If you’ve ever volunteered for a campaign, you’ve probably been given a choice of tasks, all of them soul-crushing. You can PHONE BANK, which means reading a long scripted message into voicemails that will never get listened to. Or you can BLOCK WALK, which means talking into a lot of Ring cameras and leaving behind flyers that will get recycled unread.
After a while, it can start to feel like you’re just spinning your wheels. “Trust us,” the campaign consultants say. “It’s important. It matters.” And then we lose, over and over again.
We’re ready to try something different. And we hope you’re ready, too.
The key task of every campaign, of course, is to communicate with voters. But why do we have to disturb people at home, like weary traveling salesmen with one more vacuum cleaner to unload?
This is no way to win an election
Why don’t we make it fun – for ourselves, and for the folks we’re trying to reach?
That was the theme that emerged from our three design blitz meetings to solidify our plans in TX-23 to support Katy Padilla Stout. We want to create opportunities to invite the people of TX-23 to learn more about this race, tell us what really matters to them, and reach the voters & potential voters her campaign won’t be able to.
Here’s the situation: the Cook Political Report rates this race as “Likely R.” We haven’t chosen an easy task for ourselves. But if every one of us chooses some role to play, finds some small (enjoyable) activity to engage in, we can act as booster rockets for Katy’s small & scrappy campaign.
Here are our plans for the months ahead. We hope you’ll choose your own adventure and dive in with us. And, as always: invite your friends along!
1. We’ll Build Lasting Connections
In the 800-mile span of TX-23, there are lots of green shoots of activism — climate activists, No Kings organizers, Big Bend wall protesters.
Our goal here is simple: create the platform for all these folks to connect — with us, and with each other. And then follow the threads, ideas, events, and opportunities wherever they lead us.
This community organizing is critical to building an opposition party that is prepared to compete everywhere in the state. Plus, as a bunch of (mostly) white ladies from Austin, we don’t want to barge into communities unannounced and uninvited. Partners on the ground will be invaluable.
We’ve already started outreach and are hoping to schedule regular virtual meetings in the coming weeks.
POWER BUILDER: Do you have friends or contacts in the district you’d like to loop in? A warm personal invite opens the door much more quickly than a cold call.
PLANNER: Help plan agendas that feel useful and uplifting. What trainings and special guests could we arrange?
WHAT ELSE? If you’ve got another idea for ways to support & promote this effort, we want to hear it.
2. We’ll Show Up in Person
Who’s up for a road trip? We’re planning a series of four “Katy Convoy” trips this Fall to strategic locations in the district.
We’ll have good music, a button maker, fun zines and stickers and other stuff to give away. We’ll set up shop at festivals, farmer’s markets, rodeos — anywhere that draws a good crowd.
A “prototype” FORWRD-TX Katy Convoy will head to ALPINE on Thursday, July 23 for the Viva Big Bend music festival and its related community events. We’ll test out a few of our ideas and use what we learn to refine our plan. Give us a shout if you’re heading to the festival and want to meet up!
A Few On-the-Road Volunteer Roles:
KATY CHEERLEADER/MERCH GIVEAWAY: Calling all social butterflies! Your job will be to connect with folks, invite them to make a button or grab a zine. If you’re the one who brings the fun, we want you there!
BUTTON MAKER: This is still a social role, but operating the button machine lets you be part of the whole show in a quieter way.
DATA COLLECTOR/LISTENER: FORWRD member Rebecca Lawrence is cooking up a super-cool listening project called “Texas Roots, Texas Voices: Seeds of 23” that will build a living, interactive digital map of the district by collecting community stories and priorities. This will be an exciting part of every road trip we make — we’ll be giving away packets of wildflower seeds to participants!
AND MORE: Click here to review the full list of volunteer roles … or make up one of your own 🧚🏽♀️
3. We’ll Lead with an Invitation, Not an Invasion
We’ll be showing up in communities with art and fun and giveaways. We won’t be banging on anyone’s door, expecting to start a conversation out of nowhere.
And that means we’ve got a lot of work to do now … starting with folding zines and prepping assets for the Big Bend trip. Volunteer opportunities for folks who can’t hit the road with us!
To get started, we’ll host a ZINE FOLDING PARTY on SUNDAY, JULY 19 from 3-6 pm.
We’ll turn up the volume and have some fun!
A Few More At-Home Volunteer Roles:
ART & MERCH: We’re connecting with our friends who are artists and musicians to enlist their support in specific initiatives. If you’ve got friends in bands or galleries, we’d love to know.
GRAPHIC DESIGN: We want our materials to be fresh, fun, and inviting. And we want to churn them out as quickly as possible! If this
SPANISH SPEAKERS: We want to provide Spanish versions of all our zines. Can you help with some simple translation?
ZINE FOLDING/ASSET PREP: Could you host a zine folding party of your own? It’s a great activity for surly teens ….
TRAVEL AGENT: Do you love researching hotels & AirBnBs? (Or do you know someone with a house in the district?!) Put your searching skills to good use!
