If the election is stolen – Call for People’s Strike

If the November election is stolen

OCCUPY THE STREETS

No work, No school, No shopping

A Call for People’s General Strike

This may be the first time that a U.S. president has said he won’t accept the result of the vote, indicating that there will be no peaceful transition. This is not an idle threat. Trump has his own paramilitary police, Homeland Security, the support of the most virulent and reactionary police departments, and a myriad of violent, racist, vigilante-type groups.

At the Sept. 29 debate, after the moderator suggested condemning the Proud Boys, a far-right, violently racist group, Trump declared: “Proud Boys: stand back and stand by,” acknowledging he was their leader.

Later in the debate, Trump refused to say he would abide by the results of the election. He declined to tell his supporters to remain calm or avoid violence. “If I see tens of thousands of ballots, I can’t go along with that,” he said, urging his supporters to go to the polls and “watch very carefully.”

What can we do if there is an attempted coup, an outright coup or an effort to sabotage the vote? The people must prepare.

We are the people: Low-wage workers who are at the frontlines, risking our lives, whether we are grocery workers, bus drivers or Amazon warehouse workers; those of us in the streets protesting for Black Lives Matter and community control of police; those of us in the community facing evictions, foreclosures and utility shut-offs; students and youth concerned with catastrophic climate change and unsafe school reopening; healthcare workers and teachers sacrificing for our patients and students; Black, Brown and Indigenous communities along with seniors disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Our lives are at stake.

We must act to protect people’s rights! Every vote counts and we will not accept a stolen election, no matter what form it takes, whether it’s stolen through a Supreme Court decision, the undemocratic Electoral College, or violence by the far right forces backing Trump.

If the election is stolen, from Nov. 3, 2020, through Jan. 20, 2021, it will be time for us to be in the streets in such large numbers that the system cannot run. Call in sick! Occupy the streets! March and picket at Federal Buildings, banks and businesses, and other suitable targets in your city, state or county. Organize civil disobedience. Urge your union to prepare for sick-outs and strikes.

Here are some important dates to plan around:

November 2 Support the call for Black Solidarity Day and International Election Observers.

November 3 (Election Day): physical voting at the polls. Join local groups like People’s Committees to Defend Democratic Rights or other local efforts to stop any intimidation by right-wing armed groups. Help escort Black, Brown, Indigenous and LGBTQ2S people and seniors to the polls to guarantee their safety.

November 4: Support the call by the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression Post-Election Protest for a Peoples Mandate for national day after demonstrations.

Baltimore, November 4 SIGN UP ON FACEBOOK Protest for a Peoples Mandate.

During this period paper ballots will be counted. At any point the Supreme Court, consisting of just nine judges, may step in as it did in the 2000 election to undemocratically decide the direction of the elections.

December 8, marks the end of the “safe harbor” period for states to determine that election results will not be challenged in Congress. On December 14, Electoral College delegates cast their ballots on a state level. On January 6, 2020 Congress meets to count the Electoral College and declares a winner.

January 20, 2021 (Inauguration Day): Regardless of the outcome, we must continue to press for the demands that people need and want — Black Lives Matter, stopping police and ICE terror, healthcare for all, cancel rent & stop evictions and foreclosures, workers’ rights and safety on the job, jobs or income for all, no war or sanctions.

Please sign onto this call and begin to organize in your area.

SIGN ON TO CALL

Initial Signers:

Signed:

Peoples Power Assembly

Harriet Tubman Center for Social Justice

ICE Out of Baltimore

Youth Against War & Racism

Rev. CD Witherspoon

Peoples Alliance

Rev. Annie Chambers, Douglas Homes RAB Delegate

Prisoners Solidarity Committee