Texas A&M: New Golden Age, Old White Supremacy

Mel: Welcome to The Resist bot
Podcast, hosted by me, Melanie Dione.

Join me this week and every week
as I chat with the advocates and

activists in your neighborhood at the
intersection where policy meets people.

Now let's start the show.

Welcome to The Resist bot Podcast.

I'm your host, Melanie Dione.

This is our second episode
of the Second Season.

So glad that you're here and joining
us again, I hope that you like me,

took part in the day without us, and
if fired you up to get down and build

community with organizers in your.

Neighborhood.

I know that I'm galvanized
by the experience.

I was furiously taking notes
and already making connections

with the people that I know.

I mean, New Orleans is a big
organizing space because we

have plenty of work to do.

So you know, I'm not big at small talk
with leading into the podcast, so I

would like to get right into our guests.

I am delighted and excited to
introduce you to the organizers

from my neighboring state of Texas.

We have Jyothis James and Ellis Howard.

They are with the Texas A&M chapter of
the Students for a Democratic Society.

Welcome.

Ellis: Hey.

Hey,

Mel: Like to jump right in.

Before we talk about the work, I like
to talk about the folks behind the work.

So Ellis, you popped up.

So would you like to tell us.

About you first, who you are, what you
do, and what brought you to this work.

Ellis: Cool.

Yeah.

I'm Ellis.

I use they/them pronouns mainly
like outside of organizing.

I do nude modeling.

That's like the thing that I do in my
spare time and I like to do to fulfill

myself, which is really rewarding.

Connecting with people on
like that intimate of a level.

And I got into the work
after the pandemic of 2020.

You know, we're still in the pandemic,
but kind of like the social height of it.

I was transitioning medically
and socially during that time.

Just started and you know, I was realizing
a lot of things about myself and the

world we lived in and I wanted to.

Help out in whatever way I could.

So I looked on at A&M and,
well, how can I help out?

And I, so I didn't really see any orgs
that I could join that would kind of help

out A&M in the way that I wanted to see.

So me and a few other, uh, A&M students
started the A&M chapter of sds and

we started work on trying to get the
Sullivan Ross statue removed, which

there's like a whole history behind that.

There was years of protest before
we came around and we just started

to continue the work because we saw.

I think if we didn't do it, it probably
would've been kind of left where it was.

And yeah, so that's main
work I got into organizing.

Thanks so much, Ellis.

And we also have Jyothis James.

Jyothis: Hi, I'm Jyothis and I'm
a fifth year in the Department of

Philosophy at Texas A&M University.

I study critical race theory.

Broadly speaking.

I'm also interested in
topics of anti-colonialism.

Specifically I'm focusing in
on black aesthetics, concepts

of beauty coming out of.

The black African tradition and aesthetic
more broadly in the global south.

And in terms of what got me into social
justice issues, I think it was coming

to a racial awareness when I was an
undergraduate at Lake Forest College,

which is about 30 miles north of Chicago.

Small liberal arts school.

First time living outside of
an immigrant neighborhood.

I was always surrounded by other
immigrants or people of color, so

never really felt racialized for a good
while while I was in the United States.

And it really dawned on me when
I went to college and I decided

from there to get involved with
activism and social issues on campus.

But it didn't really broaden
until I came to graduate school.

Got involved with activism
through, primarily through Ellis.

And I appreciate that opportunity.

I'm also involved with, uh, MA for
Social Justice, which is an organization

that took off after the George Floyd
murders in response to how my specific

community can respond to the racial
tensions here in the United States.

And being a diaspora that is faced
with the predicament of living

with a country that has such kind.

Racial antagonism and continues to do so,
uh, especially against minority groups.

So to just plug the organization, you
can find us at Balis, m a l a y a l e

e s for social justice.org or@msj.org.

And you should be able to, if you type in.

And Ma for social justice, you should
be able to find our organization

and the work that we're doing.

So there's just a quick plugin for that.

