D.C. Says NO

Hello CRAGgys!

Thousands rallied in Washington D.C. yesterday to protest federal troops in their city. And last week Keweenaw Indivisible organized a wonderful Labor Day rally, one of thousands uniting under the national theme of Workers over Billionaires.

Autocracy Approaches

Sirens are sounding about the American descent into authoritarianism, with Garrett Graff and others warning that we are near the tipping point into fascism. NYT columnist Ezra Klein is declaring "Stop Acting Like This is Normal" (gift link). Stacey Abrams and Kim Lane Scheppele warn that free elections are at risk.

Professor Christina Pagel of the University College London has been documenting authoritarian actions by the current US administration since January 20th. She identifies five categories:

Undermining Democratic Institutions & Rule of Law; Dismantling federal government (472 actions).

Dismantling Social Protections & Rights; Enrichment & Corruption (363 actions).

Suppressing Dissent & Controlling Information (246 actions).

Attacking Science, Environment, Health, Arts & Education (358) actions).

Aggressive Foreign Policy & Global Destabilisation; Nationalism (236 actions). (some actions fit several categories)

As of today, she has documented 1176 authoritarian actions, rolling out with increasing rapidity each month.

It is impossible to summarize this onslaught in a few words, and you have all seen plenty of examples in the news.

The president is undermining the rule of law through attacks on lawyers and judges, and just ignoring judgements he doesn't like. He has escalated attacks on perceived enemies: people, corporations, universities, blue states and cities, federal employees, opposition politicians, and media critics. Several high profile investigations are clearly retaliatory, while wrongdoing by administration allies is ignored. With his republican enablers, such as our own Rep JB, he is undermining the fundamentals of fact-based governing from firing people who deliver unfavorable economic data to handing our public health system to quacks. He has declared absurd "emergencies" to impose tariffs, deport immigrants, deploy the National Guard domestically, and force a decrepit Michigan coal plant to remain open. This week the president murdered 11 people in a boat in international waters, in clear violation of international law. These are all egregious actions aimed at undermining our democracy and shifting power and wealth to a small gang of global plutocrats.

The authoritarian strategy is to ferociously attack anything that challenges the concentration of power; these are people and institutions, but also facts, norms, critical thinkers, opposing narratives (books, museums, media), civil alliances, and international allies. As explained by Ben Raderstorf in this diagram, they assault everything-everywhere at once to confuse and overwhelm us.

Defeating autocracy requires collective action across and outside these institutions. Raderstorf reminds us that every incremental win is a bit of sand in the gears that helps delay or reverse the march to authoritarian rule. And wins are trickling in: courts are acting to block the crippling tariffs, reject National Guard deployments to L.A. in violation of Posse Comitatus, restore funding to Harvard, and stop illegal use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan nationals. Juries are refusing to indict people on trumped-up charges like sandwich-throwing and Instagram posting.

In a win for Michiganders, a federal judge has blocked release of Medicaid data to ICE agents, in a lawsuit joined by our Attorney General Dana Nessel. Michigan has agreed to share public voting data with the feds, but has refused to turn over social security numbers of voters and other identifying information, which is protected under Michigan privacy laws.

But resistance must become stronger. Ezra Klein is calling for the democrats to shut down the government by refusing to vote for continued funding after September 30. On our local level we need to continue building and strengthening our resistance groups, especially recruiting friends, neighbors, colleagues who are concerned but not yet active.

We're fighting together in the Copper Country, across the UP, throughout congressional district MI-01, statewide, regionally, and nationally. Americans will not trade freedom for fascism.

Actions recap

Labor Day

Keweenaw Indivisible organized a wonderful Labor Day rally last weekend, one of thousands uniting under the national theme of Workers over Billionaires. In Houghton, my neighbor, Denise M. spoke passionately about her family history with unions. Frank F. spoke about how the Keweenaw National Historic Park honors labor history, and how public lands are our lands, and form the bedrock of America. Thanks to all the speakers and musicians!

I noticed attendees who have not been to previous protests; these are exactly the people we need to recruit to join the resistance.

Free DC Protest

Yesterday's Free DC protest in Washington drew huge crowds.

Minnesota State Fair Action

I love this inspiring strategy by Indivisible Twin Cities at the Minnesota State Fair. Note from Mika Anderson:

Organized by Indivisible Twin Cities, 150 volunteers in groups of 4-6 have been standing in front of the Republican booth at the Minnesota State Fair six hours a day for 11 days. Our state fair is enormous, and the whole state shows up. It is now day 8. We have talked to hundreds and hundreds of people one-on-one: farmers, rural folks, suburbanites, vets, teachers, ordinary folk who are a cross section of our state. We have messages about the Big Brutal Bill on our t-shirts because placards are not allowed. It's a brilliant action and is resonating. Overwhelmingly people who stop are with us, but they feel isolated, unsure what to do, bewildered by their neighbors who still support Trump. We give them courage, taking points, ideas for action and more. We can't win against the authoritarians without bringing in more people, asking them to step out of their comfort zone and giving them the courage to act.

Save the Date:

October 18, 2025 NO KINGS 2.0 National Protests. Local actions TBD.

