Brunswick Area Indivisible Newsletter #20
|
"We are a grassroots organization of concerned residents of Brunswick, Topsham and Harpswell” Newsletter for March 22, 2026 Brunswick Area Indivisible Action Calendar: BAI Book Discussion Group 'Autocracy Inc.' Monday, March 23rd, 4:00pm. Topsham Public Library Let’s Make Posters for No Kings III! - Wednesday, March 25th, 6:00-8:00 pm. Brunswick United Methodist Church, 320 Church Rd, Brunswick. Let’s continue to build community and make art together! No artistic talent needed! Artist Steve Hayes, and Susan Gallant will facilitate the session - providing guidance, encouragement and words of praise while we create together. The theme for our No Kings 3 event is 'This is What Democracy Looks Like!' (or Community, America, Diversity, etc.); poster messages will vary widely. Please DO remember that a core principle behind all Indivisible and No Kings events is a commitment to nonviolence and non-violent action. Poster making supplies will be available, and of course you are welcome to bring your own. No Kings III National Day of Action! Saturday March 28th, 11:00am - 1:00pm Brunswick Mall, Maine St. Bring signs and banners. More information and registration (recommended to help planners) at Mobilize.us BAI Monthly Meeting with guest speaker Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey. Wednesday, April 1st, 6:30 pm. Brunswick United Methodist Church, 320 Church Rd, Brunswick. Postcarding, before the Monthly Meeting. Wednesday, April 1st, drop in, starting at 4:00pm. Brunswick United Methodist Church. Help write news boosting postcards, informing Mainers about how federal tariffs affect them. The goal is 300 postcards by the end of April. All supplies will be provided (postcards, names , pens and stickers ). Donations for the cost of stamps are most welcome. 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: Democratic Senate Candidate Debate. Saturday, April 11, 3:00-5:00 pm. Orion Performing Arts Center, For More actions and events, visit Activate Maine No Kings III!!!Join us at the NO KINGS III rally on the mall in Brunswick on March 28, 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m., co-sponsored by Brunswick Area Indivisible and Harpswell Indivisible. Step up in solidarity against tyranny. We expect a large crowd. Show up….numbers matter!
Thousands of No Kings III events are planned across the country. Take the opportunity to encourage friends, family, coworkers to attend one with you, or help them find a rally close by. For first-timers and veteran protesters, Know Your Rights and other useful resources are on the NoKings.org page. Maine Democratic US Senate Candidates Debate coming in AprilDEBATE AMONG DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES FOR U.S. SENATE Membership Meeting with Shenna Bellows, Candidate for GovernorOn March 11, BAI held the second governor candidate meeting with a presentation by Shenna Bellows, Maine’s Secretary of State. More than 60 people attended. A post-carding session prior to the meeting had been organized by Karen Parker. A dozen folks enjoyed great snacks while writing and visiting. Shenna Bellows was welcomed following brief remarks by Leslie Joy of the Education Committee which organizes the monthly meeting speakers as well as the gubernatorial candidates presentations. Bellows described her humble origins, the trajectory of her career, first with national and then Maine ACLU, her terms serving in the Maine legislature and her work as our Secretary of State. In her current role she is particularly passionate about protecting elections and immigrants, describing her leadership and coordination with other states’ Sect of State in multiple initiatives resisting the Trump administration. She also touched on her priorities as governor: economic opportunity, housing, and rural health care. Details on the Bellows campaign can be found at her website. See esp.: Policy button ‘A New Deal For Maine' modeled on FDR’s New Deal. Maine Needs to Plan for the ‘The Big Beautiful Bill’ Medicaid CutsWe must demand answers from our potential gubernatorial and senatorial candidates for how we will make up for $5.9 billion in cuts from Maine Medicaid and Maine Care over the next decade. There is no other issue regarding medical care and other cuts to Maine’s healthcare system that will impact the quality of life more for Maine residents. Tens of thousands of Mainers are set to lose access to MaineCare and CoverME. Maine’s health care system will lose an estimated $447 million per year in federal funding, making it nearly impossible for the state to maintain current levels of coverage, benefits, and payments to providers. The loss of federal funding will cost at least 4300 jobs and $759 million in reduced economic output. MaineCare presently covers 392,000 children and adults. The breakdown is 140,000 children, which is half of all the children in Maine, along with 109,700 seniors and people with disabilities. These cut undermine the core financial backbone of Maine’s health care system, as MainCare pays a significant portion of care and services at local clinics and hospitals. The impending cuts will also undermine Maine’s CoverME program whose mission is to provide access to health care for Mainers who do not qualify for MaineCare and do not have affordable coverage through their employers. The bill will make it harder for Mainers to buy their own health care through CoverME without exclusions for pre-existing conditions. The bill was written with the assumption that congress will allow enhanced premium tax credits to expire, which will make coverage even more unaffordable for Mainers. The ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ reallocates funding from healthcare to national security. Border Patrol is set to receive 150 billion and increases to ICE funding to over $100 billion by 2029. Also, defense contractors an additional $150 billion above current funding, not to mention the tax breaks to the top 1% of Americans and American corporations. BAI Leadership TransitionAfter 14 months of holding the vision, helping to build and create a vibrant and busy volunteer membership with over 65 active working group members and more than 750 community members, the steering committee is transitioning. We are stepping down and folding ourselves back into roles within working groups. As we move forward together with this volunteer work, a coordinating council made up of representatives from each BAI working group will continue to meet and work together in what will be an evolving delegation of roles and decision-making processes. We are handing off a working document to the newly forming leadership team with our BAI history, mission, working structure along with recommendations for moving forward, based on our experience. Mary Turner has graciously agreed to stay on as Treasurer and will work with the coordinating council to create a new budgetary process. We are proud of the myriad of ways that BAI has fostered community learning, connection and joyful resistance to counter despair, isolation and creeping authoritarianism. We are grateful to everyone in our greater Brunswick community with whom we have worked and look forward to another year of community engagement. As our working group representatives step into their new roles, their respective teams will be welcoming new members to shore up the numbers of those actively meeting and engaging in this movement. These working groups are Action, Communications, Education, Government and Membership. Please ask for more information if you are looking for fun new ways to be engaged with BAI. We look forward to seeing many of you at future monthly membership meetings and the upcoming No Kings Rally on March 28th. Holding dear our shared mission of defending democracy through building a safe, resilient and collaborative community in greater Brunswick, Andrée Appel, Wendy Flaschner, Eileen Poulin and Leslie Joy Simmons AnnouncementPlease find attached the one page listing of all BAI Work Groups with a short description of their work, a contact address, and a short list of vitally needed volunteer tasks specific to each group. Our BAI membership is 500+, and currently we have about 35 member volunteers spread across work groups doing the work of the organization. We need to mine our membership and engage more of our members in the work of the organization given their interests, skills and energy. Please contact the work group of your choice and offer to help. -Susie Hanley ACTION TEAM Group Description - The Action Team is responsible for responding to national, state, and local issues through community rallies. The group secures permits, trains safety marshals, finds speakers and musical groups for local rallies. The group coordinates three weekly protests, and joins with other local Indivisible groups in shared actions. Contact Person: Sheryl Search action.bai.me@gmail.com Specific Volunteer Needs - Trained Marshals for NO KINGS #3 and safety teams for rallies (on-going) - Peacekeepers (training provided), de-escalation team for rallies - Sound system and light system technicians for our rallies COMMUNICATION TEAM Group Description - The Communications Team is responsible for producing the bi-monthly newsletter for the full membership. The group also administers our social media platforms. Contact person: Kathleen Kenny communications.bai.me@gmail.com Specific Volunteer Needs - Writing short articles for the newsletter and social media platforms - Maintaining and moderating BAI social media EDUCATION TEAM Group Description - The Education Team is responsible for organizing BAI community meetings with engaging speakers and activities. The group plans and facilitates book talks open to all members and the general public. The Ed group also 'tables' at special events. Contact Person: education.bai.me@gmail.com Specific Volunteer Needs - Suggesting and securing presenters for BAI functions - Submitting pertinent articles, books and substacks to be linked within the BAI newsletter - Creating social media content - Creating shareable notes from state or national Indivisible meetings GOVERNMENT Group Description - The Government Team is responsible for monitoring and advocating for legislation on the local, state, and federal levels. Members give and submit testimony and lobby for bills in Augusta. The group is active in state and local candidate support forums. Members speak at public events, and share information gleaned from local school board meetings, town council meetings and other vital meetings.. Contact Person: donnachale@live.com Specific Volunteer Needs - Attendees/notetakers for school board meetings - Attendees/notetakers for town council meetings MEMBERSHIP TEAM Group Description - The Membership Team is responsible for building the membership of our local chapter. The group works to increase collaboration between BAI work groups. Contact Person: Wendy Flaschner Flaschnerwendy@gmail.com Specific Volunteer Needs - Set up and 'greet' for BAI monthly meetings - Table for new members at public events and input membership information - Write thank you notes to donors - Arrange and host postcarding events
|