Town Hall on Democrats Abroad's Delegate Selection Plan!

Join us on April 02 at 03:00 AM US Eastern

(AP friendly time)

Across the US and world, all 57 Democratic state parties are at work planning the 2024 presidential primary contest, specifically by developing a Delegate Selection Plan unique to their state party. In a nutshell, the DSP is a binding document that defines how each state party will run their 2024 presidential primary and select delegates to send to the 2024 Democratic National Convention.

Each state party must submit a final delegate selection plan to the Democratic National Committee by May 3, 2023. Prior to that, there must be a 30-day public comment period, launched on March 6.

Please join this Town Hall to give feedback, learn more, and ask questions about the 2024 Delegate Selection Plan.

The final draft DSP must then be approved by Democrats Abroad's elected leaders (vote scheduled for April 22 DPCA Meeting) prior to submission on May 3, 2023.

You can review a copy of our draft 2024 Delegate Selction Plan which was posted for public comment on our website on March 6, 2023. Public comments on the draft are to be submitted on the form here through April 5, 2023.

(Please include the page and line number your feedback refers to in your email. Thank you!)

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Convert to local time here: https://www.worldtimebuddy.com/.

Calling All DPCA Officers... to Vote On 2024 Delegate Selection Plan

Connection details will be emailed to all Democrats Abroad member RSVP's closer to the meeting date.

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Every four years, the Democratic Party begins designing the Delegate Selection Rules and a resulting nominating process for the next presidential election.

While the Rules drafting process begins anew after each Presidential election, many norms and traditions carry over, including a rule that lets some states hold their nominating contest early, which in 2024 will be South Carolina, Nevada & New Hampshire, Michigan, and Georgia.

Democrats Abroad has worked hard at crafting our Delegate Selection Plan, which is the guiding document as we play our part in nominating our Party's 2024 nominees for President and Vice President of the United States.

You can review a copy of our draft 2024 Delegate Selction Plan which was posted for public comment on our website on March 6, 2023, and submit your by writing to [email protected] through April 5, 2023.

(Please include the page and line number your feedback refers to in your email. Thank you!)

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NOTICE: This meeting will be recorded, including audio, video, and any materials exchanged or viewed during the session.

ERA 100 Year Birthday Party

The Equal Rights Amendment was first introduced in Congress in 1923 - 100 years ago.   The commemorate that, groups across America will be holding a birthday party in March, ideally on March 22 - the date it passed Congress and went to the states to be ratified.

So have a little party with a birthday cake or cupcakes in recognition that we are still waiting for the Equal Rights Amendment to be added to the US Constitution.  This can be a small gathering in you home, a large gathering, or simply part of an already planned meeting or event.   Take lots of photos and post on social media with hashtag #ERA100.

The goal is to raise awareness that the ERA is still not officially in the US Constitution.

Equal Means Equal has created a "cookbook" of ideas and graphics for groups to leverage.   Click here to access.

Overview

At the end of January, two identical resolutions were introduced in Congress, H.J.Res.25 and S.J.Res.4, to affirm the validity of the Equal Rights Amendment (“ERA”) as the 28th Amendment.

Specifically, the resolutions provide:

Notwithstanding any time limit contained in House Joint Resolution 208, 92d Congress, as agreed to in the Senate on March 22, 1972, the article of amendment proposed to the States in that joint resolution is valid to all intents and purposes as part of the United States Constitution having been ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States.

The resolutions are intended to urge immediate publication of the ERA as the 28th Amendment, which has been blocked by the Trump and Biden Administrations. The resolutions affirm the validity of the ERA, thereby addressing any doubt cast by opponents of equality for all and reproductive rights, who argue that the arbitrary deadline contained in the preamble to the proposed Amendment.

It is our understanding that the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the ERA the next few weeks. So, we must act fast to make sure the messaging is on point!

And we need your help! Here is how you can help get the ERA over the finish line, guaranteeing equality for all and protecting reproductive rights:

• Email and call each of the Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee;
• Write on the Contact Pages of the Members;
• Post the letter you send on the social media of each Member; and
• Share this with others and ask them to help.

