Don’t get mad, get busy!
By Roxanne Cordonier
I’ve been living in the South most of my adult life and here in South Carolina for 35 years. As a liberal Democrat in a deep red state, I’ve learned how to deal with the political situation. I’m not saying it’s been easy and, yes, there are days when I just want to pack up and move, but this is my home and I’m not going to let these conservatives run me out.
“If you’re going through hell, keep going.”
– Winston Churchill
Things are especially grim right now with our rights being stripped away and the ongoing threat of even more restrictions but through it all, I try to keep my head down, stay calm and keep working. One of my other strategies is to find like-minded people and keep them close. If you feel surrounded by the political opposition, you can draw strength and hope from those on the right side of history.
To those who would say, what can I do, I’m just one person? Change is often made incrementally. That’s especially true in South Carolina. I’m fortunate to live in the blue city of Greenville, surrounded by the red county. The Democratic Party managed to get a majority on the City Council by recruiting good candidates and organizing to get them elected. Each person has talents and gifts, even if that’s just texting to get out the vote, it’s something. We also need to start talking to people who don’t share our political views, in the hope of engaging them in a dialog that could plant the seeds of change. I know that engagement is often doomed to failure but you have to try.
These times are especially discouraging for women like me who came of age in the ‘70’s and felt like we advanced the cause of feminism and secured reproductive freedom for women. The Dobbs decision was clearly predictable with the domination of religious conservatives on the Supreme Court, but still shocking.
I’ve been encouraged by the huge turnout for several local reproductive rights rallies. One direct result of the roll back of Roe is political engagement by young people. It’s their fight now. It’s their bodies and their lives that are directly affected by the decisions of primarily old white men. I’m counting on the younger generations to dive into this fight.
In dark times we must look to those who are wiser and often older than us for wisdom. Feminist trail blazer, Gloria Steinem is still dispensing advice and speaking truth to power at age 88. In a recent article in Vanity Fair, Steinem had this to say to young women feeling hopeless.
“Never mind what’s happening at the top, change grows from the bottom up, like a tree. If you treat others as you would want to be treated – if you do what you love and say what you mean – you will create the revolution you want to see.”
Hope is the necessary ingredient for change. Here’s hoping for a blue wave in the midterms.
Roxanne Cordonier is a lifelong Democrat who actively supports Democrats in the red state of South Carolina.