THE WEEKS TO COME

Need a community pick-me-up? There's lots of choice coming up, as spring comes over Rochester! And a few items to push as well: If you haven't made your voice heard lately about Hochul's egregious efforts to derail climate sustainability, tomorrow is the last day! Meanwhile the deadline has been extended to 4/15 to protest STAMPS horrific plans to turn the Tonawanda Seneca's sacred forest into a data center. And tonight is the Planning Commission meeting (5 pm) and public hearing (6 pm) at City Hall regarding Verizon's renewed request to erect a 6-story cell tower on Portland Ave. So, as Emma Peel would say to Steed in the original Avengers - "We're needed!"

UPCOMING EVENTS

DAILY 5:30-6:30 pm West Main and West Broad Streets (by Nick Tahou's) Stop for an hour at the NO ICE TERROR camp, to help raise awareness of the ICE detention center the federal government wants to locate in the Keating Federal Building (Click here for Brian Sharp's article on WXXI News.) This is a great opportunity to meet like-minded people!

Monday, March 30, 5-7 pm Protest Verizon's proposed broadband tower at the City Planning Commission's 5 pm meeting and 6 pm hearing, at City Hall, 30 Church Street, Room 223B. 

Monday, March 30, 5:30-6:30 pm zoom Action Hour (click to register) Our movement to stop the STAMP Monster Data Center - which we’re now calling “Kathy Hochul’s Monster Data Center” is unstoppable. In response to sustained public pressure, and following a visit from spirited wetlands creatures to their Board Meeting. GCEDC has now extended the deadline for written comments on the data center plan to April 15 (from March 31) and will hold a supplemental public hearing (time and date tbd). And we will keep pushing them to meet our additional demands.

Tuesday, March 31, 7 pm-2 am Lux Lounge, 666 South Ave., Trans Day of Visibility Fundraiser at Lux Join musical acts Comfort Object, Chores, and Scarlett.Fire, and vendors, at Lux Lounge on Tuesday, March 31. Doors open 7pm, $5 cover to support Planned Parenthood and Trillium Health.

Wednesday, April 1, 4:30-7 pm Metro Justice Union Happy Hour at Three Heads Brewing This one's for union members! Ring in better weather with us over beers and snacks on a weekday afternoon. Consider this a chance to get to know Metro Justice's 2026 Council (many of whom come from the world of organized labor here in Rochester) and our new Staff Organizer, Carlton Huff — as well as comrades from different sectors of the union world! This is distinct from our past happy hours that have been part of our Labor Advisory Council — so no dues required! We'll have another of those soon, but this one is strictly a social event.

Wednesday, April 1, 6-8 pm Join RED (Rochester for Energy Democracy) for their biweekly meeting at the Gregory St Office, where we’ll discuss items for the week in our quest to replace RG&E. 

Wednesday, April 8, 2-5 pm Screening sponsored by Upstate Drone Action of "Earth's Greatest Enemy" Henrietta Public Library, 625 Calkins Rd, Rochester NY, Parking Available

Thursday, April 9, 7-8 pm New York Health Campaign Statewide Hub meeting (monthly zoom on 2nd Thursdays) Check in for the latest news about passing universal healthcare in New York!

Saturday, April 11, 1-3:30 pm Washington Square Park Hostile Architecture Hike Join ROC DSA for an urban hike exploring hostile architecture in Rochester. We’ll break down how these designs impact our community, then head out on a scavenger hunt to spot examples across the city. Prizes included.

Sunday, April 12, 3-7 pm Flying Squirrel Community Space, 285 Clarissa St., Fairy Tea Party Fundraiser Indulge your whimsy and dress up like a fairy at the Flying Squirrel, 3pm-7pm on April 12. $20 tickets go towards Nourish the City and the Free Art Collective.

Sunday, April 12, 5:30-7:30 pm Metro Justice Sunday Potluck This month's discussion topic: How can our anti war history inform our actions today?

Tuesday, April 14, 6 pm Bill and Bob’s, 298 Monroe Ave., Presentation & Workshop: Reviewing City Council President Report on Homelessness Dig into the City Council President’s Report on Homelessness and join a real, solutions-focused discussion.

Wednesday, April 15, 6-8 pm Join RED (Rochester for Energy Democracy) for their biweekly meeting at the Gregory St Office, where we’ll discuss items for the week in our quest to replace RG&E. 

Monday, April 27, 7-8 pm Join our monthly (4th Mondays) zoom meeting of the Western NY Hub for the Campaign for NY Health, working to pass universal healthcare in New York state. We need this now more than ever! And legislators now privately agree - they just need our political backing to fight down the insurance lobby and bring it to a vote. 

Saturday, May 9, 5-8 pm Metro Justice Annual Dinner, AFSCME Hall, 1956 Lyell Ave (just east of 390 Lyell Ave. exit). Our Annual Dinners have for many years been a mainstay of our annual fundraising, supporting our outreach and organizing work. Please use the link to sign up for tickets today, so that our fundraising volunteers are not madly scrambling to keep up with tickets and tables at the last minute. Thank you!

DESKTOP ACTIONS

NEW

Last Chance for legislative calls in support of the NYS Climate Law - happening until March 31! RSVP for a script and call numbers to be sent to you: https://actionnetwork.org/events/defend-the-clcpa-call-blast (or register old school: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1sWwTLhLv2vwEW4g-ae0u0NReo7oZavTKWwjG7QqGvEQ/edit?gid=0#gid=0)  This Wednesday from 9 am to 1 pm, you can join from anywhere to make calls. Click this link to RSVP for a script and phone numbers to call. OR Email your state legislators with this 1-click tool as well as the Public Service Commission - also by March 31.

Deadline extended to 4/15 to protest the massive AI data center in Genesee County at the STAMP site, which abuts Tonawanda Seneca land. The proposed project wants $1.44 billion in subsidies, would have a massive environmental impact, and create very few jobs, all while impinging on the human rights of the Tonawanda Seneca Nation and using water from the Monroe County Water Authority. If you're able, please submit comments by March 31 using these tools to stop this poorly thought-out proposal:

1. Submit written comments on the requested financial incentives and environmental review
2. Demand that the GCEDC Board of Directors extend the Data Center Comment Period
3. And tell Kathy Hochul to come out in opposition to the Monster Data Center and STAMP!

Ongoing

Add your name to the letter to New York Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie to bring the Packaging Reduction & Recycling Infrastructure Act to a vote! This Act would greatly reduce the amount of single-use packaging that we pay for - in money, health and climate. Our goal is 10,000 letters sent. 

Help end federal violence against Cayuga Nation in central NY: information link and gofundme link

Tell Governor Hochul to pass NY4All with this one-click email tool. And call her office regularly at (518) 474-8390. NY4All would prohibit both formal and informal collusion between local police and ICE/CBP in perpetuity. Hochul has proposed her own legislation which only covers formal collusion for the next 3 years: Hochul’s proposal is weak and irrelevant, New York must pass NY4All into law.

The Campaign for New York Health is doing ongoing work with collaborators to push for passage of the New York Health Act, the best response our state could make to the disastrous healthcare cuts by the Trump administration. Sign our petition to legislative leadership here, and use this tool to email your Senator and Assemblymember.

Do you know where your birth certificate is? Three voter suppression bills (the SAVE Act) in the federal House and Senate would force Americans to present a passport, birth certificate, or other citizenship papers in order to register to vote in federal elections, and are clearly designed to deter millions of people from casting their ballot in our democracy. Click here to thank your Democratic senators for holding the line, and encourage them to continue, or encourage Republicans to rethink their support.