what is plus one? plus one is a grassroots organization based in new york’s 17th congressional district. the organization’s mission is to connect us with our neighbors and, in doing so, strengthen our local community and democracy. we’re talking good old-fashioned community building! you can follow along via our website, IG and substack.

57 dinners are gatherings in the 57 towns and villages of new york’s 17th congressional district. they are an opportunity for neighbors to meet one another—or get to know each other better—via an in-person gathering, build awareness about where they live, and take action.

(we called our august 2nd installment our “get together” edition. in addition to our dinner format, we encouraged picnics, coffee meetups, happy hours—anything folks could dream up! we’re encouraging folks to host gatherings of all shapes and sizes on october 24th, too. let’s make it easy peasy to meet our neighbors.)

we’re meeting our neighbors and building a movement.

success shows up in three ways:

1. you and your guests engage deeper post dinner than you did pre dinner.

2. having had such a good time, each of you invite a “plus one” to the next event.

3. because 10/24 is so close to the all-important midterms, we’ll make sure guests have everything they need to vote, encourage neighbors to sign up for door-knocking and other GOTV efforts, and get everyone to sign the plus one pledge—committing to identify and encourage one disengaged voter to get to the polls on november 3.

we’d like you to! if inviting isn’t your thing, we have a list of folks who aren’t in a position to host but would love to be a guest. we’re here to matchmake!

if inviting IS your thing, let’s make that list! a few rules of thumb:

• we want to keep these dinners as hyper-local as possible. this is an opportunity for you to gather with folks in your town or village, not necessarily the county across the way.

• while it’s tempting to invite your nearest and dearest, part of what we are trying to do with these dinners is widen our circle and community. plus one encourages you to run through the “who are your neighbors” guest list exercise on our host resource page to help brainstorm guest lists that are beyond your typical go-tos.

plus one tries our best to design events that are family friendly and accessible to all. that said, we understand that not every home is kid-friendly, and sometimes parents need a break! so we’ll leave this item up to you, and point you toward our subsidy question (read down) if childcare is a need for you or your guests.

we’re not hiding the ball that we are dems. in fact, we’re progressive dems—and plus one is a partisan political action committee (PAC) that approaches community building from the left side of the political spectrum.

it’s important to note, however, that our measures of success are focused on positive community engagement and education, building bonds between neighbors, and strengthening small-d democratic function. If you feel moved to invite an apolitical neighbor, disgruntled democrat, or even a registered republican who is democrat-curious, we aren’t opposed to that. use your best judgment.

if you’d like to tease out your neighbor’s politics ahead of inviting them into your home, we have some pre-party conversation starters that can be sent via email, text, or used in person if you’re knocking on doors. these easy questions should help you get a sense for if you and your neighbor will be comfortable breaking bread together.

how do we expand and strengthen our community while also protecting it in the face of fascism? it’s the question of the moment, and we encourage practicing these conversations so that we can work toward our shared goals. there are many across the political divide!

you send them out, and we’re supplying you with an easy-to-use customizable digital template as well as a physical template on the 57 dinners resources page. we’ve created a google RSVP form for you to send to your invitees where they can share dietary restrictions/allergies.

yes! we’re working on identifying food purveyors that will contribute items to your gathering. we’ll let you know when those are confirmed so you can incorporate accordingly.

the kits include name cards/tags, plus one pledge materials, conversation starter cards that can be previewed on the 57 dinners resources page, plus one sign in sheet, merch for guests to take away, etc.

we’ll either deliver them to you, or you can pick them up in the afternoon/evening of october 23rd.

who do you think we are? of course! there are ice breakers/conversation starters that can be previewed on the 57 dinners resources page. we’ll supply you with a hard copy as well.

indeed there is! we are offering $150 per host until our $3,000 fund runs out. the money can go towards groceries, a babysitter—anything (related to the event) goes!

if you indicate that you’d like a subsidy, checks will be delivered alongside your host kits.

yes! no one is expected to be an expert. democracy runs on civic engagement and that’s what our events are designed to do: help you and your community meet one another, learn, get engaged, own your “we the people” power, and have fun while doing it!

reach out to amy at hq@plusoneforamerica.org!