Category: PACG Event - PACG - Progressive Action for the Common Good

December Green Drinks - "Urban Gardening in the Quad Cities" PACG Event

11/25/2023

December Green Drinks - Urban Gardening in the Quad Cities
Thursday, December 7th at 5 pm - Canceled

Huckleberry’s Pizza
223 18 th Street
Rock Island, IL (map)

Environmental Forum

Note: this event has been canceled for December. Our next Green Drinks meeting will be in January of 2024.

Join us for an evening of conversation as we look at the Quad Cities urban environment. Heather Ballou, the Director of Education at the Quad City Botanical Center will discuss community gardens, and the relevance of plant diversity and invasive species to your backyard and neighborhood.

Come and meet like-minded folks, make new friends. Admission is free. Bring a friend.

Susan Leuthauser

Save the Date - "I Am the Future" at the Figge January 11, 2024

11/25/2023

Save the Date - I Am the Future at the Figge
Thursday, January 11th from 5:00 to 8:00 pm

Figge Art Museum
225 W 2nd ST
Davenport, IA (map)

A Message from the Board

Save the date for our next showing of I Am the Future at the Figge Art Museum in Davenport. We will have a social hour with light hors d’oeuvres and an open bar from 5:00 to 6:00. The showing of our film will be followed by a Legacy Panel discussion featuring MacArthur Cotton and other civil rights activists, including those in our video. More details will follow.

We also need volunteers to help with this event.

Glenda Guster

PACG's Holiday Party - PACG Event

11/9/2023

Register for PACG's Annual Holiday Party
Saturday, December 2nd from 5:30 to 8:00 pm

A Message from the Board

Join us at the German American Heritage Center for a meal and help us celebrate another year of PACG's activism!

We will present the annual Dick Fallow Endowment for Social Justice award to a worthy, local recipient.

The main course will be catered, with vegan and gluten-free options. Please bring a side dish or dessert to share.

We also ask that you bring your own dishware, silverware and reusable napkin, if possible. This follows our PACG environmental principle of sustainability.

Although this event is free, we need you to register. Talk to your friends, register them and bring them along!

Optional Holiday Gift: This year we are supporting Quad Cities Alliance for Immigrants and Refugees (QCAIR). Please bring a wrapped toy for a child 6 months to 12 years of age. Securely label your gift with the age (and gender, if appropriate) of the child.

If you’re one of our many new members this year, come find out how much fun we progressives have during the holiday season!

There is extra parking available in the lot just east of the museum, where the YMCA used to be.

Please register here.

PACG Webmaster

PACG Holiday Party - Save the Date!

11/8/2023

PACG’s Holiday Party - Save the Date
Saturday, December 2nd at 5:30 pm

A Message from the Board

We will have a lot more details in next week’s Progressive Action Update. For now, just mark your calendars. We hope to see you there!

"I Am the Future" at the Putnam - After Action Report

10/28/2023

I Am the Future at the Putnam - After Action Report

Our I Am the Future film moderator, AbdurRhamaan (Abdur) Howard, and his cousin, Chase

PACG is proud to have collaborated with community partners from The Putnam Museum and Science Center, WQPT: PBS, and WVIK: NPR, to present a special film screening of I am the Future: Standing on the Shoulders of the Past, last Sunday, October 22nd. As progressives, we believe that it is important for our community to come together to learn about and discuss the issues surrounding civil rights activism. We hosted this free, family-friendly event to not only showcase this incredible film, but also to provide an opportunity for our community to engage in meaningful conversations about how we can all be activists for civil rights. This film is a powerful portrayal of the struggles and triumphs of local civil rights activists and serves as an inspiring call to action for all those who believe in equality and justice.

In early 2022, as her PACG presidency began, Glenda Guster decided that she wanted to interview acquaintances of hers who had important social justice experiences in the mid-20th century for an article for our Progressive Action Update (PAU) weekly newsletter. But some members of PACG suggested that we videotape these people to preserve the history firsthand. So, PACG did what it often does - we established a committee to work on this idea!

It was decided that our goals for this project included

preserving local Black history
educating our communities, and
inspiring our membership in activism

With this in mind, we approached four of Glenda's friends and asked if we could interview them about their experiences. The following individuals agreed to speak to us about their experiences: Attorney Catherine (Kitty) Alexander, Rev. Gabriel Barber III, Dr. Henry Brockington, former Davenport Mayor Bill Gluba, and student moderator AbdurRahmaan (Abdur) Howard. The film’s stars, with the exception of Catherine (Kitty) Alexander, were special guests at our event at the Putnam this week and participated in an enlightening Q&A session following the film. Approximately 60 adults and 25 children were in attendance. Read more about our film stars at this blog post.

Other community organizations participated in tabling and conversation prior to the film screening. We want to thank our friends doing important social justice work in the community for attending: Davenport Civil Rights Commission, NAACP-Davenport Branch #4019, One Human Family QCA, and The Project of the Quad Cities.

