No Kings! on Flag Day, June 14

FIGHTING FOR A FOREVER FREE STATE

Issue #28, June 2025

The Crawford County Young Democrats have planned a No Kings Day protest, as part of a larger, nationwide movement. We’ll be meeting at Prichett Pavilion, 106 W. Second St., Pittsburg (the corner of Broadway and Second Street) on June 14 at 2:30pm.

June 14 is Flag Day, commemorating the day in 1777 when the Second Continental Congress adopted the flag of the United States, but our convict-in-chief is planning a military parade in Washington for his own 79th birthday.

Because of this, the main focus of our protest will be preserving democracy, in view of ‘TACO Trade’ Donald's overreach. In that spirit, this will be an open mic event. Attendees are welcome to share their stories and perspectives (within a two-minute time limit).

We want to have a mixture of signs and American flags, to show that the right does not own patriotism and we will be handing out small flags. Additionally, some local organizations will have tables, and Crawford County Democratic headquarters will be open with refreshments, as it will likely be hot.

There are also other protests in the area, planned by five Southeast Kansas counties, one of which is a convoy around local towns. This will stop in Pittsburg, around the time of the protest.

The planning for this is still in process and more details about the convoys in relation to this protest will be forthcoming, shared through the county party Facebook page. Say tuned!

— Sophia Stapleton
President of Crawford County Young Democrats

Picnic in the park on June 22

The Crawford County Democratic Party picnic and meeting will be a bring-a-dish event with hamburgers and hot dogs on Sunday, June 22 from 1-3 pm in Lincoln Park Shelter House #3, 813 Memorial Drive in Pittsburg.

We’ll get together, discuss our strategies, meet candidates, recognize volunteers, plan upcoming events and enjoy a day in the park. We need you, your families and friends to join us for our collective success.

Please let Emily know if you have any items you'd like to see added to the agenda at emily@crawfordcountyksdems.org

We look forward to seeing everyone there!

School Board Candidate: Ruth Miller

Background:

I am a strong advocate for public education. During the 31 years of my career in education I taught a variety of subjects—PE, Health, Science, Social Studies, Reading, and Title I Reading, at middle school and elementary school levels. I coached middle school and high school sports. My first principalship was with the Wichita County School District in Leoti, Kansas. In this position I served as principal of three separate elementary schools. In 1996 I was hired by USD 250 to serve as the principal of George Nettles Elementary School for five years and served as principal of Westside Elementary School for 10 years, and then retired in 2011 from my career in education.

During my tenure with USD 250, I worked directly with many social service agencies, community groups, health care programs, courts, Pittsburg State University, law enforcement and the churches to ensure the parents and students were receiving what they needed for their children to succeed in school.

For five years I served as co-chair with Sheriff Sandy Horton, for the Crawford County Coalition and also collaborated with Community Health in setting up in-school Health, Dental and Children’s behavioral health clinics at Westside Elementary School.

Why Run?

The Department of Education may be dismantled at the federal level and no new information has been issued about the programs that are sponsored with Title I and Special Education funding. Thus, the district will need experienced people with strong educational insights that come from professional educators to make informed decisions regarding the budget, personnel, curriculum, and community relations and communication.
Before I make any decision regarding the budget, or other issues, I want to know how my action will impact student learning and whether this is the way to get the best for our money, effort, and time.
For the past 29 years, I have worked hard with the community to make it a better place to live and learn. I have a deep fondness for the Pittsburg community and the school district, and my ambition is simply to do my best for those I serve.

Pittsburg City Commission candidate: Isaiah Harris

Hello everyone! If you don’t know me, my name is Isaiah Harris and I’m officially announcing my candidacy for city commission of Pittsburg. I was born and raised in this town and have seen it from all angles: good, bad, and ugly. I grew up watching my mother – who raised me and my sister alone – cry over eviction notices because she had to miss work to bring me to school. I grew up seeing how our incredible school system gives all children opportunities, regardless of background or class. I also grew up seeing the love people have for our town and how our rich history still influences us to this day.

I got a job in high school at the Mall Deli, and since then I’ve worked my way up from washing dishes to upper management, all while putting myself through college. My fiancee, Molly, and I recently bought a house last fall, and it was extremely difficult. To be completely frank and transparent, I worked 50 hours a week for 7 years to earn just enough for a down payment on a 30-year loan. And I was lucky to be able to do so – me and my fiancée are in good health and had our cars paid off before we got together. Plenty of people work harder and have less; that is untenable. It should not be this difficult to pursue your dreams and establish stability, and fortunately we have the tools to make it so. Anyone working 40 hours a week should be able to buy a house and live in dignity. This isn’t a radical proposition.

