Imagining – Organizing – Thriving: Our Future, Together | Kentuckians For The Commonwealth

Imagining – Organizing – Thriving: Our Future, Together

KFTC 2021 Annual Membership Meeting

 

Registration Information

The 2021 Annual Meeting will be held online on Friday night and throughput the day on Saturday, July 30-31. A couple of chapters are planning in-person evening gatherings.

To participate, please REGISTER HERE and more details will be sent to you.



The future is what we make together.

We can make a future where every Kentuckian has a safe home, clean water, and health care. Where we can send our kids to public schools that equip them to pursue their dreams. Where our jobs earn us a good living and help us live a good life. Where we all have a say in the decisions that impact our lives. We can make a future where we all thrive.

That future is possible, but first we have to imagine what we truly want for ourselves, our families and communities, for KFTC, and Kentucky. And then we have to organize and take action together to create it. 

That’s why KFTC members are envisioning and implementing an Organizational Change Initiative to set the course for KFTC’s future as we celebrate our 40-year history. It’s why we push for visionary policies like the THRIVE agenda, and work to impact elections and elect bold candidates.

At this year’s virtual annual meeting, members will celebrate the first forty years of KFTC while we learn with each other about issues and strategies that can help shape the next forty years in Kentucky and of KFTC – starting now.

 

SCHEDULE

Friday, July 30 (times are eastern)

7 p.m.  Opening Session

  • Welcome and Land Acknowledgement
  • Introduce Theme
  • Group Agreements
  • Break into small groups for introductions and sharing 

7:30 p.m. Story telling (Celebrating Burt Lauderdale’s Organizing Legacy and 40 Years of KFTC)

  • An interactive timeline of organizing in Kentucky, the South, the nation. With a special emphasis on stories about retiring Executive Director Burt Lauderdale and his impact.

9 p.m. Adjourn

Saturday, July 31

10 a.m.  Morning Opening and Plenary Session

We'll gather up together on Saturday morning to hear chapter petitions from several chapters and get an update on our Organizational Change Initiative – why OCI, what we've done, and where we're going.

10:30 a.m.  Morning Workshops (Choose one. Workshops will be recorded and all recordings will be shared with participants later.)

  • Deep canvassing: It’s just good organizing

    Presenters: Kathy Curtis and Annette Hines
    We know the success of our organizing rests on reaching people that might not agree with us. We also know we’re up against a challenging set of political forces and corrosive narratives that lead us to not see or trust each other. What is deep canvassing? What does it offer us in the challenge of transforming hearts and minds? Why does this moment call for a robust and personal field program? And how can we build the muscles that are needed to pull this off? We’ll learn from the experiences of inspiring organizations, think about door-to-door work outside of campaign season, and offer skills and tools to take with you.=

  • Our Time To THRIVE: How Kentuckians are organizing for climate justice.

    Presenter: Lisa Abbott
    Explore ways Kentuckians are organizing with allies in labor, youth, and environmental and climate justice movements to win solutions that address racial justice, create good jobs, and protect our health and climate. Learn ways you can organize locally, engage your neighbors, and push elected leaders to deliver.

  • It’s our money and we need it now!

    Presenters: Joyce Adkins and Angela Rowe
    Local budgets are created and implemented yearly in our cities and counties, yet many of us don’t understand the process. Join the KFTC Economic Justice Committee in a presentation about local budgets using a beautiful zine they have created for distribution of knowledge across the commonwealth. Because when we know the what, why, how, when, and where of local budgets, we can effectively organize for divesting from systems of harm so we can invest in what truly makes us safe and healthy.

  • Abortion is a Human Right! The Grassroots Fight for Reproductive Justice in Kentucky

    Presenter: Tamarra Wieder 
    State legislatures across the country are passing laws to restrict abortion. And in the wake of new conversative appointments to the Supreme Court, those laws are getting closer and closer to chipping away at our federally protected right to an abortion. Here in Kentucky, we’re facing an extreme constitutional amendment on the ballot in 2022 thatt would make it much easier for the state to ban abortion immediately if Roe v. Wade was ever overturned. This workshop will feature a panel of organizers working to build a winning campaign to stop the constitutional amendment on abortion. We’ll hear from the panel about the coalition of partners working to protect reproductive rights in Kentucky, and we’ll work together to shape a narrative of what reproductive justice looks like in our communities.

12 p.m. Lunch Break

2 p.m. Annual Business Meeting (for KFTC members only)

At our annual business meeting, we'll hear some chapter petitions, elect the KFTC Executive Committee and Kentucky Coalition board members, and share appreciation for the work folks have done over the past year. (The KFTC Leadership Development Committee has recommended, and the Steering Committee approved, a slate of leaders for consideration by the members voting at the Annual Business Meeting. You can read about the nominees and the nominations' process here. )

3 p.m. Keynote Address: Charles Booker

Some chapters might decide to gather for an in-person celebration on Saturday evening. Check your local chapter pages for details. 

REGISTER

July 30, 2021 - 7:00pm to July 31, 2021 - 4:30pm
Event Venue: 
Online, with in-person options
Event Location: 
KY