The Supreme Court of the United States
This week, women everywhere felt simultaneously angered and leveled by the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the highest court in the land.
Women are angry.
Women feel worthless.
Women are devastated.
Women want to light it all up.
The past week, I have had a very visceral reaction to the hearings and the news of his subsequent confirmation. I physically hurt. My mood was affected. I wanted to scream. I wanted to see women anchors on TV let the facade slip and let everyone have it. I wanted to see Republican women senators vote for America. I wanted to see conservative women express their support for themselves.
And I too wanted to light it all up.
But, rarely does this make for a good movement. Organizing will reclaim our time. The gut reaction is to take it all by storm. But rarely has this won any ground. Instead, we must recognize the strength of strategic planning, strong leaders, and coordinated efforts. We must remain steadfast in the face of adversity. We must organize.
Things to consider when planning group action:
- Be strategic. Know the who, what, when, why, and how.
- Define your mission. What is it that you want to accomplish? Be specific for each action.
- Define your message. What do you want to say? What do you want your lawmakers to understand?
- Coordinate efforts with other groups. There are alot of efforts out there. We can accomplish more together. If a group does not share your mission, you can at least share their efforts among your members.
- Promote women of color. Ensure they have leadership roles within your group, and that their roles are not just token roles so you can say you have women of color represented. Amplify their voices. These are women who are disproportionately affected by policy and need to have their voices heard.
- Practice self-care and care of those around you. Take the time you need to heal. This is a hard road, long, winding with many starts and stops. We need you, so take care of you.
- Talk to those people who don’t want to talk politics, who think it is “uncooth.” It is time to tear down the idea that there are niceties when it comes to this. Peoples lives are on the line, their safety, their physical and mental wellbeing. This is for everyone, and everyone needs to make informed decisions.
Women can win this. Women are not going away. But we must go beyond the outrage and develop a smart strategy with strong leaders and a defined goal. It is our time. Reclaim it.