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Yesterday would have been the 82nd birthday of the late civil rights leader and Congressman John Lewis. Representative Lewis was well-known for encouraging people to make "good trouble" — the kind of trouble that gets stirred up when you fight injustice, as Lewis did with courage throughout his life. 

Let's remember to draw inspiration from Rep. Lewis in moments when progressive change feels difficult or distant. We are committed to continuing to organize, agitate, and make good trouble around the issues that affect working people until we live in a society that treats everyone with dignity and respect. We hope you'll stand with us. 

Donate to Support Our 2022 Electoral Work!

Organizing for change is at the heart of our mission at Progressive Maryland, and we’re working hard to elect progressive candidates ready to transform state and local politics. Will you donate to the Progressive Maryland New Era PAC today to support our electoral work? Your donation of any amount helps ensure we can devote time and resources to helping progressives win big in this year’s elections! 

Quick Actions:

 

2022 Maryland Elections

The June 28 Primary Elections are coming up fast — will you work with our election team to build support for progressive candidates? Visit pgmd.us/electionvolunteer and sign on to help us elect movement candidates who are ready to transform Maryland politics.

Every Thursday, we host a phone bank to introduce Marylanders to great progressive candidates running in this year’s elections. Join us for this week’s Throwdown Thursday on February 24 from 6–8pm to call voters across the state with our team! If you’ve never phonebanked before, don’t worry! We provide training and support. Click this link to let us know you’ll join — it's fun, and it's a great opportunity to meet other Marylanders ready for political change.

Note to Candidates: If you’re running for office, have already filed for candidacy, and are interested in being considered for our endorsement, you may complete a candidate questionnaire here.

 

đź—ł Candidate Corner

Del. Sheila Ruth, a progressive leader up for reelection as State Delegate in District 44B, is participating in the virtual panel discussion Transit Equity and the Environment: A Vision for Baltimore this Thursday, February 24 at 5:30 PM. 

Laurie-Anne Sayles, candidate for Montgomery County Council At-Large, will serve as a panelist on a town hall forum organized by One Montgomery Green on the state of environmental justice in the county. The forum – Environmental Justice: Where Are We Now? – will take place virtually tomorrow, February 23 from 6:30 – 8:00 PM. 

Michele Gregory, candidate for State Senate in District 38 on the Eastern Shore, is a featured speaker at this weekend’s New Era Party, a fundraising event jointly organized by Progressive Maryland and the Lower Shore Progressive Caucus. 

Logan Endow, candidate for State Delegate in Baltimore City District 43, is holding a campaign meeting next Monday, February 28 from 7–8 PM. Join us to discuss updates, upcoming canvass opportunities, and plans for outreach around the district — register here to attend. 

Learn more about all of our endorsed candidates for 2022 on the Progressive Maryland website! Go to pgmd.us/2022endorsements for candidate bios and links to support their campaigns.

 

Statewide Updates

🩺 Healthcare Justice

What a week for health justice in Maryland! Last Monday, nearly 200 Marylanders gathered on Zoom for a Health Justice Lobby Day to urge legislators to support policies that will expand healthcare coverage, address health disparities, and increase patient protections. We had a great showing – thank you to all our members and leaders who joined! 

Then, last night, people from across the state gathered in Annapolis with the Time to Care Coalition to rally for a strong statewide paid family and medical leave policy. Maryland Matters published an article on the Time to Care Rally that includes a great quote from Progressive Maryland Healthcare Task Force leader Peter Witzler — be sure to check it out! After you do, add your name to this petition for paid family and medical leave to let state lawmakers know you support this legislation!

And we’re not slowing down! This week, we’re hosting a virtual Testimony Writing Happy Hour with the End Medical Debt Maryland coalition. Grab your beverage of choice and join us this Friday, February 25 from 6:00–7:00 PM as we guide you through the process of writing and submitting legislative testimony for The Justice for Hospital Patients Act of 2022 (HB 694/SB 944). This bill will require Maryland hospitals to reimburse low-income patients they’ve dramatically overcharged for healthcare, and it has a hearing coming up next week. We need legislators in Annapolis to know we won’t stand for theft from working Marylanders!

Want to get involved with our Health Justice work? Contact Malcolm or Patty to learn more. 

 

⚖️ Reentry Work Group

This week, our member-led Reentry Work Group is kicking off Reentry: Where Do You Stand?, a series of listening sessions with candidates for Maryland state and local office. The first Reentry Candidate Forum will take place on Zoom this Friday, February 25 from 6–7:30 PM — with candidates for Lieutenant Governor. Candidates will share their plans to support reentry services for formerly incarcerated individuals and will take questions from community members during a Q & A session. RSVP at pgmd.us/PGCandidateForums to join us this Friday.

There's one week left to submit grant proposals to the Reentry Work Group for projects designed to support returning citizens in Prince George’s County. We will accept applications from businesses, nonprofit organizations, faith-based organizations, and community organizations until the deadline next Monday, February 28. Grants in the range of $10,000 to $20,000 will be awarded following a committee selection process to support one year of work. Find application details and additional information here.

