the new silent majority needs to get loud get busy get organized

former president richard nixon coined the term “the silent majority” to refer to white americans who were upset at the changes taking place in the 1960s and 1970s, like ending segregation and pro women’s rights.  over time, that majority became a fearful minority that got loud and angry enough to control more than half of the state legislatures in the country, gerrymander and restrain voting rights in those states, and elect a far right authoritarian leader who attempted a violent coup to stay in power.  

now that loud minority has taken over the supreme court and has succeeded in its goal of reinterpreting the u.s. constitution to not protect abortion rights, eliminating the last vestige of affirmative action at universities, and striking down important federal pollution regulations.  

meanwhile the activist hippies of the 60s and 70s along with millennials and the tiktok generation have unwittingly become the new silent majority.  the majority of people in this country support full reproductive rights (including them being covered by medicare for all), full civil rights, and a fast pivot to renewable energy sources.  despite our numbers this majority is not prevailing.  we are not loud, organized or persistent enough to be heard.  and we must be.

like most people i know, dobbs v. jackson women’s health (the supreme court decision that just overturned roe v. wade) affected me deeply. it didn’t depress me. it didn’t immobilize me. it made me think. and it made me angry. i am angry at so many aspects of this.

certainly i am angry at the hypocrisy of the right wing for claiming they deplore an activist court and that they are “conservative” and then creating one of the most activist and least conservative (in the sense of cautious and protective) courts in american history.

i am angry and fearful that it is only going to get worse before it gets better. a court that can overturn roe, and affirmative action and environmental regulation (all already done) could certainly overturn gay marriage or even brown vs. board of education.

i am angry, yes, at clarence thomas, but equally and more at samuel alito, the architect of the decision, and at brett kavanaugh and amy coney barrett for lying their way onto the supreme court. and neil gorsuch for joining that outrageous opinion.

i’m angry at donald trump and mitch mcconnell and the republican party for systematically subverting and overturning the american democracy over the course of decades.

i’m angry at the democratic party and all its leaders for letting it happen. specifically, senate majority leader chuck schumer and speaker nancy pelosi.

i’m angry that the democrats don’t seem to have the courage to play the hardball that the republicans have played. that democrats won’t use every single possible tool, including putting aside the filibuster, to protect voting rights, that the democrats let kyrsten sinema and joe manchin hijack american rights, that their only solution seems to be for more of us to vote.

i am angry at president biden for helping to get clarence thomas confirmed to the court years ago and for not fighting for women or using his power and congressional know how to to get a real federal abortion rights bill into law.

i am angry at all the people who tune out the news because it’s too depressing.

i’m angry at all my “spiritual” friends who think that we are one and there’s no separation but somehow have decided there’s something called “politics” over there that is outside of god.

i’m angry at how few people turn out for non presidential elections.

i’m angry at how many americans are having to work so hard to put food on their tables, a roof over their heads and keep their children in school that they have not one bit of energy left to care what their government is doing (when in fact, a powerful strong progressive voting turnout could lead to national health insurance, affordable housing, higher wages and public preschool and childcare all of which could make a massive difference in their lives).

but like so many other times i’m angry, the buck stops with me. ultimately, the real reason i’m angry is that i’m letting this happen. i’ve participated in these atrocious developments by being too quiet and too complacent. i’m angry at how little i do, the occasional protest, giving money, regularly voting clearly isn’t enough.

and i’m frustrated at the lack of clarity i have about where to put my energy, time and money politically these days.

having said all that, here’s my plan. to focus on what i can do and not what i can’t do:

instead of giving just to planned parenthood, which is no doubt swamped with donations from suburban women, i followed rep. alexandria ocasio-cortez’ suggestion to donate money through act blue to these 5 nonprofit organizations listed on the graphic here.

in order to support voting rights in the states, we give to the new georgia project started by stacey abrams which is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that was instrumental in registering and turning out voters in 2020 for both the presidential election and the pivotal us senate run-off.

one could also contribute to fair fight which is a national organization started by stacey abrams to work for voter registration and turnout in every state but it is partisan.

and then obviously we get involved in voter education and turnout in your local area, using the stacey abrams model.

final words: the far right is a dying minority that is fighting with everything it’s got to turn back the clock in america. i’m confident that they will eventually lose but our complacency in our silent majority has cost us so much already and it could get a lot worse before it gets better. everything is at stake. let’s get busy, get loud and get organized.