I am writing in response to Peter Bergers recent commentary on the moral consequences of the Trump presidency. While I agree with his belief Too many of us still fail to recognize how dire our circumstance is, I was surprised in the middle of a moral argument to see his attacks on the Squad and on the progressive movement.
The Squad is made up of four women elected to the House of Representatives in 2018: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan (all easily won reelection in 2020) and will soon be joined by Congresswoman-elect Cori Bush, who won a historic election in the state of Missouri. Bergers indictment of these women is, They dont appear to understand what it means to be a fraction of a fraction of a nation.
A white man telling Latina, Indian, Muslim and Black women they dont understand what it means to be a minority, is absurd. I doubt he would have said the same about the congressional Black caucus when they were only a handful of newly elected congressmen led by Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm and their fight for civil rights. Nor would he say that about Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony and their upstart group of suffragettes who fought for, and eventually won, the right to vote in public elections. Margaret Mead, the renowned anthropologist, said it well: Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. The Squad, growing in numbers and influence, is one such group, and are viewed by many as the future of progressive politics in America. As such, they are considered to be a threat by Republicans and by status quo/corporate/mainstream (choose your own adjective) Democrats.
Equally troubling is Bergers judgment on the progressive movement that these women represent, calling it arrogant, unrealistic and doctrinaire. Arrogant is not how I would describe Cori Bush (registered nurse, pastor, previously homeless single mother and activist) who, after being tossed from a Trump rally in 2016, won on her third try, the Democratic nomination over a 10-term opponent. Bush went on to a landslide victory to become the first Black woman elected to the House of Representatives from the state of Missouri. Hardly arrogant, I respect these women for their determination, hard work and their vision for a better future.
Real leaders, in order to establish and pursue higher ideals, often ignore accusations of being unrealistic. For example, one might also fault our small group of original Founding Fathers as unrealistic when they wrote: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men (and women) are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. These high ideals were far from the reality of the time, just as the ideals of liberty and justice for all are still not a reality for too many Americans.
As for doctrinaire, Berger claims to be talking in practical terms about this world. In my view, nothing is more practical in dealing with the worlds problems than the agenda set forth by progressive leaders: environmental, economic, social and racial justice. Our much-hailed doctrine, the U.S. Constitution, cites as a primary purpose of government to promote the general Welfare of its citizens. Progressive social programs that support the well-being of people (nutrition, shelter, basic health care, education, a living wage) are human rights consistent with the highest ideals of decency and democracy. Progressives have exactly the right idea, a 21st-Century Economic Bill of Rights for all of us!
Bergers analogy of not falling off the roof is a good one. We might well have avoided a bad fall, but we dont have to continue to live on the edge of the roof. Bergers historic example is also apt. We could have ended the Civil War and continued to allow slavery, but the status quo was not the solution then, nor is it today. Progressives do recognize how dire our circumstances are and have a plan to address the problems created by the status quo.
I, for one, believe that together, the Squad and the progressive movement represent our best chance to cause the arc of our democracy to bend ultimately toward justice for all.
David Mook lives in Poultney.
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Mook: Response to Berger | Commentary | rutlandherald.com - Rutland Herald
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