An Open Letter: No Kings Day and the Connectivity Fair

The last weekend in March brings three days filled with activities and interactions designed to ignite and enrich our connections with each other—that’s the Jefferson County Connectivity Summit at Fort Worden, open to the public on Friday evening—Sunday and Saturday evening at the Fairgrounds. And, on Saturday afternoon, the nationwide No Kings Day 3, will be celebrated in Port Townsend along Sims Way at 1 p.m. and with a rally at Pope Marine Plaza downtown at 2 p.m. They’re important opportunities to show up and strengthen the bonds of community connection that carry us all through times of transition. Our community is invited to step up and shape our local future together. The Connectivity Summit is put together by the Production Alliance in a spirit of generosity, discovery and celebration to strengthen the local networks that sustain us every day. It brings organizations, neighbors, and sectors together in a collaborative “town square” atmosphere. Through facilitated networking, interactive exhibits, and workshops, the focus is on resilience—building trust across differences, increasing cooperation, and deepening the relationships that allow our community to function effectively. In these uncertain times, local collaboration is not abstract. It’s functional. It’s practical. It’s creative. It determines how we solve problems, support one another, and respond collectively to change. No Kings is another facet of a collective response, our local call for change as one of many national rallies. Port Townsend’s gathering offers community members an opportunity to stand in solidarity with Indivisible, the League of Women Voters, JCIRA and more than 200 other organizations to express support for constitutional government, human rights, and the rule of law. Public participation in rallies and demonstrations signals to leaders and to neighbors that democracy is participatory, not passive. It affirms that our voices are needed, and do matter, and that our community members are connected in concerns for each other, our nation and our planet. Check out https://www.theproductionalliance.org/connectivity to get engaged with the Connectivity Summit. Nokings.org has information for thousands of rallies, nationally, here: https://indivisible.org/ and our local one, here: https:// www.ptindivisiblehuddle.org/ Community is not a spectator sport—and neither is democracy. This weekend is chock full of opportunities to connect and strengthen the social fabric we share. We hope you’ll be inspired to jump in. However you choose to participate, your presence will make a difference. Signed, Ruth Gordon and Judith Alexander, Indivisible Danny Milholland, The Production Alliance