In the aftermath of Tuesday’s election, there will be plenty of pundits weighing in with their perspectives of what the results mean for Democrats. Rather than waste anyone’s time weaving a post-election narrative of my own, I want to offer a more personal message to my fellow progressives. We lost an election on Tuesday. It is not the first election we’ve lost, and it won’t be the last. But the stakes are too high, and the moment too great, to allow despair to darken our hearts. In the words of the late Ted Kennedy, “the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.”
In 2008, young progressives rallied around a campaign that embodied the Audacity of Hope. Barack Obama offered charisma and leadership that we could identify with, but it was never about the candidate – it was about the dream. It was the dream that finally, our voices would be heard, that we would see an end to an unnecessary war, a renewed appreciation for our environment, a reinvestment in our broken education system, a commitment to providing health care for every American, a respect for the civil rights and human dignity of all people, a return to diplomacy and collaboration, and a rebuilding of the promise that every American be given the opportunity to succeed in our 21st century economy.
In our hearts, that dream lives on. It cannot be taken in a single election or a temporary setback. We do not yield and we do not falter. Our sight remains steadfast on the horizon; and at this moment of defeat, we stand united in hope.
<em>To learn about upcoming elections and how to register to vote, visit <a href=”http://www.sludems.com/”>www.sludems.com</a></em>
