It isn't too late for us
We have one year until the primaries, and a lot of work to do.
TL;DR
There is dangerous state legislation, meant to intimidate and suppress, being passed across the country.
Mutual aid and community building will ensure that our communities stay safe.
Suggestions for pushing positive change forward within your own community at the bottom.
Join the conversation and share what you know about community building, political organizing, and any questions you have if you feel like you can’t make a difference.
Photo credit SoJo.net
I think when we learn about World War II, the Holocaust, concentration camps, gas chambers, etc., we think, “how could this have happened?” After all, Germans of the 1930s were just average people; going to work, raising their children, paying their bills. They were busy, ya know? They had things to do. They were also struggling like every other population on the planet that had hit hard economic times, and trying to make the best of it. Then this guy came along who seemed to have all of the answers, and he really knew his strategic marketing. I mean, half of the royal family even supported him. By 1932, Hitler and the Nazi party had gained about 38% of the German vote, mostly from smaller and rural towns. Sound familiar?
In 1987, Gregory Stanton, the founding president of Genocide Watch, detailed the eight stages of genocide, which he described as, "predictable but not inexorable" (inexorable means, impossible to stop or prevent. I had to look that one up, and I’m glad I did, because it’s not too late!). He created this list by studying the Holocaust, the Rwandan Genocide, and the Cambodian genocide. In 2012, he added the final two stages to the list. He created this list in order to identify the signs of heading down a dangerous path as early as possible.
The main objective of this article is to help compile information that you may not know about the current state of affairs, draw similarities from past to present, and to offer guidance and a space for discussion, to prevent not only horrific leadership, but also to try and stop some of the legislation and violence that we have become desensitized to. It is not normal to have more mass shootings than days in a year. So stay with me for this ride, because it’s not too late for us to rise above this.
Right now in the United States, there is legislation that is not necessarily being reported, and it’s also so widespread that it’s hard to keep track with the constant media cycle, so I’ve listed a handful of recent legislation that is incredibly dangerous:
The LGBTQ+ community is facing rhetoric around grooming children and there are anti-LGBTQ—particularly anti-trans—laws being pitched across the country. I’ve linked a few from Kansas, Florida, and Texas. However, you can find what laws are being passed in your state from the ACLU here.
Last week, a Texas judge ruled that mifepristone, the abortion pill, will be banned nationwide. (I’m not sure how a Texas judge has jurisdiction over the entire United States.)
2 weeks ago, a judge in Texas ruled to eliminate the free preventative care requirements for ACA insurance holders. It’s as if we learned nothing from a global pandemic.
Last week 3 democratically elected officials faced expulsion from their seats in the Tennessee House. This is a direct threat to democracy, and is unprecedented in the history of the United States. They have since all reclaimed their rightful positions, but it should have never come to that.
These laws that chip away, little by little at our rights, will snowball if we do not deal with them expeditiously. These are only examples of legislation, there’s also the rhetoric and polarization. This week, State Rep Webster Barnaby of Florida called trans people “demons” and “mutants”, which sounds a lot like Hitler referring to Jews as “vermin”. This is also known as stage 4 of genocide. One can argue that we are past stage 4, but I’ve included the infographic below to see for yourselves.
Infographic credit Holocaust Memorial Day Trust
But, honestly, I’m not here to scare anyone, I’m here to motivate and offer solutions and tactics for how to combat this hate from different angles. The world has changed since the 1930s and now we are more connected than ever, regardless of proximity, and we can ensure that resources are delivered where they are needed. We also have access to all of the information in the world—for now. So without further ado, here’s a list of action items:
Community building — this can look like introducing yourself to your neighbors. Humanize each other, learn each other’s names. Offer a hand if you can. Create an email listserv to offer support within your neighborhood or apartment building. Meeting your neighbors may not seem to have an impact, but it does. If the government and/or institutions fail us, we have each other’s backs.
Mutual aid — Find mutual aid networks within your community and support them in any way you can, whether that is spending a Saturday volunteering, or donating money. A map of mutual aid networks that have already been established can be found here. If there comes a time where we need to resort to a general strike, it is imperative that we have mutual aid resources in place.
Show up and show out for the Primaries — Remember the Red Wave that never happened last fall? We need more of that. Research your representatives, throw your hat in the ring, volunteer for a phone and/or text campaign, offer your data analysis skills, talk to your friends, share information on social media.
And for god’s sake no seat unopposed. We will not allow people to slither into seats of power without other options. Look that up in your area, and join the Discord server to get involved. Trust me, you are smarter and more capable than most of the people representing you.Engage with friends, family, and “non-political” people — This one’s difficult, I know, but we’re not like 1930s Germans, are we? We’re not going to sit around in a blue state saying we feel bad for people in Florida. There are things we can do in our own communities, and we need to talk about that. I attended a letter writing group for Vote Forward last summer. We drank wine, chatted with each other, and wrote letters encouraging people to vote. All in all, it was a lovely night, and I hope to organize and attend more for the PRIMARIES!
We have time right now to organize—all hope is not lost! Now is the time to stay motivated and diligent. I’d love to hear any feedback or other suggestions. Let’s have a conversation.