The Newport Beach Women’s Democratic Club condemns the senseless murders of

                 George Floyd
               Breonna Taylor
               Ahmaud Arbery
               Rayshard Brooks

and stands in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and the Black community. 

We recognize that the time for words and awareness has passed and that action and activism are needed to create meaningful and sustainable change in our country and in our community.

We commit to making tangible changes in our community in the fight for racial justice and equality as a means of dismantling the systemic racism embedded in the fabric of our nation. We acknowledge that this racism results in unfair impacts on communities of color in Orange County. The NBWDC understands that silence is complicity; and, as such, will commit to the following in the near term:

• Partner with the Democratic Party of Orange County, in consultation with local Black-led organizations, to outline a platform of demands of real budgetary changes at the level of city and county government to elevate Black and other communities of color in Orange County.
• We endorse ACA 6, the Free The Vote Act, to grant Californians on parole the right to vote endorsed by a coalition of voting rights partners and California Secretary of State Alex Padilla. People on parole are disproportionately Black and deserve a right to reenter society by taking responsibility for their civic duty.
• We commit to holding our current elected officials to account for policing to achieve a budgetary balance of investment  in our local communities that make them truly safe, like permanent housing, healthcare (including mental health), good jobs, free public transportation, after school programs, community care teams, environmental protection, parks, libraries, and arts programs. 
• We demand full transparency from candidates we support about all police and sheriff’s unions, and union-backed PAC and super-PAC campaign donations. 

In Solidarity,

The Newport Beach Women’s Democratic Club

Selected resources for anti-racism and social justice information, donations and actions.

• Black Lives Matter:  https://blacklivesmatter.com/  
• The Bail Project: https://bailproject.org/  
• NAAPC Legal Defense Fund (NAACPLDF): https://www.naacpldf.org/  
• Communities United Against Police Brutality (CUAPB): https://www.cuapb.org/ 

A Postcard Push to Win
  
As promised, NBWDC is joining other progressive Democratic groups in a postcarding campaign to encourage Democratic voter turnout in November as we’ve never seen it before.

Round 2:  Help fellow Democrats win Senate seats in Kentucky (McConnell) and South Carolina (Graham)

Round 1:  Done! 
Thanks to you, 9,000 postcards were written and sent! And here’s just one example of proud volunteers making sure these postcards find their way to voters.

Round 3:  Coming in August 

If you subscribe to NBWDC’s email newsletters and alerts, you will receive information about how to sign up to participate in this activity from the safety of your own home. Watch your inbox for details coming soon.

If you are not on our email list, you can sign up here or use the Contact Us form above. 

A virtual conversation with Huntington Beach
City Council Candidates @ 6:00 PM July 21 

          Oscar Rodriguez
          Natalie Moser
          Dan Kalmick

If you subscribe to our email list, you will receive an invitation to our July 21 Zoom Meeting

If you support Democratic values and principles but do not yet subscribe to our email newsletters and updates, we encourage you to sign up and get the latest information about our pre-election activities and meeting opportunities such as NBWDC’s Virtual Conversations. Use the Contact Us form above.

2020 Census: It’s Time – It’s Important 

Funding, Redistricting and Fair Representation are all important benefits of the Census.  Complete the quick and easy online form available at My2020census.gov. 

COVID-19 Updates & Information

NBWDC has cancelled all in-person meetings, activities and events until further notice due to COVID-19 mandates issued by Governor Newsom and our OC Health Department. 

We are investigating ways to engage our members and friends through a variety of online tools and resources.  Visit our website often as we will post these opportunities as soon as we are able to make them available for you.

It is vital that you follow the official COVID-19 recommendations to social distance and avoid all public places where crowds congregate, regardless of age, wash your hands frequently for at least 20 seconds and shelter in place if you are 60 years of age or older.

Stay safe … stay socially and responsibly distant to flatten the curve sooner than later!  How important is that?  According to Hoag Hospital’s CEO, here’s why:

“Each person who self-isolates reduces their risk of infecting others dramatically. In 30 days’ time, a single individual who does not practice social isolation runs the risk of infecting 406 people with coronavirus. By reducing physical contact by 75%, that individual’s infection risk plummets to 2.5 people.”

Hoag CEO Robert Braithwaite’s entire letter is available here for you to read.  And we encourage you to do so.