In general, I would say that I'm quite
new to organizing and I'm learning

more about it as I'm going through it.

It is a learning curve.

I don't think there's a final
product or final destination to this.

You're always learning by
with community members based

on what needs need to be met.

What you can be catering
to and independent of my

social justice activities.

I think one of the things that
I really enjoy is going out

dancing, socializing, partying.

That is my primary modus operandi.

Mel: No, I love that.

I love, we can contain multitudes and so
it's not just the work and then we sleep

and then we eat enough to survive, and
then there's so much that goes into that

being fully human, our joy, our trium,
it, all of those things factor into

how we sustain ourselves to continue.

When we deal with a world that is often
very terrible , when we talk about what

it's like, particularly on a college
campus, when you are among people who

should be enlightened, who should,
we're talking about educated people.

We're not talking about people who you
know, haven't been off their block.

We're talking about people who have.

Been exposed to other cultures or seeking
to be exposed to other cultures when you

have to still deal with a certain level
of close-mindedness, particularly if you

are not white, straight cis and of means.

What does that, how did
that inform the work?

That you do, How did that in, how does
that inform how you approach being part

of this organization on your campus?

And also let's, and we can specifically
talk about the Sullivan Ross.

The Sullivan Ross statue, because
that is one of the things that

you are seeking to have removed.

I don't want that to be lost.

In the discussion that we had
when we talked, speak specifically

about a university who, I believe
your president talked about

moving into the new golden Age.

but the, but this fight is about holding
onto the tradition of a white supremacist.

How does who you are inform how you
approach this specific aspect of the work?

Ellis: I think like it's very interesting
to note that most institutions in

the US are based in white supremacy.

You know, and A&M is no different.

But getting involved with this work you
learn a lot of A&M is like a university

centered around traditions and they
all started before they were letting in

black people, before they were letting in
women when they were in military college.

You know, those kind of lingering
hints of white supremacy have

continued on to this day.

You know, it's, it's not just
the Sullivan Ross statutes.

Like the, our mascot was stolen from
black campus workers, uh, Reveille and

the 12th man who's like a symbol of A&M.

The coach that called him down
to the stands was a KK member.

Um, it's like baked in and kind of
this myth of like the generational

white Aggie is that you're supposed
to be proud to be an Aggie.

You're supposed to be.

Kind of symbol of exceptionalism, but
like what has that meant to who in the

past and how do you work with that?

And A&M is not like a campus
is not kind of addressing that.

I dunno if I got lost in the question,
but working with people, I talk to

people nearly like every day who don't
even question that they put pennies

at the feet, that it's her, it's
her tradition to put pennies at the.

Sullivan Ross and like
pray for good grades.

You know, they don't even question
that he was a Confederate general,

you know, they don't even question the
atrocities that he did, Um, colonizing

the US as a part of the Texas Rangers.

So like when I talk to them, it's
like 20 minutes of going through

this elaborate history with them,
and it's almost like a wall.

Like you can kind of see all
the answers that they say.

Like every single one of
them are nearly the same.

Like, oh well, You know, that was
in the past, or you know, he changed

after the Civil War, which he didn't.

Segregation is, but you know, it's
just almost like a propaganda that

A&M kind of proposes into the future
and a lot of other institutions do.

It's very, very interesting.

Jyothis, if you want to talk a bit.

About your experience
working with this as well.

Jyothis: So how does who I am
inform my aspect of the work?

I think it's largely because I, over
time I became positioned into a place of

precarity of uncertainty that ultimately
I informed the kind of activism I do

because I was like, there's no other way
to respond to this, especially through

the channels that are already in place.

I guess I'll start with the story
about how I came to this grad program.

One of the things is they offered me.

Healthy amount of money and I was
encouraged by my advisors to come to a

program that would financially support
me, and ideally that's what you need.

However, throughout the years, and
especially with how much grad students get

paid, in the My department, it was not.

Sustaining me and I noticed that
for a lot of my peers as well.

