Doom Resisters

Yes, Election Day is around the corner, but a lot can happen in a few days. Shaniqua McClendon, head of Vote Save America, shares some actions it's not too late to take — starting with talking to your friends and family.

It can still make a difference to get people to the polls, help cure ballots, stay vigilant about misinformation, know where to report voter intimidation and suppression, and counter feelings of helplessness.

Resources and links:

• Fake Or Real? How To Self-Check The News And Get The Facts from NPR
• Misinformation Red Flags from Poynter
• What to expect when we’re electing: The 5 moves of misleading election rumors from the Center for an Informed Public
• Fearing Election Day violence, local cops are becoming fast experts in election law  from Politico
• Ballot-curing events from Vote Save America
• Voter hotlines from Common Cause

My music is a track from the Blue Dot Sessions called "Laser Focus"

In 38 states, you need a form of identification to vote. That presents a barrier to voting that disproportionately affects younger, lower-income voters of color. VoteRiders helps people navigate the voter ID laws in their state. National Outreach Director Selene Gomez talks about that work and how to have effective, supportive conversations with friends and family about voter ID. And she says: It's not too late to talk about this!

Resources and links:

• What's So Bad About Voter ID Laws? from the League of Women Voters
• The Impact of Voter Suppression on Communities of Color from the Brennan Center for Justice
• Election experts cautious as Abbott touts voter roll purge from the Texas Tribune
• Ballot Curing Rules from VoteAmerica

My music is a track from the Blue Dot Sessions called "Laser Focus"

Politics can be a touchy subject between loved ones, especially when a close family member or friend has bought into a political conspiracy theory. How do we talk about it?

Diane Benscoter has lots of experience with this. Her organization Antidote works to counteract and prevent psychological manipulation, from political disinformation to extremist groups to religious cults. She was once a cult member herself. And when she's talking with, say, a participant in the January 6 insurrection, she starts by finding shared values.

"You have to connect with them in a way that they see that you are a reasonable and caring human being like they are," she says.

Resources and links:

• Antidote.ngo
• 'Exit Counselors' Strain To Pull Americans Out Of A Web Of False Conspiracies

My music is a track from the Blue Dot Sessions called "Laser Focus"

Erin Heaney leads an organization called SURJ, which specifically organizes white people, driven by a philosophy that racial and economic justice are in everyone's best interest.

White supremacists have been recruiting from communities that feel unsupported or isolated to bolster authoritarian movements. SURJ, which stands for Showing Up for Racial Justice, connects people across communities and reaches out to under-resourced individuals to build a sense of belonging and investment in equity. 

Resources and links:

• Multi-Racial Democracy, or Authoritarianism? 
• How Democracies Die . . . and How They May Survive
• Debate: Why Democracies Survive
• If you don’t have multiracial democracy, you don’t have democracy at all
• The Myth of a Majority-Minority America

My music is a track from the Blue Dot Sessions called "Laser Focus"

Author, editor and former public librarian Kelly Jensen has been keeping a close eye on a rising tide of of book bans, and shares some methods for fighting them. Most of these methods involve contacting local officials — whether that's by writing a quick email or speaking up at a board meeting. "You cannot pay attention to everything," Kelly acknowledges, but "we have the tremendous power to make change in our community, in our backyard."

Resources and links:

• "You've Already Been Living the Project 2025 Test Drive," from Kelly's Substack, Well Sourced
• "How to Fight Book Bans in 2024" from BookRiot
• "Far-right group Moms for Liberty reports more than $2 million in revenue in 2022" from PBS
• "Idaho Library Goes “Adults Only” in Response to State Book Banning Law" from the Authors Guild

My music is a track from the Blue Dot Sessions called "Laser Focus"

Theme music: Laser Focus by Blue Dot Sessions

My music is a track from the Blue Dot Sessions called "Laser Focus"