Fear. Paralysis. Nihilism. It’s understandable if you’re feeling all of these — in fact, creating these feelings in us is a tactic being deliberately used in the assault on our government. So what can we do? Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has put together a (very long but very necessary) discussion of this issue.
Sit back, take a deep breath, lock in and focus:
It’s been a week under Trump 2.0 and we’re already remembering that terrible feeling that characterized life under the first Trump administration – the feeling of being perpetually under siege. We stand to lose even more this time around, given the strengthened support of the Republican party and the rich men salivating at the prospect of gutting our government and its services for their own profits.
The writing is on the wall and it looks like nothing but pain for the foreseeable future. Will our neighbors who voted in this group of profit-hungry pirates realize that they’ve unleashed this beast on themselves? Maybe. Here’s how we can remind them:
When your neighbor loses the Medicaid that’s been keeping their family healthy, speak up.
When a local hospital loses Medicaid and Medicare funds and is forced to close, speak up.
When your neighbor is forced to deliver her baby many miles away from home, speak up.
When opioid addiction rises again because funds for drug treatment programs are slashed, speak up.
When local farms go under without the support of government programs like disaster aid, crop insurance and farm subsidies, speak up.
When the price of household goods skyrockets, speak up.
When rural public schools lose funding and are forced to close and consolidate, speak up.
When your rural neighbors can’t get mail delivered to their home because a privatized postal service can’t profit from serving rural locations, speak up.
Rural voters who support Trump don’t know they’re being targeted. As their lives begin to deteriorate, speak up! Remind them – this is what they voted for. This is what they wanted. And we will all suffer because of the choice they made.
For more detailed information about how rural citizens are under the gun, read DNC Chair Jaime Harrison’s memo. You can find it here.
As we stand together looking over the edge of a four-year precipice, it’s important to remember that good things still happen in life and even in government — especially here in Illinois. Read on for a small pick-me-up.
John Deere lawsuit
The state of Illinois, along with the state of Minnesota and the Federal Trade Commission, has filed a lawsuit against the John Deere company. The suit charges that John Deere’s practices force farmers to make equipment repairs only via Deere, thus costing them far more money and denying them the right to repair their equipment in any other way. Read Illinois AG Kwame Raoul’s statement here and the FTC’s statement here.
Medical debt relief
Illinois Director of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services Lizzy Whitehorn is advocating for continuation of last year’s partnership with the non-profit group Undue Medical Debt. Read about the program’s success so far here and Governor Pritzker’s statement here.
Other states follow our lead
In Democratic-leaning states across the country lawmakers are gearing up to provide stronger worker protections — as our state legislators have been doing for the past few years. Read a nice timeline piece about recent Illinois labor law here (thanks, Duane Morris, whoever you are) and about other states’ efforts here.
For a small chuckle
It looks like the secession movement in Illinois isn’t going anywhere — despite the open invitation from the state of Indiana. Read what Gov. Pritzker had to say here.