Ahead of the Michigan primary, Our Revolution leader Joseph Geevarghese is speaking to the nation about why Biden must change course on Gaza to seek peace, save lives, and earn back trust from the coalition he’ll need to defeat Trump in November.
“The carnage in Gaza needs to end. The president must be a peacemaker. And, we must defeat Trump in November,” Geevarghese said. “It all starts with making progressive voices heard in the primaries in Michigan and beyond.”
Our Revolution is joined by Rashida Tlaib and former Congressman Andy Levin in this call to get progressives to ‘Vote Uncommitted’ as a push for Peace in the Michigan presidential primary on Feb. 27th.
We must send a clear message directly to the Biden campaign: Change course NOW on Gaza or else risk losing Michigan to Trump in November.
If you’re in Michigan, pledge here to Vote Uncommitted on Tuesday!
“Our Revolution is throwing its weight behind the movement to vote Uncommitted in Michigan’s Democratic primary, seeking to pressure President Biden into changing his approach to the war between Israel and Hamas,” wrote the New York Times.
“It’s a strategic opportunity to send a signal to the president that he’s got to change course,” Our Revolution Executive Director Joseph Geevarghese told CBS News.
This effort intends to “realign with the values of his base, including young voters, voters of color, and Michigan’s significant Arab-American population,” reported John Nichols in The Nation.
“Months of protests and activism in cities across the country continue to be ignored, and this latest veto (of the UN ceasefire resolution) shows exactly why it’s imperative for voters to send a message to the Biden administration at the ballot box,” Joseph told The Hill.
“With just a few days until the Michigan primary vote, Biden’s blockade of the cease-fire resolution will only intensify the outrage and galvanize pro-peace voices to vote ‘uncommitted’ to make their voices heard,” Joseph said.
Our Revolution organizers are making calls, sending texts, and emailing 87,000 our members in Michigan — chip in so we can reach as many Michigan voters as possible.
Our Revolution has joined forces with a coalition calling on President Biden to use executive action to halt the devastation caused by logging old-growth forests.
Old-growth forests provide irreplaceable ecosystems to countless endangered species and are key to climate change mitigation — and 95% have been destroyed forever.
This is another tragic case of corporate interests dominating all other stakeholders and capturing government policy to serve their bottom line at the expense of the rest of us.
The Senate Democratic caucus just voted in support of $14 billion in funding for Israel. But not Bernie. Bernie stood firmly against continued U.S. support for Israel’s war in Gaza, which has killed more than 27,000 Palestinians.
AIPAC is a big reason why support for Netanyahu’s war is so strong on Capitol Hill and in the White House. And AIPAC has promised to spend $100 million against pro-Peace progressives like Bernie, Barbara Lee, Rashida Tlaib, Pramila Jayapal, AOC, and Summer Lee in 2024.
AIPAC donates to both corporate Democrats and insurrectionists, and they’re funded by right-wing billionaires and Trump mega-donors. We have beat big money before and we can do it again.
Last weekend, Our Revolution played a major role in this year’s Reducing the Threat of Nuclear War Conference — one of the nation’s most significant gatherings of Nuclear Disarmament advocates, led by Massachusetts Peace Action.
Joining the discussion with leading peace advocates from around the country were U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna and Our Revolution Board Chair Larry Cohen, who spoke to the need to defend and expand progressive representation in Congress in order to advance an agenda for peace.
“We can’t just elect Democrats who support a bloated military budget,” Larry said. “And, this isn’t just about a single issue, but the need for a coalitional politics that stands for real change.”
As a member of Congress who has repeatedly voted against the Pentagon budget, opposed new rounds of nukes, and more , Ro Khanna is an important voice against militarism.
Ro worked with Bernie Sanders to pass the first War Powers resolution to bring the war in Yemen to a close. During the call, he dug into the details of why he is calling on President Biden to abide by the resolution following dozens of American and UK strikes in Yemen last week.
“We can’t have a president of either party getting us involved in another Middle East conflict,” Ro said. “I’ve spoken for Ceasefire for humanitarian reasons: children are being killed, the possibility of famine, the release of hostages.”