Our community has the capacity for amazing things, and we have a lot to be proud of: Pittsburg State University boasts enrollment in the thousands and brings us incredible diversity and economic development. Our town is one of the most welcoming environments I’ve ever seen to foster the growth of small businesses, from restaurants to cleaning services and from banks to construction companies. I cannot count the number of times I’ve been filled with immense pride seeing Little Balkans Day or Art Walk celebrations or seeing our community rally together behind the Believe in Benny campaign and most recently around the family of Jordan Baldwin. We take care of one another. As we should. As if we were all family.

I believe the future of Pittsburg lies not just in the hands of our leadership, but in the collective action of all of us working together for the betterment of everyone. The city of Pittsburg has a lot going for it, but under the hood there are serious concerns about our long-term health and sustainability. About two-thirds of all jobs in this town are filled by people who don’t live in city limits. We attract workers, but they can’t afford to live here. And many who live here can’t afford to work here. Every day, 3,000-4,000 Pittsburg residents leave town and commute to work elsewhere. More than half of the workforce in Pittsburg earn less than $45,000 a year. More than half of all households in Pittsburg are renters, and many of those spend more than 30% of their income on their rent (or mortgage), which is how we traditionally define being in poverty or being “cost-burdened.” These are not statistics that bode well for the future if allowed to fester. It’s not news that the cost of living has outpaced wages for a while, and that affects us all – not just housing, but childcare, healthcare, and the cost of goods and services. There is no quick fix to these issues, but the good news is that there are solutions.

We must look at our zoning policies and prioritize development of affordable housing without depressing home values. We have to assist daycare facilities without creating a tax burden. My fiancée runs an in-home daycare and I’ve seen firsthand how much an impact it has on young families in our town. We must continue to support small businesses through tax incentives and community involvement, which provide jobs just as much as they do the culture of Pittsburg. We can and we must ensure the best parts of our town persist; our welcoming small-town ethos of compassion and solidarity is what keeps people here. We have to continue to make our community a place worth investing in by those who live here and those who don’t. We must look to the future and recognize that our town is growing, and we need forward-thinking individuals who see that change and are ready to make sure that growth serves everyone. Whether that means homeownership, creating a family, building a career, or just trying to get by. there is a place for all of us. If you have questions or want to chat about my campaign or Pittsburg in general, please do not hesitate to contact me!

Isaiah Harris
620-670-0848
isaiahleeharris180@gmail.com

Frontenac City Council incumbent: Lynn Grant

I previously served several years on the Cherokee, KS City Council before moving to Frontenac in 2011. A position opened up on the Frontenac Council in 2017 and I was encouraged to run, was elected and have been there ever since. Frontenac has an eight-person council, a mayor and a city administrator. Communication among the three entities is imperative and is handled well by those involved.

Serving the people in a community brings more opportunities to learn more about the residents and your neighbors. It emphasizes the need to listen to all sides of an issue. We are fortunate to have employees of the city who are essential to keeping us informed and provide background on questions that arise in discussion. They make our jobs so much easier.

Speaker Tip O’Neill said “All politics is local.” Local elected officials are truly the grassroots of politics.

Lynn Grant

Running for Frontenac City Council, 3rd Ward

A Rhyme and Rant from Delma

From the Political Rhymes and Rants of an Unapolagetic “Woke” Nonagenarian by Delma Smith-Thompson, 2024

Silence is Assent

By Jim Orwig

“Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities.” —Voltaire

What better application of this observation than recent killings of rescue workers by Israeli soldiers. Soldiers who are Jews killed unarmed Palestinians, who are not Jews. To protest this action by Jews is to be labeled anti-semitic. To draw a comparison of what Jewish soldiers are doing to Palestinian men, women, and children, with what German soldiers did to Jewish men, women, and children in World War II, is considered unfair, and the atrocities continue, unabated, until everything is destroyed and all the Palestinians are dead or driven out. If I were a student on some campuses in the United States and I expressed my outrage at the daily murders of children, men, and women, I could be expelled, arrested or deported, based on my status as a citizen or foreigner.