And it's largely the
bureaucracy of this university.

It's just massive, massive, and
trying to get anything done,

trying to get paperwork, getting
reimbursements can put a lot of

hurdle, stress, tension on someone.

Trying to navigate these spaces.

And I think that's largely how I
got involved with activism because

I thought of it as a mode of direct
action that could respond to these

immediate and urgent needs that
many of the students were facing.

And unfortunately, one thing I
noticed, especially about the student

population here, is there this.

Tendency to where it's a complacent
conformity and many of them are

fine with the way things are, or
even if they are Facebook ment, it's

just find some alternative route.

And I think largely this is informed
by students having financial support

from family or being well off that
they can do these kinds of things, but.

I couldn't afford that and I wasn't
going to be complacent, especially

when we were getting screwed
over in so many different ways.

So activism is definitely, and direct is
definitely one of those ways where I was

like, this is how we respond to issues
that are facing students on campus.

And another element that really informs a
kind of complacency is that, Many of the

students have been indoctrinated through
this Aggie immersion camp or a fish camp,

whatever it's called, and so they become
part of this larger campus culture,

which is to a certain degree, I guess,
beneficial to create a sense of cohesion.

But that cohesion comes at the cost
of not critically analyzing many

of these issues at had because you
don't wanna upset the status quo.

Uh, additionally, grad
students aren't really indoct.

Into this because we are not given
the opportunity or there isn't really

a precedent to aying us as a result.

And also because many grad students
come here about the family already

settled or are just focused on
their work, there isn't a heavy

investment in campus culture and.

Campus protesting and campus
organizing the way, uh, you

would get at maybe other places.

And ultimately when you're trying to
do something that is trying, trying

to get at like reform or change,
there's this wall of bureaucracy.

This university is too big.

It is too big.

And you never know where you need to go.

I feel this is very much
like a France Kafka novel.

You never know where you need to
be in order to get something done.

And especially for students of color
coming in or who have never had

experience with such kind of systems
before, it's very difficult to navigate.

So many of them just give up and just
sit there like dead fish instead of

getting involved with direct action,
trying to resolve their issues and

or try to navigate these channels
and get burnt out to the process

because they're just faced with.

Unlimited amount of bureaucracy,
and especially with the

university reorganizing that
has just exacerbated that issue.

Making any kind of change through
the channels that are already

in place, very, very difficult.

Ellis: Oh, I was just gonna
talk about kind of the.

Like the indoc indoctrination,
it's like usually joked about

the a m A cult, you know, it's
kind of like the cult of America.

It's, I don't know.

When I look at A&M, it's kind of like
this microcosm for the United States.

A&M is like highly militaristic.

It's major populations are white.

There's this patriotism lingering all
around campus and in College station

and there's this like deep segregated
divide between college station.

And Bryan, which is like our sister
city and like the grad students

are heavily left out of this.

There's like this fish camp, which
is kind of the traditions camp,

where you learn all about A&M grad
students aren't even invited to that.

It's only like a freshman
undergraduate tradition.

And also you have to pay to go to it.

And there's like scholarships, but
there's also like this class divide.

Um, and then when you go to fish
camp, it's overwhelmingly white.

They have like aesthetics,
like queer aesthetics.

They wear fake tattoos and piercings
and colorful shirts and stuff, but

most of them are cis, white, straight.

And it kind of sets a precedent for who
you are at A&M and like who is accepted.

And then there's always so many incidents.

Incidences of like racial harassment to
faculty and students every single year

outside of the systemic oppression.

It's insane.

Black students, black undergraduate
students have, all the demographics have

been around like 2.4% since 2006, and
obviously it's been below that because

they weren't allowed at A&M until
1960 for, you know, Civil Rights Act.

And in comparison to the other land grant
institutions, it's abysmally low even

though there's 13% of black people in
the sphere, Texas, it's, and it's not

being addressed and it's both because.

A's culture and because of
funding from outside donors, it's

so, Oh, man, it just, it's f-d.

