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. 

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!

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. 

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.

Kathy Tullos, DAS Chair and the rest of the DAS Executive Committee invite you to join us for the ExCom monthly meeting. This meeting is open to all DAS members and we hope to see you there.

In general, our focus will be on registering voters, growing our membership, and bringing in new volunteers. The meeting agenda will be provided the day prior to the event.

If you have questions or a topic you would like to add to the agenda, send an email to [email protected]

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

1. The different levels of policing in Spain
2. Who do you call for what?
3. Women's rights here in Spain
4. Your civil rights should you be arrested
5. 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.

On October 31, Democrats Abroad Valencia drew a crowd of more than 360 people to a spooky evening of family fun and trick-or-treating. The packed house was entertained by a magician, played in a slime lab, and bounced away their cares in a castillo hinchable. Professional face painters created masterpieces, while hairdressers sprayed funky colors onto the heads of excited children. Adults were treated to an artisan fair, with beautifully handcrafted products, and a fortune teller. 

Arts-and-crafts tables were well-attended by children, who created fall décor under the supervision of adult volunteers. There was delicious Indian food, and drinks of all kinds were on tap. Democrats Abroad manned a table selling coveted American goodies such as Stove-Top Stuffing, Kraft mac’n’cheese, Rice Krispy Treats, and Goldfish crackers. 

Topping off the fun was an old-fashioned spooking of the streets, as costumed children trick-or-treated. With maps in hand, parents guided their children to businesses that had joined in the festivities and to DA volunteers who stood in the streets of Ruzafa with bags of goodies. 

Parents shared their heartfelt thanks for the opportunity to share this American childhood celebration with their children. Everyone looks forward to next year’s Halloween Festival. 

DA Spain Chair Kathy Tullos and her husband Mark drove to Valencia to help us make this event a success. Thank you, Kathy!

DAV would also like to extend a heartfelt thanks to the 60+ volunteers who helped to make an unforgettable evening for Americans in Valencia.

DA Valencia followed this month’s in-person chapter meeting with an expanded public town hall, where volunteers were invited to discuss the most pressing organizational needs, and signed up to assist with events aligning with their personal interests. The event drew 26 attendees to Plaza de La Virgen, where we enjoyed breakfast and chatted about politics, Thanksgiving, New Year’s Eve, our monthly Coffee Mornings, and the neighborhood Voter Registration Drives which will begin in January. DA Valencia officers took turns explaining upcoming events for which they had taken the lead, followed by coordinated break-out sessions where attendees could sign up for specific volunteer tasks. We thank everyone who attended and volunteered to donate time to DAV. 

Thanksgiving Leftovers Picnic

Feeling nostalgic for those awkward Thanksgiving dinners with the in-laws? Don't despair! Consider us a sympathetic stand-in for Uncle Ralph and Cousin Francis. After you've had a satisfying feast at your own house, please bring your family and your leftover turkey sandwiches to the “río”! We'll catch up on all the gossip, and even exchange a few unpleasantries about bossy Aunt Dorothy.

Where: Turia Park, next to the soccer fields by Alameda Metro Station

When: November 27, 13:00-15:00h.  No need to RSVP. See you there!

Bring your own food and drinks! If you don't have Thanksgiving leftovers, bring whatever you can find in your fridge! Finally, if you're bringing children, consider bringing toys that all the kids can share (i.e., Frisbees, balls, jump ropes, sand toys, etc.).

Coffee with Democrats Abroad

DAV will be hosting a coffee social on the first Friday of every month, starting on December 3rd.

Please join us for a relaxing morning of coffee and conversation. You'll make new friends and meet old acquaintances. These events will not be moderated by DA and are simply designed to facilitate social interactions.

See you soon!