April 25, 2026 Newsletter
"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement; nothing can be done without hope." --Helen Keller
NOTES FROM LEAH:
I have been speaking with my young adult children and others in their age range. The generational gap is huge! Many of those in the generation that follow mine have never seen or experienced a country where the political divide was not full of hate speech, propaganda, and outright lies. They have no memories of a White House that communicated with civility and dignity. They often feel like their votes and voices don't matter. They are getting drawn into numerous conspiracy theories put forth by social medial podcasters.
We need to bridge that generational gap. We need to speak with them and tell them of the days when things were different. We need to help them sort out the facts from the propaganda. That is why this summer and fall, we are working on a number of events geared towards doing just that. I am hoping to put together another rally in June. I am looking for 4 or 5 speakers who could talk about civility in politics, how to sort fact from fiction, how to communicate effectively and civility with people we disagree with, and why we need to get corporate money and large PAC donations out of our elections. If you are interested in volunteering, please email admin@deltacountyunified.org.
We are also working on an event for July 5th called America 250, Bridging the Generational Divide. Professor June Klees will be speaking at and moderating this event. It will be a catered event, to coincide with the America 250 Potluck, and will likely take place at the Escanaba Market.
Finally, we are working to hold a Battle of the Bands Event at the Delft in September or October. This is in the early stages of planning, but the idea would be to have 4 or so bands competing with one another. In between sets, we will be introducing Delta County Unified. We will let attendees know what our mission is and what we value. We will invite them to stand with us to take our country back from the corporations and PACS that are buying our elected officials.
IMPORTANT DATES:
Take Action Tuesday Protests
Every Tuesday, 12-1:30pm
Take Action Tuesday protests take place every Tuesday in front of Walgreen's in Escanaba. Please do not park in the Walgreen's lot.
May Day Strong Ice Cream Social - Friday, May 1, 2:30-6pm
We have reserved the Market Square in Escanaba for a May Day Ice Cream Social. This will be an opportunity to provide people with information about Delta County Unified and tell them why we are calling "Mayday!" and demanding “Workers over Billionaires.”
May Day Strong - Friday, May 1, all day
Indivisible as asking us to call "mayday" and demand workers over billionaires The national leaders of Indivisible are calling this a dress rehearsal for a wider general strike. No work, no school, no shopping! More info here: May Day Strong
REQUESTS, INVITATIONS AND INFORMATION FROM OTHER ORGANIZATIONS:
From Delta Dems:
We are once again selling car wash coupons as a fundraiser for our local party. The party receives $2 for each wash purchased.
GREAT NORTH AUTO WASH
2701 North Lincoln Road
Escanaba, MI
Here’s how it works:
If you would like an order form, please email: deltademsmi@gmail.com
Orders are due no later than the May 6 meeting. You can bring them or drop off at the meeting or make arrangements in advance to get us your orders and also be sure to arrange for pickup of the coupons. It takes about two weeks to fulfill the orders.
Republican Gubernatorial Debate
Gubernatorial Debate. Saturday, May 2, 2026, at the Terrace Bay Ballroom, 7146 P Rd., Gladstone Michigan. This is being hosted by the 1st District Republicans and candidates will include Mike Cox, Perry Johnson, Aric Nesbitt, and Ralph Rebrandt. The moderator will be Steve Gruber.
1:30 Doors open
2:00 pm Social Hour
3:00 pm Debate
5:30 Cash Bar & Hours d'oeuvres
6:00 pm Dinner
Cost: $15 for debate only. $85 for debate and dinner. $170 for VIP Debate and Dinner. For tickets email michigan.1.gop@gmail.com or call 906-553-5380
NOTES FROM INDIVISIBLE "WHAT'S THE PLAN?" NATIONAL MEETING (4-23-26):
1) At this week's meeting they had guest Silky Shah from Detention Watch Network to discuss fighting back locally against new immigration detention centers. Although this doesn't apply to us currently, it was interesting to hear about how Indivisible groups have fought (and won!) against detention centers being built in their communities. They have toolkits ready for us if/when they try to build a detention center here in the U.P.
2) Most of the questions were about May Day Strong. They discussed the fact that this is a structure test in case Trump and Republicans try to steal the midterm elections and we have to go on a longer strike. They repeated that "no shopping" does include small businesses but that we should be encouraging business owners to shut down for the day and then reward those businesses with our patronage after May 1st
Link to podcast version of this week's meeting:
What's the Plan April 23 podcast version
Next week's national "What's the Plan?" call:
Indivisible What's the Plan - April 30
THREE-MINUTE CALL TO ACTION:
Post on social media about May Day Strong! This is our last chance to get the word out about the national boycott. No need to reinvent the wheel, you can just repost a friend's post or posts by Indivisible. Bonus points for reposting something about it every day.