PNN’s mission is to engage, educate and empower. Here’s what’s coming up in each of these areas:
Engage: Sign Up for Buddy Canvassing; Volunteer to Re-Elect Rep Rabb!
Educate: Learn About Our Candidates; Got Everything You Need to Vote?
Empower: Proposal for Transparent Redistricting
Read on to find out the when, where, and how.
Congrats to Our Trailblazer!
Our PNN congratulations go out to Shakeda Gaines for winning the Trailblazer Award from the Bread and Roses Community Fund. For those of you who don't know Shakeda, she is president of the Philadelphia Home and School Council, lead organizer for One Pennsylvania and an advocate for fair and equitable education. Her passion and activism prove her to be a worthy recipient of this award. We are happy to have her on our steering committee.
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Canvass with a Buddy!
Help Rep Chris Rabb Get Re-Elected to the PA House
Now Until Election Day Progressives running for re-election to the PA Legislature - like Chis Rabb, Elizabeth Fiedler, and Rick Krajewski - are being targeted by the Democratic Party establishment who are backing their more moderate opponents.
In particular, in Northwest Philly, Rep Chris Rabb is facing a tough contested election. He has been fighting for important priorities like raising the minimum wage, fair funding for education, voting rights, and police accountability, and the establishment doesn’t like it.
PNN endorsed Rabb, an unabashed progressive, because we believe he best represents the values and concerns that are most important to his constituents and to the abandoned communities in our city. The Primary election is only a few weeks away and we have a lot of work to do. But if you volunteer, you won't have to do the work alone.
Canvasses Every Weekend!
We will "buddy up" our canvassers to knock doors together, share the conversation, get the word out about Chris and other endorsed candidates, and make a new friend in the process. Just click this the link below to volunteer for a canvass date and we’ll be in touch with you with all the information you’ll need. Thanks!
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Other Great Endorsed Candidates & the Ballot Questions
We’re organizing canvasses for Chris Rabb because so many of our members live in his district, but we have we got a great slate of other endorsed candidates running both for statewide office and for legislative seats all around the City.
These women and men reflect the deep bench that progressives have developed to represent us in all these offices. They also reflect well the momentum that PNN, along with other progressive groups, have developed over the years in finding and nurturing justice-seekers to run for office.
And then, if you live in their district, or want to work for one of our statewide endorsed candidates, here’s a list of them all, with links to how you can step forward and volunteer.
US SENATE: MALCOLM KENYATTA LT GOVERNOR: BRIAN SIMS PA SENATE 8: PAUL PRESCOD PA HOUSE 201: ANDRE CARROLL PA HOUSE 194: TARIK KHAN PA HOUSE 190: RONI GREEN PA HOUSE 188: RICK KRAJEWSKI PA HOUSE 184: ELIZABETH FIEDLER PA HOUSE 177: JOE HOHENSTEIN PA HOUSE 10: CASS GREEN
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Next Tasks for Public Bank: Board & Operating Costs
As may already know, the legislation creating the Philadelphia Public Financing Authority (PPFA) – the precursor to a Philadelphia Public Bank – became law on March 17th!
Ahead of us is the work of getting the PPFA Board appointed, getting its operational costs funded in the upcoming City budget, and getting it capitalized with the funds it needs to fulfill its mission.
All of that, particularly getting the operational costs funded, will require us to get into our lobbying gear again and let Council know we expect them to do this. After all, they voted for the legislation creating the PPFA overwhelmingly – 15 to 1.
If they expect us to credit them with that vote, they must follow through with the next step – appropriating the funds needed to stand the PPFA up.
Our lobbying effort will kick off right after the primary. Sign up below and we'll get you the details, including how YOU can apply to be on the Board of the PPFA.
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Proposal Makes Council Redistricting Transparent
Derek Green just put forward a proposed Charter amendment to create an 11-member special commission that would be tasked with collecting public input in the next council redistricting process and drafting a proposed map and report that describes their findings and explains the map. (Committee of 70's statement summarizes the proposal.)
This commission would be advisory, and Council would retain the authority to determine the final map passed into law. So this isn't a gold-standard independent commission model, but it'd be a huge improvement from the status quo. Pittsburgh has used a similar advisory committee since the 1990s. Such a body would have been tremendously helpful to channel the community input all of us contributed to earlier this year.
We encourage you to call on Council President Darrell Clarke (darrell.clarke@phila.gov; 215-685-2633) to allow this bill a public hearing. Any brief email, call or text would be helpful. Please feel free to draw from the following points:
Residents care deeply about how they're represented in City Council, and hundreds participated in community discussions on redistricting earlier this year.
Prioritize communities: The proposed special commission would help ensure that community voices are heard in the redistricting process and over a reasonable period of time. Such a commission would do the work while Council conducts its regular business and focuses on other serious issues.
Build trust: Taking action on redistricting reform is needed to bolster trust in City Hall during a difficult time for the city. Voters deserve the final say on this issue on the ballot.
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We're Looking for Organizers. We are currently accepting resumes for Organizing Staff (full/part) on Contingency Funding for c3/c4 electoral and community work. Send your interest to tim@phillynn.org
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This Week in History
April 29, 1854 – First Black College in U.S. By an act of the Pennsylvania legislature, Ashmun Institute, the first college founded solely for African Americans, was officially chartered. Today, it is known as Lincoln University.
April 30, 1993 – Birth of Internet. On this day, CERN researcher Tim Berners-Lee released the source code for his dream of a "linked information system" which would become the World Wide Web.
May 4, 1970 – Kent State Murders. The Ohio National Guard open fire on anti-war protesters at the university, killing four and wounding eight. Famous musicians wrote a song about it.
May 5, 1961 – First American in Space. Navy Commander Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr. became the first American astronaut to travel into space.
Thanks for your activism!
Tim Brown, Organizing Director
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