We Cannot Just Move On

The last twenty-four hours have been traumatic for our country.

After years of inciting hate, violence, and anti-democratic sentiment, Trump summoned his supporters to the nation’s capital where they mounted a violent and deadly insurrection. It’s hard to overstate how devastating this moment is for our republic.

But there is hope and a way forward. As we watched yesterday’s horrifying events unfold, national networks called the second Georgia Senate race for Jon Ossoff, giving Democrats a majority in the United States Senate. And early this morning, despite yesterday’s violence, Congress finally voted to formally certify President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ victory. In 13 days, they will be sworn into office in front of that same Capitol.

Democracy has prevailed, but we cannot simply move on after yesterday’s violent coup attempt. There must be action to protect our democracy and accountability for the white supremacists who incited and carried out violence. Congress should swiftly vote to impeach and remove Trump from office and to disqualify him from seeking office again.

Whether Congress acts on impeachment or not, it is clear that Trumpism will not go away on its own. Our democracy still faces real threats. And the only way to move forward is to address them head on.

The Trump administration is a symptom of the fact that we’ve never had a fully representative democracy in the United States of America. We’ve had centuries of racist voter suppression, lies about voter fraud, and a political system that’s been built to benefit white, wealthy Americans. That’s why we’ve seen inaction on so many pressing issues, from COVID-19 relief to income inequality and gun safety.

We should meet the ongoing threats to our democracy with more democracy.

As we saw in Georgia this week, when more Americans get involved, vote, and volunteer, we can make real progress. We must continue the incredible organizing in our neighborhoods and online over the past four years and channel that energy into passing bold reforms that will build our democracy back better and safeguard us against authoritarianism.

That is the work ahead for us at Stand Up America in 2021 and beyond, and we need you to continue standing with us as we fight to pass democracy reforms like the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, D.C. statehood, the For the People Act, the Protecting Our Democracy Act, and so much more at the state and federal level. 

Together, we can protect our democracy for future generations and make it stronger and more representative than it’s ever been before. That is the only way we will create progressive change in this country.

Thank you for getting us this far and ensuring we turn the page in two weeks. I hope you’ll continue to stand with us in the work ahead.