The Fight Is On

We’re in the fight of our lives.

And like all fights, to take it on, we need to focus, muster our courage and lock arms with trusted allies. Summer is a perfect time to build this movement, hone our resistance and get into Good Trouble.
You might not think of yourself as a fighter, but all of us can call on our bravery and protectiveness as guardians of our families and precious earthly home.
Unlike those who are cruelly dismantling our hard-fought and hard-won social progress, WE ARE MOTIVATED BY LOVE and we all know that love is an infinite resource and the power of it is greater than that of greed or hate.

Let’s get to work. The politics of appeasement are over.

If you’re turning out for the growing local protests (big and small) - THANKS! (Bring friends and family!) That’s part of the solution. But we need to grow our numbers and build sustained momentum. There’s also work needed behind the scenes.
Let’s find ways to stand in solidarity with those directly supporting communities being harmed: bring cold drinks, shade umbrellas, snacks and provide encouragement to keep up morale and confuse the authoritarian villains!
It’s up to all of us who are not those under attack to stand with them and for them. The Trump Administration is violently divisive, isolationist, and segregationist, and solidarity is our first duty and most profound rejection of their agenda.

There’s a place for everyone in this fight. Read on.

Tuesday, July 8th at 1:00 pm
Community Defense Action - Eugene All Eyes On ICE

Meet at Wayne Morse Free Speech Plaza on 8th & Oak, then walk to the Federal Building at 7th & Pearl to hold down a presence through the afternoon. Come when you can for as long as you can. (Organized by the Lane County Immigrant Defense Network.)
STAY CONNECTED: To see what’s happening locally, you can always check the website Mobilize.us and filter for nearterm dates in Eugene / Springfield. Bookmark it!

Resistance

July 13th - 11:00 am -12:30 pm
Virtual Resistance Organizing Training - Resistance Lab 1.0

350EUG encourages everyone to get inspired and learn how to resist through Pramila Jayapal’s Resistance Lab series. Consider registering and attending the upcoming live session on Sunday, July 13th. Register here. Gather some friends together and throw a watch party. It’s fundamental to our work ahead. (Read Rebecca Solnit’s piece on the pervasive personal horrors being experienced at the hands of ICE and how civil society is historically the most effective response to this kind of repression.)

Good Trouble Lives On

Thursday, July 17th - 5 to 8:00 pm

Good Trouble Lives On is a national day of nonviolent action to respond to the attacks posed on our civil and human rights by the Trump administration and to remind them that in America, the power lies with the people.
On July 17, the anniversary of Congressman John Lewis’s passing, organizers across the country are planning various commemorations and actions to carry forward his legacy of Good Trouble.. Locally, organizers are planning a book drive for the Good Trouble Library and a fundraiser for NAACP Lane County. Stay tuned and check back at this website link for details. (Subject to change.)

Forest Defense is Climate Defense

Although the news coming from the Climate Forest campaigners across the country is awful, nobody is giving up! We’re taking a minute to assess the damage of the administration's attacks on our public forest lands and refocusing our efforts on next steps.

Wednesday, July 9th from 7 to 8:00 pm - Fix Our Forests Act and Trump’s
​“One Big Beautiful Budget Bill”
Webinar - Part 1 of 3

Many of the tools we have relied on for decades to avert the most destructive and ecologically damaging extractive projects are currently being shredded. What do the dizzying & overwhelming onslaught of new policies and changes mean?
The PNW Forest Climate Alliance and partners are hosting a 3 part webinar series this summer to examine the extreme ways federal forests are under attack by the Trump administration, and what it means for efforts to preserve a healthy environment and livable climate. RSVP for the July 9th (Part 1) webinar here.

What’s “Eugene Groves”?

What’s “Eugene Groves”?
Local forest defenders are joining together in a project called Eugene Groves and we’re excited to kick it off on August 7th with a Street Demonstration followed by Happy Hour at a local establishment.
What: Eugene Groves Kick-off (all forest defenders are welcome); Street demonstration with sign-waving & banners; special appearances from our new Tree Puppets!
When: Thursday, August 7th - 2:00 Demo / 3:30 Happy Hour
Where: Begin at 18th & Chambers (near Bimart), then to Hey Neighbor! on 19th & Jefferson.

Everything is provided! Come and bring your tree-hugger friends!

More Forest Defense News: and it's good...

Industrial Biomass Surrenders
Various proposals to sell off public lands have been struck down by the courts, which, if passed, would have cleared the way for Drax and other climate villains to turn our forests into wood pellets to be shipped overseas. In California, our allies fighting biomass plants have defeated Golden State Natural Resources, which proposed to build two industrial-scale wood pellet plants and a storage and export terminal in Northern California. Read the press release here. Burning wood to produce electricity may be the single most perverse plan on the planet. We’re celebrating the wins!

State Policy

The legislative session finished on June 27th, working late into the night. We did not make strong climate progress and notably, the transportation package that funds the Oregon Department of Transportation wasn’t approved. Several of the bills we supported did pass, including HB 2081A, which required the Treasury to analyze and manage climate risk in our state’s PERS investments (big thanks to Divest Oregon), as well as several bills related to a more efficient electrical grid and to utilities oversight and affordability. And farmworker disaster relief received a bit of funding as well. All this to say, lawmakers chose to delay further necessary actions to transition to a more sustainable social and economic system, postponing what will cost more tomorrow. Thanks for all your efforts to get what we could over the finish line.

Read Climate Solutions Director, Nora Apter’s analysis of the climate wins and losses in the 2024-25 Legislative Session here.

GOTV

If you want to write postcards for special elections, send Deb an email at [email protected] with “Postcarding” in the subject line. Time to get going.

Save the Date - Sun Day

When: Sunday, September 21st from 12:30 to 3:00 pm
Where: Campbell Community Center (155 High St, Eugene)
What: Rise-up for a Sun-Powered Planet! Stand Up to Fossil Fuels!

Organized People Can Accelerate the Transition
to a Clean Energy Future!

12:30 Music - Moon Mountain String Band
1:00 Speakers
1:30 Rotating Teach-ins
Organizations’ Tables & Sustainability Experts
3:00 March with banners & signs to the Ferry Street Bridge
We can have the clean energy revolution we need in America in spite of Trump’s Big Horrible Bill, but it’s going to take grassroots community focused activism to demand it and make it happen. That’s what Sun Day is all about. Save the date!

This is no time to despair. It is a time to remember who we are, connect to each other and nature, and realize no regime can uproot these connections. There are cracks in their plans, and with solidarity we can let the light stream in through those cracks!