News and updates

Weigh in: Houghton County Commission may change meeting time

Currently, regular meetings of the Houghton County Board of Commissioners are held in the conference room located on the fifth floor of the Houghton County Courthouse starting at 3:00 p.m. on the second Tuesday following the first Monday of each month. They are considering a change.

Do you prefer a later start time? Contact your commissioner to give your opinion. Names, district, and emails are on the county web site.

Flock spy cameras

Hancock is considering purchasing Flock license plate-reading cameras after Baraga County wisely rejected them. 404 Media found that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has access to data collected by this system. To share your view, attend the next Hancock City Council meeting, Wednesday, September 17 at 6 pm.

The CRAG calendar is growing.

I've made a guide to using it effectively.

CRAG Calendars

The CRAG calendar has many options. Feel free to play around; ask me if you have questions. Hints to navigate calendars: * Click on an event to see the details. * In list view, use the “details” toggle at the top. * Use the buttons at the upper right to change the view

Citizens Rally for Accountable Government (CRAG)Sarah Green

• Keweenaw Community Events
• Full CRAG calendar (select one or more subcalendars to filter types of events)

Quick takes

• Aspirus Ironwood is closing its labor and delivery services (called a "transition" by TV6, LOL).
• Services for crime victims in Michigan and nationwide are losing funding from the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), including grants to help abused and trafficked children.
• Buy local eggs! Else they could be coming from Russia and supporting its killing of Ukrainian children. The U.S. has also dropped sanctions on Russian diamonds, restarting this profit stream for the Kremlin.
• Red-state, Blue-state. Surprise! People living in blue states have more freedom, less poverty, and longer lives than red state residents.
• Know Your Rights, the ACLU provides helpful guides for what to do if you are stopped by authorities. (see also local training info below.)

Michigan Statewide Petitions

At least SIX petitions are being circulated for proposals to go on the 2026 ballot. Bridge Michigan has a good summary; others may be added.

• SIGN these (if you are eligible.)::
• Ranked Choice Voting (RankMiVote) petitions.
  • The Well Read Racoon in Houghton has these petitions.
• Invest in MI Kids to fund schools by taxing millionaires.
• Michiganders for money out of politics (MMOP) to restrict political donations by regulated utilities.
  • contact agerard@miunited.org to sign these.
• Decline to Sign. Watch out for the anti-voter rights petitions that seek to add repressive "proof of citizenship" language to the Michigan constitution:
  • Americans for Citizen Voting- DO NOT SIGN
  • Committee to Protect Voters Rights - DO NOT SIGN
  • AxMITax, The AxMITax proposal seeks to eliminate all property taxes in Michigan, shift the tax burden to regressive sales tax, and make it harder to raise any other taxes in the future - DO NOT SIGN

Upcoming Events

The CALENDAR has details, on these events and many more. Please share your events.

• September 21, 1 pm. International Day of Peace. Bridgeview Park (No signs, but bring you peace message)
• September 21, 7 pm, Orpheum Theater. Town Hall: Invest in MI Kids. Organized by KATO
• September 25, 7 pm. Know your rights ICE Training at Michigan Tech.
  • ACLU KYR page
• October 15, 7 pm. Town Hall: Health Care for All. location TBD.
• October 18, 2025 NO KINGS 2.0. Save the date. Local actions TBD.

When and Where to Speak UP

Many government actions threaten our local communities.

An elected board meets somewhere every week. Check the calendar for details.

Local action groups convene regularly. Some public body meets somewhere every single week; take 30 minutes to show up and express your opinion. (Sample statements.) And let me know if you go and what you learn.

Remember, this is a long process. Showing up multiple times builds trust and demonstrates to people with diverse viewpoints that you don't have horns.

Why and how to attend local meetings

This week:

Plus: Laid Township, September 10, 7 pm and Baraga Township, September 11, 6 pm

Organizing Meetings

Details are on the CALENDAR. (Please send updates, check to confirm.) These groups are all very welcoming. Drop by a meeting to connect with friendly faces. Any level of engagement contributes to making our world better.

Houghton/Hancock

• Yoopers for Ukraine 🇺🇦 Rally at the bridge Wednesdays at 5 pm.
• Keweenaw Indivisible meets 2nd and 4th Tuesdays, 6-8 pm at the KUUF.
• Houghton County Dems meet every 1st Wednesday, 7 pm at the Super 8.
• 4th Wednesdays AWAVE, 6 pm. Gathering at UU Fellowship Houghton.
• 3rd Sundays, 7-8:45 pm, Keweenaw Against the Oligarchy Monthly Action Committee (KATO). Please register at the link to help with the headcount.

Baraga

• Baraga County Democrats, 3rd Tuesdays at 6 pm, L'Anse Township Hall

Marquette

• Every Tuesday evening at 7pm, Yoopers Unite, a gathering of local pro-democracy groups, at LoveMarq Church, 728 W. Kaye Ave, Marquette.
• Marquette: Every Saturday morning from 11:30-12:30, between 40 - 80 people have been assembling at the Marquette Post Office, standing in support with long-established Citizens for Peace & Justice.
• Lunch at Lakenenland: Lake Superior Region Indivisible, Potluck at Lakenenland, September 13, 1-3 pm, contact lsrindivisible@gmail.com for details.
• Join Lake Superior Region Indivisible

A Keweenaw Scene

Thanks for all your support

Stay Well

Sarah