The AoC Checklist features clear, well-researched actions for Americans who value democracy, equality, voting, and decency. We are a big tent for all people who want a kinder, flourishing nation.
This Week’s Actions
Action 0: BY MONDAY: Demand the release of the ethics investigation report on Matt Gaetz.
Source: AoCC
Thank you to the 219 Americans of Conscience who completed this action!
Goal: 500 calls by Monday, December 9, 2024.
Contact: The House Ethics Committee (202) 225-7103, press 2, and leave a message.
Script: Hi, this message is for House Ethics Committee Chairman Michael Guest and Ranking Member Susan Wild. My name is [NAME] from [STATE/ZIP], and I am one of millions of Americans who want the full investigation report on former Rep. Matt Gaetz made public. Congress has previously released ethics reports on former members at least four times. If he made unethical decisions during his time in office, as a taxpayer, I have the right to know. Support transparency and democracy by releasing this report to the public today. Thank you.
Bonus: Call your House rep (look up here)–whether they are a Republican or Democrat–and leave a message with the script above starting at “My name is…”
Action 1: Tell your MoCs: December recess isn’t a vacation—it’s accountability time.
Source: AoCC
Thank you to the 40 Americans of Conscience who completed this action!
Contact: Your one House representative and two senators’ local office (not in Washington, DC) (look up).
Script: Hi, I’m a constituent from [ZIP]. Would you please tell me when Sen./Rep. [NAME] is holding town hall meetings during the December recess?
If no meetings are planned, say: It’s an important part of [NAME]’s job to meet with constituents in their home districts, and I have questions I’d like to ask [them]. Will you take my information to let me know when they hold the next town hall?
If meetings are planned, ask: Would you give me the location and details? Will there be an opportunity to ask questions? Thank you.
Action 2: Oppose threats to nonprofits’ tax-exempt status.
Source: Amnesty International, NAACP, ACLU
Thank you to the 322 Americans of Conscience who completed this action!
Note: Please protect free speech and nonprofit advocacy by opposing this legislation. This bill has a high chance of passing if we don’t speak up together.
Contact: Your two senators (look up).
Script: Hello, I’m from [ZIP] calling about a bill called Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act that recently passed in the House (H.R. 9495). This dangerous and unconstitutional bill would give the Treasury Secretary unilateral authority to label any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” without evidence. It threatens nonprofits that express dissent, putting them at risk of retaliation and removal of their tax-exempt status. I join with Amnesty International, NAACP, and ACLU in urging Senator [NAME] to vote NO on H.R. 9495. Thank you.
Alternate: Use the NAACP Petition or ACLU form to send your message. (Uncheck both boxes if you don’t want to be added to the ACLU mailing list.)
Action 3: President Biden must act now to safeguard the rights of aspiring Americans.
Source: AILA
Thank you to the 221 Americans of Conscience who completed this action!
Contact: President Biden via the White House contact form.
Script: Hello, I’m reaching out from [STATE] because there’s still time to protect the programs and policies you promised. Please take immediate action to protect the rights of those seeking citizenship in the U.S. by:
- Finalizing regulations that sustain American businesses and help DACA recipients, such as the H-1B and H-2 modernization rules and the temporary final rule 89 FR 24628.
- Extending countries’ Temporary Protected Status designations slated to expire in the next year.
- Making the domestic visa renewal program permanent so essential employees don’t need to travel overseas to complete processing.
Alternate: Send your messages using AILA’s pre-written form. (You may be signed up for the AILA email list.)
Bonus: Ask your two senators and one House representative to encourage President Biden to act now in defense of aspiring Americans’ rights. (look up)
Action 4: Protect tribal sovereignty, clean water, and vulnerable habitats.
Source: 350.org
Thank you to the 179 Americans of Conscience who completed this action!
Contact: President Biden at 202-456-1111 or via the White House contact form.
Script: Hello, I’m contacting you from [STATE] regarding dangers posed by the Dakota Access Pipeline Project, which continues to operate without an easement or sufficient study of environmental impacts. The project violates tribal sovereignty, poses risks to the water supply of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, and will contribute to major climate consequences through emissions. Please use your executive powers to shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline and protect the environment and tribal sovereignty.
