WDA MN Newsletter
2025-08-01
Greetings
When I joined the Minnesota chapter of Writers for Democratic Action (WDA MN), I had to think about what democracy is and what makes it meaningful. Voting of course lends it some meaning. It's simple, requires only a minimal investment of time, and you get a cute little sticker once the ballot is sucked into the tabulator. Voting makes you part of a larger process and a larger community.
So that's nice. You should write something about that.
Nice as the sticker is, it doesn't prevent autocracy. Or oligarchy. Or fascism. It does help pick the winner of America's Got Talent though.
Oops, wrong vote.
Speaking of talent, I'm going to assume if you're reading our newsletter then you have some. For today, with apologies to the OED and Merriam Webster, talent means a desire to write. Maybe you should write about democracy, about the contemporary existential threats to democracy, and about the future possibilities of democracy. If we don't imagine the future democracy we want, we will just get more of the same, which now means less democracy than we had ten years ago.
I'm talking here about government policies aimed at voter suppression but also the nefarious psyops that make people not want to vote.
Speaking of voting, one thing America's Got Talent gets right is it encourages your vote and in some ways that vote is kind of ideally democratic (note the lower-case "d"). As opposed to those vertical forms of governing like monarchies and autocracies, with their hierarchies and kings, their despots and their brownnosing, brown shirted lackeys, democracy is horizontal, with every person at the same level. No one is more able to vote or enter politics or write an op-ed or call their senator than anyone else.
Ideally. At least that's what informs my vision of a future democracy. (Say in 2026? And again in 2028…)
So write an op-ed. If your local rag won't publish it, maybe we will. Check our WDA MN Journal and then submit something. Poetry's good too. Brief essays. Creative nonfiction. Flash fiction. I think we're open to anything that reflects on where democracy is now and where it should be. We want creative thinking to help us imagine what we want to create our democracy as.
Join us. Sharpen your pencil and your wit, ink your quill, charge up your laptop. Do whatever it takes to get your words down, then get them out into the world.
As I said, democracy is horizontal. Write to the horizon you want to see, you want to create. It's out there.
— Carter Meland, WDA MN Steering Committee
From the Journal
Selections
"This is not
a good year.
But it has
witnesses..."
— Ilya Kaminsky
Without the recipe of colonization,
there would be no birth of this nation.
No gunpowder, no graveyards on stolen ground—
no America.
Without tribal blood,
without kidnapped gods—
there. would. be. no. America...
— Dralandra Larkins
There are other works for you to read on our online journal.
Opportunities
It Can't Happen Here
Participate in a staged reading
The Minnesota chapter of Writers for Democratic Action seeks to bring a staged reading of Sinclair Lewis's It Can't Happen Here to local communities. We have the script. If you (as an individual or as an organization) would like to participate or partner with us, please write to hello@writersfordemocraticactionmn.org.
In 1936, It Can't Happen Here, a stage adaptation by Sinclair Lewis of his own bestselling novel, opened simultaneously on 21 stages in 17 states across America one week before that year's presidential election. It served as a warning against the rise of fascism in America.
It Can't Happen Here – Again by Writers for Democratic Action is both an homage to the 1936 production as well as a call to action now. Since the return of Donald Trump in 2024, more than a hundred productions of this free, easily mounted script have been performed in theaters, living rooms, churches, bars - everywhere folks gather to say No! to the rise of Fascism in America.
United We Write
Lost Lake Folk Opera
We are accepting submissions of short stories, poetry and opinion essays for the Fall 2025 issue of Lost Lake Folk Opera from April 1-August 30, 2025. SUBMISSIONS ARE CLOSED FOR SHORT PLAYS.
Lost Lake Folk Opera is proud to announce that Submissions are Open for its fifteenth issue, Volume 10, with the special theme, United We Write. LLFO v10 will feature a guest editorial team led by Joshua Davies serving as Managing editor.
Rhythm and Revolution: The America at 250 Poetry Project
Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library
- Deadline:
- October 31, 2025
In celebration of the 250th anniversary of signing the Declaration of Independence, the Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library is conducting an open call for new/original (unpublished) poetry. Inspired to AASLH, his upcoming anniversary is an opportunity for us as a people to engage with history and reflect upon the full sweep of our nation's past "beginning millennia before 1776 and continuing to the present – to build a stronger future."
The Friends of the SPPL hope that the poetry recognized through this project adds to meaningful dialogue and mutual understanding. Submission deadline: Friday, October 31st, 2025. For guidelines and more information, click the link and scroll down the page for all the details.
Voice of Democracy Essay Contest
Sponsored by the VFW
- Deadline:
- Oct. 31, midnight
- Where:
- Bring the entry form to your local participating VFW Post
The VFW is dedicated to promoting patriotism and investing in our future generation. If you are a democracy-loving high school student interested in a $35,000 college scholarship or a patriotic middle school student interested in winning $5,000, these scholarships may be for you.
The 2025-26 theme is: "How Are You Showing Patriotism and Support for Our Country?"
Our Opportunities Page
We will keep an evolving list of opportunities on our website. We welcome your suggestions.
