A common refrain in the aftermath of public demonstrations — including the nationwide protests in response to the murder of George Floyd — goes something like this: “If you’re angry, just vote.”
Vote? Yes.
Just vote? No.
Americans are indoctrinated from their earliest schooling to believe The Vote is the epitome of democratic change and freedom. That is propaganda. Useful, but largely hype. “Just vote” is the political equivalent of “You can be anything you want to be.” It is a sticky-note motivator, not a panacea.
Because voting has a nearly supernatural power in the American mythos, we struggle to admit that voting is often ineffective. This creates a culture-wide cognitive dissonance. We vote and nothing changes. It’s a disillusionment that results in confusion, then anger, and ultimately violence.
The Vote was the prize of revolution, earned over centuries with the blood of many bodies. The progression is known: first the land-owning white men, then white men without property, then free black men, then Native American men (who were willing to dissociate from their tribes and become American citizens), then women. But barriers to free and fair voting remain. We need to look no further than the lawsuits and shouting matches over mail-in voting during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. For many, The Vote is still not accessible.
But even if it was, the liberal slogan and the conservative scapegoat that says “Just vote” is inadequate for our moment. The tweets that turn to protests that turn to riots are an all-too-real acknowledgment that The Vote, the grand prize of the democratic ideal, is not so grand. And that the people will not wait.
“Just vote” is anesthesia. It is not a cure. And the effect of saying it, year after year, injustice after injustice, is wearing off. Here’s why “If you’re angry, just vote,” is not even close to enough.
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