Brunswick Area Indivisible Newsletter #18
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"We are a grassroots organization of concerned residents of Brunswick, Topsham and Harpswell” Newsletter for February 22, 2026 Brunswick Area Indivisible Action Calendar: Update -Time Change: Dr. Nirav Shah, Candidate for Governor. Wednesday, Feb. 25th from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. Brunswick United Methodist Church, 320 Church Rd, Brunswick. Postcarding - Wednesday, Feb. 25th starting at 4:00 pm. Brunswick United Methodist Church. BAI Monthly Meeting with guest speaker Shenna Bellows. Wednesday, March 11th, 6:30 pm. Brunswick United Methodist Church, 320 Church Rd, Brunswick. Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Debate. Saturday, March 21st. 3:00pm. Orion Performing Arts Center, Update -Rescheduled:. BAI Book Discussion Group 'Autocracy Inc.' Monday, March 23rd, 4:00pm. Topsham Public Library 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 12:00 - ICE OUT! Brunswick, Maine St. on Rt 1 Overpass. Bring banners, signs. Mark Your Calendar: March 28 No Kings III National Day of Action. More information to follow. For More actions and events, visit Activate Maine Urgent Action: Oppose the SAVE ActThe Senate is expected to vote on the SAVE Act the week of Feb. 23rd, after its weekend recess. Susan Collins provided the 50th vote needed to bring it to the Senate floor, where it faces strong opposition from Democrats. It is similar in some respects to Maine Ballot Question 1, which voters decisively defeated last November. The Bipartisan Policy Center reports the SAVE Act would impose unnecessary ID requirements on voters, add to the administrative burdens on our town offices and election officials as well as limit voting by mail. Chellie Pingree has called the SAVE Act a poll tax because of the cost of documents citizens, married women who take the surnames of their husbands in particular, would need to register or re-register to vote. For instance a current passport costs $130. The legislation is based on assertions of widespread voter fraud, definitively proven false for over a decade, wherever there has been an extensive investigation. Action: Don't delay: Call both Senators tell them to oppose the SAVE Act.Angus King, email contact form, office locations and phone numbers. Susan Collins, email contact form, office locations and phone numbers. Rally Report: Secretary Hegseth's Visit to BIW Feb. 9thA coalition of Indivisibles and other local resistance groups organized a 'Healthcare not Warfare' rally in response to Secretary of War Hegseth's 'Arsenal of Freedom Tour' stop at BIW. The rally was specifically defined as opposition to the administration's policies and spending priorities and not anti BIW. The Maine People's Alliance organized its own event separately. At its peak, an estimated 500 to 700 people stood on the sidewalks near the post office, stretching to the bridge, swamping the handful of pro-administration demonstrators. A number of people endured very cold conditions and stayed for hours. Inside, attendance was reported to be less than 1000, even though BIW workers were offered overtime pay to attend. For Registered Democrats:February 28th 9am-12pm. Topsham Democratic Caucus. Topsham Municipal Building, Don Russell Meeting Room 100 Main St. Register for this event with Mobilize. March 1st 2-4pm. Brunswick Regional Democratic Party Caucus. Brunswick Junior High 65 Columbia Ave. For the communities of Brunswick, Cumberland, Harpswell, North Yarmouth, and Yarmouth. Register for this event with Mobilize. The Maine Democratic Party Caucuses are gatherings of Democratic friends and neighbors from every town across Maine. Caucuses serve many purposes including selecting delegates to the MDP State Convention, electing local committee leaders, hearing from local legislators & candidates, nominating election clerks, and discussing local issues. Sign up here to receive updates & reminders through Mobilize. Voting 101: Semi-open PrimariesOn June 9, Maine will hold its primary election. Democratic and Republican nominees will vie for their party's choice for the Governor's race in November. The parties will choose who will run for Maine's House seats, and Democrats will choose their nominee to replace Sen. Collins. Some residents will vote for primary candidates in various district and municipal races. The semi-open primary means that voters who have not chosen a political party (Independents or Unenrolled Voters in Maine's terminology) may choose to vote in 1 of the party primaries. The Maine League of Women Voters has an excellent guide to the semi-open primary. It was written for the 2024 primary, but much of the information applies to the 2026 elections. The State of Maine provides a voting lookup service by town and street address, with polling place information. Candidates have until March 16th to collect the required number of signatures to appear on the ballot. Specific ballot information will be available after the signature approval process is complete. Sample ballots will be posted closer to the day of the primary. Actions:Make a plan to vote in the