Category Archives: Voting and Democracy

Reflections on Solidarity and Democracy - Connection

Participants in Transformation

Leave a reply

Participants in Transformation

Renewing Democracy is a Truly Sacred Process 

Mary J. Novak
November 3, 2023

Mary J. Novak is NETWORK’s Executive Director.

We are about a year away from the 2024 election, a critical moment for our country. We will either choose candidates who uphold and protect our democratic processes, or ones who degrade and subvert them.  

Whether we realize it or not, we are constantly making choices about democracy. Every day, voting rights are put up for negotiation, Congressional maps are drawn and redrawn, our leaders are offered millions of dollars from corporate lobbies — and people like you and me engage in the work of advocacy for the common good. Democracy is a way of living that we must practice continually to keep common good goals in play.  

While some see “politics” as a dirty word, Pope Francis teaches that we need politics. Specifically, we need politics centered on human dignity and the common good. For that centering to happen, our politics and policies must spring from below — being not just for those on the margins, but with and of the margins. The Catholic tradition teaches that when our politics are grounded in inclusive participation, love, and encounter with communities who are suffering, politics can become a sacred vocation — and, in Francis’ words, “one of the highest forms of charity.”  

The importance of elections in transforming our politics cannot be overstated. But our politics also requires a kind of transformation that no single election can bring about. This is because a just democracy does not only mean free elections and functional governance. It also means a culture, politics, and society of participation.  

Participation is one of the central principles of Catholic Social Teaching. The U.S. bishops, in their resources on Catholic Social Teaching, write, “We believe people have a right and a duty to participate in society, seeking together the common good and well-being of all, especially the poor and vulnerable.”  

What could it mean to transform our politics, to create a system animated by participation, solidarity, and interdependence? What policies do we need?  

For starters, we can ditch the heinous lie that only the “productive” or “prosperous” deserve what they need to get by (this is the false logic of Reagan-style capitalism). We can enact legislation that strengthens communities with access to health care, housing, jobs, and food. We can halt the ongoing legacy of disenfranchisement by strengthening the rights of Black and Brown communities. We can elect candidates who, in both word and deed, respect and bolster democratic processes. We can stop allowing corporations and lobbies representing the interests of the wealthy few to dominate our politics — especially when those interests involve grave harms like fracking and weapons proliferation.  

Christian leaders gather across from the U.S. Capitol Building for a sunrise vigil marking the second anniversary of the January 6 insurrection. Photo courtesy of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty.

Christian leaders gather across from the U.S. Capitol Building for a sunrise vigil marking the second anniversary of the January 6 insurrection. Photo courtesy of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty.

A participatory political system is not just one in which everyone gets a vote — although that is critical, and not even where our system is now. Rather, it is one in which communities are able to work together, in a spirit of liberation and mutual care, to solve problems and ensure that everyone has what they need to thrive. There is absolutely no room for any kind of oppression, stratification, or exploitation. A participatory political system is predicated on solidarity: the understanding that we are all interconnected, and that true flourishing is never at the expense or exclusion of another.  

At the core, our political consciousness needs a renewed awareness of our interconnectedness. This is what Pope Francis has been calling for, especially in his encyclical Laudato Si’: “Everything is interconnected, and this invites us to develop a spirituality of that global solidarity which flows from the mystery of the Trinity.” It is this emphasis on interconnectedness, among and with both people and the rest of the natural world, that has prompted NETWORK to join in the crucial work of climate justice.  

Ultimately, we are called to see that we are all intrinsically linked, which means your liberation is inseparable from mine. We are called to processes of inclusive, justice-driven, and collective decision-making. Many communities of women religious in the U.S. and around the world — communities I enjoy visiting and working with directly as part of my role at NETWORK — already model this vision of transformed politics, in the way they live into consensus-based, community discernment that follows the Spirit and is enlivened with care.  

This season, we are moving through the annual dying back that is autumn, which will soon turn to the surprising hope breaking through at Christmas. In our politics, may we similarly move through a “dying back” of exclusion and domination, and emerge with hope and new possibilities for a society of participation, solidarity, and transformation.  

Reclaiming the reality of our interconnectedness will unlock greater potential to transform our society. Instead of trickle-down, let transformation and renewal flow from living our sacred vocation of politics for the common good. 

