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The US Left is in crisis & the stakes have never been higher.
What lessons do our past mistakes & successes teach us about the best path forward today?
An open letter to the US Left 1/30
What lessons do our past mistakes & successes teach us about the best path forward today?
An open letter to the US Left 1/30
For those of us who viewed Sanders’ campaign & the #NotMeUs movement as our best chance to move the US toward a more fair, democratic, sustainable & humane direction, Sanders’ campaign suspension is undoubtedly a huge emotional blow. 2/30
Our campaign had the largest number of volunteers, the largest number of donors, & the largest share of contribution from those with incomes below $100k.
Many who poured their hearts, sweat & tears into volunteering & donating to his campaign, are left feeling disheartened. 3/30
Many who poured their hearts, sweat & tears into volunteering & donating to his campaign, are left feeling disheartened. 3/30
Yet by virtually every metric in modern US politics, #NotMeUs is a resounding success, breaking multiple records.
#NotMeUs is a millions-strong, multifaceted, highly energized, passionate, diverse & largely working-class movement. 4/30
#NotMeUs is a millions-strong, multifaceted, highly energized, passionate, diverse & largely working-class movement. 4/30
Every apparatus of status quo power was forced into overdrive, uniting in opposition to our campaign.
The corporate/establishment faction of the Democratic Party, the mainstream media, & the billionaire class all lined up against the unprecedented movement behind Sanders. 5/30
The corporate/establishment faction of the Democratic Party, the mainstream media, & the billionaire class all lined up against the unprecedented movement behind Sanders. 5/30
From nonstop negative coverage by the MSM to the 100s of millions spent by anti-change billionaires, to Dem Establishment shenanigans, it would seem reasonable to conclude that those in power are far more united in stopping Sanders then stopping 4 more years of Trump. 6/30
And now many on the left are shaken, demoralized & splintered.
Some argue that now that Sanders has suspended his campaign since Biden is marginally better than Trump, harm-reduction should compel our consciousness to vote for Biden. There may be some truth to that. 7/30
Some argue that now that Sanders has suspended his campaign since Biden is marginally better than Trump, harm-reduction should compel our consciousness to vote for Biden. There may be some truth to that. 7/30
But the appeal to consciousness argument is also problematic. As the most rudimentary understanding of politics dictates that we judge politicians not by what they say, but what they do & Biden’s record is an abomination & assaults the consciousness of anyone remotely left. 8/30
Furthermore, much of the harm-reduction argument tends to leave out Biden’s record of direct harm to marginalized & vulnerable populations. They tend to downplay Biden’s extensive vile record of racism, sexism & anti-democratic corporate bidding. 9/30
Even the most surface-level assessment of Biden’s actual record, previous actions & words are an affront to the conscious of anyone willing to look beyond just campaign rhetoric (and sometimes even there).
‘Lessor of Two Evils’ every single election means it's *systemic*. 10/30
‘Lessor of Two Evils’ every single election means it's *systemic*. 10/30
And even for those of us who agree that Biden may be a few millimeters to the left of Trump & not only agree in harm-reduction, but work in movements dedicated to harm-reduction from systematic violence of racism, sexism & capitalism – there is still the matter of strategy. 11/30
There is a compelling argument that the left’s blind (no matter who) acquiescing to the political charade we just witnessed is just plain bad strategy rooted in a naïve understanding of how power works. 12/30 https://twitter.com/ArashKolahi/status/1128742812424347648?s=20
This is because we would be giving away our bargaining power to dare ask for anything more than the status quo controlled by two factions of the same party that both primarily represent the interests of corporations & the wealthy. 13/30
By giving away our power, how do we end the endless ‘Lessor of Two Evils’ purgatory with both parties moving ever further right, largely indistinguishable from one another in substance?
This is strategic naiveté with little understanding of the history of societal change. 14/30
This is strategic naiveté with little understanding of the history of societal change. 14/30
And while these conversations around harm-reduction tend to highlight the few millimeters between Biden & Trump, completely absent from most of these conversations is the harm-reduction that would actually put us light-years ahead! 15/30
To get to that, we must first look honestly at our biggest mistake in 2016. It’s worth noting that mistakes & successes are usefully defined not by what is beyond our control, by what we have actual control over. 16/30
So, for example, MSM’s uniform slander is not a mistake. Virtually all media is owned & controlled by the 1%. They serve the interests of their owners. That is beyond our control.
