There has been a lie spread probably every day for 2 years or more that Berniecrats are terrible people and misogynistic racists. Often, it’s from the same people who will go on at great length about all the Russian trolling on line and refuse to even consider that they’ve been victims of that, too — that much of the squabbling has been staged, prodded and provoked. It continues in the face of all the evidence to the contrary. I could list all the women in the movement. I could list all the people of color in the movement, too. But that falls on deaf ears. I could even point out that the President of Our Revolution is Sen. Nina Turner, as fierce an advocate for black women as you will find. All that gets lost, and the women, be it Turner, or Konst or Wong, get attacked for their politics and their patriotism.
Instead of facing honest disagreement about policies, the establishment/centrist camp attempts to marginalize Berniecrats and other like-minded progressives, trying to win a civil war on the left with the what in another context would be dirty, negative campaigning. Of all the lies that have been told about those of us on the left, the most insidious has been the false narrative that we are just white men who support white men and focused on the concerns of white men that don’t deserve concern.
It is true that work needs to be done to bring different camps together. If you go to gatherings of socialists, Berniecrats, environmentalists and the like, it will be a predominantly white crowd. We know that, but it’s not for lack of interest or effort to bridge a divide that was caused by saboteurs dynamiting the old bridges.
For me, the pinnacle may have been the shouting down at Netroots Nation of the "other" Stacey -- Stacey Evans, who was claiming to be the real progressive running for GA Gov. — telling the crowd and Ms. Evans to “listen to the black woman.” I could make the case that, in truth, we’ve been doing a lot of listening….for a long time. I could, but I’m sure I’ll be mocked for it.
Race and identity are always part of the story in this country. Everyone with two eyes and an open mind can see that. Progressives stand with the disenfranchised, the disempowered and the marginalized. But more than that, we will stand with those who are fighting for their principles, pushing back against all forms of inequality, against those who would deny the most basic freedoms, such as reproductive rights.
Any doubt of this must be dispelled by Our Revolution’s dual endorsement announcement, declaring support of Stacey Abrams in Georgia, and also Connie Johnson in Oklahoma. If decency and commons sense prevails, this should be the denouement of this saga that seemed to pit two wings of the party and POCs vs. white progressives. These are powerful statements in endorsing African-American women gubernatorial candidates in Georgia and Oklahoma. And, they’re hardly just token examples. There’s Ben Jealous, endorsed for Governor in Maryland. Women, African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, Asian-Americans and Native Americans.
If you want to continue to go to war with progressives, attacking leftist policy ideas, have at it — but be honest about it. We’re here, and we will stand with other progressives who are struggling to change a status quo that does not serve most Americans very well any more.