“But there are also regional reasons for deescalation,” he explained, “so we don’t expand into Yemen and prevent a wider war in the Middle East. I view this as an urgent task for members of Congress, particularly the Congressional Progressive Caucus, to get us to a point of ceasefire in Gaza.”
Merkley spoke to how the current Senate is broken, gridlocked, and a threat to the foundations of our democracy. He explained how the minority party can just declare a “no talk” filibuster requiring 60 votes to pass nearly any bill, and have veto power over the majority’s agenda — all behind closed doors.
“The filibuster is used by the powerful to block progress on every issue – from democracy reforms to climate legislation,” Merkley said. “No matter what aspect of the progressive movement you’re passionate about, we need to push Congress to fix this.”
We were also joined by Mike Zamore, who served as Sen. Merkley’s chief of staff from the beginning and co-authored their new book “Filibustered: How to Fix the Broken Senate and Save America.”
“The filibuster is perfect for the Republicans, it’s ‘heads I win, tails you lose,’” Zamore said. “We can’t build power when we’re hamstrung by the filibuster. It’s not just policies that get blocked, it’s us and our power and our ability to show that our vision of America is worth fighting for.”
U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee has been on the forefront calling for a Ceasefire and we all remember how she stood alone to vote against giving George W. Bush unilateral power to go into war in Afghanistan and Iraq.
“Wherever I am or what platform I have, I’m going to fight for peace and security for people no matter where they live — Gaza, Ukraine, and our own communities,” Barbara told Our Revolution.
“I don’t believe in taking our resources and tax dollars to enrich arms dealers that are scamming the system and creating war,” she said.
Check out this LA Times article on why Barbara is the Peace Candidate in this race compared to her opponents, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff, then sign up at the link below to help elect Barbara Lee to the U.S. Senate!
Last week, we took a deep dive into the filibuster and democracy with U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee on Our Revolution’s LIVE National Organize-to-Win Call.
Progressives are leading the fight for a government and an economy that works for all of us — that means ending the racist relic of the filibuster and delivering material change for people’s lives.
Merkley spoke to how the current Senate is broken, gridlocked, and a threat to the foundations of our democracy. He explained how the minority party can just declare a “no talk” filibuster requiring 60 votes to pass nearly any bill, and have veto power over the majority’s agenda — all behind closed doors.
“The filibuster is used by the powerful to block progress on every issue – from democracy reforms to climate legislation,” Merkley said. “No matter what aspect of the progressive movement you’re passionate about, we need to push Congress to fix this.”
We were also joined by Mike Zamore, who served as Sen. Merkley’s chief of staff from the beginning and co-authored their new book “Filibustered: How to Fix the Broken Senate and Save America.”
“The filibuster is perfect for the Republicans, it’s ‘heads I win, tails you lose,’” Zamore said. “We can’t build power when we’re hamstrung by the filibuster. It’s not just policies that get blocked, it’s us and our power and our ability to show that our vision of America is worth fighting for.”
Barbara Lee gave powerful insights into the institutional racism from which the filibuster emerged — and how we must fight back.
“This is one of the fights we have to make if we’re going to defend our democracy and our freedoms,” she told us. “I’ve said this for years — a lot of people think it’s a law, but any rule that is established to discriminate against African Americans has got to be awful.”
Rep. Lee said she intends to join Sen. Merkley in the Senate so, together, they can work together and work with our outside movement to fix the filibuster and deliver policy that saves lives in America.
Don’t miss this final opportunity to get your signed copy of Sen. Merkley’s and Mr. Zamore’s new book “Filibustered: How to Fix the Broken Senate and Save America” — skip Amazon and buy it through Our Revolution here to help support this movement!
On Thursday, Bernie Sanders joined us for the Democracy is Not for Sale Movement Call to discuss the critical need to overturn Citizens United — this month marks 14 years since the disastrous Supreme Court ruling that unleashed a flood of Big Money in politics.
“Corporations are not people and money is not speech,” Bernie said. “The forces against us in the fight to overturn Citizens United are, by definition, extremely wealthy and extremely powerful, but let me emphasize that they are the 1% and we are the 99%.
