STATE SPONSORED TERROR - PREP FOR ANNUAL MEETING - HOCHUL'S EXPENSIVE NEW ENERGY POLICY

Here are Metro Justice news and events for the week of 1/17/2026

STATE SPONSORED TERROR

In the wake of the shooting of Renee Good, our Congressman Joe Morelle made a public statement decrying the poor training of ICE agents in Trump's rush to enlarge the department.Sadly this statement was not only tone deaf, it was also factually incorrect and strategically misaligned. The agent who shot Renee had 20 years experience in his work. To all appearances, he saw his partner’s arm inside a car that was driving away and made a split-second decision prioritizing potential injury to his partner over the certain death of the driver. This decision was supported by his training and his superiors. The government is sending troops with a license to kill into civilian neighborhoods and businesses where they must, by design, use violence in carrying out their deportation orders. (Check out Brad Reed's article "Minneapolis is the test case", and Kelly Hayes wonderful essay "The Cost of Staying Human".) They don’t need more training, Mr. Morelle, if you want to avoid further tragedies. They need different orders.

We (readers of a Metro Justice newsletter) are all aware by now that our government is actively running a terror campaign (see Chris Hedges "The Machinery of Terror".) against everyone in America who is not white and anyone associating with them, in the deluded belief that white bigotry, the fascist dream of an endless Great White America, is the key to staying in power indefinitely. Create a big enough emergency, and you can suspend elections entirely, no need to worry about the opposition. Morelle waited for a white person to die (see the post on this by Dr. October Crouch), then called for more training for the president’s ballooning army of terrorists. He should be calling “Have you no sense of decency?”.  Fascist terrorism did not work for McCarthy. It did not work for Hitler. It will not work for Steve Miller and Donald Trump. Someday, retribution will even catch up with Vladimir Putin. But the terrible damage, the killing and heartbreak, the poisoning of lives, characters, futures, these live one. Here is a GoFundMe by a Rochester family to help with the cost of returning home for burial the body of their father, Geraldo Lunas, who died in ICE custody in Texas two weeks ago.

What do we need to pressure our elected officials to do? A note here to those who are beyond dealing with elected officials. Regardless of our interest in building an alternative to capitalist democracy overall, we still need to walk (pressure politicians to do right today) while we chew gum (push to overthrow capitalism). Many terrible DOGE cuts have finally been reversed by Congress growing a little spine this past week - and idiotic followup cuts also reversed - because of pressure from constituents, patients, businesses and industry leaders, and this was a good thing. Permitting lives to be lost to fascism as “collateral damage” in exposing its ugly face must not be part of anti-capitalist strategy. 

So, we need to

• ask our legislative leaders to pressure Governor Hochul to pass NY4ALL already! This bill, which would do a great deal to help shield at least those immigrants (and see this resource for more on legal/illegal) who live in New York, is finally “trending” in Albany.
• call and email Morelle’s office (email link, (585) 232-4850). If he represents us, he has no business calling for better training for state-sponsored terrorists, he should be calling to end the ICE terror campaign. One immediate opportunity to visit will be on Tuesday, joining a coalition group in front of Morelle’s office at 255 East Avenue demanding that he push to impeach Trump. The strategy and timing are debatable, given that he would be succeeded by Vance, but it’s better than Morelle’s current call to train Trump’s troops.
• In addition, we need Dignity not Detention and the Access to Representation Act - to stop Counties Jails acting as ICE detention, and to make sure people have a lawyer before being deported.

PREP FOR ANNUAL MEETING

Our Annual Membership Meeting, where we gather to take stock and make the foundational decisions for the coming year's organizing, is coming up Saturday, January 31 - two weeks from today. There are a few things we all need to do to prepare. First, check that your membership is in good standing. Non-members are warmly invited to attend and take part, but only members can vote for representatives on the 2026 Council and on whether to accept the budget proposed by the Finance Committee or ask for revisions. Further information on these will be shared next week. The other thing to be thinking about is which issues are the most important to you, and what you can contribute to moving the work forward. This newsletter is a direct result of last year's Annual Meeting discussions of strategic priorities. That is because I stepped forward as editor. I could use some help! Other priorities were put forward as well, and those for which people stepped forward are happening. Some did not find anchor people and have not moved forward, important as they are. If we are to succeed in creating a change of heart, regime, and economy in our own nation, we need to get organized and do the work, each as we are able. Click here to say if you have a personal priority of campaign, skill to share, or skill you would like to learn. And sign up now to attend the meeting! 

HOCHUL'S EXPENSIVE NEW ENERGY POLICY

Governor Hochul’s state of the state speech this week revealed a complete capitulation to Big Tech Capitalism. You can check out the NY Renews statement here, Environmental Advocates NY's  more technical take, or Citizen Action NY’s multi-issue statement.

Some of the worst stuff on energy specifically: ratepayers subsidize EXISTING nuclear to the tune of 33 Billion, and a goal to build 5 MW of NEW nuclear - also at ratepayer's expense - for who knows how much! Nuclear is by far the most expensive form of energy, and she's cut back on public renewables, the cheapest. Why? For data centers and Micron, and the fossil lobby. There is a good video overview here on instagram. Also, she wants to make it easier for data centers to get online, while providing only vague guidance that they might need to build their own energy, with no suggestion that they should be renewable, rather than the hugely problematic dirty "peaker" (normally used only for peak demand) plants they use by default.

Feel free to mention these if you give her a call! (1-518-474-8390 | Office hours: 9:00am to 5:00pm) Short version: public renewables, not nuclear; no to data centers!

