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Community Newsletter & Events
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February 25, 2025 – March 4, 2025
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“As soon as you say the topic is civil disobedience, you are saying our problem is civil disobedience. That is not our problem…. Our problem is civil obedience.” – Howard Zinn
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We had a great turnout at last night’s panel discussion about “Learning from Past Struggles to Stop MAGA”. We heard from experienced activists reflecting on their organizing and participation in nonviolent direct action as part of larger campaigns on a variety of environmental, social justice and peace struggles. We heard the importance of community, love and support when participating in nonviolent direct actions. The next training will be on March 19th to learn about de-escalation and peacekeeping skills to create safer and more effective protests. See more details below.
Watch Learning from Past Struggles to Stop MAGA on YouTube
Here are some resources about nonviolent action:
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CNY Solidarity Coalition Meeting This Sunday
March 2, 2 PM – 4 PM . In person.
Bishop Harrison Center, 1342 Lancaster Avenue, Syracuse
Join us for our monthly working meeting this Sunday. We will break out into committees to discuss future actions, issues and more.
A zoom link will be provided if you would like to watch on zoom. Please be aware that participation in discussions will be limited on zoom.
RSVPs are appreciated. All are welcome.
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Upcoming Meetings of CNY Solidarity Coalition:
March 30
Also, as we prepare for a variety of ways to confront the ongoing coup, see the special Nonviolent Direct Action event on March 19 below.
Meeting Policy: In case of a change due to weather, health warnings, etc., we will make a decision by 10 AM the day of the meeting and switch to Zoom. An email notification will be sent.
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From Indivisible: CALL TODAY!
Tell House Democrats to Use Their Leverage in the Government Funding Fight to Stop the Trump-Musk Coup
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The government shuts down on March 14 unless Congress passes a new spending bill. Republicans need Democratic votes to pass anything, but instead of negotiating in good faith, they’re pushing a MAGA budget disaster—one that slashes essential programs, attacks basic rights, and hands unchecked power over federal spending to Trump, Elon Musk, and their billionaire allies.
Democrats must not fold. They must hold the line and publicly demand a government funding deal that:
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Rejects extreme funding cuts and MAGA poison pills attacking abortion rights, LGBTQ+ protections, and immigrant communities
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Includes real, ironclad protections to stop Trump and Musk from hijacking federal spending
Until Republicans agree to these terms, Democrats must not support anything beyond a clean, two-week continuing resolution—keeping the government open without giving Trump and Musk a blank check.
Call Your Representatives Here
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Email Environmental Conservation & Energy Committee Members to Ensure New York Funds Climate
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Tell members of the Energy & EnCon Committees to use their legislative power to respond to Governor Hochul’s delay on Cap-Trade-Invest and include Fund Climate priorities in the state budget this year.
Take Action Here
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Tell the House; Save Medicaid and SNAP!
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This week, the House leadership is moving legislation to take health care and food from working families to benefit the wealthy through tax cuts and building more profit-making private immigration prisons. It’s all to support the Trump administration’s mass detention of immigrants. The administration needs billions of dollars from Congress. And they’re taking it from families like yours.
The budget package the House is crafting would cut social safety net programs, like SNAP and Medicaid, so the Trump administration can spend $200 billion on immigration enforcement. We urgently need your advocacy to stop this injustice by Congress.
Rep. John Mannion, our representative, can stop this budget reconciliation bill (H.Con.Res.14). Contact him today to let him know this budget package must not pass!
The budget bill fails to deliver basic needs, like food, housing, and health care, for low-income families. Instead, it wreaks fear, confusion, and violence in communities for both citizens and non-citizens. The only option is to vote no on the reconciliation package.
John Mannion https://mannion.house.gov/
Syracuse Office: (315) 233-4333
Washington D.C. Office: (202) 225-3701
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Ten reasons for Modest Optimism – Robert Reich
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3. Independent and alternative media are growing.
… Subscriptions have surged at Democracy Now, The American Prospect, Americans for Tax Fairness, Economic Policy Institute, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, The Guardian, ProPublica, Labor Notes, The Lever, Popular Information, Heather Cox Richardson, and, of course, this and other Substacks.
Read Robert Reich on Substack
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Why Democrats Won’t Throw a Real Punch
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Faced with existential threats from the right, the Democratic leadership remains timid; faced with demands for justice from the left, it goes on the attack.
