Hello Devoted and Frequently Overwhelmed Activist Leaders,
One of the strengths of Swing Left is that we are ‘candidate agnostic’ – we are committed to supporting Democrats, regardless of whether or not a particular candidate is to our liking. We can donate to whomever we want, and no doubt many of us frequently rant to family and friends about which candidates we do and don’t support, but we show up to meetings, to canvass, to phone banks and to postcard parties ready to do whatever work is necessary with our Blue No Matter Who attitude.
This week we saw individual candidates sacrifice their own ambition to rally around someone else to support the goal of beating Trump. As we think about what this must have meant to them, it’s worth considering that many of us, and our volunteers, are in a smaller version of the same struggle. Many of us are now, or will be in the future, facing the need to put aside our loyalty to candidates we truly believe would be the best for our country, and to work like mad for someone else – to live our goal of unifying to defeat Trump and elect Democrats.
Please let’s always remember to treat each other with kindness and respect as we go through this process. Giving up on a favorite candidate is a loss, and we (and our volunteers!) all deserve compassion as we mourn. We risk losing people if they feel that we don’t empathize with what pains them. We gain if we model kindness as a way to manage this long and difficult process.
In short, let’s stay unified, and remember to support each other as we push forward toward the goal we share and treasure most – reclaiming our country.
In awe of all you continue to do in these challenging times,
Lisa Greenberg and Susan Labandibar
Swing Left Greater Boston