>>One could see the sands shifting even at their swearing in in 2021. Every seat occupied by a person who is BIPOC is a contested seat, especially those newly won during the media-coined Black Spring (and Year of the Woman) of 2020. …For them, the post election euphoria–and the money–dissipated quickly.
This reminds me of how there was a huge inpouring of money during the spring of 2020 to racial justice organizations that abruptly stopped or slowed only months later when it was no longer on white people’s minds. I know we see that here on Lace on Race as well – people come in waves as the news hits and then drop out when it’s no longer on their radar. In contrast, real change – political, social and individual, which are all entangled and part of each other – comes with that sustained, slow-cooker mentality.
>>This is true in politics as well. These ideas and principles sometimes ‘trickle up’ to more mainstream politics.
It’s unfortunately also true of the right wing, with big donors willing to invest in running school board candidates, realizing that people rise up from local elections. This is an area that I know is often the unsexiest to do work in and donate to, but also has the most impact on people’s communities. It’s also where I see a lot of people who consider themselves progressive turn conservative super-quickly. They’ll have calls for racial progress on the federal level and then block housing or educational reform that would allow their communities to be more racially diverse. In my county – one of the most liberal in the country – white parents were shouting down Black and white students calling for changes to the high school boundaries.
As for personalizing it, as we always have to, I know I’ve found it difficult to maintain momentum myself. By far the most exciting election I’ve been part of was when President Obama ran. I was new to the D.C. area and went on several door-knocking volunteer runs. Since then, I’ve never put in that level of effort. I still try to help through postcard writing campaigns and donating, but it’s just not the same level of commitment. Finding ways to make that connection again I think may get back to that grassroots aspect.
