Our Job is Not to Persuade Those in Power. It’s to Replace Them.

A guest article from WV Can’t Wait Co-chair, Stephen Smith

Growing up, I was told our political system worked. I heard it from teachers, parents, reporters, and mentors. School House Rock and The West Wing. If we could just get enough people to call their Senator, or vote, or care, then those in power would listen. And if they didn’t listen, that was our fault too — we weren’t doing it right.

I still hear those voices on social media, through email and text blasts. “Call now! Joe Manchin needs to hear from you.”

Everyday, we are told that our voices are important: “Now more than ever.” Everyday, our cries fall on deaf ears. Everyday, we watch corporate-backed politicians choose their interests above our own. And everyday, we are the ones who face the consequences.

More of our cousins die. More of our neighbors lose jobs and houses. More of us fall ill or depressed, unable to pay for the care we need.

Of course we must do something to fight back against those who are profiting off our pain. We cannot give up. But when we aim only to persuade those in power to change their ways, we aim too low.

Persuasion is a tool invented by those in power, because it works well for them. Every time we politely call, write, and visit, we give our so-called leaders more attention, more name recognition, and more legitimacy.

The thing is, politics isn’t a polite debate between two ideologies, where the best argument wins the day. It is a brutal, pitched battle over whether or not everybody deserves food, medicine, a job, dignity. We must treat it that way.

If we want to win a state that works for all of us, our duty is not solely to persuade those in power. We must replace them.

This work of self-governing isn’t new. West Virginians have been planting the seeds for generations. Those in power have routinely stolen our land and labor. Our government has routinely failed us, and we have had to pick up the slack. We have been forced to craft our own tools for governing, rebuild entire systems that have failed us. Some of those tools are already in use. We can pick them up whenever we wish. Here are a few…

1. We can govern our communities.

West Virginians are near the top of the list in volunteer service and the time we spend with our neighbors. There are hundreds of fire stations and emergency medical services in West Virginia run completely by volunteers. There are countless more community centers, grassroots harm reduction organizations, and cooperatives that are stepping up when government fails. Here are a few examples of West Virginians who are doing this in a big way. You can start or join one too. We want to help.

2. We can govern our workplaces.

West Virginia miners and educators blazed the trail. Recently Cabell Huntington hospital workers went on strike. Special Metals workers too. We can begin to replace those in power by seizing more control in our workplaces. (WV Can’t Wait had the first unionized campaign in West Virginia history.) Our labor belongs to us, and we can organize, unionize, and strike in order to make a difference where we work. It can start with something as simple as gossiping with a co-worker on break. It can start today.

3. We can govern our towns.

In many West Virginia towns, we have the power to bypass the wealthy Good Old Boys Clubs in office through a process called “municipal ballot initiatives.” We can write our own laws, and if we get enough signatures, we can force the issue onto the ballot… and let the people decide. And in most towns that don’t have a municipal ballot provision, we can win a spot on Council ourselves with a couple hundred votes. We’re hiring organizers to work on projects like this right now.

4. Finally, we can run for office ourselves.

We can run for office on our own terms. And we can win. There are now 19 WV Can’t Wait elected officials holding office across the state, people who have rejected corporate donations and promised never to cross a picket line. It’s not enough to replace those in power one-by-one, we have to replace the machines that got them there. That means we also need campaign managers, door-knockers, and neighborhood captains.

We’re fighting like hell to replace the wealthy Good Old Boy establishment. It will take 1,000 leaders, not 1 to do it. That means we need you.