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I Didn't Vote

Here is why

By Jay CorderoPublished 3 years ago 3 min read
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I Didn't Vote
Photo by Dan Dennis on Unsplash

Yes, you read that right. I did not vote in this election.

Honestly, I'm tired of defending myself and my choice to abstain from participating in an institution that is mostly corrupt and does not care about its people. People claim that we live in one of the greatest democracies in the world. But where is that democracy?

Some people may be shaking their heads at me. However, I stand by my choice as someone who lives in NYC and felt it was pointless to vote.

I did not vote, and here is why.

My first experience with politics was back in 2016. Just before graduating from High School, my school required us to complete a list of civic-engagement activities that were supposed to give us a better understanding of what it meant to be an active citizen. One of the activities on the list was canvassing, something I had never heard of before. However, this was the perfect year to learn about electoral involvement. I was young, full of energy, and ready to change the world.

I had become a Bernie Sanders supporter, like many other young people that year. Both my friend and I decided to find a campaign office where we could learn about canvassing and get to work. After that experience, I started looking for ways to help my community. That is how I found my local YDSA chapter on campus. That is how I learned about organizing in my community.

I'm a socialist, and I have never been afraid of saying it.

Within the leftist community, some groups of socialists constantly criticize other groups of socialists for their refusal to engage with certain aspects of our society, such as the political system and the corporate media. I do agree that there is value in certain nuanced engagement with the Democratic party and the media. However, I do not believe in forcibly and mindlessly forcing the working class towards a certain direction. I believe our actions should be mindful and purposeful.

The Democratic Party is a capitalists institution. Therefore, its inherent purpose is to protect capitalist interests. It is delusional for anyone to think that only voting blue, no matter who, is the way to change the current dire state of the US and the world.

Here is my suggestion.

Instead of forcing people to vote for a candidate that they do not believe in, we actually take the time to organize in our communities. And mutual aid, a reciprocal exchange of resources, is a great way to engage communities in meaningful ways.

What would mutual aid look like?

At the beginning of 2020, I learned about mutual aid, and I saw an increase in mutual aid work in NYC. These consisted of networks of people helping each other out with different resources. For example, a group of socialist campaigns operating in NYC had arranged meal delivery systems that could get to people who were food insecure for one reason or the other. It was great to witness. I even directed some friends to this mutual aid network,

I have had countless conversations about the value of mutual aid. However, the emphasis of the conversation always is, but it's not enough by itself. We then criticize those who only do mutual aid and sit on our high horses, thinking that we have the superior class analysis and politics. We then end up disregarding the practice altogether; meanwhile, groups of people are on the ground, actually changing people's lives in meaningful ways.

I know I've been rambling about things that might mostly make sense to leftist organizers. However, I think it's important for us to have these conversations outside our own little circles.

I'm sorry to break it to you, but most of our actions, including voting, don't mean shit in the grand scheme of things. Therefore, I didn't vote. I know it's not the popular opinion, even among leftists and among my own circles. However, I wanted to stay true to myself.

politics
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About the Creator

Jay Cordero

Hello!

Ever since I was little I loved stories; they made me feel connected to something bigger than myself. This is why I am working towards becoming a writer. I want to be able to replicate the bliss I feel when reading for my readers.

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