Indivisible updates + actions: We're not stopping -- ICE Out For Good

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https://indivisible.actionkit.com/mailings/view/122953

This is a long newsletter, and I'm not copying most links, at least right now.
PLEASE visit the site above, especially for the ACTION links.


In this week's newsletter: Ezra recaps this weekend's massive ICE Out For Good mobilization, and then we've got some critical to-dos on reining in ICE, important campaign updates (some good news!), and more.

Hey DU'er,

Welcome back! Every week for the last year or so, I spend Sunday night to Monday morning writing up this newsletter intro with the help of Indivisible’s other co-executive director (and my spouse) Leah. We aim to do more than inform -- we want to help you take meaningful action. We continue those conversations on Bluesky (Leah here, me here), and in our weekly Thursday What’s the Plan live chats (next one here). I’m sorry to say it's clear to me that 2026 is going to get worse before it gets better -- but we’re going to make it better together. So let’s link arms and jump in.

Focusing while in the direct line of a fascist fire hose. This week I can’t help but think of a quote from the criminally-snubbed-at-the-Golden-Globes work of resistance art, Andor: “The pace of oppression outstrips our ability to understand…It's easier to hide behind forty atrocities than a single incident.”

So bear with me, because while we're working on all of these issues at Indivisible and have action items for many below, for this intro I'm not going to to focus on Venezuela, or Greenland, or Iran, or the federal reserve, or the Epstein files, or much of the rest of the firehose of fascism coming at us from this regime. Instead I’m going to focus on a single incident: the murder of Renee Good by an ICE officer in Minneapolis last week.

We’re going to need more whistles. If you haven’t read Becca Good’s short statement about her wife, (BlueSky sign-in required 😠 ) I’d like you to close this email and read it. It’s beautiful, heartwrenching, enraging, and inspiring. You probably already knew that Renee was a Minneapolis mom who had just dropped off her kid at school. But you might not have known that she sparkled -- that “Renee was made of sunshine.”

This regime shot Renee and then labeled her a domestic terrorist. They didn’t do it because they’re strong. They did it because they’re weak, and they’re scared. “We had whistles. They had guns,” wrote Becca Good. This regime is terrified of our whistles, of our signal groups, of our know your rights trainings, of our frog and unicorn costumes, of our dance circles and funny signs -- of our outrage and our historic, fast-spreading protests. They’re terrified that we’ll realize we’re not alone, and that we’ll show other people they’re not alone either.

That’s why we -- together with an incredible coalition of organizations -- called for nationwide vigils and actions to remember Renee, all the victims of ICE violence, and call for action. And you answered the call, with nearly 1,200 events across the country. Leah was out in Montgomery County, and I was out in Alexandria, and you all were out everywhere else in force with a clear demand: Rein in this violent, lawless agency.

The strategic logic of protest. If you were out there this weekend, you might sense like I do that we’re at an inflection point with ICE. People who do not consider themselves political or activists or organizers see what this regime is doing, and they’re pissed.

The weekend's protests serve two purposes:

1. We're preventing the regime’s propaganda from becoming accepted reality. It’s harder for Trump and his goons to label Renee a terrorist when people in every community actively memorialize her for what she was. And there’s reason to believe her horrific murder is shifting public opinion against ICE in America, with most Americans now criticizing ICE for being too forceful, and a record number supporting doing away with ICE altogether. When we show our outrage, other community members understand they should be outraged too.

2. We send a message to the political class that they need to act. Republicans are fracturing over this. Meanwhile, we’re in active conversation with Democrats in Congress to escalate the fight against ICE using the January 30 funding deadline. The bill that funds Kristi Noem’s Homeland Security Department is being debated right now. While Schumer and Jeffries will not lead this, they can be pushed to follow our lead. Expressing outrage through our ICE Out for Good protests give our allies on Capitol Hill leverage. The same goes for state-level reforms in blue states, where lawmakers have myriad opportunities to limit harm from ICE.

If you need some fire in your belly, read Becca Good’s statement and watch this tribute. Organizing and expressing outrage is our job now -- it’s our electeds’ job to act. But doing our job well requires more than one weekend of outrage. We have to organize the opposition. And we do that best when we do it together, so please read on to the weekly action items below and do some good in Good’s name this week.

In solidarity,
Ezra Levin
Co-Executive Director, Indivisible

Your weekly to-dos. LINKS AT THE URL GIVEN ABOVE

1. Tell your Senators: Rein in ICE NOW. The coalition behind ICE Out For Good is following our historic weekend of action by flooding Congress with calls demanding that they use the upcoming Homeland Security funding bill to rein in ICE. After calling your senators, use this link to call your representative.

2. Send an email to your senators demanding they restore healthcare subsidies NOW. Last week, the House voted to restore the Affordable Care Act subsidies that Trump made lapse last year, leading to skyrocketing healthcare premiums for millions of Americans. Now the Senate must do the same.

