What can I do to help?
What can I do to help?
Trump was elected. This isn't what I wanted, but I'm trying to stay positive and not worry so much. The people have the power to make choices and work and campaign and support what they believe in and I for one want to take advantage of that. I want to help those that will be affected in the coming years and stand for what I believe is right. What resources, campaigns, protests, anything should I and others be aware of? What can we do to make the change we want to see?
Waaayyy too many comments with calls for violence.
Lets do better, violence is NOT the answer here.
This is so true good comment
The people have the power to make choices and work and campaign and support what they believe in
Don't bank on that being the case. American democracy is literally dead as of today. The president elect is a felon with an IQ lower than his age, we're cooked.
The people have the power to make choices and work and campaign and support what they believe in
It's totally the case. The people did work and campaign and support what they believe in. They did make a choice.
They chose fascism.
Those of us against it just have to do our best to fight back. It’s all we can do.
This is dangerously wrong. Any person can have a huge impact on their own community without changing countrywide politics. It is super important that caring USians start contributing to their communities and help the people that are more at risk of being wrongly prosecuted for living their life. Please volunteer at mutual aid programs, please protest against genocide, please educate the people around you, please make sure trans and queer people are safe, please speak out about racism. And when you witness a nazi victimising someone based on their identity/race/disability/etc, please act and don’t look away.
Telling people that ‘change is hopeless’ only endangers vulnerable groups more.
This doesn't really make sense.
He has won because more people voted for him in a democratic election. That's literally democracy in action.
You might not like the result (it's frankly bizarre from an outsider's POV), but that doesn't mean "democracy is dead".
They’re referring to the literal campaign strategy / platform he ran on which includes such fascist rhetoric as deporting 20m immigrants (when there’s at most 13-15m by most estimates, every single one of which helps the economy and is not a burden in any way) and “it’s the last election you’ll need to vote in”, as just a sample. Oh and don’t forget “I’ll only be dictator for one day” as a bonus, a treat. That’s what people mean when they say democracy is dead.
Support organizations that will support the causes you support. For instance, here's where I'll be focusing.
Not gonna lie, this battle will be uphill against entrenched industries like big oil, crypto, big tobacco, the military industrial complex, and billionaires like Elon Musk.
But you can't roll over and let these assholes ravage the country. Conscientious objection to dubious orders happened during the Vietnam War, and it can happen again if Trump goes rogue.
Get the pdf while you still can:
https://www.openculture.com/2022/01/read-the-cias-simple-sabotage-field-manual.html
Add https://ffrf.org/ to the list, I don't suspect overturning Roe v Wade is the only change they are going to make that preferences faith based beliefs and feelings over objective reason backed by scientific evidence.
Donate to companies like Planned Parenthood who help women access resources for reproductive health and services.
Something like the Internet Archive would also be incredibly important for preserving what politicians and organizations have said (so that they can't claim they didn't say something and try to have it erased off the internet).
If money isn't your strong suit, then I don't know -- I'm not American. But I'll still comment for the above, and to hopefully help boost this post.
The internet archive is based in the US. Until they relocate to a safe alternative, it doesn't matter how much money they receive.
I think the only thing to do now is help at a local level. Washington’s fucked, nothing you can do to change that. What I am planning to do: (1) be kind to my family, especially my wife; (2) donate to the school and food pantries; (3) just fucking cope. Work on my hobbies, exercise, just… one foot in front of the other. Endure.
Oh: and I’m thinking about buying a gun and learning to shoot. Seriously.
Im using this comment to make myself avaliable for communication for anyone who's considering getting a gun. The only thing I like more than guns in the face of fascism is taking gun culture back from the chuds and giving it to the people who are actually at risk. I've introduced many of my friends to firearms both on and off the firing line. Anyone reading and curious can comment or message me, I will do my best to give good, safe advice appropriate for your situation and flat out admit if I don't have the answers you're looking for.
Could you expand on the gun part like what encourages you to go that route? No judgement in either direction. I'm interested because my concern that I would need to be armed stemmed more from if he lost. Since he would have gotten up there and told his base it was cheating and tried to mobilize them towards violence.
I don't anticipate that kind of violent behavior from the other side, so just curious on your perspective.
Me personally, I am ready to go all in on election reform, specifically getting rid of the Electoral College. Not sure what that looks like but I am hopeful in spite of the 700+ times it’s been tried before.
She lost the popular vote this time too.
We HAVE to have ranked choice voting. We HAVE to be able to participate in the party’s internal elections.
Yes, I would love to see ranked choice voting at the presidential level.
