21 Mar IPN Quarterly — Issue 4, Spring 2022
Welcome to the IPN Quarterly! You have made so much possible and we want to share a few success stories plus give you a peek at upcoming events and initiatives. Check out our refreshed IPN website right here and check out our new swag HERE. Don’t you want to rock an IPN shirt? Get yours now.
Big Impact
So far this year, we’ve been taking part in the fight to designate the land known as Avi Kwa Ame in Southern Nevada as a National Monument. Avi Kwa Ame comprises our federal public lands, and the designation would recognize the importance and public benefit of protecting this region.
Tribal leaders, local municipalities, and conservation groups have supported the establishment of the National Monument over the past several years. Protecting Avi Kwa Ame preserves a cultural corridor that has been utilized by the Indigenous People of the Southwest since time immemorial. Preserving this space means preserving cultural traditions that have been passed down from Tribal Elders for generations. Since the launch of the Biden Interior Department’s ‘America the Beautiful’ initiative, a new opportunity has arisen for these communities to stress the importance of protecting these public lands. Avi Kwa Ame is of significant importance to numerous local tribes and harbors immense biodiversity as home to unique plant and wildlife species.
As a part of the Honor Avi Kwa Ame Coalition, we’ve joined our fellow advocates to secure resolutions from both the Clark County Commissioners and Henderson City Council to support the National Monument designation and legislation in Congress from Rep. Dina Titus.
You can watch the livestream of our press conference with Clark County Commissioner Michael Naft, Rep. Dina Titus, tribal leaders, and community activists here. Sign our petition to support the fight to designate Avi Kwa Ame as a National Monument here.
With YOUR support, we’ve been able to make great strides in this fight. Thank you for all that you do for us.
WHAT’S THE STORY?
What creates change? That’s easy — personal experiences shared with a legislator, amplified in your community, or told to a reporter. We love working with communities and individuals to help them tell their stories. In the last few months domestic violence survivors, unemployed Nevadans, DACA recipients, educators, clean energy advocates, and uninsured Nevadans have all shared their stories. Each one has a unique experience that can change minds. Check out what being a storyteller means to Gabriela, a DACA recipient who joined our storybank this quarter.
“DACA recipients are oftentimes thought of as an abstract concept and sharing our story gives us visibility beyond being just a number. There is no need for others to be our voice, we are our own voice. I share my story because our community must be seen, must be heard. through our own account.” — Gabriela
You can take part in monthly storyteller meetings and learn more about how to get involved in our community by joining our story bank! Contact Brenda Rodriguez at brodriguez@battlebornprogress.org or submit your story here.
Meet the Team
This quarter, we welcomed some new faces to the IPN team, and we’d love to introduce you to our new Voter Education Organizer … Brian Harris!
Brian comes to us from a Chicago suburb called Blue Island, and moved to Las Vegas in early 2019! He’s been here for 3 years and is now making his foray into Nevada politics. Brian will be the brains behind our nonpartisan VOTER GUIDE which we produce every election year to help YOU make informed decisions at the polls.
The voter guide will provide voters with equal access to information about all of the candidates, regardless of party affiliation, on key issues that we work on with our community partners across the state. In the 2020 election, the VoteSmartNV Voter Guide was accessed by Nevada voters 99,421 times statewide! Your support helps us create this content and keep Nevadans informed. Thank you.
Into the Future
Get ready to cast your ballot. As we mentioned, IPN recently grew to welcome our new Voter Education Organizer, Brian Harris, who’s working to put together a comprehensive voter guide. Brian will also work to educate Nevadans on voting measures passed in the Legislature that broaden voting access and further expand voter protections. These measures include implementing Automatic Voter Registration, making Universal Mail-In Voting permanent, making our system a top-down voting system, and continuing to improve our systems for people of color and people with disabilities. Stay tuned for updates on Brian’s work!
As we wrote above, IPN is a part of the coalition working to turn Avi Kwa Ame (Spirit Mountain) into a National Monument. Stay tuned on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages for details about getting involved.
Do you have a story? We want to hear it! Brenda Rodriguez, our Storybank Organizer, is looking for first-person experiences with clean energy, healthcare, pharmaceutical prices, homelessness, unemployment, and worker’s rights. Contact Brenda: brodriguez@battlebornprogress.org or submit your story here.
Join us to continue our work on Gun Violence Prevention. Over the coming months, we will be holding educational events and looking for folks to lift up relevant gun violence issues in the media. Contact Amber: afalgout@battlebornprogress.org.