EMAIL/CALL SENATORS – please email each of the Senators at the addresses below. A sample letter may be found below. You may use the letter or tailor it as you see fit. The key is to express the need for the Senators to make it abundantly clear that the ERA is the 28th Amendment and should be published and that S.J.Res. 4 is designed to urge publication and remove any doubt cast upon the ERA’s validity by the opponents of equality and reproductive rights.

Follow up with a call to each office/staff member emailed stating “Has the Senator read my letter, emailed to [name of staff] and placed on the Senator’s contact page, regarding the Equal Rights Amendment?” If you do not get confirmation, email it again and call the next day. When you get confirmation, please forward to [email protected]

SUBMIT LETTER TO EACH SENATOR’S CONTACT PAGE: The links for each Senator’s contact page is below. Please submit the letter you emailed on the Senator’s contact page as well.

FACEBOOK POSTS TO COMMITTEE AND SENATORS: Copy the text of the letter and place it on the Facebook pages of the each of the Senators below in comments under their posts.

TWEET THE COMMITTEE AND SENATORS: Please tweet and include the Committee and Senators. Make sure you tag something that is trending, like the Superbowl.

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR SENATE JUDICIARY

Senate Judiciary Committee
@JudiciaryDems
https://www.facebook.com/SenateJudiciary

Senator Dick Durbin (IL)

711 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-2152
Fax - 202-228-0400
Contact Page: https://www.durbin.senate.gov/contact/email 
Emails for Staff: [email protected]; [email protected]
Social Media: @SenatorDurbin; https://www.facebook.com/SenatorDurbin

Senator Richard Blumenthal (CT)
706 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-2823
Fax - 202-224-9673
Contact Page: https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/contact/ 
Emails for Staff: [email protected] 
Social Media: @SenBlumenthal; https://www.facebook.com/SenBlumenthal

Senator Dianne Feinstein (Will only accept on contact page if CA address)
331 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3841
Fax - 202-228-3954
Contact Page: https://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-mail-me 
Emails For Staff: [email protected]; [email protected] 
Social Media: @FeinsteinSenate; https://www.facebook.com/SenatorFeinstein/

Senator Peter Welch (VT)
SDG-12 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-4242
Contact Page: https://www.welch.senate.gov/share-your-opinion/ 
Emails for Staff: [email protected]; [email protected] 
Social Media: @PeterWelch; https://www.facebook.com/PeterWelch

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (RI)
539 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-2921
Fax - 202-228-6362
Contact Page: https://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/contact/email-sheldon 
Emails For Staff: [email protected]
Social Media: @Senwhitehouse; https://www.facebook.com/SenatorWhitehouse

Senator Amy Klobuchar (MN)
425 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3244
Fax - 202-228-2186
Contact Page: https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/email-amy 
Emails for Staff: [email protected]
Social Media: @AmyKlobuchar @SenAmyKlobuchar; https://www.facebook.com/amyklobuchar

Senator Chris Coons (DE)
218 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5042
Fax - 202-228-3075
Contact Page: https://www.coons.senate.gov/contact/share-your-opinion 
Emails for Staff: [email protected] 
Social Media: @ChrisCoons; https://www.facebook.com/senatorchriscoons

Senator Mazie Hirono (HI)
109 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-6361
Fax - 202-228-1031
Contact page: https://www.hirono.senate.gov/share-your-opinion 
Emails for Staff: [email protected]; [email protected] 
Social Media: @maziehirono; https://www.facebook.com/senatorhirono

Senator Cory Booker (NJ)
717 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3224 Fax - 202-224-8378
Contact page: https://www.booker.senate.gov/contact/write-to-cory 
Emails for Staff: [email protected] 
Social Media:@SenBooker; https://www.facebook.com/corybooker

Senator Alex Padilla (CA)
112 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3553
Contact page: https://www.padilla.senate.gov/contact/contact-form/ 
Emails for Staff: [email protected]; [email protected]
Social Media: @AlexPadilla4CA; https://www.facebook.com/SenAlexPadilla

Sample Letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Members

Dear Senator [last name]:

I am writing regarding the upcoming hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the Equal Rights Amendment.