…We also do not have the time, nor is there any sign of mass inclination, to build a new third party for the working class. What we need to do is, yes, pressure these Democrats at every turn to fight and fight harder. I’ve made so many calls that my finger has become a misshapen claw, and you should be making calls, too. We need to go to town halls during the current recess and raise hell. We must also start to organize independent plans at every demo to move past Democratic passivity
Read it on The Nation
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NAACP names best and worst companies for DEI in spending guide
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The NAACP released the Black Consumer Advisory on Saturday, Feb. 15, urging Black Americans to support companies that uphold diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and calling out those that have rolled back their commitments. The guide aims to leverage Black consumers’ $1.7 trillion spending power to hold corporations accountable.
The advisory praises companies like Apple, Ben & Jerry’s, Delta Air Lines and Costco for maintaining DEI efforts, while naming McDonald’s, Meta, Walmart and Target among those that have scaled back.
Read it on Straight Arrow News
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After melting down last year, Syracuse police watchdog tries to start from scratch
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Lovejoy-Grinnell said she’s impressed with the appointees the council and mayor have assembled. “The board has an excellent and diverse group of members,” she said. “We have a mission to fulfill. However, the CRB governance and leadership did not fall apart overnight, and it will take some time to get us to a functional group.”
The advocates who expressed their concerns last year called for a legislative advisory council to be formed to take a comprehensive look at the law and make recommendations on possible changes. On Monday, they sent a letter to councilors, the mayor’s office and the CRB saying they’ve learned that such an advisory board may already be meeting without public involvement. They’re urging that any legislative review process be done in open meetings.
Read Article on Syracuse.com | Read Letter from Advocates Here
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CNY Solidarity Coalition panel teaches non-violent direct action
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Titled “Nonviolent Direct Action: Learning from Past Struggles to Stop MAGA,” panelists shared insights from their personal experiences in social-political activism, highlighting the importance of recognizing democracy as a responsibility and calling for collaboration among communities in protecting it.
Read it in the Daily Orange
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SU law experts: Automatically handcuffing people during police stops violates the Constitution (Guest Opinion)
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It bears repeating because the department does not seem clear on the law: Automatically handcuffing people during stops (without some showing of specific risk) violates the Constitution. This would have been a constitutional violation even if it had been an adult. It is just a more egregious violation because it involved a cooperative, tearful young girl.
Read on Syracuse.com
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“This is no coincidence” inmate advocates question timing of illegal prison strikes
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=Center for Community Alternatives organizer Thomas Gant stands with our incarcerated loved ones in this long interview with CBS 6. “CCA calls for immediate action to reinstate visitation rights, restore basic necessities to those suffering inside, and pass sentencing reform legislation that promotes real justice and safety.
Watch on CBS6 News | Learn More from Unchained
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PFAS: What are they, what do they do, and how did they end up in my blood?
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Mayor Walsh announced the City of Syracuse will host four open houses to share information about the Vision Zero Initiative, a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries, while increasing safety and equitable mobility for all. Attendees will view and discuss the City’s goals for the initiative and the Vision Zero Action Plan.
Tuesday, February 25 from 1:30 pm to 2:30 p.m. at Hazard Branch Library (1620 W Genesee St, Syracuse, NY 13204)
Thursday, February 27 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Northeast Community Center (716 Hawley Ave, Syracuse, NY 13203)
Read more
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How Race Has Shaped Education: Then And Now
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Tuesday, February 25, 7:30PM ET
From Red Wine and Blue
https://redwine.blue
From segregation to desegregation, from redlining to school funding gaps, the history of race in education still shapes the way students learn today. Join us for this eye-opening conversation with Dr. James Ford, Executive Director of CREED and a former teacher of the year, as he connects the past to the present and discusses the current challenges we are facing. https://secure.everyaction.com/D46lmC3N5UiWXARO4XZaqQ2
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Wed. Feb. 26 at 9:30 AM – Syracuse Federal Building
Ellen Grady, a member of the Ithaca Downtown Berrigan Collective, will go to trial on Feb. 26 at 10 AM . She faces two violation charges stemming from a protest on November 15, 2024, at the Federal Building. Grady and other upstate peace activists went to the Syracuse Federal Building to demand access to the offices of New York’s US Senators Schumer and Gillibrand to “exercise our right to petition the government for a redress of grievances”. They wished to “impress upon the Senators the urgency of cutting off offensive weapons for Israel’s genocide and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian and Lebanese peoples.” They specifically were asking the Senators to support the 6 Senate Joint Resolutions of Disapproval that would block the sale of U.S. weaponry to Israel.
