WEBVTT - Voting as Harm Reduction 0:00:11.800 --> 0:00:14.800 Good morning, peeps, and welcome to OKF Daily with Me 0:00:14.960 --> 0:00:19.320 your Girl, Daniel Moody recording from the Home Bunker, Folks. 0:00:19.480 --> 0:00:24.799 Last month, I had the great pleasure to join LGBTQ 0:00:25.000 --> 0:00:28.920 people from across the country at the National Task Force 0:00:29.600 --> 0:00:35.519 Creating Change Conference in New Orleans. And the National LGBTQ 0:00:35.760 --> 0:00:39.160 Task Force works on a myriad of issues to bring 0:00:39.200 --> 0:00:44.839 equity injustice to the LGBTQ community, and at the Creating 0:00:44.920 --> 0:00:49.440 Change Conference, I sat on panels with queer gen zers 0:00:49.479 --> 0:00:53.159 that are working in states like Florida in order to 0:00:53.240 --> 0:00:59.160 overturn some of DeSantis' most draconian policies that target trans youth, 0:01:00.360 --> 0:01:06.680 with everyone from religious figures to grassroots activists to transactivists 0:01:07.160 --> 0:01:10.640 in battleground states to get a sense of what does 0:01:10.720 --> 0:01:15.880 fighting look like on the ground. Oftentimes we hear and 0:01:16.040 --> 0:01:19.600 see the headlines, but we don't really know who are 0:01:19.640 --> 0:01:23.520 those people that are staying in these states that are 0:01:23.600 --> 0:01:27.080 fighting right while the rest of us kind of move on. 0:01:27.440 --> 0:01:32.800 And so the LGBTQ Task Force has launched their Queer 0:01:32.880 --> 0:01:36.959 the Vote campaign leading up to the twenty twenty four 0:01:37.080 --> 0:01:43.120 election to get as many queer Americans registered to vote 0:01:43.560 --> 0:01:50.080 involved in our electoral politics and have used their advocacy 0:01:50.320 --> 0:01:55.640 lens to educate as many people as possible about their 0:01:55.800 --> 0:02:00.000 power and to utilize the collective power of the queer 0:02:00.080 --> 0:02:06.680 or vote. So in a fantastic series over the next 0:02:06.760 --> 0:02:10.040 couple of weeks, you will be hearing from some of 0:02:10.120 --> 0:02:13.520 the activists that I spoke to on the ground in 0:02:13.560 --> 0:02:17.000 our Queer the Vote series that we're going to run 0:02:17.480 --> 0:02:19.760 over the next couple of weeks, and you'll be hearing 0:02:19.760 --> 0:02:23.840 from folks in battleground states about what is at stake, 0:02:24.080 --> 0:02:27.560 what they need support in in order to get the 0:02:27.680 --> 0:02:30.520 job done, and the job done being that you know, 0:02:30.600 --> 0:02:37.679 we don't turn America into a fascistic authoritarian dictatorship because 0:02:37.840 --> 0:02:41.160 we are apathetic, or because we are tired, or because 0:02:41.600 --> 0:02:44.400 you know Biden is not perfect, and trust me, he 0:02:44.560 --> 0:02:48.000 is fucking not. But at the end of the day, folks, 0:02:48.160 --> 0:02:50.480 I know what is at stake, and it's either we 0:02:50.600 --> 0:02:53.079 vote for democracy or we vote for fascism. I will 0:02:53.160 --> 0:02:57.600 keep saying it until the election is done and democracy 0:02:57.720 --> 0:03:00.120 still stands. That we are not voting for a per 0:03:00.400 --> 0:03:03.720 We are voting for our freedoms to continue. In that 0:03:03.800 --> 0:03:07.560 some elections are just about holding on. So coming up 0:03:07.680 --> 0:03:14.120 next is my conversation with Jen Scott from Equality Ohio 0:03:14.560 --> 0:03:18.400 to talk about what is happening in that battleground state 0:03:18.480 --> 0:03:23.000 and how Equality Ohio is going up against some of 0:03:23.280 --> 0:03:28.520 the most egregious policies directed specifically at trans youth and 0:03:28.600 --> 0:03:34.960 the LGBTQ community folks. I am so excited to be 0:03:35.240 --> 0:03:39.360 joined on WOKF Daily by Jen Scott, who is a 0:03:39.400 --> 0:03:45.080 statewide field director at Equality Ohio, an LGBTQ organization that 0:03:45.240 --> 0:03:49.120 is working to advance equity and justice for folks in 0:03:49.160 --> 0:03:55.200 the state of Ohio. Jen, we're right now at Creating Change. 