I am not a student. I am a citizen. I can speak out, but if I act out in public, I may be subject to arrest. Recently, Rev. William Barber, a co-leader of the Poor People’s Campaign for a Moral Revival, was arrested, put in zip-ties, and roughly removed from the Rotunda of the Capitol in Washington, D.C., for praying with others for the poor, the sick, the hungry and the oppressed. It was a non-violent, public action that challenged the ongoing, intentional destruction of government institutions. The image of Elon Musk waving a chainsaw is an apt symbol of what has been happening since Trump took office.

Rather than ignoring the extreme words and actions of the Trump regime, we need to challenge the absurdities. The Democratic Party has been extremely cautious about naming the movement towards fascism in this country by not saying that f-word.

One of many groups who are resisting the effort by the Executive branch of our government to ignore the Legislative and the Judicial branches is Progressive Democrats of America (PDA). “PDA was founded in 2004 to transform the Democratic Party and our country.” PDA seeks “to build a party and government controlled by citizens, not corporate elites, with policies that serve the broad public interests, not just private interests.” https://pdamerica.org/about-pda/

The key tenet of PDA is to work within the Democratic Party to support policies and candidates that reflect the values of the American people, such as Medicare for all, the end of support for Israel’s genocide of the Palestinian people, well-funded public education, reduction of military spending, investment in infrastructure, affordable housing, well-paying jobs, care for veterans, the elderly, those with physical or mental disabilities, and addressing climate change. If you find yourself in favor of these policies, you’re probably a progressive at heart.

Every Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. PDA hosts a zoom townhall with a featured guest who speaks about current issues related to their role as an activist or legislator. Those who attend have an opportunity to ask questions of the guest and hosts.

We Democrats in Kansas are challenged to transform good ideas into actions that move people to stand up to the horrendous administration in Washington, as well as our state and local governments. We are blessed here in Crawford County with leadership that invites involvement beyond voting and words to action.

We are also in the process of building a Kansas chapter of PDA to expand the progressive agenda beyond local issues to include our sisters and brothers who have been largely ignored in rural, strongly Republican areas of Kansas. There are anonymous Democrats out there who can be mobilized and supported. After registering for membership in PDA at pdamerica.org, you will be placed on a contact list for notification of when events are scheduled. The Kansas Chapter is planning a forum in June on the expanded Medicare for All bill that was recently introduced in Congress. For information about the next meeting, contact me, Jim Orwig, at 402-880-4752, call or text, and jimo4783@gmail.com .

Book group, potluck meets June 18

By Harriet Bachner

For our May book group meeting we shared book selections from the mystery series of William Kent Krueger. Of his 25 books only four were selected by our members with three folks reading Ordinary Grace. We summarized the plots, and the mysterious elements of the books we read. As a result of these descriptions, we identified some consistent themes and messages among the four books. These include Native American and First Nations central characters and cultural identities, the settings being in Northern Minnesota and around the Canadian border, action often taking place in forests or wooded areas, main characters harbouring secrets that were central to the plots and outcomes, and a love relationship with at least two characters. As often occurs in our book discussions, we found some of our personal experiences related to those of the characters in our books. These shared personal anecdotes made for a lively and humorous conversation as we partook from a variety of tasty dishes from our potluck meal.

We selected another mystery novel author and again decided for each book group attendee to choose from the author’s books. Although Tana French was born in the United States, she spent her childhood in many different countries and has settled in Dublin. She has achieved international recognition with more than eight awards coming from around the world and has secured a place on the best seller list for her first novel, In the Woods.

So, for our June book group gathering on June 18 at Crawford County Dem headquarters we will compare, discuss, recommend, or pan the book we selected. Whether you read a book or not, all are welcome to join for comic relief, tasty potluck, and congenial connection with other folks who enjoy reading.

Liberal Ladies reports

By Susy Hammons

LL met on May 7, at noon, at Dem HQ. We had another large group of spirited women. Audrey came for the first time. She is a friend of Betty. We sang Happy Birthday to Nancy Tomassi and Rexine Warehime. Nancy will take charge of birthday recognition. There were several suggestions of how to organize and have fun with birthdays. Tell Nancy your ideas. A list was sent around to list birthdays.

Janice alerted us to Nancy Tomassi's granddaughter Shayna's blue ribbon for a solo performance. She was Concert Master of the concert and was awarded Best Leader by her classmates!

Janice explained the newly formed Social Gatherings. Kay Long suggested calling them the 3rd Tuesday Social.

On Saturday, June 14, Flag Day and also called No Kings Day, there will be protests. This is the same day Trump wants a military parade for his birthday.

We discussed the treatment of transgender people in the military.