Ellen is one of the panelists for the Feb 24 Nonviolent Direct Action program.
Please join us for a brief vigil before court.
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Friends of Dorothy Benefit Dinner
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Wednesday, 2/26 at 5:00pm – 7:00pm
Bishop Harrison Center, 1342 Lancaster Ave, Syracuse
Friends of Dorothy is our initiative to be supportive of people with AIDS. Since October of 1992 we have offered home-based care to people with AIDS in a variety of ways, including recuperative or hospice care, supportive housing and emergency assistance.
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Histories of Urban Planning, Redlining, and Community Need in Syracuse
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Wednesday, Feb. 26, 7:00 – 8:30 PM
In conjunction with our current exhibition, A PLACE TO CALL HOME
Event by ArtRage Gallery and Central Current
505 Hawley Ave, Syracuse, NY, United States, New York 13203
Free and open to the public.
This talk will define and discuss strategies of redlining, housing discrimination, and urban planning that still affect Syracuse’s development today. Central New Yorkers are increasingly more aware about the histories of Redlining, Racial Covenants, and Urban Renewal. Less discussed are the global origins of these policies. Similarly neglected are the precise ways in which they continue to shape the housing, health, food, etc. systems of American cities. The talk will address these issues and their effects on Syracuse by using a wide range of sources, including PEACE, Inc.’s 2024 Community Needs Assessment for Onondaga County. Guests are encouraged to raise questions and solutions.
The Speaker: Todd Goehle is Vice President of Operations and Strategy at PEACE, Inc., Onondaga County’s Community Action Agency.
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Public Speaking with Strength and Confidence
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RSVP Feb 26 at 7:00PM
RSVP Feb 28 at 12:30PM
This training is for pro-choice women who are current candidates or thinking of running for office. We will focus on strategies and tips for delivering strong stump speeches and how to showcase your best self in candidate forums. This training is offered at two times to accommodate busy schedules, you only need to sign up for one.
The Eleanor’s Legacy Action Fund was founded in 2004 by Hon. Judith Hope, with a mission to preserve the memory and ideals of one of America’s greatest First Ladies and one of New York State’s outstanding political leaders.We provide unique training and voter education opportunities to the women of New York.
More: Public Speaking with Strength and Confidence
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Healthcare Fight Organizing Call with Senator Schumer:
Hands Off Our Healthcare! No Hand Outs to Billionaires!
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Feb 26, 2025 08:00 PM
Cutting $2 trillion in healthcare and programs that families need to then give $4.5 trillion in cuts to billionaires and wealthy corporations is what the Republicans want, which means that it’s up to all of us to stop it. How are we going to do that? First, get fired up to make a difference; then come find out action steps at a Beat Back Healthcare Cuts Organizing Call with Leader Schumer and leading activists and organizations. Get a behind-the-scenes look on what’s going on in Congress with the Republican extremist plan to cut healthcare to give even more money to the richest people on the planet. We’ll hear how this will negatively impact New Yorkers if Republicans get their way, and how we are going to organize together to fight back. Join fellow activists, organizers, advocates and labor movement leaders from across NY for this must-attend event with Senator Chuck Schumer. This call will not be recorded.
Register here
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“The Black Freedom Struggle: Political and Economic Justice from the Great Migration to the Late 20th Century.”
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Thursday, February 27 at 5:30pm
Beauchamp Public Library, 2111 South Salina St, Syracuse
Join Syracuse NAACP on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025 for our General Membership Meet Up with Dr. Clemmie Harris at Beauchamp Public Library at 5:30 p.m. We’ll delve into “The Black Freedom Struggle: Political and Economic Justice from the Great Migration to the Late 20th Century.” We convene every fourth Thursday monthly, discussing topics vital to our community. All are welcome, free of charge.
Learn More Here
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Effective Messaging To Protect Transgender Rights
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Thursday, February 27, 7:30PM ET
Red Wine and Blue
The current Administration has issued a rash of Executive Orders specifically targeting transgender individuals. Join this event to understand the real world impact of these Executive Orders and learn the most effective messaging you can use to advocate for the transgender community. https://secure.everyaction.com/PzKxGyTJcUCgmrtE2T99pQ2
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24 Hour Economic Blackout Feb. 28!