0:03:55.280 --> 0:03:59.200 The Creating Change LGBTQ task Force puts on this conference 0:03:59.280 --> 0:04:01.800 every year, and this is a big year. It's twenty 0:04:01.840 --> 0:04:06.280 twenty four, and you know, we are ten months away 0:04:06.640 --> 0:04:10.680 from the most consequential election of our time. I want 0:04:10.720 --> 0:04:14.560 to get a sense from you, what is the vibe 0:04:14.760 --> 0:04:19.680 on the ground in Ohio. How are you feeling? How 0:04:19.720 --> 0:04:25.960 is a quality Ohio feeling and dealing with this increasingly 0:04:26.720 --> 0:04:33.640 fractious hardisan you know, divide that we're experiencing right now. 0:04:34.760 --> 0:04:38.279 That's a great question and it's changing daily. The landscape 0:04:38.279 --> 0:04:41.560 has shifted over the last six months last year, the 0:04:41.640 --> 0:04:45.839 Reproductive Rights Coalition put together a ballot issue to protect 0:04:46.000 --> 0:04:49.600 reproductive rights after the fall of Dobs. So there's a 0:04:49.600 --> 0:04:55.320 petition statewide to add constitutional protection for reproductive rights, and 0:04:55.440 --> 0:04:59.560 there was pushback. Prior to this, a lot of people 0:04:59.600 --> 0:05:01.760 looked at Ohio as a solidly read state. 0:05:02.600 --> 0:05:03.560 Yes Yes. 0:05:03.960 --> 0:05:08.200 This campaign really energized the base to come out and 0:05:08.240 --> 0:05:10.760 say we want bodily autonomy, we want to be able 0:05:10.760 --> 0:05:14.599 to control our healthcare choices. Opposition was concerned that this 0:05:14.720 --> 0:05:18.240 was actually going to pass, so in August they held 0:05:18.240 --> 0:05:21.640 a special election to change the threshold for the constitutional 0:05:21.680 --> 0:05:24.720 amendment that was going to be going in November. So 0:05:24.800 --> 0:05:27.720 they tried to make it more difficult for the November 0:05:27.800 --> 0:05:31.719 ballot issue for reproductive rights to pass. They spent twenty 0:05:31.760 --> 0:05:34.600 million dollars on this special election with only one question 0:05:34.720 --> 0:05:37.560 on it, hoping to change it make it more difficult. 0:05:38.200 --> 0:05:43.080 Ohioans came out and voted and voted no on that issue. 0:05:43.200 --> 0:05:48.040 Then in November they voted yes to reproductive rights. So 0:05:48.120 --> 0:05:51.279 that has changed the landscape in Ohio from a view 0:05:51.320 --> 0:05:56.240 of solidly read to oh people care about bodily autonomy 0:05:56.240 --> 0:05:59.159 and reproductive rights, and now we're seeing the attack on 0:05:59.279 --> 0:06:02.800 LGBTQ you escalate even more than what we were already 0:06:02.839 --> 0:06:08.920 seeing it. Late last year, they the state legislature worked 0:06:08.960 --> 0:06:13.360 on HB sixty eight, which would ban gender affirming care 0:06:13.400 --> 0:06:18.479 for youth. They added on to that banning trans youth 0:06:18.520 --> 0:06:23.880 from participating in sports, and we were hoping to delay this. 0:06:24.279 --> 0:06:26.840 Ohio has a two year general Assembly, so anything they 0:06:26.880 --> 0:06:29.159 introduced in twenty twenty three is still active through the 0:06:29.240 --> 0:06:32.200 end of this year. So sometimes during the mid year 0:06:32.279 --> 0:06:36.440 they don't pass things. But they actively worked to get 0:06:36.480 --> 0:06:39.279 this pushed through after they saw the election results because 0:06:39.279 --> 0:06:44.280 they saw reproductive rights as a loss for them, so 0:06:44.360 --> 0:06:46.720 they came back and said, oh, we need to get 0:06:46.760 --> 0:06:50.960 something done that shows that we're making progress for them. 0:06:51.920 --> 0:06:55.039 So progress for the progress for everybody else. 0:06:55.120 --> 0:06:57.920 Yeah, bad phrasing. 