• Robb Kopp from Fosston

Send us your contributions to hello@writersfordemocraticaction.org.

Book the Vote Reading

Writers for Democratic Action MN

When:

October 13, 7:00pm

Where:

Eat My Words Bookstore
201 6th St SE, Unit 220
Mpls, MN

Featuring Minnesota writers: Claudia Daly, Connie Wanek, Diane Brady-Leighton, Diane Jarvenpa, Kirk Wilson, Leslie Thomas, Margaret Hasse, Sheila Packa, Stanley Kusunoki, and Tom Odendahl.

The event will include a raffle for free Banned Books.

From WDA National

Democracies die by foreign invasion, but they also die by homegrown authoritarian malignancies. That is happening now in the United States, and Writers for Democratic Action calls on YOU to stop it! Join us in protecting representative government with the most powerful weapon we still have: the Vote in 2026.

WDA is launching BOOK THE VOTE, a drive to bring together readers, writers, booksellers, publishers, and librarians to register voters before the next elections. Books themselves are threatened now, which is no surprise since books have always been essential to democracy. The Bookstore and the Library can be the frontline of the campaign to rescue it.

Traveling by plane in October?

WDA-MN will be at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport Freedom of Expression booth and we’d love to see you!  Stop by for midterm election voting information, contribute to our community poetry project, grab a complimentary treat and say hello. 

The booths are in Terminal 1 on the baggage claim level and we’ll be there on the following days: Oct 6, 8, 12, 15, 19, 21, 30.  For more information email us at: hello@writersfordemocraticactionmn.org

Waking the Giant —
Northwoods Solidarity Revival

Join us!

When:

October 4, All day (10:00am–8:30pm)

Where:

Mesaba Coop Park

Waking the Giant is a family-friendly, free community gathering created by and for grassroots organizers, artists, elders, activists, and caring Northwoods neighbors of all kinds! We’ll be meeting at Mesaba Coop Park all day and into the evening, sharing stories, food, music, culture, and resources for learning more and taking action in our communities.

Our hope is that by taking some time to revive our spirits and spark new relationships, we will also be encouraged to stay engaged and to stand in solidarity even when we feel discouraged, and to prepare to care for our places and our neighbors for the long haul.

A gentle reminder that this is a free gathering, open to all, but we do need to know how many people to expect — so please use the form to register! We’ll also be sending important reminders and details to this list. Below are some fresh updates and FAQs about this event! Reach out if you have other questions.

We hope to see you there! RSVP here: ncdn.work/wakingthegiant.html.

St. Paul — In Our Words

MN BIPOC Writers Series Launch with David Mura, Carolyn Holbrook, Danez Smith, & Anthony Ceballos

When:

October 05, 6:30–8:00pm

Where:

Register for more information

Cost:

Free

Join us for an engaging evening with Carolyn Holbrook and David Mura, celebrating their new radio series, In Our Words: MN BIPOC Writers, with guests Danez Smith and Anthony Ceballos.

Following the panel discussion between the authors, audience members are invited to participate in a Q&A session with the featured speakers. Light refreshments will be provided, copies of books from all authors featured in the In Our Words: MN BIPOC Writers series will be available for purchase, and the evening will finish with book signings.

This event is presented in partnership with AMPERS and the University of Minnesota Press. SubText Bookstore will be on site selling books from all featured authors in this series.

Community Vigil

Oppose ICE Detention

When:

October 11, 2:00pm

Where:

Civic Center Grounds
Appleton, MN

Democracy Observer Trainings

from MN Voice

When:

Every Tuesday & Sunday, 6:00–8:00pm

Where:

Online

Why take a Democracy Observer training? You will gain:

• Key knowledge about MN elections law and voter protections
• Skills to identify, assess, and report unconstitutional activity related to elections (ex. Voter Intimidation)
• A framework for practicing community care in support of safe elections in your precinct

MN Families for Public Schools — DULUTH SIGNUPS

We’re organizing families to fight for transformational public school funding. We want to push for the referendum and also push for a Democratic trifecta in the State Legislature. We are setting up trainings for Leaders and boosters over the next couple of weeks. Want to get involved?

Here are the dates and times for "Booster" Trainings for getting the vote out for the school referenda. Questions? Contact Stanley at pouchpoet@gmail.com

Dates for trainings:

• September 30, 6–7:30pm
• October 2, 6–7:30pm (family friendly pizza party)
• October 3, 10–11:30am (family friendly coffee & donuts
• October 6, 6:30pm
• October 7, 6–7:30pm

All trainings take place at Take Action! MN offices 25 N. 21st Avve. W. Duluth MN

Northern Bridges

Monthly reading

When:

October 17, 2:00pm

Where:

Foxes & Fireflies Booksellers
1401 Tower Ave.
Superior, WI

Stanley Kusunoki has launched "Northern Bridges," a new poetry series in the Twin Ports featuring Minnesota & Wisconsin poets. The reading is the third Saturday of the month at Foxes & Fireflies, an independent bookstore just over the Bong bridge inside the historic post office building.

