We’re all wondering what will happen. To ourselves, friends, families. To our jobs, healthcare, finances. To our society, state, country. It’s more than okay to say, “I don’t know.” In fact, that’s been the answer to most of the questions I’m asked since election night. All I could really say is this is what the world has turned out to be. All I can really do is reach out to you and ask how are you feeling? Tell me the good, tell me the bad. J4A is a community that makes it easier to wake up every morning and be reminded that we still have something powerful, here.
One of the easiest reminders of how powerful you all have been this year is Erin Maye Quade being elected to the MN House of Representatives. We all had a clear stake in the history made in Apple Valley as a result of being a part of well over 2,000 Take Action election shifts this year. Be proud of that, and know that your efforts made this state more beautiful in an ugly aftermath. The Republicans are trying to kill that beauty, and so we need to double down on not only what we want to achieve, but also double down on our passions and efforts on this journey to end mass incarceration, systematic racism and gender oppression, not to mention the corporate power that generated over that last 15 years and allowed for such a bizarre election cycle and result. And let’s also bring our moral and spiritual imagination to these fights.
Let’s not forget one of the most important factors in winning the big fights to remove more barriers to people impacted by the justice system. Those who are most directly impacted must be engaged in this work to dismantle these oppressive systems. If you were showing up all year and especially during GOTV, I and the Justice 4 All program and TakeAction are extremely grateful. Know that we are in this all the way with you, and know that we will need you in the future, because our liberation will forever be bound to each other. We need you right now. If you know anyone impacted by the justice system, we need you to have real conversations with them, share your story and why you are fighting for true justice, and also hear their stories. And then we need you to bring them along and fight with J4A, because the most disenfranchised will become the creators of a new possibility for the whole state and for this nation.
Part of the reason Erin Maye Quade won is because we told our stories countless times on the phones and doors for many months. We need to keep doing what we’ve been doing, which is telling our stories any chance we get. Nothing negative will happen to us as a community for sharing more stories, and sharing them often. Let’s be open, tell our stories, because you know those systems will tell them for us if we don’t tell them ourselves. Our stories are now more important than ever. We become more human for ourselves and for each other when we tell them. Let’s continue to plan together and be rigorous and critical of the system, but also be nurturing and constructive in the spaces we create to build more power and a stronger community.
Now more than ever we have an opportunity and responsibility to do more. We have power and responsibility to do something for our communities that had not been done for us. It’s going to take constant engagement, so I hope that you come our TakeAction Member Meeting on Monday, November 21st, from 6-8pm.
Stay tuned for more updates. Is there hope still available for things like Restore the Vote? The answer is yes, and we need to grab onto that hope and operate on that hope. Can we win next Legislative Session? Why don’t we try and see!