Thank you to everyone involved in the creation of this film, our hosts and sponsors, and all of our friends, members and supporters for attending and making it such a great event!

And if you just want to watch our film, the latest version is here.

Maggie Davis

November Green Drinks - Home Lead Service Pipes - PACG Event

10/24/2023

November Green Drinks -
Lead Service Line Replacement & Notification Act
Thursday, November 2nd at 5:00 pm

Huckleberry's Pizza
223 18th Street
Rock Island, IL. (map)

Environmental Forum

Join us for an evening of networking and sharing. Speakers Dr. Kimberly Murphy and Ms. Peyton Heisch from Augustana College have been working with the Rock Island Public Works Department to implement the Illinois Lead Service Line Replacement and Notification Act. They will explain their approach to comply with the law, what they know and why the community should be interested.

Please register through Eventbrite here.

Susan Leuthauser

"I Am the Future" - PACG in the News!

10/22/2023

I Am the Future gets some great pre-event press

A Message from the Board

WQAD had a story about our film on their news on Thursday this week! In addition, they included the following on their website:

'I Am the Future: Standing on the Shoulders of the Past' film includes personal experiences of Quad City residents who fought for civil rights in the early 1960s.

Author: Devin Brooks
Published: 7:23 AM CDT October 19, 2023
Updated: 7:23 AM CDT October 19, 2023

DAVENPORT, Iowa — The stories of local civil rights activists will be told on the big screen this weekend in Davenport.

Progressive Action for the Common Good is set to host its first big showing of 'I Am the Future: Standing on the Shoulders of the Past' at the Putnam Museum and Science Center Sunday, Oct. 22.

It's about the personal experiences of Quad City residents who fought for civil rights in the early 1960s. This includes Rev. Gabriel Barber III, Mayor Bill Gluba, Dr. Henry Brockington, Attorney Catherine (Kitty) Alexander, and AbdurRahmaan Howard as the student moderator. Click here for each bio.

PACG Webmaster

“I Am the Future” at the Putnam! - PACG Event

10/12/2023

I Am the Future showing at the Putnam Museum!
Sunday, October 22nd from 2:00 to 4:00 pm

Putnam Museum and Science Center
1717 W 12th ST
Davenport, IA (map)

PACG, WQPT, WVIK and the Putnam Museum and Science Center

Our video, I Am the Future: Standing on the Shoulders of the Past will be shown at the Putnam Museum and Science Center in Davenport on Sunday, October 22nd at 2:00 pm. The personal stories of local Quad City residents who fought for civil rights in the early 1960s were recorded and woven together into a powerful portrayal of their struggles and triumphs. The film serves as an inspiring call to action for all those who believe in equality and justice. The video was graciously updated this year by WQPT PBS, who will join PACG and the Putnam in sponsoring this family-friendly, free event.

Progressive Action for the Common Good, WQPT, WVIK and the Putnam are hosting this event to not only showcase this incredible film, but also to provide an opportunity for our community to engage in conversations about how we can all be activists for civil rights. Local civil rights organizations will be on hand along with the film’s stars to answer questions about what it means to be an activist. Children and families can participate in organized activities in addition to enjoying the museum.

We hope to see you and your family there!

“I Am the Future” showing at the Putnam on October 22nd at 2:00 pm - PACG Event

10/10/2023

I Am the Future showing at the Putnam
Sunday, October 22nd at 2:00 pm

Putnam Museum and Science Center
1717 W 12th ST
Davenport, IA (map)

PACG Board

We will be showing our I Am the Future video as we continue to educate the community about the importance of being activists for civil rights. There will be activities for people of all ages and information tables from various local civil rights organizations. Our focus for this free event is on the family, especially children. Please come join us for this afternoon of fun! If you have questions please contact us at qcprogressiveaction@gmail.com.

October 2023 Green Drinks - Trash in the QCA

9/29/2023

October Green Drinks - Trash in the Quad Cities
Thursday, October 5th at 5:00 pm

Huckleberry’s Pizza
223 18th Street
Rock Island, IL (map)

Environmental Forum

Green Drinks Topic: Investigations into Urban Refuse in the Quad Cities

Our speaker, Steve Gustafson, is a long-time environmental advocate in the Quad Cities. In addition to being vice-chair of the PSCW, he also volunteers with Nahant Marsh, Xtream Cleanup, and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) StatePreserves Advisory Board. Steve has been involved in numerous environmental initiatives and projects through the years.

Steve will discuss the recent efforts made by various local organizations to better understand the nature of the trash found on land and in the streams of the Quad Cities. He will also discuss the pilot study that the City of Davenport, Scott County Waste Commission and PSCW are able to embark on with the Center for Environmental Cooperation.

Please register at this link.

Susan Leuthauser