campaigns, candidates, and covid -- again

The saga of our post-2020 census redistricting maps has been resolved for now, and not in a good way. The Wisconsin Supreme Court has now selected the maps the legislature submitted in light of the US Supreme Court's shadow docket ruling on the previous maps from Governor Evers the WI Supreme Court originally approved. The new maps pretty much ensure Republican control of the legislature for the next decade. And they also reduce the number of majority-minority Assembly districts from the current six to only five. The issues surrounding majority-minority districts are likely to be further litigated, questioning the maps' compliance with the federal Voting Rights Act. The US Supreme Court, though, looks increasingly hostile to the VRA in general. So the outcome of such litigation both in Wisconsin and elsewhere could be frightening. And the legal battles will almost certainly have to wait until the November 2022 elections are over. The result is we cannot miss turning out a single one of our supporters. And we need EVERYONE to step up.

Nomination papers for everyone running for office in August and November can circulate now. Many candidates are sending nomination papers to supporters. Others are posting them online for you to download, fill out, and mail back to the campaign. If you are contacted by a candidate you support, you should fill out the nomination for that candidate if you can. For those of you in the 4th Congressional District, here is a link to papers for Representative Gwen Moore. You can sign both as a nominator and as a circulator on the same form. What you cannot do is nominate more than one candidate for the same office. So sign only one nomination form for, say, a candidate in the 4th or 6th congressional district. Or for Governor. Or Attorney General. You get the idea.

In other election news, as you may already know, former Governor "Tommy Thompson won't launch a fifth campaign for Wisconsin governor," according to an article published in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Monday afternoon. The article doesn't really explain Thompson's reasoning, but reading between the lines it seems that maybe his chances of winning the Republican primary weren't good enough. At least that's how I interpreted this sentence from the article: "[...] a conservative group created by a former Thompson administration official conducted a poll about Thompson's chances" before he made the decision. Presumably he's not sufficiently trumpy.

COVID-19 infections are on the rise again in many parts of the country. Here in Milwaukee and Ozaukee counties, the rise is so far very small. But another surge may well be starting. I find the tracker in the New York Times to be a useful way of keeping up with the pandemic in our area since the Journal Sentinel is no longer publishing articles about it very frequently. You can find and customize the NYT tracker here. And if you have not yet ordered at-home test kits from the federal government, you can do so at covidtests.gov. Every address can request two sets of four tests. It's handy to have them around in time for the next wave. And since it can take a couple of weeks to receive yours, don't delay.

Earth Day — on Friday, April 22 — is right around the corner. This year's theme is Invest in Our Planet. The Milwaukee Riverkeeper is hosting an annual river cleanup on that Friday with a celebration at the Harley Davidson Museum afterwards. You'll find the event in the list below, but you can also sign up to participate right now! There will also be a rally and march sponsored by the Milwaukee Earth Day Coalition at city hall at noon. No sign-up needed: just show up. Or you can call 414-269-9525 for more information.

Finally, here's a way to help support Ukrainians: donate what you can to an organization called Ukraine TrustChain. It's a grassroots group that provides direct aid like meals and evacuations under extremely dangerous conditions. Ukraine TrustChain was founded a little over two months ago by Daniil Cherkasskiy of Evanston, IL, along with other Ukrainians in the Chicago area and around the US to respond to the Russian attack on their former country. The organization has a network of volunteer teams in Ukraine who communicate with each other and document their harrowing achievements. As of Sunday, April 17, they have evacuated 26,019 people (more than half children), and have provided over 50,000 daily meals. It costs approximately $6-$8. to evacuate each person. To date the group has raised $432,340. You can learn more about this incredible local effort to fund these courageous teams and their accomplishments by reading the Ukraine TrustChain Newsletter. For more information, email or call Norma Gilson (414-588-1241).

