are invited. Information about how to access the meeting will be sent after RSVP.