0:06:58.600 --> 0:07:00.920 I mean, but it's true for them, that is progress. 0:07:01.080 --> 0:07:05.440 Right to be able to rescind rights and protections and 0:07:05.880 --> 0:07:09.680 make a target, particularly of the trans community, which I 0:07:09.680 --> 0:07:13.320 want you to be able to dig into and say, 0:07:13.360 --> 0:07:15.800 look at what we're doing. Right, look at what we're doing, 0:07:15.800 --> 0:07:18.960 because I feel like what we see with these states, 0:07:19.080 --> 0:07:25.960 whether it is Ohio, Texas, Florida, Louisiana where we currently 0:07:26.000 --> 0:07:30.560 are Alabama, is that the Republican Party is using states 0:07:30.600 --> 0:07:33.920 as their patriot dish. Let us test out how far 0:07:34.040 --> 0:07:39.400 we can go in terms of abusing this community before 0:07:39.440 --> 0:07:42.720 anybody does anything about it, before there is any type 0:07:42.720 --> 0:07:47.600 of collective pushback. And do you think now, because of 0:07:47.680 --> 0:07:51.400 the loss for them in November on the ballot, that 0:07:51.440 --> 0:07:54.080 they were going to double down even harder with the 0:07:54.200 --> 0:07:55.640 LGBTQ community. 0:07:56.200 --> 0:07:59.600 That's what we're seeing. So they pushed through the HB 0:07:59.680 --> 0:08:02.720 six the past in both chambers, it went to the 0:08:02.760 --> 0:08:06.280 Governor's desk. Governor DeWine vetoed it and sent it back 0:08:06.320 --> 0:08:10.600 to the legislature. They're currently as we're recording this, the 0:08:10.640 --> 0:08:13.640 House has already voted to override his veto. The Senate 0:08:13.760 --> 0:08:17.800 is going to be hearing it later today. My coworkers 0:08:17.840 --> 0:08:20.640 are working on that it is likely to be overridden 0:08:20.680 --> 0:08:24.600 and go into law. In addition to that, an unexpected 0:08:24.640 --> 0:08:27.680 to us when we came back very start of January 0:08:27.720 --> 0:08:32.360 twenty twenty four, Governor Dwine issued new rules for agencies 0:08:32.640 --> 0:08:37.520 when it came to healthcare, and they're still analyzing. Experts 0:08:37.559 --> 0:08:41.320 are still analyzing what these rule changes will mean because 0:08:41.320 --> 0:08:44.080 of the way the wording is. It's similar to what 0:08:44.080 --> 0:08:47.600 we're seeing across the country. Very vague, very broad wording 0:08:47.679 --> 0:08:50.360 that's not well thought out. Even if they are trying 0:08:50.360 --> 0:08:53.000 to accomplish something that would be helpful for people, they're 0:08:53.080 --> 0:08:56.520 not because the wording is so vague, and it's going 0:08:56.559 --> 0:08:59.959 to affect potentially trans adults in addition to trans youth 0:09:00.520 --> 0:09:04.000 and could have broader implications. The more medical experts look 0:09:04.040 --> 0:09:07.720 at this, and more specifically their lawyers look at this, 0:09:08.040 --> 0:09:11.120 it could affect others in the community as well. 0:09:11.320 --> 0:09:16.880 Now, when you say that the legislation could affect trans adults, 0:09:16.920 --> 0:09:20.559 are we talking about access to hormones? Are we talking 0:09:20.559 --> 0:09:23.520 about access to care? Can you just dig in for 0:09:23.640 --> 0:09:24.320 us a little bit? 0:09:24.559 --> 0:09:30.679 Potentially? Some of the rules specify the eighteen to twenty 0:09:30.679 --> 0:09:36.840 one year range and are focusing on pediatric hospitals because 0:09:36.960 --> 0:09:40.520 they serve the populations up to twenty one. It's