April 2022

HERE’S OUR TO-DO LIST FOR 2022!

“If we don’t stop them in 2022, we’re going to be fighting them in 2024 when they’re much more entrenched.”
– Billy Wimsatt, Movement Voter Project

Airlift partners know what they must do this year and how to go about it. After victories in 2018 and 2020, they are battle-hardened and determined. Here’s a brief summary of what the groups are doing in each key arena in order to win this year and prepare the ground for 2024. For a more detailed look, click here.

Expand the Blue Senate: Sinema and Manchin have amply demonstrated why this is necessary. This year our partners will be working to defend senators in Georgia, Arizona, and Nevada, as well as to flip Republican-held seats in Wisconsin, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and (long-shot) Florida.

Keep the House Blue: This looks much more feasible than it did a few months ago because redistricting has been more favorable to Democrats than originally anticipated. Our partner groups will be defending vulnerable Democrats everywhere in Airlift territory, and will also focus on flipping key red seats. The road to keeping the house blue runs straight through California’s Orange County and Central Valley. Airlift partners Orange County Action and Communities for a New California are tirelessly working there to keep the Speaker’s gavel out of Kevin McCarthy’s hands.

Defend Key Statewide Offices: Governors, secretaries of state, attorneys general, state supreme courts, county election boards, and local election officials are the guardrail officers of our democracy. Each has a role to play in determining the rules that will govern elections in 2024. Our partner groups are laser-focused on defending Democrats and defeating Republicans in these key offices. Governor Stacey Abrams, anyone?

Win Locally: Bottom up is a winning strategy, as the grassroots groups Airlift funds repeatedly demonstrate. City councils, county commissions, school boards, sheriffs, and district attorneys make a huge impact in people’s lives. So do state legislators. Notes Theo Luebke of Carolina Federation, “Strong candidates who come out of the community are very galvanizing–it’s like night and day!

To counter some of the most egregious voter-suppression laws in the country, New Georgia Project is engaged in a massive voter protection effort. They’re also focusing on increasing youth turnout, as are Dream Defenders in Florida, LIT in Wisconsin, and MOVE Texas. In Arizona, LUCHA is fighting for Arizonans for Fair Elections and CASE is training 1,000 canvassers. Both groups, along with Nevada’s PLAN, are working to get out the Indigenous vote.

The organized right-wing mayhem at school boards across the country has raised the alarm. Our partner groups are fighting back on this most local–and important–territory. Down Home North Carolina has launched a statewide initiative to ensure there’s sane pushback against the craziness, and will organize fiercely to elect every viable progressive to school boards.

Our creative partners excel at reaching hard-to-reach voters. Michigan Liberation holds clinics to fix broken brake lights (a common reason for police stops that can lead to devastating consequences). While doing so, they talk with people about what’s going on in their lives, register them to vote, and inspire ongoing civic engagement. In a similar vein, Pennsylvania Stands Up is promoting a ballot measure called Whole Homes Repair Initiative. It’s a brilliant way to bring climate change issues to the grassroots, invest in underserved communities, register and motivate voters, and build the progressive base in one coordinated effort.

Airlift’s partner groups understand the importance of continued vigilance; as funders, so must we. As Dan Pfeiffer, Pod Save America co-host, reminds us: “We need to re-mobilize all those who woke up following 2016. The threat that moved everyone to action then is still there, and it’s gotten worse.”

is proud to announce that

BEN WIKLER, rising star of the Democratic Party & one of its most effective state chairs

will join us for

Winning in Wisconsin

April 26, Tuesday, 5 pm PT / 8 pm ET

Ben Wikler has led the party through an unbroken string of statewide victories, including Wisconsin’s defeat of Trump in 2020. He has built WisDems into a force for progressive change. Under his leadership, the Washington Post heralded the WisDems as 2020’s “State Party of the Year” after helping to power Jill Karofsky’s state Supreme Court landslide that spring, Biden’s victory that November, and a successful Save The Veto campaign that prevented Republican supermajorities in the state legislature. Wikler will tell us what it will take to fight off another supermajority, and to defeat Senator Ron Johnson in 2022.

We will also hear from young grassroots organizers from Wisconsin, Amanda Avalos and Lamonte Moore. Amanda is the Co-Executive Director, and Lamonte the Organizing Director of Leaders Igniting Transformation (LIT).