3. Keep demanding your senators vote to stop Trump’s war on Venezuela. Last week, the Senate advanced a War Powers Resolution to pump the brakes on Trump’s war with Venezuela. Soon that resolution will come up for a final vote in the Senate. Let’s make sure it passes.

4. Next, send an email to all your Members of Congress demanding action to stop Trump’s war of aggression. We have to make sure our opposition to Trump's global gangsterism is loud, constant, and everywhere. After placing calls to your senators, please also use our tools to send emails to all of your Members of Congress, in the Senate and in the House (where they'll have another War Powers vote soon).

Campaign updates (believe it or not… some good news!)

Things are pretty rough out there right now, but there was genuine good news last week, too -- developments that show Trump’s authoritarian grip continues to weaken. Our activism is having a real, tangible impact. A few highlights:

Venezuela War Powers: On Thursday, the Senate voted to advance a bill that would pump the brakes on Trump’s war with Venezuela. Five Republicans (Paul, Murkowski, Collins, Hawley, and Young) defied Trump and voted with every Democrat to move the bill forward. It’s reported that Trump is calling each of them directly to express his fury, so we need to keep the pressure up ahead of the final vote.

ACA Subsidies: Last year, Trump shut down the whole-ass government because he refused to extend healthcare subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, but last week SEVENTEEN House Republicans backed a Dem bill that’d restore the subsidies and help bring down skyrocketing premiums for millions of Americans. This bill passed despite loud opposition from Trump and Speaker Johnson. Constituent pressure truly made a difference -- and now we need to keep it up to overcome continued intransigence from Senate Republicans.

Avelo Airlines: After massive grassroots pressure on Avelo Airlines (more on that below), the small carrier announced it would cease running deportation flights for the Trump regime. No further action needed here, folks. This is a win!

Spotify: After another major grassroots campaign involving widespread boycotts, Spotify announced last week that ICE ads are no longer running on its platform. The company’s statement was a little vague on the particulars, so we’re urging its new leaders to clarify if it will refuse to run ICE propaganda for good. For now, the main demand of our campaign has been met. Major thanks to everyone who took action and spoke out to help build pressure -- look out for more corporate pressure campaigns to come against companies supporting Trump's deportation machine.

SCOTUS to hear arguments on trans youth in sports

Tomorrow, in a significant moment in the struggle for LGBTQ+ civil rights, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in two cases: West Virginia v. BPJ and Little v. Hecox. The plaintiffs in these cases argue that laws passed in West Virginia and Idaho to ban transgender youth from school sports teams that align with their gender identity violate both Title IX and the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution.

These cases come amid an onslaught of targeted attacks on transgender Americans, especially trans youth, that have forced untold numbers to uproot their lives and move to new states, for the safety and wellbeing of themselves and their families. The Supreme Court's ruling, expected this spring, will have implications far beyond the world of school sports.

These bans aren’t about "protecting" anyone -- they’re about extremists wanting to police gender and gender expression. Every child has a right to feel safe to be exactly who they are in school.

If you're in the Washington, DC area, please register for and attend the rally planned at the Supreme Court building. Elsewhere in the country, use this tool to find local events.

Upcoming events for you

These nationwide events, calls, and training sessions are coming up soon. For even more Indivisible happenings, check our national calendar and get in touch with Indivisible groups near you!

Happening This Week

Tuesday: Join Lambda Legal to rally for trans youth's rights
Stand up for the rights of trans youth in schools: Indivisibles in the DC area, register for a rally at the Supreme Court here, 10am-1:30pm ET; elsewhere, find a local event here, times vary.

Tuesday: Livestreamed ICE Out For Good rally at CBP (5pm ET)
The coalition behind ICE Out For Good is hosting a major rally with Sen. Murphy and Rep. Frost in DC. Those in DC are encouraged to attend the non-violent rally, others can watch the livestream.

Thursday: “What’s the Plan?” with Leah + Ezra (3pm ET)
Our weekly interactive Q&A with our co-founders and executive directors Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin

IndivisiWIN of the week
A collage of Indivisible activists at Avelo protests


What a win! Your efforts to end Avelo Air's deportation flights SUCCEEDED!

Indivisibles and partners around the country spent months dialing up the heat on Avelo Airlines for trafficking people grabbed by ICE to wherever the Trump regime saw fit. And last week, Avelo announced that their role in Trump’s deportation machine would cease, because the flights "did not deliver enough consistent and predictable revenue to overcome its operational complexity and costs" -- in other words: Serving as ICE Air just wasn't worth the trouble!

Pictured here are Indivisibles from Georgia, Michigan, and New York, but this win belongs to so many groups and so many people that it reflects an especially powerful truth: Each and every one of us plays an important role in this work, and when we come together, we can move mountains.

There's still a lot of work to be done in combating the scourge of corporate compliance with fascism, but you've just proved that, together, we're up to the task. And, because of you, the next time a business gets a chance to become a regime puppet, they're likely to think twice. Congratulations!!