BOOK OF THE WEEK

From our online library of books, podcasts and other media centered on political education for organizing. We need a volunteer to curate this library and arrange book discussions! If you are interested, or if you have a favorite resource to share, please contact Alice. In the meantime, we will be sharing an interesting book, site or podcast every week. 

Let This Radicalize You: Organizing and the Revolution of Reciprocal Care - Kelly Hayes & Mariame Kaba (book, audiobook) 

I think I shared this one before, but it continues to be timely, and was co-authored by one of the writers linked in the lead article above. Titled from the phrase, “let this radicalize you rather than lead you to despair,” this book contains reflections on community organizing with a focus on how to work together in uncertain and frightening times. The authors draw on their own experiences working in social justice movements and discuss ways these lessons can be applied by readers to their own activism.

Read: Check Library Availability

Listen: Audiobook free to borrow on Hoopla 

Keywords: organizing

What books, articles or podcasts should we be reading about ICE and protesting US government violence? Send suggestions here.

UPCOMING EVENTS

• Monday, January 19, 10:30 am Kodak Hall at Eastman School, 26 Gibbs St., Martin Luther King Junior Community Wide Celebration, Reverend Courtney Clayton Jenkins, South Euclid UCC, Keynote Speaker.
• Monday, January 19, 12-2 1199SEIU Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration at the University of Rochester Medical Center G-9425 with speaker Aqua Porter, Executive Vice President of the Rochester Monroe Anti-Poverty Initiative 
• Tuesday, January 20, 2 pm Walk out of Work and Walk to Morelle's Office (255 E. Main St.) to demand that he look past his comfortable re-election chances and push to impeach President Trump.  
• Wednesday, January 21, 5:30-7:30 Monroe County Bar Association webinar on legal advice for protestors
• Wednesday, January 21 6-8 pm Metro Justice office (389 Gregory, entrance on Cayuga) Organizing Meeting for Rochester for Energy Democracy (Replace RGE)
• Monday, January 26, bus leaves Rochester 5 am Communities Not Cages Advocacy Day in Albany. We are demanding action on legislation that provides a fair, fast, and safe path home, restores hope to families, and delivers real, tangible change. Our voices, especially when raised together, matter. But only if we show up.  Please RSVP today. To prepare for the day, please join our Advocacy Day Training on Thursday, January 22 at 6-7pm. Zoom link here. (Please try to make it if you can, but we will also send out a recording.) Rochester   Location: 803 West Avenue, Rochester NY 14611 (Bus parked in Cairn Street Parking Lot)   Departure time: 5:00 AM   Contact: Thomas Gant, 585-705-9778
• Tuesday, January 27, meet free bus early for Daniel’s Law Advocacy Day in Albany. Marking nearly 6 years since the killing of Daniel Prude here in Rochester, we'll be fighting for the passage of Daniel's Law (S3670/A4617), a bill that will save lives by ensuring that people experiencing mental health crises are treated with care and compassion. 
• Saturday, January 31, 10-2 Metro Justice Annual Meeting. Members will elect the 2026 council and choose whether to approve the proposed 2026 budget for the organization. We will also choose our route forward to fight the rising despotism. Non-members are welcome, but only members can vote. It is possible to join at the meeting.
• Thursday, January 22, 12:30-2 pm Elder Justice Committee organizing meeting. To get the zoom link, email: [email protected]
• Saturday May 9 Metro Justice Annual Dinner (save the date!)
• It's always a good time to check your membership status in our new portal as well! You should be able to log in and see your donation and dues history at the link here. (But please let us know if you have trouble!) 

Do you have an event or desktop action to share? Click here! The deadline for our Friday newsletter is Wednesday afternoon each week.

DESKTOP ACTIONS: 

• Ask your legislators to support the New York For All Act (supporting immigrants) and petition to pass the New York Health Act (now with the correct link!). Both of these ongoing efforts are gaining new impetus in light of recent events, and legislators need to hear from you again right now, even if you have signed before. 
• Call Governor Hochul (1-518-474-8390 | Office hours: 9:00am to 5:00pm) Short version: public renewables, not nuclear; no to data centers!
• Check out Freedom Trainers, a resource for training in nonviolent non-cooperation that we will explore in a later issue.
• Add your voice at Citizens' Impeachment. Click here for info on a local signal chat.
• If you are interested in how zoning affects life in Rochester neighborhoods, Ames Grigg is doing a deep dive on research, has learned and is "translating" a lot of detailed legal jargon, and has set up a GoFundMe to fund this work. Check it out.
• Urgent National call - Stop the SPEED ACT (HR 4776), a bill that would gut bedrock environmental laws such as the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NYPIRG is asking us to call our US congressional representatives using their sample script, then report the call to NYPIRG. The bill has now passed in the house (on 12/18), so contact your Senator; This has still not passed the Senate yet, so please keep calling.
• Share, repost or comment on our RG&E demands on Insta and/or Facebook then Read our demand letter and send your own version of it to your legislators 
• Let your NY state Senator and Assembly Member know that you want them to pass the New York Health Act, so that all of us in NY can have health care we can afford, with monthly payments based on income and no other out of pocket cost.
• Repost/tweet the New York Health posts at the Campaign for New York Health Facebook page every Tuesday and Thursday noon
• Tell Governor Kathy Hochul: no more direct or indirect subsidies to prop up the failing boondoggle that is the STAMP mega industrial site. No more state permits or approvals to a destructive project that violates the Nation’s treaty rights to free use and enjoyment of their homelands.Click here for the statement. Then, click here to send Governor Hochul an email. 
• Get a "Replace RGE" yard sign! Be the envy of your neighbors!  
• Join Metro Justice or renew your membership - in these dark times we need to stick together, and to plan to support ourselves as much as possible.