-
Run for something! Barcelona chapter elections orientation session
Elections for officers of the Barcelona chapter of Democrats Abroad Spain for the 2023–2024 term are approaching quickly. The new term will run from the moment elections have been decided until the Spring of 2025, meaning that the coming term will see the all-important General and Presidential Elections of 2024. You can play a leading role in the Democrats retaining the White House and the Senate, retaking the House, and continuing to champion democracy and equal opportunity.
The following offices are up for election this year: Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer. Officers serve a two-year term and can hold the same office for a maximum of two consecutive terms. To submit your candidacy, use the nomination form here.
Want to learn more? Join the Orientation Meeting on Tuesday, 28 March at 7:30 pm on Zoom, at which we will provide further insights on the roles now open, the nomination and election process and the AGM. Past and current officeholders will be on hand to provide more information and answer all your questions about the different roles and what they involve.
-
Wednesday, March 29, 2023 at 07:00 PM Madrid Time · 6 rsvps
RSVP for Zoom link in Madrid, SpainSpain Women's Caucus - Let's Talk
The Spain Women's Caucus is hosting our second informal one hour chat that we are calling ‘Let’s Talk!’ to close out the month of March, Women’s History Month. The focus will be on sharing who our personal female heroes are, be they historical, current, famous or not. As well we can talk about what is on our minds, for example the ERA, abortion rights, and being a foreign female living in Spain. It will be a very informal gathering with a flexible agenda.
The suggested topics are:
- Who is your female hero? (How do we define the word ‘hero’?)
- What is going on in the USA!?! (ERA, abortion rights, the current Supreme Court etc. etc. (The list is too long!)
- What is it like to be a foreign woman living in Spain?
- What is on your mind?
-
Thursday, March 30, 2023 at 05:00 PM Madrid Time · 66 rsvps
Universitat Politecnica de Valencia in Valencia, SpainTax 101 Seminar - US and Spanish Taxes
Tired of getting your Spanish tax advice from strangers on Facebook? Join Democrats Abroad Valencia on Thursday, March 30, 2023 at 5 PM CET for an informative and educational seminar on the Spanish and U.S. tax responsibilities for Americans living in Spain.
This seminar will be held at UPV and is available via Zoom. Link information available after RSVP.
Our guest speaker will be Andreu Bové, partner and head of the tax department for the Madrid-based accounting and tax firm Bové, Montero y Asociados. Sr. Bové graduated with a double degree in Law and Business Management, holds a Master’s degree in Taxation, and speaks six languages, including English.
This event is a fundraiser to help DA Spain meet its goal for Get Out The Vote in 2024. We appreciate your participation and support.
-
Sunday, April 02, 2023 at 10:00 AM Eastern Time (US & Canada) · 23 rsvps
ZoomBooks Abroad April Discusses Lessons in Chemistry
Books Abroad, The Global Women’s Caucus feminist reading group, has an original, unexpected, funny, sad, tragic book to propose for its April 2nd meeting: Lessons in Chemistry.
This runaway international publishing, reader, and critical success cleverly tells the story of Zott, a woman chemist, thwarted at every step of her life by sexism. The book is both thought-provoking and touching. (I cried at the end!)
Here is the story of a female scientist in 1961, prevented even from getting her Ph.D., prevented from using her intelligence for science, for the common good, by the system, constantly and willfully misunderstood.
“Zott is a catalyst,” says Bonnie Garmus, the author. “She’s actively breaking and creating new bonds. And that is chemistry at its most basic.”
There is a lot to talk about: feminism, history, science, religion, the author’s style, an attempt at magic realism, and many other ideas and points.
The book exists in paperback and can be ordered from Amazon or your preferred bookseller. A few used copies, in good condition, can perhaps be found on Momox.
Join us on Zoom on Sunday, April 2, 2023, at 10 am ET, 4 pm CET. RSVP to Receive the Zoom link.