But not properly countering with a compelling & systemic critique of the MSM is a mistake. 17/30
But not properly countering with a compelling & systemic critique of the MSM is a mistake. 17/30
If we look back at the 2016 election, we would see, like today’s #NotMeUs, a massive, diverse, passionate, energized, multifaceted, largely working-class movement for a diverse, progressive platform.
Pretty amazing in historical context. 18/30
Pretty amazing in historical context. 18/30
We all know how the story goes.
The Dem Establishment, largely funded by the insurance industry, pharmaceuticals, petroleum & Wall Street, worked behind the scenes to prevent any real challenge to the status quo. 19/30
The Dem Establishment, largely funded by the insurance industry, pharmaceuticals, petroleum & Wall Street, worked behind the scenes to prevent any real challenge to the status quo. 19/30
Recall that mistakes are determined by what we have control over. We had no control over the cheating that took place. But we did have control over how the movement responded to losing the nomination. 20/30
Rather than continuing the momentum & energy of an unprecedented movement, rather than building upon & growing, rather than diversifying strategies outside of electoral politics, such as organizing civil disobedience, we allowed it all to fizzle away. 21/30
How do we know that was our biggest mistake of 2016?
History.
Virtually every progressive advance in US history was borne from powerful movements outside of electoral politics, which only begrudgingly conceded when forced to. 22/30 https://twitter.com/ArashKolahi/status/1227308852015697920
History.
Virtually every progressive advance in US history was borne from powerful movements outside of electoral politics, which only begrudgingly conceded when forced to. 22/30 https://twitter.com/ArashKolahi/status/1227308852015697920
Rather than utilizing what could have potentially been the largest movement in US history, we took the wind out of our own sails. That was something *we* had control over. & It was a HUGE mistake.
For more on how big of a mistake it really was...: 23/30 https://twitter.com/ArashKolahi/status/1230218303102046209
For more on how big of a mistake it really was...: 23/30 https://twitter.com/ArashKolahi/status/1230218303102046209
A historically contextualized assessment of 2016 suggests that had we built upon the massive movement to elect Sanders & decoupled it from an electoral process that largely exists to prevent our success, we would be light-years ahead of where we are today. 24/30
Past successes of the US left have been by movements just like ours - except they didn’t give their power away.
They understood that progressive change happens when change is forced by raising the costs of oppression & injustice. 25/30 https://twitter.com/ArashKolahi/status/1237574096780550149
They understood that progressive change happens when change is forced by raising the costs of oppression & injustice. 25/30 https://twitter.com/ArashKolahi/status/1237574096780550149
So here we are: 2020. #NotMeUs is larger & better than ever before. If we knew our true power, we would be celebrating:
A powerful & strategic #NotMeUs without Sanders in the White House is more likely to win our platform, then Sanders in the White House with no movement. 26/30
A powerful & strategic #NotMeUs without Sanders in the White House is more likely to win our platform, then Sanders in the White House with no movement. 26/30
We must not repeat the mistakes of 2016. We must not allow others to define our success. Nor should we give our power away to an undemocratic apparatus that largely exists to prevent, appropriate & co-opt real progress.
We must not allow for our movement to fizzle away. 27/30
We must not allow for our movement to fizzle away. 27/30
History teaches us that we need powerful grassroots movements independent of electoral politics utilizing diverse & creative tactics such as civil disobedience, strikes, & disrupting business-as-usual... Raising the costs of injustice until we win. 28/30 https://twitter.com/ArashKolahi/status/1235267720330932224
Like successful movements of the past, #NotMeUs needs to exist independent of electoral politics, applying pressure regardless of which faction of the Corporate Elite class are in power.
Whether it's Trump or Biden, we can't afford to wait another 4 years for real change 29/30
Whether it's Trump or Biden, we can't afford to wait another 4 years for real change 29/30
We must not grab defeat from the jaws of victory. We should recognize the incredible potential of this historic moment.
We shouldn't settle for millimeters
Our past success tells us how to win seismic change. It’s time to start listening to history & start winning. 30/30
We shouldn't settle for millimeters
Our past success tells us how to win seismic change. It’s time to start listening to history & start winning. 30/30