Alternate: Sign the 350.org Petition.
Acts of Gratitude
We believe in gratitude as a tool for change. We will print a letter of thanks from Americans of Conscience with your signature and mail it to the recipient. Your information will be removed from this website no later than four weeks after the Checklist’s publication date.
Thank Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL) for working to ensure the public can review the House Ethics Committee’s investigative report on former Rep. Matt Gaetz. Using your role to urge the report’s release is a win for transparency, accountability, and democracy. Thank you.
If you’d like to mail your own personal expression of gratitude, use this address: 800 Roosevelt Road, Building C, Suite 204, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
Thank you to the 202 Americans of Conscience who completed this action!
Thank the Los Angeles, CA City Council for establishing that local law enforcement will not participate in unjust federal immigration enforcement.
If you’d like to mail your own personal expression of gratitude, use this address: ℅ Holly Wolcott, City Clerk, Room 360, 200 N Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90012
Thank you to the 162 Americans of Conscience who completed this action!
Thank you to the 41 Americans of Conscience who completed this action!
Thank your governor via postcard for joining the Reproductive Freedom Alliance to resist federal dismantling of reproductive rights and to uphold access to healthcare. Check here to confirm that they joined.
Address: Write to your state’s governor (look up address here)
Good News
If you find good news for democracy, equality, and the planet, share it with us here!
Progress on issues previously featured in the Checklist
- AoCC subscribers take an amazing 3,518 actions in the month of November!
- The Biden Administration’s FY2025 budget request proposes $104 million for health, education, and assistance in Afghanistan, focusing on “the protection of women and girls and human rights more broadly…” (related action October 2024)
Additional Good News
- A mountain within the traditional Cherokee homeland will henceforth be known as Kuwohi, its original Cherokee name.
- To counter the incoming anti-democratic administration, Democracy 2025 launches a multi-million dollar pro-democracy effort that includes 280+ legal and advocacy organizations and 800+ individuals representing communities across the country.
- Magistrate Judge Embry Kidd is confirmed by the Senate to serve on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, where he will become one of two Black judges currently serving on the 13-member court.
- The number of unhoused veterans drops to the lowest on record under the Biden-Harris administration.
- FDA approves the first tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte therapy treats aggressive melanomas, with 56% of patients responding and 24% achieving complete remission.
- The U.S. surpasses President Biden’s goal of providing $11B per year in international climate and conservation financing.
- 23 governors join the Reproductive Freedom Alliance to resist the federal dismantling of reproductive rights and to uphold access to healthcare.
- CO requires private health insurers to cover abortion care beginning in January 2025.
- MA: A lawsuit the state brought against a predatory “zombie second mortgage” company results in resolving over 500 mortgages for homeowners.
- RI opens the first state-sanctioned overdose prevention center in the U.S.
- If the temperature or wind chill falls below 32 degrees in Rochester, NY, anyone in need of shelter can board a transit service bus free of charge to be driven to a warming shelter.
- Two individuals are arrested for election interference in Mesa County, CO.
- San Francisco State University divests from weapons manufacturing companies profiting from government-sanctioned violence.
- The League of Women Voters made 30M contacts during the 2024 election season to provide nonpartisan voting information.
- The nonprofit Advocates for Youth publishes their Trans-Affirming Schools Project Resource Guide.
- The late Congressman John Lewis is memorialized with a statue in his likeness at Legacy Plaza in Montgomery, AL.
- In a win for privacy and ease of access, syphilis tests are now available over the counter.
- 2024 is full of wins for medical and health advancement.
- The European Union’s law regulating the development, use, and application of artificial intelligence goes into effect.
- Two months after getting lost in Yellowstone, Rayne Beau the cat is reunited with his owners.
Need inspiration?
- A December Reset for Tired Changemakers: This week’s message from AoCC’s Executive Director, Jennifer Hofmann
- What we will do going forward
- Is it possible to climb the mountain ahead?
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