By Garrett Bucks<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A preface: I wrote this for people who, like me, have spent much of the past few weeks hoping that somebody else would do something bolder in this political movement. <\/em>We are downtrodden because we\u2019re full of rage and heartbreak, but the polls tell us that our neighbors don\u2019t share those feelings.<\/em><\/a> We realize we\u2019re seeing something that so many aren\u2019t, but we\u2019re not sure how to bridge the gap. We have wished (appropriately) for bravery from our media, from elected Democrats, from public officials in general. However fair those wishes are, they come with a risk: that we miss the opportunity to be the lonely voice for justice in our own community, the person who makes it a little easier for a second and third and fourth lonely voice to start perking up by our side.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I don\u2019t pretend that all it takes for a social movement to succeed is a bunch of individuals throwing the activist equivalent of spaghetti at so many isolated walls. Nothing I offer here will be enough. And yet, so many of us are waiting for something we can join, which presents a true opportunity to be the first person in your circle welcoming fellow travelers into halting, shaky, earnest action.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, I\u2019m certain that not all of these ideas are applicable to your situation. You\u2019re tired. You\u2019re busy. You\u2019re sick. You don\u2019t have a robust social network. You have anxiety about putting yourself out there. Those are all real. And also, my hope isn\u2019t that every one of these is for you, but that a few might be. And if none fit the bill, what an opportunity: I\u2019d love to hear your idea for what you and others could do.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Enough scene-setting. Here are some ideas. In list form, but there\u2019s a narrative if you\u2019re looking for it. They\u2019re all offered with love:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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