In honor of Juneteenth and in celebration of Black excellence, join us in a discussion with Dr. Ava Thompson Greenwell about her documentary Mandela in Chicago.

Discussion will be moderated by our own Jazzmin Dian Moore and Sharon Hatchett (President of the Together is Better Alliance). There will be a Q&A session as well as break-out rooms for further discussion.

Check out this news post to learn more about Juneteenth, Mandela in Chicago, and TiBA.

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We invite you to join us virtually at the 2021 1st Pan-African Juneteenth Celebration to celebrate Juneteenth and to galvanize support to address human and civil rights issues including equal rights, voter suppression, policing, and racial justice. The Juneteenth celebration will be curated by multiple international African diasporic and Democratic Party organizations.

The celebration is particularly poignant as many attendees, African and American, have never celebrated Juneteenth. The 1st Pan-African Juneteenth is a unique opportunity to:
1) Address the inequalities and social challenges still prevalent in many countries due to lack of police oversight, poor governance, gender bias, etc.
2) Strengthen the bridge between Africans and African-Americans by recognizing the emancipation of enslaved Africans and the ongoing journey for equal rights

The participating diaspora organizations and their hosting countries include: South Africa-Global Diaspora Connect, Kenya- Still We Rise, Ghana-African American Association of Ghana, Zambia-Zambia Diaspora Community, Tanzania-Tanzania Diaspora Community.
The Democrats Abroad Global Black Caucus and the Democrats Abroad South Africa are auxiliaries of the Democrats Abroad, the official Democratic Party arm for the 9 million Americans living outside the United States.

RSVP to receive the Zoom link.

Please join Democrats Abroad Toulouse on Saturday, June 19th to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Bessie Coleman becoming a pilot in France. She was the first woman of color to earn her pilot's license, truly a milestone in history! 

The event will be moderated by Beatrice Monthioux, DA Toulouse Member-at-Large

Speakers will include: 

• Christine Debouzy - President of the French Association of Women Pilots
• Coline Béry - Specialist on Adrienne Bolland, aviatrix who did the same type of training before Coleman
• Olivier Sarrazain - Director of the documentary film "Bessie Coleman Première Aviatrice Noire"
• Françoise Sockeel - Of the Aeroclub of Abbeyville in the region where Coleman trained

The event will take place via Zoom. Please RSVP to receive a link for joining the event. 

Co-sponsored by the Global Black Caucus and Global Women's Caucus--Main organiser Jeaneen Johnson 

Juneteenth festivities continue with a different event hosted by the Global Black Caucus from 6pm to midnight CET where there will be music, poetry and art.  Please click here for more details and to RSVP for the particular event.

SENATOR KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND KEYNOTES WOMEN’S ECONOMIC FORUM: RESETTING THE U.S. AGENDA FOR WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT

The return to Democratic leadership has reset the U.S. agenda for women across race, sexual orientation, and geography. This moment calls for bold political, social, and economic investments that lead to shared prosperity and equitable recovery for women.

Join U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand for an important discussion of what is being done, and what must be done, at the Federal and State level to capitalize on this important moment, and to address the policy perspectives we bring as Democrats Abroad.

Senator from NY since 2009, Gillibrand has led legislative action on numerous issues including sexual assault in the military, child nutrition, childcare for members of the Armed Forces, and parental leave.  

Our conversation with the Senator will be followed by a panel of leading experts across several issue areas that impact women’s economic status as documented in the 2020 Democrats Abroad Platform and offer policy remedies that root out biases that shut women out.  

The Panel will examine four issues within the Platform that are key to reversing inequalities for women: Intersectionality, Economic Inequality, Social Safety Net, and Sexual Identity Equality. Featured Panelists:

Intersectionality: Why Connecting the Dots Matter in the Fight for Women’s Equality - Dr. Ronda Zelezny-Green, Chief Learning Officer, BRK Ujima

Economic Inequality – Building an Inclusive Economy for the Long Term - Dr. Linda Scott, Emeritus Professor, University Oxford

Social Welfare: Assuring A Baseline of Support and Security for Women - Dr. C. Nicole Mason, president/CEO, Institute for Women’s Policy Research (WPR)

The Economic Case for LGBT Equality - Dr. M. V. Lee Badgett, distinguished scholar, the Williams Institute & Professor of Economics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst

The Forum, sponsored by the Global Women’s Caucus Women’s Economic Empowerment Initiative will be presented virtually on Zoom from 3pm-5pm CET. Forum attendees will be invited to join discussion breakout sessions with our panelists at the conclusion of their presentations. This event is open to all DA members, US elected officials, members of academia, and the global expat community. 

You won’t want to miss this important exchange with champions of women’s issues.

Our Event Sponsors

We are so happy to say 'It's summer let's meet up and have a drink together'!

Le Palais de la Bourse in the heart of Marseille 10 min by foot from the train station, litterally nestled in between La Canebiere and The Vieux Port. 

RDV at 6pm please do RSVP so we know how many people to expect and save a table for.

Palais de la Bourse

9 La Canebière

13001 Marseille

https://1860lepalais.fr/

Meet the new Executive Committee Members representing Aix Marseille for the new term (2021/2022)

thanks to Peter Gillepsie for the photographics!

