An Abolitionist Vision for the World We Want
I've been thinking a lot about storytelling in these dark, dystopian times, and how the far right's expertise in crafting narratives about scarcity and scapegoats is so effective. Fascist authoritarianism doesn't actually deliver anything to its supporters who are on the bottom rungs of society, and siphons ever-greater shares of our collective wealth to the top. So, it's the stories of dangerous immigrants, of liberal elitism, of runaway minority protections, that's doing all the hard work of garnering votes.
The left is not as good at story telling, in spite of the fact that our goal is for everyone to benefit in very tangible ways. So, I wrote a piece for Independent Media Institute, where I am Senior Correspondent at the Economy For All project, about applying abolitionist frameworks to articulate the world we want.
Take a look, read it, share it, internalize it. Feel free to give me feedback in the comments below.
....The Democratic Party is essentially a modern-day conservative party, while Republicans are the extremist, fascist party.
No wonder Americans in general dislike both major parties at roughly the same rate. And while the Democrats’ chances of taking control of Congress appear to be surging ahead of the midterm elections, it is likely because the pendulum is swinging away from Republicans, rather than towardDemocrats and their milquetoast agenda.
So, what can Democrats do to ensure victory?
Frankly, it is not our job as voters—or for that matter, the job of newspaper editorialists—to offer advice to political parties.
Our job as voters, especially in this moment, is to seize power in a system that has rendered us powerless and articulate our demands loudly and clearly. Politicians win our votes by acceding to our agenda. Not the other way around.
Therefore, the far more important question is, what do we, the voters, want?
I was on an interview with the Pulitzer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen, one of the contributors to my new book, Breaking ICE.
I've LONG admired Professor Viet Thanh Nguyen, not only because I'm a fan of his literary works, such as The Sympathizer, but because he retains a powerful moral compass on such critical issues as Israel's genocide in Gaza. At the Jaipur Literary Festival in Los Angeles this past September, he was the sole panelist alongside other, largely neoliberal voices, to consistently and eloquently bring up perspectives of marginalized and oppressed peoples . I was whooping and applauding his responses in the back of the room, grateful for his courage and clarity.
So you can imagine how thrilled I was to be able to interview him for my new book, Breaking ICE. And I was just as thrilled to be interviewed alongside Prof. Nguyen on a recent podcast about Breaking ICE with Stanford University's David Palumbo-Liu. You can listen to the entire interview at the link below. It's well worth the time!
LATEST STORIES ON RISING UP:
Onward now to my latest stories... the first one is a powerful one (but, honestly, they're ALL good).
🚶🏾♀️🚶🏼🚶🏿♂️A 100-Mile Pilgrimage To Protest Immigrant Detention
REV. JENNIFER GUTIERREZ: "I would say there's really no just way to detain anyone. And freedom should be part of the human condition, and so that is our ultimate goal. "
Trump Decimated Student Civil Rights. Here's How States Can Step Up.
SABRINA BERNADEL: "We are very excited to be introducing the Student Civil Rights Act, which is a model legislation. It's a series of templates that, one, offers states language that will help them either create or strengthen an existing state agency with the jurisdiction to investigate and enforce students' civil rights."
Are “the Streets” Centers of Philosophical Wisdom?
DARIEN POLLOCK: "I'm not just a Western philosopher. I do a lot of African philosophy or philosophy in African context. But the idea is that anybody can have this disposition of feeling left out of the conversation, being marginalized from the situation, and then trying to find tools and expressions and ways to deal with that, cope with that, and also overcome that, resist that."
Corporate media's goal is to leave you feeling overwhelmed and accept the status quo.
BONUS EPISODE:
Rising Up for Workers With Organized Power in Numbers
LYNN HUA: "Our national campaign at the moment is called Workers Over Billionaires. We aim to build a base alongside many people, coalitions, unions, community organizations, grassroots volunteers as possible. Not just us, but alongside other organizations, I need to make that clear. As possible because we believe that workers, not just greedy billionaires and corrupt politicians, should be driving the agenda and priorities within this country."
ICYMI... I'm still on BOOK TOUR:
↪ Next stops in my book tour: Denver and then Minneapolis! If you live in or near those cities, PLEASE DO COME!
Denver, CO
Friday October 23, Time TBD - The SHOP at Matter, 2114 Market St
Denver, CO 80205, RiNo arts district, Denver. Featuring Sonali Kolhatkar and guests. Sponsored by Free Speech TV. RSVP below:
Minneapolis, MN
Monday October 26 at 6 pm - Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Ave.
Minneapolis, MN. Featuring Sonali Kolhatkar in conversation with Dr. Yohuru Williams, Peter Rachleff, and Shannon Gibney. Sponsored by East Side Freedom Library. RSVP below:
