21 Feb Donor Matters Spring 2023

Welcome to the first issue of Donor Matters for 2023. Everything we do here at BBP is only possible with your support. We appreciate all you do for us. Please enjoy — we created this newsletter JUST for donors like you.

The Good News

We’ve been working hard to make YOU proud.

Late last month, hundreds of Nevada progressives gathered virtually for our 9th annual Progressive Summit! We kept the celebration and learning virtual to be able to engage folks across the entire state — and we were so stoked to bring everybody together under one (virtual) roof.

Even though we are still doing things differently, the Progressive Summit remains our labor of love to bring our communities the latest skills, tactics, and information we need to fight for real change and fight against disinformation here in Nevada. And none of it would be possible without your generosity, time, and support. Thank you for supporting our critical work.

This year’s Summit was about gearing up for the legislative session in Carson City — ensuring that we are equipped with the tools we need to advocate for the causes we care about. Now that we are working our way through 120 days in Carson City, we can reflect on how necessary and refreshing it was to gather our favorite activists, advocates, and electeds in one space to brainstorm the best, most innovative, and most effective ways to fight for what we believe in this session. We fought as hard as we could this past election season, and now it’s up to all of us to continue forward! Yet again, our state saved democracy’s ass — and I’m ready to keep up that fight and see where we’re needed and what we need to save next.

We would also like to thank our incredibly generous sponsors who made this event possible. Your generosity is what keeps us going, not just financially, but in our hearts as well! In case you didn’t get a chance to see it last weekend, check out the Progressive Summit 2023 Ad Book to see all the incredible organizations, businesses, and individuals who made this year’s event happen!

Now it’s up to all of us to continue forward! We’re going to keep the energy up from the Summit and keep on the fight as we begin this 2023 Legislative Session. As you probably know, Annette heads up to Carson City for every legislative session (and special session), to advocate for progressive causes. Every time she heads to Carson City, she fights for moving our state forward — from fighting to pass the health care public option to advocating for common sense gun safety laws. 

This time up north will be no different, except for the fact that we now have a Governor who has made it clear he wants to undermine our public schools, our health care, and our public lands. But don’t worry — Annette will be in Carson City all session to make sure NONE of that happens, and YOUR SUPPORT has made that possible! And we need to give a heart THANK YOU to everyone who donated to the Sassy Sapphire Gas Fund! Annette, Nick and Sassy made it safely up to Carson with your help. 

Thank you again for all your support.

The To-Do List

We know how much progressives like to have a take-action list!

1. Join our story bank! The best way to spread the word about policies and legislation that matter to real Nevadans is to share their stories. That’s why we’ve started a story bank! You can sign up to share YOUR story HERE.
2. Become a super social volunteer! Our new Organic Content volunteer program relies on the idea that our neighbors are the best messengers. Sign up to share content about the issues that matter to YOU!
3. Take part in our Progressive University series! Following our Progressive Summit, we’re hosting different sessions every week to dig deeper into the topics we care about. You can sign up for tonight’s session, on the work to support gun violence prevention, HERE.
4. Stay tuned weekly to Out In Front with Annette! Every week we’re covering a different topic important to Nevada’s progressives and the state at large. This week we’re covering climate change and its impact on communities of color. Tune in HERE.
5. Get involved with the Legislative Session. While Annette is up in Carson City, you can take action from ANYWHERE in the state. We send out notifications for when YOU can take action. Stay tuned to your email!

The Awesome

We love our team and all they accomplish. With your support, they’ve been able to do some amazing things this quarter. Take a look below.

• How do we turn a housing crisis into housing justice? Watch this session from the Progressive Summit featuring our Communications Director Will Pregman and community affordable housing advocates.
• How do you prepare to lobby for session? This session from our Progressive Summit is hosted by our Executive Director Annette Magnus and a slew of lobbying powerhouses to discuss how to best advocate for your causes in Carson City!
• How can we make a difference in the climate crisis? This panel from our Progressive Summit, hosted by our Digital Manager Mathilda Guerrero, discusses the ongoing climate crisis and who bears the brunt of it.

• How do we bridge the gap between the labor movement and progressives? During the Progressive Summit, our Development Manager, Shelbie Swartz was joined by labor organizers from across the state to discuss bringing our labor siblings into the progressive movement.

• How do you sniff out the bullsh*t? With disinformation more prominent than ever, our Latino Anti-Disinformation Manager Ignacio Romero and our Nevada Disinformation Program Manager Lisa Lynn Chapman analyzed the impact of disinformation on our 2022 elections.
• How can we expand on voting rights this year? We fought hard to expand voting rights in past legislative sessions, and saw the good that fight did in the 2022 elections. Learn more in this session from our Voting Rights Organizer Brian Harris.

The Highlights

We’re a communications organization, first and foremost. So the thing we do best? Make the news. Catch our favorite hits below.

“Voting rights groups like Battle Born Progress of the “Let Nevadans Vote Coalition” and the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada (ACLU) argue Voter ID creates an undue burden on voters and likened it to a poll tax. ‘In this country, it is illegal to have a poll tax, which means you should not have to pay to have your right to vote,’ said Annette Magnus, executive director of Battle Born Progress. ‘And you should not have to pay anything to be able to access the polling locations or the ballot box.’” — Learn more about our initiatives to expand voting rights and protect against voter ID laws in Nevada HERE. 

“Folks involved who are involved in activism around public education sharply disagree with that, and I think are really going to be looking to Democratic leadership to hold the line on that issue.” — Catch our Communications Director Will Pregman speaking to Public News Service on what to expect this Legislative Session HERE.

“‘I’m curious as to where he thinks that money is going to come from,’ said Annette Magnus, executive director of Battle Born Progress. ‘So, he needs to show us how he actually proposes to get there. And the details are going to be in the numbers as we start to explore it through the budget committees during the legislative session.’” — Catch Annette highlighting our worry about Governor Lombardo’s school funding ideas HERE.

The Buddies

Meet the furry friends of our new Story Bank Organizer, Erin Rook! Below are his pups (L to R) Hank, Winnie, and Bodhi. Want to make their dad very happy? Sign up to share YOUR story today: bit.ly/StoryBankBBP

Until Next Time 👋

Thank you again for your charitable giving. Together we are building a bright, progressive future for Nevada.