We are starting the year focused and steadfast in building a world that centers racial and economic justice and indigenous sovereignty. We are so excited to welcome so many new faces with shared values and can’t wait to see you at one of our upcoming events.
In this issue:
- SURJ TC General Meeting January 19
- SURJ National Day of Action February 1
- Gear Up Training Sign-up
- Progress on Mpls Police Consent Decree
SURJ EVENTS |
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SURJ-TC General Meeting, January 19, 2025 |
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Coming together / building momentum / planning for National Day of Action on 2/1! Whether you’ve been a member for years, recently joined a Gear Up circle or this is your first time hearing about SURJ-TC, the General Meeting is the place to be! This is a chance to re-connect and be in solidarity. We will also use the time together to plan a collective action that we will take together on February 1st, as part of a larger National Day of Action organized by SURJ National. Our collective actions will begin a steady effort to resist harmful policies of the Trump Administration, protect our community and fight for our shared values of racial and economic justice and indigenous sovereignty.
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SURJ National Day of Action, February 1st, 2025 |
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Save the date for our local, collective action! The Gear Up training program will culminate in a National Day of Action on February 1st. Anyone is welcome and encouraged to be part of our collective action, even if you were not part of the Gear Up program, or not able to attend the General Meeting on 1/19. The action will involve asking key targets – elected officials, institutional leaders or public authorities– not to comply with Trump’s anti-democratic and immoral actions and orders that put people’s health, safety, dignity and basic human rights at risk. Be part of the resistance and underlying movement to move us forward, together, while centering justice, equality and collective liberation! |
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What is the Gear Up Training Program? |
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Within a week of the November 2024 presidential election, SURJ-National rolled out the Gear Up training program– a national mobilization program consisting of local groups getting ready to resist the reactionary, repressive initiatives of the new administration. Here in the Twin Cities there are over a dozen Gear-Up circles hosted by SURJ community members. The program consists of online trainings hosted by SURJ National followed by circle meetings, on alternating weeks, where people learn together and share feelings, strategies and plans for resistance. YOU CAN STILL JOIN this exciting, nationally-resourced campaign! To find a Gear Up group near you, please contact showingupforracialjusticemn@gmail.com. |
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COMMUNITY EVENTS OF INTEREST |
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Progress on National Consent Decree for MPD |
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A tentative agreement with the US Department of Justice has been reached by the city of Minneapolis to secure a Federal Consent Decree, which will mandate sweeping police reforms. The Ciyt Council unanimously approved the agreement on Monday, January 6th. According to the Minnesota Star Tribune, (12/31/2024, 5:06pm) the city and DOJ’s “…formal talks did not begin until the DOJ submitted a ‘lengthy’ draft consent decree for feedback – nearly a year after their initial findings report was issued.” SURJ-TC and hundreds of activists city-wide have a large stake in this Consent Decree going through–before Trump takes office on January 20th. Along with the MN Department of Human Rights’ existing supervision of MPD’s pattern and practices of race discrimination, the federal Consent Decree represents our most comprehensive chance to actually reduce the violence of the MPD on Black, Indigenous, differently-abled residents specifically, as well as random violence against many other Minneapolis residents. Stay tuned to local media, and/or your City Council member’s reports for updates. We will follow up on this story in our next newsletter.
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GET INVOLVED WITH SURJ-TC! |
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Volunteer with SURJ-TC |
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SURJ-TC is a local chapter of Showing Up for Racial Justice, a national organization organizing white people to build the political will to end white supremacy. White people have been told for years by Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) that we need to educate and organize our own people. So that’s what we try to do. Learn more at www.surjtc.org. SURJ-TC is one of 150 chapters and affiliates nationwide. Learn about SURJ National at surj.org. Our work is local and so are our volunteers. Within this volunteer-driven culture, we strive always to make our work as transparent and non-hierarchical as we know how while holding ourselves accountable to our mission of ending white supremacy and implementing our theory of change (i.e., self-education, action, and calling in more white people).
We welcome volunteers in our working groups and teams and can offer a variety of tasks and areas of interest. Currently we have the following opportunities available:
If you’d like to find out more or are interested in other ways to get involved, email showingupforracialjusticemn@gmail.com. |
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Donate Today: Support SURJ-TC and Community Action
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SURJ-TC is now able to accept online donations via PayPal! Visit our donate page and click the “donate” button to set up your one-time or recurring donation! How will your donation be used? We are an all-volunteer group, and your donations will be put to good use, to help our chapter cover things like:
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JOIN US! |
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Looking forward to seeing you soon! In solidarity, Your friends at SURJ-TC |
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