While half the country tends to not vote in any election I found the amount of people that didn’t vote in the current one quite disappointing and insulting. The explanation I have heard is this was to make a statement to politicians on America’s participation in helping Israel bomb Palestine.
I still have a hard time understanding how not voting will help and not hurt Palestine more, and quite frankly I’m not really in a place to listen to the motivations behind it, especially because I’m pretty sure that the idea was introduced by Russian bots on social media and not experienced activists. I don’t know though, I’m no expert, perhaps it will do what those who didn’t vote to make a political statement want.
I just wanted to speak on the fact that one shared truth that many Americans have, yes even the white ones, is
we have ancestors who DIED for our right to vote.
I know as a Black woman, the amount of people that were beaten in the streets, imprisoned, tortured and killed to gain voting rights is motivation enough for me to exercise my right to vote while I still have it.
If you are a white man and have forebears that fought in the American Revolution, they did it so you could have the right to have a say in the leadership and choices in this country. If you are a white woman, many women sacrificed for your right to vote.
Our ancestors had to deal with the same broken country but still fought for the right to vote, I don’t have all the answers but I believe there is a wisdom in that, that can’t be denied.
As a citizen that is a part of the lgbtq community who has seen my trans homies especially react with justified fear to the next administration. As a woman who has already had rights taken away due to the actions of our next president and as a Black person who has seen the empowerment he gives to violent racists,
to me the people who didn’t vote made a bigger statement to “we the people” than they did politicians.
Especially since our next president has made it clear that he will do all he can to subvert and even overturn democracy for his own interests, including taking away our right to vote. Most especially because he has been following the same playbook as Hitler did to a T.
So I hope everyone who didn’t vote got what they wanted, I don’t see the value in such a choice but clearly you did. Maybe one day my rage and hurt will calm down enough for me to try and understand.
For me and my part I believe there are many ways to make a statement to politicians and I don’t believe abstaining from voting is the way to do it. I will continue to vote if I can and adapt to the situation as it arises in honor of my ancestors and the citizens in this country who need it.