A few weeks ago, I was at a gathering that included many high-wealth individuals. I talked to a man who told me his family was concerned about the environment, so they used a ton of money–millions!–to form an organization to do climate policy work. I asked how it had been going.
“Terrible,” he said, “we did so much work on all these amazing policies, but we didn’t have the votes. Everything was blocked by the people in office.”
This story encapsulates many of the patterns and challenges with so much of our work. We are often more comfortable addressing the symptoms of injustice, thinking that political work is forbidden or somehow beneath us, and this tactic ends up derailing everything.
Let’s change that. While we continue doing needed programmatic and advocacy work, we need more people from our sector running for office. If you’ve ever had any desire to be an elected official, and your motives are not to inflame cruelty and hate and protect billionaires and corporations, now is a good time to run. People are sick of those currently in power and are looking for fresh faces and ideas.
We need you to run.
Like, immediately.
Seriously, in Washington State, where I live, you have a month left to file the paperwork if you plan to run. If you’re in other states, here are the filing deadlines you need to be aware of.
Everything is on fire right now, and I can’t think of a group of people who would be better elected officials. Most people who are in this sector are here because they care about the world. Many have first-hand experience with poverty, homelessness, and other problems in society, which many current people in power have never experienced. Nonprofit leaders are often connected to the community, used to dealing with high levels of stress, and are super creative and persistent due to constantly having to face challenges such as lack of funding.
Which makes me wonder why our sector is not a stronger pipeline for political candidates. I think there are a few reasons.
One is the lack of financial resources. The wealthy are often able to finance their campaigns, whereas those who make less money can’t. This can be solved by funders and donors stepping in. For example, First Mile Circle provides financial support to candidates of color who are running in their first race, and it’s been very effective:
“In the six years since First Mile launched in 2019, our cross-class, multi-racial donor circle has moved over $2.3 million in total to 200 progressive candidates of color across 31 of Washington state’s 39 counties, helping 110 community leaders win and step into public office.”
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Read full article here…