Or short of that, the elimination of super delegates. But even that didn't play a role this time. This time they completely denied us a primary.
You might be interested in this: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Popular_Vote_Interstate_Compact
It isn't the only way, but as far as I can tell, it looks like the most viable way and closest to achieving the goal.
Find out if there's local Mutual Aid groups in your area, then figure out what your relevant skills are, and then give those skills as free to use for your local Mutual Aid groups.
None of the systems we have traditionally relied on will hold, and no one is coming to save us. We can only turn to taking care of each other. We will all have to work hard to make it happen, but at least that work will be going to our communities instead of to capital.
Mutual Aid networks and Direct Action groups. Build paralell power structures. Even a violent revolution is useless if we don't have these bases to build progress on, and if we're really really lucky, we may even be able to avoid violence with such a network.
Hear, hear! If anything, this election has proven that we need to work on class consciousness and the Overton window. Mutual aid, direct action, protest & strike support, salting, and civil disobedience are all ways we can produce the conditions needed for positive change.
Guys, I know we all mean well, but no amount of activism and voting is going to make a difference anymore. They will suspend the Constitution and ensure we never have elections again. The Democratic experiment is over and we can't keep thinking that we'll be able to vote it out.
If you want to help, try and do it tangibly. Organize underground support networks for your queer and minority friends, seek or create covert resistance orgs, and have a realistic plan for pogroms.
have a realistic plan for pogroms.
I have no idea what such a plan would look like.
Get involved in local politics.
Work or donate towards getting rid of the electoral college.
Doing things and not spiraling is about all we can do at this point. I suppose it depends on the things you care about or want to prioritize The massive cuts to government spending Trump has talked about are inevitably going to impact services like Social Security and Medicare so mutual aid resources are going to be important for a lot of people:
Mutual Aid Hub-Resources Food Not Bombs FAQ
If you're concerned about what will happen in places like Gaza and Ukraine there are charities that are helping those affected by those conflicts:
Charity Navigator Gaza UNITED24-Offical Ukranian Fundraising Platform
Finally, if you are not in a position to donate money then there are ongoing election efforts that need volunteers. At this point that's mostly ballot curing, helping voters sort out issues with their absentee or mail in ballot. Some of these ongoing elections are incredibly tight and making sure those ballots are accepted could make a difference, especially in low profile races:
This is general advice regardless of party.
Look at your your town/city govt and keep an eye on meetings (a lot are streamed now post Covid). Know the people in office and what they are for/against. Focus on actions more than words. Vote for people you believe in and keep in contact with them. They can be surprisingly approachable.
Act similarly at the state level. Know and pay attention to the justices, senators and representatives. Reach out on issues you find important.
Being informed on govt and politicians doesn't happen through ads and comment sections, and it doesn't stop when elections are over. Do what you can where you can for what you believe in.
And maybe just maybe it will result in a solid Presidential candidate
This is a great attitude to have. You can do so much on a local level. Be there for the people around you, and try to notice when someone is not doing well and might need your help. Speak up for those whose voices are not being heard. Being available and protective towards those in your own community who are vulnerable is the least you can do. Some other significant ways you can contribute are:
- volunteer at organisations that provide food/shelter/harm reduction
- become a union member and help with the fight towards fair compensation for every worker
- volunteer at organisations that have a goal of building community and provide safe spaces
- donate to organisations mentioned above
Also realise that you do not know what it’s like to be disabled/queer/of an ethnic minority/a person of colour or of another vulnerable group (unless you are a part of that group of course). You need to learn about their struggles before you can effectively help them. You probably already know someone who belongs to one of those groups, now is the time to listen to them and learn from them so you can better vocalise their struggles towards those who don’t understand.
Also, motivate others to do the same! All hope is not lost, humans instinctively look out for one another and the biggest change is made through helping those around you.
Genuinely: don't forget. Ask the same question 3, 6, 12, 24 months down the line. The news might change but the need won't
Underground railroad anyone?
The only way that I see for making lasting change is to build mass organizations large enough to fight the systems at the heart of our problems in direct and combative ways.
Black Rose is a group I think exemplifies this model. They put out an article that links resources for people wanting to get started organizing.
https://blackrosefed.org/dont-panic-organize-trump-election/
Words will do nothing, that's how Trump was elected.
Actions are what's needed. Get out there.
Probably everything you can being to the table. That can be very different things, depending on the person. I'd say a good first step is to organize and gather people. And then you can brainstorm within the group. See what resources you have available and where they'd fit and yield the most return. Yeah, and maybe don't do what people did until now. That already failed. So try something new.