Location Event Start Time Vancouver, Canada 07:00 PDT San Jose, Costa Rica 08:00 CST Washington DC, USA 10:00 EDT London, United Kingdom 15:00 BST Frankfurt, Germany 16:00 CEST Dubai, United Arab Emirates 18:00 GST New Delhi, India 19:30 IST Bangkok, Thailand 21:00 ICT Beijing, China 22:00 CST -
Tuesday, April 04, 2023 at 03:00 AM through July 03, 2023 at 3:00am Eastern Time (US & Canada)
Video launch via YouTubeAmerican Women Need Your Help Now!
The GWC Reproductive Justice Team has launched a project to promote voter registration
and ACTION under the theme Reproductive Justice for ALL.As you certainly know, the rights of all women to choose when and if to start a family have been taken away by the Supreme Court when it overruled Roe vs Wade.
As a result, over 26 states prohibiting or restricting the right to abortion during the first trimester of pregnancy even in the cases of rape, incest and the mother’s and/or the fetus’ health. Texas has empowered vigilantes to sue everyone and anyone aiding and abetting abortion once the fetal heartbeat can be heard, i.e. at approximately 6 weeks and before most women know they are pregnant. Every day there are over 200 bills in the red state legislatures taking away our rights and making women into criminals.
Now that the Republicans have taken the House, we must fight for Federal Protection of Our Reproductive Freedom
Our project is a video launch via YouTube. We continue to ask all DA members to make a short (60 second) video explaining why the right to abortion is absolutely necessary. If you come from a state where it is practically impossible to obtain an abortion, you can speak about the discrimination against minority and poor women whose lives are in jeopardy and who cannot travel. If you come from “good states” such as MA, CA, or NY, you can speak to the injustice of access depending upon where you live. Make sure you mention in the video VotefromAbroad.org for expat voter registration and vote.gov for non-expat voter registration.
The fight now is in the red state legislatures and we will push our videos out there to counter the misinformation about medication abortion and our rights.
Here are a few subjects that you could choose for your video:
- If you live/vote in a country that has “good” reproductive freedom laws, you could refer to the country and the liberal law(s) and how lucky you are to be in that country and how unfair it is for American women LIVING IN THE US who can’t benefit from such laws.
- If you live/vote in a US state that has good reproductive freedom laws, see above, you can say that living in a “bad” state is discriminatory since women in “good “US states have rights that you are denied.
- You can share a personal experience. You don’t have to use your name or even mention where you live. The videos will be anonymous unless you do give details.
- You can make a statement that women should have the right to control their bodies. Period. There is no justification for the government to decide when, how or even if women should have children.
If you can’t think of anything to say but still want to make a video, feel free to contact Salli at [email protected]. She will set up a call, walk you through some ideas and help you make the video.
For more information, visit our blog space here:
https://www.democratsabroad.org/wc_reproductive_justice_action_team
All videos should be sent to Salli Swartz at [email protected]
THANKS FOR ALL YOUR EFFORTS TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN
Disclaimer: By submitting your video, you grant to Democrats Abroad nonexclusive rights to use your video and your image only for the 2023 GWC Reproductive Justice Get Out the Vote video project.
You therefore hereby waive all rights to any claims arising out of or in connection with Democrats Abroad GWC’s use of your video and image in connection with the 2022 Reproductive Justice video project.
-
La Lucha Continúa: 9 to 5, the Story of a Movement
When Dolly Parton sang “9 to 5,” she was doing more than just shining a light on the fate of American working women. Parton was singing the true story of a movement that started with 9to5, a group of Boston secretaries in the early 1970s. Their goals were simple—better pay, more advancement opportunities, and an end to sexual harassment—but their unconventional approach attracted the press and shamed their bosses into change. Featuring interviews with 9to5’s founders, as well as actor and activist Jane Fonda, “9to5: The Story of a Movement” is the previously untold story of the fight that inspired a hit and changed the American workplace.
The movie was codirected by the recently deceased Julia Reichert, whose "American Factory" won an Oscar for best documentary-feature in 2019, and who also codirected such other documentary classics as "Union Maids" and "Growing Up Female." "9to5: the Story of a Movement" was nominated for a Peabody Award in 2021, and was aired on PBS in 2021.
Watch the documentary prior to the meeting (we will send you a link) and then join us for a very special event cosponsored by Democrats Abroad Barcelona/Spain and the Global and Spain Women’s Caucuses.
On April 11 at 2pm CT / 8pm CET, we will meet with book author and founder of 9 to 5 Ellen Cassedy; and Kim Cook, an organizer and activist for worker’s rights. Both women appear in the film.
Ellen Cassedy was a founder of the 9 to 5 organization of women office workers that began in Boston fifty years ago. She is the author of a new book, “Working 9 to 5: A women’s movement, a labor union, and the iconic movie,” with a foreword by Jane Fonda. Liz Shuler, the president of the AFL-CIO, calls the book “a must-read for any activist or reader in search of inspiration.” Historian Lane Windham calls it “exactly the right book at the right time.” Ellen is a former columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News. She was a speechwriter in the Clinton administration and is the award-winning author of several books. She lives in New York City.
Kim Cook is the past President of SEIU Local 925, a local of 26,000 child care and public sector workers in Washington State. She began her work as a member activist of 9to5, a pre-union clerical workers association, was hired as an SEIU organizer in 1984 and organized workers around the country; she was elected President of SEIU Local 925 in 2001. Kim served on the SEIU International Executive Board and as an International Vice-President. In 2010 she was hired to build and lead a new department at SEIU - Member Leaders in Action. She is also one of the co-founders of Flash Mobs for Social Justice. She retired as an Associate at the Cornell Worker Institute in New York City.
When you RSVP to this event, you will be sent a link to watch the documentary (90 minutes) at your own convenience. Then come on April 11 to hear from the people behind the movement, the film and the book and ask them your questions.
-
Saturday, April 22, 2023 at 11:00 AM Madrid Time
Patacona Beach in Valencia, SpainEarth Day Beach Clean Up
Join Democrats Abroad Valencia at Patacona Beach on Earth Day to pick up trash and spread environmental awareness. We will meet by the public showers on the promenade at 11:00am, clean up the beach for an hour, and then have a picnic on the sand. Please bring your own beach gear, food and drinks.
Hope to see you there!
-
Thursday, May 04, 2023 at 11:00 AM Madrid Time · 5 rsvps
Central de la Policia Local de Valencia in Valencia, SpainUnderstanding the Spanish/Valencian Police
If you have ever had questions about how the police work in Valencia and wonder about your civil rights here in Spain, this is the event for you. Our speaker will cover
- The different levels of policing in Spain
- Who do you call for what?
- Women's rights here in Spain
- Your civil rights should you be arrested
- How mediation is used by the Valencian police and the impact it has had
We will meet in the conference room of the police station for our presentation and then receive a tour of the facilities.
-
Tuesday, May 09, 2023 at 07:00 PM Madrid Time · 2 rsvps
Virtual on Zoom in Alicante, SpainMeet the Candidates!
Save the date! Meet the Candidates! Elections are coming! On May 9th at 7 pm CET there will be a ‘Meet the Candidate’ session to get to know your fellow DA members who are running for leadership roles. Absentee ballots with candidate information will be sent on May 5th. Absentee ballots must be returned by midnight CET on May 19th. In person voting takes place on May 20th at the AGM in Alicante.
RSVP below for the link.
-
Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 10:30 AM Madrid Time · 5 rsvps
ESERP Business School in Barcelona, SpainAnnual General Meeting and election of new officers
The Annual General Meeting and Elections will be held on Saturday, 13 May from 10:00am to 1pm (approx.) at the ESERP Business School, Calle Girona 24, Barcelona. Stay tuned for more details on the event.
Agenda:10:30-11: 00: Meet and Greet members11:00-12:00: Reports of current Executive Board12:00-12:30: introduction of nominees for new Executive Board12:30-13:00: Vote in new Executive Board13:00-13:30: Wrap up13:30: (optional) lunch at a restaurant (TBD). Attendees pay for own lunch.More details coming soon by email!