As a special Thanksgiving Thank You, here’s a 40% discount special offer. This offer’s good for the next three days only.
By now there has been exhaustive analysis into the reasons for the election outcome – including anti-incumbent backlash, inflation, staggering economic inequality, deep-seeded racism, misogyny and xenophobia, the far-right’s desire for a strongman or savior, rampant disinformation and the right-wing take-over of media, Democratic party leaderships failure to hold a primary, etc.
I’m still grappling with the anger and sadness that so many voters were willing to vote for someone who spews violence and viciousness, brags about being a sexual abuser, has a long track record of racism, and blatantly and repeatedly lies. And it’s exhausting and disgusting thinking about the mean and vile rhetoric that’s going to be front and center once again.
That said, I have shifted from shock and heartache to resolve and honing in on how best to continue working toward a saner world that works better for all beings given the backdrop of the new regime.
I believe both negative and positive possibilities have been amplified by this election. A major piece that led to the election result was an anti-establishment sentiment, a broadly felt disillusionment with political institutions and processes. This is evidenced in part by the fact that voter turn-out was down, and a larger percentage of registered voters opted not to vote then the number that voted for either candidate. I’ve spoken with a lot of people before and after the election, who said they were just frustrated with the entire political system and wanted deeper change than simply replacing one party leader with the other. I agree with them and find great hope in such sentiment.
America is not a functional democracy but rather a corporatocracy and both major political parties work to protect a status quo economic system that ravages nature and keeps people trapped in a cycle of poverty and economic uncertainty. A whole lot of us know this, we feel it, we live it, but it is very hard to know what to do about it. It may well be that we are on the brink of big enough destruction of, and by, the old system for genuine change to become clearer and more accessible.
After Trump was elected in 2016, a massive “Resistance Movement” formed. Groups representing women’s rights, civil liberties, anti-racism, environmental concerns came together to demonstrate and organize. The first Women’s March held the day after inauguration in 2017 is considered to be the largest ever single-day demonstration in the U.S. The Resistance stayed active and indeed Trump lost the next election.
But, four years later, here we are again. A lot of activists are exhausted and disillusioned and I think that’s a good thing as well. As they say in recovery programs, “If you keep doing the same thing, you keep getting the same result.”
I’ve been tracking “The Resistance” movement since the election and so far it is mostly focused on how to get more Democrats into power in two-years in the mid-term election. I certainly support that goal but it isn’t nearly enough to meet this moment. Progressives did not respond to the anti-establishment energy so team Trump stepped into it and narrowly won the election. The two-party system is part of the broken establishment – it isn’t enough to push for getting more democrats elected.
Certainly resisting Trump and the awful policies he and his acolytes will forward will need to be part of the approach. However, the greater opportunity in the upheaval before us is moving from resistance to transcendence, facing squarely and with brutal honesty the flaws in our economic and governance systems that have created the divided and unhealthy culture we’re all now navigating.
Why give stuff when you can give an experience and being part of community?
The new regime is going to do a lot of damage. It will also fail to deliver much of what it promised. For example, you can’t cut two-trillion dollars from a six-trillion dollar budget without cutting Social Security and Medicare, which Trump promised not to do. Similarly, you can’t cut taxes for billionaires and corporations, add tariffs to all imported products and lower prices for poorer people. The indecency to come will force us at some point to make it stop. When it does there will be rage and disillusionment. I strongly believe the chaos of the next couple of years is going to result in opportunities for people to open more fully to genuine system change in elections, governance structure, the media political industry, and the economy.
There is already a massive movement in place to shift from extractive Capitalism to a restoration-based economy. There are already millions of us who know the American Dream concept has gone off the rails. Beneath the surface of the chaos and frenzy, a whole lot of us are processing what’s happening and birthing a conception of a new and better way of being. I’ve shared before that I love the term chaord, which refers to pockets of new order rising out of chaos. I am envisioning chaordic times ahead.
On this Thanksgiving holiday, I’m grateful to be here in these challenging times and to be able to be part of the worthy cause of transcending darkness and moving toward a healthier society and world. I’m also grateful to all you readers and subscribers who have made it possible for this publication to grow steadily over this past year. Thanks so much for the support and for the notes, comments, and shares that help this work gain momentum.
Many of you have expressed a desire to be more directly engaged in working for good causes going forward. Below is a list of actions and places to plug in.
ACTION OPPORTUNITIES
Get in the loop with organizations that are leading the charge. Here are some – Moveon.org, Poor Peoples Campaign, 350.org, The Sunrise Movement, also ACLU, National Association of Women. Lots of organizations (local through International) are activating to face these times. I encourage you to identify your niche in the activism ecosystem, the cause you feel most passionate about (women’s rights, LGBTQ issues, environment, democracy protection), and plug in there. Nobody can do it all, but each of us doing what we care about most can build a different way forward.
Participate in the Demonstrations and Rallys:
There will be a "People's March on Washington" held in D.C. on Jan. 18, the Saturday before Trump's second inauguration, hosted by organizations like the Women's March group, Abortion Access Now, Planned Parenthood and the ACLU. Local Communities can organize sister events.
On Dec. 3rd Leaders in the Climate Change action movement will lead an event (in-person in DC and livestreamed) to explore how to continue to push for climate, clean energy, and environmental justice during the new regime. We'll hear from leading climate champions on Capitol Hill as well as from movement leaders about how we can keep up the fight in our communities. Confirmed and invited speakers include: Jane Fonda Roishetta Ozane Senator Ed Markey Senator Bernie Sanders Rep. Maxwell Frost Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez Rep. Ilhan Omar Rep. Pramila Jayapal …and more. Click here for details and to RSVP: https://actionnetwork.org/events/the-climate-fight-ahead?source=email&
Note: This registration link has a list of many, many leading climate and environment organizations.
Support Public and Independent Media.
One of the biggest threats we’re facing is the gross amount of disinformation being spread and the massive spread of right-wing media outlets (I’ll write about this in more depth at some point). The new regime has already signaled it wants to cut funding to public media like NPR and PBS. I believe public media has never been more important and those of us who appreciate it need to support it.
There are also a growing number of independent media outlets with a commitment to being factual. Many of these are on Substack just like TRANSCEND that you are reading now. I also recommend The Hartmann report, The Bulwark, and Transform with Marianne Williamson.
Take on Your Own Institutions
We have seen some republicans stand up to the take-over of the Republican party by Trumpism.
I have already been in touch with the Democratic National Committee to let them know that without serious reform in their approach to primaries and democratic processes I will take my support elsewhere.
Whatever action you decide to take do it with kindness and love
I just don’t believe we can beat hatred by piling on more hate. Those of us who long for more kindness and dignity from public figures and fellow citizens must not succumb to countering ugliness with more ugliness. Being civil doesn’t mean being weak; in fact, it’s just the opposite. I leave you with a talk by a fellow Unity member, Theresa Finn about navigating these times as agents of justice and also of peace and love. She does a really great job addressing activism while holding higher ground.
I’ll close this Thanksgiving post with a simple but profound statement by the late, great John Lewis. He noted, “No matter what ship our ancestors arrived on, we are all in the same boat now.”
That’s going to be true going forward into the next few years and I’ll be doing everything I can to join with others in helping turn this boat toward new horizons, and eventually, calmer seas.
Happy Thanksgiving to You,
Cylvia
P.S. I’m going to take a risk and do my very first LIVE CHAT next week to discuss the ideas I’ve presented here. I’m a little nervous about it and I hope some of you will join me. I’ll send details once I have them sorted out.
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