Democratic Club

by Mary Larson

LW contributor

July continues to be a month of transition for the Democratic Club. Monthly membership meetings will take place on a new date and time. Plans are also underway for the possibility of these meetings being held in person and via Zoom.

The first meeting under this new schedule will be on the fourth Wednesday of the month, July 27, at 1 p.m. If club leaders can resolve technical problems before then, this will be a hybrid meeting. The goal of the club’s board is to provide an opportunity for all members to participate in Club meetings, those who feel comfortable meeting face-to-face indoors as well as for those who don’t. Masks and proof of vaccination will be a requirement for those who attend the meetings in person. Speakers will participate in the meetings by Zoom for the time being.

The speaker for the July 27 meeting will be Mariann Klinger. Her presentation titled “Patriarchal Power Grab: Still Alive and Thriving” will include an update on the proposed equal rights constitutional amendment as well as on a number of recent controversial Supreme Court decisions. Of special interest to members will be California’s response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Klinger spent many years as a reporter on a number of Northern California newspapers. During that period, she gained the reputation for always reporting the truth. She is currently serving as Councilwoman Sandra Massa-Lavitt’s District 5 representative on the Seal Beach Planning Commission. Long-term club members will remember Klinger’s provocative presentation on the Equal Rights Amendment a few years back.

More information about the meeting will be available next week. The club’s board continues to re-evaluate their decision as to when and how to hold inperson membership meetings on a month-to-month basis. The board is concerned that long COVID is emerging as the next phase of the health crisis and that coronavirus case rates have been increasing statewide. As of this date, the plan is to have hybrid meetings for the rest of the year.

••• Weather permitting, the SBLW Democratic Club’s Information and Hospitality Booth will be open in the parking lot outside Clubhouse 6 from 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. every Tuesday through the end of September.

The booth will be open on both Tuesdays and Thursdays during the month of October.

For more in-depth reporting about plans for the upcoming General Election, as well as information about the Club’s programs for the coming months, LW Democrats and no preferred party supporters can subscribe to the club’s newsletter that is published twice a month for free.

To sign up for the newsletter, email democraticclubsblw@gmail.com or call editor Mary Larson at (562) 296-8521. People are asked to include their full name, address, phone number, and party affiliation.

Mariann Klinger