America Votes and Cries for Change: How are We Gonna Get Past ‘The Politics of Things’ That We’re Told, and Closer to the ‘Civics of Things’ in Truths We Hold?

Preview Summary –

• The Shutdown reached a winddown! So how are we gonna get past ‘the politics of things’ that we’re told, and move closer to ‘the civics of things’ in truths we hold?
• A further challenge we have is that civics get put in second-class status and politics viewed as first-class. Guess where that got us…bad politics used to turn DEI into an IED.
• With ‘America250’ already in motion, we can look back and begin to chart new steps forward. It’ll take some ‘civic dosing’ as well as a ‘mojo movement’ towards a more perfect union.

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The Shutdown has reached a winddown! That was the initial breaking news hitting airwaves and social media feeds. As word started spreading, some were still saying it wasn’t a done deal. The concern was if some officials caved while others thought it important to fight for everyday people. The results of recent local and statewide elections which had national implications showed that America votes and cries for change. So how are we gonna get past ‘the politics of things’ that we’re told, and move closer to the ‘civics of things’ in truths we hold?

It seems every few years we keep getting in a government shutdown cycle. Maybe we need a 28^th Amendment that lists who’d still get paid during a shutdown and who would not. If members of congress along with others were on the ‘not list’, then that might change the calculation. But let’s also consider basics, like the difference between civics and politics. We understand civics to mean how you represent as elected official, citizen or community member to make government service and ‘public good’ matter. Meanwhile, politics is a means to an end for public good through government programs and policies. When you read social media comments, here’s what’s baffling to some people about our politics today:

• One side sees government as a key, to unlock the service benefits for the people. The other side sees government like candy, to keep the service benefits to themselves and their enjoyment.
• It took those who’re not up for re-election to push a deal to end the shutdown and be seen as the ‘bad guys’. While those who’re up for re-election oppose the deal but are seen as the ‘good guys’.

A further challenge we have is that civics get put in second-class status and politics viewed as first-class. We see it repeatedly where it’s as if politics tend to choke civics, sometimes to the point of near suffocation. Guess where that got us…bad politics used to turn DEI into an IED. Plus, continued culture-war battles might have led to the shutdown drama too. So, can we fix politics with politics, as America votes and cries for a different response and higher purpose? There’re times you must fight fire with fire. We see that when fighting forest fires where folks try to contain the spread. But most times when putting out fires, the experts use a fire-dosing strategy for tamping down the flames.

Maybe that’s somewhat where we find ourselves as a nation. There’s frustration to go around for different reasons, especially due to political whiplash over the past twenty years. But in this next phase of public policy and collective urgency, we gotta rally as the ‘civic strong’, not just as the politically well-connected. That requires intention. What should be driving our local and national actions? Well, consider these three factors from America’s past compared to our current social standing:

• Back then folks were less advanced but more committed. These days folks are more advanced but less committed.
• Back then the Black Church was a ‘fuel station’ for people’s vibrancy and advocacy. These days it’s in the process of re-imagining and re-grouping.
• Back then we had public figures/venues operating like a ‘hometown dealership’ in civic content. These days some public figures are more about gaining status than leading people.

America wasn’t built on just soundbites. It was about crafting solutions for sticky situations. Then as various suffrage groups came along, there was a concerted effort around things like voter registration, civic engagement and voter education. These days we seem to need a new solution strategy as seen in how tech heads delivered change in consumer products like personal computers and smart phones. Those changes produced a shift in marketing and consumer consciousness. Similarly, SAIC’s approach involves a kinda ‘Hometown IOS’ as a new solution strategy to produce a shift in civic engagement and social consciousness. While the town square is influenced more by memes & misinformation, clicks & clout, noise & nonsense, than ideals, we can do better in how we respond to life’s MEME of the:

1. Moment

A focus on civic engagement seems to come up strong around elections/voting or a crisis/tragedy. Then after that, life and TV news/ads return to their regular scheduled programming. Imagine if players and owners in pro sports only got excited in the moment when it’s time for signing contracts but after that, things return to shoddy performance? Since elections results are like ‘contract signings’ with the winners, the electorate should expect top-billing not just in the lead-up to elections, but season after season too. Otherwise, we’ll keep finding ourselves in situations where America votes and cries for things to change.                  

2. Element

On November 6^th, 1967, Dr. King gave a speech to students in Philly that might be a wake-up call for us today. His message around four key points can be summed up as “Life’s Blueprint, America’s Footprint”. His speech was like a ‘halftime look-back’ on the movement’s achievements. He was also preparing students for the next phase of civic engagement. There’s an element to King’s speech that will help us in being more advanced and more committed. That will help us embrace a new solution strategy. Let’s shape America’s next chapter like a ‘hometown dealership’ in civic content at a Black Friday sale.                  

3. Movement

Over the past few months there’ve been many protests and rallying events. Some even described our current moment as hearkening back to the original Boston Tea Party, which itself was one of America’s early movements. Is that message getting through? Recent election results might say yea, but maybe there’s something else needed that Dr. King hinted at in his speech. These days we’re at a moment where we need to go from being ‘in protest’ to being ‘in mojo’ as in ‘hometown mojo’. That’s gonna require a new strategy in how we organize & engage, educate & empower.       

4. Empowerment

We’ll build on the lead-up to and roll-out from America’s founding, with lessons from suffrage movements and sports leagues. On November 6^th, 1869, the first college football game was played in Central New Jersey. Soon, the game got so dangerous, even brutal where players died. The then U.S. president and public figures issued a call to action, creating the NCAA to help rein things in. These days our political/social climate has gotten dangerous/brutal too. We need a new empowerment strategy to rein things in. You’ve heard of POTUS, FLOTUS, SCOTUS. It’s time for CLOTUS (Civic Leaders of the United States)!

A championship coach and team will tell you that the secret to their success took more than just rah-rah moments and fire-brand speeches. It took real intention like in past movements of civic engagement. Furthermore, with ‘America250’ already in motion, we can look back and begin to chart new steps forward. It’ll take some ‘civic dosing’ and a ‘mojo movement’ to get us moving towards a more perfect union. In the past when consumers cried out for change in technology, the response was something user-friendly. As America votes and cries, we can do for citizen-friendly dreams like seen in tech and sports.

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Tracks: Jon Baptiste – Big Money – https://youtu.be/PkS2xydpLIg?si=icn9NXOGu71l5rZm

H.E.R. – Hold Us Together – https://youtu.be/peiZgUda4dY?si=SB1YHMF7by4CbALF