No Excuses! Absentee Voting Is on the Ballot this Year

by League of Women Voters of Connecticut

“Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to permit the General Assembly to allow each voter to vote by absentee ballot?”

Connecticut voters will see the above question on their November 5 ballot. A “yes” vote supports authorizing our State Legislators to make absentee voting available to ALL eligible Connecticut voters for any reason. A “no” vote opposes any changes, keeping current language in the State Constitution that requires a voter to have a specific reason… to request an absentee ballot.

Currently, Connecticut voters can request an absentee ballot only if they cannot make it to the polls on election day for… active military service, absence from town of residence during voting hours, sickness, physical disability, religious beliefs precluding secular activity on election day, or performance of duties as an election official at a different polling place during voting hours.

Under the amendment, an absentee ballot would still be returned either in person or by mail to the voter’s city or town clerk’s office by the close of business the day before the election, or dropped in an official ballot drop-box before the polls close at 8 p.m. on election day…

Connecticut is behind… other states when it comes to access to absentee voting. It’s time to catch up! Connecticut’s restrictions on voting access are outdated – 28 states do not require a specific reason to vote absentee, including New York, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Eight states and the District of Columbia conduct their elections entirely by mail. Learn more at https://tinyurl.com/yc5frjvw.

Celebrating James Baldwin with Kulturally LIT

The Elm City LIT Fest is now the Kulturally LIT Fest, back for their 5th annual celebration on Saturday, October 5th from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. In continuing with the #YearofBaldwin, this year’s LIT Fest will focus on the works of James Baldwin, as Kulturally LIT continues to commemorate his centennial year and look beyond.

Held on the ConnCat campus at 4 Science Park, the Kulturally LIT Fest: Baldwin Forever will be a vibrant celebration of the centennial year of James Baldwin, one of the most influential voices in Black literature. This day-long festival will immerse you in Baldwin’s enduring legacy through engaging panels, hands-on workshops, and powerful performances. Explore a diverse marketplace featuring local vendors, connect with fellow literature lovers, and be inspired by the words and wisdom of Baldwin in this unforgettable celebration of Black literary excellence. RSVP online at https://tinyurl.com/2xb6eweu or email [email protected] for more information.

Compassionfest 2024: Back for the Bats!

by Tabitha Logan, Compassionfest organizer

Compassionfest returns for its 8th annual event on Saturday, Oct. 12th, 2024 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Whitneyville Cultural Commons, 1253 Whitney Avenue, Hamden. Join us for a day filled with community, compassion, and celebration.

Compassionfest unites like-minded people who believe in justice, kindness, equality, and compassion. This year’s event will feature diverse vendors, vegan food, and activities for all ages. The festival offers a wide variety of activities, including vegan food from local vendors and animal-friendly products. Non-profits sharing their missions and local artisans showcasing crafts will be among the vendors. Vegan tattooing will be available along with yoga and healing workshops.

New to 2024 is the Jack-o-Lantern Lighting and Pumpkin Swap. Festival-goers can bring a lit pumpkin for the lighting at 6 p.m., with a pumpkin swap at 7 p.m. Swap your pumpkin with someone else’s for a fun, interactive experience.

The event will also feature live music throughout the day. Whether you’re a long-time vegan, curious about compassionate living, or just looking for fun, Compassionfest 2024 has something for everyone.
 Admission is free, with a suggested donation to support the CT Vegan Center‘s “SAVE THE BATS” campaign. Contributions will help fund conservation efforts to protect vital bat populations.

RSVP for your free ticket via Eventbrite. Stay informed by following Compassionfest on social media.

Join us for a day of compassion and community. Spread the word and let’s make a difference together!

Want to Volunteer to Make a Rain Garden?

by Save the Sound

Rain gardens divert water from manmade surfaces into gardens planted with native shrubs, grasses, flowers, layered soil, and sand, which together work to filter out harmful stormwater pollutants. This year, we are installing residential rain gardens throughout New Haven and Hamden in October and are looking for volunteers to assist us in this important work. For more details and to volunteer, go to www.savethesound.org/rain-garden-installations.

October Community Engagement Workshops at the New Haven Free Public Library

by Rory Martorana, NHFPL Public Services Administrator for Communications and Adult Services

Every few years, the New Haven Free Public Library (NHFPL) crafts a Strategic Framework—a roadmap of initiatives designed to bring our Mission, Vision, and Values to life. These frameworks are built on the insights and ideas shared by you—the residents of New Haven and visitors to NHFPL—to meet the city’s informational, cultural, and educational needs.
We need your help to make this project successful. Share feedback on what our community needs. Tell us what you love, what we might do differently, and your thoughts on new and innovative programs you would like to see at NHFPL. Your input will help guide our goals and services for the next three years.