Mary J. Novak is NETWORK’s Executive Director.

This column was published in the Quarter 4 2023 issue of Connection. 

Build Anew Series – Democracy

Leave a reply

Build Anew Series — Part 6
Democracy

Virginia Schilder
October 27, 2023
Welcome back to our Build Anew Series, with weekly posts covering the people, policies, and values at the heart of the issues we work on. This week, we’re talking about democracy.   

This past weekend, NETWORK held the third iteration of our White Supremacy and American Christianity event series, with Fr. Bryan Massingale, Dr. Robert P. Jones of the Public Religion Research Institute, and NETWORK’s Joan F. Neal — this time joined by Darcy Hirsh from Interfaith Alliance and Laura Peralta-Schulte, NETWORK Senior Director of Public Policy and Government Relations.

Fr. Massingale and Dr. Jones articulated how Christian nationalism and white supremacy (we cannot talk about one without the other) suppose that America belongs to white Christians, who are therefore entitled to its control and its resources — and justified in achieving that control through violent means. Our speakers explained that white supremacist Christian nationalism is a “consistent ethic of hatred” that benefits only a specific subset — “the right kind” — of white folks. This hostile ethic, predicated on exclusion and hierarchy, is fundamentally anti-democratic.

In seeking to concentrate power in the hands of a select few, Christian nationalism and white supremacy pose an urgent threat to democracy today. While this threat to democracy is growing, it isn’t new. Systemic racism has worked to disenfranchise Black and Brown voters for centuries. The restriction of voting rights, gerrymandering, the undermining of election integrity, and the unchecked role of corporate money in politics all weaken democracy and threaten free and inclusive political participation.

The weakening of democracy in the U.S. is part of a larger trend of marked decline of democracies worldwide. Pope Francis has lamented this decline with urgency, affirming that “Universal participation is something essential; not simply to attain shared goals, but also because it corresponds to what we are: social beings, at once unique and interdependent.” Catholic Social Justice emphasizes the sociality and the dignity of each human being, which means that each person has a right to a say in the decision-making processes that affect their lives. What could it mean for our democracy to be oriented towards participation, encounter, the common good, and truly collective decision-making?

Facts and Figures on Democracy in the U.S.
  • Between 2016-2018, after the Shelby County v. Holder Supreme Court decision, at least 17 million voters were purged from voter rolls. Counties with a history of voter discrimination continue to purge voters at a much higher rate than other counties.
  • Research demonstrates that strict voter ID laws significantly increase the turnout gap between white voters and Latinx, Black, and multiracial voters.
  • As of 2020, 5.17 million people — one out of 44 adults, and 2.27% of the total U.S. voting-eligible population — are disenfranchised due to a current or previous felony conviction. Over 6.2 percent of the adult Black American population is disenfranchised, compared to 1.7 percent of the non-Black population. It is estimated that over 560,000 Latinx Americans are disenfranchised, and approximately 1.2 million women are disenfranchised, comprising over one-fifth of the total disenfranchised population.
Present Realities

While democracy is much more than what happens on election day, even the right to vote, our most basic method of democratic participation, is not fully realized. Voting rights in the U.S. are under assault at the state and federal levels.

In particular, election policies continue to deliberately undermine Black and Brown voter participation. Since the 15th Amendment codified the right to vote for Black American men in 1870, state and local governments have continued to pass discriminatory laws to disenfranchise voters. One in 16 Black Americans of voting age is disenfranchised, a rate 3.7 times greater than that of non-Black Americans. Today, voter ID laws and restrictive voting rules disproportionately affect people of color, low-income and disabled voters, elderly and young voters, and voters who are unhoused.

The 2013 Shelby County v. Holder Supreme Court ruling gutted Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, dismantling protections that prevented states from disenfranchising voters based on race. Since then, Congress has failed to pass legislation to restore that oversight provided in Section 4(b), meaning that states are still able to enact racist restrictions without accountability. As a result of the Shelby decision, over 1,000 polling places have closed — again, disproportionately harming voters of color, rural voters, and voters with disabilities. According to the White House, since January 2021, 18 states have enacted 30 separate laws that will make it more difficult to vote. What’s more, over 400 bills that would make voting less accessible, including restrictions to voting by mail and early voting, as well as voter roll purges, have been considered in various state legislatures in recent years.