very 0:09:40.559 --> 0:09:43.560 similar to the trap laws we saw with reproductive rights, 0:09:43.600 --> 0:09:46.840 where they weren't officially cutting off access, but they were 0:09:46.840 --> 0:09:50.200 making it more and more difficult to get access. And 0:09:50.240 --> 0:09:55.880 some of the rules require multiple medical professionals and professions 0:09:55.880 --> 0:10:00.360 that are in limited availability we already might We already 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:03.640 know there's problems accessing healthcare in general right, let alone 0:10:03.679 --> 0:10:07.160 for the trans community without the addition of these roles. 0:10:12.600 --> 0:10:18.960 When you look at the success that abortion had in 0:10:19.000 --> 0:10:22.720 November of twenty twenty three, are there any of the 0:10:22.880 --> 0:10:27.960 same tactics that can be used as it pertains to 0:10:28.080 --> 0:10:33.240 LGBTQ rights or do you find that abortion was more 0:10:33.480 --> 0:10:38.200 of an issue that more people could coalesce around whereas 0:10:38.280 --> 0:10:42.240 the right Do you feel like are they more successful 0:10:42.400 --> 0:10:45.640 in terms of demonizing the community so that there are 0:10:45.760 --> 0:10:48.360 less people to come out in support of. 0:10:48.800 --> 0:10:52.560 It's a great question. Higowans have made it clear that 0:10:53.360 --> 0:10:55.480 they want bodily autonomy. They want to be able to 0:10:55.480 --> 0:10:59.880 decide their healthcare choices. Abortion we've been talking about for decades. 0:11:00.040 --> 0:11:03.480 People are more familiar with it, people have been are 0:11:03.480 --> 0:11:08.079 more comfortable now having conversations with their family about their 0:11:08.080 --> 0:11:17.040 healthcare choices. Trans issues are more recent in conversation. It's 0:11:17.120 --> 0:11:25.839 become less it's become easier to talk about because we're taught. 0:11:26.080 --> 0:11:29.240 We're enabling our community to talk about it, and we've 0:11:29.240 --> 0:11:32.640 had a number of amazing activists and advocates come out 0:11:32.679 --> 0:11:38.520 and to share their stories so we're hoping that that 0:11:39.480 --> 0:11:43.480 folks are more comfortable talking about this issue. Part of 0:11:43.520 --> 0:11:45.240 the role we play at a quality of how it 0:11:45.280 --> 0:11:48.920 is educating the community, the larger public community as well 0:11:48.960 --> 0:11:52.800 as members of the LGBTQ plus community that don't necessarily 0:11:52.880 --> 0:11:57.000 understand trans care and what that means and the importance 0:11:57.080 --> 0:11:59.360 of it. That's part of our work we need to 0:11:59.360 --> 0:12:02.040 do this year is get that information out there, get 0:12:02.040 --> 0:12:04.600 the stories out there for people that are willing to share, 0:12:04.800 --> 0:12:08.880 feel comfortable sharing, feel safe sharing in an environment like Ohio, 0:12:09.760 --> 0:12:12.320 and explaining what it actually is and what it is not. 0:12:13.360 --> 0:12:20.720 Legislators and politicians are very good at demonizing, stigmatizing, giving 0:12:20.720 --> 0:12:25.560 that quick, short sound bite that sounds great on you know, newscasts, 0:12:25.600 --> 0:12:33.000 but really is based in misinformation, based in fear, and 0:12:33.960 --> 0:12:39.640 doesn't address in any way medical or science based information. 0:12:39.880 --> 0:12:43.280 The funny thing is is that I feel the same 0:12:43.440 --> 0:12:51.080 way that Women's March and different advocacy groups for pregnant people, 0:12:51.440 --> 0:12:56.760 for people with uteruses being able to say you're a politician, 0:12:56.840 --> 0:12:59.520 not a doctor. I don't want you in my uterus, 0:13:00.040 --> 0:13:02.560 want you in my bedroom. I don't want you making decisions. 