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Thursday February 27th from Midnight till Friday The 28th Midnight
Time to disrupt the economy for one day. We will show them who really holds the power. Do not make any purchases on February 28th. Do not shop online or in-store.
Want to do something? Participate in the ECONOMIC BLACKOUT FRIDAY FEBRUARY 28 24 HOURS 12:01am – 11:59pm Spend NO money at: Walmart, Target, Amazon, any chains (no gas, no fast food) NO online shopping – buy LOCAL and SMALL SHOW THEM OUR POWER Spread the word!! For more information: https://thepeoplesunionusa.com/
No Amazon, No Walmart, No Target, Nowhere! Do not spend money on: Fast Food, Gas, Major Retailers. Do not use credit or debit for non essential spending. Only buy essentials of the absolutely necessary (food, medicine, emergency supplies). If you must spend, ONLY support small, local businesses. No Amazon, No Walmart, No Target, Nowhere! Do not spend money on: Fast Food, Gas, Major Retailers. Do not use credit or debit for non essential spending. Only buy essentials of the absolutely necessary (food, medicine, emergency supplies). If you must spend, ONLY support small, local businesses.
Let’s send a message, loud and clear, that we are fighting to reclaim economic and political power from the billionaires.
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Addressing Basic Needs through a Whole Family Lens
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Friday, February 28, 12:05 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Register Here
This forum will be conducted via Zoom. Registration is free and open to everyone.
In November 2024, FOCUS Greater Syracuse, Inc. and PEACE, Inc. held a ‘Whole Family Summit’ focused on how to enhance our community’s capacity to develop collaborative and family-centric solutions for overcoming basic needs. Funded by the CNY Community Foundation, the Summit also served as a pilot that could potentially be replicated to address other community priorities. As the Summit was designed to engage individuals at the grassroots level, the majority of participants were frontline service workers, community representatives, and families. This forum will describe key concepts underlying the Whole Family approach to planning and providing services, and Summit findings.
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CNY Solidarity Coalition Meeting
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Sunday, March 2. In Person and Zoom
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Current Conversations: Untangling the Housing Crisis
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Central Current
Monday, March 3rd 5 – 7 pm. at ArtRage 505 Hawley Ave., Syracuse
(This event was previously scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 18th. If you registered for that, you are registered. Registration is now closed.)
A panel of leaders in the housing space explore policy solutions to Syracuse’s rising rates of housing insecurity and homelessness.
Can’t make it? We’ll publish a fact sheet along with pre- and post-event coverage. To stay informed (1) Sign up for our newsletter and (2) Follow us on social media. You can find us on Facebook, X, Instagram, and LinkedIn as Central Current.
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Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation
Tuesday, March 4 at 7 pm
Syracuse Center for Peace and Social Justice2013 E. Genesee St.
Info & Registration: https://tinyurl.com/27duj6rn
Come and learn how to get involved in Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation.
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Assemblymember Bill Magnarelli Community Information Night
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2025 Budget Town Halls by Assemblyman Stirpe
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Thursday, Mar 6 at 6:30pm at Fayetteville Library
What would you like to see in this year’s state budget? Assemblyman Al Stirpe wants to hear from you! This is your opportunity to provide your input into Governor Hochul’s 2025-26 State Budget.
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Concert with Irish Singer Karan Casey Trio Benefit for Friends of Dorothy House
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Concert with Irish Singer Karan Casey Trio
Thursday, March 6, 7 PM
Red House Arts Center, 400 S. Salina, Syr. 13202
Legendary Irish musician Karan Casey is joined by Niamh Dunne on fiddle and vocals, and on guitar and accordion, Seán Óg Graham (both of the Irish folk band Beoga). They have toured together for several years and this show premieres new material as well as favorites. Together they bring us songs charged with a sense of social responsibility, from the personal to the historical and political, touching on themes of family, loss, love, the empowerment of women, and Irish revolutionary struggle.
Tickets at https://www.ticketleap.events/…/benefit-concert-w-irish…
Friends of Dorothy is an initiative to be supportive of people with AIDS. Michael Desalvo and Nick Orth, who live in and run the house, have offered home-based care and support to people with AIDS and others in need since October 1992
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Onondaga Land Rights & Our Common Future: The Quest For Justice
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Monday, March 10, 2025 6:30 PM
Syracuse Stage, 820 E Genesee St, Syracuse
Gather on unceded Onondaga land to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Onondaga Nation’s historic Land Rights Action. Learn about current developments for land justice, both locally and at the United Nations level. CART services to be provided.
