Welcome to How We Won, a new newsletter about organizing victories and the people that made them happen.

I’m Lindsay, a Chicago-based writer and editor, and the creator of the Beyond November resource guide. In the overwhelm of living through what some days feels like a neverending tidal wave of crises and cries of “we’re cooked,” once a month, this newsletter will highlight a big community win — be it related to housing justice, climate, education or any number of other issues — and interview the organizers behind it about what worked, what didn’t and what lessons you can apply to the fight in your own communities. In honor of Banned Books Week, we’re starting with this story of a student-teacher collaboration to fight book censorship in central Pennsylvania.

I hope this is a source for grounding, guidance and hope in a difficult time. Thank you for being here, and hope to see you again next month. Onward! 

An appearance from transphobic grifter Riley Gaines wasn’t enough to keep efforts to pass an anti-trans book ban from succeeding in a Tennessee library. Girl keeps on taking Ls. Maybe swim faster next time.

Neighbors in Houston worked together to create solar-powered “hub homes” to make their community more climate-resilient and better prepared in the event of climate disasters. 

New Mexico became the first state to provide universal child care. And banned ICE detention centers from operating in the state. 

City after city – Chicago, Minneapolis, Portland — showed up in ways big and small to protect their neighbors from ICE kidnappings. 

The South is leading the way on clean energy — here are just a few of the exciting projects communities are implementing.

Remember the interview with KC Tenants for this newsletter where they mentioned another rent strike at Bowen Tower? Yeah, that strike lasted about six months and ended with huge wins for tenants, including rent reductions, two-year leases, and good-cause protections against evictions. 

The Department of Education paused wage garnishment for student loan borrowers thanks to the advocacy of organizations like the Debt Collective. 

The Lumbee tribe of present-day North Carolina is now federally recognized after a 137-year effort. 

Massive public pressure led to the scrapping of plans for an ICE detention center in New Hampshire. 

A cafe that became a mutual aid hub in Minneapolis during the massive ICE occupation is continuing their pay-what-you-can model. 

From Palestinian student activist Leqaa Kordia to streamer Ludovic, individuals unjustly detained by ICE are being released thanks to intense public pressure and community support.

A small town in Wisconsin is modeling the use of a ballot referendum to block data centers.

The town of Social Circle, Georgia, upended plans for an ICE detention center by cutting off water and sewage to the facility. 

Parents are risking arrest to fight for healthcare for their trans children. It feels weird to highlight bravery that shouldn’t have to exist, but it is extremely powerful to see this advocacy in action. 

A number of major world cities, including London, San Francisco and Beijing, have seen significant reductions in air pollution thanks to investment in cycling, EVs, transit and more.

Colorado’s second-largest school district refused to comply with the Trump administration’s anti-trans crackdown. May more districts join them. 

Thanks to conservation efforts and habitat stewardship, the world monarch butterfly population has increased by 64% and habitat deforestation has decreased. Keep planting that milkweed! 

The ozone layer continues to heal thanks to decades of international cooperation. 

2,000 New York City families will receive free childcare for their 2-year-olds. Mayor Mamdani and Governor Hochul may receive credit for the launch of this important initiative, but none of that would have been possible without the efforts of hundreds of thousands of everyday New Yorkers. 

The Land Back movement continues to gain much-needed and overdue momentum. The State of California has expanded tribal stewardship for 7.5 million acres of lands and coastal waters. 

The State of Washington has divested from Caterpillar, a longtime target of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement due to the Israeli military using its equipment to demolish Palestinian homes, and the city of Olympia will no longer invest in “entities that engage in apartheid or illegal occupation.”

Following a monthslong grassroots campaign, Albany, California adopted one of the country’s “most ethical investment policies,” refusing to do business with companies accused of human rights violations. 

High school students in South Carolina are making zines to preserve Gullah Geechee culture and recipes. 

Missourians have collected enough signatures to combat the state’s new heavily gerrymandered map. 

New Jersey became the 10th state to ban 287(g) agreements allowing local police to collaborate with federal immigration enforcement, a victory for friends of the newsletter Make the Road New Jersey.

Recreational shellfishing is returning to Boston Harbor and other East Coast waterways thanks to decades of cleanup and conservation efforts.

Union action is getting the goods across the country and across many different occupational sectors, including a historic contract for players in the WNBA. 

The Seminole Nation of Oklahoma has become the first Indigenous group to ban data centers on lands within its jurisdiction. 

The Choctaw Nation bought a Big Lots warehouse to prevent it from becoming an ICE detention facility. 

DePaul University in Chicago has a policy against the distribution of birth control, so students created a “womb service” to provide this care to their peers. The spirit of Jane lives on! 

More than 73,000 acres in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula are now protected from future development and open to the public for recreation. 

Maryland is poised to pass sweeping anti-discrimination protections for students, including LGBTQ+ students. 

A new report finds that almost half of proposed US data centers have been delayed or canceled, and Maine is poised to ban new data centers. 

All anti-LGBTQ+ bills on the docket in the Georgia state legislature were defeated. 

The new DHS secretary has paused expansion of ICE detention warehouses as the effort comes under increased scrutiny and public backlash. 

Okay, fine, we found one good use of AI. 

Pittsburgh City Council unanimously voted to ban cooperation with ICE. 

Action as Antidote: idk y’all just do what you can right now 

Support the LGBTQ Foundation of Kansas’s mutual aid fund.

Join us every second Friday for more stories of How We Won. Thank you for reading and sharing. Keep going!