Alyssa Milano, Mark Ruffalo, Whoopi Goldberg among stars joining Trump speech alternatives
UPDATE, with New York City event As President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address Tuesday, actress and activist Alyssa Milano will host what she’s calling resist and persist counter-programming.
Milano’s “State of the Dream” digital initiative is soliciting and will present brief (60 seconds max) videos from Americans describing their dreams for the country. The videos will be posted on Twitter and other social media simultaneously at 6pm PST/9pm EST, just as Trump begins his address.
“#StateOfTheDream will highlight what truly makes America great: that we come from many places, races and creeds, and together work for a more perfect union,” Milano writes in an instruction sheet the actress tweeted this morning. “Our digital #StateOfTheDream address will support our dreamers and immigrants, call for a DREAM Act, lean into the Senate, fundraiser for United We Dream, and express our vision for a more inclusive, progressive America.”
Milano, who helped popularize Tarana Burke’s #MeToo movement, writes that everyone is welcome to post a video, but she especially encourages anyone seeking political office to participate. After the initial video blast, contributors can continue “the unifying tweetstorm” by posting with the #StateOfTheDream hashtag.
The actress says a toolkit will be released prior to January 30.
Milano’s project will follow by a day the People’s State of the Union live-stream event at New York City’s Town Hall, a gathering of progressive organizations (MoveOn.org, We Stand United, Stand Up America, People For The American Way, among others) and celebrities including Mark Ruffalo, Whoopi Goldberg, John Leguizamo, Andra Day and Common, Michael Moore, Wanda Sykes, Zoe Kravitz, Cynthia Nixon, Kathy Najimy, Fisher Stevens and Rosie Perez.
Set for Monday at 8 pm ET, the event is self-described as “a hopeful, public alternative to Trump’s State of the Union,” and will outline a plan of action for the coming year focusing on voter rights, voter registration, and voter turnout.
The People’s State of the Union will be live-streamed on its Facebook page.
I’m excited to be part of #PeoplesSOTU on Jan. 29 in NYC to celebrate the #ResistanceMovement and chart a path to victory in 2018! https://t.co/tCP2IUbuJH With @WSUCampaign @MoveOn @StandUpAmerica @WhoopiGoldberg @MMFlint @common @AndraDayMusic and more! #VOTE2018
— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) January 26, 2018
And here is Milano’s tweet, followed by her instructions for participating in Tuesday’s State of the Dream initiative.
Please join us! Resist and persist with digital counter-programming to Trump’s #SOTU! Check out and share this google doc for instructions and more info. #StateOfTheDream
Pass it on. https://t.co/r0PxCCs52n
— Alyssa Milano (@Alyssa_Milano) January 26, 2018
#StateOfTheDream Initiative
OVERVIEW: On Tuesday night (6pm PST/9pm EST), Donald Trump will deliver his SOTU address. #StateOfTheDream will highlight what truly makes America great: that we come from many places, races and creeds, and together work for a more perfect union.
Our digital #StateOfTheDream address will support our dreamers and immigrants, call for a DREAM Act, lean into the Senate, fundraise for United We Dream, and express our vision for a more inclusive, progressive America.
We will provide a social media toolkit closer to the 30th, but we also invite you create a brief (60 seconds or less) video describing your dream for America: What you hope for. What inspires YOU. (We especially encourage those running for office and those already serving to do so!). All videos should be posted simultaneously at 6pm PST/9pm EST with the hashtag #StateOfTheDream on all of your social channels. After the video blast, you can proceed to post tweets from the toolkit or your own messaging. We just ask that you continue the unifying tweetstorm with the #StateOfTheDream hashtag.
WHEN: Tuesday, January 30th at 6pm PST/9pm EST
WHAT: #StateOfTheDream initiative
WHO: Members of The Resistance, elected officials, those running for office, any and all Americans who want to use their voices for positive change! Love IS louder.
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