Visitors to this unique bookstore will meet founder Maria Lockwood and her team. She says, "Our store is a safe space for all book lovers, regardless of their reading preferences. We proudly carry a diverse selection of books, including many that have been banned or challenged. We believe that everyone has the right to read and explore different perspectives. By banning books, we limit access to knowledge and ideas, which can have a negative impact on society."

No Kings National Day of Action —
Vote Early

No Kings started with sending a message. Now it's about showing what that power can do.

When:

October 17

Where:

At the ballot box

This time, the mobilization moves to the ballot box.

In Minnesota, absentee ballots are already available, and the state’s new in-person Early Voting period begins 18 days before Election Day. (sos.mn.gov⁠)

SHOW THE POWER.
ORGANIZE THE POWER.
EXERCISE THE POWER.

Three times in less than a year, millions of Americans took to the streets to say something unmistakable: we are here, we are paying attention, and we will not be silent.

Minnesota became one of the clearest examples of that power on display. We filled the streets in St. Paul. We turned out again across the state. And in March, Minnesota became the national flagship for No Kings.

That was showing power.

Then Minnesota faced a different test.

When Operation Metro Surge brought thousands of federal officers into the Twin Cities, the response moved beyond the streets. Neighbors shared information. Lawyers provided know-your-rights education. Churches, community organizations and others helped people navigate an extraordinary situation. And people who had never worked together before began building networks that could act together.

That was organizing power.

And that distinction matters.

A demonstration can show how many people are willing to act. An organized network can turn that willingness into sustained civic action.

That is the next step for No Kings.

Not away from protest. Not instead of organizing. From showing power to exercising it.

Because elections are one of the places where organized people actually exercise political power. The people elected in November will make decisions about legislation, budgets, oversight and the direction of government.

And No Kings is now explicitly making that connection. The national coalition describes October 17 as a nonpartisan day of voter participation and calls No Kings: Vote Early 'the next step' after a year of mass mobilization.

Hands Off Our Vote Trainings

from Indivisible

Calling all Indivisibles who are ready to demand Hands Off Our Vote! This is the first of two trainings on 2026 election protection: the actions you and those around you can take to ensure every eligible voter can vote, every vote is counted, and the results are honored and the winners seated. This training includes a step-by-step of basic election protection steps that you can scale to how much time and energy you have, as well as a messaging special with Anat Shenker-Osorio and assorted FAQ.

Write Postcards to Swing States

Progressive Turnout Project

Sign up for our Get Out the Vote postcards. We'll send you the postcards for free, along with voter lists and instructions with proven message options. You will need to provide the Postcard Stamps (currently $0.61). All the mailing dates for these postcards are in October.

A Virtual Afternoon with Heather Cox Richardson & Siri Hustvedt

Recording: Writers for Democratic Action presents The Inaugural Gitlin-Auster Defender of Democracy Award to historian Heather Cox Richardson

Writers for Democratic Action (WDA) began in 2020 as a small group of poets, fiction writers, and journalists, and is now comprised of more than 4,000 writers worldwide. WDA is a volunteer organization devoted to literature as a bedrock of democratic culture. At this virtual gathering the group bestowed the first Gitln-Auster Defender of Democracy Award — named after two WDA founding members, Todd Gitlin and Paul Auster.

The first recipient of this award is Heather Cox Richardson, a professor of history at Boston College and an expert on American political and economic history. She is the author of seven books, including Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America and the award-winning How the South Won the Civil War. Her widely read Substack newsletter, Letters from an American, synthesizes history and modern political issues and is read daily by more than a million readers.

Following the award presentation, Richardson was in conversation with the esteemed writer Siri Hustvedt, a WDA founding member. Hustvedt is the author of a book of poetry, five collections of essays, two works of nonfiction, and seven novels.

Her most recent work, Ghost Stories, a searing memoir of love and grief, is centered around the loss of her husband, Paul Auster.

Heather Cox Richardson and Siri Hustvedt are champions of democracy. Their conversation in this virtual event focused on the challenges of the crucial run-up to the Midterm Election on which the fate of democracy hinges. With this gathering, WDA also launched its 2026 Book the Vote Campaign, bringing together readers, writers, booksellers, and librarians to register voters, defend the rights of voters, and resist voter-suppression. Please join us far and wide!

"I Am a Citizen"

Watch Nikki Giovanni Read Her Poem "Vote" on the Power of the Ballot

from Democracy Now!

"Acclaimed poet and activist Nikki Giovanni has a new collection of poems called 'Make Me Rain,' a celebration of her Black heritage, as well as an exploration of racism and white nationalism. In the poem “Vote,” Giovanni offers her thoughts on the importance of voting. It was filmed by The Meteor, a feminist collective of activists, journalists and creators, part of a daily Instagram series focusing on voting rights."

