OREGON–(ENEWSPF)–November 11, 2016
By: Rosemary Piser
Today, those of us who volunteered on the Clinton campaign received a letter from Robby Mook, Hillary’s Campaign Manager, thanking us for our help. I, like many of my friends and neighbors are still shocked at the outcome of the election and fearful for the future. But in his letter, Robby makes some good suggestions for how we can pick ourselves up by the boot-straps and prepare to closely watch and react to how the future unfolds. I’m sharing this letter with you in hopes that it will make you feel a little bit better today.
Thank you for being a part of this campaign. We didn’t get the result we wanted, and of course we will always regret that. But when everything we believe in was on the line, we stood up and battled and gave it our all. I take great pride in that. I hope you do, too.
If you’re still hurting today, that’s ok. You’re not alone. And no doubt there are many difficult days ahead for our country and the world.
But I want to talk about where we go from here, because there has never been more work to do. The people we fought for in this election — working people looking for a better job or a fair wage; immigrant families who deserve to be treated with dignity; women who should have the right to make their own health decisions; Muslims who need to know that America has a place for them; little girls and boys who should know that they can be anything they want to be when they grow up — have never needed us more. They were dealt a setback on Tuesday. But the only way we lose these fights over the long term is if people like us get discouraged, instead of getting back to work.
The dust is still settling from Tuesday’s election, and we don’t have all the answers yet. But for now, here are a few things to consider:
- Run for office.If we’ve learned anything from our candidate, it’s that the best way to make change is simply to go out and do it. Get involved in a local or municipal race, whatever it takes to be that change you want to see in your community.
- Get involved in your community in other ways. Join a board, help plan community days, volunteer with local progressive groups.
- Fight for Democrats.Democrats across the country need your support now more than ever. They need your votes, if you live in their districts, but they also need your time and your resources to keep going.
- Support women and girls. Reach out to the women and girls in your family and other circles and let them know that you value and support them. Ask them what their dreams are — then help them get there however you can.
- Promote love and kindness where you live.Hillary has lived her life with the words “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can” — and it’s up to us to carry on her work in our communities.
This isn’t the end. Hillary has shown us every single day: The measure of a person is not whether you get knocked down but whether you get back up. As she said on Wednesday, “Let us have faith in each other. Let us not grow weary and lose heart, for there are more seasons to come and there is more work to do.”
With deepest gratitude,
Robby
Robby Mook
Campaign Manager
Hillary for America
Rosemary Piser is the Associate Editor of eNews Park Forest
