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November 9, 2004
A Thousand Points of Blue: Breaking the Imaginary Mandate
Friends of George Bush will be pleased to know that he feels “liberated� after his election victory. Free from the burden of stealing the first election and the possible fate of his father as a one term president, Bush is enjoying his political “capital� and intends to spend it.
Not since….well his campaign…has the Bush media machine tried to put out such spin to justify his presidency. While the popular vote and electoral college went his way in the election, he hardly enjoyed a personal mandate. The margin of victory was just too small. Despite this, the dominant media likes to present a “sea of red states� blindly supporting Bush. (Leaving us in the Blue states geographically and politically marginalized.) As anyone who lives there recognizes, however, there are oppositional voices to Bush across the country – even in the heartland. Citizens from Ohio, Kansas, and Georga are equally worried about Bush’s ‘ownership society’ – no poll indicates strong support for privatizing social security, eliminating clear air acts, or denying couples civil unions.
As teachers and activists, we need to deny the Republican’s and Network media such simplistic geography. We need to puncture efforts to paint the middle of the country as solidly “red.�
Come Inauguration day, we should use our classrooms and campuses to sponsor “No Mandate: No Victory� teach-ins and protests across the heartland. The goals would be multiple. First, the events would protest the many ways in which communities have benefited by liberal and progressive victories in the past – such as clean air or worker rights. Second, the events should highlight the damage the Republican programs would inflict upon the quality of life in their neighborhoods. Third, these events would demonstrate that calls for social and political justice will not simply vanish – Bush should not expect a free ride over the next four years.
Riffing off Daddy Bush’s “thousand points of light,� then, we should sponsor a thousand “consenus breaking moments� which highlight how W’s policies have damaged the heartland – hurting families and farmers. Let’s send a signal that his ‘victory’ did not mean our defeat.
Marches in New York city only affirm Republican attempts to cleanse the heartland of progressive ideas. It’s time to move the battle to the heartland.
Posted by sparks at November 9, 2004 9:47 AM
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