The Broad Room’s theme for our next year of trainings is BATTLE READY 2019. We will prepare women across the city with everything they need to handle the impending political madness of 2020.

To kick off our year, we are planning an event to help women find their voice. For our January training, we will have Surina Jindal, a badass lady expert in public speaking and on-camera presence, come in to teach our Broads how to crush their fear of public speaking and stand with confidence to speak up in front of one, or many, no matter where they are or how high the stakes.

Surina Jindal is a public speaking coach, actress (Succession, Outsourced, 90201), and award-winning producer. She's trained in improv and sketch comedy and has worked in TV, film, theatre, and national commercials. She's also a self-development enthusiast and has invested herself in learning mindset techniques and performance skills. Her unique method of combining over a decade of acting training along with mindset training allows for fast and effective results in public speaking.

Bring a notebook and something to write with; we’ll provide wine!

Liuba Grechen Shirley is a community organizer, women’s economic development expert, and mother of two running for Congress in Amityville. She’s taking on 25-year incumbent GOP Congressman Peter King — and making history while she runs.

We’ll meet in Manhattan at Union Square East at 10:00 AM, the bus will depart promptly at 10:30 AM, and we’ll leave from Long Island at 4:00 PM. The bus is currently full, but we encourage you to RSVP below to join our waitlist. If we have cancellations, we will let you know ASAP and ask you to bring your $5 contribution with you to the event. Lunch will be provided!

Never done this before? No worries — we’ll teach you everything you need to know.

Alessandra Biaggi and Jessica Ramos are two candidates running for NY State Senate and both ladies slay the game. As true progressives, they are fighting for housing justice, better funding for education, healthcare, and improved transportation across the city.

We'll give you the run-down on how to phone bank and then get down to business. Primary day is September 13th so if you haven't gotten up and out, now's the time! Join us!

You last saw her slay as the speaker for our fundraiser in January, now come out, pick up the phone, and support her run for governor! As a true progressive candidate, fighting to end income inequality, mass incarceration, and promoting access to health care, The Broad Room can't wait to help make the call to elect Cynthia Nixon.

We'll teach you how to phone bank and give you free snacks too. You don't want to miss it!

Wanna learn how to fundraise? Join us on June 20th for our interactive Get That Money: How to Fundraise training, where you’ll learn how to make the “big ask” and fundraise for progressive causes and candidates. *Space is limited - RSVP below*

About the trainers:

Elana Leopold

Elana Leopold is a founding partner at Seneca Strategies, focusing her efforts on long-term strategic fundraising and political consulting for local and statewide campaigns. She currently fundraises for candidates including Liuba Grechen Shirley, Jessica Ramos and Cynthia Nixon.

Leopold has experience in local and national fundraising and politics. Prior to founding Seneca Strategies, Leopold worked as finance director for Mayor de Blasio’s successful re-election campaign, where she was responsible for raising over $10 million, developing a citywide finance plan, and organizing hundreds of fundraisers from a deep network of donors.  

In 2014, Leopold joined City Hall and served as the Mayor’s right hand, building his executive team from the ground up and running the Mayor’s day-to-day schedule. She went on to serve as a senior member of the Mayor’s political team, overseeing community engagement and political strategy with elected officials and advocates for city agencies. 

Catherine Almonte

A New York native and proud Afro-Latina, Catherine Almonte is a public service devotee. In her current role as Government & Community Affairs Liaison for the Brooklyn Museum, she works to enhance relationships between the museum and the communities it serves.

Most recently she worked on Mayor Bill de Blasio's re-election campaign as Deputy Finance Director where she helped raise over $10 million, planned more than 100 fundraising events, and managed various projects.

Previously, she tackled the puzzle of Deputy Director of Scheduling to the Mayor of New York City. Catherine has also served as Special Assistant to the Mayor, Event Coordinator for the Mayor's Office Special Projects and Community Events and Special Assistant to the Director of Appointments. 

She resides in Flatbush, Brooklyn with her two cats and enjoys riding her bike to work.

RSVP:

***This event is full. Please join the waitlist!***

Get ready to learn the basics of field campaigning and the reasons why we use these tactics at our Field 101: How to Get Your People to Vote event. This hands-on training will cover the ins & outs of electoral field campaigning: from the social science behind phone-banking to perfecting your door-to-door candidate pitch.

About the trainer: 

Regina Schwartz: Director of Movement Capacity Building for the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Former Director of NYC Mayor's Office for Public Engagement

Kassandra DeVorsey: CEO and founder of Minerva Insights, Senior
senior advisor to the Movement Cooperative.  She has served leading
roles in data and analytics at President Obama’s 2012 campaign, BlueLabs, and the Democratic National Committee.

***This event is full. Please join the waitlist!***
 

New York State Senate is currently run by Republicans. You read that right: in true blue New York, the State Senate is majority GOP. Here's how to help flip the Senate—this month: phone bank for Shelley Mayer, the Democratic candidate for State Senate in NY-37.

We'll teach you how to phone bank, give you free wine, dial for Dems, and have an amazing Sunday. You don't want to miss it. RSVP today. (For women only).

***This event is full—make sure to join the waitlist!***

Not sure what the midterm elections are—but know you should know? Want to know which seats are up for election—and how you can help fill these seats with progressives? Confused why New York has *FOUR* different election days this year? Fear not. 

Join us for What are the Midterms and Why Do They Matter? and we'll teach you all you need to know about the upcoming midterms. Plus, free wine (obvs).

About the trainers:

Alison Hirsh: Political Director of 32BJ SEIU

Lis Smith: Democratic strategist, co-founder of 50 State Communications, former Deputy Campaign Manager for Martin O'Malley's 2016 campaign and former Director of Rapid Response for Barack Obama's 2012 campaign

Melissa Mark-Viverito: Senior Advisory to the Latino Victory Fund, and former Speaker of the New York City Council

***This event is full—make sure to join the waitlist!***

***Event is full, make sure to join the waitlist!***

Want to learn how to make a political argument? Curious why Trump’s message was so clearer much than Hillary’s? Not sure what the difference is between flacks, pundits, reporters and commentators? Wonder if your background in PR could translate into political communications?

Join us for Messaging On the Left: Political Comms 101, with two of New York City’s top political communications strategists, Rebecca Kirszner Katz and Rachel Noerdlinger. We’ll teach you how the insane new cycle works, what breaks through, how to frame an argument, and what all this has to do with political activism. Plus, free wine (obvs). Thanks to our friends at The Wing for hosting.

***This event is out of tickets. Please join the waitlist below and we will let you know when more seats open!***

Our incredible trainers:

Rebecca Kirszner Katz: A Partner at Hilltop Public Solutions, Rebecca Kirszner Katz has become a go-to strategist for candidates who want to speak to and understand the party’s progressive base.  A former top advisor to the Mayor of New York City and Communications Director for Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, Katz understands the modern news cycle and what drives it. From assisting with the planning and execution of the White House’s communications strategy for Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s confirmation, to helping Planned Parenthood fight back against the unprecedented assault on women’s health in the first year of the Trump presidency, for two decades Katz has helped personalities, campaigns, and causes tell their story to news media and stakeholders inside and outside the Beltway.

Rachel Noerdlinger: Rachel Noerdlinger is Managing Director at Mercury Public Affairs and President of Noerdlinger Media. Noerdlinger has brought visibility to national civil rights cases and politics during her two decades of experience in strategic communications, crisis management, and public affairs, along with community engagement in electoral politics and business. Noerdlinger has served as Chief of Staff for New York City’s First Lady Chirlane McCray, as President of Noerdlinger Media, and Press Secretary to Rev. Al Sharpton during his 2004 Presidential run. Noerdlinger has been featured in Essence Magazine as one of the top ten females in the country making strides in her respective field, and she has been called “the public relations force behind Rev. Al Sharpton and National Action Network.” 

Get that money.

Let’s be honest: asking friends and family for money to support progressive causes can be painfully awkward. But it’s also essential. Men often enter the political arena with more funds, more support, and more confidence than female candidates. If we want to get more progressive women in office, we need to help fix this resource imbalance. 

Come to our next training to learn how to make the hard ask, how to plan a fundraiser, and how to get that $$$ for the candidates and causes you care about. 

Then we’ll put those tools in action as we turn towards the next big hurdle: the 2018 elections. 

We’ll be testing out our newly honed fundraising skills for Liuba Grechen Shirley, a 2018 Democratic candidate in New York fighting to unseat Republican Peter King. Check her out here: http://liubaforcongress.com/

About the trainer: As Finance Director for Mayor de Blasio’s 2017 Mayoral re-election campaign, Elana Leopold raised over $10 million in the last year and a half, developed a citywide campaign finance plan, and organized hundreds of fundraisers through a developed network of donors. Leopold has also served as Senior Advisor in the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs in New York City, as Senior Aide to the Mayor, and as Compliance Director for the Mayor’s 2013 campaign. Leopold is also a co-founder of The Broad Room. 

Training is free, and for women-identifying individuals only.

Why is Congress controlled by the GOP when Dems win more votes? In large part because Republicans have used their advantage in state legislatures to gerrymander Dems into the minority. The good news: We can do something about it this year. 

We're hosting a phone bank for two women running to help flip Virginia's House of Delegates blue. And we're partnering with the amazing women at Bulletin Broads to phone bank in their store in Williamsburg (perk: they provide free rosé). We'll have expert phone bank trainers on hand to walk you through every step. 

Who are the candidates? Danica Roem is 32 years old — this is her first time running. And if she wins, she’ll be the first transgender member of the House of Delegates. Her opponent is Bob Marshall, 73, a 13-term incumbent who authored a “bathroom bill” during the last legislative session. Danica’s running in one of the districts that Hillary Clinton won in 2016 but that is currently held by a Republican in the Virginia House. 

Jennifer Carroll Foy is a public defender born and raised in Petersburg, VA. She was one of the first women to graduate from the Virginia Military Institute, and she has devoted her life’s work to foster and orphan children. VA-2 is considered a swing district — a Democratic delegate unseated incumbent Mark Dudenhefer in 2013 after President Obama won the district by 58% in 2012; Dudenhefer won it back in 2015 by barely 100 votes. 

 

When the ground crumbles beneath us, it's time to arm ourselves with the tools to fight for real change. On September 23rd, the Broad Room is holding our third free training -- Building Power: Grassroots Organizing 101.

Want to learn how to tackle the big issues and achieve concrete wins? Superstar organizer and general badass Emma Wolfe will be training us up on how to organize around a cause, build out a strategy, and take action from the grassroots.

Join us to learn from the best and gain the tangible skills to turn these lessons into real action.

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Emma Wolfe is the Director of Intergovernmental Affairs for Mayor Bill de Blasio. Most recently, she served as the Deputy Campaign Manager and Political Director for de Blasio’s mayoral campaign in 2013, overseeing the building of a victorious citywide coalition that spanned all five boroughs. Wolfe previously served de Blasio as Chief of Staff for the Office of the Public Advocate, reorganizing the office into an effective agency watchdog with an emphasis on community organizing. She has worked as an organizing and field director for the New York State Senate, Working Families Party, ACORN and 1199 SEIU.

Event is for women-identifying folks only.

This past week, the DCCC (our party overlords) chose big tent politics at the expense of women - informing their base that reproductive rights would not be a litmus test for party endorsements.  

The Broad Room is not about that shit. And on August 15th, you can join us to phonebank with #VOTEPROCHOICE - an organization identifying, endorsing and actively supporting proactive prochoice candidates across the country. Because reproductive care is not a litmus test. It's a fundamental right.

RSVP to join our Brooklyn rooftop phonebank. BYO lady (identifying) friends, snacks, and drinks.

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