We have to rise up

Michael Moore lays it on the line.

#FamiliesBelongTogether March update

[POSTER MAKING THURSDAY 3 p.m. Cameron Park]

The March details: Plan to BEGIN AT CITY HALL at 11:30 a.m. There is parking in the city Hall lot and in the nearby Western Technical College lots. Also the #4 MTU bus stops on 7th Street, one block from City Hall.

March to BURNS PARK at 8th & Main for a rally at noon.

Dress for the weather. Bring sun screen. Bring a reusable water bottle. Bring your signs and intentions to not make this rally your last effort, but rather make it the first step toward electing different people to office AND not falling into the 'both sides are equal' mind f**k trap.

That means registering to vote and making sure others are registered and then voting. But not just voting. It means volunteering to help good candidates (or at least better than the other guy candidates for now) so that things don't actually get worse. It means joining a party to transform it and the candidates it offers for office. It may also mean running for office locally or within party leadership or pushing for legislation that will not allow politicians to illegally detain, torture, imprison, and dismiss refugees and their legal claims of asylum. (See the latest issue of The Commoner Call for details).

Sierra Club potluck Tuesday

On Tuesday, the Coulee Region Sierra Club will hold its annual summer potluck picnic starting at 6 p.m. at Onalaska's Rowe Park (Shelter #1). Hotdogs, utensils, and some beverages will be provided. Please bring some food to share with others. Everyone is welcome (you don't need to be a member).

This isn't a meeting and there won't be a program. It''s a chance for those of us interested in the environment to come together, learn about what is happening locally to get people informed and involved, and what we can do together to ramp up local environmental action.

Nationally, the Sierra Club is encouraging municipalities and counties to commit to moving to 100 percent renewable energy - for city and community use - by 2050 or sooner. We will be working to encourage the City of La Crosse to make that Ready for 100 commitment soon and hope that example will help and encourage other communities in our area to make the move (as Madison and Eau Claire have already done in Wisconsin). There are many local and regional initiatives happening, too. This picnic will be a chance to share and connect (and eat great food and play horseshoes).

No RSVP needed. Tuesday, June 26 at 6 p.m. Shelther #1, Rowe Park (near the library) in Onalaska.


Today's La Crosse Tribune could have been called the environmental edition. From the front page to the features and letters, you could learn about how climate change is affecting us locally, how Winona is planning to replace its current fleet with electric vehiclesc to the continuing dangers and environmental disasters caused by our fossil fuel addiction.

Larry Sleznikow, of La Crosse Citizens' Climate Lobby, in his op ed, wrote about the importance of VOTING for those interested in the environment. Amazingly, a good chunk of people who say they are very concerned about the environment and climate change don't vote. "Voting amplifies our voice and along with other like-minded voters, becomes a shout that politicians will hear, pay attention to and act upon. We desperately need positive action by all levels of government to address climate change and environmental degradation. Resulting legislation should be bipartisan and well thought out using the best scientific information available. Denying or ignoring problems is not an option future generations can afford."

Families Belong Together

[UPDATE] If you would like to help plan this event, please attend the planning meeting fro 4 to 7 p.m. on Sunday at St. Rose Convent. For more info, email Kade.]

From MoveOn:

The executive order that Donald Trump has signed is not a solution to the crisis created by his administration; it keeps kids imprisoned indefinitely, and doesn't reunite thousands of separated families. But it does show the administration is reacting to public pressure, so we will continue to increase our pressure for justice at hundreds of events on Saturday, June 30, to say that families belong together—and free.

---

Donald Trump and his administration are cruelly separating children from their families.

But we won't allow it to continue. On June 30, we're rallying in Washington, D.C., and around the country to tell Donald Trump and his administration to stop separating kids from their parents!

Trump and his administration have been systematically criminalizing immigration and immigrants, from revoking Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) to ramping up intimidating ICE tactics. 

Join us on June 30 to send a clear message to Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress: Families Belong Together! 

UPDATED INFO: Meet at 11:30 at La Crosse City Hall. March to Burns Park for noon rally. RSVP at link. Please forward to all.

Rallies and marches are not enough. We must elect decent human beings to represent us. Decent human beings do not do OR support and make excuses for those who do evil like this. 

and: 