Jim Orwig brought Sharon Shepherd (an old friend of mine from Fort Scott) to visit LL. She described being a Canadian citizen living here on a green card until four years ago. She now has dual citizenship.

We firmed up plans for donations to Safehouse of spa beauty products. Sally Harryman was organizing food for a Mother's Day lunch. All desserts were to be at HQ by 10am on May 9.

Lillian was back for the first time since her accident! She commented on the aisles at Home Depot being packed with stuff; possibly to get ahead of the tariff's effect. Others had seen a scarcity at some stores.

Janice is organizing the table at the farmers’ market that we can have for free as long as we don't sell anything. She is gathering info about the candidates for school board, city commission and county commission. It was suggested we share info about the 3rd Tuesday Socials. Voter registration will be available. Let Janice know if you can help woman or man the table.

Kid's Day has changed to May 24. Call Janice for info on all at 704-0139.

Our next LL meeting was on May 21, at noon, at Dem HQ.

We discussed helping Ruth's friend Laura Green, who wants to move to Pittsburg. She has several contacts to call and was given several other tips. She is a Democrat. She just sold The Maple in Columbus.

We discussed the Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson book Original Sin outlining the "cover up" about Joe Biden's health.

Sally Harryman will research diet info for "older" women and we will go over that at the next Liberal Ladies Who Learn meeting on May 28 at 1:30 at Dem HQ.

Nancy Tomassi went to the funeral of Melesia and Bruce Rhodes son, Jason Rhodes who died unexpectedly on May 13th. The County Dems sent condolences and flowers.

Penny brought up reporting from MeidasTouch about Russia amassing troops on Finland's border.

Patsy remembers talk of a New World Order in the 70s and Ronald Reagan talked about it in the 80s. Is this it?

There will be a Protest on June 14th. Delma thinks we should have a half-page ad in the local paper three days before. She had a powerful message that we all liked and suggested she send the idea to Emily.

Ruth thinks we need to be marching on North Broadway. Art Forms celebrates their 9th Anniversary with a reception the night of the 14th, 4 to 8.

Jean cautioned marchers that if there is any trouble to just sit down. There may be agitators sent by Republicans.

Kay thinks we should let the police know we may need them.

Patsy informed us that the Serbian Trump Tower may cause the destruction of a bombed out monument that is a remembrance site for Serbians.

Lynn Grant talked about the parade in Mulberry on May 23 at 6pm. She stressed the partisan things that can happen: being booed, kids refusing our candy. Remember it's not a protest, it's a parade. Be cool.

Liberal Ladies Who Learn will meet Wednesday, the 28th, at 1:30, at Dem HQ to discuss aging issues.

Crawford County Democrats at the PJ'S and Purses fundraiser for Safehouse.

The Liberal Ladies donated personal care items and food trays for a luncheon for the staff and residents of Safehouse.

217A N. Broadway update

By Sally Harryman

My obsession around a sign for the front of the building this month continues. It appears some work needs to be done to the outside of the building before we can put anything up. Fortunately, this allows more time to decide on exactly what it should say. Ideas can be left at Hq or emailed to me at sally@crawfordcountyksdems.org, maybe we can vote on one!

Lots of action already scheduled for June. One new happening includes an informal political action group on most Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. This is a great chance for like minded people to contact politicians, research, write editorials and whatever else you all come up with!

The bulletin board is where it’s at. There will be a fresh list of committees and all the information one might need to join them posted this month. You’ll also find sign-up sheets for ways to get involved, be heard or just show up.

Being one of less than five actual democratic party headquarters in the state, it’s important to keep it open and that depends on donations and help from all of us. There are donation boxes at Hq and contributions can be made directly through Act Blue. Thank you for helping save democracy and I look forward to working with even more hard headed democrats this summer!

We want to hear from you!

Article submissions are needed from Crawford County Democrats and friends about issues and topics we should all be thinking about. Let us publish your thoughts in this Revue, for distribution to county Democrats and others across the state.

Please email your thoughts or those of your caucuses and interest groups for publication in the county party’s newsletter to news@crawfordcountyksdems.org. Accompanying photographs or other ideas for illustrating your articles are also welcome. Feel free to ask questions by text or phone of newsletter crew Harriet at 620-704-8566 or Phil at 708-466-0659. Also please include your phone number with your message in case we have questions for you.

We look forward to hearing from you!

By Crawford County Democratic Party

Dr. Emily Walters, Chair

CHANGING OPINIONS AND WINNING VOTES

Newsletter contacts: Harriet Bachner & Phil Burgert news@crawfordcountyksdems.org