The Arc of Justice Won't Bend on its Own

When we had Red Wine & Blue founder Katie Paris on the pod this week, we had an important question for her: what do we say to people who think their vote won’t count?

Katie wisely answered the question in a couple of ways.

First, she has faith in our election systems. Maybe even more since 2020. After all, Trump tried to overthrow that election and he failed, despite being the sitting president at the time. Many extremists from January 6th have been prosecuted, sending a message to other would-be insurrectionists that their actions will have consequences.

Still, it’s clear that Trump and his supporters will try again. He’s already trying to sew discord and doubt in Pennsylvania. But that just means we have to win so decisively that no disinformation or frivolous lawsuit can make a dent - not just in the presidential race but all down the ballot. The greater our margin of victory, the less effective any shenanigans will be.

And when it comes to the power of our vote in general, Katie didn’t mince words. As we’ve said before on the pod many times, “if you don’t do politics, politics does you.” The very real effects of elections (like the overturning of Roe v Wade) will affect all of us, whether we vote or not. Are we really ready to hand our power over to old white male extremists? We have a seat at the table, we just have to use it.

She encouraged us to take a step back and take a look at the big picture. We’re only the latest in a long line of people throughout history who have fought for justice and representation. Many have died for our right to vote and we honor their sacrifice by exercising that right. The arc of the moral universe may bend towards justice, in the words of MLK Jr, but it won’t happen on its own. We’re all a part of it every single day, and especially on November 5th.

If there’s someone in your life who agrees with you on the issues but doesn’t see the value of voting, we hope this helps you have that conversation. And if you need any additional help with any of those convos, check out our online tool Rally.