“It’s time my colleagues in DC understand that our government and our economy must work for all of us, not just the billionaire class,” he said.
On Thursday, U.S. Reps. Barbara Lee and Rashida Tlaib joined Our Revolution activists from around the country for a powerful discussion on the urgent need for a Ceasefire at our Peace for All Town Hall.
Not only did we lift up the call for Peace, but we dug into real diplomatic and legislative solutions — including Bernie’s call to halt more than $10 billion in military funding for the rightwing Netanyahu government.
We hope you’ll add your voice to stand with Bernie and show the strength of our demand: The U.S. government must stop using our tax money to fund this brutal war against the Palestinian people. Not one more dollar.
U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee has been on the forefront calling for a Ceasefire and is one the most courageous anti-war advocates in all of Congress — just one of many reasons Our Revolution is working so hard to elect her to the Senate.
Jewish Insider mentioned Barbara’s “unequivocal ceasefire in Gaza” and how it’s garnering progressive support in their reporting on Our Revolution’s Peace for All Town Hall.
Barbara has actually visited refugee camps in the Middle East and nearly stepped on a cluster bomb in Lebanon — later, finding a bomb casing that read “Made in the USA.”
“I came to understand the dynamics and the United State’s role in the Middle East,” she said. “And, since then, wherever I am or what platform I have, I’m going to fight for peace and security for people no matter where they live — Gaza, Ukraine, and our own communities.”
“I believe in security, but I don’t believe in taking our resources and tax dollars to enrich arms dealers that are scamming the system and creating war,” Barbara told us.
We all know about Barbara’s lone vote in Congress against the authorization to give President Bush nearly unlimited war powers to go into the disastrous conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan — a vote that resulted in death threats at the time but was vindicated by history.
But Barbara is also the only candidate running for Senate in California who voted against the PATRIOT Act and drone strikes in Libya — and always votes to slash the bloated Pentagon budget. She also serves as co-chair of the Global Peace and Security Task Force in the Progressive Caucus.
Our Revolution was proud to announce our endorsement of U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib — we’ve had her back since the beginning, and we’re going to fight against the dark money targeting her in her race for re-election in 2024.
Rashida is the daughter of Palestinian immigrants and one of our most fearless progressive leaders in Congress — always standing on principle for peace, people, and planet no matter the cost.
Rashida was recently censured by her rightwing colleagues in the House of Representatives for her outspoken advocacy for the Ceasefire — but she’s not backing down!
“This is about speaking truth to power no matter if our voice is shaking,” she told our Peace Town Hall on Thursday. “We can’t stop fighting to save lives. The answer to war crimes is not more war crimes.”
The Resolution for a Ceasefire introduced by Rep. Tlaib and Rep. Cori Bush has grown in support from 13 to more than 60 members of Congress and we must keep going.
Rashida emphasized the importance of outside organizing to pressure elected leaders to do the right thing. “Every time I see all of you out there — whether it’s rallying or standing outside district office or making calls to your reps — it all makes a difference and it just makes me cry,” she said, welling up with tears.
VICTORY! Our Revolution helped elect Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson earlier this year, and this week he officially delivered on his campaign promise to eliminate the “subminimum wage” for tipped workers!
Together with One Fair Wage, we fought for this new law which calls for tipped workers — currently paid 60% of Chicago’s minimum wage — to receive 8% annual increases beginning next July until they reach 100% parity in 2028, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
In July, Mayor Brandon Johnson joined us to serve up food to restaurant workers and raise awareness in this fight. Our own members submitted testimony directly, and we just won!
Stay tuned! In Ohio and Arizona, Our Revolution has teams canvassing for signatures for petition drives that will put a $20+ MINIMUM WAGE directly on the ballot in 2024.
Tens of thousands tuned in this week to Our Revolution’s Economic Justice Town Hall with Reps. Barbara Lee and Ro Khanna, Professor Richard Wolff, and worker activists like Sergio Valderrama from around the country.
We dug into the issues that cut to the core of our shared economic struggle, including jobs, wages, housing, labor power, healthcare costs, student debt, greed-flation, and more.
A rigged economic system is crushing people and creating a wealth gap that has enabled the ultra-wealthy to hijack democracy in America.