Varied methods of voter suppression, in addition to the undue influence of corporate money in politics, gerrymandering, felon disenfranchisement, and other anti-democracy tactics limit political participation, particularly for our most marginalized community members. States that make voting harder or redraw districts unfairly strip their neighbors of access to involvement in our collective political life. These efforts are serious threats to our democracy, that not only harm our communities’ well-being but harm our ability to politically engage in the pursuit of our communities’ well-being at all.

Lived Experience

Rabbi Bonnie Margulis, with Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice, spoke about the 2020 Wisconsin primary at a Faithful Democracy Town Hall in April 2020.

Rabbi Bonnie Margulis. Photo from Madison365

“Our election on April 7th was a morass… The Thursday before the election, a federal court judge said that our absentee ballots did not need witness signatures, so people were sending in their absentee ballots without signatures because they were safer at home [during the pandemic] and didn’t have any way to get their ballots witnessed. 24 hours later, that decision by the federal court was overturned by an appellate court, and so all of those ballots were invalidated. At least 750 ballots in Milwaukee alone were invalidated for lack of signature.”

Rabbi Margulis explained that in Dane County, where Madison is, the county clerk said that if you requested an absentee ballot online you didn’t need an ID. However, “That also was declared to be illegal, so people who didn’t submit an ID couldn’t get an absentee ballot.” At the same time, “A federal court judge had said that absentee ballots could be postmarked as late as April 13th, and on April 6th (the day before the election) the United States Supreme Court overturned that and said no, ballots have to be postmarked by April 7th, the day of the election.”

Further, in part due to a shortage of polling workers during the pandemic, “In Dane County, the number of polling places was reduced from 95 to 63. In Waukesha, a suburb of Milwaukee, the polling places were reduced from 13 to 1. But the most egregious was Milwaukee, which usually has 180 polling places, and it was reduced to 5.” Rabbi Margulis emphasized that this was a blatant attempt to suppress the votes of people of color because Milwaukee has the greatest percentage population of people of color anywhere in the state.

Our Values

A core principle of Catholic Social Justice is that we all have both a right and moral responsibility to participate in our shared public life and political processes, as a matter of our dignity and agency. As the Leadership Conference of Women Religious states, “As women religious and believers in the abundant love of God for all, we are called to bring our faith and our voices to the public square.”

People cast their votes for federal democracy reform as part of NETWORK’s “Team Democracy” events across the country in 2021. Voting rights, which have come under threat at the state level since the U.S. Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act in 2013, are a key component of NETWORK’s efforts to defend democracy.

People cast their votes for federal democracy reform as part of NETWORK’s “Team Democracy” events across the country in 2021.

This responsibility to participate means each person also has a fundamental right to participate and must be equipped with the resources needed to do so. The intentional curtailing of political participation by restricting voting, gerrymandering, and undermining elections is a serious moral failure and a threat to the free society we are called to build. We have a responsibility not only to participate in the democratic process ourselves but also to protect our most vulnerable neighbors’ right to join in shaping our society.

But participation alone is not enough: political participation must be aimed at and committed to advancing the common good. The Catholic Catechism states, “It is necessary that all participate, each according to his position and role, in promoting the common good. This obligation is inherent in the dignity of the human person.” The Catholic tradition also calls us to move beyond partisan politics in our pursuit of justice and social transformation. The US Council of Catholic Bishops writes,

“As citizens, we should be guided more by our moral convictions than by our attachment to a political party or interest group. When necessary, our participation should help transform the party to which we belong; we should not let the party transform us in such a way that we neglect or deny fundamental moral truths or approve intrinsically evil acts. We are called to bring together our principles and our political choices, our values and our votes, to help build a civilization of truth and love.”

Our democratic processes are a vehicle of participation in the public realm, which is where our Catholic obligation to cast our nets wide in cultivating social solidarity, loving one another, and working for the good of others happens. Scriptures tell us, “There should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it” (1 Corinthians 12:25-27), and “So in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others” (Romans 12:5). The political arena is where we are called to act as the body of Christ, honoring each of its parts, alleviating suffering anywhere. And just as Jesus did not lead by force or concentrated power but spoke of casting down mighty rulers, we are called to assert the strength and needs of our communities, always opposing the imposition of authoritarian, unilateral rule — the kind of government to which Christian nationalism points.

