Brunswick Area Indivisble Newletter #17
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"We are a grassroots organization of concerned residents of Brunswick, Topsham and Harpswell” Newsletter for Feb. 8, 2026 Brunswick Area Indivisible Action Calendar: BAI Book Discussion Group: Autocracy Inc. Monday, Feb. 23 from 4:00 to 5:15pm The Highlands Community Room, Topsham Public Library. (details in Newsletter #15 or on our archive page. Dr. Nirav Shah, candidate for Governor. Wednesday, Feb. 25 from 6:00 to 7:30 pm. Brunswick United Methodist Church, 320 Church Rd, Brunswick. Postcarding, just before Dr. Shah's talk. Wednesday, Feb. 25 drop in, starting at 4:00p. Brunswick United Methodist Church. Help write news boosting postcards, informing Mainers how Federal policies are impacting our state. All supplies will be provided ( postcards, names , pens and decorative stickers ). Recurring Events (Brunswick) Tuesdays, 5:30 pm Brunswick Maine Street Route 1 Overpass Rally - Bring your signs and flags. Wednesdays, 12:30 pm Brunswick Town Mall Cosplay protest. Meet at the Gazebo- costumes optional Saturdays, 11:00 am to noon ICE OUT! Brunswick, Maine St at Rt 1 Overpass. Bring banners, signs. Mark your calendar:
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For More actions and events, visit Activate Maine
DEMOCRACY STARTS WITH YOU, AND YOU ARE INVITED!
WHAT: Debate among all Maine Democratic Candidates for Governor
Moderated by Craig Freshley of Good Group Decisions
WHEN: Saturday, March 21st, 3:00 PM
WHERE: Orion Performing Arts Center (OPAC)
Mt. Ararat Middle School, 66 Republic Ave, Topsham
REGISTER TO ATTEND
Don’t miss this opportunity to see ALL Democratic candidates for Governor debating issues important to Mainers. Learn about their priorities and how they intend to move them forward. Click HERE or scan the QR-code below to register and let us know YOUR top concerns to help us target questions to issues most important to voters. There is no charge to attend.
Orion Performing Arts Center seats 700 and we expect it to fill, so we urge you to register to ensure a seat. You will receive reminder emails. Seats will be held for registrants until 15 minutes prior to the debate, so arrive early to claim your reserved seat. Doors open at 2:30.
SPONSORED BY:
Sagadahoc Democrats, Brunswick Democratic Committee,
Freeport Democratic Committee,
and Brunswick Area Indivisible
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Scan the QR-Code to the left or go to https://tinyurl.com/4ypvcum4 to register to attend,
to learn more about the event, and to share with us the key issues you would like to have addressed.
Report of the February Monthly Meeting
Sixty five folks attended the monthly BAI meeting, including at least 10 new participants. Andree Appel of BAI Steering Committee introduced the SC members and briefly reviewed the history of New Mainers activities in Brunswick. She noted that at least 2 local men are in detention and that the immigrant community is upset and fearful. The New Mainers group is providing support. Contact them if you want to help with financial assistance for legal fees etc.
Our guest speaker was Jackie Sartoris, Cumberland District Attorney, aka our 'local persecuter’ (sic--per a local first grader!). She is running for re-election and described her philosophy of using restorative justice, finding ways to assist rather than punish the 75-80% of those with substance abuse and/or mental health challenges to get connected to appropriate services in tandem with court adjudication. She was particularly proud of a grant her office recently received to finish lab testing of outstanding sexual assault kits. A Q&A session followed.
'Operation Catch of the Day'- a personal view
This is just one example of the fear in the immigrant community of which I am personally aware. Names, locations, and dates, have been changed to protect this person.
Seven years ago, we befriended an African refugee who came to Portland and was introduced by a friend. He came here on a student VISA but lost his support after his family was killed. Without that support, he couldn’t continue his college education. He was well educated, handsome, athletic, and fluent in four languages. The word in his community was Portland, Maine was the place to go to be accepted and get the backing he needed. We helped by providing appropriate footwear and clothing for Maine winters as well as introducing him to services to obtain refugee status and work permits.
Up until a year ago he had a good paying white-collar job, was working to help other immigrants, and was moving through the process of obtaining citizenship. Now he sequesters himself, is afraid to go to work and has used vacation time to hide. We are trying to help, but are afraid to attract unwanted attention by doing so. ICE and Border Patrol may have returned to 'targeted operations', but the terror and uncertainty remain.
ICE Operations were never about public safety
Data just released by The Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition reports that ICE has been stepping up detentions in Maine since September 2023, but it largely failed to discover immigrants who were supposedly in Maine illegally.
In its enhanced operation, DHS reported more than 200 people were rounded up in Maine. Of those, only 13 names were posted on the agency's much-touted 'worst of the worst' website. The Portland Press Herald found the listings full of errors and incomplete information. Only a few have major criminal records. Several of those were already convicted and in prison before the surge began. Portland Press Herald gift article here. The majority of those detained, law-abiding long term residents, neighbors, workers, taxpayers, are in detention centers scattered across the country as reported in the Bangor Daily News. This article is free. Some leave behind dependent family members facing the threat of eviction as well as their own detention.
Detainees are having tremendous difficulty obtaining legal representation in a complex, overtly cruel system. A member of Midcoast New Mainers reported at the February BAI meeting that detainees may need to hire as many as 3 different lawyers to handle their immigration, wrongful detention and bond procedures, costing tens of thousands of dollars. Nationally, the few who do get released are routinely left without a phone or funds to travel home.
