20250506 STAND Newsletter – Announcing our first march

Dear Friends,

Our meeting on Saturday was a breath of fresh air. We had an energy in the room driven by the announcement of our first STAND-branded rally and march – to be held in Decatur square at 4pm on Saturday, May 17th. I can’t express to you how excited I am about this.

As we discussed in the meeting, our communications team has been working to submit freedom of information act requests to the federal government on behalf of federal employees. The result of that has been… very little. The mass firings across the government have made responding to these requests a difficult task by government agencies, which is as frustrating as it is illegal. This is not the fault of the agencies themselves or their employees. Instead, this is an intended outcome of an executive branch who seeks to carry out its agenda in the dark without any oversight or accountability. So it’s our job to turn on the light! 

On Saturday, our members wrote letters to our elected officials requesting accountability by the executive branch, citing the failed FOIA requests and requesting their aid in obtaining answers. Meanwhile, our protest team planned to march those letters from the John Lewis statue to the post office on the 17th to deliver them. And keep writing until then! The more the merrier. We will remind the folks on the square that they are owed government transparency, and remind our elected officials that the preservation of the dignity of their constituents is dependent on accountability. 

This will be our first standalone action, and it’s a big deal for us. We need your help to make it a success. First, register for the event! You can find the event on facebook, discord, and Nextdoor, so please like it and share it to start getting the word out! This will be a family-friendly, positive-message focused rally, so it’s a perfect time to bring someone along that might be on the fence about getting involved in community building and advocacy. 

And we need folks to work the event! Want to work the sound system? Reach out! Excited about handling a bullhorn? Reach out! We want you engaged, and your voices heard. This is your moment to show off the work you all have been doing, and I’m serious when I say it’s having an impact. This afternoon I spoke with Senator Ossoff’s legislative director, and I’ll have news for you on that front soon. You’re doing the hard work by showing up and staying engaged – let’s go out, celebrate a little, and encourage others to do the same!

STANDing with you,

Matt