Havdalah #23: beehiiv, The Storm, & Don't Panic

Shavua tov, neighbors!

Cat’s finally out of the bag. For those of you who have already followed us over to beehiiv, thank you. I cannot express enough how humbled I am that you’ve chosen to continue on with us as we grow into our own as White Rose RI. I also cannot adequately articulate how proud I am to call Katherine and Lee my colleagues and collaborators, and how proud I am of the work they’ve put in to make Havdalah what it is. I’m not exaggerating when I say that White Rose RI has been the unmatched highlight of a very challenging year. I love what we have created, and I love the neighborhood you’ve all built with us. I feel thankful above all else, and I am clinging to that feeling in the midst of a harrowing political tempest and social upheaval.

Elephant in the room (lotta critters in this intro): things have been pretty unchill.

We all know what I’m talking about, we all feel the radio static in our heads, the rabbit’s tachycardia in our chests, the tunnel rush of air in our ears as everything narrows to the point of crisis in our skulls. We all hear the siren songs of panic and despair.

Screw your courage to the sticking place and tie your captains to your masts. We’re in this together, and that’s the only way we get through this: together.

This issue, Katherine contributes one of her beautiful, tempestuous poems, one that feels appropriately atmospheric for this moment. I think of it like the summer thunderstorms we’ve been blessed with recently, and which hopefully will continue into August. Sit in the dark of your room while the storm rails against the windows, rattling the frames and soaking the panes, briefly and sporadically illuminating your walls with pale violet flashes. Feel as much as hear the cracks that split through the sky. Sit in the storm without fighting it, and think of Job.

There’s a heavier load of information in Fash Watch this time, but if you can only spare time for one or two things, I strongly encourage you to read Kelly Hayes’ piece in Organizing My Thoughts and listen to Robert Evans’ Monday episode of It Could Happen Here from the Required Reading / Listening section.

Things look grim. We cannot afford to alienate friends we will need later. If you take one thing away from this issue, let it be this:

Don’t panic.

Bella ciao.

James (he / him)

Musical and Cultural Connections: Panel Discussion Featuring Jerod Impichcha̱achaaha' Tate

• When: Thursday, August 1, 7:00pm-9:00pm

• Where: Edwards Hall Auditorium, University of Rhode Island, 64 Upper College Road, Kingston, RI 02881

• At the Kingston Chamber Music Festival, Jerod Impichcha̱achaaha' Tate (Chickasaw) will join a panel of composers and musicians for a discussion on the relationship between Native American culture and contemporary classical composition. Often unrecognized and historically underrepresented, the influence of Indigenous musical traditions on acoustic bowed instrument performance invites meaningful artistic and intercultural exploration.

• This event is free and open to the public with advanced registration.

• Registration for 8/1 Panel Discussion

• There will be a performance the following evening — see details below in our “What’s On” section.

Musical and Cultural Connections: Dover Quartet Concert

• When: Friday, August 2, 7:30pm-9:00pm

• Where: Edwards Hall Auditorium, University of Rhode Island, 64 Upper College Road, Kingston, RI 02881

• At the Kingston Chamber Music Festival, the world-renowned Dover Quartet will perform several pieces including a world premiere of Woodland Songs by Jerod Impichcha̱achaaha' Tate (Chickasaw). Woodland Songs is a five-character suite celebrating the animals that represent different clans of the Eastern Woodlands People, including squirrel, bird, deer, raccoon, and fish. “My compositions typically express Native culture through highly dramatic and theatrical lenses, and this work is meant to amplify the wonderful personalities of each animal,” Tate says.

• Tickets for Dover Quartet Concert

• The previous evening, there will be a panel discussion on the relationship between Native American culture and contemporary classical composition — see details above in our “Education” section.

The Womxn Project’s Bodily Freedom Forever Index

• When: on your own time

• Where: over Zoom, online, and / or in your local area

• This election year, it is crucial to pay attention to all of the elected positions on the ballot. Our local elected officials hold a lot of power in making decisions on our behalf every day through policies, budgets, and more. It can be difficult to find information about a candidate’s values and goals as elected officials, but it’s critical we ensure they will be empathetic, caring advocates for us and our communities. The Bodily Freedom Forever Index (BFFI) will be a compiled report evaluating all of the candidates running for office in towns across Rhode Island. Using a report card that includes six criteria, we want to determine the answer to the question: “Do your candidates believe in bodily freedom for all?”

• The Womxn Project is inviting volunteers to learn about this BFFI over Zoom on their own time. They are looking for community members to research and evaluate the candidates in local elections in a district of the volunteer’s choice.

• BFFI Info and Sign-Up

Continuing Actions for Palestine

Jewish Voice for Peace Weekly Flyering

• When: Every Wednesday, 5:00pm-6:00pm

• Where: Providence Train Station, 100 Gaspee Street, Providence, RI 02903

• JVP RI invites all to join them in their efforts to spread the word about their work and simple actions people can take to demand an end to the genocide in Palestine. They meet on the Statehouse side of the train station.

Weekly Kaddish

• When: Every Sunday, 1:00pm-1:30pm

• Where: Michael Van Leesten Pedestrian Bridge, Providence, RI 02903

• Jewish Voice for Peace RI and allies will be hosting a weekly gathering on Sundays to recite the Mourners Kaddish and communally grieve the Palestinians murdered by the Israeli military. You need not be Jewish to attend; all are welcome to participate.

Power Half-Hours for Gaza

• When: every day, Monday through Friday, 3:00pm EST

• Where: online

• Jewish Voice for Peace is holding Power Half-Hours for Gaza every day — join us as we channel our fury and sorrow into collective action to stop genocide.

• Power Half-Hours for Gaza Registration

Ceasefire Today Toolkit

• This toolkit has a variety of links, including call scripts, groups accepting donations, phone banks, petitions, and more

• Ceasefire Today Toolkit

News Coverage

• As always, especially when getting news from social media, be aware of who is sharing information and why they’re doing it.

• Al Jazeera Coverage of the War on Gaza has continued to be a reliable source

RI Food Bank

• The Rhode Island Food Bank distributed 16.2 million pounds of food this past year, and with the SNAP benefits partially cut in March, it was sorely needed. While it feels good to drop cans or cereal in collection boxes at your work place or apartment complex, the money goes farther and feeds more people if you give it to RI Food Bank directly (they can buy wholesale! And buy fresh veggies!).

• Reoccurring donations, even if they’re a smaller amount than a one off, are often more useful because they mean the organization has a better understanding of its budget.

• RI Food Bank Annual Report

Donation Link for the RI Food Bank

Job 38:1

Katherine (she / her)

There are voices in the whirlwind:

They whisper secrets sometimes, or proclaim revelation.

They are there, in the cataclysm; 

in the storm, in the earthquake, in the roar of a wildfire,

in the silence that follows destruction.

You can hear them, if you venture too near to where Death lingers,

Seek out wisdom ill-suited to human minds;

Cry your questions and repent the asking.

The voices will tell you the truth —

Though it will not be a comfort —

And you will know what until then you had only dreaded:

Your ignorance, your insignificance, your complete dependence.

And you will be trapped by the knowledge you have demanded.

Needle Drop: “The Lightning Strike (What If This Storm Ends?)”, Snow Patrol

Required Reading / Listening

Take a Deep Breath and Think About What You Need to Do (Kelly Hayes in Organizing My Thoughts, July 3, 2024)

Don’t Panic (Robert Evans in It Could Happen Here, July 15, 2024)

Fascism: Anti-Trans Crusade Remains One of the Leading Pipelines to Far-Right Radicalization

Local

Book banner Jeffrey LeBlanc is running for Smithfield School Committee (Steve Ahlquist, July 15, 2024)

Who are the candidates that signed the Moms for Liberty pledge in Rhode Island? (Steve Ahlquist, July 16, 2024)

National

Project 2025 Policy Targeting Trans Service Members Passes Dem. Senate Committee (Erin Reed in Erin in the Morning, July 10, 2024)

After Anti-Trans Military Vote, Sen. Manchin Embraces Project 2025 Policy Targeting All Trans Care (Erin Reed in Erin in the Morning, July 15, 2024)

Pod Recs: It Could Happen Here at the Republican National Convention

The RNC Welcome Party (July 16, 2024)

Make America Wealthy Once Again (July 17, 2024)

Police Killing Outside RNC on “Make America Safe Again” Day (July 18, 2024)

Inside the Heritage Foundation RNC Party (July 19, 2024)

Deep Dives, Op-Eds, & Investigations

Israeli army used Hannibal Directive during October 7 Hamas attack: Report (Al Jazeera, July 7, 2024)

Democrats don’t just need a new candidate. They need a reckoning (Osita Nwanevu for The Guardian, July 8, 2024)

Unite the Right Marcher Pleads Guilty to J6 Charges (Molly Conger in The Devil’s Advocates, July 9, 2024)

In Private Speech, J.D. Vance Said the “Devil is Real” and Praised Alex Jones as a Truth-Teller (Andy Kroll and Nick Sergey for ProPublica and Documented, July 16, 2024)

What Does Peace Mean in the Heart of Empire? (Kelly Hayes in Organizing My Thoughts, July 19, 2024)