DAUK eNews May 2011
By C Dew on June 29th, 2011
This e-Newsletter is for members of Democrats Abroad in the UK. Please forward it to other Americans you know who live abroad, and encourage them to join Democrats Abroad:
Hi everyone!
My name is Rob Carolina, and I am the newly elected Chair of Democrats Abroad UK. My fellow elected Officers for this two year term are Karin Robinson (Vice-Chair), Charles Littleton (Secretary), and Eileen Taylor (Treasurer).
It will be our pleasure and our privilege to serve as your Officers, and we are already getting excited about the upcoming 2012 Presidential election season.
1) A special thank-you to retiring Chair Bill Barnard
As you know, Bill Barnard has been our Chair here in the UK for the past four years. I want to take this opportunity to thank him for his tireless service to DAUK specifically and to the Democratic Party generally. In his four years as Chair, Bill has presided with tremendous patience and good grace.
Of course Bill is still going to be actively involved with the Party. He was recently elected to serve as Treasurer of the Democratic Party Committee Abroad (Democrats Abroad International) and he remains an elected member of our own UK Executive Committee. We are fortunate to have a person of his experience and international stature here in the UK, and we all are grateful for his continuing service.
2) Introduction – our Opportunity in the UK
As the official arm of the US Democratic Party in the UK, we have a unique opportunity to reach out to our fellow Americans and encourage them to participate in the Party. I want us to work together to build on the past success of DAUK and to increase DAUK member participation wherever possible.
In the next few months, we will be announcing some new initiatives that should make it easier for you to participate in the Democratic Party - no matter where you live in the UK. One of these will be a Virtual Town Hall, where members throughout the UK will be invited to attend a DAUK conference call briefing and discussion.
As we start out together, I want to ask you all a critical question: How do YOU want to participate in the Democratic Party? Are you a potential event organizer? Are you an IT expert? Do you have what it takes to be a political fundraiser? Are you someone who could be a regional organizer for other Americans in your locale? Are you passionate enough about a project that you want to start it and see it through? I'm on a recruiting drive to find Democrats anywhere in the UK who are passionate about making a difference in the American political system, and who want to work with fellow Democrats in the UK to see it happen.
If that excites you, then please get in touch – youngdems@democratsabroad.org.uk. And stay tuned because specific opportunities will be coming shortly.
3) Upcoming Special Events
There are a number of exciting special events coming up in the next few months.
*Saturday May 7 (Oxford) [SOLD OUT]: A Conversation with Joseph Nye (author of the concept of “soft power” in international relations). [If you wish to check for last-minute availability, please email: youngdems@democratsabroad.org.uk]
*Tuesday May 10 (London): The DAUK Young Professionals Network presents an Immigration Workshop evening. Significant changes have been made to UK immigration policy for non-EU migrants that will come into effect in May. Come find out what these changes are and how they affect you. The first speaker is Polly Penter, immigration advisor at King’s College London, and the second speaker is TBA. Places are limited.
To RSVP, email: youngdems@democratsabroad.org.uk
*Monday May 16 (London): An evening with Andrew Adonis. Lord Adonis served Tony Blair as Head of the Number 10 Policy Unit. He also held a number of cabinet portfolios in the Blair and Brown governments, including serving at cabinet level in the Departments of Education and Transport. Places are limited. For more information, or to reserve your ticket, write to youngdems@democratsabroad.org.uk
As we approach the July 4th Season, we have two very special events on the calendar.
*Tuesday June 28 (London): All-American Comedy Evening with Jeff Kreisler. Jeff is the star of the critically-acclaimed tour, “Comedy Against Evil” and has a syndicated business humor column, “Funny Money”. Jeff's been on Air America's Morning Sedition and is a regular on Satire for Sanity and Laughing Liberally. He has been featured at the Edinburgh Fringe, Freedom Cinema, New York Underground, and San Francisco Comedy Festivals and wrote for the documentary "24 Hours On Craigslist." We'll be sending more details shortly about tickets for this event.
*"July 4" weekend picnic at Portman Square (London): This is our annual opportunity to come together as a community and celebrate our American "national day". Portman Square is a beautiful green leafy venue in London for a day out with family and friends, and this is the most popular event on the DAUK calendar. Stay tuned for details about ticketing.
Additional special events: Our Film Committee has some great plans that we will be able to announce in the next few days.
4) Recurring events
Our regularly scheduled Speakeasies are a chance to meet like-minded Americans, have a drink, talk politics, or just make new friends. Speakeasies are informal and held throughout the country, usually once a month.
The Young Professionals Network (YPN) also hosts a lively monthly get-together. Young (and young-at-heart) Democrats are welcome.
Cambridge Speakeasy
When: First Wednesday of the month
Time: From 6:30pm
Location: The Castle Inn Pub, 38 Castle Street, CB3 0AJ
Edinburgh Speakeasy
When: Adhoc
London Speakeasy
When: First Wednesday of the month
Time: From 7:00pm
NEW VENUE - IN THE CITY
Location: The Harrow, 22 Whitefriars Street, London, EC4Y 8JJ
Nearest Tubes: Temple, Chancery Lane, St Paul's
London Young Professionals Network
When: Third Thursday of the month
Time: From 7:00pm
Location: The Marylebone, 93 Marylebone High Street, London W1U 4RE
Nearest Tubes: Baker Street, Bond Street, Regent's Park
Manchester Speakeasy
When: Ad hoc
Oxford Speakeasy
When: First Wednesday of the month
Time: From 7:30pm
Location: Kings Arms, 40 Holywell Street, Oxford, OX1 3SP (intersection of Holywell and Broad Street)
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