Please, Please Mr. Postman
I can’t remember exactly when my fascination with the Post Office began. As a kid, when my family received holiday cards — it was the envelope the card came in that I was obsessed with — the handwriting, whether blocky or elaborate script, telling something about its sender. And the stamps! Those who really “know me,” know how much I love stamps (yes, I am philatelist). When the holidays were over, I’d gather up all the cards and compare them to the names and addresses in my family’s address book.
Let’s be honest, I’m not really a birthday card sender. But, during the holiday season, I literally send out thousands of cards all around the world. I like to keep in touch and remind people that I love and am thinking about them. When I sit down to address an envelope — it’s a moment of reflection, a mental check-in with a friend, wherever they are, no matter how long it’s been since I last saw them. I say things to myself like ‘Aww — I miss them,’ or ‘I haven’t heard from them in ages,’ or, on that rare occasion, ‘I know they moved — this is not their current address, and I’m not gonna waste a stamp!’ Believe me, when I say, I’m not shy about asking the sender to reimburse me for the cost of the stamp when mail gets returned.
I go to my local post office almost every day. When I walk in, it’s like an iconic scene from “Cheers.”. There are a couple of postal workers that have been at my neighborhood office for the entire 30 years I’ve lived in this neighborhood. Jackson and I usually arrive around 10:30 AM to avoid morning lines and lunch hour rushes. Without fail, during each visit, I spot someone who looks like they’ve never stepped foot inside a USPS branch. For them, the mail is what shows up at their home address or what they drop in a post box. But, in truth, there is much more to it than that and we all too readily take for granted the mail — and the people who make sure we get it, come rain or shine.
The USPS employs more than 7.5 million people, historically providing an avenue towards middle-class stability for a wide variety of Americans. They are among the largest employers of veterans in the entire country, the second biggest majority of workers are African Americans, followed by immigrants, and rural migrants. The Postal Service today is 37 percent minority and 37 percent female.
And now “the President” has come out and, in one way or another, questioned the validity of mail-in ballots and the integrity of the USPS, not to mention his systemic and painfully obvious attempt to cripple the institution to benefit his reelection ambitions. I am furious.
But I am also realistic. For many of us, we will have to vote by mail. And, if we want to counter the underhanded moves that Trump is making, there are several important things we all should know.
Let’s start with the basics. Here is where you can find out how to register to vote. Here is where you can find out information about absentee and early voting. Note that these government websites are already warning you that there may be “temporary changes to voting by mail due to the coronavirus pandemic.”
Be sure to check out my voting guide — The Queer Agenda (San Francisco, CA-based guidelines). Because this November, instead of just voting you can also volunteer. This is one of the most critical elections of our lifetimes and we can’t afford to sit on the sidelines. Take action and get involved in Democratic victories. Volunteer a few hours a week to make phone calls or texts for critical Congressional and Senate races. Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the San Francisco Democratic Party have teamed up to open “VoteBlueSF” — a virtual Democratic volunteer hub to make it easy for us to take action to take back our country.
It is your responsibility to make sure that your ballot gets counted–not USPS. Find out who your Supervisor of Elections is to see where you can drop off your voting ballot. Because it is not always at your polling place.
Your Supervisor of Elections is responsible for the following:
- Administering all elections in your county
- Providing information and statistics on voter registration, voting, and elections
- Voter education
- Issuing voter information cards
- Conducting voter registration
- Providing Vote-by-Mail voting
- Qualifying candidates for office
- Receiving campaign finance reports
- Maintaining election equipment
- Hiring and training election workers
- Renting and equipping polling places
After you’ve registered to vote by mail (77% of Americans can cast ballots by mail in the fall) and if you’d like to act out and shake things up a bit more, contact all six of the white male USPS Board of Governors by email (their worst nightmares is a clogged inbox) to let them know why you use and rely on the USPS for their services. President Trump did not appoint the new postmaster general Louis DeJoy, the USPS Board of Governors selected him, but the White House did push to have him put in that position.
From facilitating the nation’s most massive one-day food drive to working with customers to prevent dog bites, educating customers on consumer protection, and delivering holiday cheer to those in need, the USPS supports communities nationwide. Changes to operations could affect you and your family in receiving a wide variety of essentials, from our seniors receiving their Social Security checks, to elders and veterans getting medical prescriptions, IDs, passport, credit cards. And last, but not least, my LOVE LETTERS!!!
Let’s keep this institution running smoothly.
Another great idea to keep the USPS going is to send these “Shame On You” postcards to people in our country who have done despicable things. Let’s publicly express our desire for a better future and our opposition to their behavior. Shame On You Set of 5, pre-stamped
USPS Board of Governor’s email contacts:
directoraccessmailbox@cigna.com
