Biden is better than Trump, but voting for Biden tells the Democratic Party that, as long as the GOP is more scary, candidates whose policies oppress millions by design are acceptable. It seriously undermines progressive power in the long run. #WhyImNotVotingForJoe
In primaries, Democratic leaders push the premise that centrists are most electable. This argument is predicated on the view that they are entitled to social justice advocates’ vote but must work for centrists’ votes. That is enabled by the “vote blue no matter who” mindset.
It is totally reasonable & legitimate to have serious concerns about the possibility of 4 more years of Trump. But we are told the GOP is too dangerous to do anything but suck it up & vote for Democrats every single election. You have little leverage if you accept this logic.
The differences between Biden and Trump are not as pronounced as many believe, and the differences between Biden and social justice advocates are much more profound than many want to admit. The Democratic Party is at least as often a vehicle for oppression as for progress.
Votes have both near-term and longer-term consequences that can sometimes be in conflict. If you always consider only the near-term, you never solve the long-term problems, leading to continually bad near-term options. Everyone must grapple with this inescapable fact.
It’s also important to note that electoral politics are only a piece of the movement for economic & social change, and that many people who vote-shame others are markedly absent from ongoing on-the-ground activism for a better world.
There are many great people who, despite knowing Biden is awful, plan to vote for him in November. There are also a lot of great people who plan to vote for a third-party social justice advocate or abstain in November. Both positions are coherent & worth debating on their merits.
