Life of Wry

I’m telling ya. I am very taken with these two — Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg, founders of Indivisible. In the dark days of the first term of the president who would be dictator, they launched Indivisible and successfully lead demoralized dems through some well-fought battles to thwart some of the worst of trump’s early agenda. He was (thankfully) green, the resistance effort was green, but Indivisible’s ramp up was swift and their impact significant. It’s safe to say the big Obamacare repeal — a central feature of trump’s campaign — never materialized thanks in huge part to a massive grassroots campaign masterminded by Indivisible. The resistance was born.

Their organization has mushroomed and become incredibly well-oiled and Ezra and Leah are effectively mobilizing shell-shocked progressives once again. They are in coordination with a lot of great partners in the effort — MoveOn, the Working Families Party and many, many others. These guys are so smart, so easy and inspiring to listen to, so motivating. They have gotten the attention and earned the respect of so many in the media, in the resistance space and, AND, democratic lawmakers (who are now reaching out to them for advice on messaging and tactics).

I am just so grateful to be a part. I have made a priority their weekly checkins (Thursdays), that attract many thousand of activists from all over the country. Their most recent coalition gathering (with MoveOn, WFP and others) attracted 53,000 folks! They motivate, yes, but far more importantly develop strategies and accessible tool kits.. they always have action items at the ready so people can immediately step in, get activated, and add to the tremendous wave of folks who collectively ARE having an impact.

It’s the absolute best: an antidote to despair, action that adds up to influence, community that makes you feel like you’re not alone… and part of something important. It’s doable and sustainable.

It’s way too early to know whether trump is all bluster and recklessness or whether his goals of retribution, government destruction and authoritarian rule will succeed. It’s also too early to know whether courts will stand up for the rule of law, whether lawmakers will uphold their oaths to the Constitution and whether dems and progressives will sustain an effective resistance.

But I’m satisfied with my part in this, guided by people like Leah and Ezra.