Emergency humanitarian aid for Texas (we need your help)

Hospitals are overwhelmed by Texas residents suffering from hypothermia; grocery stores are running out of food; and some families have resorted to burning their furniture in order to stay warm, while others are boiling snow so they can have clean water.

Dear MoveOn member, 

Freezing temperatures have left millions of people across Texas without power, heat, food, and water, and already 30 people have died as a result of the arctic blast.¹

Hospitals are overwhelmed by Texas residents suffering from hypothermia; grocery stores are running out of food; and some families have resorted to burning their furniture in order to stay warm, while others are boiling snow so they can have clean water.^2,3

The situation is harrowing, and the needs on the ground are tremendous. MoveOn is springing into action by raising emergency humanitarian funds for the nonprofit Workers Defense Project, which is on the front lines of this tragedy and is connecting impacted families to warming centers, water, and food. 

But we urgently need your help. Will you rush a tax-deductible donation to the Workers Defense Project's emergency fund to help victims on the ground in Texas?

Mar, despicably, when the arctic storm hit, Texas Senator Ted Cruz abandoned his constituents and flew to Cancún, Mexico, for a luxurious vacation.⁴ And one conservative Texas mayor told his constituents who are desperate for heat, water, and power that "only the strong will survive and the weak will [perish.]"⁵

It's clear that we can't count on elected officials like Ted Cruz to lead during this crisis. 

So it's going to be up to all of us to step up and do whatever we can to support local emergency efforts and help the victims of this terrifying blizzard.

The Texas Organizing Project, which organizes Black and Latinx communities, and the Workers Defense Project, which fights for the rights of immigrants workers, are working around the clock to serve their communities and ensure that people in need are safe, healthy, and warm. Together, these organizations are:

• Distributing relief funds to help those directly impacted;
• Partnering with other local organizations to call and text millions of Texans to connect people with warming centers and water and food distribution sites; and
• Using this moment to galvanize and organize folks in Texas to take on deregulation, inequality, climate change, and other deep, structural issues that left so many vulnerable when the storm hit.

Will you rush an emergency contribution right now to support the humanitarian relief efforts on the ground in Texas? 100% of your donation is tax-deductible and will go directly to the Workers Defense Project.

When tragedy strikes, MoveOn members like you have always quickly come together to assist communities in need. 

MoveOn members chipped in millions of dollars to provide much-needed assistance to victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and residents of Flint, MI, during the water crisis, and to bail out Black Lives Matter protesters who had been unjustly jailed. 

While our donations cannot undo the damage, together, we can ease the burdens of those who are suffering and those who are working around the clock to help them.

Black, Latinx, and poor communities are often hit the hardest when a natural disaster strikes, and this time is no different. Communities of color were the first to face power outages, and local officials are fearing for the lives and safety of homeless people in the state.⁶

Your contribution today will help connect families in need to warming centers, food, and water. And you will also be lessening their financial impact from the storm. Many Texans are losing out on income, sorely needed during the economically devastating COVID-19 pandemic, and are being saddled with enormous new expenses resulting from damaged pipes bursting and roofs collapsing. 

If you are able, will you rush an emergency donation right now to help Texans in need?

Thanks for all you do. 

–Emma, Isbah, Sana, Elsie, and the rest of the team

Sources:

1. "Live Updates: Power Comes Back in Texas, but Water Systems Are Crippled," The New York Times, February 19, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/150068?t=5&akid=290768%2E10220574%2E7P1XL-

2. "Texas homeless population seeks refuge amid bone-chilling temperatures," NBC News, February 18, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/150069?t=7&akid=290768%2E10220574%2E7P1XL-

3. "Texas weather: Deaths mount as winter storm leaves millions without power," BBC News, February 18, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/150053?t=9&akid=290768%2E10220574%2E7P1XL-

4. "'Obviously a mistake': Sen. Ted Cruz says he regrets going to Cancún while Texans froze," NBC News, February 18, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/150070?t=11&akid=290768%2E10220574%2E7P1XL-

5. "Texas mayor resigns after telling residents desperate for power and heat 'only the strong will survive,'" CBS News, February 18, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/150071?t=13&akid=290768%2E10220574%2E7P1XL-

6. "Texas Blackouts Hit Minority Neighborhoods Especially Hard," The New York Times, February 16, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/150072?t=15&akid=290768%2E10220574%2E7P1XL-

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