RepresentUs

Throughout this whole class we've been talking about pretty much how sucky America is to people who don't fit the mold of whiteness, and how that the only way to change the system is to rebuild the system. I was wandering the internet one day and found this pitch video for this grassroots movement called RepresentUs where they laid out what the problem with today's government system corruption. on the represent us webpage it gives statistics that public opinion has a near-zero impact on U.S. law and that the bottom 90% of income earners in America opinions have a statistically non-significant impact government policy. When I look at those statistics and then at the problems we talk about in class its hard to imagine how to improve the quality of life of black Americans if most Americans cant influence law, except for the richest AKA the whitest. This same group gives ideas to fix this, they propose an anti-corruption act to stop political bribery, end secret money, and fix our broken elections. Their goal is to start by getting states to implement the act until the federal government adopts the act following the footsteps of the legalization of interracial and gay marriage. This is the best plan that I have seen that would help directly with the black freedom struggle because I believe that this country isn't mostly racist and if all of the people of America could actually influence our government then maybe we could move past this stagnation. Movements like black lives matter which already rallies a lot of people could have more of an impact. when I think about all of the conversations we have had in class sometimes I feel hopeless, but when I think about this grassroots group along with black lives matter it makes me feel a little hopeful.

here's RepresentUs website: https://represent.us/

Comments

  1. Sarah ByrneMay 2, 2019 at 7:57 PM

    Before reading this post, I had never heard of the campaign RepresentUs. I went on their page, explored it, and watched a video on how to stop political corruption. The main idea of the video was, to end corruption it needs to start at a local and state level. They give examples of states allowing women to vote, interracial and then marriage equality; once all of most states were on board then the federal government took action. The government took action due to a law being passed or a grassroots campaign reaching maturity. These kind of changes took time but did happen due to campaigns pushing for it. Movements like Black Lives Matter or Movement for Black Lives have influenced many people already, and hopefully over time it will lead to states and then the federal government doing something about the ways African Americans are treated in the United States. When looking at big movements for change it is easy to forget about the groups within the movements but they are the driving forces for change.

    Link to video: https://youtu.be/UTP4uvIFu5c

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  2. Callie YowlerMay 3, 2019 at 12:32 PM

    I agree with your point, and I feel that African-Americans will never fully achieve equality in America unless we do away with the system as a whole. The United States was founded by white men who created a system that benefited, and perpetuated, the narrative of rich white makes. We see this today, because like you said the rich are influencing laws and the government the most. The richest people in the country are white males. I think that groups like RepresentUs are going to be really crucial to achieving equality for African-Americans in the United States. I also liked your point about the fact that most of America isn't racist. This idea plays into the theme of white moderates that we have been talking about this semester. I think that's an issue that needs to be tackled. What do you do with the people who don't have a voice or choose not to use it?

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    Replies
    1. Nathaniel McIntyreMay 5, 2019 at 12:49 PM

      I like the question you ended with and the only answer I can think of is that silence perpetuates complicity. Most of America isn't racist however, by sympathizing with those who allow this culture of economic and social disparities to prosper is to be complicit. Grassroots campaigns are great fire-starters in kicking off a movement seeking to make legislative change. However, these campaigns cannot reach full potential without gaining notable visibility from bigger movements (i.e. Black Lives Matter). In terms of the bigger picture, to best way to dismantle the white supremacist capitalist patriarchy is to do away with the system as a whole. The system is broken and has been thriving on the downfall of African Americans in the country. These communities have been dealt a bad hand in terms of social and economic progression and the best path towards justice is one that seeks to rid the system of its internal prejudices towards African Americans.

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  3. Emily JackoMay 6, 2019 at 7:11 PM

    I agree with these comments about rebuilding the problematic government and society from the ground up. Most of these problems stem from a corrupt government which then fuels White supremacists and forces issues in our society. The White mold discussed in your blog posts and what it means to fit that mold is problematic in the sense that all other voices are disregarded and benefits only go into this White mold, leaving other needs out. In my other blog post, I discussed what it means to be unapologetically Black and we also discussed this term in class. I believe that being unapologetically who you are will lead a change where change needs to be made, and more people will realize that our society will thrive off of differences and different cultures coming together to represent who we are. The voices in America, being mostly White men in a hetero patriarchal society, makes positive change hard because in most cases we have White men controlling women's bodies, and taking it even further when pertaining to men exhibiting control over Black women, brings in interlocking oppression and shows just how corrupt our government is, because it is so hard for each person’s voice to be heard.

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