As you are aware, the ERA has been ratified by the requisite states and is the 28th Amendment. However, it has yet to be published, as it has been blocked by the Trump and Biden Administrations, due to a purported deadline in the preamble to proposed amendment. A deadline deemed invalid by hundreds of constitutional scholars.

The failure to publish the ERA has subjected the rights of women, girls and LGBTQIA+ people to ever - increasing attack. Subjecting women legislators to draconian dress codes. Forcing transgender students to use the restroom assigned to their biological sex. Permitting public charter schools to require girls to wear skirts. Even allowing domestic abusers to possess firearms! And these are just a few examples from the first few weeks of this year.

We need the ERA now more than ever! It is the most powerful tool available to right these wrongs. To guarantee equality for all, free from the whims of anti-equality politicians and judges. To protect women from domestic violence. To restore reproductive rights. To guarantee equal pay. To end gender and pregnancy discrimination and more.

As a result, this upcoming hearing and related messaging crucial. The key points are as follows:

• The ERA was passed (overwhelmingly!) by Congress in 1972. It does not need to be passed;
• The ERA has been ratified by the required number of states. It does not need to be ratified;
• The ERA is duly ratified and is the 28th Amendment;
• The ERA is required to be published as the 28th Amendment;
• Opponents of equality for all and reproductive rights state that the ERA has not been passed or ratified, pointing to a deadline in the preamble to the proposed Amendment to try to deny women, girls and LGBTQIA+ people equal rights. That makes it ever-so-important to state that the ERA has been ratified and is the 28th Amendment; and
• The proposed resolution (S.J.Res. 4) is designed to remove any doubt, which has been cast by these opponents, to affirm the validity of the ERA, and to urge its immediate publication.

Thank you for your continued support for the Equal Rights Amendment. We look forward to the hearing on the ERA, which is vital to the rights and lives of more than half of Americans and the future of our democracy.

Sincerely,

[Insert Signature]

[State] voter currently residing in [country] [where their constitution does include equal rights for all]

Sample Postcard to Senate Judiciary Committee Members

Dear Senator [last name]:

Thank you for speaking on behalf of the Equal Rights Amendment in the upcoming hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Sincerely,

[Insert Signature]

[State] voter currently residing in [country] [where their constitution does include equal rights for all]

Sample Tweets

As you are aware, the #ERA has been duly ratified and should be published now as the 28th Amendment. SJRES4 is intended to remove all doubt, cast by opponents of #EqualityForAll and reproductive rights, that the ERA is valid and in effect. 

The #EqualRightsAmendment has been duly ratified and should be published now as the 28th Amendment. Women, girls and LGBTQ+ people have never needed it more. #RatifiedAndReady #SuperBowl @NFL We need your help to get it over the finish line.

The Equal Rights Amendment was introduced 100 years ago.  Please get it across the goal line. #ERA100 #SuperBowl

Portland Tribune - June 8, 2022

• This article examines some interesting data collected by the Oregon Values and Beliefs Center on gender equality, in particular relating to Title IX

OPINION: Oregonians strongly back equality for girls and women

PR Week - June 9, 2022

• Equal Rights Amendment Coalition president Carol Jenkins at the 2022 PR Week Women of Distinction Awards
• Discusses the importance of communications work in raising awareness of the ERA, as well as Jenkins’ personal advice on avoiding burn-out

Women of Distinction: Carol Jenkins on using communications to drive change

Truthout, June 3, 2022

• An article providing a more in-depth look at the polling data presented in the recent Data for Progress report

85 Percent of Voters Want Congress to Pass the Equal Rights Amendment

Data for Progress, June 2, 2022

• An interesting and comprehensive examination of information collected by Data for Progress on general knowledge and support of the ERA among Americans
• Includes links to all related polls

Fifty Years Later, Voters Support Passing the Equal Rights Amendment

The Daily Beast, May 31, 2022

• An urgent plea to President Biden calling for the immediate ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment in the face of the current assault on reproductive and gender rights
• Includes a short but extremely enlightening video covering the history of abortion restriction in the United States, narrated by actress and activist Alyssa Milano herself

Click here to read the full article.

