Lemme tell you a true story. Ok? Ok. This election cycle in Arkansas was ArGOP against AOC/Bernie & Pelosi (they added her for good boogey woman measure) - The ArGOP didn’t even have run against their Dem opponents. They ran against AOC/Bernie. They pegged ArDems as Socialists.

Their strategy worked. When red state Dems tell you that rhetoric is hurting red state Dems they mean it. Locally/citywide even .. I saw this play out before my eyes. BLM became gentrified. Defund The Police became a real issue. White folks who wish Fayetteville was Portland ..

began saying Hate Crime legislation was way too much and why don’t we all just sit at a table and talk abt our “differences” Yes, bc Nazis are so willing to talk abt not wanting to kill us? Gtfoh. Will my fellow local Dems admit all this? Prolly not. Idk. It’s yet to be seen.

But listen, this sh*t played out all over the south and swing states and didn’t do the Dem party one ounce of good. We (locally) either admit that and fix it .. or we’ll continue to be the minority and marginalized/vulnerable communities will continue to pay the price.

Joyce Elliot should be on her way to DC. to rep Arkansans. But she isn’t. Partly bc the ArGOP didn’t run against her. They ran against AOC/Bernie/Defund The Police. Just the facts.

It’s basic math people. A red state Dem is = +1 for Dems. Like I’ve said many times before .. give me a red state Dem like Manchin over a Cotton GOP’er any day of the gd week. That’s HARM REDUCTION.

Seriously listen to this part ... many in Fayetteville were willing to/threatened to vote for the GOP candidate for Mayor bc they believed our Dem Mayor (who is over the local police dept like every other gd Mayor in the US) was too cozy with the local police dept. The GOP cand.

talked about militarizing the police. They didn’t care. They wanted to teach folks a lesson. What lesson?! That they don’t know how citywide govt works?! They were willing to harm marginalized/vulnerable folks further bc they couldn’t defund the police. Think abt that.

So this is why I get pissed off when folks tell me to shut up about this stuff ... NO. This is real gd life. It directly affects marginalized/vulnerable communities who are already suffering here and everywhere. See something. SAY something.

Lastly. Do you know how exhausting it is to be a Dem in a red state and have to fight the R & the far L and the blue staters who think we deserve all we get? To be a marginalized/vulnerable person in a red state without a seat at the table bc the table is full of cis het wp who

believe they know what’s best for you and can do it better?!