One of the hardest questions I’m asked pretty much every day is this: “What do we do?”
It’s hard for me because the truth is that the answer isn’t something most people want to hear.
What people want to hear is that we will somehow reach a tipping point at which a critical mass of people will recognize the immense harm being done to our institutions and our social fabric by oligarchs and corrupt leaders at the highest levels of our federal government. The thought is that there is something big we can be part of that will fix all of this in the next few months. Or at least get us on the path to fixing it.
Unfortunately, the real answer is much less sexy.
First of all, we didn’t arrive at this point in a matter of a few years. The current situation has been in the making for 40 years. The folks behind this represent about 32% of the eligible voting population. But they’re a voting population that consistently turns out. The folks that voted for this have been doggedly pursuing it for decades, showing up to local and state elections and being active during primaries.
Second, we lack the local community infrastructure seen in actions of the past. Strikes usually require funds designed to support working families. With labor unions gutted in the last several decades, that money isn’t available. People point to the Montgomery Bus Boycott. They didn’t wake up one day and stop taking the bus. They arranged bail funds and ride-sharing and cab fare. They laid the groundwork for a year-long boycott.
You want to know what we can do?
It begins by getting involved locally. We’ve got city elections coming up this year. Next year will be another legislative election. The people we elect in these position influence our communities and affect us on a day-to-day basis. State legislatures are a significant source of the recent Supreme Court rulings that so many of us are disappointed in.
There are plenty of places to meet like-minded people and begin building community. Our website, bonndemocrats.org, features an events calendar that includes coffee meetups and protests.
However, it’s not just about meeting with people. Creating sustainable change for the long-term requires showing up consistently. Candidates need to know they’ll be supported if they put themselves out there. Will you show up as a volunteer?
It’s also about being engaged more than just once every four years or when something egregious is happening. One of the reasons our elected officials feel like they can ignore us — like they did on school vouchers — is because they figure we’ll just move on and forget about it. And they haven’t seen much evidence to the contrary.
The road ahead is long. And it’s not sexy. The work toward change involves a lot of boring hours reviewing legislation. It involves frustrating work knocking on doors. It means taking losses but persevering anyway. It involves being present and creating resilient community.
Miranda Marquit, Master of Business Administration, is a nationally recognized financial expert, writer and speaker. She is the vice chair of the Bonneville County Democratic Central Committee.