Cville Dems

The Charlottesville Democratic Committee

The Charlottesville Area Young Democrats (CAYD) are up-and-running!

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logo of Charlottesville Area Young Democrats (CAYD)The newest Virginia Young Democrats chapter will serve Charlottesville and Albemarle, Buckingham, Fluvanna, and Greene Counties. If you’re between 13-35 and would like to register voters, canvass, and take campaign actions with other young people, sign up at bit.ly/cvilleyds, or get more info from their Facebook page (or email cvilleyds@gmail.com). The group’s initial officers are:
  • President: Kara Kline (southside_region@vayd.org)
  • VP: Trent Fisher
  • Treasurer: Dashad Cooper
  • Secretary: Hailey Yowell
  • Outreach Director: Amanda Snead
  • Communications Director: Samantha Litchford

REPORT: Ézé Amos A12 “The Story of Us” Photo Exhibition Events

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Ézé Amos giving guided tour of The Story of Us 20220813 guided tour_BoOur two A12 events around Ézé Amos’ photo exhibition The Story of Us: Reclaiming the Narrative of #Charlottesville through Portraits of Community Resilience were very successful.
• Presentation (8/10) — 50 people, in-person and online, attended Ézé’s overview of the exhibition (partially given “in conversation with” Andrea Douglas, Executive Director of the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center). If you missed it, here’s a recording of Ézé’s presentation; the first 24 minutes, mostly Ézé and Andrea discussing how Eze’s became a photojournalist, why he chose the Downtown Mall and racial justice struggles as his main subject areas, and how he chose the 36 photos for this exhibition. The first 24 minutes are audio-only, but the video kicks in when he starts showing the photos.
• Walking Tour (8/13) — What was planned as a one-hour tour lasted two hours as Ézé led us to each installation and explained (much abridged) what was going on in each photo and a bit about each person featured. 100 or more people joined the tour at various points to listen and ask questions.
Thank you Ézé and Andrea and everyone who turned out for this very meaningful A12 commemoration.
If you’ve not seen the photos yet on the Downtown Mall, don’t wait much longer; the photos will be taken down after September 29th, though you’ll be able to visit Eze’s website.

Cville Dems Call for the Resignation/Removal of Bert Ellis from UVA’s Board of Visitors

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Text of the resolution passed  at our 8/22 Full Committee meeting:

photo of Bert Ellis Jr. wearing a pale yellow shirt and dark sport jacketThe Charlottesville Democratic Committee deplores Governor Youngkin’s appointment of Bert Ellis to the Board of Visitors of the University of Virginia.  Ellis has repeatedly and loudly denounced the University’s efforts at Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI).  Two years ago, he traveled to the University Grounds and attempted to deface with a razor blade a poster with which he disagreed, which a University student had hung on her door.  Most alarmingly, when he was co-chair of the University Union in the 1970’s, he refused to invite a speaker on gay rights because of his opposition to homosexuality, and he invited a notorious eugenicist to a public forum at the University to present his belief that Black people are lower in intelligence than White people.  

The University, which was founded for White men only in a culture of white supremacy, has in recent decades struggled to become more inclusive and more diverse.  It has a long way to go to be fully welcoming to all minorities.  This appointment will harm the University by sending a message that minorities do not truly belong there and that DEI efforts are to be ridiculed and scorned.  We stand with the Executive Board of the Student Council in calling for Mr. Ellis to resign.

Cville Dems A12 Commemoration: Ézé Amos Community Events Wednesday 8/10 and Saturday 8/13

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LPortrait of Ézé Amos (B&W)ocal photojournalist and artist Ézé Amos is the creator of the exhibit “The Story of Us: Reclaiming the Narrative of #Charlottesville through Portraits of Community Resilience”, 36 larger-than-life 10′ x 8′ photos mounted front and back on trees all along the Downtown Mall. Each photo will have a QR code linking to a 3-minute recording of the person highlighted in the photo describing that moment in their own words and voice. Eze donated the photos to the City, which will install them August 9-10 (this exhibit is the City’s only anniversary commemoration event).

Ézé is collaborating with us to offer the community two free events meant to help Charlottesville deeply engage with our collective experiences of A12 through the exhibit:

  • Wednesday August 10, 6:30pm — Meeting in the Downtown Library’s Swanson Case Room, Ézé will facilitate a town hall-style presentation in which he will both explain the genesis and intentionality behind “The Story of Us” and also offer attendees a chance to share their emotions and memories of their experiences of that weekend. Come in person or use this Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85683422230
  • Saturday August 13, 11am — Ézé will lead a roughly hour long guided walking tour of the exhibit,  photos. The meetup spot will be the Downtown Mall water fountain at the intersection with 2nd Street NE.

You won’t want to miss these powerful presentations and the chance to engage with Ézé about his very compelling exhibit (two samples below). Please spread the word, please bring family and friends!

Black woman hugging a crying white womanmultiracial crowd stands in street and forms a human chain across street by holding hands

99 Days until Election Day — Join in Thursday Nights of Action!

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Josh Throneburg = Cville Dems Thursday Nights of Action at IX Park
If you want to help the Josh Throneburg Campaign #FlipThe5th and unseat Bob (No)Good, here are some options:

1. Join us this Thursday, August 4th, from 5-7pm at IX Park for our Weekly Thursday Night of Action (a bit of socializing, a good bit of strategizing)!

This week we’ll be focussing on phone banking and canvassing. There’ll be a printed phone list for folks to choose from to call into. If you wish to canvas please download “MiniVan” (download the app from these Apple or Android links if you don’t already have it) and you can even create an ActionID before Thursday to save time.

If you plan to attend, please sign up using this link:
https://www.mobilize.us/joshforvirginia/event/475179/

There will be training on MiniVan for those who need a refresher of haven’t ever used it (don’t worry, it’s not hard!).

2. If you can’t attend this Thursday, here’s the weekly schedule of other opportunities you can sign up:

  • Wednesday Nights Virtual Phone Bank / 6:30pm – 8:30pm
  • Thursday Nights J4VA & Generation Ratify Virginia Virtual Phone Bank / 6:30pm-8:30pm
  • Sunday Evenings Virtual Phone Bank / 1pm – 4pm
  • Sunday Evenings Virtual Text Bank / 4pm – 6pm
  • Saturday Canvassing in Charlottesville (meet at The Dairy Market) / 10am – Noon & 1pm – 3pm

Sign up for any of these events here: https://www.mobilize.us/joshforvirginia/

Thanks for your support!

Zoom Event with Oscar-nominated Director of “Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down” (8/3)

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graphic showing Gabby Giffords standing behind a podium gesturing, with the red and white stripes of the American flag behind her. The words "Gabby Giffords Won't Back Down" are give in three lines, all capital letters.

Oscar-nominated documentary director Julie Cohen (past works include the acclaimed “RBG” about Ruth Bader Ginsburg) will give a special Zoom talk + Q&A to Charlottesville on August 3rd at 6:30pm for her just-released film “Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down” (see trailer here). The new movie tells the extraordinary story of former Arizona Democratic Congresswoman Gabby Giffords’ relentless and ultimately successful fight to recover from a 2011 assassination attemp, and her new life as one of the most effective activists in the battle against gun violence. More details on the Event Page.

We’ve organized the event, which is co-sponsored by Moms Demand Action Charlottesville, The B.U.C.K Squad, and Students Demand Action at UVA (the latter three groups are not affiliated with the Democratic Party) to continue bringing attention to the curse of gun violence and spotlight the work citizen activists are doing locally and nationwide.