Save the Date May 26: Nse Ufot, New Georgia Project

“Everyone is a potential organizer. Organizing an Airlift house party is a great way to get your friends together. It doesn’t have to be big. It’s the energy. People are so hopeless and despairing right now, depressed and lonely. So part of what we’re doing is we’re bringing joy and community back to people, and it’s our job to do that with everyone we know.”

- Billy Wimsatt, Movement Voter Project

Help us spread the word about Airlift by hosting an Airlift@Home virtual or in-person house party with your friends, family & colleagues! It’s easy, fun, and the best way to lift our spirits while growing our community to deliver change. As host Sandy Sverdloff attests: ”While there were few bright moments during the pandemic, co-hosting an Airlift house party on Zoom was one of them. I felt empowered to effect positive change and support such an important organization. Through the process, my friends and family did as well. I did my little part to help make a big difference!”

Interested in doing your little part to make a big difference?

Contact Airlift@Home coordinators, Lizzy Hersey or Alison Whitaker.

CASE’S JOSH WELLS LEANS IN

Josh Wells, an organizer for CASE in Arizona, exemplifies the heart and guts of being an activist. A likable, outgoing young man, Josh spends a lot of time recruiting people who can engage underrepresented voters, then get them registered and to the polls. Why? “So we can have as close to a real democracy as possible.” He’s also a person who got an early lesson in worker empowerment.

Right out of college, Josh worked for a Flagstaff hotel. His manager kept calling him a couple hours before his shift, saying, “’Josh, we’re swamped, I need you to come in.’ I’m a young kid, I don’t want to lose my job.” But as soon as Josh got there, the manager would disappear. Turns out he wanted to go partying downtown. “You just shouldn’t treat people like that,” Josh thought. But he didn’t say anything.

A couple years later, while working at a Sheraton in Phoenix, Josh noticed that workers were willing to speak up when they saw something wrong. He asked his fellow workers why it was so different. The answer was always the same: “Because we have a union.” Josh joined Unite Here, the hospitality workers union in Phoenix. CASE has very close ties to Unite Here, so it was an easy transition from supporting the union to working for CASE.

Like all the people in Airlift partner organizations, Josh knows the importance of local elections, both for getting important policy changes that affect people on a day-to-day basis and also to develop future national leaders. Josh is very proud to have worked on the election of Betty Guardado to the Phoenix City Council. Ms. Guardado is a former hospitality worker and union organizer. Last year, hospitality workers at the Phoenix Airport went on strike; meanwhile airport businesses asked the City Council for COVID relief. Betty insisted that workers had to see some of the benefits of that relief--after working through the pandemic, they deserved more. Again, you just can’t treat people like that!

But Josh is most inspired by and eager to share the story of his youngest son. The boy was born with a congenital problem that landed him in the neonatal intensive care unit, his strength failing. Frightened and feeling hopeless by the situation, Josh admits, “I was angry and checked out.” Until his wife told him, “I need you to really be in this or otherwise I’ll do it on my own.” Josh says, “I will always be grateful for her doing that. Because that was a real wake-up call. That I need to be invested in things regardless of the outcome. I need to be invested in things that I really care about.”

It’s the same with political organizing. Josh notes, “Every time a campaign gets difficult, that’s what I remind myself. When things get tough, I’ve got to lean into it.”

After Josh turned around his attitude, his son got better. He’s now a healthy four-year-old. And Josh is still leaning in.

SMART MONEY FOR THE MIDTERMS!

“We recommend giving to organizing groups whose work will help Democrats up and down the ballot. Such work will also build progressive power no matter who wins this election–helping to set the stage for victories in 2024 and beyond.”

--Blue Tent

Now’s the time to make sure that Airlift partner groups have what they need for the moment and the movement. Here’s how you can help:

Donate by Check. Set up automatic payments to Airlift with the Bill Pay service at your bank, or send a check directly to: Airlift, PO Box 617, Corte Madera, CA 94976

Donate Online at ActBlue. Just click the button:

Learn more

Host an Airlift@Home Party on Zoom or in your home! For more information, contact Lizzy Hersey at lizzy@airlift.fund or Alison Whittaker at alison@airlift.fund.

Spread the word! Tell your friends and family about Airlift and our “Live from the Frontlines” series. Share this newsletter and the link to our website.

Thanks!