2023 - The Work We Must Do

Don't Leave the Field

It’s 2023 and America remains poised at the precipice of democratic crisis. We bought some time in 2022, but we are by no means out of the woods. That is why we cannot afford to let up in 2023.

For the past six months I have turned my attention to completing a book about how America’s unfinished confrontation with race has brought us to this moment of democratic peril. The book, more importantly, maps out the rigorous and immediate work we must do if we are take advantage of the narrow window of opportunity we have to create a stronger, healthier democracy. As I write, my anxiety grows. Not only because the gravity of the moment demands a level of engagement and focus I fear we do not have in this country, but principally because so much of the American public and political class have been trained to think in four and two-year political increments. In the in-between years, we are invited to return to the sidelines of observing political speculation and polling, rather than engaging in the rigorous and necessary work of citizenship.

No sooner had the 2022 general election concluded than media outlets moved on to begin an obsessive focus on speculation about potential presidential candidates for 2024. That meant a return to questions about Trump as the potential Republican nominee. About a potential challenge from Gov. DeSantis or former Vice President Pence. About whether President Biden would run again, and whether Vice President Harris would remain on the ticket. In short, Americans were once again being led away from engagement with the real work of citizenship and democracy, and driven towards the next political media moment. This is a disastrous course for us at this critical time.

First, there are elections every year. In 2023 for example, there are governor races in states like Kentucky and Louisiana. Several states, including the critical political states of Wisconsin and Pennsylvania will hold elections for judges of their state supreme courts. There are school board elections across multiple states.

And it’s not just about voting. As has become increasingly apparent, the building blocks of the foundational integrity of our democracy, and the most intense threats to it, are unfolding at the local level – on school boards, county commissions, among so-called “constitutional sheriffs,” and among state court judges. It is precisely in these “in-between years” that we fail – fail to organize, to attend political and town hall meetings; to register new voters, to lay the groundwork for new legislation – that we have such a tenuous hold on the reins of democracy in this country. And this is why our demand in major election years, that people “just vote” falls so hollow on the ears of young people and others who want real, consequential change in their own communities. Voting should not be treated as an isolated act of citizenship. It should be the culminating expression of our political will.  

           And so, as 2023 unfolds it is my fervent hope that we will not allow ourselves to be led away from the work that should and must occupy us this year if we are to not only save, but make healthy our deeply flawed democracy. In times like these - times of democratic crisis, we have no time to waste. Every citizen must use their power to demand and steward the core elements that will allow us to build our way towards the kind of democracy so many of us dream of and have devoted our lives to building.

We must fight for transparency, accountability, fairness, equality and justice. That may mean deciding that in 2023 you will attend a city council meeting in your city. Or that you will educate yourself about sheriff or district attorney candidates and vote knowledgeably in those elections – both the primary and the general.  Or that you will work to register to voters this year. Or that you will write to your representative and demand that they hold a town hall in your community. That you will call your Senator once a month and tell them what you want for voting rights, health care, foreign policy, social media regulation, and to strengthen transparency and ethics on the Supreme Court. Get a library card and tell your local commission that you want your librarians protected from intimidation. Ask your church or temple to demand a meeting with your local district attorney and ask about their policies on prosecuting low level drug crimes, prosecuting police brutality, or prosecuting doctors or women who seek abortions in states with harsh abortion laws. It may mean joining an existing grass-roots group committed to racial justice and equality, women’s rights or tenants rights.

             It is this work that will lay the foundation for real change and transformation of our country. If we diligently work in the “in-between” years – indeed every year – we will work for democracy, rather than solely for candidates or political parties. And when we do this work,  the candidates and the issues that form the basis of our elections in major election years will be more readily shaped by our substantive priorities and demands. My hope for this year is that we will refuse to go to the sidelines. That we will reject the invitation to become distracted by 18 months of political punditry, and instead get our hands dirty with the work of being truly engaged citizens. We are in a fight for our democracy, and there is real work for us to do. That is our assignment for 2023.

Resources:

For elections in your state, country or city this year: https://ballotpedia.org/Elections_calendar#Upcoming_election_dates

Thinking about running for office: https://runforsomething.net/

To call your United States Senator:  202-224-3121

Find your Members of Congress:   https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member

To register voters:  https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/

Bystander training for those who observe anti-Asian bias:  https://www.advancingjustice-aajc.org/trainings-address-anti-asianasian-american-harassment

Donation to those needing support for abortion care:  https://abortionfunds.org/

Learn about court watching programs and join one: https://www.americanbar.org/groups/legal_aid_indigent_defense/indigent_defense_systems_improvement/court-watching0/aba-court-watching/