Action event of the week: Phonebank for Aftyn Behn!
The Elections Action Team is focusing on the special election in Tennessee on December 2nd. We are supporting Aftyn Behn, who is running to fill a seat in the House of Representatives left vacant by the resignation of Republican Mark Green.
You can contribute to Aftyn via ActBlue, and it would be even more helpful to join one of many phone banking efforts, especially since early voting has already begun! Click here to learn about this initiative by Indivisible National. For more information, see the 2025_11_12 Help Flip a Congressional Seat this December! document that was shared at our meeting on Sunday, November 16th.
Aftyn Behn is one of us! She served as the statewide Indivisible organizer for Tennessee and Kentucky, where she supported grassroots organizing efforts and helped build one of the country’s most extensive rural organizing programs. She was previously the Senior Regional Organizer for Indivisible, focusing on rural Appalachia and the South, and worked with Indivisible groups across the 7th Congressional District, many of which are still active in her current campaign. This is a very red district; in 2024, Green was re-elected by a margin of 22 points. However, the momentum of November’s blue tsunami may flip the seat, reducing the already razor-thin Republican majority in the House. Even if the race is close, it will illustrate what’s coming in the 2026 midterms. It may even slow Republican gerrymandering (because if gerrymandered districts are closer than you think, it may lead legislators to question the benefits of gerrymandering).
Our Next Member Meeting
Our next meeting will take place on Sunday, December 7th, from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Zoom. Please RSVP to receive the Zoom link. We meet every other week, alternating between in-person and Zoom meetings.
Noncooperation Training
In case you missed our general meeting on noncooperation, or you’d like to hear about it again from a well-informed and charismatic speaker, the Freedom Trainers are planning a Noncooperation 101 training on December 4th at 7:00 p.m. EST. They’ll cover the authoritarian threat, pillars of support, stories of noncooperation in these times, and how noncooperation has been used to defeat authoritarians and fascists. Anyone can register here.
Rallies Action Team
Every Saturday Standout in Newton Centre: Join us on Saturday, November 22nd, for the 36th RESIST from noon to 1:00 pm! Weekly Standout, brought to you by the Newton Indivisible Rallies Action Team. We gather at the intersection of Beacon and Centre Streets. Please bring a sign; see The Big List of Protest Signs for ideas.
Bridge Brigades Action Team
Newton Bridge Brigade
The Newton Bridge Brigade will be on the Kendrick St. Bridge over Rt. 128/95, on Thursday morning from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Kendrick St. is an extension of Nahanton St. when it crosses into Needham. Park on Hunting Rd, which is the 1st right turn after you cross the bridge coming from Newton. You don’t need to attend the entire 2 hrs. Come and go as your time permits! We need your help; please join us!
Highlanders Visibility Brigade
The Highlanders Visibility Brigade stands out on Highland Street over the Mass Pike on Wednesday mornings from 8 to 9:30 AM. Rain cancels. There is parking in the Second Church lot on Highland. Please join us (for all or part of the time)!
Boston Area Bridge Brigades
Visit Local Visibilities to discover other bridge standouts throughout the Boston area, or email info@newton-indivisible.org for more information.
Take Action: Response to Democratic Collapse and Complicity
On Sunday, November 9th, Democratic senators yielded to Republicans and gained nothing from the painful federal government shutdown. Among other things, Democratic senators voted to allow the Trump administration to give certain MAGA senators investigated with respect to January 6th a $500K taxpayer-paid bonus each. See Spending Bill Would Pave Way for Senators to Sue Over Phone Searches (New York Times).
We should not ignore the Democratic leadership’s apparent plan to enable an authoritarian takeover while claiming to be powerless to resist it. Contact your senators and representatives and urge them to publicly call for Senator Schumer to step down.
- Rep. Jake Auchincloss — 617-332-3333
- Sen. Ed Markey — 617-565-8519
- Sen. Elizabeth Warren — 617-565-3170
More Opportunities to Take Action
Please visit the Opportunities to take action page on our website for a listing of important initiatives we support. The list is updated weekly along with our newsletter.
Notes from our member meeting on Sunday, November 16th
The meeting started with a screening of the film, Bringing Down a Dictator. A lively discussion followed, centered on strategic concerns and organizing priorities in response to current political challenges. A primary focus was a recent National Guard memo establishing “quick reaction forces” (QRFs) in all states by January 2026 for civil unrest response, with concerns raised about potential Posse Comitatus Act violations. The group discussed youth engagement as a critical gap in organizing efforts, inspired by lessons from the film. Members emphasized the importance of decentralized organizing, offensive (rather than reactive) tactics, and building a bigger tent to include diverse constituencies.
The meeting also highlighted various Newton Indivisible action teams, coordination with other groups, and practical organizing activities including standouts, rallies, and media creation. Signal is the primary secure communication platform for members between meetings. Whistles and kazoos are available for donation at Newton Centre Standouts and at our in-person meetings. People discussed how Newton Indivisible has been personally meaningful to them, providing community and purpose.
Lessons we learned from Bringing Down a Dictator include:
- Decentralization was key to the success of the student-led Otpor! movement, and this aligns with Indivisible’s local chapter model;
- Movement must be offensive, not just reactive, with contingency plans;
- Clear, unifying message and crisp visual symbols (like Otpor!’s raised fist) create movement identity;
- Multiple political parties came together under one goal: removing Milošević, it is going to take coordination of many different organizations to bring down our dictator.
Several Action Teams provided brief updates during the meeting:
- Interfaith Action Team was recently founded to engage faith-based leaders on ICE activities.
- Laughtivism Action Team continues to plan events.
- Storytelling Action Team is training members in media creation (editing, shooting video) and working with other Action Teams to document our activities and share them on social media.
- A Regional Coordination Action Team has been proposed for coordinating with other Indivisible groups.
- Bridge Brigades Action Team invited everyone to join them on Thursday mornings (see newsletter item above).
- Rallies Action Team continues their weekly Saturday gathering, members encouraged to bring friends (see newsletter item above).
To join an Action Team or propose a new Action Team, send an email to actionteams@newton-indivisible.org or visit the Action Team contact form on our website.
Brought to you by the Newton Indivisible Executive Committee: Kia, Rachael, Larry, Pat, Erica, Karen, and David.