This Political Moment, 7/3/24

So. Some people think everything is going to be just fine.

For the rest, this has been a long coup. It started with GOP Presidents failing to win the popular vote more than once. With Citizens United and the notion that enormous amounts of money by right can drown out other voices. With excessive and openly racist gerrymandering. With Dobbs, where half the population lost bodily autonomy in a sudden rejection of precedent and the Court faced no repercussions. And now, the last few days are an attempt to destroy any sense of lawfulness once and for all. The debate, which has resulted in many asserting that a "corpse" is President. From SCOTUS: homelessness, in a nation with a housing shortage, is criminal; bribery is legal and encouraged; the powers of administrative agencies are now those of the court. And, of course, the President can do whatever he wants however he wants. "Official" acts are immune to criminal law.

The younger generation has only known Trumpism. A conservatism or Christianity that hasn't been affected by it is inconceivable to many. We're approaching 10 years, now, of Trumpism being the, or close to the, primary political force in American life.

People want to know what they can do. There lies the rub. In order to do politics, you have to make friends and allies. You have to build trust so you can commit to protecting each other. You have to find ways to give which build a reputation and a coalition. It is a process that takes more than work or dedication. There's a lot of communication, thought, and coordination in order to be truly civic-minded. We've got people panicking about Trump because of the television who do not know the immediate needs of their community.

I confess I am far from perfect. I wouldn't know how to put a protest together and keep everyone safe. I'm not clear on how petitions can be turned into viable movements. I'm lucky I've been in situations where I can affect one person at a time positively, and I'm lucky that I could get some of them to make friends and recognize what resources they had. I can speak to how small changes can snowball into bigger ones, but I know nothing about coordinating larger efforts myself. And make no mistake: large protests and strikes are very necessary. We're learning fast that democracy cannot be left up to elected officials and party elites alone. An organizer I admire greatly asked if the behavior of the Democratic party thus far shows they recognize the danger we're in. It is very obvious they do not, unless the only thing the party can do is send fundraising texts.

A few things I think are practical and do myself:

1. Find who is making a difference and empower them. This sounds so obvious but we forget to do it. I give consistently to food banks, but there are activists who are fighting for, quite frankly, victims of persecution and they need help. You cannot go wrong in giving to those most in need of hope and aid. There are people who are desperate, e.g. the migrants we keep hearing so much about.
2. Don't argue with cranks. First of all, the guy who wants to talk your ear off for hours about the politician on TV is not going to vote anyway. But you really don't have time, if you care to have a country, to be arguing with someone who says both parties are the same or has ideas about which celebrities are perverts. In place of arguing with cranks: What is something you have read about, from a trusted source who welcomes questions, that you want to share? Might it be about title loans that take advantage of people with medical debt? Or jet fuels with an astronomical chance of causing cancer? Read real journalism, note your thoughts, and share.
3. Bring people together. Not every get-together is going to create a plan for direct action. But once you're together, you see more as a group. It's easier to volunteer, it's easier to get things started, it's easier to plan. Meet regularly and good things start happening.
4. Support your local library. Support public schools. This isn't optional. When libraries and public schools are gone, pretty much the only thing left for the state to do will be violence. The lack of government services–the embrace of limited government–has created a breach of trust, and the lack of trust runs both ways.
5. Educate yourself on a variety of causes. You're looking to help, so be opportunistic. Plenty of people need help, from ranchers whose land has been destroyed by old oil wells to people needing clean drinking water to those who are fighting to preserve their rural public school. And there's many more. I feel like we have not done a good job at all of communicating how dangerous pregnancy is and how women are suffering from not having a full range of options to deal with complications.
6. Advertise worthy causes. Doomscrolling is trash. But those activists who need a message out about rallying for the local library really do find your amplification helpful. Spamming everyone isn't cool, but you'll learn to talk to an audience who wants to be advertised matters of concern.

Obviously, this list is not exhaustive! If you are capable of impeaching a Supreme Court justice, creating a giant rally at the Capitol, or launching a general strike, more power to you. There are fantastic organizers everywhere, getting books for prisoners, getting urgent medical aid for desperate people, fighting homelessness, destigmatizing addiction, recruiting others who care, educating the community, promoting rallies and protests. I remember when conservatives were making fun of Obama for being a community organizer and thinking "that's hard work." I know now that I didn't know the half of it.