Rep Chellie Pingree and Senator Angus King have said they are trying to trace and assist the hundreds of Maine residents wrongly rounded up and detained. Their demands for more information from DHS have been met with no response.
Actions:
- Please donate to organizations that provide legal assistance and direct aid to immigrants and their families. Newsletter #16 included a list provided by No ICE for ME.
- Contact Rep Pingree and Senator King to laud their efforts to assist wrongfully detained Maine residents. Tell them how you feel about congressional efforts to rein in ICE and Customs and Border Patrol.
Voting 101- The Big Picture
Midterm elections will be held on Tuesday, November 3, 2026. As a country, we will be voting for everybody in the House of Representatives, where 435 members are up for re-election every two years. The Senate, which serve 6 year terms, get staggered so every two years only one third, 33 seats are up for re-election. This year, 35 Senators will get elected because there are two vacant seats. There are 36 states, Maine included, who will be electing a new governor.
We have a decentralized democracy in which individual states led by governors have an incredible amount of power to control what goes on in that state and how to build a country as a whole. There will be thousands of state and local positions up for election in every single county, city and state across the U.S.
As citizens, voting is our power. We have the opportunity to change the course of this country on November 3rd. Contrary to what some people are saying, we will have elections because Trump has no power to stop them. He cannot ‘nationalize’ the elections as he said he would like to do, voting is controlled by the states. That is enshrined in our constitution.
Beginning NOW we need to do every single thing in our power to get people out to vote. We cannot wait, Trump and Co are working diligently to do whatever they can to disrupt the midterms and sow doubt in the minds of citizens about the veracity of the elections. Remember the BIG LIE. The entire regime are terrified of the Democrats taking the House and making it impossible for them to continue their Putin-style mission of creating autocracy here in the USA. We will not allow that to happen.
Actions
- Talk up Voting with everyone you know. Encourage them to make a plan to exercise their rights.
- Encourage those 16+ to register if they have not done already. (In Maine, 16 year olds may preregister, those who will be 18 by the November election may vote in the primaries)
- If you have moved or changed your name since you last voted, check with your Town Office on updating your voter information.
- Questions about voting in Maine, registration, semi-open primaries, ranked choice voting? The League of Women Voters Maine is an excellent source.
Town Clerks Respond to Mid-Term Election Apprehensions
The Trump administration is blatantly attempting to interfere in the midterm elections by demanding states turn over voter rolls and floating the possibility of ‘nationalizing’ the elections. The FBI went to Georgia, raided their election office and seized the 2020 election ballots allegedly in an attempt to prove Trump actually won. The constitution is clear; states are in charge of elections, but that won’t stop them from trying to foul the integrity of the system.
Information from the voter rolls would create access to the following information: 1.) Registration methods to vote 2.) Voter participation history 3.) Party affiliation 4.) Partial Social Security numbers 5.) Driver License Information
Maine, along with 20 other states have refused to turn over voter rolls.The Trump Administration is suing to gain access. Currently it is unknown when the cases will be decided and if they will end up in the Supreme court. Also Watson vs Republican National Committee is being heard prior to the midterms. If the Supreme Court rules in favor it will curtail the use of mail in voting and disrupt the process of counting votes.
Indivisible spoke to Ali Burnette, Deputy Town Clerk of Brunswick and Amanda Campbell, Town Clerk of Topsham in regard to the Administrations’ assault on the mid-term elections,. They were both open to discussing the situation. Both clerks said they take the lead from Maine Secretary of State on how to proceed with elections. Ali said during the 2024 elections the town met several times to prepare for all possible issues with the voting process. She also said as it gets closer to the election they will meet again and to ensure the election process is safe and fair for voters. Amanda reported it is a chaotic time and echoed the need to provide a safe and secure setting for the voters. Both women are open to public assistance in securing the voting process.
In summary, both towns are concerned with the mid-term elections and how the situation will play out with the decision of the Supreme Court. They are taking a ‘wait and see’ approach and planning for either result. The overwhelming theme from both towns was to provide a safe and fair election. The exact nature of that assistance is in the planning process and Indivisible will stay updated as to a role we can play in this planning process. Both Ali and Amanda encourage people to call them with concerns and to participate in free and fair elections.
State Legislative News: LD 2106 (K)
An Act to Prohibit the Disclosure of Nonpublic Records Without Proper Judicial Review. The bill will protect Mainers and help ensure people feel safe at public schools, hospitals, healthcare facilities, daycare centers and libraries by prohibiting ICE from entering these locations to conduct immigration enforcement unless they produce a valid judicial warrant signed by a judge. A public hearing was held Jan. 29th. To read the bill and track its progress, use the Legislature's Bill Tracker - enter 2106.
From the Steering Committee:
A huge thank you to members who made donations to BAI at our monthly meeting on Feb 4th! What a generous group of dedicated souls. On behalf of BAI Membership Working Group, we thank you so very much. BAI looks forward to co-sponsoring the candidate forums, continuing to build a strong, resilient community and collaboration with others. Onward together.
Brunswick Area Indivisible
As always, if you have an upcoming action, article, legislative issue or story that you want to go out on the Brunswick Area Indivisible email list, send it to communications.bai.me@gmail.com
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