Bad for Democracy

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Top 10 Things You Can do
for Democracy Besides Vote

Author Q and A
Book Information

$24.95 cloth/jacket
ISBN: 978-0-8166-5677-6

Look up your local and state representatives on Congress.org. Figure out who they are, and make a note of their email addresses and phone numbers. Imagine what you’d like to tell them about what’s going on locally. Then send them an email.

Use Congress.org to check out pending legislation. Correspond with your representatives about it if you see something you care about.

Go to a Metro or City Council meeting. Introduce yourself to your district representative and your at-large representatives. See what they have to say on issues you care about. Tell them what you think.

Compare the news services you rely on with those you avoid. Watch and read each other’s news and compare the results. Find other brand new resources. Start discussing these differences in free spaces, or in political discussion groups. Check out FactCheck.org. Write letters to the media, or to the editor, about the quality of media coverage and where you’ve found better sources.

Figure out ways to have conversations about politics in public. You won’t get much positive reinforcement for this: it makes everyone uncomfortable. People will want you to stop. But just one good experience can make people feel better about it, and you can be part of that change. Transportation hubs—airports, bus stations—are a good place to practice when you find yourself falling into conversation with someone in the waiting area. If you broach a political topic and you sense that your seatmate disagrees, push back on your usual habit of falling silent or changing the subject and nurturing your private disgust. Instead, ask questions about their beliefs and see if you can respond respectfully and with clarity about your own. And ask more questions. People like to have their opinion treated respectfully, at least as much as they like having it agreed with. Sometimes they’re more willing to listen to yours if they think you respect theirs.

Get to know people in the political party you oppose. See if you can find a few you can actually have politically substantive conversations with. The goal is not to change your mind, or theirs, but to be usefully informed by the debate. (Maybe it will help sharpen your arguments. Maybe it will modify your opinion. Maybe it will help you stop demonizing or caricaturing those with whom you disagree.)

Create a political discussion group. Invite people who disagree, and build some norms that make it comfortable to disagree. See what you can learn about yourself in disagreement. See what you can learn about others in disagreement. See what you can learn about the topic you’re disagreeing on. (Maybe this is something you do in your free space once every other week. See number 10 below.)

Give more time to causes you find yourself concerned with. Some groups only welcome your money, but many value your time—for community resources surveying, for basic research, for phone-banking, to show up at Metro Council meetings, or candlelight vigils, where numbers count. Identify how many hours a month you can put toward putting your political hopes into action, and then find a place that can use those hours.

Check out time banks, and see if there’s one in your community. If there is one, join and figure out what you can do and how many hours a month you might have to put into service—1? 2? 3? Check out what services you can take advantage of in return. If there isn’t one, start talking about the idea with neighbors, friends and coworkers. Maybe you can start one! Look at timebanks.org for loads of information.

Make a free space. Free spaces break down our habit of political self-enclaving, giving everyone the opportunity to test sociality across political, class, and identity divisions. Your free space doesn’t even have to be about politics. It should be about allowing people to associate who might ordinarily avoid each other because of politics. It might be taking a workspace for temporary breaks—where people can associate or just read or knit or play videogames by themselves in the company of co-workers. It might be a park space, where dog owners can practice obedience skills together. It should be intriguing, inviting, and even fun. Imagine: public space democracy could just be fun.

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Top 10 Things You Can do for Democracy Besides Vote Author Q and A Book Information		$24.95 cloth/jacket ISBN: 978-0-8166-5677-6
Look up your local and state representatives on Congress.org. Figure out who they are, and make a note of their email addresses and phone numbers. Imagine what you’d like to tell them about what’s going on locally. Then send them an email. Use Congress.org to check out pending legislation. Correspond with your representatives about it if you see something you care about. Go to a Metro or City Council meeting. Introduce yourself to your district representative and your at-large representatives. See what they have to say on issues you care about. Tell them what you think. Compare the news services you rely on with those you avoid. Watch and read each other’s news and compare the results. Find other brand new resources. Start discussing these differences in free spaces, or in political discussion groups. Check out FactCheck.org. Write letters to the media, or to the editor, about the quality of media coverage and where you’ve found better sources. Figure out ways to have conversations about politics in public. You won’t get much positive reinforcement for this: it makes everyone uncomfortable. People will want you to stop. But just one good experience can make people feel better about it, and you can be part of that change. Transportation hubs—airports, bus stations—are a good place to practice when you find yourself falling into conversation with someone in the waiting area. If you broach a political topic and you sense that your seatmate disagrees, push back on your usual habit of falling silent or changing the subject and nurturing your private disgust. Instead, ask questions about their beliefs and see if you can respond respectfully and with clarity about your own. And ask more questions. People like to have their opinion treated respectfully, at least as much as they like having it agreed with. Sometimes they’re more willing to listen to yours if they think you respect theirs. Get to know people in the political party you oppose. See if you can find a few you can actually have politically substantive conversations with. The goal is not to change your mind, or theirs, but to be usefully informed by the debate. (Maybe it will help sharpen your arguments. Maybe it will modify your opinion. Maybe it will help you stop demonizing or caricaturing those with whom you disagree.) Create a political discussion group. Invite people who disagree, and build some norms that make it comfortable to disagree. See what you can learn about yourself in disagreement. See what you can learn about others in disagreement. See what you can learn about the topic you’re disagreeing on. (Maybe this is something you do in your free space once every other week. See number 10 below.) Give more time to causes you find yourself concerned with. Some groups only welcome your money, but many value your time—for community resources surveying, for basic research, for phone-banking, to show up at Metro Council meetings, or candlelight vigils, where numbers count. Identify how many hours a month you can put toward putting your political hopes into action, and then find a place that can use those hours. Check out time banks, and see if there’s one in your community. If there is one, join and figure out what you can do and how many hours a month you might have to put into service—1? 2? 3? Check out what services you can take advantage of in return. If there isn’t one, start talking about the idea with neighbors, friends and coworkers. Maybe you can start one! Look at timebanks.org for loads of information. Make a free space. Free spaces break down our habit of political self-enclaving, giving everyone the opportunity to test sociality across political, class, and identity divisions. Your free space doesn’t even have to be about politics. It should be about allowing people to associate who might ordinarily avoid each other because of politics. It might be taking a workspace for temporary breaks—where people can associate or just read or knit or play videogames by themselves in the company of co-workers. It might be a park space, where dog owners can practice obedience skills together. It should be intriguing, inviting, and even fun. Imagine: public space democracy could just be fun.