primary. The large numbers of competitors in many races makes this an extremely important primary. Contact your town clerk with questions, or call or text The League of Women Voters Maine hotline: (207) 558-3333. Put this number in your phone so you can share it with others. Talk up primary voting. Be sure your friends, family, coworkers, acquaintances know they can participate. Registered voters who wish to change their party enrollment must re-register at least 15 days before the election. For those who may not have voted recently, moved or changed names, Rock The Vote has a voter registration lookup service. Remember, voter registration and some associated information is public. How you vote is private. Check in with the State of Maine's Upcoming Elections page for important dates, voter registration forms, absentee ballot applications, and more. Landmark Privacy Bill heads to Maine SenateA major privacy bill, LD 1822, has passed the Maine House and BAI members are encouraged to contact their local Senators and Reps to push for passage. Find your State Senator on the ME Legislature site. Governor Mills, notoriously erratic in her behavior regarding legislation, should also be contacted and urged to pass this bill. Youth Led ActivismMany of us who attend protests and rallies and are actively resisting this administration have noted with dismay the lack of youth participation. The good news is that seems to be changing. Recently there have been two protests organized by the local Franklin Project and Bowdoin College. The Franklin Project is a community of young Mainers, ages 16-35, dedicated to resisting authoritarianism in our state through non-violent protest to protect our democracy and our future. On January 20th they organized the ‘Free America Walkout’ in Bath. It was attended by approximately 400 to 500 high school students. The Franklin Project is located in Portland and is working state wide to unite young Maine citizens against fascism. On February 15th a group of Bowdoin College students organized a protest at the gazebo in Brunswick. It was attended by over 200 students and local community members. Their focus was ICE coming to Maine and the possibility of their classmates being racially profiled and swept up. . Read about it in the Bowdoin Orient. These events were in addition to Indivisible protests in the Brunswick/Bath area. In summary Mainers of all ages are participating in the fight for Democracy in our local area and throughout the state. American Concentration CampsIt’s difficult to keep track of the proliferation of detention centers meant to detain undocumented immigrants, asylum seekers and people who just happen to have the ‘wrong’ skin color. The turbo-funded DHS is buying up warehouses all over the U.S. at extremely inflated prices, using your tax dollars, to house future detainees. Battles are being fought with some successes; public pressure has managed to stop some of the sales, but not all. Meanwhile there are several reports about the horrific conditions people are exposed to from existing immigrant prisons. Lawmakers and oversight groups have been prevented from inspecting the centers in a deliberate effort to hide abysmal conditions including sexual abuse, beatings, deaths, overcrowding, lack of medical care, inadequate food, raw sewage seeping into drinking water, minimal bathroom facilities, and lack of feminine hygiene products, to name a few. Citizens wrongfully detained and released after sometimes long detentions have testified to congress about their abuse at the hands of thugs who are in charge of the detainees. One man who had been moved around to several facilities said he was put in solitary confinement for days when he asked to be given his medication. Infants are in these places. Most recently a two month old who almost died from bronchitis because despite the mother begging for help, they refused her medical treatment. Finally, when the baby was so sick they could no longer ignore it, they saw a doctor, got released, then dropped off in a remote location left to fend for themselves, no phone, no money, nothing. We cannot lose sight of what is going on in these concentration camps. History will and should judge us harshly for tolerating them. Write letters and call your reps and senators in Maine and ask them what they are doing to stop this. Call the representatives from states such as Texas, Louisiana, California, Georgia and Arizona - all places with highest number of immigrants in detention. We must demand an end to this inhumane, shameful disregard for basic human decency. National Indivisible's Weekly 'What's the Plan?' PodcastIndivisible founders Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin have been holding weekly calls open to members about the direction and priorities of the organization. Now these are available as a podcast series. For more information and subscription links, take a look at the host site: Lemonade Media. --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.comhe Have you missed a newsletter, want to look back, or want to share a past issue? The most recent 6+ newsletters can be found on the BAI Posts page. |
