From NOEBIE.net
Like many Americans, I’m still trying to process the news. I won’t try to describe my thoughts or feelings at this point, but I wanted to share some links that have been helpful to me.
Thomas Frank writes for The Guardian: Donald Trump is moving to the White House, and liberals put him there.
From the folks at Jacobin: Politics Is the Solution
From Socialist Worker: How could this monster win?
Be kind to each other today, people.
Here are my last words ahead of the upcoming U.S. Presidential Election. I cannot, in good conscience, celebrate a Clinton victory tomorrow evening. I will, however, certainly celebrate Trump’s defeat, and will dance on his grave if ever given the chance.
For all of my apparent cynicism to people who don’t know me well, I will also celebrate the election of a woman to the Presidency. I was an early supporter of Patricia Schroeder for the Democratic nomination nearly thirty years ago. It’s about freaking time.
I am proud of my vote for Jill Stein of the Green Party again this year. She has held up the vision of a more just, peaceful and sustainable society. This is an alternative that went without mention from either of the major party candidates.
I do not hope for a continuation of the sort of petty partisan conflict that has so characterized this election cycle. But I do hope (and pray) that in the coming months we shall see a heightened state of unrest. I intend to continue to do my best to foment it. It is in struggle that we become conscious. And it is way past time for all of us to wake up.
I’m thankful to Chris Maisano for crafting together this statement on electoral strategy for the American Left, and I’m proud to have added my signature to the statement, along with 74 other DSA comrades.
But if we want to move beyond the cycle of mobilization and retreat that dominates left electoral activity in the US, we have no choice but to build our own political formations, as difficult as that will be. They will have to do what all parties do – run candidates for office, particularly in states and localities where competition between Democrats and Republicans is low. Considering the many institutional barriers to effective independent politics, they will also have to launch fights to change ballot access laws and other measures aimed at maintaining the two-party duopoly.
Read the full statement here: Give The People What They Want: DSA Members on 2016 and Beyond – Democratic Socialists of America
The Trump campaign is producing an alarming level of fear and anxiety among children of color and inflaming racial and ethnic tensions in the classroom. Many students worry about being deported, according to a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center.
My own daughter has related that some of her classmates are worried about their families being deported.
The National Political Committee of the Democratic Socialists of America released bullet points of the organization’s 2016 electoral strategy a few weeks ago. They ask that DSA members who don’t agree “articulate these points as the organization’s perspective and then indicate where the individual member disagrees.”
You can read all of their points for yourself at the link included below. I have to say that I am deeply disturbed by what I interpret to be their (at least tacit) encouragement of strategic voting and organizing for the Democratic Party ticket.
…DSA will work with the emerging labor, immigrant, and anti-racist-led “Dump Trump” movement. For this reason, we do not endorse the #BernieOrBust tactic, though we understand the sentiment behind it. Our perspective can best be summarized as: “Dump the Racist Trump: Build the Left from the Grassroots Up.”
Although I certainly agree that a Trump Presidency would be a disaster, I also believe that a Clinton Presidency would be a disaster. The NPC’s strategy does call for turning a critical eye toward Clinton should she win, but placing emphasis on opposition to Trump alone during the campaign is a mistake, in my opinion. Socialists ought to take a principled stand to oppose both Trump and Clinton between now and November.
My own efforts will be in support of the Green Party candidacy of Dr. Jill Stein. It’s way past time to break with the Democratic Party and build a true party of the people.
I hold no illusions that someone other than Trump or Clinton shall prevail in 2016, but I cannot in good conscience lend my support nor my vote to someone I consider to be an enemy of working people. In the words of the great Eugene V. Debs, “I’d rather vote for something I want and not get it than vote for something I don’t want, and get it.”
I am thankful that the NPC anticipated and explicitly allowed for dissent within our ranks, and am certainly thankful that they didn’t endorse Clinton. This is one of those times, though, when I wonder whether I’m a member of the right organization.
Read the DSA Strategy Points Here: Talking Points for DSA’s Electoral Work between May and November 2016 – Democratic Socialists of America
★ ★ ★
Here are a few more relevant links.
This is why a Clinton Presidency cannot defeat Trump.
This is why I broke with the Democrats, and quit voting for the “lesser evil.”
This is why I voted Green in 2012. I’ve since joined the Green Party and am actively working for Jill Stein’s campaign.
Chris Hedges and Ralph Nader speak about Nader’s Breaking Through Power event being held in D.C. this week, and about what it will take to bring democracy to America. Hedges opens with these thoughts.
This moment in American history is what Antonio Gramsci called the “interregnum”—the period when a discredited regime is collapsing but a new one has yet to take its place. There is no guarantee that what comes next will be better. But this space, which will close soon, offers citizens the final chance to embrace a new vision and a new direction. This vision will only be obtained through mass acts of civic mobilization and civil disobedience across the country.
Nader is at his imaginative best these days. Many people are urging Senator Sanders to move beyond the election of 2016 toward a sustained program of activism, but Nader is the first I’ve read who articulates a practical strategy.
“What does he have to lose?” Nader asked of Sanders. “He’s 74. He can lead this massive movement. I don’t think he wants to let go. His campaign has exceeded his expectations. He is enormously energized. If he leads the civic mobilization before the election, whom is he going to help? He’s going to help the Democratic Party, without having to go around being a one-line toady expressing his loyalty to Hillary. He is going to be undermining the Republican Party. He is going to be saying to the Democratic Party, ‘You better face up to the majoritarian crowds and their agenda, or you’re going to continue losing in these gerrymandered districts to the Republicans in Congress.’ These gerrymandered districts can be overcome with a shift of 10 percent of the vote. Once the rumble from the people gets underway, nothing can stop it. No one person can, of course, lead this. There has to be a groundswell, although Sanders can provide a focal point”
Read the full article: Chris Hedges: Welcome to 1984 | Chris Hedges – Truthdig
Green Party Presidential Candidate Jill Stein talked to Todd Chretien of Socialist Worker about why she’s running again this year and about the importance of an independent alternative to the two-party system.
Read the Interview: Thinking and voting outside the two-party box | Socialist Worker
If you’re one of the millions who have been invigorated by the Bernie Sanders campaign and want to join the ongoing political revolution, this May 7th forum on movement building beyond the election is for you. We’ll discuss the significance of the Sanders campaign, the meaning of democratic socialism, and strategies for confronting exploitation and inequality at the state and national level. We’ll also offer skills training on coalition building and grassroots organizing. Together, we’ll plan ways to channel the renewed interest in democratic socialism toward a sustainable movement for political transformation. There’s never been a more exciting or vital time to work for change.
The forum is co-sponsored by the Alliance for Community Services, Chicago Democratic Socialists of America, National Nurses United, and Progressive Democrats of America.
There’s more information on this Facebook event page.
Corey Robin included this video in a piece he wrote for Jacobin back in December, considering the question of what should be done about Trump.
The clip is amusing, but the question of how people of good will and sound minds ought to react to the rise of Herr Trump remains open. Most of the sort of thinky-thought articles on the subject don’t really offer any practical advice.
Since I’ve been looking for the answer and haven’t found it, I’ve decided that I’ll have to write it up myself. Look for a post here later this week.