You talk Jyothis..

Jyothis: Yeah.

I want to add to that
about the demographics.

For example, looking at the
current information on the state

of Texas, the population's about
12% black or African American.

And then if you compare that to
Texas A&M, which recruits from

all across the state of Texas.

You have a population of about 6%
that is black or African American.

We do have to consider, we're not talking
about African Americans necessarily,

who are descended from people who are
historically enslaved within the United

States, but may also include a lot of.

African and Caribbean immigrants, or also
their children within that 6% demographic.

So the African American population in the
United States that has been historically

disenfranchised systematically may
actually be at a much lower percentage

within the population of Texas a m
than the numbers would actually prompt.

However, if you compare that to the
Asian population, there's almost.

Double the number of Asian students
here compared to the population of

Asians within the state of Texas.

So both Asians and whites
are overrepresented.

While black people and especially
African Americans, who, uh, have been

historically disenfranchised within the
United States, are significantly low.

And there's a historical reason for that,
uh, especially with Prairie BU University

being set up as an H B C U where most
African Americans were channeled out

to, instead of being given direct a.

Yeah, Texas A&M, and there's a historical
president for why they did that if you

read the history of the university.

However, another interesting thing is
that the campus is about 22% Hispanic

or Latina, Latino Latina, broadly
speaking, and it could be recognized

as a Hispanic serving institute.

However, interestingly enough, with the
reorganization of the campus, they got

rid of the Hispanic studies department
and which is just grossly ironic.

Considering how the university
should be serving this demographic,

but instead fails to do so
systematically at multiple levels.

And what this resulted in was
the relocation of many Hispanic

and Latino graduate students from
offices in a space that was central

on campus to its peripheries.

Additionally, there many resources
that students of color need.

And one thing I've noticed,
especially, you know, advocating

for healthcare and other supporting
services is that many of these.

Are far away from the center of
campus are really difficult to

reach through public transit.

So if you're economically insecure and may
not have a car or mode of transportation,

getting to these places to get things
like to the food bank or other aid or

financial aid or something is going
to be extremely, extremely difficult.

And the architecture and the layout
of the university is just designed

to exacerbate that and make things
much more difficult than it needs to.

Mel: That's one of the things we had
a, um, I guess in our last season,

Keon Patterson, who talked about the
greatness of De and Die as a principle.

It's wonderful diversity, inclusion,
equity, it's, it's fantastic.

But what happens when these folks
who are historically marginalized,

they're in these spaces.

Devoid of the resources, devoid
of the networking opportunities.

Devoid of just the, the proximity to what?

The primary demographic at this school.

When you look at the primary demographic
being people who are white, being people

who are straight, I would bet my check
on being people who are Christian.

Ellis: Mm-hmm.

Mel: What happens when they
don't have those same resources?

It become, Words.

There's something that you said,
Jo, this that, that stuck with me.

This was actually a quote that I saw
of yours when you talked about the

improvements that the university made in
the eighties and nineties, but since then,

what we're looking at is a regression.

I can say that I'm a couple of years.

Older than y'all, just a
few , and I'm old enough.

I'm a Gen Xer.

I'm old enough to know what
that progress looked like.

I was being older, teenager,
early twenties in the nineties

where there were just tremendous
strides during the Clinton years.

Tremendous strides where we
saw women, people of color.

We saw just these cultural
leaps for us being in rooms that

were previously closed to us.

Looking back at this 2022.

Where my kids are that age.

Um, my kids are 21 and 23 and
what life looks like for them.

And it's a world that they
have less access than I did.

I was not in a world
where Roe was jeopardized.

My daughter is.

So when you look at that from your,
through your activist lens, through

your organizer lens, and we can be frank
right now, we are looking at the midterms

that's just a little over a month away.

Right.

What is the work in that respect for you
as an individual organizer or for you as

part of the part of your student organiz?

What is that like for you
now seeing this regression?

Where is your primary focus?