The Catholic tradition affirms that public service is a noble vocation, but only when it serves justice and the flourishing of life. Elected officials must be accountable to all our people, especially the most vulnerable among us, and center the needs of real communities—not the interests of wealthy donors and corporations. In Fratelli Tutti (66), Pope Francis reminds us that we are called to direct society to the pursuit of the common good, and policies and laws that allow unlimited money in politics threaten this democratic and moral obligation. We are called to uncover these workings of wealth and power (“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Ephesians 5:11)) and institute justice in their place.

We know that there are alternatives. Catholic sisters, for example, have long modeled “contemplative dialogue, deep listening, and mutual respect” in consensus-based, collective decision-making processes that serve as an example for our political life at large. A democracy is not a democracy unless it is a culture of participation, encounter, and solidarity with those on the margins, in which our communities can work together to solve problems and meet needs. Transforming our politics and working for a multi-racial, multi-faith, and anti-hierarchical society in which all our communities can thrive is the real meaning of democratic participation — our right and responsibility.

Take Action

WATCH: Watch “White Supremacy and American Christianity: A Consistent Ethic of Hate Threatens Our Democracy” to learn more about the threats that Christian nationalism and white supremacy pose to democracy, how it shows up in current policies and legislation, and what we can do protect our democracy.

SIGN: Tell President Biden that the U.S. needs an H.R. 40 reparations commission. In this installation of the Build Anew Series, we’ve talked about how systemic racism operates through our political system. Support a reparations commission to help transform our politics into a multiracial, multifaith democracy.

LISTEN: Listen to a recent episode of the Just Politics podcast, “Actual strategies for saving democracy,” in which Rachel Kleinfeld reflects on why democracy in the U.S. is in decline and names some steps we can take to protect it.

READ: And, check out this reflection by NETWORK Advocate Bob Kloos on his experience as a poll worker.

Join us again next week for part 7 of the Build Anew Series on our criminal legal system. And don’t forget to stay tuned on Instagram (@network_lobby) and Facebook for our Build Anew video series!

Why I Celebrate the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

Leave a reply

Why I Celebrate the Pregnant Worker’s Fairness Act

Abby Kays
Guest contributor story of truth
October 24, 2023

I have always been an advocate for things I believe in and part of my advocacy journey includes sharing my personal story to show why change is necessary. My account reveals the workplace harm I faced during my pregnancy and is a perfect example for why it was important for the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act to become law. I would love to say that my story is a happy one, that it is joyful and exciting–but it is far from it. 

I was working at a meat processing plant when I became pregnant. I was trained in almost every position and area of the factory. My supervisors put me on fast-paced jobs that required attention to quality control, lifting, packing, and bagging. There was constant movement, twisting, bending, and lifting boxes that weighed up to 100 pounds. Because I worked the second shift, my workday started at 3:00 PM. It was typically scheduled to end at 11 PM, but that rarely happened. Most of the time, I was given notice that I would have to stay for mandatory overtime about an hour before my shift ended.

I actually found out I was pregnant when a fork truck driver hit me at work. The onsite nurse sent me to the hospital to have my injuries checked out. Months before this incident, I’d suffered a miscarriage. It just so happens that around the time I was hit at work, my husband and I had begun to try again to conceive. We even discussed taking a pregnancy test after work that very day. Even so, when preliminary tests at the hospital revealed that I was pregnant, I was stunned.  The doctor told me that he couldn’t administer a CT scan because I was pregnant. I had to have him repeat himself to make sure I heard him clearly.  Under his order, I was off of work until an OB/GYN examination. A few days later, the OB/GYN shared what I’d already suspected — mine would be a high risk pregnancy.  I knew because I had already had four miscarriages. But at about eight weeks along, everything looked good. I was cleared to work with a few restrictions:  no lifting boxes over 30 pounds, access to the restroom as often as possible, and light-duty jobs. Of course I turned that note into work upon my return.