Community Engagement Workshops Schedule for October:

  1. Oct. 1, 6-7:30 p.m. at Wilson Branch, 303 Washington Ave. (Spanish)
  2. Oct. 2, 6-7:30 p.m. at Stetson Branch, 197 Dixwell Ave. (English)
  3. Oct. 8, 6-7:30 p.m. at Ives Main Library, 133 Elm St. (Mandarin)

Registration is required and refreshments will be served. Each workshop is limited to 25 participants. For more information and to register, call 203-946-8130, ext. 101.

Check our planning progress at http://nhfpl.org, and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok @nhfpl for the latest updates, details on Community Engagement Workshops, and more. Let’s work together to create a better future for New Haven.

Out of the Darkness Community Walk to Prevent Suicide, Oct. 6, Town Center Park, Hamden

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) is dedicated to saving lives and bringing hope to those affected by suicide. AFSP creates a culture that’s smart about mental health through education and community programs, develops suicide prevention through research and advocacy, and provides support for those affected by suicide.

The AFSP’s Community Walks, the core of the Out of the Darkness movement, began in 2004. These events give people the courage to open up about their own connections to the cause, and a platform to create a culture that’s smarter about mental health. Friends, family members, neighbors and coworkers walk side-by-side, supporting each other and in memory of those we’ve lost. (continued on next page)

The New Haven County Walk will be held on Oct. 6 at 9 a.m. in Town Center Park, Hamden. It’s more important than ever for us to stay connected. Register today at https://tinyurl.com/bddhww6f and help save lives and bring hope to those affected by suicide.

Contacts: Eileen Januszkiewicz ([email protected]) & Caleb Warner ([email protected]).

CT Green Energy News Sept. 13, 2024

Excerpts from CT Green Energy News, a publication of People’s Action for Clean Energy (PACE). Visit their website to get the latest CT-focused energy news delivered to your inbox each Friday: pacecleanenergy.org.

As tri-state offshore wind auction moves forward, CT decides to delay decision
Connecticut Public.​ Connecticut surprised some environ-mentalists on Friday, when Massachusetts and Rhode Island were the only states to announce which new offshore wind turbine projects they would buy electricity from, if the projects are constructed. “The evaluation of project bids remains underway in Connecticut and we will announce a final decision in our solicitation at a future date,” a CT Department of Energy and Environmental Protection spokesperson said in a statement.

CT was no-show at wind energy auction it helped organize.
Hartford Courant. Massachusetts has signaled it is recep-tive to an agreement, proposed by Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, that could put Connecticut back into offshore wind procurement. Under the plan, according to industry and government officials, Massachusetts would join Connecticut in a long-term agreement to buy energy from the Millstone nuclear power station in Waterford. Connecticut, in return, would partner with Massachusetts on buying power from the offshore wind project Vineyard Wind 2, planned for a tract of ocean about 25 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard.

Opponents of proposed Brookfield gas compressor expansion bolstered by new study on health risks
NewsTimes. Bolstered by new research outlining the potential dangers of the project, town and state officials are engaged in an all-out effort to pull the plug on plans to expand a natural gas compressor station located near many homes and just 1,900 feet from Whisconier Middle School. The expansion would result in increased emissions of and exposure of local residents to toxins, including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides….The study says the facility “should be over a mile away from residents,” [said Nick Katevich from the Sierra Club]…. “But in the Brookfield facility, there’s hundreds of residents that live within a half a mile of the facility…” Brookfield needs Gov. Ned Lamont and state Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes to take a stand against the expansion, he said.

Waterbury schools set for solar panel expansion
CT Examiner. The city school district aims to lead the region in solar power, with the Board of Aldermen set to approve bonding next week for panel installations at five more schools….“There is money available to get this done and the technology is further advanced today. [Solar panels] are much more efficient and they are more accepted than they once were.” Although there is bonding for the project, local leaders said the city would ultimately pay nothing for the installations…. “Essentially, we are getting these solar panels at zero cost to us,” said Board of Education Chief Operating Officer Nick Albini, noting that Waterbury will see $4.6 million in savings over 20 years.​

Opinion: CT leaders must address gas system ‘death spiral’
Kat Burnham, CT Mirror. Connecticut suffers from some of the highest electricity rates in the country, and these challenges need to be addressed urgently. But the conversation in the state about how to combat the growing cost of energy for households and businesses has so far been incomplete, focusing on only one half of the equation. Left entirely undiscussed: the gas utility sector and looming crisis of affordable heat…households and businesses are moving away from the direct use of gas, either for cost, comfort, climate, health, or safety reasons. The state’s natural gas utilities risk diminishing customer enrollment and demand per customer, spread over the same – or growing – infrastructure costs. This lethal confluence of trends is bound to send gas bills skyrocketing. Called the “gas utility death spiral,” this process will hit vulnerable communities (e.g. renters, low-income residents, fixed-income seniors) the hardest.

