Creating new ties
The gap between the structures of government and the will of the people is growing. The recent primary election in Michigan was one more sign that our institutions are incapable of acting in the interests of the people. But the movement behind the vote uncommitted campaign protest is a reminder of the creative energies emerging at this time of such violence and sorrow.
In little more than 3 weeks, a multiethnic, multi-generational and multi faith collection of people coalesced to take a stand against President Biden’s refusal to use his influence for a cease fire. More than 100,000 voters cast ballots for uncommitted as a protest of US support of Israel’s assault on Gaza. Roughly 13% of all votes cast were uncommitted, and in some cities and towns more than half the people took a stand to demand a change in policy. Andy Levin, an activist with deep political roots in Michigan said on Democracy Now, “I’ve rarely seen such an organic and authentic movement come together. We really need actual change in policy, and I think we sent that message strongly.” The uncommitted campaign is now expected to move to other battle ground states. Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud said, "This coalition is one that wants to bring the morality back to this country because somewhere along the line, we have lost it."
The implications of this campaign go far beyond the presidential election. It is one of the thousands of efforts emerging that are creating new values and processes for political life.
It is no secret that “democracy” is in trouble. In a recent article exploring the depth of the crisis we face and the real limits of our forms of government, David Dayen of the Prospect observed that the “threat to democracy “has become a catchall phrase for resistance to conservative extremism, and specifically Trump. Yet the deficiencies in American democracy go back to the very founding, and the long arc of history hasn’t come close to correcting all of them. The larger crisis we now face is not solely attributable to an individual with malign intent for our government; it’s more about the system of government itself.”
That system of government from the national to the local level functions consistently to protect corporate interests and to use public wealth to support policies that are destroying people and the planet. All levels of government are much more likely to take actions in support of corporate profits, reflecting the reality that “between “71 and 98 percent of elections over the past 20 years were determined by which candidate had the most campaign money.” Most of that money comes from corporate interests.
The same is true at the state and local levels. The recent votes of the Detroit city council to once again give away millions of dollars of public money for private development is reflective of this. Or consider the role of the Atlanta city council in relation to cop city. People who owe their positions of authority to one of the largest mass movements for peace and democracy are doing everything imaginable, including supporting charges of domestic terrorism against demonstrators, to block a simple public referendum.
Certainly, there are many reforms, small and large, that we can and should enact to shift this situation. Dayen says, “We know the names of these band-aids: budget reconciliation, the Electoral Count Reform Act, the 14th Amendment.”
But the systemic collapses we are experiencing require much more of us. We have come to the end of the ability of these institutions to be reformed. We don’t know what is coming next. But we do know that across the country people are creating new political relationships to guide actions based on values that respect life, that challenge an economy built on death and extraction, and that offer new ways of solving problems. These emerging relationships, imperfect, often fleeting and still in shadow, are continuing the push toward life. They are the hope of a future worth having.