THE ANTIDOTE TO DESPAIR: ACTION

from Wendy Gaylord of Democrats Abroad

Luckily, the options are endless!
Navigating the stress and frustration of the current political landscape in the U.S. is really tough right now for many people, possibly for most. It is easy to feel overwhelmed or disconnected when things feel so chaotic and cruel. Don’t despair. The antidote to despair is action and the options for action are varied and endless!
Do what you can, whenever you can, from wherever you are, in the way that resonates personally for you.

✍️ 💻 Write
Write letters to elected officials!
Members of Congress can be found at Congress.gov, House.gov and Senate.gov.
Campaigns of outreach about pending legislation can be found at the Take Action page of the Dems Abroad website, such as the critical, urgent Stop the SAVE Act campaign.
Write letters to voters!
Vote Forward facilitates participation in campaigns for activists to put pen to paper to share their views with voters in critical elections, such as the upcoming Wisconsin supreme court race.

🍺/☕ Join a Community
Democrats Abroad Australia hosts monthly meet ups in many Australian capital cities for members to gather and banter about U.S. politics. Some DAA Local Chapters host holiday parties, fun runs, postcard campaigns, service days and other events for members. Click here to find what’s happening in a local chapter near you.
There are non-DA communities for Americans in Australia, such as Sydney Expat Americans, American Moms in Sydney, U.S.-based American Australian Association, Americans living in Perth, and more. They operate in both the real world and online and might be a terrific place to find your U.S.A. tribe in Australia.

🖥️ Join an online Community
DA Australia Monthly Zooms - Democrats Abroad Australia hosts monthly online meet ups for members who cannot attend member gatherings in person. Check here for upcoming zooms; send an RSVP and the meeting link will be forwarded by email
DA Global Online opportunities - Democrats Abroad has global caucuses that host online events relevant to the caucus’ missions, state teams that support voting and voting rights and issues advocacy task forces that advance reforms on issues that impact Americans abroad. You can participate in their work in any number of ways, from wherever you are in the world. For example, the Global Women’s Caucus is hosting an online & in-person global day of action International Women’s Day Mar 8.
DA Asia Pacific Action Hour - DA’s Asia Pacific team hosts a monthly Action Hour on the 3rd Sunday of every month 7pm AET, during which members zoom into an online gathering to briefly discuss an issue and then undertake immediate action to address it. Click here to find the next AP Action Hour. Send an RSVP and the meeting link will be forwarded by email.
DA Global Chat Rooms - DA hosts chat rooms on Signal for DA members to engage in discussion about DA issues (the DA Global Chat) and political matters extending beyond our work (The Open Space). In these rooms you can engage with members living around the world who have thoughts, ideas and information to share. Contact the DA Australia Secretary for more information.
DA Social Media - Democrats Abroad, DA Australia and DA regions, caucuses, state teams and task forces all have a presence on one or more social media channels. Look out for DA’s many pages on Facebook, Twitter/X, Threads, Mastodon, Reddit and Blue Sky and follow us. All are welcome to join the community.

🗳️ Become a Voting Volunteer
DA has teams working globally to help Americans abroad register to vote, request a ballot and return the ballot in time to be counted. Encouraging and supporting voters in person or online to participate in U.S. elections is our global Get Out The Vote (GOTV) work. Even in years without a Congressional or Presidential election there will be elections of critical importance at the state and local level. As they say, “there are no off years” and so our GOTV teams are always hard at work.
Training is available on Overseas voter assistance, Phonebanking, HelpDesk support,
Zoom Room support and more. Click here for more information about training and getting involved.
In conclusion, there is definitely no “one-size-fits-all” when it comes to advocacy, activism or making your voice heard. Action will keep your anxiety at bay. We hope to see you soon. If all else fails, please consider making even a small donation to DAA.

#DemocratsAbroad