Problems on the job

There were plenty of light duty jobs at the factory available to me that would have protected my pregnancy, such as moving small pallets to different areas, making boxes, packing smaller meat products, quality control inspections, and office work. They honored the OB/GYN’s restrictions  at first, starting me on light duty jobs until they put me back onto my pre-pregnancy duties. If someone was fired, quit, or didn’t show up to work, and they didn’t have anyone else trained on the heavy-duty jobs I did before my pregnancy, they put me into their position. If I needed to go to the bathroom, I would have to relay messages to co-workers around me so they could spread the word to try to find a supervisor to give me permission to go to the restroom. If I was lucky, I could go a half an hour after I got the urge, but most of the time it would be hours later, when it was break time, before I could go. I ended up with urinary tract infections that required repeated doctor visits. There were several times I was given warnings for taking too long to go to the bathroom, or for not being back from lunch on time because I was getting sick in the bathroom due to morning sickness.

My Reminders Fell on Deaf Ears

I continued to remind the supervisors about my pregnancy-related restrictions but was ignored. When I suggested that they train other workers (who weren’t pregnant) for the heavy-duty tasks, I was ignored. I offered to train other people, and was told that management would get someone else trained. This didn’t happen. All I received were excuses–we were too busy or so and so called out sick–either way, there wasn’t anyone else to do the job.

Five and a half months into my pregnancy, I was operating the strapper at the end of the packing line. It is usually a two-person job, but I was assigned to work alone. As my supervisor stood next to me, a fork truck driver ran into the machine and the machine hit my stomach and my supervisor’s hip. My supervisor, who knew what I had already been through with my previous pregnancies, sent me to the nurse immediately.

I stopped in the bathroom on the way to the nurse and noticed bleeding. I recited the details of the accident to the nurse, and the supervisor confirmed the story. I told them both that them I was bleeding. Instead of showing concern for the baby, they told me I was fine and sent me back to work. I was told to return to the strapper–the same job I was working when I was hit.

About 20 minutes after I reported back to work, I was still in a lot of pain and the bleeding continued. I was concerned about a possible miscarriage so I went back to the nurse. I was sent back to work. 30 minutes later, I began to feel contractions every 10 minutes. My supervisor sent me back to the nurse who informed me that, once again, I was fine and sent me back to work.

When my contractions were about two minutes apart, and I was bleeding through my pants, I informed my supervisor that I had to leave. I also told the nurse who informed me that there would be negative consequences if I left. I left. At the hospital, I was rushed to labor and delivery where my contractions were confirmed to be real. They gave me multiple injections to stop the contractions. I almost lost my pregnancy because of the people in charge at my job.

When I returned to work, I had more pregnancy-related restrictions. This time, I discussed them with the human resources department prior to my return. HR agreed to the doctor’s updated recommendations: a 10 pound weight limit on lifting items, limited bending, no kneeling or squatting,  restroom breaks as needed, and light duty work with the ability to sit if needed.

There were plenty of jobs in the factory that I could have done with a stool to accommodate the doctor’s orders like, prepping bags for the lines, making boxes, making labels, and sorting. The day I went back to work I was informed that they were unable to work with my restrictions and informed that I was required to use all of my personal time off and start my FMLA leave immediately. I was also reprimanded (pointed) for leaving work and ignoring the nurse’s order to return to work when I knew I needed to get to the hospital.

More Workplace Challenges After Baby’s Arrival   

I was induced a month before my son’s due date because of complications, but there were even more challenges after he was born. I was scheduled for a standard check-up at six weeks post-partum, but I was too sick with a high fever to go to the doctor. Unfortunately, this appointment fell during the Christmas season and rescheduling near the original appointment date was impossible. It would be a month before I could see the doctor. This impacted the day I was set to get back to the factory.

I contacted HR and let them know about my new post-partum check-up date and they informed me they would take care of it. I returned to work after being cleared by my doctor, I even had a  note from him. I worked for another month and a half before being called into HR for a reprimand.

I was informed that I was to be punished for leaving work after being hit with the strapper–the day I went to the ER with contractions and bleeding. I was also reprimanded for rescheduling my six-week post-partum appointment, which pushed my return to work date beyond the date that was documented when I left to have the baby. I was too sick to go to the doctor, and I couldn’t go back to work until I visited the doctor–and to them, I was a bad worker who missed the documented return to work date.