Speakers: Jeanne Shenandoah, (Onondaga, Eel Clan), Onondaga Elder, Traditional Medicine Keeper Haiwhagall
Jake Edwards (Onondaga, Eel Clan), Community Educator
Joe Heath General Counsel of Onondaga Nation
More information: www.aila.ngo
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Heating and Cooling Your Home Efficiently with Heat Pumps
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Tuesday, March 11th 6:00 – 7:30 pm at Fayetteville Library, 300 Orchard St.
A presentation by Ian Shapiro, Associate Director of Building Science and Community Programs at S.U. Ian is a national expert in the history, design, efficiency, cost of operation and health benefits of electric heat pumps and holds a number of patents relating to heat pumps and air conditioning. If you are considering upgrading your air conditioning or heating system you want to hear this presentation! In addition to his academic knowledge Ian can speak as a home owner who had a heat pump installed 5 years ago.
If you want to attend via zoom Register Here
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De-Escalation Training for Activists
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Wednesday, March 19, 6 – 7;30 PM
Bishop Harrison Center
1342 Lancaster Ave, Syr. 13210
Local organizers and trainers Andy Mager and Sarah Howard will share information and facilitate exercises to help us develop our skills and capacity to de-escalate potentially violent situations and keep each other safe as we work to stop the Billionaire Coup continues.
Pre-registration will be requested to prepare materials and exercises. Look for the link on CNY Solidarity’s social media channels and in next week’s newsletter.
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ArtRage Board Goes Off the Wall! Reception and Sale!!
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Friday, March 28, 2025 – 6:00 PM to 8:30 PM at ArtRage Gallery
CALL FOR ART
The ArtRage Gallery Board of Directors invites all community members to submit your 10″ x 10″ artwork to be exhibited, and sold, as a fundraiser for ArtRage Gallery, on March 28, 2025.
Artists of all ages, skill levels and backgrounds are encouraged to submit work. SHARE THIS WITH YOUR FRIENDS! If we can count on you to submit your art please send us a quick email to info@artragegallery.org
to help us with our planning.
Submission Guidelines and more Here
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Syracuse Street Heat is just one, very unencumbered way to work for peace and social justice. We’re part of a decades-long grassroots tradition here, in Ithaca and elsewhere. We stand out and stand up for what we stand for.
A handful of us stand at busy intersections, for 45 minutes at rush hour, pivoting to the traffic with hand-held signs. We want to get the public thinking about issues often underrepresented in the media. We’re there weekly in almost all of Syracuse’s weather (we seldom cancel). Bring your own sign – or use one of ours. No meetings or committees, so participation time is minimal (yay!) Our Team: Ann, Dick, Ed, Geoff, Jim, Julienne, Les, Leslie, Peter….
To learn more, call Ann or Ed: (315) 478 4571.
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EVERY FRIDAY…4 to 4:45 p.m. (“CEASE FIRE NOW”, etc./ Palestine solidarity)
Focused on the war in the middle East…Israel’s military genocide of Gaza and invasion of Lebanon. We disperse along the sidewalk with our signs at the very busy intersection of Erie Blvd East and East Genesee St. (across from the DeWitt fire station; park in the nearby mini mall lot.) When the temperature is below 20 degrees, we cancel!
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Watch past meetings about Micron, Good Jobs Town Hall, Rallies and more on our YouTube Channel.
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Donate to the CNY Solidarity Coalition
CNY Solidarity Coalition contributes regularly to local progressive organizations: Syracuse Peace Council, National Action Network, & Urban Jobs Coalition. We also make occasional donations as needed to other local groups. We depend on your donations for this.
Donate Online through PayPal
Mail donations to:
CNY Solidarity Coalition
P.O. Box 6137, Teall Post Office, 226 Teall Ave., Syracuse NY 13217
Our Committees
To sign up for each of the committee mailing lists, contact the person listed.
Indivisible Onondaga County: Contact: Tom Keck
Climate Justice: Contact: Dick Kornbluth
SLAT (State/Local Action Team) Contact: Peter McCarthy
Beyond War and Militarism: A joint committee of CNY Solidarity Coalition and the Syracuse Peace Council. Contact: Ron Van Norstrand
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Elaine Denton
Peter McCarthy
Coordinating Committee
CNY Solidarity Coalition
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