ACLU	Daily Kos	National Alliance to End Sexual Violence	SALDEF
#VOTEPROCHOICE	DC Immigration Hub	National Iranian American Council	SEIU
270 Strategies	Democracy for America	National Justice for Our Neighbors	SIECUS
350.org	Dulles Justice Coalition	National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health	Sierra Club
Action Together Massachusetts	End Rape on Campus	National Network to End Domestic Violence	Sojourners
Action Together Network	Equal Voice Action	National Nurses United	South Asian Americans Leading Together
Advancement Project	Every Voice	National Partnership for Women & Families	Southern Poverty Law Center
American Federation of Teachers	Families Belong Together	National Women’s Law Center	Stand Up America
Al Otro Lado	Families USA	NCJW	Sum of Us
Alliance for Youth Action	Feminist Majority Foundation	National Domestic Workers Alliance	SwingLeft
American Constitution Society	Foreign Policy for America	National Education Association	Tax March
American Human Rights Council (AHRC-USA)	Gamliel	NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice	The Leadership Conference
Amnesty International USA	GreenLatinos	Network of Spiritual Progressives	The Workmen’s Circle
Arab American Institute	Greenpeace	NextGen America	Truman National Security Project
ASISTA	Hand in Hand: The Domestic Employers Network	One Billion Rising	UltraViolet
Avaaz	Health Care Voter	Organizing for Action	Unitarian Universalist Association
Bend the Arc	Human Rights Campaign	Pantsuit Nation	Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
Blue Future + the Youth Progressive Action Catalyst	Indivisible	ParentsTogether	United We Dream
Brand New Congress	Japanese American Citizens League	People For the American Way	VDay.org
Center for Community Change	Jewish Voice for Peace	People's Action	Voto Latino
Center for Biological Diversity	JStreet	Planned Parenthood Federation of America	Win Without War
Center for Gender and Refugee Studies	Latin America Working Group	Positive Women's Network-USA	Women's March
Center for Victims of Torture	Lawyers for Good Government	Presente.org	Women's Refugee Commission
Centro de los Derechos del Migrante, Inc.	Leadership Conference of Women Religious	Priorities USA	YWCA USA
Chicago Women Take Action	Let America Vote	Progressive Change Campaign Committee
Children's Defense Fund-Texas	LGBTQ Task Force	Progressive Turnout Project
Coalition on Human Needs	Little Lobbyists	Public Citizen
Congregational UCC Greensboro	MarchOn	Rainforest Action Network
Constitutional Accountability Center	Moms Rising	Really American
CREDO	NARAL	Resistance Labs

Whose Riverside?

[UPDATE: The mayor has vetoed for cost and design. The original council vote was 7 to 4. Please email them with your opinions.]

This is a guest post from Mark Kastel of the Cornucopia Institute. He has written to the city council about the proposal to spend nearly $50 million on expanding the La Crosse Center, including a large box like thing that will sit over part of the park. There's a good letter about this in today's La Crosse Tribune about this. I sent my letter this afternoon. In addition to putting a big ugly box on our most beautiful park, I feel this expensive project is too exclusive and there are other uses for $49 million that would benefit more of the people who will be paying it.

Consider that taxpayers will be paying for this for many years. Are there other things that taxpayers might pay for that would benefit more taxpayers? Consider that the La Crosse Center is one of the biggest energy users in the city. Will this proposed addition be super efficient or make the rest of the center more efficient or otherwise reduce it's energy use/carbon footprint? Consider that Riverside Park is one of our public treasures that the whole of the public gets to enjoy for free. Will this proposed addition enhance the park or detract from its benefit for the public's use and enjoyment? 

The Council will vote on Thursday. You can email them your thoughts at council at cityoflacrosse dot org.

Dear Friends,

We all have a connection to La Crosse. It's "our" city and important to the vitality of our region. If you value Riverside Park for its beauty and want to protect it in the future for your family's enjoyment I hope you will take just a minute or two to write an email to the La Crosse city Council and Mayor:

City Council: council@cityoflacrosse.org 

Mayor Kabat: kabatt@cityoflacrosse.org

The vote in the city Council is scheduled for tomorrow, Thursday. And then I assume the mayor has to sign-off on the project as well.

Their plan, which is moving forward quickly, is to expand the La Crosse convention center in a manner where they will build a large addition to the second floor .... Which will tower above a portion of the park. Please see photo and La Crosse Tribune story: https://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/committee-approves-funding-for-million-la-crosse-center-expansion/article_b91d81c6-c488-527f-8953-bdb8c93bc2c9.html

Mark's letter:

Dear councilmembers,

I run a national nonprofit organization. We are officially headquartered in Cornucopia, Wisconsin with staff, virtually-officed, throughout the country. A good percentage of our employees and contractors, such as our certified public accountant, are here in the Driftless Region. La Crosse is our center for culture and commerce. We are the type of people and organizations you want to attract to spend our hard earned money in your city (I live in the Vernon County community of La Farge and most of our other local staff are in Viroqua/Westby).

This past March we held our annual meeting in La Crosse flying in our Board of Directors and staff from around the country. We also held a reception inviting hundreds of members in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa to join us.

I have always viewed the park along the river as your city's "front yard." With friends, business to conduct, yoga classes and sailing I am in La Crosse 1-3 times every week. Many times, throughout most of the year, those visits include a walk in the park and I see lots of tourists enjoying the same experience.

As Will Rogers once said, "Buy land. They're not making any more of it."

The people of La Crosse already own this exquisitely beautiful piece of land. There are many other options for buildings. Because I have attended the Upper Midwest Organic Farming Conference (MOSES conference) every year since it has been hosted in La Crosse I can imagine the advantages of the expansion and the beauty of the view overlooking the river. But this would come at the great expense of degrading part of the park directly and irreparably impacting the "viewscape" of much of the remaining park.

Don't do it!

Sincerely yours,

Mark Kastel

The Cornucopia Institute