EVENT PLANNER: If you’re from somewhere in TX-23 and you know there’s a can’t-miss Fall event we should plan to visit, we’re all ears. Let’s do this together!
This is our chance to bust out of the old campaign model and forge a new path together. We’re intending to set specific metrics and collect data so we can assess our results once the dust has settled in January — no matter who wins.
Are you ready to put the power of your network and legwork to help reclaim this seat? Let’s gooooooo!
🗓️ Calendar Highlights
For the week of July 13th: 😎😎😎
Events with a 💜are shared from FORWRD members!
Thursday, July 16th 6:30-9:00 PM Public Safety Budget Talk Back: Power to the People's Priorities Join a group of our favorite organizations to learn how our city resources can best serve the people! We'll play games, envision our dream budget together, center public safety and community care, discuss our proposed Community Investment Budget, and empower attendees to contact their city councilperson to advocate for community care, not cops.
💜💜💜Saturday, July 18th 4:00-9:00 PM “FUN”Raiser for Gina for Texas! FORWRD member Gina is organizing an evening of music with 5 bands playing at The Carousel Lounge! Come on out and support the Gina for Texas campaign. If you are a VDR and want to help, please reach out to us at [email protected].
💜💜💜Sunday, July 19th 3:00-6:00 PM Wine, Women, and WORK! Join us for a FORWRD Craft Party - we will be doing ALL THE THINGS - labeling beads, folding zines, and getting our team ready for the first Katy Convoy. BYO Beverage and/or a snack to share! Email us at [email protected] to RSVP and get details!
💜Thursday, July 23rd 4:30-7:00 PM Rethink Recapture Pool Party Splashing through summer while fighting for public schools! Join us for an afternoon of pool fun, community, and resources for the fight against recapture and for fully funded public education in Texas. We'll have folks from the Joy Resistance Network, SEAT, and Our Schools Our Democracy on hand with info and ways to get involved, plus some candidates stopping by to talk with you directly.
💜Friday, July 24th 6:00-10:00 PM Unbothered, Overheated, Unhinged: A Planned Parenthood Texas Votes Menopause Party- a night of laughter, menopause education, real conversation, and absolutely no chill. Because apparently nobody warned us properly about any of this. Featuring Austin comediennes Amy Shanker and Rochelle McConico with Dr. Amna Dermish from PPGT. This event is part comedy show, part community gathering, and part “wait… THAT’S a menopause symptom too?” Expect sharp comedians, candid conversation, a few drinks, and the kind of unfiltered energy that only comes from women who are fully done pretending to be comfortable all the time.
💜Saturday, July 25th 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM Paws to the Polls: Central Austin Sponsored by the League of Women Voters and Travis County Elections - Get ready to cast your ballot for Pet Mayor of Austin! Come to our all-ages block party featuring games, food, and hands-on voting practice! In addition to voter registration and resources, we'll have popcorn, snow cones from Kona Ice, kids' activities, and an opportunity to take a pic with your candidate’s cut-out.
Recurring Events
MONDAYS in JULY:
7-8 PM Austin Resistance Choir Hangout Need a happy way to start your week? Join the Austin Resistance Choir for a pop-in, no-experience-necessary hangout every Monday night at Batch Craft Beer & Kolaches.
TUESDAYS in JULY:
8:00-9:30 AM West Side Banners Over Austin with the Rosedale Huddle. These are super fun, peaceful, energetic! We will be holding banners and signs over the interstate at peak traffic /visibility times - we wave flags, support our banners and thumbs up to the many honks and waves from cars and trucks below. (Fan favorite? “Stop Truth Decay!”) At Far West and MoPac
WEDNESDAYS in JULY:
8:00-9:30 AM Banners Over South Austin with the Rosedale Huddle. Come help us fly Flags, Banner, and Signs like ICE OUT and HANDS OFF OUR LIBERTY on this bridge that no-one has noticed ... til NOW! Grab that coffee and meet us at 8AM for a workout waving and flagging to Lots of Honks and Waves from the many many commuters below.
8:00-9:00 AM ICE Out Rally N. Lamar & W. Rundberg Wednesdays 8:00am - 9:00am Bring signs in English and/or Spanish
THURSDAYS in JULY:
8:15-9:15 AM Signs of Fascism - The Indivisible Rosedale Huddle meets every Thursday morning to hold up the 13 Signs of Fascism along with 2 additional signs. If you would like to join them, please plan to meet at the Randall's parking lot and walk over to the intersection of 2222/Balcones. Please wear all black!
FRIDAYS in JULY:
8:00-9:30 AM East Side Banners Over Austin NEW TIME! Join the Indivisible Rosedale Huddle at the 12th St bridge over IH-35 to wave signs and bring attention to current events.
Large Group Voter Registration and Relational Organizing Opportunities:
There are nearly daily events happening with two Texas orgs for people who want to jump in and help get voters registered and connected before November:
Powered by People has TONS of Voter Activation events and VDR Trainings!
Texas Blue Action - Has Deep Canvassing, Relational Organizing, and Block Walks!