Today, because of the new federal law, most pregnant people won’t have to experience the challenges and struggles I experienced. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act requires businesses to provide reasonable accommodations, like frequent bathroom breaks, time off for doctor’s visits,  the use of a stool, and honoring doctor-recommended weight restrictions. To me, this is a huge, and very necessary, win for healthy pregnancies and healthy people.

Abby Kay (a pseudonym for the author who wished to remain anonymous while sharing her story) lives in Camden, Indiana and has graciously shared her story with NETWORK advocates. We are grateful that our faith-filled justice-seekers, who were persistent supporters of the PWFA, can read her story of truth. The PWFA took effect on June 27, 2023. To read the accommodations and limitations of the PWFA, visit the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Working the polls strengthens my faith in democracy.

Working the Polls Strengthens My Faith in Democracy

1 Reply

Working the Polls Strengthens My Faith in Democracy

Bob Kloos
September 19, 2023
Bob Kloos at his mailbox with a letter addressed to the White House

Bob Kloos participated in NETWORK’s President’s Day 2023 letter-writing campaign for reparations.

I’m a pastor. I can’t campaign door-to-door. So, I volunteer to work the voting polls. I have done this a few times now, and it’s absolutely a chore with a purpose. Voters deserve to arrive at the polls and be welcomed, assisted, directed, and thanked. I can do that, but it’s not exactly a volunteer gig. The county offers a stipend that works out to about $14 per hour and Election Day is long. Working the polls strengthens my faith in democracy. It’s all about hospitality, teamwork, and respect. It’s about being a neighbor in somebody else’s neighborhood.

Preparations for Election Day

Where I live in Greater Cleveland, the county Board of Elections (BOE) tries to mix it up by balancing the number of Republicans and Democrats working at each polling place–with a few Independents here and there. I live in an area thick with Democrats, so I am often assigned to neighborhoods where staffing is a challenge. The last few times, I have been located in Black precincts, and often, I’ve been the only white person working at the site.

We set up the night before, assembling and lining up voting booths according to the diagram supplied by the BOE. We make certain that electronic voting machines are fully charged and show “0” votes cast, and we check to make sure all ballots and scanners are secured and sealed. At 5:30 AM on Election Day, everything is ready, assignments are given, and the countdown begins.

What Election Day Looks Like

The first wave includes voters on their way to work. They have done this before. Voting is as routine and vital as clocking in for work on time, paying the rent, and spending time with their children. Steady streams of locals arrive with photo IDs in hand. They are informed, prepared, and determined. It is refreshing to see students from a local university arrive as well. They spend three or more years in Ohio, and by voting, they share their convictions even if it means extra effort to secure required documentation for registration. Democracy has a universal attraction, and the satisfaction of exercising this “obligation” is visible on the faces of everyone I see on Election Day, from the first arrivals at 6:30 AM to the last voters who arrive just in time to cast their vote at 7:29 PM.

As a pastor, I know my voice matters. And if voice matters, voting does too. People have died trying to protect their vote and the votes of their people. Many voters are still laboring under oppressive structures and systems that have been in place for decades, even centuries, to try to keep them from voting. Gerrymandered legislative districts continue to propose “unpopular” laws that are against the will and good of the public. This is no time to remain silent or to stay home.

Ohio’s August 2023 Special Election

The most recent election day in Ohio was an unusual August polling day. It was a special election about a proposal to raise the threshold for changing the Constitution in Ohio, to require 60% of the vote +1 (as opposed to 50% +1), and signatures from all 88 counties. Many voters in the predominately Black precincts where I worked came in “hot.” They perceived this initiative to be just another effort to diminish their vote, silence their voice. It was the only item on the ballot, so they were in and out in less than five minutes. Their effort demonstrated to me that they believe this was time well-spent. They weren’t just protecting their own freedom, they were protecting mine as well.

Faith in Democracy

Working the polls strengthens my faith in democracy, which is especially inspiring in our current political landscape. Many elected officials are not public servants, but rather, they are beholden to private interests, corporations, or the for-profit sector. