In a recent diary which posted near the top of the Rec List for some time, the big question revolved around regional stereotypes and whether or not Daily Kos community members continue these stereotypes and make them worse. In comments, it was pointed out that some of the trends they see only entrench red states' attitudes, and do nothing to acknowledge the hard work of Democratic faithful in those bright red states.
The Daily Kos community, on the other hand, has featured some fantastic writing and work by rural Democratic activists. Growing up in rural communities, I know what it is like. Out of the new census, the hometown I grew up in crossed a grand total of six hundred living residents. Shockingly, the only grocery store in town? It’s owned and funded by the city government, because, without it, there would be no grocery store at all, and the nearest one would be a decent drive away. When we talk about regional bigotry, we have to extend that not just to specific regions, but we have to understand the way it is extended to rural communities and creates misunderstandings that hurt the overall Democratic effort.
A blue dot in a red sea
In 2017, standing in a room with several DNC chair candidates in Texas, questions were asked about how the DNC could move forward in building a better future for Democratic candidates. I did an interview with Ray Buckley, former chair of ASDC and a candidate for the chair at the time, and his point about better use, and wider use of state support was made very clear, and it was a message that had a lot of support = enough so that most candidates adopted a similar message.
Why should blue-state registered progressives worry about the way they refer to red-state voters? Well, I want to start with a clear reason and then get to the emotional reason.
These states have two Republican senators.
Idaho
Wyoming
Utah
North Dakota
South Dakota
Nebraska
Kansas
Oklahoma
Texas
Louisiana
Arkansas
Missouri
Mississippi
Alabama
Florida
Tennessee
Iowa
Kentucky
Indiana
North Carolina
South Carolina
Alaska
That’s forty-four senators, right from the beginning, without Republicans picking up a senate seat anywhere contested. This also represents the first time Democratic elected hold one — and now both — seats in Georgia. The Republican Party has effectively built a firewall that establishes the minimum number of elected they will have in the US Senate, and as a result, they have an easier path — a much easier path — than Democratic efforts to control the Senate right now. While 2022 represents opportunities for our candidates in several states, like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, North Carolina, it also has real risk for us in Georgia and Arizona. Many Republican candidates for even this high profile office will receive absolutely no opposition at all, or token opposition at best. If we want to grow the Democratic majority in the US Senate, we cannot lose a seat, and we have to find a way to pick up seats that are going to be harder fights, like Ohio and Florida.
The Democratic cause does fights everywhere. Period.
Occasionally, I hear the assumption that seems to imply in red states, there are no real progressives. How wrong that feeling is, and how easy it is to prove wrong! Being a strong supporter of Democratic causes in red states can be the most difficult imaginable; you face real pushback from those around you. It is sometimes easy to stay strong with Democratic causes when surrounded by friendly voices, it is a bit more difficult when you face an overwhelming number of those opposed to your beliefs to hold onto them.
There are no red states that are 100% Republican. No blue states that are 100% Democratic. There are more registered Republicans in California than exist in most of the midwest by population. If you are from Idaho, West Virginia or New York, Democratic values follow you — the person — they don’t disappear at the state line. Individuals cannot choose to be born LGBTQIA. No one makes a decision to be born a woman, BIPOC, in poverty or wealth. These decisions are beyond our control. Yet, in every state in America, there will be someone who would be directly harmed by terrible Republican policies; abandonment of them because it is convenient to do so isn’t the way the party builds itself. We have to continue to grow to make those states less red. Take it from someone in a deep red state that now has an elected Democratic House of Representatives member, and became the only state in the union that has ever had three women governors — all Democratic. We work hard to help build our communities up; when we talk about “those dumb..” or “these places suck..” yes, it is a bias against those states and communities. It can also punish the people who are working hard, every single day, to change their state and district.
When we talk about bad legislation in Republican states, talk about the ones pushing back.
We talk a lot about terrible legislation in Republican states. We don’t often spend enough time talking about the work that Democratic elected officials are doing, the risks they are taking in holding true to their beliefs, and advocating against such policies. We hear about the efforts of individuals in red states who are risking everything to fight back against terrible policies.
Our community is full of writers and commenters who live in rural red areas and states that most certainly do not have progressive government officials, but definitely have at least some progressive residents, and some who suffer at the policies of the state they reside in. If we don’t understand what and why they are working as hard as they are, we really devalue what it means to be a part of our party. We are a whole nation party. We are a party of 174,252 precincts. In every one, we work to help support individuals who are loyal Democratic Party voters and in many cases, hard progressives.
Telling people to leave is never the solution.
I’ve said this repeatedly, and this will be short but the solution, when offered to say progressives should leave a red state, is a terrible one. There are several reasons for this, including the fact that doing so would only make the state more red, making sure that you always end up with two elected US Senators, and if you want to change policy — yes, that would include changing or dumping the electoral college — you can’t have so many senators against you.
The bigger reason such flippant comments are harmful is that it betrays Democratic values. We are a party of the working class, of the poor, the party that wants to see people improve their lives. We are not the party that lives to represent only those with upper-class wealth. When you tell people to leave the state you forget the fact that many are not in a position to just move across the country or even state lines; they lack the funds to pack up and move, to buy a new house or even find a moving company if they rent and go to somewhere that is more progressive. Remember, most people harmed don’t live right on the state line with a blue state; if they did, then enacted bad policies would be solved by a simple car ride across the border for many.
No, you are asking people to risk everything, their housing, surrender their job, or in some cases give up the only property they may hold, a family dwelling passed down through generations that could be sacrificed with no guarantee they move to somewhere that offers them a job or security.
Red State. Blue State. Districts Abound.
Think for a second of fantastic legislators all around the country who represent Republican states but are progressive Democratic elected. Lucy McBath from Georgia. Cori Bush in Missouri. Al Green in Texas — and I’m only naming just a small few of so many who come from states that are held by Republican control. These members grew up in their states, and they love their state and their constituents. They are not going to leave their states or promote that idea. They want their constituents to have good jobs, a good life, and the promise of a future for their children.
They are among the first who help work with candidates in the most difficult districts in the country. They do so because even if you are unlikely to win, there are Democratic voters in those districts — and I don’t care how red the district is — that need to feel supported by those in blue districts just to say: we hear you, and we want you to know that those of us in a very secure district will help you.
When voting rights issues happened in Dodge City, Kansas, attention by Daily Kos members and donors helped elect Laura Kelly governor, and bring in support of national progressives to highlight not just the issue but to say: we see you. We see what is happening here and it is not OK.
Fighting for progressive values everywhere helps everyone. It allows us to catch problems in bad districts and to give hope to communities. The long-term work allows us to flip senate seats like Georgia. It gives youth reason to see us as the party that exists everywhere, and not a party that abandons our faithful.
The next time you think about saying: these places suck; maybe give some of the hard-working Democratic efforts there a break and say: the Republicans in this state are terrible. Is there anything we can do to help the people who are harmed?
It’s far more supportive than just saying: “you should leave”.