Besides realizing what was on the line for myself and all of us out in Wisconsin, (and yes, Ohio, Indiana, elsewhere...) I was all charged up and emotional about the events unfolding in Madison. I made my donation to ActBlue. I ordered a pizza from Ian's. But I was still left feeling that as an out-of-towner, there was more I could and should do to support those people on the front lines. I figured the best thing I could do was to get in my 22 year old Volvo 240 wagon and make the drive from Rhode Island to Wisconsin. I would collect hand warmers, beef jerky, and trail mix on my way out there from the crowds that would line the streets to cheer me on sorta like WWII GI's rolling into Paris. Once in Madison, I would buy supplies with the cash that a buddy in RI would collect and deposit into my account, which I could access with my ATM. Luckily, my wife drove home that night. She also suggested I explore some other options. Some of it has been posted already, but here's what I've come with:
More below the fold
As mentioned before: donate to ActBlue in support of the Wisconsin 14. Let Republicans know that when they try to gut worker's rights, their opponents will get a sack of cash. You can even tell them personally. Here are the Wisconsin senators eligible for recall as of today:
Robert Cowles District 2 Sen.Cowles@legis.wisconsin.gov
Alberta Darling District 8 Sen.Darling@legis.wi.gov
Sheila Hasdorf District 10 Sen.Hasdorf@legis.wisconsin.gov
Luther Olson District 14 Sen.Olson@legis.wi.gov
Randy Hopper District 18 Sen.Hopper@legis.wi.gov
Glen Grothman District 20 Sen.Grothman@legis.wisconsin.gov
Mary Lazich District 28 sen.lazich@legis.wi.gov
Dan Kapanke District 32 sen.kapanke@legis.wi.gov
Full list of WI senators here
Not a citizen or resident alien? (needed for political donations) No problem:
Check out defendwisconsin.org. At this site, they have a button that will help you donate to the UW Teaching Assistants Assoc., which has been keeping a base of operations at the Capital. Paypal only, as far as I can tell.
Paypal ain't your bag? Or you just want something a little warmer and fuzzier than a paypal transaction? There's still plenty of ways to get your support (read money) out to the folks in the Midwest defending your way of life:
Cargo Coffee (608) 268-0597 has been donating coffee (a figure of about $500 retail per day for the past few days according to the person I talked to this morning and the fellow in the background) to the protesters. They have been running up tankards throughout the day. You can show them some support, and keep the coffee brewing by calling them up and putting ten or twenty on your credit card.
Unioncab (608) 242-2000 Union Cab was started when drivers organized at Checker Cab and Checker closed up shop rather than negotiate. It is a worker owned business that has been pitching in. When I talked to John over there this morning, he informed me that the board was setting up an account that people could make donations to. All that was left to do was give the account a name. We decided to call it Wisconsin Worker Support Fund. So, call them up, give em some love (once again, read money). He's letting various labor supportive groups know that this being done and that they will be able to call him up and tap into that. Let's make sure there's something there for those folks to tap into. You can even donate to their fund online.
Willy St Co-Op (608) 251-6776 is providing protesters with some alternatives to pizza. Fresh fruit and veggies. Trail mix. Whatever. You don't really have to figure what to get. Just give 'em some dough (money) and they will put that money towards filling the orders that are coming in from the folks holding the line at the Statehouse.
Community Pharmacy (608)251-3242 is providing other things needed by those fighting for us. Toiletries, vitamins, first aid stuffs, aspirin, throat drops, earplug, maybe even those nifty pocket hand warmers (I forgot to ask about the hand warmers). Again, like the co-op, you can call them up, give them your Credit Card #, and they'll put towards the orders for stuff coming in.
Mother Fool's Coffee House is sending buckets and buckets of coffee on their own dime and with the help of people using their website. It is paypal. They do not take credit cards. They are also working with their bakery to secure vegan baked goods for those at the capital, so if that's a concern of yours, here's a guilt-free option.
All the above businesses have been cited by Teaching Assistants Assoc. as having been donating goods and services. I have also called them, and talked to humans and confirmed that the instructions above are cool. They are ready and waiting.
I know, this is Wisconsin based. And even at that it woefully incomplete. I will be updating with other info as I can. Incomplete and disseminated is better than complete and in the drafts folder. Please add other options in the comments. If you mention a pizza joint, cafe, coop, whatever, please confirm with that business that they are willing and equipped to receive out of town funds. Include instructions, if possible. (phone, web, cc, paypal, etc).
Also:
You can do is set-up tip jars in your local, hip coffee shops, pizza joints, bars, etc. Provide an opportunity for on the spot small donations to be collected into large enough amounts to send out there. More on this in the update or upcoming diary.
And get others doing it. Write an email. Send it to every one you know, stating the of the importance of these events, the perilous position we are all in, and the need to support those brave folks out in the mid-west. And give them the tools that will help donate. Give them the actblue link. Forward them some of the info you find here and elsewhere. Help make the need understood and the instructions easy.