Cities close parks, beaches, parking lots, boardwalks and more
Each city updates their websites daily, particularly their COVID-19 dedicated web pages.  Consistent monitoring of your city’s website is the best way to keep abreast of its latest news and updates.  

Kudos to the City of Newport Beach for creating an entire ONLINE Recreation Center for its residents of all ages.  Classes, games, skills … all available virtually here.

If you need help with shopping and transportation, please ask.  The City of Newport Beach is maintaining its OASIS meal deliveries and transportation services for senior citizens, as well as special assistance for homebound seniors.  Call the City’s Senior Services Dept. at (949) 644-3244 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Many of our local restaurants, while closed to dine-in customers, are offering curb-side pickup and delivery.  Your local Chambers of Commerce lists these restaurants on their websites; for example, Newport Beach Chamber and Corona del Mar Chamber.

Trusted COVID-19 Resources

World Health Organization (WHO)
Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
Orange County Health Department
City of Newport Beach
City of Costa Mesa
City of Huntington Beach
City of Irvine

Additional information and resources are available here

Governor Newsom’s Executive Order
State requirements for essential services and stay-at-home guidelines
Orange County Health Department Updates and Guidelines
NEW:  Masks and face coverings … Make your own LAT article

If you have questions or concerns, or you need assistance in any way, don’t hesitate to contact us and we will help you find the resources you need to stay healthy. 

Please follow the current restrictions and guidelines, and stay safe.  

NBWDC Board

Congratulations are in order!

Newport Beach Mayor Will O’Neill declared 2020 as the “Year of the Volunteers”, and he plans to recognize Newport Beach organizations and individuals who go above and beyond.  We are proud that two of our members (so far) have received this important recognition, Join us in thanking them for their service to the Newport Beach community.

• NBWDC Member Barbara Sloate was recognized at the January 28th City Council meeting for her many years volunteerism with the Friends of OASIS. 
• NBWDC Board Member Karen Tringali was recognized at the February 25th City Council meeting for her many years of volunteerism with the Corona del Mar Residents Association, as well as a number of other civic organizations in the city (including NBWDC).

Congressman Lou Correa recognized Rima Nashashibi, former NBWDC President, as “Woman of the Year”.  Rima will be honored along with other distinguished women from our community on Saturday, March 28, 11:00 a.m., at Chapman University’s Memorial Hall. And we have all been invited to attend the award ceremony and reception.  RSVPs are required; please do so here.  Rima is also being recognized by OC Business Journal as one of their top OC businesswomen at a luncheon on April 30.  See here for more information.

Voters & Candidates & GOTV

Voter Registration

Since the last election, have you:

• Turned 18 and plan to vote in the upcoming elections
• Changed your address
• Decided to change your party affiliation

If you answer yes to any of these questions, don’t forget to register or update your voter registration. There are several helpful online tools and forms which can be found here at OCVote.com.

New OC Voting Procedures for 2020
2020 voting procedures will change, allowing more options and more voter-accessibility.  For information on new Vote Centers, Voting by Mail and more, read here.

Help us GOTV for November 2020
Your financial support, large or small, will help us fund our Newport Beach campaign support office, materials and events; all crucial in turning out the biggest number of Democratic voters ever!  

Our Elected Officials

A current listing of federal and state officials is available here. 

Candidates

Democratic candidates who wish to speak at an NBWDC event or who are seeking an NBWDC Endorsement are required to contact NBWDC’s Programming Committee for criteria and scheduling.  Please use the form below.

Local Press Contacts

• Daily Pilot
• Newport Beach Independent
• StuNewsNewport 
• OC Register

Elected Officials – Federal and State

• A current listing of our federal and state elected officials is available here.

#StandwithPP Campaign (Planned Parenthood)

• Here are all the ways you can help

A Powerful Video – Marginalized Voters on a Global Scale

“Why Labour lost the election” by George Monbiot

George Monbiot is a British writer known for his environmental and political activism. Though he was born to privilege he is known for his writing on the effects of corporate greed on the environment and the political process. In this video he shares his opinion regarding why all over the world peoples appear to be voting for marginal and autocratic individuals rather than competent leaders. His analysis really gives the viewer pause to think about what is the cause of democracies behaving in an inexplicable way. It is his opinion and not everyone will agree with what he has to say, but it is an interesting perspective.  Our thanks to long-time NBWDC Member Saboohi Currim for sharing this powerful video with us.