CityWatch, May 19, 2022

• A great piece which details the history of the Equal Rights Amendment, up to and including its current status in Congress
• Includes a short biography of Victoria Woodhull, whose contribution to women’s suffrage was very important, but often overlooked

"Having rather outspoken female family members – no surprise here- we have continued the discussions.  I asked them if they were aware of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA).  Both daughters and grand daughters looked at me blankly until I realized, it was introduced in 1972. "   

Click here to read the full article.

Bloomberg Law - May 20, 2022

• Details the lawsuits by the Elizabeth Cady Stanton Trust in Michigan, Rhode Island and New York 
• Includes links to the actual text of each lawsuit for reference

"The threat of a Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade has spurred a trio of new lawsuits seeking state court recognition of the Equal Rights Amendment—a last-minute effort to preempt that anti-Roe ruling by forcing the high court to factor new constitutional language into its decision..."

Click here to read the full article

Urge the Office of Legal Counsel to rescind Barr memo to Archivist

Take action! The Democrats Abroad urges everyone to immediately ask Christopher Schroeder, the newly appointed Assistant Attorney General overseeing the Office of Legal Counsel, to rescind the 2020 memo to the National Archivist. That memo, sent during U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr’s tenure, effectively stopped National Archivist David Ferriero from publishing the Equal Rights Amendment as the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The ERA met all constitutional requirements when Virginia became the 38th and final state needed to ratify on January 27, 2020.

DA highly recommends you do it the old-fashioned way — via letter or postcard. 

Correspondence to the Department, including the Attorney General, may be sent to:

Mr. Christopher Schroeder

U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530-0001

It’s more personal and a stack of paper is harder to ignore. You can, of course, send an email (connect to that here) or call. Include your name, address, phone number and email.

The Department may be contacted by phone at the following:

Department Comment Line: 202-353-1555

Here’s an example for a letter, but make it your own:

Dear Mr. Schroeder, 
Congratulations on your recent Senate approval as Director of the Office of Legal Counsel. There is much to be done and we trust acting on the Equal Rights Amendment will be among your first accomplishments.

As a woman and supporter of the ERA, I urge you to withdraw the Jan. 6, 2020, opinion memo from the Attorney General Barr’s Department of Justice.  All constitutional requirements for the ERA to become the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution were satisfied when the Commonwealth of Virginia became the 38th state to ratify the ERA on Jan. 27, 2020. The National Archivist wrongly deferred to the opinion issued by the previous Administration’s Office of Legal Counsel. Please correct this error right away so that the ERA will be published immediately by the National Archivist, and all citizens of the United States will be protected by the U.S. Constitution.

Or send a short and to-the-point postcard:

Mr. Schroeder, congrats on your appointment!  Please pull AG Barr’s memo blocking the ERA and publish as soon as possible. Thank you!

In addition, make sure you sign the petition circulated by the ERA Coalition.

Thank you. Your letters and postcards do make a big difference.

If we lived in a perfect world, we would all be treated equally despite our genders. We are not anywhere close to living in that world, and we have an overwhelming amount of data to support that. This is why we need the government to protect us with the ERA and hold corporations accountable until they do. I am an Iowa voter living in Colombia.

We need the era to bring america up to par with international standards of equity, infant mortality, sanity! This goes thru ratifying the era.  Dan, live in Israel, vote in Georgia

The ERA is the kind of common-sense legislation that anyone who believes in the promise of the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights should support fervently. As a child when I learned about it I was astonished that it wouldn’t pass unanimously in every state and district. To me the feminist movement like other civil rights causes are about human rights and the principles of the Enlightenment that guide our laws. We must all fight to support rights and protections for all people regardless of their race, class, gender, orientation, or religion. That is who we are as Americans. I was blessed with strong female role models in my family who were academics, scientists, and leaders. I saw the way they have struggled in their life and careers to have the same compensation, respect, and recognition for their achievements which often required sacrifices well beyond what would be expected of men in similar professions. I strongly support the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment and I will commit to fight for its passage by getting out the vote in elections and raising awareness for these issues in Georgia. Greg Dolezal, Democrats Abroad Viet Nam, Votes in GA