Click below to receive periodic updates from the Taxation Task Force on our tax advocacy work.  We will message you when there are important updates and developments to report.

https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/provence-alpes-cote-d-azur/bouches-du-rhone/aix-en-provence/aix-provence-americains-votent-primaires-democrates-1796199.html

https://www.laprovence.com/article/papier/5920265/les-democrates-americains-de-marseille-ont-vote-hier.html

We had a fabulous afternoon with lots of new and familiar faces coming and going to our Potluck Party last Sunday July 7th.

Thanks to Pamela King for hosting the event in her beautiful house and garden

And thanks to all who came and brought such fabulous food to share the spirit of Democracy !

Congratulations to our DAF Aix Marseille Leadership Team 2019/2020 !

Susan Fitoussi - Chair

Joel Luboff - Vice Chair

Pamela King - Secretary

Karen Wildau - Treasurer

Judy Godfrey - Member at Large

Philip Breeden - Member at Large

Last Saturday march 30,2019 the Aix MARSEILLE DAF chapter held their Elections in Aix en Provence!

The voting event was aligned with the screening of a Broadway play titled “ANN” at 5pm

Thanks to our members Jim Lovell and Karen Wildau we were able to all watch the brilliant actress HOLLAND TAYLOR http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holland_Taylor performing her incredible one woman show and tribute to the late and great ANN RICHARDS ex governor of Texas !

With Jim’s lovely opening speech remembering when he worked for her campaign, we all felt very connected to this performance !

All included we recolted 20 ballots online and 10 ballots in person !

Some people came just to vote and we are very touched by this gesture of appreciation !

PS Jim also sent a twitter tweet to Holland Taylor herself to tell her about our event ! 

The period for DAF Marseille Chapter Executive Committee nominations has now closed.

The DAF Marseille Elections Board is pleased to announce that the Marseille Chapter ExCom Candidates of 2019 are as follows:

Marseille Chapter Chair

Susan Fitoussi

What I bring to the table –

Organizational skills, punctuality, bilingual and enthusiasm

About me!

Born in Los Angeles California 1962

I am the third child born of first-generation parents with European origins.

I left the USA when I was 24 and have lived abroad since.

I have been living in Marseille for 26 years.

I work in a huge multi-mega international shipping company. The nice part of this is that I work in a multi-cultural environment.

I am a single Mom with 2 children that are now independent and married.

Why I am a Democrat –

I believe in Universal Health Care – Equal Rights and Environmental Consciousness.

The Democratic Party represents the values I believe in.

Why I’m running for this position –

I have been a member of our chapter since it was created.

Meeting local Americans and helping them register to vote is certainly one of the most important roles I can play as an American living abroad today!

We have a great team and I hope to continue working together to organize wonderful events that will bring our community together and most importantly ‘Get out the Vote”!

What I hope to contribute?

I would like to bring more members to the chapter and do what it takes to get them more involved.

Marseille Chapter Vice-Chair

Joel Luboff

I’m Joel Luboff, and I wish to run Vice Chair of Democrats Abroad France – Marseille. I have been a member of Democrats Abroad for over 25 years and have served on the Executive Committee as a member at large for the past two years. I would like to increase my efforts to support local actions to maintain interest and enthusiasm for getting out the vote among expats in the Marseille and Aix area, and the Vice Chair position would provide an excellent opportunity for me to do so. I am particularly interested in supporting actions of Democrats Abroad in the areas of income and wealth concentration, immigration, and more equitable tax treatment for ex-pats.

Marseille Chapter Secretary

Pamela King

More than ever, we need to support the Democratic Party today. It is our best defense against a disappointing and dangerous administration in Washington D.C. Democrats Abroad is particularly well-organized and on the frontlines of the party’s efforts to uphold the civic values of fairness, equality and democracy. Action is needed now, especially when it comes to Getting Out The Vote and getting more Democrats in office. I would therefore be honored to be able to continue serving on the Executive Committee of the Chapter that I co-founded in 2008.

Marseille Chapter Treasurer

Karen Wildau

I offer myself as a candidate for treasurer of our chapter. I have served in that post for the past two years. Before that, I served on the Executive Committee for a number of years. I have lived in Aix for nine years but have never lost my interest in American politics and in doing what I can to push the Democratic policy agenda. I believe it is important to let American politicians know that even though we live abroad, we care deeply about our country, its leadership and its policies and WE VOTE. Before I retired to France, I was a lawyer for over 37 years. Before that, I was a congressional assistant to Congressman Don Edwards, from California, a leader on the House Judiciary Committee. I have always been interested in politics and government and was active in those pursuits while I was a lawyer in Atlanta. I would like to see more people from our chapter get involved and will work to try to accomplish that goal.

Marseille Chapter Member at Large

Philip J. Breeden

After serving my country as a U.S. diplomat for almost 30 years, I moved to Aix en Provence in 2014 where I teach and help administer an American school – The Institute for American Universities. This experience, and my previous post as Consul General in Marseille, has brought me into regular contact with many members of Democrats Abroad in the region. It would be a privilege and honor to join them in promoting one of the central pillars of any democracy – voting by as many citizens as possible. This is all the more important given the current troubled, chaotic and misguided leadership of the United States. It is vital we all contribute to making sure it ends in 2020, so that we can return the United States to a more responsible role in the world. It is in this spirit that I offer my candidacy as Member at Large. 

Marseille Chapter Member at Large

Judy Godfrey

I offer myself as a candidate for member at large of our chapter. I have lived in Aix for 40 years but have never lost my interest in American politics. I believe it is important to let American politicians know that even though we live abroad, we care deeply about our country, its leadership and its policies.