Meeting Notes 4-7-25 1. Review the BACP-BLUE Gaza peace vigils held on Saturday, March 8 and Saturday, April 5 and schedule the May BACP-BLUE Gaza peace vigil. Four people at the March vigil and 6 at the April vigil. May Palestine vigil was rescheduled to the 2nd Saturday of the month (May 10th) to not interfere with the May Day March scheduled for the same day. 2. Review Brainerd Lakes Area Indivisible's Hands Off Rally held in Brainerd on Saturday, April 5 to protest the Trump Administration's reactionary policies. Brainerd Lakes Area Indivisible is the Brainerd area chapter of the national Indivisible organization. Several hundred people were at the rally with many messages for the current administration. Some of our members were at the church for lunch and spoke with organizers and found that many of our values aligned with theirs and we hope to collaborate on some issues. 3. Discuss the upcoming BACP-BLUE Ukraine War vigil. The Ukraine War vigil will be held on Saturday, April 12. The vigil will be held at the intersection of Highways 210 and 371, Baxter, near Kohl's. The vigil is scheduled to last from 1 to 2 p.m. The vigil will call for a peace settlement ending the Ukraine War, oppose U.S. military aid to Ukraine, and support direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine to end the war. BACP-BLUE members attending the Saturday, March 22 Ukraine War discussion agreed all of these demands should be incorporated into the Ukraine War vigil. Use the three points above for signage. Weather should be good. 4. Discuss plans for the Bad River: A Story of Defiance Earth Day film presentation in the Brainerd public library's large conference room on Saturday, April 19. The film presentation is scheduled to last from 1 to 3:45 p.m. Bad River: A Story of Defiance is about the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa's resistance to Enbridge's Line 5 tar sands pipeline. The movie is not appropriate for young children. Refreshments will be served. We hope for good attendance and lively discussion. 5. Discuss whether BACP-BLUE will host our Crow Wing County Fair booth. The Crow Wing County Fair will be held from Tuesday, July 29 through Saturday, August 2. As BACP-BLUE treasurer Richard Schiller recently noted, the cost of the fair booth has increased from $225 to $250, with the cost of the security deposit increasing from $100 to $200. It was unanimous that we should have the booth. Richard has the application and will send it in. Trish is going look into making buttons. 6. Discuss whether BACP-BLUE will endorse the Brainerd May Day March hosted by Brainerd Lakes Area Democratic Socialists of America (BLA DSA). The Brainerd May Day March will be held on Saturday, May 3 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Brainerd May Day March, a pro-labor union event, will begin with a march to Brainerd City Hall. After the march, there will be a potluck social in the Brainerd public library's large meeting room. This will be the first Brainerd May Day March since 2023. BACP and BLUE endorsed the Brainerd May Day March in the past because it accorded with our strong belief in economic justice. We support the May Day March. Gayle suggested a longer route to the City Hall as it is two blocks from the library. It will be suggested at Tuesday's DSA meeting. 7. Discuss possible dates for the Spring BACP-BLUE Adopt a Highway cleanup. BACP-BLUE maintains an Adopt a Highway section on Highway 371 north of Little Falls. Highway cleanup will be May 17th beginning at 11 a.m. As usual we will meet at the intersection of Highway 371 and Morrison County Road 76. It's the intersection were the deserted Knotty's restaurant it. 8. Discuss plans for future environmental actions. One possibility might be holding an event in conjunction with SunDay, an event hosted by many environmental groups, including Third Act and 350.org, to promote solar energy and other renewable energy sources. SunDay is planned for the weekend of September 20-21. That week-end does not interfere with our other activities so we would support it. Will be addressed at future meeting.