📢 You do not get to complain if you are unwilling to do the work to make change happen
🗽A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.
Every day, I reply to messages from our members on various topics. I usually end the message with, "Thank you for your advocacy for our rights and freedoms!" I am amazed this scrappy grassroots group has grown from a handful of door-knockers to 175,000 members taking action on multiple issues. Some advocate for Gun Safety reforms, Green New Deal, or Medicare for all when they sign a petition or message their member of Congress; some are calling their members of Congress to advocate for peace in the Israel-Hamas war; others are writing letters and/or postcards to voters, some are texting or door-knocking or phone banking their communities, and much more.
We are a group of people who believe in the possibility of change and do the work to make it happen.
That brings me to today's topic: You do not get to complain if you are unwilling to do the work to make change happen.
On our Progressive Issues call last week, one of our members (or a visitor-I'm not sure which) wanted to go on and on about how "we can't do anything, how our only hope is a third party candidate, how the system is rigged, how the elites chose "Biden" and no one else can run."
Yawn.
I let him know we follow the progressive's lead, and they are supporting Biden and pushing him hard to move on issues we care about (Gaza, immigration, etc.). Progressives like MoveOn, Center for Popular Democracy, Working Families Party, People for the American Way, Bernie, Warren, and AOC are all pressuring Biden while supporting him for President.
Why?
Because they know there is no other path. This is our only path toward progress at this point in history.
I shared with him that we can build people power but need more Bernie movements to engage people in championing issues people care about.
I shared how I, too, a few years ago, was frustrated with the local Democrats in Florida, who were old, white, and very out of touch with the realities of our communities. They were well-intended but lacked a plan and had incompetent leadership. I shared how I took that frustration to lay the foundation of what would become our People Power United group and that if we all pitched in, little by little, we could move mountains, build people power, and elect leaders who represent the people's will.
A third-party candidate would have needed to be polling at least 20-30 percent a year ago to have any chance. It's a pipe dream to have someone who polls at 5% achieve the Presidency, especially five months out. So far, America has not been inspired (and in some cases fooled) by third-party candidates (and in some instances grifters).
Elections are not a year of work; they are years of building grassroots and coalitions.
So the choice is:
Waste time and resources on a candidate with zero chance of winning
Help to get out the vote for the best candidate and push them hard for reforms we need
Side with a fascist
Do nothing and be complicit in the fall of democracy and the rise of fascism if Trump wins
And then he went back to the same "rigged" talking points.
Folks, there are a lot of crazy radical Trump cultists out there spewing a lot of misinformation, hatred, and bigotry.
On the fringe of progressives is a group of people who love to stay in the mud. They live to complain, refuse to do the work to make change happen, and revel in rhetoric that preys on people's desires and prejudices. They purport to want progress, but they lack conviction. At this point in history, only a fool would believe that a third-party candidate has a chance of winning the Presidency. I used to reply to people who would email me their "rigged" rants, asking what specific actions they had to move change. Not one could provide me with actions to take.
Listen, I would love to make a wish, wake up, and be out of this MAGA nightmare, but the reality is it will not happen unless we all do the work to make sure no one is left behind in our communities. We have to stand up to hatred and bigotry at every opportunity we have, and we must work to make sure everyone can vote and thrive. If we don't do that, then we will see more demagogues coming to power by spreading lies, hatred, and bigotry in our communities. That power will lead to more harm in our communities and more rights and freedoms lost.
Hatred must not be tolerated. EVER. Our north star will always be championing power to the people, making sure all can vote and thrive, and standing up against racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, antisemitism, homophobia, misogyny, sexism, ageism, ableism, sizeism, elitism, transphobia, misogynoir, and bigotry!Â
Keep your head down, let's do the work, and let's get rid of these demagogues.
A hero does what must be done and seeks no other validation. Heroes don't complain; they do something! They are selfless, seeking no glory or limelight. They see a problem and jump in to fix it. They make our lives better just by doing.
That is you. You are the hero of our American story. Keep making good trouble.
Speaking of good trouble, I will give you a heads-up: Tomorrow's email will be long and detailed because we will be diving into "the work" of writing postcards and/or letters to voters. And coming down the pike is door-knocking, text-banking, phone-banking, and more. And advocacy on issues!
Be awesome today! Because you are!
Today’s Calls-to-Action
The war for who we are and what we represent is happening now; we are the foot soldiers for justice. I have seen your people power, and I ask that you join me in taking action for our Constitution, the rule of law, and our rights and freedoms.
Click here to sign the petition: Impeach Justice Alito Now
Click here to sign the petition: Investigate Supreme Court Justice Alito Now
Click here to Tell Your Member of Congress: Expand the Supreme Court to protect our voting and civil rights, create term limits, and institute a code of ethics.
Take Action Now: Tell Senator Durbin to Investigate Justice Alito's conduct
Click here to sign the petition: Justice Alito Must Recuse From Trump’s Election Cases
Click here to sign the petition: Impeach Justice Clarence Thomas
We have two events happening tonight! Please join us:
Click here to Join us tonight for Letters and Postcards to Voters.
Click here to Join us tonight for Progressive Issues Activism.
Thanks for taking action!
People Power United Updates
Our group is growing by leaps and bounds! Folks understand that with love in our hearts and hard work, we will reclaim our nation from cruelty, chaos, and confusion. We are having fun making impactful changes in our community! In case you missed it, this past week was busy:
People Power United issued a statement on the recent achievements of the Affordable Care Act
Updates can be found here.
Click here to join us for the 2024 Presidential Debate.
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Everyone deserves to vote and thrive,
Laurie Woodward Garcia (paid with hugs and kisses, not bought by special interests)
People Power United | In this community, we will always speak out against racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, antisemitism, homophobia, misogyny, sexism, ageism, ableism, sizeism, elitism, transphobia, misogynoir, and bigotry! Check out our 2023 recap post to see how impactful our scrappy People Power United group is!​
People Power United is a group of community members that champions progressive values and power for the people. The 2024 election depends on us, and we are attempting to persuade people to vote for Freedom over Fascism. If you wish to support our efforts, please consider becoming a paid subscriber.
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