Western States Center

WA venues: Let your patrons know! The last day to register to vote online or by mail is Monday, October 26. After that, register in person at your county elections office until 8PM on November 3. Check it at votewa.gov

Election Season Rider: 1. Voter-registration QR code by the bathroom mirror 2. 30 seconds of stage time for a voting reminder 3. One official deadline at the bar and merch 4. Lactose-free chocolate milk 5. No candy corn 1–3 take ten minutes. Free guide: bit.ly/bookthevote

Neumos turned a candidate forum into "Candidate Survivor": Lip-syncs, talent challenges and policy rounds, hosted by drag performer Aleksa Manila. Candidate events don't have to look like a town hall. Snag This Idea: bit.ly/bookthevote

Stays calm with a line out the door. Explains the same thing 200 times. Works a long shift. That's your venue staff. It's also an election worker. Share openings with your crew: bit.ly/bookthevote

New line on tonight's day sheet: 9:14 PM: 30-second voting reminder from the stage Free guide for small venues on adding voting to shows you already booked: bit.ly/bookthevote

Small venue, bar, or club? You already get people in the room. That's the hard part. Book the Vote is a free, nonpartisan guide to helping your people get ready to vote, without building a whole new program. Pick one idea. Make it yours. bit.ly/bookthevote

NETWORK Advocates' See. Love. Vote. is a nonpartisan, faith-rooted campaign to get out the vote, with free tools to register, make a voting plan and bring your community along. Election Day is Nov. 3. buff.ly/TIJqaZq

Culture Lab’s friend Adam Weiner of Low Cut Connie is bringing Western States Center and Comunidad Garces on the Livin in the USA tour. Via Mark Zimmaro, South Philly Review: buff.ly/W3j2xDJ

Oregon venues and bars: The voter registration deadline is Tuesday, October 13. Ballots start going out right after. Easy move this weekend: Put the date on your chalkboard, your story, or your show email. People can check or update their registration at oregonvotes.gov. Small thing. Big help.

Douglas Frank and other election deniers are at it again, and they're investing heavily in Oregon. We have a responsibility to know what's going on so we can counter it effectively. Learn more here: buff.ly/HnRkWKw

“The League of Women Voters of Clackamas County prioritizes informed, non-partisan information regarding issues that impact the community. We want to alert voters that election denier Douglas Franks is once again bringing his election lies to Oregon...” Read their full letter here: buff.ly/VML7f22

Race Forward has selected us to present at Facing Race 2026! Join us for our session "Creative Resistance: Joy as Strategy in Movement-Building" in Raleigh, November 12-14! facingrace.us

Our public dollars should reflect our values. Oregon should not spend taxpayer money on corporations that help carry out immigration enforcement operations that harm workers, families, and communities. Sign the petition: seiu503.tfaforms.net/817

Higher Education classified workers are going on strike and need your support and solidarity! www.mobilize.us/seiu-oregon/...

G'mar chatima tova.

Los miembros de la comunidad deben tener cuidado con las posibles amenazas provenientes de personas que utilizan las redes sociales y las plataformas de transmisión en directo para crear contenido que promueve la intolerancia y perjudica a la democracia. Más información: buff.ly/cYwXkDb

Western States Center unequivocally condemns political violence and intimidation, wherever it occurs, against anyone it targets. Read our full statement: buff.ly/3LdwQX1

Today marks 25 years since the September 11 attacks. It’s a solemn day to remember the nearly 3,000 people killed that day in 2001 and to honor rescue workers and affected families. Read our full statement: buff.ly/zlO4CGH

📣 It’s never too early to get ready for Election Day in Oregon! 👉 There are key races – local, statewide & federal – in Oregon this year. Make sure you're ready to vote. Check your registration at buff.ly/GlPMYUR or register at buff.ly/Z0Km1yn!

