Glenn Beck's rally in D.C. yesterday has left many kossacks yearning for a similar tour de force from the Progressive Left. This feeling of frustration is nothing new for Progressives. Ever since Obama was elected President, the Progressive grassroots has been largely tame while the tea-baggers have been raising hell in the streets. As a result, the reactionary right has pressured the Republicans and many Democrats into opposing the change we voted for.
However, on October 2nd, we can join with Progressives from across America and start turning the tables against Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, the tea-baggers, and the rest of the reactionary right-wing.
Recently, 170 Progressive organizations have joined together in a coalition called "One Nation Working Together." This coalition includes the AFL-CIO, SEIU, NAACP, United States Student Association, National Council of La Raza, United for Peace and Justice, US Labor Against the War, Democratic Socialists of America, US Social Forum, Campaign for Community Change, Progressive Democrats of America, Power PAC, and many more.
Their goal: re-ignite the Progressive grassroots and embolden the government to bring about the change America voted for nearly 2 years ago.
Their first step is massive march for social justice and economic investment in Washington D.C. on October 2nd. Between the end of the march and election day, One Nation will engage in a national get out the vote campaign to bring Progressives to the polls on election-day and continue a grassroots push for a Progressive agenda. The One Nation coalition is still pretty much a work in progress, so I don't know much about their long-terms plans. If you want to learn more about One Nation Working Together and/or the upcoming march, check out these links:
http://www.onenationworkingtogether.org/ (Their website is still largely under construction)
http://www.facebook.com/...
http://link.brightcove.com/...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...
http://uslaboragainstwar.org/...
http://blog.aflcio.org/...
http://talkingunion.wordpress.com/...
http://majorityagendaproject.org/...
Even if you can't attend the march in October, there are still many ways you can help ensure the success of One Nation. For starters, you could try to contact other Progressive organizations and encourage them to participate in (or at least endorse) One Nation Working Together and the upcoming march if they haven't done so already. Some of these organizations include Democracy for America, the Coffee Party, the PCCC, and MoveOn.org. You could also try and contact several big-name Progressives (i.e. Kos, Howard Dean, Anthony Weiner, Bernie Sanders, Jim Hightower, Rachel Maddow, Ed Shultz, Alan Grayson, Jane Hamsher, Arianna Huffington, Raul Grijalva, etc.) and encourage them to speak at the march if they can. Otherwise, just talk to your friends and family about One Nation and drum up some enthusiasm on the blogosphere.
FDR once told Progressive activists, "I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it." If the netroots helps One Nation make a splash on October 2nd and beyond, we could help One Nation embolden the Democratic Party and President Obama to be more Progressive the same way the tea-baggers emboldened the Republicans to be more conservative. This can only happen if we play our part, so who's with me?!