Despair is NOT an option

In these dark days for our democracy and for the world as a whole, some inspiring words from Robert Weissman, President of Public Citizen. They remind me of the motto of FRELIMO, the Mozambique National Liberation movement of the 1970s -  "A luta continua, vitória é certa" and the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., "the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice" (I always add, and I'm pretty sure Dr. King would agree, "but only if we bend it"). 

Robert Weissman:

We have to fight against despair.

There are many reasons to feel down right now — to feel scared, to doubt the path our country and the world are on.

And I know — from communicating with so many Public Citizen supporters and activists like you — how widespread and deep the current sense of gloom is.

But here’s the thing:

Despair’s cousin is hopelessness. And hopelessness is a dangerous self-fulfilling prophecy that we simply must not give in to.

Hopelessness leaves us helpless in struggles against oppressive forces.

The antidote to despair is hope.

And so, collectively, we need to work on cultivating hope — not blind faith, but hope.

How do we do that?

Well, let’s start by acknowledging that — in such a perilous moment — it’s not easy.

Building hope is a process. While there is no single right answer, and different people will find different ways, this is work we must do together.

Here are some thoughts on how to find — and strengthen — hope.

WE ARE THE MAJORITY

It can often feel like the country has lost its mind, that a majority are locked into anti-science, conspiratorial, hateful thinking.

But in reality, overwhelming numbers of Americans favor a progressive agenda. They want to cut drug prices and end Big Money dominance of elections. They want to tax the rich and restrain CEO pay. They want to address climate change. By large majorities, they favor commonsense gun safety rules and access to abortion.

Yes, this cuts both ways. It’s not uplifting that a minority is able to impose its will on the nation. But we can’t lose sight of the fact that we are the majority.

LOSING IS OFTEN THE PRELUDE TO WINNING

As disturbing as it is to fall short of winning far-reaching reforms, we should recognize the power we’ve built in getting close to victory — and recognize that falling just shy of passing legislation often foreshadows victories to come.

WE ARE WINNING MORE THAN WE REALIZE

Working together in this shared project called Public Citizen, we’ve pushed insurance giant AIG to restrict support for climate-destabilizing fossil fuels.

The U.S. government is sharing COVID-19 vaccine technology with the world.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is working on a rule to protect workers — especially farm workers — from excessive heat.

We stopped a Facebook scheme to create some kind of unregulated global currency.

We filed a lawsuit that forced the United States Postal Service (after Donald Trump put a Republican mega-donor in charge of it) to deliver ballots on time in the 2020 election and that secured commitments to make sure they keep doing so.

And these are just some of the wins that Public Citizen helped score.

Beyond our work, think about the Amazon workers in New York voting to unionize, progressive candidates winning elections throughout Latin America, and the mounting evidence from the congressional January 6 committee of Donald Trump’s criminal conspiracy to remain in power.

THE OPPOSITION IS NOT ALL-POWERFUL

We often imagine that “the other side” is super strategic, well organized, united, and farsighted. It is not so. They are fractious and make missteps all the time.

Believe me, I’m not one to underestimate the power of Big Business, and I take very seriously the rise of neo-fascism in our country. But we shouldn’t imagine these forces to be stronger than they are.

NOTHING IS PERMANENT

When things feel like they are going badly, it can feel like that will be the state of affairs for all time. In fact, political tides shift frequently and often dramatically.

We had national elections in 2002, 2006, 2008, 2010, and 2016 that some proclaimed to constitute permanent national realignments. None of them were. Of course, some things — including bad things — do persist. But, in general, political change is a lot less durable than it may seem.

THERE IS POWER — AND HOPE — IN WORKING TOGETHER

If an overwhelming majority of Americans support a progressive agenda — and they do — then how do we win it?

The number one answer is by working together. In our organizing and mobilizing, there is the power to overcome powerful reactionary forces.

In joining together, we find not just power, but hope. Hope that together we can do great things. And also the hope that comes from standing side-by-side with others (whether in person or virtually), from overcoming isolation, from the feeling of solidarity, and from participating in collective action.

POSTSCRIPT

The Duke of Sussex delivered the keynote address at the United Nations on Monday on behalf of Nelson Mandela International Day. These are some excerpts from his speech.

Looking at Mandela’s face in the photograph (with Queen Elizabeth), Harry spoke of seeing a man who had “endured the very worst of humanity, vicious racism, and state-sponsored brutality” and lost 27 years with his family, and yet he was “still beaming” and “able to see the goodness in humanity.”

“In our own time, a time of global uncertainty and division, when it’s all too easy to look around and feel anger or despair, I’ve been inspired to go back to Mandela’s writings and for insight into how this could be,” the duke said. “How he could experience so much darkness, and always manage to find the light.”

“We’re living through a pandemic that continues to ravage communities in every corner of the globe. Climate change wreaking havoc on our planet, with the most vulnerable suffering most of all,” he explained.

“The few, weaponizing lies and disinformation at the expense of the many. And from the horrific war in Ukraine, to the rolling back of constitutional rights here in the United States, we are witnessing a global assault on democracy and freedom ― the cause of Mandela’s life.”

At this moment, Harry posited that people have “a choice to make” regarding how to move forward and deal with the current crisis the world is facing.

“We can grow apathetic, succumb to anger, or yield to despair. Surrendering to the gravity of what we’re up against. Or we can do what Mandela did,” the duke said. “We can find meaning and purpose in the struggle. We can wear our principles as armor. Heed the advice Mandela once gave his son, ‘To never give up the battle, even in the darkest hour.’ And find hope where we have the courage to seek it.”