Progressive change is popular. Moderate mediocrity is not.

There’s a whole lot of spin and political analysis being thrown around today about why we lost and who’s fault it is and what it means for 2022 midterms. Sorting through the noise is like unwinding a ball of yarn. So here’s some top-level takeaways:

1. We won big in local races with young, progressive candidates of color including Michelle Wu (first woman and first person of color elected as Boston’s mayor), Tania Lawson (first Muslim-American and formerly undocumented immigrant to be elected to Boston’s City Council), Justin Bibbs (youngest mayor elected in Cleveland), Shahana Hanif (first Muslim American elected to NYC Council), Khaled Beydoun (first Arab-Muslim mayor of Dearborn, Michigan) and many more!

2. Progressive change is popular. Moderate mediocrity is not. A large majority of American’s favor taxing the wealthy, paid family leave and expanded medicare and they want this government to deliver the change that was promised. That means passing the full Build Back Better Act, protecting voting rights and establishing a clear path to citizenship for undocumented families.

3. If we don’t talk to white people about race, the right will do it for us. The GOP won’t stop lying and race-baiting voters. And it’s working. White women fell for the rightwing bogeyman (critical race theory) and swung to the right considerably. What’s holding us back from progress is cultural and structural whiteness and there’s no way around it - no bypassing, no playing nice, no compromises. It’s time to go get your people.

4. We must organize where we are and we must start NOW. Youngkin won by organizing small rural counties. That’s where we must focus our attention. We win by organizing and activating our people. We win by having hard conversations about what matters most. We win by holding ourselves and one another accountable and not letting politicians get away with murder.

And even if we don’t win every time, we keep going. We play the long game. We shift the culture. We allow ourselves to be changed so that our systems can be changed. We never give up on each other.

We’ve got a long road ahead, folks. Take care of yourself and keep your eye on the prize.

Kerri (she/her)

1. Voting Trump out is not enough. Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor predicted the gridlock we are facing in this moment and why we need build power outside of the Democratic party. [click to tweet]

2. Dear moderates, Dems didn’t go too far left. McAuliffe lost because we haven’t gone left enough. It’s time to deliver on the progressive agenda American’s are asking for. [click to tweet]

3. How critical race theory became a weapon of the right and the conservative activist who invented the conflict. [click to tweet]

4. Candidates of color made history in key elections around the country, bringing diversity and progressive leadership to some of America’s biggest cities. [click to tweet]

5. Capitalism has never really worked out for the Earth (or for BIPOC Communities). But with a solidarity economy, we all win, including mother earth. [click to tweet]

While there is so much to do, we’re keeping it simple this week and highlighting what’s needed most right now to unlock and unleash the change we all deserve:

Tell Congress to pass the Build Back Better Act. Working families can’t afford to wait for Congress to compromise. We need progress now. Call your congressman and tell them to pass the full reconciliation package.

Kill the filibuster. This Jim Crow Relic is in the way of every major piece of legislation right now including voting rights, democracy reform, immigration reform and more. Demand your congressman eliminate/fix the filibuster now.

Organize. We can’t wait around until the next election to get our shit together. We must start organizing our people now. We’ll be hosting monthly community meet ups to support each other in building the skills and capacity to activate our communities. Sign up here.

When authorities ignore the demands of the people, people can pressure them to listen and act. But to win, people must keep up the pressure. A target rarely gives in after one action, so it is often necessary to strategically increase the pressure on them in a step-by-step escalation that draws upon a diverse mix of tactics. That means all of us finding our role, playing our part and coordinating our efforts to push back against the systems that are in the way of progress. While we will navigate short term wins and losses, we must never lose sight of the long game. Undoing 400+ years of white supremacist capitalist patriarchy will require practice and persistence. And it will call on all of us to play our right roles in the revolution. Deepa Ayer maps the social change ecosystem and how we can locate ourselves and play our part. Let’s do this.

The revolution starts wherever you are.

Art @theunapologeticbrownseries

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