Friends,

Don’t give up. Yes, this authoritarian president is unleashing attacks on our civil rights and the U.S. government itself with illegal executive orders designed to overwhelm all of us. This matches the plans they announced two years ago. But the Trump presidency is unpopular. I encourage each of you to remember this and to join efforts to protect your local community, especially immigrants and trans people who are being targeted first and most.

What the Trump presidency cannot do is stop us from dreaming. Our opponents can’t stop our vision for public power anymore than they can keep you from dreams of a better life for yourself, your families, and your loved ones. Their vision is a future of fear, despair, and isolation. Our is a future with joy, care, and community, made tangible with an electricity system buzzing with justly sourced, renewable electricity for all. That’s what the future of public power is about, and that’s what Public Grids will keep building with you until we win.

In our last newsletter, i told you about the encouragement Public Grids received from across the country and around the world. This month we started to dig in. I spoke with dozens of ordinary people across the country, and my tally of possible public power fights now spans 13 different states and D.C. More are coming. Confidence in the future of public power isn’t false bravado; it is grounded in the research and actions of activists, organizers, and civic leaders already working to make our public power future a reality nationwide from the bottom up.

Friends,

The future isn’t settled, and it’s ours to win. Key figures in the corporate media have taken a conciliatory tone towards Trump and members of the Democratic Party leadership are taking a range of positions from a wait-and-see approach to an open embrace of Trump. I’m writing to tell you one thing with utmost certainty: the public power movement is not going back and we’re not standing still.

At Public Grids, that means continuing to present our clear vision for public power and economic democracy, aligning local control of the grid, the foundation of the energy transition, with the popular demand for public ownership and a just transition for workers and communities. Since our launch at the end of October, I’ve spoken to local activists, public servants, and organizers around the world for energy democracy who are pouring in support and partnership to make our work durable during this next presidency.

Public Grids and our movement partners across the country are ready for more investment to secure our movement’s power, capacity, and resiliency for the years ahead. If you want to invest in our future, no matter how large or small your contribution, please drop us an email at info@publicgrids.org today!