 

🌱 Environmental Justice Task Force

Marylanders deserve clean air and water. Our communities need a safeguard against greedy corporations who consider our families collateral damage in their pursuit of profit. That's why we need to pass the Environmental Human Rights Amendment (HB 596/SB 783) this year! The Senate hearing is coming up on March 9, and our friends at the Maryland Campaign for Environmental Human Rights have developed an easy way to show our legislators how important this bill is to us — sign this petition calling on Senate leadership to support the Environmental Human Rights Amendment. You can find more information on the bill in this toolkit. If you’d like to take a more active role in supporting this bill and other important environmental justice legislation, contact Yves at [email protected]. 

 

đź–¤ Drug Policy Task Force

Last week’s Cannabis Legislation Lobby Days were a success! Thank you to everyone across the state who turned out to urge legislators to pass strong cannabis legalization & decriminalization bills. We met with over 40 legislators in the Maryland General Assembly, and it was clear these bills have been getting a lot of buzz. Legislators are hearing Marylanders’ demands for drug policy reform, and we need all hands on deck to pass these critical measures this session! Will you join our Drug Policy Task Force? If you’re willing to take an active role in addressing the harms of criminalization reach out to Zach at [email protected]. 

 

Local Chapter Updates

Lower Shore Progressive Caucus:

Progressive Maryland & the Lower Shore Progressive Caucus are joining forces to host a virtual New Era Party this Saturday, February 26 from 3–4 PM. RSVP at pgmd.us/LSPCPMfundraiser to join us! Folks from across the state are invited to attend — be sure to share the event on Facebook, too. 

Participants will hear from featured speakers Salisbury Mayor Jake Day and Salisbury City Councilmember Michele Gregory, who we’ve endorsed for State Senate in District 38! We'll also have a special appearance from Heather Mizeur, the former Maryland State Delegate vying to unseat right-wing politician Andy Harris from his position in Congress. 

Progressive Harford County:

Progressive Harford is in the news! Check us out in the latest Political Roundup from Maryland Matters. Here’s a quote from the piece that left us feeling especially proud:

“I’m very excited that progressives are organizing for change in Harford County,” said Larry Stafford Jr., the executive director of Progressive Maryland. “Progressive Harford has demonstrated why it’s important that we work to grow our movement across the state, not only in known progressive strongholds.”

If you’re ready to help us bring progressive change to Harford County, reach out to Zack at [email protected].

Progressive Montgomery

The Progressive Montgomery chapter will hold a Meet & Greet in early March with some of the candidates we’ve endorsed for office in Montgomery County. Keep an eye on your inbox for an invitation! 

Progressive Prince George's:

Our meeting to convene the Progressive Prince George’s chapter has been postponed – it will now take place on Tuesday, March 15. If you live in Prince George’s County, this will be a great opportunity to meet fellow activists and plug into our issue and electoral work in the coming months. Contact Devane at [email protected] if you’re interested in getting involved!

 

State and National News:

The Maryland General Assembly is churning away, with hearings moving along on some 2,500 filed bills. We have some lists you might want to check out to dodge confusion and hone in on the meaningful legislation addressing topics like climate, justice system reform, medical debt relief, equitable cannabis legalization, life support (that is, food stamps) for college students – and more. There’s also plenty of the latest on the three-branch government down there at the other end of the Metro system — though both chambers of Congress are off on recess, with legislators probably frantically raising money for the upcoming elections, there’s action to be taken there, too.

Find it all right here, in our weekly roundup of News You Can Use. 

 

Events From Progressive Maryland & Our Allies:

Thursday, February 24 | 7 PM (virtual) — Join the Montgomery County Racial Equity Network for a virtual listening session to discuss how to make Montgomery County a more supportive and equitable place. Sign up here to attend. 

Friday, February 25 | 6–7:30 PM (virtual) — Progressive Maryland’s Reentry Work Group is kicking off Reentry: Where Do You Stand?, a series of listening sessions with candidates running for Maryland state and local office. In the first session this Friday, we’ll hear from candidates for Lieutenant Governor about their plans to support reentry services for formerly incarcerated individuals if elected. RSVP to join us at pgmd.us/PGCandidateForums. 

Friday, February 25 | 6–7 PM (virtual) — The End Medical Debt Maryland coalition is hosting a virtual Testimony Writing Happy Hour to prepare testimony to support The Justice for Hospital Patients Act of 2022 ahead of its hearing in the House next week. RSVP here to join us for this fun and low-pressure event!

Saturday, February 26 | 3–4 PM (virtual) — The Lower Shore Progressive Caucus and Progressive Maryland’s New Era Project are hosting a virtual party and fundraising event. Join us to learn about our exciting 2022 electoral program and the work we’re doing to elect progressive leaders across Maryland – RSVP for the party at pgmd.us/LSPCPMfundraiser!

 

Progressive Maryland BlogSpace:

We value creating space for our members to express their thoughts on any issues related to our campaigns. Have an idea for a blog post? You can submit writing, film, graphic design, etc. to be published on our website to the blog moderator Woody at [email protected].

Donate To Progressive Maryland!

 

woody woodruff

About

M.A. and Ph.d. from University of Maryland Merrill College of Journalism, would-be radical, sci-fi fan... retired to a life of keyboard radicalism...