Jyothis: So what are the things that we
would be considering in terms of this

regression that the campus is facing?

I would say primarily that STS as an
organization is looking at community

organizing and developing community
connections, programming events, and

providing resources to the community
primarily by developing out those

networks, both on campus and off campus.

An example of such an event could be
something like organizing a skills

workshop where an important skill that
many people need, which unfortunately

most people don't learn before
coming to college is like cooking.

You can save a lot of money
prepping your own food.

Cooking's much healthier than the kind
of food that is offered on campus, or

quote unquote is accessible on campus.

And that providing skills like that
or providing resources like that can

really transform that lived experience
of students and make it significantly.

Easier for them to be able to go through
their day daily lives, even if you

are not able to explicitly alleviate
some of these financial tensions

that come from higher up through
the bureaucracy of the university.

Additionally, I want to acknowledge some
of the work that has preceded me and

many people in the organization have
done, for example, finding for renters

rights, especially with the number
of slum lords that exploit housing

insecurity in Bryan/College Station.

Advocating for that takes a lot of.

Doing something like that and
also working with mutual aid and

providing resources for each other.

Food, travel, shelter.

I feel like this is more of a way easier
way and a more urgent way to respond

to many of these issues, which are not
coming down with institutional support.

However, I'm sure there's many more
strategies that could be taken, but I'll

let Ellis speak on this from here on.

Ellis: Yeah, so you're talking
about like the midterms coming up.

At A&M, there isn't a lot
of direct action going on.

So what I mean by that is like we
have quite a few like progressive

organizations, but not a lot
of them are focused on kind of.

Challenging the systems we live in, um,
and fighting for a better future outside

of these kind of structural systems like
so like our municipalities, like the

local state and national governments
and student government, and talking with

admin in a very, it's the word democratic.

That's like political, I guess
like rehearsed way in a way

that isn't offending anybody.

We have a lot of like liberal.

Political organizations that
are only focusing on like voter

registration, which is great.

Getting voters to be registered are
amazing, but there's like a lack of

connection between this civic advocacy
work and the issues that people are

connected to that I've seen a lot
that I think SCS is trying to address.

So we have a few mutual aid programs
and we are working to expand them,

but what we are trying to address with
them is, We need to distance ourselves

from these institutions cuz as we see
they are not really working to benefit

marginalized people, queer people,
people of color, um, undocumented people.

There is legislation getting enacted
every single day that hurts these people.

And no matter what politician
you put in office, you're always

going to be, they're always gonna
be swayed by corporate interest.

In corporate interest.

Want to.

Majority of the people, which are
people that colonize the Unes.

So SDS is kind of trying to work
on challenging these systems who

mutual aid and through kind of more,
I guess, direct action methods

like protest and disruptions and
sit-ins like we've done with the no

monuments to white supremacy campaign.

So I think coming up on
midterms, we're trying to.

Capitalize on this sense of awareness of
the world we live in and getting people

to think more critically about the place
we live in and the patterns we've seen

over the election cycles and that getting
around to the time where we need to act

a bit more aggressively and desperately.

And yes, show up to the polls, but
also show up to people's offices.

Call for action, disrupt meetings.

There's so much work that needs to be
done and like the world is collapsing

and they're taking away our healthcare
and there's just so much shit and

we're trying to kind of push people.

out of their comfort zone, cuz
very, very soon a lot of people

are gonna be outta their comfort
zone whether they want to or not.

Mel: So many people shy away from
the political, and again, unless

you are white straight CI with
money, your life becomes political.

Whether or not we can, how we can call
ourselves a family becomes political.

Whether or not we have.

Becomes the political, When we talk
about reproductive justice, it's not

necessarily just about abortion access,
but more specifically becomes abortion

access for people who are not rich.

The height amendment, um, has been in
effect almost as long as roe, and that's

something that directly impacts how poor
people are able to get abortion access.

When we talk about you, you mentioned
how many organizations focus on.

Voting, and I agree with you.