Rep. Barbara Lee lived the struggle as a single mother and knows the tough decisions families face when wages are too low, and the rent is too damn high.
She has spent her life and career waging the fight for economic justice, and now we have a chance to send her to partner with Bernie Sanders and speak for our movement in the Senate.
“I know what economic injustice is. I know how people are struggling,” Barbara said on the Town Hall. “We can’t have people just hanging on the edge in the wealthiest, most powerful country in the world.”
Barbara and Bernie recently teamed up together on the new OLIGARCH Act to tax the ultra-wealthy. They’re also pushing for a Wall Street speculation tax, a bill to close the CEO-worker pay gap, an audit of the Pentagon, and more.
“Senator Sanders and I have worked on this daily,” Barbara said. “People cannot wait. Billionaires are scamming the system, and regular folks are paying excessive taxes to fuel the Pentagon budget. This is money that should be invested in healthcare, housing, and lifting people out of poverty.”
Rep. Ro Khanna is chairing Barbara Lee’s campaign for the U.S. Senate because he knows her passion and record and these crucial issues.
“I’ve often said Barbara Lee is the antiwar voice we need, but I could never have predicted we’d need that voice so urgently in the moment we’re in,” Ro said on our Town Hall. “If you care about peace, if you care about a ceasefire in the Middle East, Barbara Lee is the only candidate in this race to come out for a permanent ceasefire.”
“As is often the case, she is a bit ahead of all of us. She showed the way, and we’ve got to rally around her. She’s going to win because people are going to find out California is a progressive, pro–peace state.”
When 1% of America controls nearly a third of the wealth and the bottom half can claim less than 3%, we’re in trouble, and so is our democracy, Ro told us.
“For 50 years, there’s been a war on the working and middle class in this country, and people feel that,” Ro said. “Wages aren’t keeping up, and folks can’t afford medical debt, student debt, credit card debt. They say, ‘I can’t afford to live in America.’”
“That is the central challenge that the Democratic Party has to tackle,” he explained, “to create economic opportunity and wealth generation in every district in America. There are many parts of this country where there’s no economic opportunities, no job creation, no sense of the American Dream. This country cannot stand that divided. “
“It’s why I co-chaired Bernie’s campaign and why I’m chairing Barbara Lee’s campaign. We need to prioritize the working class. That means Medicare for All, universal childcare, forgiving student loans, free public college, a living wage, paid family leave, power for labor unions, and more. We know what needs to be done in this country, and it also means taxing the ultra-rich.”
We were excited to have Economist Professor Richard Wolff also join the Town Hall on Monday!
“The problem for people is an unequal distribution of wealth, which is used to corrupt our politics,” Professor Wolff told us. “The rich understand you can’t have democracy because the mass of people might use it to change the distribution of wealth, and for that reason, they aim to stop that process.
“If you want a political democracy, you have no choice but to advocate for an economic democracy because, without that, you’ll never get the political democracy either,” he explained.
Wolff said he takes great encouragement from seeing the surge of unionization and labor strikes — from Starbucks to UAW to graduate students organizing on campus.
“There is a movement already underway of people saying they don’t need to live in a world as unequal as this one,” Professor Wolff said. “We can do better than this, and it’s our job just as the working people who struggled before us — to stop slavery, to stop feudalism. Now, it’s our turn to make a better world.”
Sergio Valderrama is doing just that and making a difference as a worker activist with Fight for $15 and a Union.
He joined our Town Hall Monday night from his car between DoorDash deliveries. A McDonald’s worker for 10 years, Sergio has always had to work two or three jobs to support his wife and children.
Last year, Our Revolution joined Sergio in the fight to win AB257, which set a $20 minimum wage for fast food workers and gave them a seat at the negotiating table in California — a form of sectoral bargaining we want to export around the country.
“Winning this bill was important. It helped a lot with expenses and rent, but the cost of living keeps going up, and we must keep fighting,” he said. “And I don’t have insurance, so I can’t actually afford to go see the doctor.”
Sergio speaks for so many of us, and we’re proud to be with him in this working-class movement to demand real change and elect progressive leaders who fight alongside us.
