Photo / John Linton
What little that’s left of American democracy could soon be destroyed. Millions of Americans sense this. They are heartbroken by the 210,000 needless coronavirus deaths. They are shocked by the seemingly endless news reports of cops killing and brutalizing black people, and the new horror that women in immigrant detention centers are being sterilized. They are angry at the brazen effort by Trump to stack federal courts, and now the Supreme Court, replacing Ruth Bader Ginsburg — a renowned champion of women’s rights and civil liberties — with an anti-civil rights conservative. They are horrified by Trump’s refusal to condemn white supremacy, and by his ugly call for the vigilante Proud Boys organization to “stand by.” And they are deeply concerned about Trump’s repeated lies about mail ballots and his ominous suggestion that he won’t leave office peacefully.
But people are standing up. Millions have already voted, often standing in line for hours to do so. Hundreds of grassroots candidates who refuse to take corporate funding are running for office. Thousands continue to take to the streets to demand housing, healthcare, and an end to police violence, most recently in nationwide protests demanding justice for Breonna Taylor. Millions understand that if the Supreme Court comes under the control of a solid bloc of extreme conservatives, that faction could destroy women’s right to choose, labor rights, the Affordable Care Act, LGBTQ rights, voting rights, and all the remaining progressive legislation enacted since the New Deal — and at a time when millions face dire poverty.
Photo / daymonjhartley.com
This country’s problems are deep and systemic. Today, a tiny handful of billionaires, the owners of the giant corporations, rule America. The richest one percent of the population owns more than the bottom 50 percent. Over decades, the ruling one percent has been moving systematically to gut democratic rights in favor of corporate rights.
While the motion toward an outright police state did not begin with the Trump administration and won’t end with Trump’s ouster, Trump represents a special danger. He has become the symbol of a militarized fascist movement, one backed by right-wing ideologues, and a section of extremely wealthy capitalists. Trump is now relying on this movement to stay in power, calling for “poll watchers” to act as thugs intimidating voters. Trump’s ominous effort to call up the military during the George Floyd protests, his use of federal police in unmarked cars who snatched protesters off the street, and his effort to unleash police forces nationally, are more examples of the destruction of democracy and the danger of a police state.
Photo / Ed Eytan
Voting Trump out is a matter of stopping the shredding of democracy from going any farther, and setting the stage for reversing it. Trump’s re-election would set back the movement of millions waging the fight for economic, environmental, and racial justice in this country. After the elections, our growing grassroots movement will keep pressing its demands for democracy and rights no matter who is president.
Voting is only one tool in the tool box of social change, but this year it’s an absolutely essential one. People are already flocking to the polls, and despite waiting as much as 11 hours to vote, the sentiment is “it was worth it.” Voting has become a social statement and a movement. Our goal should be not just to narrowly defeat Trump, but to trounce him and all his allies. Today, our battle cry must be the one shouted when a naval vessel comes under fire: All hands on deck!
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