Voting is great, but when you think
about it from the standpoint of

democracy being a meal, even if you view
D voting as the main, most important

point, that's still just the Turkey.

You still need sides.

, there are so many things that go along.

With this meal that comes with
democracy, we, we have to look

at what mutual aid looks like.

We have to look at what organizers
are doing because when those people

who are elected in office aren't
doing their jobs, you need somebody to

step in and say, Hey, okay, we still
need this Ro we, we look just this.

Roe got shut down.

Who stepped in and did
the work immediately.

Not the politicians.

The organizers did.

The organizers got mutual
aid funds together.

The organizers started protests
and rallies and campaigns to figure

out how we can still get this
care for the people who need it.

So when we are looking at it from.

That lens, the holistic lens and
what you're building, because I

know you have the, There are the,
there's the direct solidarity fund.

Mm-hmm.

, There's the community library that
you, that you have within your chapter.

It's more than just the voting.

I wanna talk a little bit about something
that with vo, again, with voting and.

Just suppression.

One of the things that we, that impacts
your area specifically is the early voting

station that was removed from your campus.

Yes.

Yeah.

And how it was not only removed from
your campus, but it was done in the

summer where people weren't around.

Can you talk a little bit about, for
those who are going to, who do need

this access, can you talk a little bit
about what the organizing work around?

A will look like and B, what we
can do, what I can do, what our

producer Angel, who's a Texan
can do, what can we do to help?

Ellis: So yeah, over the summer, uh, the
commissioner's court voted without much

input from the campus community cuz a
lot of us aren't here over the summer to

remove the MSC ist really voting location
and a lot of local progressive organizers

got together to say, Hey, no we need this.

Cuz without it, you're
disenfranchising thousands of people.

On campus who don't have regular
access to transportation and they

don't have time to take outta their
busy schedules to go to City Hall,

which is at least a two hour round
trip, like on certain places on campus.

Plus voting times it's abysmal,
and parking is awful, is a

really horrible decision.

That really only works to disenfranchise
the campus community, especially when you

look at what the demographics vote for.

So campus votes more blue and.

The zip code near city
hall votes more red.

So all very til tell signs, but after
weeks of going to the commissioners

court and testifying, you know, and
they were pulling us this way in

that way, cutting our times, cutting
us short, not voting on things.

So they just didn't vote on replacing
it in 2023 or 2022 after all that.

So it, they didn't vote to
get it reinstated in 2022.

And we're working on deciding, well, do
we want to keep pushing the commissioner's

court or do we want to work on.

Trying to get people to city hall.

So I think what a lot of the organizers
in the coalition are doing is,

um, trying to get transportation.

So I think the students for better
folks are working on getting buses

to bus people tune from the MSC and
setting up signage around the msc.

And I think just kind of spreading
awareness about this issue.

I know it's been talked about on
a lot of different media outlets

and people on Twitter and stuff.

I'm not really on Twitter, but people send
these things, but just spreading the word.

Education is advocacy as well.

And the more people that know
about it, the more pressure you

put on the commissioner's court,
but also like consistent education

and keeping up on this topic.

Cuz in a year it's not guaranteed that
they're going to reinstate it, you know,

they didn't vote on it, so we're gonna
have to go back to get it back for 2023

cuz they didn't decide they screwed us.

So this fight's gonna
continue to get it back.

And just keeping up with what we are
doing and see how you can help in the

future, which would probably look like
showing up to the courts next year.

Mel: Yeah, the work continues.

I wanna, first of all, thank you
both for joining, for joining this.

Sometimes this conversation especially,
you know, I'm a, I'm a 40 something, so

the conversation can get very Gen xy,
, and, and we also have to acknowledge that

Gen X is, as much as we love to think of
ourselves as the cool kids, there are a.

Of far right Gen X voters, there
are a lot of people who fit into.

Ultra conservative culture, and for
those of us who are not there, it

takes reaching all generations ahead
of us, behind us all generations.

This is not just a one person fight.

