We’re Not Done Fighting, Look What Happens When We Show Up
Even in hard weeks, democracy shows signs of life
Hi, this week was A LOT. I was so upset by some of the headlines that I couldn’t really get out of bed on Friday. I got up, took my kid to school, and came back to put on my PJs and crawled into bed for an extra hour just to tune out the world.
This has been happening more often lately, and I’m not going to lie, it worries me. I know that a sustained level of stress and anxiety is bad for our physical, mental, and emotional health.
All of this brought me back to the first Trump administration, when I started this work, and how I would feel so incredibly alone in this fight without any guidance on what to do or what was most effective to fight back and lessen the damage.
But then I remember: I’m not alone anymore. I have a community that’s there for me and that is also willing to fight alongside me. They know that there are days when I will need to disconnect and recharge, and they’ll go on their own and protest or make calls, and wait for me to get my strength back up.
This time, I’ve also found a lot of other content creator friends who are fighting on multiple fronts (don’t worry, I’ll give you all their links below!). They not only know what’s at stake and use their platforms to provide information on different issues, but they also get the struggle of being a content creator.
My husband will cook for me and hug me when I’m feeling sad, but he doesn’t really understand the frustration of working for hours on a great piece of content you’re SUPER proud of, and then watching it completely flop because the algorithm doesn’t show it to anyone.
That’s when I text my people. They send me virtual hugs, support, and even screenshots of their pets. It makes ALL the difference.
So… maybe you, my friend reading this, are not a content creator. But I know you, too, get frustrated, anxious, and exhausted with everything going on. My recommendation is to find your people, the ones who get what you’re going through and will send you a silly meme, a dad joke, or a story to take your mind off things, even if it’s just for a few minutes.
And now, let me show you some of the good stuff that did happen this week:
🔥 A Trump-appointed prosecutor tried to come after a sitting judge, and she clapped back using Trump’s own Supreme Court ruling.
Remember Judge Hannah Dugan? Trump’s DOJ had her arrested for allegedly helping an undocumented immigrant leave her courthouse.
Well, she’s fighting back, arguing she can’t be prosecuted for official judicial acts. Her legal team is using the Supreme Court’s ruling in Trump v. United States to make the case that judges, like presidents, should be protected when acting in their official capacity.
Click here to read the full story from Jurist
🎉 Allison Riggs was finally sworn in to the North Carolina Supreme Court.
After a grueling six-month legal fight to make sure over 68,000 ballots were counted, this long-overdue victory for democracy came at a $2 million price tag, but it was worth every penny. Voter suppression lost.
Click here to read the story from Democracy Docket
🧡 Arizona passed Emily’s Law, a lifeline for Native families.
Governor Katie Hobbs just signed a new alert system into law to help find missing Native Americans. It’s named after 14-year-old Emily Pike, a San Carlos Apache teen whose tragic disappearance sparked statewide calls for action.
Click here to read the story from NBC
⚖️ Trump tried to fire watchdogs, and they’re fighting back.
Two women Trump tried to fire from the National Labor Relations Board are fighting back in court, and winning so far. Lower courts ruled that presidents can’t just fire watchdogs from independent agencies without cause, and now the appeals court is taking a serious look at it.
This case could help protect the people who hold power accountable.
🎧 Click here to read the story from NPR
🧾 Political Schadenfreude
Republicans control the House. They control the Senate. They control the White House. And yet… they still can’t get their act together.
This week, they tried to push through their “One, Big, Beautiful Bill”, a massive package that would’ve extended Trump’s tax cuts, added $4 trillion to the debt, and gutted Medicaid and food assistance programs. But it didn’t even make it out of the House Budget Committee.
Why? Because the far-right members of the House thought the cuts to critical programs didn’t go far enough. And five Republicans ended up siding with Democrats to stop it.
They had the power, the plan, and still face-planted.
🗞 Click here to read the story from AP
💰 Democratic candidate raises $2.25 million in 24 hours
Iowa’s State Auditor Rob Sand just launched his campaign for governor, and within a single day, he raised $2.25 million, with donations from all 99 counties. His campaign now has $8 million in the bank and support from across the political spectrum. With Governor Kim Reynolds stepping down, this momentum could be a sign that Iowans might be ready for a change.
📣 Click here to read the story from Iowa Starting Line
🏳️⚧️ Montana just protected trans youth
A state judge struck down the ban on gender-affirming care for minors, calling it unconstitutional. The court made it clear: these decisions belong to families and doctors, not politicians.
📰 Click here to read the story from the AP
And while we’re on this topic… Did you know that 71% of Americans say they’ve never met a transgender person?
🗓️ Save the date: June 14 is NO KINGS DAY
The man-child’s birthday is June 14, and he wants tanks in the street and a made-for-TV show of power in D.C. What he can’t get through his thick head is that real power doesn’t come from spectacle, it comes from people.
That’s why June 14 is turning into something bigger: a nationwide day of action called No Kings Day. From city blocks to courthouse steps, we’re showing the world that democracy belongs to all of us, not one man with a gold-plated ego.
So mark your calendar. We’re not gathering to feed his ego. We’re showing up to say no thrones, no crowns, no kings.
Click here to find a NO KINGS DAY event near you.
The wins this week are not the whole story, but they are proof that organizing, showing up, and speaking out still work. Even when it feels like everything is falling apart, there’s always someone holding the line, and often, it’s people like us!
Now, here are great content creators I recommend 🫶🏼
Thank you for being here with me. I appreciate you more than you know,
Thanks for all you do. You were one of the first voices I found locally.
You are never alone, sweet lady. We might be blue dots in a sea of red, but we are never alone.