Category: Short

Current events, ShortLeave a comment

The Democratic Party You’re Yelling at Doesn’t Exist

ianjolie

There’s been a lot of discourse lately about what the “Democratic Party” should be doing — especially in the wake of Zohran Mamdani’s defeat of Andrew Cuomo. But here’s the thing: the “Democratic Party” isn’t some unified entity. It’s not a monolith. At the local level, the Democratic Party is a mix of:* a small group of sincere true believers acting in good faith;* a larger group of former true believers who’ve stuck around long enough to grow more cynical, but still believe meaningful work can be done;* a handful of genuinely toxic figures who cause constant problems but remain … Continue reading The Democratic Party You’re Yelling at Doesn’t Exist

Philosophy, Short, TechniqueLeave a comment

The Organizing Conversation

ianjolie

Sadness is immobility. “What is wrong with me? I can’t do anything.” Turn that into Anger. Then Rage, which is the magical stuff of which organizing is made. Fuck the world. Fuck the systems that coerce our identities — both our personal and collective identities. Turn that Rage into Hope. Through a real Plan to Win. That’s the stuff collectives grow with and develop under — the stuff that will make the world crumble under our revolutionary boots. Organizing is thus: Sadness, to Anger, to Rage, to Hope, to Action, to the Heavenstuff — a puddle of mud turned into … Continue reading The Organizing Conversation

Labor, Mindsets, ShortLeave a comment

The Beauty of Union Organizing

ianjolie

For me, one of the best things about union organizing is getting to listen to dozens, hundreds, thousands of people’s life stories. And really, what are we but what we’ve done, what we’ve been through, and our values, our beliefs, and our feelings about all of life’s Stuff. Being a union organizer is getting to be — way more than full time — an explorer of humanity, and your job is to find some way to connect as deeply as possible with as many people as possible. Wow, how beautiful. Continue reading The Beauty of Union Organizing

Mindsets, Philosophy, Praxis, Short, Social-emotional dynamics, Technique, The LeftLeave a comment

Golden Rule of Left Organizing

ianjolie

General rule of thumb: the more Left organizers want to talk with me about anything but politics and organizing, the more I trust them. They care about me as a person; naturally, that makes me care about them too. Yes, rapport building is important for organizing. But importantly, rapport building not for the sake of organizing. That’s the wrong frame. You give a shit about other people, period. Also then organic relationships help politics and organizing. The world is too dark for anything else. Continue reading Golden Rule of Left Organizing