There is broad agreement and concern, from the suites to the streets, that democracy in the US is in serious crisis.
But there isn’t broad agreement about why it is in crisis, and what the path forward is.
On one level, this is a crisis involving the integrity of the vote. Will ballots be counted fairly? Will there be intimidation of Black, Brown, women, working-class voters? Will red state officials and US Senators certify election results? Will there be violence and new attacks on democratic institutions?
Last year 14 states adopted 17 laws making it harder to vote, limiting mail voting, shortening the window to request a mail ballot, or banning drop boxes, according to the Brennan Center for Justice At least six states enacted election interference laws that will be in effect for the 2024 election, creating criminal penalties for election workers for minor mistakes such as not allowing a poll watcher to stand close enough to voters.
These are very serious concerns, now matters of urgent discussion in many quarters since the refusal of the loser and his allies to accept the results of the 2020 election. Many are trying to make the 2024 election about preservation of democracy, and certainly that is very much on the line.
But many in historically marginalized communities are not mobilized around this issue—at least not yet—and it’s important to understand why. Because on that understanding, and meaningful action to meet it, may hinge the most critical election of our lifetimes. These voters played a critical role in 2020 and their participation will be essential this year as well.
The progressive version of “Make America Great Again”
Much of the language used by pro-democracy activists rings hollow for grassroots leaders of color. Too often it is couched in almost nostalgic terms like “restoring our democracy”—the progressive version of “make America great again.” But for most of American history, democracy has not worked well for Black, Brown, and working-class people and women—certainly not until the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, almost 200 years after the country’s founding. And ever since, right-wing politicians and justices have worked hard to undermine and dilute those protections. What we have and retain came from popular struggle.
“We are clear that Texas doesn’t have a voter registration problem: we have a voter participation problem,” said Leadership for Democracy and Social Justice (LDSJ) fellow Edwin Robinson. “And our current history from Wendy Davis to Beto O’Rourke continues to show us that ‘the right candidate’ just isn’t enough to get the job done.
“A great deal of people’s (particularly Black, Brown, working class, and poor people’s) apathy around the democratic process has more to do with not receiving the immediate and felt benefits of their political and civic participation… When it takes 100 years of participation for one victory and a lifetime of fighting to keep it, it’s no wonder that folks have grown weary and disillusioned with the ever-illusive promise of ‘democracy.’ It’s movements, not moments, that step into people’s lives and become the answer to the problems of this magnitude. Our opponents have done well to build, sustain, and fortify their own,” Robinson said.
So any effort to mobilize Black, Brown, working-class and women voters around threats to democracy has to be rooted in honesty about America’s past and building a movement.
Just as importantly, it requires a compelling forward vision to build a truly multiracial democracy that not only expands voting and other means of direct participation, but rejects criminalization of communities, and supports organizing and collective bargaining and a demonstrated commitment to equitable treatment and policies that is backed up by a deep long-term commitment and real, sustained investment.
Democracy is in crisis for many reasons and in multiple ways. Movement leaders are combating burnout and overall low enthusiasm as they try to advance progressive values forward in their communities and nationwide. More and more people do not have hope in national—or at times state and local—leadership to bring significant changes to their everyday lives. This loss of faith in the responsiveness of leaders is dangerous and provides fertile ground for authoritarians, who are on the rise not only in the United States, but around the world.
New visions for democracy
Leadership for Democracy and Social Justice takes strategic frameworks from social movement history accompanied by a focus on the inner arts of leadership to help movement activists build a different future, drawing from the best lessons of the past but free of false nostalgia. Most importantly, this combination evokes hope-carriers and democracy visionaries. These are the leaders we need at this moment. We need to reimagine the democratic paradigm, for sustainable leadership and long-term strategy are the cornerstones to building a democracy.
We need to imagine a participatory governing body in a multiracial democracy, where the government is truly for the people and by the people. Where there is space not just to respond to the threats of the moment and those on the horizon, but to dive deep as a movement to create real paradigm shifts. Where there are deep structural policy changes in criminal Justice, immigration, and economic justice. Where the progressive agenda isn’t defensive and protective but dismantles our current dysfunction—which angers and alienates millions across the political spectrum—to birth an inclusive, equitable society.
“Possibly the clearest current example of efforts to build a true democracy is the Jackson People’s Assembly,” Rukia Lumumba said. The initiative aims to foster grassroots democracy and community empowerment in Jackson, Mississippi.”It serves as a platform for residents to participate directly in decision-making processes that affect their lives and communities. The assembly is a vital part of the broader movement in Jackson to create an inclusive, equitable society and it plays a critical role in the city’s experiment with participatory governance,” said Lumumba. The People’s Advocacy Insitute, which coordinates the People’s Assembly, along with the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, has helped build similar assemblies in Newark, NJ, Nashville, TN, Dallas, TX, Lansing, MI, Detroit, MI, and Miami, FL.
Additionally, we have at hand many innovative and far-reaching policy campaigns that have emerged from vibrant social movements, not think tanks or politicians i“Any effort to mobilize Black, Brown, working-class, and women voters around threats to democracy has to be rooted in honesty about America’s past and building a movement. Just as importantly, it requires a compelling forward vision to build a truly multiracial democracy.”n just the last few years–think of the Fight for 15, One Fair Wage, the Green New Deal, the Care Agenda and a host of criminal justice reforms.
The leaders called to this moment are collaborators, inspiring the next generation, with the vision to embark on a journey for their descendants to carry on. This is a democracy movement that can mobilize and inspire.
Yesterday’s democracy isn’t working for communities. We must create spaces for re-imagination. That’s what we urgently need to overcome the democracy crisis that threatens every gain we have made, and even our very lives.
Featured image: Alabama police issue a two-minute warning to civil rights marchers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, March 7, 1965. When the marchers didn’t turn back, the police beat and teargassed them in what became known as “Bloody Sunday.” GPA Photo Archive, licensed CC BY-NC 2.0