0:13:02.600 --> 0:13:07.160 And so I wonder do you feel like, obviously your 0:13:07.360 --> 0:13:11.400 job at Equality of Ohio is to educate the public. 0:13:11.800 --> 0:13:14.640 But I'm like, do they need to be educated on 0:13:14.720 --> 0:13:18.880 anything other than dignity, on anything other than respect? Like 0:13:19.720 --> 0:13:23.360 why should the onus? I guess is my thinking be 0:13:23.600 --> 0:13:25.960 on trans people in the same way to be on 0:13:26.040 --> 0:13:29.440 people with uteruses? To walk you through my trauma? Shouldn't 0:13:29.440 --> 0:13:32.760 it be enough that I've made a decision about my life, 0:13:33.040 --> 0:13:36.520 about my body and I want it to be respected, 0:13:37.000 --> 0:13:39.840 Like shouldn't that be the education that we're doing? 0:13:40.960 --> 0:13:43.360 Absolutely? And I wish we lived in that world. 0:13:43.400 --> 0:13:46.000 I know, I know. 0:13:49.520 --> 0:13:53.000 It's about that personal connection when you're sharing stories. Yeah, 0:13:53.440 --> 0:13:56.040 and this is a great place for SIS allies to 0:13:56.080 --> 0:14:00.120 stand up and have these conversations with people, and you 0:14:00.120 --> 0:14:02.280 could share your own story, your own journey of being 0:14:02.320 --> 0:14:04.520 a SIS person that really didn't think about trans issues. 0:14:04.559 --> 0:14:07.120 Are never really thought about your gender identity until you 0:14:07.160 --> 0:14:13.400 started learning more. Until people relate to that personal issue, 0:14:13.440 --> 0:14:17.200 Until some people relate to that personal story and see 0:14:17.240 --> 0:14:21.000 how it affects a real human, they don't get it, Yeah, 0:14:21.040 --> 0:14:24.840 and they're just listening to the sound bites or you know, 0:14:24.920 --> 0:14:28.680 there's also apathy. A lot of voters aren't paying attention 0:14:28.760 --> 0:14:31.800 to this issue because they care about jobs or the economy, 0:14:32.440 --> 0:14:34.960 or you know, many of other things that are going 0:14:35.000 --> 0:14:38.320 on and are voting that way, not seeing the harm 0:14:38.360 --> 0:14:41.880 that's being done or the potential harm. Like they're not 0:14:41.920 --> 0:14:47.320 going to stop at LGBTQ issues, And this issue affects 0:14:47.360 --> 0:14:49.240 all of us, Like we all want control of our bodies. 0:14:49.280 --> 0:14:52.080 We all want to make medical decisions with our providers 0:14:52.760 --> 0:14:55.640 and our family depending on what the situation is. Those 0:14:55.640 --> 0:14:58.760 are all personal choices, and all these politicians want to 0:14:58.760 --> 0:15:01.520 make their own personal choices too. You would think that 0:15:01.520 --> 0:15:06.000 would just be, oh, okay, that's your choice. We also 0:15:06.040 --> 0:15:10.560 have an Ohio a law that passed was snuck into 0:15:10.600 --> 0:15:13.920 the budget that is a medical conscious bill that allows 0:15:14.240 --> 0:15:17.440 health care providers anyone from the person's scheduling, your appointment 0:15:17.680 --> 0:15:22.640 to the doctor, to deny service based on their religious beliefs, 0:15:22.720 --> 0:15:25.480 their ethical beliefs, philosophical beliefs. 0:15:27.480 --> 0:15:29.920 I mean, it's just like, Jen, you say this to me, 0:15:30.000 --> 0:15:36.400 and I'm just like it's so fucking absurd because I'm like, then, 0:15:36.440 --> 0:15:38.800 become a clergyman, do you know what I'm saying? Don't 0:15:38.800 --> 0:15:41.840 be a doctor, don't work at a pharmacy don't work 0:15:42.200 --> 0:15:49.120 in general population. If your quote unquote religious moral and 0:15:49.640 --> 0:15:53.240 morals and I use deep quotation marks with that are 0:15:53.280 --> 0:15:58.160 preventing you from providing services to people through the lens 0:15:58.160 --> 0:16:02.040 of dignity and respect, then you're in the world profession right. 