Mid-Michigan Progressive Alliance

[BayCityProgressive]

Hello,

I began putting together a progressive nonpartisan network in the area about 2 months ago and any DUers in the area are more than welcome to attend our meetings. Below is our Mission and vision. This was typed up by a member of the steering committee, Maxine.

Greetings!
I am writing to you today because I am part of the Mid-Michigan Progressive Alliance, which at this time is just getting off the ground. I'm a member of the steering committee along with John Bollman of Bay City and Joan Brausch of Midland. Our vision is to have the MMPA be a "meeting place" for all of the many little progressive groups of this part of the state: political, environmental, justice, peace, etc. Here is some information about us:
Vision for Mid-Michigan Progressive Alliance:

A progressive mid-Michigan area where diversity is more than just a catch word but where it is inculcated into our culture. A progressive mid-Michigan where caring people create caring communities.

Mission for Mid-Michigan Progressive Alliance:

Develop a coalition of progressive people and organizations to encourage and foster support for progressive issues and candidates, locally. We will act as a clearing house for information and a means for cross-communication between progressive groups that may be single-issue oriented and/or somewhat isolated from other progressive activities in the area. We will encourage community involvement to make the planks of our platform into reality. We aim to be non-partisan.

We believe that this group is needed and is a good idea because:

1) it would connect the many little progressive groups in mid-Michigan, so that none of us would feel that we are the "only ones" who are progressive out there!

2) it would keep us connected at a local level to local issues, giving one another the support as we tackle local issues in the political and community arenas.

We will be establishing a website with links to involved or interested groups, and we will be working on implementing the MMPA platform. I've attaching the platform as a Word document (it caries no virus). This is a framework and is not set in stone, but is a guide for us as we get off the ground.

We will be having meetings in Midland at the Grace A. Dow Memorial Library, conference room A, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. on the 2nd Thursday of every month, as long as the room can hold us. Our first Midland meeting will be on Thursday, 11 September. We invite you or a representative of your group, or individual members, if they are interested, to join us. Please feel free to pass this message on. I hope to see you there.

We also will have regular meetings in Bay City, but have not found a regular site yet. Up to now we have been meeting at Bay City Coffee and Tea, and will continue to meet somewhere in Bay City or Saginaw near the end of every month. Ideally we hope to have meetings every 2 weeks, alternating between the Midland/Mt. Pleasant side and the Bay City/Saginaw side of the Mid-Michigan area.

Joan, John, and I are in the process of contacting many different groups and individuals to see if they want to be involved. This alliance will be any progressive group, and will welcome individuals too. Progressive groups may include conservancies and environmental groups, faith-based groups and communities, peace groups, politically-affiliated groups, groups working to reach out to the poor, and groups working for social justice.

You are welcome to talk to the other steering team members as well. Joan is at [e-mail], and John can be reached at [e-mail].

[BayCityProgressive]

1. This is not only for people in the area

I was thinking that it would be great if others could start a similar nonpartisan group in their local communities and we could all interconnect. We are currently working on a website and a zine to pass out in the area.