It is going to take all of us to
put some of our own pollution on the

side and lock arms because the right.

A, using the, even when they don't
agree on everything, they have

found the ways that they can speak
with one voice and use that voice.

Another thing that Aaryn Lang, who
is with a Day Without Us, she brought

out an excellent point and that she
said that the right also has the

police and we cannot ignore that.

So I wanna thank you.

We will absolutely be
talking more about how.

We can help not only as individuals, how
resist can help, because again, there are

so many things that are on the ballot.

Our rights, our autonomy is on the ballot.

But before we go, I know LSU said
you're not a tweeter, so can you tell

people A, where they can find you
after , Sorry, Joe is after they let us

know, can you also let folks know where
we can find you and how people who.

In Texas can join your chapter of sds.

Yeah, well

Ellis: I'm on Instagram.

I don't post a lot of ad advocacy
stuff on my personal account, but it's

Ellis Howard can find me on Instagram.

But follow our students for Democratic
Society Instagram page, cuz that's

where kind of all the updates are
at, which is BCS underscore sds.

And if you want to join sds,
we have a link tree in our bio.

You can sign up to join there.

And we also have a website.

Let me see what the website tag is.

tamoo-sds.square.site.

So that's where mainly all of
our organizing updates are at.

Mel: And I just wanna remind
people that organizers are people.

I say this all the time, so don't
feel a way about not, you know, always

talking about social justice, but if
you do follow one of our guests through.

Resist by, don't go
there and act the fool.

Be nice, , be nice.

We are all people and it's
not just, there's not just one

facet of our personalities.

So by all means, if you are
sent here through me, behave.

Jyothis: So the best way to find me is
through Instagram and my handle is at T

H E J U S K A L, at T H E J U S K A L.

I also have a Twitter, but it's
not really active, so if you reach

out to me on Instagram, if you
have any questions, that's probably

the best way to get in touch

Ellis: with me.

I do wanna say before we sign off that
for the No Monuments to White Supremancy

Campaign, which is working to build the
fight against white service at A&M by.

Addressing our traditions and
working to boost demographics of

people of color at A&M, as well
as spaces of inclusion and equity.

We will have future actions this
semester, and we will also have ways

that people out of town can help out.

So emails, apps, and then
in person actions that.

Everybody who wants to get
involved should get out to,

cuz every single person counts.

Really one more person is just that
much more pressure on administration.

So yeah, I think that's all
that I want to plug right now.

Mel: Ellis Jyothis, thank
you a million times over.

I appreciate both of you so much
for telling us not only what you

face, but what your objectives are.

And this is something.

All of us can pitch in and help on,
and we will, of course be sharing

to the extent that to the extent
possible, whatever we can do, we will

be sharing to make sure that democracy
is accessible for all, and that means

helping organizations like yours.

I wanna thank everyone who's
tuned in again this week

for the Resist Bot Podcast.

If you'd like to support
Resist Bot, you can go to.

There you can donate.

You can start your own petition.

You can text Resist to 5 0 4 0 9 and
send a petition not only to Congress.

It is great to message Congress, however,
you have state legislators, you have

governors, and so many of them have the
power of what, the rights that affect

you every day are in their hands.

So don't forget, you can
text state to 5 0 4 0.

And engage your state legislators.

I wanna thank you again.

If you'd like to learn more,
again, you can go to resist.bot

if you'd like to follow me.

I'm at the gates of Mel on Twitter.

The O is a zero and.

Until next time, see them.

The Resist Bot Podcast is a production
of Resist Bot Action Fund, a social

welfare nonprofit organization.

Resist Bot is funded by
monthly donors like you.

Support Resist Spot by texting.

Donate to 5 0 4 0 9.

You can learn more and see a complete
guide to using the service, a real

time list of trending petitions.

Learn how to organize your own pressure
campaigns or launch your own voter

pledge drives at www dot resist.

Dot bot.

Thanks so much for joining,
and we'll see you next week.