democracynotes.substack.com/p/…

This week's #Democracy #Notes
Gabriel Lerner

..."Any documentary filmmakers out there??

Apply for $30K to finish a film on fascism/authoritarianism, or submit a finished film. (4/21 deadline.)

Super cool initiative courtesy of Working Films, Democracy 2076, Political Research Associates, and Southern Vision Alliance.

How does Gen Z actually feel about democracy? New report from Protect Democracy and Tufts CIRCLE!

P.S. are you 18-23? Apply for Democracy House’s Young Leaders Summer Institute!

Also from Protect Democracy (and the Horizons Project), a series of toolkits for faith leaders on countering authoritarianism.

Wanna be an election admin expert? Check out this summer’s Certificate in Election Administration (CEA) Program at the University of Minnesota.

What to watch/listen to/attend:
(Events, podcasts, and more)
In San Antonio? Join the inaugural Local News in the Heart of Texas Summit on April 17, 9am-1pm!

PA peeps! 5/15-5/16: Join four Press Forward chapters and others in PA media for the Keystone News Summit.

4/21: Bridging and Advocating in Divided Times: Navigating the Tension for Stronger Civic Practice. Register here!

Webinar feat. the Horizons Project and the Center for Public Deliberation.

4/22: webinar on tackling social disconnection with the US Chamber for Social Connection, the Foundation for Social Connection, and the RSA USA.

Where to work:
(Jobs, jobs, jobs!)
Passionate about public spaces? Have legal, financial, PR, or fundraising skills?

Join the board of the Project for Public Spaces!

The Kettering Foundation Director of Program Administration & Evaluation — Dayton, OH, $120K-$150K

Partners In Democracy Operations & Finance Manager — MA, $84K

All Voting Is Local Senior Manager Data and Research — remote, $83K-$112K

Campaign Legal Center Director, Strategic Litigation — DC, $137K-$206K

Data & Society Research Institute Post-Doctoral Fellow, Trustworthy Infrastructures (4/18 deadline) — NY, $68K-$84K

New Jersey Institute for Social Justice Associate Counsel for Democracy & Justice — Newark, NJ, $95K-$105K

Integrity Institute Community Lead — remote, $95K

Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service (NNS) Managing Editor — Milwaukee, $64K-$80K

Advancement Project Staff Attorney/Senior Staff Attorney, Power & Democracy — DC, $89K-$129K

FairVote Director of Federal Affairs and Voting Rights Programs — Silver Spring (MD), $135K-$154K

Pew Research Center Associate Director, U.S. Politics Research — DC, $155K

George Washington University Executive Director, the Institute for Data, Democracy, and Politics (IDDP) — DC, $104K-$152K

Free Press Civic Media Campaign Manager - Wisconsin — Madison, WI, $75K-$83K

Princeton University Bridging Divides Initiative Research Assistant (RA) Student Interns

Remote, 12-month paid internship, 10-15 hrs/week, $18.50/hr for undergrads, $25/hr for those with a degree.

SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University Senior Academic Program Coordinator — Baltimore, $21-$38/hr

Better Together America Civic Hub Learning Program Senior Manager — remote (some in-person commitments), $2K/month

Public Advocates Senior Staff Attorney, Educ — CA, $90K-$120K

Democracy Forward:

Senior Attorney, Democracy 2025 — DC, $145K-$160K

Program & Special Projects Coordinator — DC, $75K-$85K

Project Pericles Civic Impact and Communications Coordinator — remote, $60K-$75K

New_ Public:

Open Source Developer, Public Spaces Incubator — remote, $140K-$160K

Social Media Fellow — remote, $40/hr

ProPublica:

Graphics Editor — New York/remote, $100K-$125K

Reporter, National — New York/remote, $95K-$170K

Reporter, ProPublica-Texas Tribune Initiative — Austin, $90K-$130K

North Carolina Local News Lab Fund Associate Director of Funder Partnerships — Charlotte, $90K-$100K

Narrative Initiative Chief of Staff — remote, $168K-$195K

Westminster Foundation for Democracy Research Fellow — Birmingham (UK), £36,130- £45,413

National Association of Counties Senior Program Manager, Workforce Development — DC, $90K

Builders Executive Director — Austin, no $ details

Vanderbilt University Center for Effective Lawmaking Postdoctoral Fellow — Nashville, no $ info"...

theconnector.substack.com/p/ag…

Against the Doomsayers
Fear-mongering gets clicks, but sharing worries about "martial law" won't help stop it. Instead, keep calm and carry on by celebrating the upstanders--there are more of us every day.
Micah L. Sifry

..."it’s not at all true that the sky is falling. Yesterday, Harvard joined Princeton in rejecting the administration’s bullying, and they and others are also suing the Energy Department for egregious cuts to their research budgets. Some 250 foundations have signed a joint statement initiated by the heads of the McKnight, Freedom Together and MacArthur Foundations affirming their commitment to upholding fundamental rights and liberties. And a lot of them are also pouring funds towards filling the gaps created by the destruction of the USAID. More than 500 law firms have signed onto an friend-of-the-court brief backing Perkins Coie in its suit to undo a Trump order blocking its ability to represent government contractors. Nearly 700 law professors have signed a brief backing Wilmer Hale in a similar case. Bernie Sanders and Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez are out barnstorming again, drawing gigantic crowds—even 12,000 in Nampa, Idaho! Twenty thousand people signed up for Rep. Pramila Jayapal’s Sunday Resistance Lab training program (the next one is May 4th; RSVP here). And lots of local leaders, including my own county legislator, David Imamura, are speaking out on a daily basis.

If you are looking for something useful to do, take a moment and call or write any of these institutions or leaders and tell them you appreciate the stands they are taking. Because courage is also contagious."...