This is How We Win

October 30, 2020

"Democracy is not something that you believe in, or something that you hang your hat on. It's something that you do, you participate. Without participation, democracy crumbles and fails. If you participate, you win, and the future is yours."
- Abbie Hoffman (1936-1989)

We couldn't let this week pass without encouraging you to make a plan to cast your vote. 

We must all vote like our lives and future depend on it — for local, state, and national leaders who believe in and stand for the dignity and value of every human being.

Fannie Lou Hamer said "nobody's free until everybody's free" and risked her life for the right to vote. It is not revolutionary to work toward the ideals guaranteed to us by our citizenry. Our freedom, dignity and wellbeing is ours by right. We cannot be well as a nation until we are all well; we cannot win until we all win.

We envision a world where the vote, this most basic tenet of participatory democracy, is accessible to all. No matter what happens in the coming weeks, we must keep working to dismantle the unjust systems and structural barriers that continue to limit our collective freedom - those that don't represent us or adequately care for our communities.

Doris Haddock said "democracy is not something we have; it is something we do." If we see democracy as a verb, voting is a way we participate in co-creating the equitable and just world we strive toward.

No matter the outcome, we must continue to care for and connect with one another, to nurture our shared humanity. We must also take care of our own hearts, minds, and bodies, even in the face of oppression and injustice.

This is how we win.

Resources

• 8 marginalized groups still fighting for the freedom to vote in the U.S.

• How the pandemic has complicated voting access for millions of Native Americans

• In Florida, the Gutting of a Landmark Law Leaves Few Felons Likely to Vote

[Image Description: Instagram post from #whenweallvote. On a monochromatic gray-swirled background. In the center of the background are hand-drawn flowers in shades of blues and reds that span the width of the frame. Across the flowers is the word “vote.” The letter V is created by a white, gray, and black hand making the peace sign. The remaining letters are in white with a black border.]

Image by @davidfloresart and @goldmanglobalarts via @whenweallvote