They should be great targets for radicalizing if they can get past the doomerism. The problem is that despair is easy to get stuck into if you're not doing anything. I've been reaching out to organizations to find the right one for me recently and I think even just starting the process has made me feel better (narrowed it down to local PSL, DSA, or Tenant's Union, or a less local and more national tech workers union).
There was an Adam Conover video recently, and I know he's a John Oliver level lib, but I think he's got a good point in this case. When you're active and doing something, even when you fail, I think it helps a lot.
Of course a lot of these people were active and doing something for Kamala, but since she lost, they're not sure where to turn next, what to do, or why this is happening. I hope they're reachable through the US's reflexive dismissal of the words socialism, communism, or tankie.
I do wonder if we could advocate for people like this to start building and interacting with existing mutual aid groups. If they suddenly became incredibly active in the mutual aid organizations within their local area, I think it could cause a pretty significant quality shift for those mutual aid programs.
And let's be honest, if the future is as bleak and dire as some of the most doomerist individuals want to make it appear to be, then we are absolutely going to need strong, capable and reliable mutual aid programs.
I'm talking mutual aid programs that get trans people out of right-wing areas, mutual aid programs that get people to the airport so that they can receive abortions in other states where that right is protected, mutual aid programs for covering the cost involved with all of these other projects.
The question is how many people could we encourage to develop these networks? How is the best way to direct their energy towards existing programs? Can we build a list state by state for mutual aid programs that we can deliver to them in a neat and digestible package?
I don't think we are going to suddenly turn them into revolutionary Marxists. We're not going to be able to suddenly make them join the PSL tomorrow. But if we can frame it as no different than contributing to a GoFundMe for medical services, I think we could get people on board.
It also might be a great way to expose them to other socialists and start the process of radicalization lol.
But the hard part does seem to he getting them to these mutual aid programs and vice-versa. I'm not sure how. Your ideas are probably good, and then posting that list to reddit and Lemmy.world, places where sad libs congregate.
It also might be a great way to expose them to other socialists and start the process of radicalization lol.
That's my thinking. It would pull them to the left and get them involved in their local area doing praxis.
But the hard part does seem to he getting them to these mutual aid programs and vice-versa. I'm not sure how. Your ideas are probably good, and then posting that list to reddit and Lemmy.world, places where sad libs congregate.
We do have this thread here from a while back that has information in it. It might need to be updated and tailored more directly to volunteering and not just donating. But gathering that information is probably the hardest part.
They should be great targets for radicalizing if they can get past the doomerism. The problem is that despair is easy to get stuck into if you're not doing anything. I've been reaching out to organizations to find the right one for me recently and I think even just starting the process has made me feel better (narrowed it down to local PSL, DSA, or Tenant's Union, or a less local and more national tech workers union).
There was an Adam Conover video recently, and I know he's a John Oliver level lib, but I think he's got a good point in this case. When you're active and doing something, even when you fail, I think it helps a lot.
Of course a lot of these people were active and doing something for Kamala, but since she lost, they're not sure where to turn next, what to do, or why this is happening. I hope they're reachable through the US's reflexive dismissal of the words socialism, communism, or tankie.
I do wonder if we could advocate for people like this to start building and interacting with existing mutual aid groups. If they suddenly became incredibly active in the mutual aid organizations within their local area, I think it could cause a pretty significant quality shift for those mutual aid programs.
And let's be honest, if the future is as bleak and dire as some of the most doomerist individuals want to make it appear to be, then we are absolutely going to need strong, capable and reliable mutual aid programs.
I'm talking mutual aid programs that get trans people out of right-wing areas, mutual aid programs that get people to the airport so that they can receive abortions in other states where that right is protected, mutual aid programs for covering the cost involved with all of these other projects.
The question is how many people could we encourage to develop these networks? How is the best way to direct their energy towards existing programs? Can we build a list state by state for mutual aid programs that we can deliver to them in a neat and digestible package?
I don't think we are going to suddenly turn them into revolutionary Marxists. We're not going to be able to suddenly make them join the PSL tomorrow. But if we can frame it as no different than contributing to a GoFundMe for medical services, I think we could get people on board.
It also might be a great way to expose them to other socialists and start the process of radicalization lol.
But the hard part does seem to he getting them to these mutual aid programs and vice-versa. I'm not sure how. Your ideas are probably good, and then posting that list to reddit and Lemmy.world, places where sad libs congregate.
That's my thinking. It would pull them to the left and get them involved in their local area doing praxis.
We do have this thread here from a while back that has information in it. It might need to be updated and tailored more directly to volunteering and not just donating. But gathering that information is probably the hardest part.