Since 2016 it has felt like a nothing but defeat after brutal defeat for the Progressive left. It can be hard to lift your chin up, especially after we saw the Democratic establishment rip a victory away from Bernie for the second time. Yet there are things to be excited about – We had a real contender fighting for the people in the presidential race, voters below 45 are overwhelmingly in support of Bernie’s agenda, Gen Z is the least racist group of Americans in history. 

If there is any lesson we need to heed it is that of overused strengths-

“Overused strengths become weaknesses.” 

That might sound silly, how could being totally against racism ever be a bad thing? In the hands of the media and corporate Democrats nothing is sacred. When a mass of people have genuine motivations and beliefs that they believe so intensely they would take action on them, people in power zero in on it. The last thing Nancy Pelosi wants is this massive group to organize for economic rights, or anything that would cramp their style, or life-style. 

So what would the Dems in power want to see? A movement of chaos that focuses it’s hatred on Republicans and causes that have no clear legislative agenda. They champion cancel culture just as Republicans use Christianity. “ If you are with the Republicans, you are for rapist and chauvinist pigs!” vs. “If you are a Christian you can’t support the Dems because that is you condoning baby murder!” 

Pretty insane right? These are logical fallacies. We should think more of our citizens and neighbors than to think they pull the voting lever saying “ boy I’m so glad male dominance and inappropriate behavior are going to lead this country!” So where does this connect? It is easier for corporate dems to back cultural issues that have no legislative agenda than to ever support a bill that favors workers over their corporate donors. They have the easiest group to distract- we really do want justice worse than any recent generation. They have the ultimate landscape to do so – Social media. They have the ultimate straw man to distract us from what we really want and need – Donald Trump. My god how many times have we knelt to power and made concessions to corporate dems because trump was looming in the background? 

Because we are so primed up for justice, we run into traps and waste effort constantly. This is where the idea of a justice piñata comes in- essentially we all have our sticks ready to fight, we hop on Facebook and BAM a story of injustice with Trumpers is in our face, Justice Piñata. Spoiler alert, these are always No Legislation-Attached issues, completely hollow. Yet, we are swinging our hearts out on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, striking our neighbors in wild blows. Even though it is pretty apparent if you can step back and take off the blind fold, you are not doing a literal thing playing activist online. Every zinger divides the country further, and solidifies the Trump vote further. We keep swinging, similar to the potential Biden administration, we have no idea if the piñata is entirely hollow, yet we tell ourselves our favorite candy might be in there! Biden might pass the Green New Deal! Surely a Dem will end this police brutality? Surely he will be better than Trump? 

We are a special generation- we all carry a big stick! Remember to use the responsibility wisely. If you share enemies with someone, make them a friend. Don’t swing on working class conservative voters, just like us, they are being completely misled by their corporate run party, and the corporate Dems seek to actively destroy and silence them. We will never build bridges silencing or dismissing people who hold views that we judge as wrong. Even if someone is racist, they will only dig in until someone sees them as a human and helps them get free of that poisonous mentality. Remember, that mind set is toxic for them and affects their life as well. We are taking the exact opposite route of Nelson Mandela- he knew you couldn’t throw every employee of the racist white administration in jail, even if they were racist, because they were victims of the same system. Had he done so, the country would have done an immediate reversal and had the African majority dominating and mistreating the white population that treated them horribly. While they would have completely deserved it, Mandela knew the individuals of the nation were separate and not responsible for the system that was forced upon them. By extending a bridge to his white counterparts, he brought on a peace that no one ever expected, ending apartheid. 

Consider this final thought – Trump voters are just as scared and worried for the future as you are. Hitting fellow Americans over the head will not lead to justice or legislation. This is an empty piñata.