State Rep. Mitch Little may have gotten a little too honest this week when he responded “because we can” when CNN asked him why the GOP is pursuing redistricting now.

Sure, Mitch and his colleagues are betraying the principles they pretended to care about — like weaponizing government against your political enemies (remember how much they pretended to HATE that? LOL).

But … all this ass-showing they’re doing will be worth it, right? Those five seats they’re stealing will surely insulate them from the consequences of rising grocery prices, that golden ballroom Trump will be building as the nation struggles (nice optics!), all those concentration camps they’re rushing to build, plus their whole shut-down-government-to-protect-pedophiles fiasco.

Meanwhile, the Texas Senate is going through their pantomime of public hearings, where everyone who testifies is against their plan and we all know they’re going to cram it through anyway. If you haven’t already, you can submit your redistricting comment to them here.

(Think of it more as leaving behind a paper trail, so future Texans can see how the GOP “represented the interests of the state.”)

You know it, I know it, and the American people know it: the GOP plan SUCKS. We’re glad to see conversations about aggressive countermeasures that go far beyond simple redistricting. Democrats playing hardball would be a delightfully new experience, wouldn’t it?

No one asked for this, Mitch. But we’re going to do everything we can to wipe that smug smirk off your face.

If you would like to support our hero state reps and their staff members, you can make a donation here.

The idea was born at this week’s South Austin meet-up … spread on Signal … and was a WHOLE THING by the end of the week.

FORWRD members headed to the Capitol with snacks (for the sweet interns who are manning the offices by themselves) and post-it notes with messages of gratitude. We enjoyed the air conditioning, got our steps in, and visited the offices of all 56 Democrats who are out of state to show our support.

This public support is visible to everyone who walks the halls of the Capitol — including smug-faced GOP reps like Little Mitch Little. We like it so much we think we’ll make it a regular habit. It’s a beautiful spot to walk!

Feel like joining us? Drop us a line and we’ll make a plan.

Please invite a friend or two and come to FORWRD With Friends, our first-ever Happy Hour next Thursday night!

We’re on the lookout for ways to make resistance visible and FUN — and pull our friends and neighbors in to this network with us.

We’ll have a signature cocktail, we’ll be collecting video statements for an upcoming social media project that FORWRD-Boulder is cooking up (stay tuned!) … bring a friend and come on out!

A spirited group of South Austin neighbors gathered this week at Fresa’s to connect and brainstorm. Big thanks to Leslie Hall for getting the ball rolling!

The conversation included ideas to make resistance visible on Austin’s bridges and trails — home base for our South Austin neighbors. We also talked about the Capitol and how we can show up there … which got the ball rolling on the plan to visit the offices of the Valiant 56 and let them know how grateful we are.

We hope it’s the first meeting of many! There’s a South Austin Signal group starting up — let us know if you’d like an invite!

We are very grateful to our friends at VECINA for creating a webinar for FORWRD members to fill us in on local immigration enforcement actions.

Volunteer opportunities are available for lawyers of all backgrounds as well as administrative support (great if you are retired or have a flexible schedule!). If you’d like more information about how to help, or to receive a copy of the slides from the VECINA webinar, email us at [email protected]. 

There are additional opportunities to help locally in Austin, with initiatives like …

Months ago, Rep. Lloyd Doggett told us that local raids would pick up substantially once the Texas Legislature leaves town. (Is that the only silver lining to this whole redistricting fiasco? Our immigrant neighbors have a few more weeks of safety?)

There are already substantially more people being detained in Texas than anywhere else in the country.  And this number will continue to grow as the administration builds new facilities in Texas.

This is an area that will continue to need our energy and attention — big thanks to VECINA for keeping us plugged in.

For Friday, August 8th: Can’t stop, won’t stop!

Items marked with a 💜are from FORWRD members

Local Austin events (in person):

Online Events: