DFL Candidate Forum

hosted by We Are Rising and Resisting (WARR), Indivisible Iron Range, Democracy Defenders, Northern Progressives, Ely Indivisible

When:

April 30, 5:00–8:00pm

Where:

Biwabik Park Pavilion
100 5th Ave N
Biwabik, MN

Indivisible groups across the Iron Range including Indivisble-Iron Range (Biwabik/Aurora), We Are Rising and Resisting (W.A.R.R. of Chisholm/Hibbing), Northern Progressives (Cook/Tower), Ely Indivisible (Ely/Tower) and Democracy Defenders (regional) will host a candidate forum with DFL CD8 primary candidates running for the US House of Representatives.

All nine candidates are invited to participate including Emanuel Anastos, Luke Gulbranson, Bob Helland, Jeremiah Liend, John-Paul McBride, Carrie Mitchel, Wendell Smith, Trina Swanson, and Debra Topping.

The event will be held Thursday, April 30th at the Biwabik Park Pavilion, 100 5th Ave North starting at 5pm to meet the candidates followed by the 6pm forum.

Candidates will answer questions and present their stance on the issues. For more information, contact Beth at (218)750-4885. The event is free and open to the public.

May Day National!

International Workers Day & National Day of Action

When:

May 1, 2026

Where:

Nationwide

"We are building a day of power. Because when the billionaires break every rule, it’s going to take more than a rally to stop them...

"On May 1, 2026, workers, students, and families rally, march, and take action across the country to demand a nation that puts workers over billionaires, with many refusing business as usual through No School. No Work. No Shopping." — May Day Strong

Kania for House Meet & Greet

When:

May 6, 4:00–6:30pm

Where:

Cook Community Center

TOWER, MN - Aaron Kania, a Lake Vermilion resident with a long history of public service, including a career in law enforcement, announced on Tuesday, Jan. 20, that he will seek the DFL endorsement for the hotly contested District 3A House seat.

District 3A is the largest House district in Minnesota, spanning the rugged borderlands from International Falls to Grand Portage. It encompasses Cook, Koochiching, and Northern St. Louis counties, along with parts of Lake County and Itasca County, and the Grand Portage and Bois Forte Reservations. The district is also home to the entirety of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Kania recently retired as the U.S. Forest Service Kawishiwi District Ranger in Ely, where he served for five years. He is a familiar face across the Iron Range and the Arrowhead, known for his leadership during critical regional crises. Kania was instrumental in managing the 2021 Greenwood Fire, the 2025 Brimson Complex, and providing front-line leadership during the 2024 flood events.

“After serving the public for nearly three decades, I’ve realized there is always more to be done,” said Kania. “Our rural communities face unique challenges that require a leader who understands our land, our economy, and our people. My background has prepared me to be the voice we need to tackle these challenges together.”

Beyond crisis management, Kania has been a key figure in the balance of recreation and industry in the Northland. His work has spanned:

Infrastructure & Recreation: Championing the Prospector ATV Trail and the North Country Trail.

Natural Resources: Overseeing active forest management and the preservation of the BWCA.

Economy: Engaging in the complex dialogues surrounding mineral development and regional growth.

Before his tenure as District Ranger, Kania spent over 20 years as a law enforcement officer in Utah and Wyoming, bringing a deep commitment to public safety and rule of law to his legislative platform.

Kania’s campaign will focus on rural advocacy, sustainable resource use, and ensuring that the residents of District 3A have a seat at the table in St. Paul.

Download poster

Convening Across Watersheds

Sign on

"Minnesota’s clean water is one of our most valuable shared resources—essential to our health, environment, and way of life. Yet four of our state’s most vital and sensitive watersheds—the Mississippi River, St. Croix River, Rainy River (BWCA), and St. Louis River (Lake Superior)—face growing threats from transnational sulfide ore mining companies.

Protecting our water requires shared commitment and informed action. Environmental organizations and Tribal Nations across Minnesota have united around a shared set of principles to guide how we protect our waters now and for generations to come. We stand together in affirmation of these principles."

The Tamarack Water Alliance

Sign WaterLegacy "Whole Truth" Petition

Tamarack Water Alliance is a group of local residents and landowners working together with others from across Minnesota to protect water and community health through education. Specifically, we are concerned about the dangers of sulfide mining that threaten our beloved rivers, lakes and wild rice beds, at the headwaters of the Kettle River and the Mississippi River watershed.

"A proposal by Talon Metals, a foreign owned entity, to build a high sulfide mining operation near Tamarack in Aitkin County threatens the health of our communities. This kind of sulfide mining, especially in water-rich environments, has never been done without severe impacts to water and to the health of those who live downstream. Mining here is also a threat to environmental justice and the long-term economic security of nearby native and rural communities."

There are some very useful informational flyers available on their website.

Water Infrastructure

Water infrastructure considered as Minnesota Legislature enters home stretch of session

"The Minnesota Legislature had its third and final committee deadline on April 17, a milestone for this session that is scheduled to adjourn on May 18. At Freshwater, our attention is now shifting from water policy to water infrastructure funding, including a potential bonding bill that could take shape during these final weeks of the session."

Protect Wild Rice

Rise & Repair

"I am reaching out as a constituent to request your support for legislation to protect Wild Rice, our state grain, also known as Manoomin to the Anishinaabe and Psíŋ to our Dakota relatives...

"...the need for increased protections remains..."

Support Warren & Sanders' Wealth Tax Bills

Add your name

Two major proposals have just been introduced in Congress, by Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Both would tax the richest of the rich on their wealth (annually at 2% to 5%) and direct trillions toward supporting working Americans.

Two Bold Proposals to Tax Wealth Across the Land

"How can the U.S. reverse democracy-distorting concentrations of wealth and power? A federal annual wealth tax must be part of the equation.

"The richest 0.1 percent — the top one-thousandth of households, who are all worth over $50 million — have seen their wealth surge since the beginning of the 2020 Covid Pandemic. U.S. billionaires have seen their wealth double since 2019, with the top 19 U.S. billionaires adding $1 trillion to their wealth in 2024 alone."

Do States Have a Secret Weapon to Counter Trump's Forest Service and Medicaid Cuts Before the Damage Becomes Permanent?

& will the corporate overlords allow it?

"The federal government announced the destruction of the United States Forest Service via the same process of royal decree that this nation was founded on ending. So much for originalism, right? No floor debate, no public hearing, no vote. Just a piece of paper that ended 121 years of institutional history before most people had finished their coffee.

"The forests are one emergency. The health care system is another. The reconciliation bill that Republicans passed last year and that the president signed into law on July 4, 2025 cut more than a trillion dollars from Medicaid and ACA marketplace coverage.

"So here is what governors in blue states can do right now, using authority they already hold..."

MN Governor’s Truth Council

Call from Team Monarca and Unidos

Minnesotans lived through Operation Metro Surge and Operation PARRIS. We know what happened in our communities. Now, there’s an opportunity to make sure those experiences are recorded, protected, and heard.

The State is forming the Governor’s Council on Recording the Truth of Operation Metro Surge and Operation PARRIS. This Council will gather testimony, document harm, and help shape recommendations so this never happens again.

Indivisible Calls to Action

Search by issue

5calls

Pick an action & make a call

Now What for the BWCA?

The Role of MN Law

When:

April 30, 12:00pm

Where:

Online

Last week, the U.S. Senate voted to strip federal protections from the Boundary Waters Wilderness Area. The story they want us to believe is that the path is cleared for a Chilean mining company to build a copper-sulfide mine within one of our state’s most iconic and beloved watersheds.

But the fight is far from over. It's just moved to Minnesota.

Register today for MCEA and Friends of the Boundary Waters' BREAKING webinar where our experts will discuss how to leverage our state laws and authority to protect our water, what comes next in this ongoing battle, and how you can help.

Setting the Stage: A 2026 Elections Townhall

with Steve Simon

When:

April 30, 7:00pm

Where:

Online

Join Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon and national elections expert David Becker for an online conversation about what to expect in the midterm elections.

CD8 Candidate Town Hall Recordings

from Duluth Indivisible

Duluth Indivisible held a series of candidate forums over the past couple of months. Recordings of these sessions is available on their resource page.

Deputized for Disaster

How President Trump’s Supersized 287(g) Deportation Force is a Powder Keg for Law Enforcement, Our Communities, and Our Democracy

ACLU's recent report, Deputized for Disaster, details how the Trump administration is drastically expanding the federal 287(g) program to transform state and local law enforcement into a national deportation policing force — fueling racial profiling, civil rights violations, and widespread fear in our communities and in communities across the country. Join Crow Wing County community leaders and ACLU experts for a webinar about our 287(g) report and how 287(g) agreements blur the lines between local policing and immigration enforcement in Minnesota.

Noncooperation 101

Freedom Trainers

When:

May 7, 6:00pm CT

Where:

Online

Join us for a 2 hour virtual training on civil resistance and noncooperation. We will cover the authoritarian threat, pillars of support, stories of noncooperation in these times, and how noncooperation has been used to defeat authoritarians and fascists.

Midterm Postcards & New Research

Progressive Turnout Project

When:

May 12, 7:00–8:00pm CT

Where:

Online

Join us on YouTube Live to learn about our Get Out the Vote postcard program for the 2026 midterms.

We're also excited to share the results of our research measuring the effectiveness of our innovative News Boosting postcards.

Learn more about the SAVE Act

& similar attacks on our voting rights

..."if anything like this ever did become law, the cleanest single document would likely be a valid U.S. passport in your current legal name, because it proves citizenship directly. A REAL ID driver’s license would not, by itself, count as proof of citizenship under this proposal. People with name changes could be forced to assemble a full paper trail connecting birth certificates, marriage licenses, divorce decrees, or court orders to their current legal identity."

News (April 23): "Senate rejects bid to revive SAVE America Act, but the war isn’t over"

The Shock Doctrine

Naomi Klein

"The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism is a 2007 book by Canadian author and social activist Naomi Klein. In the book, Klein argues that neoliberal economic policies promoted by Milton Friedman and the Chicago school of economics have risen to global prominence because of a deliberate strategy she calls 'disaster capitalism'. In this strategy, political actors exploit the chaos of natural disasters, wars, and other crises to push through unpopular policies such as deregulation and privatization. This economic 'shock therapy' favors corporate interests while disadvantaging and disenfranchising citizens when they are too distracted and overwhelmed to respond or resist effectively. The book challenges the narrative that free market capitalist policies have been welcomed by the inhabitants of regions where they have been implemented, and it argues that several man-made events, including the Iraq War, were intentionally undertaken with the goal of pushing through these unpopular policies in their wake."

The Anti-Authoritarian Playbook

Scot Nakagawa

A deep dive into analysis, strategy & tools to confront the rise of fascism in the U.S.

Trainings and Briefings, Strategy & Policy Solutions

Rural Urban Bridge Initiative

"To preserve our democracy and rebuild our fractured nation, we need a broader, more united movement—one that lifts up working-class people across race and geography."

Learn about Voting Rights

Get Prepared to the Elections

Data Center Information Webinars

from CURE MN

Learn more about Data Centers & how they impact our communities.

Indivisible Calls & Trainings

"Learn, organize, and take action with Indivisible. Join our calls and training to build power and defend democracy together."

STAC Trainings

States at the Core

"A running list of upcoming trainings from States at the Core" — Ice Watch Related.

Everything Is Changing Fast

A Brisk Tour Through Shifting Views with Rebecca Solnit

"In this chaotic, transformative period, a lot of realities are changing in a lot of ways, and public opinion is often either changing with it or leading the change. We are not who we were even a few years ago when it comes to opposition to 'Epstein class' billionaires, artificial intelligence, ICE ,and immigration enforcement. As Perry Bacon of the New Republic put it recently, 'Guess What Moderate Democratic Voters Aren’t Anymore? Moderate.' He continues, 'Around 70 percent of moderates (combining the moderate and moderate-to-liberal respondents) said Democrats are 'too timid' in taxing the rich, taxing corporations, and cracking down on companies that break the law. A clear majority of moderates said the party is too timid in regulating Big Tech companies. Fewer than 5 percent of moderates said Democrats are “too aggressive” in their dealings with the rich, corporations, and Big Tech.' That's an anti-elite wave right there."