Opinion: Everyone in Connecticut has the right to clean air
Quanishe Flippen, Hartford Courant.  The Capitol Area System​ [CAS], which has a decades-long history of polluting our air, needs to be replaced. We have the opportunity to choose 100% clean, renewable energy solutions, such as ground-source electric heat pumps, that will significantly reduce harmful emissions and improve our air quality. These solutions are not just about cleaner air; they represent a commitment to the future of our children and our community…[So] it is disappointing to see that the ​[CAS] study still includes fossil fuel options. This is not just a step backward for Hartford; it’s a step backward for our entire state. Governor Lamont and our leaders must act on their commitments to clean energy and reject any fossil fuel alternatives. Our health, our environment, and our future depend on it.

Unforgotten: Connecticut’s Hidden History of Slavery

CT Public Radio www.npr.org/podcasts/organizations/s546

It’s a history lesson many of us didn’t get in school: Slavery has deep roots in Connecticut and across New England. Enslaved people helped build the foundation of much of this state. Get to know some of these men and women and the lives they lived. Hear from descendants who reflect on their loved ones. And learn from historians and experts going on a journey of discovery to recover this hidden history. In this five-part episode podcast from Connecticut Public, Report-er/Producer Diane Orson and Editorial Consultant and Curator Frank Mitchell talk about some of the issues in, and around these stories.

Visit www.ctpublic.org/unforgotten to learn more, including additional videos, photos and digital stories.

Can Connecticut at Least Divest the Drone Company?

by Stanley Heller, Executive Director, Middle East Crisis Committee

Responding to a resident’s request, the State Treasurer’s office revealed that investments of state money in Israel have ballooned to over $113 million. This is a big increase since 2021 when it was $85 million.

The Israeli government, which is widely recognized as guilty of the international crime of apartheid, is committing the crime of genocide in Gaza, and since October of 2023 has killed hundreds of Palestinian civilians in the West Bank. For a decade, groups and individuals have been calling on various treasurers and CT governors to divest from Israel. They’ve argued that it’s a shame to make profit from financing oppression. However, these calls have been ignored. To make some headway an effort is underway to get rid of just one Israeli stock.

The Treasury has now over a million dollars invested in Elbit, Israel’s biggest weapons company, which has made drones that are implicated in several massacres. In 2014 its Hermes drone was involved in a notorious incident at a Gaza beach where the drone gunned down four cousins playing soccer. The oldest was 11. Elbit produces cluster munitions, weaponized white phosphorus, and flechette projectiles. The use of these weapons is prohibited under a 2008 international treaty signed by 111 countries.

A petition campaign has been started calling on the state of Connecticut to divest its Elbit stock. This is the link to the Change.org petition: https://tinyurl.com/divest-elbit. The campaign should be of special interest to public worker unions. The overwhelming majority of money in the state treasury is money to be used for pensions for Connecticut teachers, state employees and city employees. Much of it has been deducted from those workers’ salaries. Other money comes from general taxes. None of that money should be used to finance Israeli wars, prisons and walls.

Often one hears the argument that we’re wasting our time with divestment efforts because nothing can be done and that the companies are just too powerful. Yet just recently it was announced that Elbit is permanently closing down its offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts, after months of picketing.

As Israel Expands Its Lebanon Attacks…

The need to divest from Israel grows as Israel becomes more aggressive in its bombings in Lebanon, which has faced acts of war from the Zionist government for many decades. In September, many memorialized the Sabra and Shatila massacres of mid-September 1982 when over 1400 Palestinians and Lebanese were killed during Israel’s invasion. Since the genocide in Gaza began there’s been limited attacks from Hezbollah forces in Lebanon in solidarity with Palestinians. Israel has responded with jets dropping bombs. Some include white phosphorus, whose use against civilians is regarded as a war crime. There’s been a steady drumbeat by rightist forces in Israel for a full-scale attack on Lebanon. The mass explosions of pagers and walkie-talkies that killed scores and maimed thousands may be the start of that attack.

Connecticut should divest from Israel if only for its constant aggression against Lebanon.
For questions or more information: [email protected].

Confronting the Plastic Pollution Crisis 

by Faye Park, President, ConnPIRG

Support bans on the worst form of single-use plastic! One in three Americans now live in a state with a ban on at least one form of single-use plastic — including here in Connecticut.

Hold plastic producers accountable for the waste their products become by supporting producer responsibility legislation at the national and state levels. PIRG helped lead the charge to win groundbreaking producer responsibility laws for packaging in Colorado, California and Oregon — and Connecticut could be next.

One of the most impactful things we can do to protect our planet and our health is stem the tide of plastic pollution.

As the world’s largest online retailer, Amazon produces a ton of plastic trash in the form of packaging. The company has said it’s committed to reducing its plastic waste – but the amount of plastic packaging it uses in America is actually growing, not shrinking.

New research shows that Amazon produced 208 million pounds of plastic packaging trash in the U.S. in 2022, a 10% increase over the prior year.

We need Amazon to get its plastic production under control and turn to more sustainable packaging alternatives. To keep our work going strong, we need everyone who believes in a zero-waste future to come together.

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