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Ask
Auntie Pinko
May
17, 2001
Dear Auntie Pinko,
What can Dems and other liberals do to fight right-wing
tactics? (Incessant attacks, having so much money and "power"
and influence, barreling over all other viewpoints, etc.)
Turning the other cheek is not the answer in my opinion! And
all the discussion on the Internet does not reach the masses
through the conservative media. (I just can't believe how
some major U.S. cities have only ONE major newspaper!) What
are we to do?
Barbara
The Hague
Dear Barbara,
The first thing to do is refrain from attributing more power
to the right wing than they really have. If we make them into
all-powerful boogeymen, too many of us will be discouraged
from taking positive action.
Remember - they may have money, but we have numbers. They
may scream loudest, but we talk smartest. They may have brute
force, but we have the moral power of our convictions.
Social change has never begun in the "mainstream" press.
Ben Franklin had to start his own newspaper to get out the
truth about how the British government was treating its Colonies.
Pioneering journalists like Upton Sinclair and Jessica Mitford
were labeled muckrakers, outcasts, yellow journalists in their
time. The radical journalists who began social movements like
democratic government, the abolition of slavery, trade unionism,
public education, etc., were published in "fringe" newspapers
and magazines long before their crusades were embraced by
the "mainstream" press.
While the liberal "reach" on the Internet doesn't equal the
conservatives' yet, I look for it to explode in the next four
years, especially as Mr. Bush and his cronies continue to
give us such plump, juicy targets. And remember that some
of our main Democratic constituencies, like ethnic minorities
and inner-city dwellers, have a long experience with "getting
the word around" in spite of unresponsive mainstream
media.
So, the most effective thing Auntie Pinko can suggest to
"fight right wing tactics" is for the left wing to organize.
Make contact with other lefties. Young people can look for
Young Democrat chapters at nearby colleges, working folks
can join unions, suburban liberals can join their local Democratic
Committee. Participate with left-wing groups and bring them
together to share agendas wherever you can!
And we must communicate amongst ourselves. We'll never all
agree on everything (heavens, what a notion!) but we can practice
the art of accommodating each other in order to build a unified
network of people committed to liberal ideals. This will also
help us fight that "alone in a right-wing wilderness" feeling
that so many of us are experiencing right now.
We have great potential power, and we mustn't let the right
wing discourage us before we even start. Remember, the "mainstream
press," the money and influence, the power plays-those are
their tools. But they can't stop a really determined and well-organized
left wing that uses our tools: numbers, intelligence, and
the moral power of our convictions.
Chin up, Barbara, and thank you for writing to Auntie Pinko!
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