0:16:02.280 --> 0:16:06.200 And I just it makes me crazy because I feel 0:16:06.240 --> 0:16:10.400 like we on the left, or just we on earth one, 0:16:10.880 --> 0:16:14.520 as I like to say, I feel like we give 0:16:14.600 --> 0:16:17.680 too we seed too much ground to these people, and 0:16:17.720 --> 0:16:21.040 we're always in a defensive posture of see me as 0:16:21.080 --> 0:16:24.040 a human, give me my dignity, all of these things. 0:16:24.040 --> 0:16:28.560 And I'm just wondering, in your mind, is there a 0:16:28.680 --> 0:16:31.760 pivot that we need to make. I know the power 0:16:31.760 --> 0:16:34.320 of stories, I do it for a living, But I'm wondering, 0:16:34.880 --> 0:16:37.280 is there a pivot that we need to make where 0:16:38.560 --> 0:16:43.560 if you can't provide birth control, if you can't provide 0:16:43.840 --> 0:16:49.040 hormones over the counter to a patient, to a customer, 0:16:49.320 --> 0:16:50.880 then maybe you're in the wrong profession. 0:16:52.240 --> 0:16:55.840 I agree. And many of these associations and organizations that 0:16:57.040 --> 0:17:00.880 you know provide accreditation have rules around this, and they 0:17:00.880 --> 0:17:02.680 were already in place. There was no reason for the 0:17:02.680 --> 0:17:05.240 state legislature to put this in place. Or other states 0:17:05.240 --> 0:17:09.840 that are considering similar actions. And yes, if you're not 0:17:10.320 --> 0:17:13.199 willing to help people and meet their needs, why are 0:17:13.240 --> 0:17:17.040 you in healthcare? Or we could also say if you're 0:17:17.040 --> 0:17:22.720 not willing to represent the people running right, like? 0:17:22.880 --> 0:17:26.720 Yeah, that I mean basic baseline, right, Like, you're not 0:17:26.960 --> 0:17:30.480 just ranting to represent a certain constituency. You're running to 0:17:30.600 --> 0:17:35.919 represent the district, the county, the school district, the state 0:17:36.320 --> 0:17:39.520 that you are are running to represent, which is inclusive 0:17:39.600 --> 0:17:48.120 of everyone that is there. My question for you as 0:17:48.119 --> 0:17:55.720 we're wrapping up, too, is what is a quality Ohio? 0:17:56.160 --> 0:18:00.280 What does a quality Ohio need from people in order 0:18:00.359 --> 0:18:05.280 to get the word out, to get the message spread 0:18:05.359 --> 0:18:08.280 on the ground in Ohio about what is at stake 0:18:08.320 --> 0:18:09.280 in twenty twenty four. 0:18:12.280 --> 0:18:17.119 That's a nice easy question, Go ahead. There's a lot. 0:18:18.400 --> 0:18:22.880 It really matters who the decision makers are. A lot 0:18:22.880 --> 0:18:28.600 of people are disillusioned by our election system, right and 0:18:28.680 --> 0:18:31.560 I completely agree with them. Voting is not going to 0:18:31.560 --> 0:18:35.879 solve everything, yep, right now, voting is harm prevention. We 0:18:35.960 --> 0:18:39.080 need to get the less bad individual in place. 0:18:40.160 --> 0:18:44.600 I'm going to steal that because here's the thing, and 0:18:44.640 --> 0:18:47.200 I don't you know where again, we're here at creating 0:18:47.320 --> 0:18:51.400 change at the LGBTQ Test Force conference in New Orleans, 0:18:51.560 --> 0:18:54.840 and a lot of young people and a lot of 0:18:54.880 --> 0:18:59.119 people of color are telling me that I'm not voting 0:18:59.160 --> 0:19:04.240 for Biden or I'm not voting in this election because 0:19:04.320 --> 0:19:10.120 I'm tired of picking the best of two evils. I'm 0:19:10.240 --> 0:19:14.959 tired of not being able to vote my values. And 0:19:15.000 --> 0:19:19.359 I hear them, Jen, and I understand the pain, the frustration. 