“NO ONE WAY WORKS, it will take all of us shoving at the thing from all sides to bring it down.” ━ Diane Di Prima, Revolutionary Letters
There is so much to do and not much time to do it. If you are ready to do more than sign the pledge, we ask you to roll up your sleeves and join a committee. Find a committee that matches your skill set and comfort levels. Whether you can offer an hour per week or several hours per day, your commitment will help us send a message that the people of Tucson are united and will not tolerate the loss of our fundamental right to free and fair elections.
To join a committee, attend a meeting on Sunday evening at 7:30 pm. Or you can contact us using the form on the ABOUT page.
Election Protection
Our overall mission is to protect the midterm election process and facilitate a free and fair election. This is a broad mission which includes promoting and encouraging the planning of early voting, registering people to vote, getting out the vote, responding to mis- and disinformation, and preparing the citizenry to participate in mass mobilizations a red line is crossed. Responsibilities and time commitments vary.
Disruption
This committee plans, stages, and participates in a variety of nonviolent, disruptive events up to and including acts of civil disobedience with varying degrees for risk of arrest. Activities include marches, boycotts, protests, banner drops, timed actions, and more. During a shutdown, members of this committee may be blocking entrances to commercial or governmental sites. The committee meets every Wednesday evening from 7:00-8:30 on Zoom.
Outreach
We make personal connections with new pledge signers, answer their questions about the Tucson Shutdown group, and invite them to participate as fully as they can. The team meets once per week on Tuesday evenings for an hour. We provide scripts, mentors, training, and practice sessions for new members. As an individual, you will be asked to make 5 to 10 contacts per week. As a committee, we will be in charge of the upcoming email campaign. Time commitment per week 1.5 to 3 hours.
Faith
Our objectives are to have clergy encourage their congregants to be active participants in our democracy. Volunteers meet with the leaders of each house of worship (pastor, Iman, rabbi, etc.) and ask that they encourage their flock to register and then vote. The time commitment per week is one hour for the committee breakout time on Sunday evening’s Zoom meeting and then meeting with individual church leaders for approximately 30 minutes per meeting.
Mutual Aid
Our purpose is to identify and coordinate with organizations within the Tucson community to provide assistance to individuals who may be vulnerable to hardship caused by an economic shutdown. Volunteers in this committee make phone calls to and in-person connections with those organizations to make them aware of a possible future shutdown and to assess their capabilities for helping. We will also be meeting with local churches for the same purpose. Time commitment for volunteers is approximately 1.5 to 2.5 hours per week.
BUSINESS
The Business Committee reaches out to small and local businesses asking them to join us in all aspects of election protection. We provide vital information about the costs of doing business in an authoritarian economy and help business owners find ways to support the shutdown without harming their company. If you are a small business owner, we invite you to join this committee and share your expertise with us and the Tucson community. Time commitment varies, but we meet for at least one hour per week.
Social Media
We seek to educate, engage, and mobilize the citizenry of Tucson via Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and our website. Volunteers are needed to assist with graphics, recording video clips, researching and reviewing relevant content that can be shared on these platforms. The time committment per week is approximately two to three hours. Experience with graphics, video editing, Instagram, and/or Facebook would be helpful.