As we all process and reflect upon the most recent election, you may have mixed feelings about the state of democracy. While we honor and uphold the concerns we’ve heard from residents and community partners, we also encourage everyone to dig deep and reflect on what’s happened during the past couple of months, as well as analyze your personal reasons for being concerned.
So let’s start by stating the obvious—Cleveland’s 29% turnout (based upon the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections Unofficial Election Results) may not be an ideal turnout rate. Anger and frustration are understandable, but please remember that Clevelanders have had to face several challenges this past election cycle, including voting disinformation and various barriers to registration, ballots, and polling locations. And for our fellow democracy builders who have been working hard to get out the vote, please don’t be hard on yourselves when you see the number above. Some bad actors have been suppressing votes and discouraging civic engagement long before we started doing this work. So let’s celebrate what we HAVE been able to accomplish in such a short amount of time. It’s pretty dope!
Voter turnout rates are also not the only indicator that demonstrates Clevelanders’ commitment and passion for creating a community where democracy is celebrated and all residents—particularly those that have been historically disenfranchised—thrive for generations to come! Clevelanders care a lot. We’ve seen it ourselves.
Cleveland VOTES also implores each of you to think about democracy beyond elections. Our collective efforts must be rooted in individual purpose. While there are those of us that may have more formal roles in community building and civic engagement, there is actually space for all members of our community to contribute to the fabric of our civic culture.
We must continue to have those courageous and tough conversations with our families, friends, neighbors, etc… about who belongs and what current practices/policies may be ‘othering’ portions of our community. A strong democracy necessitates that we have safe and stable housing, health care accessibility, flourishing educational opportunities, and an environment that is safe for generations to come.
So what can you do now? Here are some suggestions:
- Reflect, rest and rejuvenate.
- Stay connected with our organization and the dozen democracy builders in our community by signing up for our newsletter, giving us a follow on social media, or checking out our Linktree page.
- Attend a public meeting, learn about what your local government is doing and how you can connect.
- Can’t make it to a meeting in real time? Follow the Cleveland Documenters and catch up on their meeting recaps via their website or Twitter.
- Call and connect with your local public officials (State, County and/or City). Tell them about the issues that are important to you and your community. Make noise about current and proposed policies that you think are unfair. (Or if you like something that your official(s) are doing, let them know that, too!)
- Join a local advocacy effort (please note this is not an exhaustive list, just a few suggestions):
• Participatory Budgeting Cleveland
• Northeast Ohio Worker Center
• Care Response Efforts with REACH and Policy Matters Ohio
ª Cuyahoga County Jail Coalition and Black Lives Matter Cleveland
Cleveland VOTES envisions a community where our collective work will power a transformation toward a more liberated future, offering access to tools that produce increased efforts in civic education, engagement, and advocacy. We will continue to work with intentionality to amplify the voices of our neighbors, ensuring we have a more informed, participatory, and cohesive community. You can learn more about how we plan to make this vision a reality by checking out our 2022-2026 Strategic Plan and completing our Digital Activation Budget!
Onward to a more equitable democracy!
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Erika Anthony is executive director of Cleveland VOTES
