Silver Spring Progressive Action exists to tip tight elections for a more just, equitable and compassionate country. It’s our lane – so much that it’s in our logo. We are focused solely on elections because we believe that having the right people in the right positions makes it easier to bring about lasting progressive change (and conversely, having the wrong people in government makes it exponentially more difficult to influence what the government does, as we see today). If we opt to engage on issues, it is in support of (and generally at the request of) trusted partners; such actions are intended to lead to improved electoral outcomes, as well as better policy.
Many of us are also involved, elsewhere, in policy advocacy, direct action, and ensuring the safety of the most vulnerable. We recognize that we are in unprecedented times and our democracy is under threat unlike any time in our country’s history. People are rising to the challenge in a variety of ways. It’s great that more and more people are rising up to resist the autocracy and cruelty of the current administration. Many SSPA members, including SSPA leadership, are involved in these efforts.
Still, we think it’s important to keep the SSPA focus on electoral change – it’s where our strength is and why people volunteer with us. We must change who is in power – in the Presidency, in Congress, and in the states – and the most direct and effective way to do that is to influence elections. Because this is done seat by seat, and chamber by chamber, sometimes this may seem like it is missing the moment – we don’t believe it is. We hope that everyone reading this will phonebank, canvass, write letters, give money, post on social media, and more to win the elections we think are most meaningful and tippable.
At the same time, we recognize that there are many other ways to get involved in the resistance. In general, we assume that our members have the judgement to evaluate the many actions themselves, depending on their personal priorities, time available, etc. Yet although we are 100% guilt free, we hope that everyone in the SSPA community finds a way to be part of our goal of tipping tight elections for a more just, equitable and compassionate country.