News & Resources
New Legal Brief Against Iowa Book Ban Law Argues that it Violates the Free Speech Rights of Students, Publishers and Authors
from PEN America
"PEN America, the writers and free expression group that has been at the forefront nationally of documenting spreading school book bans, today filed a legal brief in an appeal by the state of Iowa to a federal judge's ruling blocking enforcement of part of a 2023 law that led to the removal of thousands of books that depict or even mention sexual activity. Classic novels like Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms— read by generations of U.S. high school students— were removed from school libraries due to the broad prohibition against sexual content."
"The law has swept up any book with even a minor reference to sex — even those on advanced placement literature tests. Well-known titles pulled from library shelves include “1984” by George Orwell, “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou, “Looking for Alaska” by John Green, and “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison. In blocking the law, Judge Locher wrote that the removals of books “not pornographic or obscene” represented a “substantial threat” to the First Amendment rights of publishers, students and authors."
In a first-of-its-kind decision, an AI company wins a copyright infringement lawsuit brought by authors
from NPR
"AI companies could have the legal right to train their large language models on copyrighted works — as long as they obtain copies of those works legally.
"That's the upshot of a first-of-its-kind ruling by a federal judge in San Francisco on Monday in an ongoing copyright infringement case that pits a group of authors against a major AI company.
"The ruling is significant because it represents the first substantive decision on how fair use applies to generative AI systems."
Data Center Download
from Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy
"Right now, some of the world's largest tech companies are quietly planning massive data centers across Minnesota. These facilities could use as much electricity as every home in our state combined, consume millions of gallons of water daily, and operate with minimal public oversight."
"Across the state, these facilities are moving forward without comprehensive environmental review or meaningful public input."
"Before we hand over our water, energy, and natural resources to Big Tech, Minnesotans deserve answers to four essential questions:
- Energy - Where will the electricity come from?
- Water - Would our ground and surface waters be protected?
- Materials - Would these operations drive more appeals for mining?
- Community Impact - How would neighbors be affected?"
US placed on rights watchlist over health of its civil society under Trump
from The Guardian
"International non-profit Civicus says ‘sustained attacks on civic freedoms' put US on par with El Salvador and Kenya"
"Civicus pointed to three major issues including the deployment of military to quell protests, growing restrictions placed on journalists and civil society, as well as the aggressive targeting of anti-war advocates surrounding Palestine."
Palestinian Poet Mosab Abu Toha on Winning a Pulitzer
from Democracy Now
"Palestinian writer Mosab Abu Toha has just been awarded the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary for his essays about the Palestinian experience in the face of the U.S.-backed Israeli assault on Gaza. He joins Democracy Now! to discuss his work, the necessity of advocating for Palestinian rights, and the violence of Israeli occupation. Abu Toha, who evacuated Gaza in late 2023 after being arrested, beaten and detained by the Israeli military, now resides in Syracuse, New York. He says that, while grateful for the platform granted by the Pulitzer, he cannot celebrate the achievement while 'my sisters, my brothers and my parents in Gaza are starving.'"
Journalists Killed in the Gaza War
from Wikipedia
"The killing of journalists in the Gaza war, overwhelmingly Palestinian, along with other acts of violence against journalists, marks the deadliest period for journalists in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict since 1992 and the deadliest conflict for journalists in the 21st century.[1] The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) counted 178 journalists who were killed (176 Palestinian and 2 Israeli), as of 12 June 2025,[2] and the International Federation of Journalists counted 174 journalists and media workers who were killed (170 Palestinian and 4 Israeli), as of 5 June 2025.[3] A July 2024 count by the Gaza government media office placed the number of Palestinian journalists killed at 160,[4][5] and in January 2025 the Gaza Government Media Office increased it to 202.[6] July 2025 saw the number climb to 217.
"The head of the Committee to Protect Journalists stated in 2024, 'Israel's war on Gaza is more deadly to journalists than any previous war'."
Know Your Rights
Toolkits
from the ACLU
"Everyone has basic rights under the U.S. Constitution and civil rights laws. Learn more here about what your rights are, how to exercise them, and what to do when your rights are violated."
Poems of Protest, Resistance, and Empowerment
from the Poetry Foundation
Poetry is necessary and sought after during crises.
"Pithy and powerful, poetry is a popular art form at protests and rallies. From the civil rights and women's liberation movements to Black Lives Matter, poetry is commanding enough to gather crowds in a city square and compact enough to demand attention on social media. Speaking truth to power remains a crucial role of the poet in the face of political and media rhetoric designed to obscure, manipulate, or worse. The selection of poems below call out and talk back to the inhumane forces that threaten from above. They expose grim truths, raise consciousness, and build united fronts. Some insist, as Langston Hughes writes, "That all these walls oppression builds / Will have to go!" All rail against complacency and demonstrate why poetry is necessary and sought after in moments of political crisis."
Write to us!
We want to hear from you. Send us an email and let us know about your projects. Please respond to hello@writersfordemocraticactionmn.org. We want to grow our list of resources on the WDA MN website, so send us the names of your favorite news sources, reading lists, podcasts, subscriptions, and other resources.
Thank you for being a part of Writers for Democratic Action.