From: "Joel Rose" To: Subject: CACGEC: picketing plans, meeting, forum, rally, election Date: Thursday, August 28, 2003 11:09 PM Summary: (1) picketing on 9/2 at 5:30-6:30 p.m. in front of Cheektowaga Town Hall (2) CACGEC general meeting on 9/2 at 7 p.m. at 1272 Delaware Avenue (3) no picketing on 9/8 (4) picketing on 9/15 at 4-5 p.m. in front of Erie County Hall (5) forum on 9/17 at 7 p.m. in the Science Museum (6) rally on 9/20 at 12 noon at Hoyt lake in Delaware Park (7) candidate questionnaire ============================================================================== Discussion: There's a lot going on this month, including a week of activities designated Casino Opposition Week, as described yesterday by Diane Persico. This message is to bring you up-to-date on our picketing plans, to remind you of our next meeting and of some of the major events associated with Casino Opposition Week, and to tell you about a questionnaire we've sent to candidates for public office. Details are below. I hope to see many of you at some of the events listed below. Meanwhile, PLEASE help us get the word out. Feel free to forward this e-mail, or any part of it, to anyone you know who may be interested. Best regards, Joel Rose, co-Chairperson Citizens Against Casino Gambling in Erie County http://NoCasinoErie.org Don't forget to sign our on-line petition if you haven't already: http://PetitionOnline.com/CACGEC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (1) picketing on 9/2 at 5:30-6:30 p.m. in front of Cheektowaga Town Hall The last time we picketed in front of the Town Hall in Cheektowaga, some of the Cheektowaga residents attended the meeting of the Town Board which followed, waiting to be allowed to address the Board during the comment period. Instead, Supervisor Gabryszak abruptly adjourned the meeting before anyone had a chance to ask to be recognized. Well, we have some people who are determined to be heard and not to let that happen again. As Monday, September 1 is Labor Day, the Cheektowaga town Board, which normally meets on the first and third Mondays of each month, will meet instead on Tuesday, September 2. Accordingly, our picketing will be changed to Tuesday as well, and afterwards, some of the picketers who reside in Cheektowaga will attempt to address the Board. Since that is also the day of our general meeting, the picketing in Cheektowaga will be from 5;30 to 6:30 p.m., instead of 6 to 7. that will give those picketers who want to attend the meeting time to drive into Buffalo. Others may wish to attend the Cheektowaga Town Board meeting and attempt to speak. So, an informational picket is going to be held in front of Cheektowaga Town Hall this Tuesday, September 2, from 5:30 p.m. to about 6:30 p.m. Cheektowaga Town Hall is on the south side of Broadway, just east of Union. Broadway is an overpass over Union, with the connecting ramps on the south side of Broadway. As always, this will be a non-confrontational event. We do wish to engage people going in and out of County Hall in conversation, but not to obstruct their movement in any way. 80-year old ladies and gentlemen should feel comfortable walking this picket line. Signs and leaflets will be provided, but you may wish to make your own. The contact person for this event is Jackie Donaldson, 15 Mayberry Drive West, Cheektowaga, NY 14227, 656-0576, flytyer2@olm1.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (2) CACGEC general meeting on 9/2 at 7 p.m. at 1272 Delaware Avenue Citizens Against Casino Gambling in Erie County holds its general meetings on the first Tuesday of each month. All who are opposed to a gambling casino in Erie County are welcome. The next meeting will be on Tuesday, September 2, at 7 p.m. (following the picketing in Cheektowaga), at 1272 Delaware Avenue, just south of Gates Circle. The focus of this meeting will probably be on planning for Casino Opposition Week, mentioned above. If you can help, please come to the meeting. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (3) no picketing on 9/8 We decided to take that week off from picketing to concentrate our efforts on the other events planned for September. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (4) picketing on 9/15 at 4-5 p.m. in front of Erie County Hall But we'll be back the following week, this time at County Hall, to indicate our continuing opposition to a casino anywhere in Erie County. The picket on the 15th will be part of Casino Opposition Week, so we'd like to have as good a turnout as possible. The message to County officials is that ALL of Erie County should be out of bounds for casino gambling. That is the wish of a majority of County residents, and we expect County office-holders to show some leadership on this issue. So, CACGEC will conduct an informational picket on Monday, September 15, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m., in front of County Hall, 95 Franklin Street, in downtown Buffalo. We will picket on the east side of Franklin Street, between Church Street and West Eagle Street, in front of the new County Hall, directly across the street from the old County Hall. Once again, this is to be strictly a non-confrontational event. We do wish to engage passersby in conversation, but not to obstruct their movement in any way. Signs and leaflets will be provided, but you are free to bring your own. The contact person for this event is Jeffery Termini, 862-0470 or 440-6597, JLTHumanist@aol.com. We are continuing to decide on a week-by-week basis whether and where to picket. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (5) forum on 9/17 at 7 p.m. in the Science Museum As part of Casino Opposition Week, there will be a forum on Wednesday, September 17, at 7 p.m., at the Buffalo Museum of Science, 1020 Humboldt Parkway in Buffalo. This event will be open to the general public, with no charge for admission. There will be two speakers, Rev. Tom Grey, Executive Director of the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling, and Ms. Judy Bachmann, Vice Chairperson of the Citizens Equal Rights Alliance. We anticipate that these speakers will be speaking not only about the reasons we must oppose a casino in Erie County, but about how we should go about it. This should be a very good forum. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (6) rally on 9/20 at 12 noon at Hoyt lake in Delaware Park There will be an anti-gambling casino rally on Saturday, September 20, at noon, near the steps at Hoyt Lake in Delaware Park (or, if you prefer to think of it this way, near the CASINO -- the one we approve of). This event is planned as the culminate of Casino Opposition Week. We will have speakers, and music (details to be announced later). With a little luck, this time it won't rain. It should be a great event, and of course you all know by now how important it is to have a good showing at an event of this type. We really need you to come, and we need you to bring some friends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (7) candidate questionnaire A small committee of CACGEC, consisting of Mary Bartley, Diane Persico, and me, has sent a questionnaire on the issue of casino gambling in Erie County to each candidate for Erie County Executive, Erie County Legislator, Buffalo Comptroller, Buffalo Common Council Member, Cheektowaga Town Supervisor, and Cheektowaga Town Board Member. We are following up with telephone calls to those who have not yet responded, in some cases administering the questionnaire by telephone. The purposes of this project are to see where each of the candidates stand so we know where we should spend our lobbying efforts, to create a one-issue voting guide for our members and for the general public, and to encourage the candidates themselves to think through the issue if they have not already done so and to arrive at a position. We will be posting on our website the responses, or the failure to respond, of each candidate. We plan to issue two press releases summarizing our findings -- one just before the primaries on September 9 (provided we have sufficient responses by that time) and another prior to the general election in November. More on this as the results come in ...