Freedom, Justice and Opportunity
We are thrilled that the Harris campaign has picked up Freedom, Justice, and Opportunity as a major campaign theme. Thrilled, but not surprised. Those three words hold power, but the ideas that underly them are even more powerful. And they’re ours. The values in the Democratic Creed, the definitions of Freedom, Justice, and Opportunity that are embedded with it are powerful. The vision of a just society .. as long as it takes appeals to everybody. These things inspire universally because they stem from the opening words of the Declaration of Independence. And those words .. those ideas .. have been empowering our party since 1932. They are literally the soul of our party.
a special message from dems101
It’s time for women, and men, to stand up and celebrate .. celebrate and demand. August 26th is the 104th anniversary of the 19th Amendment. That event establishing the right to vote for women was historic, one in a line of historic American moments in our march towards true Democracy, towards the goal of a just society .. as long as it takes.
That century-old concept of fundamental rights is under attack. Dobbs is just the latest example of what has become a relentless assault, an attempt to turn back the clock. The moment to stand up for these rights .. for women’s rights and everyone else’s .. is now, and there is no better opportunity than August 26th, the very symbol of a woman’s basic right to equality.
A message from Scioto County, Ohio (Part 1)
During our January 2024 Central Committee meeting, members of the Scioto County Democratic Party took a notable step towards reinforcing its foundational values; the Scioto County Democratic Party has officially adopted The Democratic Creed as a testament to our commitment to inclusivity, education, and civic engagement. This adoption signifies a new chapter for the party as it aims to align its local ethos with the broader Democratic principles.
The Democratic Creed, sourced from the educational platform Democrats 101, encapsulates the fundamental beliefs and objectives of Democrats nationwide. The Scioto County Democratic Party intends for this creed to serve as a blueprint for our members and a binding element that unites the community under a common set of aspirations.
Over 50 Adoptions
Our grassroots movement .. and ours means yours .. has been spreading, and faster than we can properly keep up with. We’ve just had our 50st organization adopt the Creed, our 9th state, and .. as I write .. more adoptions are coming in.
This demand for the core values in the Democratic Creed, this hunger for the vision of a just society .. as long as it takes .. is real. It’s widespread. And it’s exciting to be part of. Stay tuned for a Special Edition in the coming days, and some major announcements in the coming weeks. Most of all, know that everything that is happening .. all the enthusiasm and the expressions of support for values .. is due to you, to each and every one of you at the local level who are taking a stand and saying enough! From all of us at Dems 101, a sincere and hearty thank you.
UPCOMING EVENTS
MICHIGAN: RURAL SUMMIT 2024
Dems101 will be at the “Rural Summit 2024”, sponsored by the Michigan Rural Caucus of the Michigan Democratic Party. The event will take place on April 11-13, 2024 at the Shanty Creek Resort in Bellaire, Michigan.
GEORGIA: CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 9
Jim Purvis. Founder and Author of Democrats 101, and State Representative Joe Miller (District 53, Ohio) will address county chairs and activists of the 9th Congressional District on April 13th, 2024 at the Craddock Center near Blue Ridge, Georgia.
OHIO: FOUR CORNERS
On Saturday April 20th, Dems101 will participate in the Four Corners event at Bowling Green State University, sponsored by the Ohio Democratic Party’s Rural Caucus.
A big hello from Thunder Bay, Michigan
When I open a text or letter asking for money, 98% of the time I simply click “delete”. Just like that, poof, it's gone. So why am I… Christie Tobey from rural Alpena, Michigan … writing to you personally about this one? Because I’m angry! Because real evil is at work in our country. It’s gnawing away endlessly, and it threatens the very foundations of our Democracy.
Are you angry, too? Are you anguished over the growing divide in this country, the very destruction of our national identity? Are you frustrated with our Democratic response, downright terrified of the possible outcomes in November? Could we survive another Trump victory? How is that even possible? Yet it seems that all Donald Trump needs to do is snap his fingers and money appears, from billionaires and poor MAGA supporters alike. Basically, money that just floats his way from selling lies and propaganda.
2024: Chaos, or unity?
The chaos part is easy. “2024” means November 5th, and that means fear. Trump. That one word. And we’re all determined to stand against him. All the way. But is that enough? Is that even the right way to look at it? If we attack him relentlessly, then defeat him again the same way we did in 2020 .. by the same margins .. what changes? What will another 51% victory leave in its wake?
The forces that created Trump will still be there. MAGA and its adherents, and the vast money machine that created them, will still exist. So will the deep tribalism they have managed to create. Their ability to take fear and hate and a coordinated campaign of lies, and turn it into a political machine capable of challenging for control of government, that will still be there as well.
And once we’ve defeated Trump permanently .. and losing a second Presidential election will do just that .. what do we do? Once we are no longer united by fear of Trump, what becomes of us? Do we go back to fighting each other, Progressives versus Moderates, elites versus the heartland? Do we go back to pushing this policy and that while regular Democrats, the lifeblood of our party, go back to feeling alienated and demoralized? Fear of Trump has united us. What will unite us once he’s gone?
STIGMA
As Democrats, we have two identities. Our internal identity, the way we see ourselves, is the same one we’ve had for a very long time: a traditional political party, focused intently on winning the next election. We like to view ourselves as enlightened, the good guys, the defenders of democracy, but we spend every ounce of our energy on winning the next election. That makes us a traditional political party.
Our external identity with the American public .. the voting American public .. is the one the Republicans have stuck us with. Forget “baby killers” and the MAGA folks. What counts is that huge swath of Americans who don’t really follow politics .. but decide elections. These are the people the Republicans have gotten to. These are the voters that have come to accept that we’re somehow tainted, some vague amalgam of “Socialist” and “taxaholics” and anti-religion and anti-family .. take your pick. We go crazy over the specifics, the “facts”, but that misses the point. What counts for these people is that, subconsciously, Democrats carry the stigma of “bad”. That’s their gut reaction: Democrats = bad, and they may not even know why. It’s the power of endlessly repeated lies: if there’s smoke, there must be fire.
DEMS 101: the idea spreads!
Delta County (Michigan) Democratic Party will host an evening with Democrats 101 on Wednesday, November 1, 2023. Bryan Watson will be the featured speaker before Democrats from around Michigan's Upper Peninsula. If you'd like more information, please contact the Delta County Democratic Party at deltademsmi@gmail.com.
Memorial day a time to reflect
Memorial Day is a time to reflect, not just about those that have died, but about why.
The original Memorial Day was born out of a terrible inferno that was fought to resolve that other terrible inferno: slavery. Slavery died, but of course it was replaced with Jim Crow, which yielded yet another national struggle, the Civil Rights Movement.
All of this, every bit of every struggle back through our entire history has been part of America’s endless quest to match the ideals of the Declaration of Independence with the realities of our lives.
We sit at a fork in the road here in America, a moment as historic as 1860. One path leads forward toward a just society, a time when all Americans share equally in Freedom, Justice, and Opportunity. The other path leads off to division, chaos, and pain.