SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Voters fill out their absentee ballots as people look for books to check out at the Madison Central Public Library on the last day of early voting on November 06, 2022 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Our Only Hope is to Defeat the Right-Wing Effort to Destroy Public Institutions
Conservatives are bent on destabilizing, weakening, and even destroying public institutions. We have to fight back.
Nov 19, 2022
While Republican fearmongering about Democrats "defunding the police" didn't exactly lead to a "red wave" last week, conservatives were successful at defunding something else.
They know that to achieve their vision of America, they have to destabilize, weaken, and even destroy the institutions that give a voice to people who don't agree with their vision.
Voters in a small Western Michigan town rejected the renewal of a property tax that funds the town's only public library. Patmos Library, in Jamestown Township, is now expected to run out of money by early 2024.
The reason? "[The library is] trying to groom our children to believe that it's okay to have these sinful desires," a member of the group Jamestown Conservatives told Bridge Michigan.
Echoing conservative parent groups across the country--many of them funded by corporate executives and wealthy Republican donors--stoking opposition to "Critical Race Theory," the group has been organizing to force the library to remove LGBTQ children's books. They have handed out fliers claiming that the books are "pornographic sexually graphic material" intended for "very young and impressionable kids" and even harassed library staff into resigning.
This might be about one library in one small town, but it highlights a key fact about our political moment.
Conservatives might be confused about what to do about Trump and the 2024 election, but they have a plan.
They know that to achieve their vision of America, they have to destabilize, weaken, and even destroy the institutions that give a voice to people who don't agree with their vision. They know that they have to contend for power over public institutions.
That's why they attack public schools and libraries over made-up (and racist and sexist) propaganda. That's why they privatize schools, water systems, public transit, and more. That's why they cut taxes on corporations and the wealthy--to starve the government. That's why they want to shred Social Security and Medicare.
And it's also why those of us who have a different vision--a more democratic, accepting, compassionate vision, where all of us can thrive and be free--need to protect and expand our public intsitutions.
We need to stop charter schools from siphoning money from public school systems. We need to close private, for-profit prisons. We need to protect public jobs that pay livable wages. We need to keep water in public hands. We need to make sure public investments don't contribute to climate change through privatization. And so much more.
Our plan needs to be this: contend for power over public institutions and use them to create the future the majority of people want--where all of us, no matter our sexuality, color, or where we come from can thrive.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Donald Cohen
Donald Cohen is the founder and executive director of In the Public Interest, a national resource and policy center on privatization and responsible contracting. He is a founding board member of the Partnership for Working Families. Cohen has three decades of experience in campaigns and organizations dedicated to economic justice, healthcare reform, education reform, environmental protection, and international human rights.
While Republican fearmongering about Democrats "defunding the police" didn't exactly lead to a "red wave" last week, conservatives were successful at defunding something else.
They know that to achieve their vision of America, they have to destabilize, weaken, and even destroy the institutions that give a voice to people who don't agree with their vision.
Voters in a small Western Michigan town rejected the renewal of a property tax that funds the town's only public library. Patmos Library, in Jamestown Township, is now expected to run out of money by early 2024.
The reason? "[The library is] trying to groom our children to believe that it's okay to have these sinful desires," a member of the group Jamestown Conservatives told Bridge Michigan.
Echoing conservative parent groups across the country--many of them funded by corporate executives and wealthy Republican donors--stoking opposition to "Critical Race Theory," the group has been organizing to force the library to remove LGBTQ children's books. They have handed out fliers claiming that the books are "pornographic sexually graphic material" intended for "very young and impressionable kids" and even harassed library staff into resigning.
This might be about one library in one small town, but it highlights a key fact about our political moment.
Conservatives might be confused about what to do about Trump and the 2024 election, but they have a plan.
They know that to achieve their vision of America, they have to destabilize, weaken, and even destroy the institutions that give a voice to people who don't agree with their vision. They know that they have to contend for power over public institutions.
That's why they attack public schools and libraries over made-up (and racist and sexist) propaganda. That's why they privatize schools, water systems, public transit, and more. That's why they cut taxes on corporations and the wealthy--to starve the government. That's why they want to shred Social Security and Medicare.
And it's also why those of us who have a different vision--a more democratic, accepting, compassionate vision, where all of us can thrive and be free--need to protect and expand our public intsitutions.
We need to stop charter schools from siphoning money from public school systems. We need to close private, for-profit prisons. We need to protect public jobs that pay livable wages. We need to keep water in public hands. We need to make sure public investments don't contribute to climate change through privatization. And so much more.
Our plan needs to be this: contend for power over public institutions and use them to create the future the majority of people want--where all of us, no matter our sexuality, color, or where we come from can thrive.
Donald Cohen
Donald Cohen is the founder and executive director of In the Public Interest, a national resource and policy center on privatization and responsible contracting. He is a founding board member of the Partnership for Working Families. Cohen has three decades of experience in campaigns and organizations dedicated to economic justice, healthcare reform, education reform, environmental protection, and international human rights.
While Republican fearmongering about Democrats "defunding the police" didn't exactly lead to a "red wave" last week, conservatives were successful at defunding something else.
They know that to achieve their vision of America, they have to destabilize, weaken, and even destroy the institutions that give a voice to people who don't agree with their vision.
Voters in a small Western Michigan town rejected the renewal of a property tax that funds the town's only public library. Patmos Library, in Jamestown Township, is now expected to run out of money by early 2024.
The reason? "[The library is] trying to groom our children to believe that it's okay to have these sinful desires," a member of the group Jamestown Conservatives told Bridge Michigan.
Echoing conservative parent groups across the country--many of them funded by corporate executives and wealthy Republican donors--stoking opposition to "Critical Race Theory," the group has been organizing to force the library to remove LGBTQ children's books. They have handed out fliers claiming that the books are "pornographic sexually graphic material" intended for "very young and impressionable kids" and even harassed library staff into resigning.
This might be about one library in one small town, but it highlights a key fact about our political moment.
Conservatives might be confused about what to do about Trump and the 2024 election, but they have a plan.
They know that to achieve their vision of America, they have to destabilize, weaken, and even destroy the institutions that give a voice to people who don't agree with their vision. They know that they have to contend for power over public institutions.
That's why they attack public schools and libraries over made-up (and racist and sexist) propaganda. That's why they privatize schools, water systems, public transit, and more. That's why they cut taxes on corporations and the wealthy--to starve the government. That's why they want to shred Social Security and Medicare.
And it's also why those of us who have a different vision--a more democratic, accepting, compassionate vision, where all of us can thrive and be free--need to protect and expand our public intsitutions.
We need to stop charter schools from siphoning money from public school systems. We need to close private, for-profit prisons. We need to protect public jobs that pay livable wages. We need to keep water in public hands. We need to make sure public investments don't contribute to climate change through privatization. And so much more.
Our plan needs to be this: contend for power over public institutions and use them to create the future the majority of people want--where all of us, no matter our sexuality, color, or where we come from can thrive.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy