Statement on the January 6th attack
On January 6, armed white supremacists stormed the US Capitol in order to stop our democratic electoral process and install an authoritarian tyrant. These violent fascists were fueled by the anti-democratic propaganda webs spun by the most shameful, greedy, selfish, and opportunistic elements in our political arena, and on Wednesday, their attack in our Capitol was aided and abetted by law enforcement.
Just a day before, here in Pennsylvania, Senate GOP leadership refused to honor Democratic Sen. Brewster’s lawfully certified election win, and Sen. Brewster has still not been sworn in.
These actions, in the name of ‘democracy,’ are fighting not for a representative government that meets the needs of all of its people, but for the same kind of government that white, male, slave-owners envisioned - a government that represents the wants of the few, over the needs of the many.
We are disgusted but not surprised at the racist, anti-semetic language and imagery used by the violent mob and its enablers. They lie with words like, ‘election security,’ ‘honoring the Constitution,’ and ‘preserving the Republic.’ These words are blasphemous coming from people fighting to not count all votes, but to ensure that only certain kinds of people’s votes don’t count.
They chanted, ‘This is what democracy looks like’ as they desecrated our national civic temple. Anybody who has marched and protested with us knows that we also sing this chant. It was blasphemous to hear fascists claiming to act in the name of democracy, while repeating baseless claims of election fraud and carrying explosive devices and zip-ties.
Just as soon-to-be former President Trump invoked anti-corruption messaging to win supporters with the popular slogan ‘Drain the swamp,’ fascist movements around the globe have adopted the language of pro-democracy movements in order to advance their own authoritarianism. We currently see this in Brazil and in the Philippines, where President Bolsonaro and President Duterte championed themselves as anti-corruption crusaders. Fascists never drain the swamp, they just try to take it over and funnel the swampy fruits of corruption in their own direction. They have no respect for elections, they try to make them less secure, and they only complain when they are losing.
Across the US, there is a very different kind of democracy movement - a movement that is fighting for a government in which every voice is heard, and every vote is counted, so that we can start to build the kind of society that we want. The COVID-19 pandemic further revealed the stark injustices and inequalities within the richest country in the world, and revealed the inability (or refusal) of the vast majority of our legislators to alleviate the suffering of the poor and working class. We are fighting for a system of government in which working class people are not only represented but serve as our representatives, to pass policies to end poverty, ecological devastation, the war economy, and systemic racism. We are fighting for a democracy where human rights like healthcare, housing, and freedom from a predatory justice system are honored, and human life is dignified.
This democracy movement is growing and winning every day. Missouri banned gifts and gerrymandering, Seattle created democracy vouchers, Maine, Alaska, and New York City are using Ranked Choice Voting, and on and on!
In Pennsylvania, we passed vote by mail and rewrote and strengthened our electoral code for the first time since 1937, with unanimous Republican support in the House and Senate. Five years ago, the Electoral Integrity Project labeled Pennsylvania a “Partly free democracy.” There is much work to be done, but we are making progress. When we first started lobbying for a Gift Ban in 2017, we were told by legislators and advocates alike that it was ‘politically impossible.’ Just two years later, that legislation passed out of committee and we are expecting a vote on the bill this session.
Please come to our Legislative Briefing briefing on Wednesday, January 27th. We will be introducing our Money Out, People In policy platform, 24 pro-democracy policies to take our democracy where it’s never been before.
Please use this moment in history to recommit yourself to the fight for democracy. There is a constant race happening in our state and in our country between those who believe in democracy and those who do not. The fight for democracy extends far past the fights for the gift ban, voting rights, and the rest of our agenda. We are fighting for not only a just system of government but a just economy and a just society.
We fight for democracy because if the working class held real power, we would guarantee our human rights and build a world where everybody has a right to live. We would build a world where white supremacy doesn’t brutalize black and brown people and divide and conquer the working class. We have to win this race, because if the fascists win, the potential for evil that exists in every human heart will grow louder… and that thought is too unspeakable to say anymore about it.
If we come together across lines of division, we will win. If we study, if we organize, and if we act boldly with the love of democracy, we will win. Our future depends on it.
For Love and Democracy,
MoH