“As Christian and faith leaders, we affirm that our mission calls us to follow our faith above any political ideology, party, or national identity... Our mission is to spread the message of love, humility, justice, and service to our neighbors." - Rev. Hacker & Rev. Dr. Love buff.ly/5xQO66a

"He’s not just a Christian nationalist, more specifically he is a member of the New Apostolic Reformation... A decentralized religious and political movement that advances the idea that... demonic spirits are especially active in places of cultural and political power." buff.ly/U4mRNzH

An undercover DHS agent went to an open meeting at a Minneapolis brewery, then helped build a dossier on who was there. DHS calls it "standard law enforcement practice." We call it a reason to have a plan: buff.ly/CDLcSFa Full story: buff.ly/t62SwUC

Fixing Democracy: Chat & Chew hits Portland Sept 12! A workshop for girls, young women & gender-expansive youth (16-29) into civic engagement. Food & stipends provided, space limited. Register: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

Press briefing from yesterday, featuring Jac Archer (defendant), @anarchealing.com & organizers from @westernstatescenter.org , @protectdemocracy.org & PJALS discussing #Spokane3 post-trail motions in the case: drive.google.com/file/d/19GKu... keep an eye out for updates at spokane3support.com

[PROTECT OREGON] Wednesday, August 26 at 6 p.m. PT REGISTER FOR TONIGHT'S TOWNHALL MEETING with Rep. Suzanne Bonamici and Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read to discuss Oregon’s safe and secure election system. Register here: bonamici.house.gov/live?emci=d8...

Read our Dr. Beirich Solidarity Statement here: www.westernstatescenter.org/pressrelease...

"Tuesday marked a rough night for the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, as its members and allies fell to a slew of legislative newcomers in the Republican primary election." cowboystatedaily.com/2026/08/19/n...

"Conspiracy theories tell us the lie that all-powerful forces are behind the devastation our communities face." -Kate Bitz Momentum Program Senior Organizer Western States Center Read the full article in Range Media: buff.ly/zplnObf

Idaho LGBTQ+ artists! Two paid Culture Lab art calls extended. 1. Design inclusive bathroom signs — standard, cheeky, or trans-affirming: bit.ly/idcall4artform 2. An emblem venues display to show they have trans-safe restrooms: bit.ly/idcall4emblemform $500 per selected design. You keep your art.

There's been a lot of conspiracy theories about the fires in Spokane. This hurts a community that's already hurt by fire and smoke. This resource is about the fires. And it is about the conspiracy theories about the fires. It is in plain language.

Low Cut Connie rocked Jimmy Kimmel Live last night 🎸 Friend of Culture Lab, forever. Watch here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMJx... Flashback to their Culture Lab Showcase set at AMP last October! Artists like LCC = a stronger, more joyful democracy.

The U.S. military is not a domestic police force, and we will not normalize troops on our streets!

Badlands and Toad Hall paused an AI face scanner marketed as security. Face scanners at the door do nothing for safety. They misID Black and brown patrons and take your biometric data. Your venue doesn't need a scanner. It needs trained staff and a solid plan. buff.ly/FbQGwjk

The Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as Attorney General, 50-49, despite warnings from 1,200+ former DOJ staff, 101 former judges, and Epstein survivors. "A man wholly undeserving and unfit to serve." — Maya Wiley Leadership Conference President and CEO civilrights.org/2026/08/08/t...

Idaho LGBTQ+ artists: two paid Culture Lab art calls are open. Design inclusive bathroom signs or an emblem venues display to show they have trans-safe restrooms. $500 per selected design, and you keep your art. Contest #01: bit.ly/idcall4artform Contest #02: bit.ly/idcall4emblemform

July 30, 1778: Congress passed America's first whistleblower law, after two officers were sued for reporting their commander's abuse of prisoners. Congress funded their defense instead. 248 years later, National Whistleblower Day marks the same duty: Truth over rank.

Trump questions election security. Oregon's answer: signature-checked ballots, 24-hour surveillance, public observers, secure voter data. The facts: www.oregonlive.com/politics/202...

A public-facing economist at Idaho's labor agency was also an anonymous account trafficking in Nazi imagery and white nationalist promotion. Communities deserve public servants who serve everyone. Naming this is how we protect our institutions.

"The Spillers have bought up much of downtown Battle Ground, WA, seated their own people in city hall, & bought the town's only newspaper. Now they're building a new church for a pastor tied to Christian nationalist Doug Wilson, and a dedicated group of locals is fighting back." buff.ly/lB1jYXO

Today is International Non-Binary People's Day. As anti-democracy movements work to erase non-binary people from public life, we're clear: a democracy where we all thrive includes non-binary people. Not as an exception, but as a given. #NonBinaryPeoplesDay