EVENTS

Tuesday, April 19

Chris Larson Bowling Fundraiser, 5:30pm - 5:30pm
South Shore Bowl, 3620 E. Carpenter Ave., Cudahy
Join State Sen. Chris Larson for a fundraiser with bowling, refreshments and pizza. Sponsorships are Strike sponsor $500, Spare sponsor $250, Split sponsor $100, suggested minimum donation $25. Donors are invited to play two games. RSVP.

Wednesday, April 20

Dem Party of WI, 6:00pm - 6:00pm
Zoom
We can now start collecting nomination signatures for our Fall candidates to make sure their names appear on the ballot. To prepare for this, we will be hosting a Nomination Signatures Training. During this training, we will go over how to collect nomination signatures, create space to share best practices with other volunteer leaders from across the state & more! Please sign up for the call ahead of time. We look forward to you joining us! Sign up here!

Dem Party of Ozaukee County, 7:00pm - 7:00pm
1930 Wisconsin Ave., Grafton, and Virtual
Ozaukee Wisconsin Democrats are organizing from the heart of the ‘WOW County’ battleground of Wisconsin, perhaps the most consequential swing area in America — home of the improbable Biden ‘20 win in the city of Cedarburg and critical to flipping the 23rd Assembly to Representative Deb Andraca. The meeting is on the lower level by the hardware store. Watch for the link for the Zoom meeting on our Facebook events page.

Drinking Liberally Tosa, 6:30 – 8:30pm
Camp Bar Tosa, 6600 W North Ave, Wauwatosa
Drinking Liberally Tosa will return in person.

Friday, April 22

Milwaukee River Clean Up and Rock the Green Earth Day, 9:00am - 3:00pm
400 W Canal St, Milwaukee and other locations
Milwaukee Riverkeeper is hosting its annual River Cleanup. This will be followed by the Rock the Green Earth Day Celebration at the Harley-Davidson Museum. And there will be more than 80 locations across the Milwaukee River Basin. Register to participate.

Rally and March for a Livable Planet, 12:00pm - 12:00pm
City Hall on Water & Wells Streets, Milwaukee
Rally sponsored by the Milwaukee Earth Day Coalition. More information at 414-269-9525.

Saturday, April 23

Stand for Peace, 12:00 – 1:00pm
Greenfield Avenue & Cesar Chavez Drive (16th Street), Milwaukee
Stand for Peace has resumed in-person events with masks and social distancing. Check for more information. Organized by Peace Action Wisconsin.

Wednesday, April 27

Milw Co. Comm. Justice Council Meeting, 9:30 – 10:30am
Zoom
The Milwaukee (County) Community Justice Council will have a meeting of the whole. Zoom link.

Mapping Racism and Resistance, 7:00 – 9:00pm
Christ Church Episcopal, 5655 N. Lake Drive, Whitefish Bay and virtual
This presentation will deal with the shape of racial covenants in Milwaukee County and what has been the resistance of such covenants by members of the Black community. Anne Bonds, UWM Department of Geography; Reggie Jackson, Nurturing Diversity Partners; Derek Handley, UWM Department of English; and Lawrence Hoffman, Groundwork Milwaukee will present their finding using archival research, rhetorical analysis and GIS mapping. Registration.

Thursday, April 28

Mental Health Board Meeting, 9:00am - 9:am
Microsoft Teams
This is a teleconference meeting (see Agenda for details). More information.

Saturday, April 30

1st Congressional District Convention, 9:30am – 3:00pm
Fireside Restaurant & Lounge, 2810 30th Avenue, Kenosha
The convention will elect party officials, pass resolutions, and conduct other congressional business. More information and registration.

Stand for Peace, 12:00 – 1:00pm
Port Washington Road & Silver Spring Drive, Glendale
Stand for Peace has resumed in-person events with masks and social distancing. Check for more information. Organized by Peace Action Wisconsin.

Wednesday, May 4

Drinking Liberally Waukesha, 6:30 – 6:30pm
Club 400, 322 Williams St., Waukesha
The meeting has moved to Club 400 and will be in the upstairs bar area. All attendees should be vaccinated and wear masks when not actively eating or drinking. More information.