0:19:19.520 --> 0:19:23.120 I've been doing this work in and around movement for 0:19:23.560 --> 0:19:28.359 close to two decades. What do you say to those 0:19:28.520 --> 0:19:32.280 people who right now on social media, ten months out, 0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:34.960 who some may be walking around this conference that are 0:19:35.040 --> 0:19:37.760 just like, I'm going to throw out my hands for 0:19:37.800 --> 0:19:40.280 this one. I'm going to kiss this one up to God, 0:19:40.520 --> 0:19:41.840 the universe of whomever. 0:19:42.960 --> 0:19:46.400 What do you say? I say that making real long 0:19:46.480 --> 0:19:49.800 term change takes coalition work. We need to support each 0:19:49.840 --> 0:19:53.520 other across the intersections of our concerns and our identities. 0:19:54.040 --> 0:19:55.959 There are three hundred and sixty six days this year, 0:19:55.960 --> 0:19:58.720 because it's a leapier two of those days, I need 0:19:58.760 --> 0:20:00.159 you to show up. I need you to go to 0:20:00.160 --> 0:20:01.800 your primary, and I need you to go to the 0:20:01.800 --> 0:20:05.359 general election. I need you to make a choice. The 0:20:05.480 --> 0:20:08.679 less bad choice, good choice, depending on your candidates. Make 0:20:08.720 --> 0:20:11.919 sure you vote down ballot too. Because state elections are important, 0:20:12.000 --> 0:20:14.840 local elections are important, school boards are important. We're seeing 0:20:14.840 --> 0:20:18.879 more attacks at the school board level. Show up the 0:20:19.000 --> 0:20:21.080 other days of the year. If you want to do 0:20:21.160 --> 0:20:23.359 other things to be an advocate in your area, whether 0:20:23.400 --> 0:20:29.080 that's sharing stories, learning, educating yourself, running for office, being 0:20:29.119 --> 0:20:33.320 a staffer, providing information, or just supporting your community or 0:20:33.320 --> 0:20:36.119 supporting other activists. Some of the most amazing people I 0:20:36.200 --> 0:20:40.280 know that are supporting the work are just babysitting kids 0:20:40.560 --> 0:20:43.440 of other folks that are out there, you know, running 0:20:43.480 --> 0:20:49.159 protests or running mutual aid campaigns, or small nonprofits that 0:20:49.200 --> 0:20:52.560 are doing amazing work. All of us every day can 0:20:52.600 --> 0:20:55.119 do small things to make a change, and it's going 0:20:55.160 --> 0:20:57.879 to take all of us doing that to move the 0:20:58.160 --> 0:21:03.080 country forward in a way that is better for all 0:21:03.119 --> 0:21:05.560 of us. Because one of the thing is our site. 0:21:05.600 --> 0:21:07.920 We care about everyone on our side. We want to 0:21:07.960 --> 0:21:10.920 protect the people that are actively supporting us, and we're 0:21:10.920 --> 0:21:13.439 also not trying to cause harm to others. 0:21:14.840 --> 0:21:18.720 Please tell people how they can get involved with Equality Ohio, 0:21:18.840 --> 0:21:23.680 where they can sign up, volunteer, donate. If there don't 0:21:23.720 --> 0:21:25.600 live in this state and they have the means to 0:21:25.600 --> 0:21:25.919 do so. 0:21:26.280 --> 0:21:29.160 Sure. We have a website at Qualityohio dot org. We're 0:21:29.160 --> 0:21:31.240 also on Facebook and TikTok. 0:21:32.040 --> 0:21:35.800 Brilliant Jen, thank you so much for making the time 0:21:35.840 --> 0:21:40.280 to Joan wokf really really appreciate you. Appreciate Equality Ohio. 0:21:40.520 --> 0:21:41.600 Appreciate all of the. 0:21:41.560 --> 0:21:43.760 Work that you are doing. Thank you for having me. 0:21:49.240 --> 0:21:52.320 That is it for me today. Dear friends on wokay 0:21:52.520 --> 0:21:55.760 f as always, power to the people and to all 0:21:56.000 --> 0:21:59.400 the people. Power, get woke and stay woke as fuck.