Support Newton Indivisible: Double Your Donation!
Double the value of your donation! Donations help us pay for the expenses of our resistance. This month, National Indivisible will match every donation made here or by check up to a limit. Any amount will help – and will be twice as large! Please help us keep growing and resisting.
Cost of Corruption: Ten Ways Trump is Profiting off the Presidency while you Lose. Image credit: Mike Luckovich, Copyright 2026 Creators Syndicate.
Quote of the Week
“It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us … that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” — Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address, 1863
Action of the Week: Take One Action to Protect Democracy
Worried about the midterm elections? So are our Elections Action Team members, who have put together lots of ways that we can work together to help protect our vote here and across the country. Take a look below and pick something that empowers you. Together we can make a difference!
Read Indivisible’s new toolkit Hands Off Our Vote: A Toolkit for Election Protection on how you can push back against the shenanigans that the current administration has planned for the 2026 midterm elections. Also check out our list of resources here and see the regularly updated list of action opportunities here.
The Elections Action Team’s next meeting will take place on Monday, August 31st, at 7:00 p.m. If you’re not already on our distribution list, please email elections@newton-indivisible.org to receive the Zoom link.
Learn about the Protect Act
The Massachusetts Protect Act is now law. Read it all here.
Massachusetts now claims to have the strongest protection against ICE abuse of any state. The new law bars immigration arrests without a judicial warrant at schools, childcare centers, medical facilities, and courthouses. It empowers any Massachusetts resident to sue federal officers who violate their constitutional rights, putting federal officers under the same accountability standards as state and local police. It requires worker notification if an employer receives a federal immigration inspection notice.
Support Women’s Rights in Massachusetts
A year after women won full voting rights, these women joined in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Fifth Avenue on March 27, 1921. Public Domain.
The Indivisible Massachusetts Coalition (IMC) Feminist Action Team invites Indivisibles to call, email, or send a postcard to the Newton Marriott asking them not to host a group whose mission is to eliminate women’s rights. Postcards will be available for signature at Saturday rallies. Learn more.
The Team also invites Indivisibles to help organize a Newton protest on September 25th. Contact info@newton-indivisible.org to join that effort.
People Power Primer: Constitutional Interpretation
Read Slate’s article Taking Back Your Democracy on the people’s power to interpret the Constitution. Law professor Larry Kramer explains the Framers were not judicial supremacists. As educated citizenry, do we now really consider ourselves incapable of interpreting the Constitution?
First, let’s practice distinguishing between what the Constitution says and what judges and justices say about the Constitution. Second, let’s practice reading the words of the Constitution and deciding what we think they mean. Third, whatever you decide about a given question, talk about your answer with other people. We the People have the power to correct the Supreme Court when it wrongly interprets the Constitution.
Former Federal Judges Fight For the People
Todd Blanche is now famous for providing Trump both (a) a $1.776B slush fund and (b) tax evasion immunity. Blanche asserted authority to do so as Deputy AG based on a lawsuit Trump filed against the IRS in his personal capacity.
At the behest of 35 former federal judges, the court has already found the lawsuit was collusively brought for an improper purpose: to personally benefit Trump. Former Federal Judge Mark Wolf opines that Trump committed a crime in negotiating the settlement of his IRS lawsuit and Blanche may be a co-conspirator in that crime. It is a crime, punishable by a five-year prison term, for the president to request the initiation or termination of a tax investigation. By filing the lawsuit in his personal capacity, Trump acknowledged that he was not acting in his official capacity and would not have immunity from criminal prosecution for the lawsuit.
Democracy Forward, having already obtained an injunction against the fund, expanded its separate lawsuit to address tax evasion immunity as a lucrative and unconstitutional emolument. Remember Al Capone’s Chicago mob crime spree was stopped by his conviction for tax evasion.
Rallies
Join us this Saturday, August 15th, from noon to 1:00 p.m., at our 75th RESIST standout in Newton Centre Green at the intersection of Beacon and Center Streets. Bring your own signs. Check out The Big List of Protest Signs for ideas. Contact rallies@newton-indivisible.org for more information.
Laughtivism Action Team
Our next meeting will be Wednesday, Sept. 9th, from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at our usual meeting place in Newton Centre. Please bring cartoons, articles, quotes, and actions that are inspiring and funny related to the elections. For more information and the location, contact laughtivism@newton-indivisible.org.
The Laughtivism meeting on August 12th has been canceled.
More Opportunities to Take Action
Please visit our Opportunities to Take Action page for a listing of important ongoing initiatives. The list is updated weekly along with our newsletter.
Contribute Newsletter Items
To submit items for inclusion in our Newsletter, please send them to newsletter@newton-indivisible.org and include an image if possible. Submissions will be edited for brevity and clarity. The submission deadline is Monday at 8:00 a.m., and the newsletter goes live on the website and is sent to our mailing list on Tuesday mornings.
Please Share Photos and Videos
If you have photos or videos related to Newton Indivisible activities that you are willing to share with our Storytellers Action Team, please use our Upload Page to share them for use in our newsletter and social media channels.
Donate to Newton Indivisible
You can donate to Newton Indivisible to help defray our operating expenses. To donate via credit/debit card, click here. To donate via Venmo, pay @newton-indivisible. To donate via check (minimum $50), make a check out to “The Indivisible Project” with “Newton Indivisible” in the memo line and mail it to:
Newton Indivisible
c/o Larry Denenberg, Treasurer
31 Ripley Street
Newton, MA 02459-2209
Donations to Newton Indivisible are not tax-deductible.
This weekly newsletter is brought to you by Newton Indivisible. To send a message to the leadership team, use our Contact Form or email info@newton-indivisible.org.
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