The Equal Rights Amendment will be an exceptional addition to the Constitution allowing women the freedom to express their voices fully and be equally involved in the matters that are important in society. I always remember getting my US Citizenship for the first time in 2008 and moving to Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA. My Nana and I drove out to the voting site and it was at that moment when I first voted in the United States of America. It was such an empowering moment for me to be able to do so, and now it's wonderful to be able to vote from abroad. Tina Andres: New Mexico State voter, living in Canada.

“Why do they call it ‘Apollo 11’ when we’re going to the moon, not the sun? It should be named after Artemis, Apollo’s twin sister, Goddess of the moon” I asked my science teacher in front of the class. I was twelve, and puzzled how scientists could make such an obvious mistake. “Well, maybe you should write them to ask!” she replied. So I did. And they surprisingly answered. Unfortunately their generous packages the following two years were lost in the many moves we made. However I do remember their answer didn’t really stand up to my expectations. Why did they name the space program Apollo instead of Artemis? Well, I looked it up today. Abe Silverstein, who was the Director of the Space Flight Development proposed ‘Apollo’ “because it was the name of a god in ancient Greek mythology with attractive connotations and the precedent for naming manned spaceflight projects for mythological gods and heroes had been set with Mercury.” So Artemis didn’t measure up? With today’s clear vision, we know why it wasn’t called Artemis 11. Men were in leadership and women weren’t. Men were astronauts, and women weren’t. No representation, and a lack of recognition, appreciation, value and equality for women- although it was a woman, astrophysicist Katherine Johnson, who got the Apollo 11 mission successfully to the moon and back that July 1969. I understood at a young age that the patriarchy excluded women, exploited women, held them back, and were blind to their contributions and potential- which is precisely why we need the ERA. It is simply not fair, or just, when women’s efforts, excellence and equality aren’t recognized, they’re continually denied their place in history, and their value and contribution is undermined as “less than”. Without the ERA as the 28th amendment of the constitution, there is no gold standard for women. Statistics show the chance of women winning legal cases today is comparable to a coin toss, a 50-50 chance. With the ERA in the Constitution, women’s equality and protection under the law increases to 80%. It wasn’t until 1983 that NASA allowed female astronauts. And it wasn’t until 2017, low and behold, NASA started an International human spaceflight program called Artemis. Apollo 11 on the moon in 1969, Artemis in 2024. Fifty-five years later, a female spaceflight will finally get to the moon. Why did NASA choose Artemis for the name? “The name is very symbolic, because Artemis was the twin sister of Apollo, whose name was called the first lunar mission of the USA. In addition, the choice of the goddess is associated with the intention to land the first female astronaut on the Moon in 2024.” Nice recovery. Recognition, Appreciation, Value, and Equality, #RAVE, four gold standards women deserve.  Theresa, living in Italy, voting in state of Washington 

I am once again asking Congress to finally add the ERA to the US Constitution! While women won the right to vote in 1920, women still do not have equal rights under the law. And even though the Equal Protection Clause in the 14th Amendment prohibits states from denying any person equal protection under the law, women’s rights are still not explicitly guaranteed. In 1976, around 10,000 marchers in Springfield, Illinois demonstrated for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. Many of these marchers proudly carried signs advocating, ERA is the American Way! In a Pew Research Center poll last year, almost 80 percent of Americans supported adding the Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution. In 2020, Virginia became the 38th and final state needed to ratify the ERA. It is time for Congress to affirm and ensure women’s equality in the US. The US Senate must immediately pass S.J.Res.1 - A joint resolution removing the deadline for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment! Let’s get on with it and join other nations like Canada, which offers women full equal rights guaranteed by law! [✊] https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/07/07/a-century-after-women-gained-the-right-to-vote-majority-of-americans-see-work-to-do-on-gender-equality/ | Lissette F. Wright | Living in Canada | Voting in New York!