George Saunders

George Saunders read from his work on September 22 at 7:30 pm at Northrup Auditorium in Minneapolis

Minneapolis St. Paul Magazine

"Reading and action are actually closely related activities, Saunders elaborated. 'When it comes down to anything that's complicated or takes nuance or commitment, like political resistance, that training in reading, in having long-term ideas, being involved in a work of art that takes a while to reveal itself, and then trusting that you have the ability to articulate what you experience. It all translates into activism, I think, because it's about communication. If a person hasn't done that close work in reading, they tend to think in big concepts, big slogans, where what is required now is to be nuanced and specific, and I think literature trains us for that. Having communities that come out for events, literary events, is also very important, because it’s a really good way of seeing that you’re not alone in these nuanced interior experiences; you find yourself face-to-face with other people who believe the way you do, have worked to think and push and change themselves in similar interior ways, and you see them, which makes all of what you have thought and considered feel ratified by the real world. I was in Minnesota at a Rain Taxi event, and it was that sort of event when you instantly feel you can talk at a deeper level, you think, ‘OK, I can bring my A-game because everybody is going to get it.’ That’s something you really only find in a community of readers.'"

McKnight Names Heid E. Erdrich 2026 Distinguished Artist

Poet, editor, curator, and teacher has spent decades bringing poetry into public life and creating opportunities for other artists.

from McKnight Foundation

"Erdrich is Ojibwe, enrolled at Turtle Mountain, and has spent more than three decades expanding what poetry can be and who it can reach. She calls herself a literary artist because her work extends far beyond the written page. She performs, collaborates with visual artists and dancers, co-creates films, curates exhibitions, edits anthologies, and brings poems into sidewalks, storefronts, parks, markets, and other public spaces. 'Everybody has a poetic utterance in their life somehow,' she said. 'Many people think poetry is inaccessible. For me, it has always been something anyone has the potential to create.'"

Solar Panels Saved School District Money & Increased Teacher Pay

After a rural school district in Batesville, Arkansas, installed solar panels at their schools, they turned a $250,000 annual budget deficit into a $1.8 million surplus — enough to give every teacher a raise of up to $15,000

from HBCU News

"Today, more than 9,000 schools across the country are using solar power, and over 6 million students attend a solar-powered school, according to Generation 180, a clean energy nonprofit."

How are the Media and Social Media Doing in Informing Voters?

UCLA School of Law — Safeguarding Democracy Project

From a series of talks focusing on: The role of media, law, political norms, and technology in assuring free and fair elections and public acceptance of election results in the U.S.

Websites Websites Websites! (WWW!)

from Rhizome

"Websites Websites Websites! (WWW!) celebrates the website as an artistic medium, bringing together twenty artists for Rhizome’s 30th anniversary. Without attempting a definitive history of Net Art, the exhibition explores thirty years of our changing relationship with the internet through browser experiences that invite experimentation, intimacy and critique.

"Together, these works ask how artists can reclaim space within an increasingly corporate internet and imagine more personal, critical and creative ways of being online."

Amnesty International Calls for Abolition of ICE

In a new report alleging human rights abuses in the Trump administration’s immigration operations

from the Minnesota Reformer

"The report focuses on documenting human rights violations in ICE operations in the Twin Cities, Chicago, New Orleans and Washington, DC, including racially discriminatory immigration enforcement; unjustified use of force by federal agents; unlawful killings by federal agents; repression of protests through tear gas and pepper spray; unlawful surveillance; and inhumane detention conditions.

"It’s the first time the organization has called for the abolition of ICE. Amy Fischer, Amnesty’s director of refugee and migrant rights, said it’s rare move for the organization to call for an agency to be fully abolished, but that the report shows the agency has reached a tipping point after decades of 'mass impunity.'

"'There are simply no reforms that would bring this agency into alignment with United States right human rights obligations,' Fischer said in a press call Thursday."

Former EPA Officials: Trump Is Letting Data Centers Make People Sick

Families shouldn’t have to pay for the AI boom with their health.

from Mother Jones

"While tech oligarchs grandstand about the existential danger AI superintelligence poses to humanity, former Environmental Protection Agency officials say we should be worried about a more immediate threat to our health: the data centers that power those AI models.

"The former EPA researchers, now working with the nonprofit Environmental Protection Network, are warning in a new report that since January 2025, Donald Trump’s EPA has embarked on a systematic weakening of pollution safeguards, permitting processes, inspection norms, and other guardrails—at least 30 different actions—that could increase the health risks associated with the data center boom.

"There are currently about 3,000 data centers in the United States, and more than 1,500 new centers are in the planning stages. But as developers build out this vast, energy-hungry infrastructure, the country is losing the government regulatory safeguards that are needed to ensure that expansion is done safely, the ex–EPA officials say."

Truth Without Reconciliation

Why did Brazil’s democratic institutions hold firm while those in the United States so quickly wilted?

The Boston Review

"One explanation hinges on particular institutional actors. Perhaps Merrick Garland, the former U.S. attorney general, singularly altered the course of history by slow-walking the prosecution against Trump and other conspirators. Another takes a wider angle, alleging that President Biden and the wider Democratic Party’s reluctance to go on offense against the Republicans opened the door for Trump’s later return. On this view, the public memory of January 6 ought to have served not merely as proof of the antidemocratic aims of the right but as a point of orientation for both a legal and a propaganda battle around the legitimacy of the Republican Party and its standard-bearers. What must change, then, is not the discrete decisions of this or that institutional actor but the entire orientation of a political party from 'folders' to 'fighters.'"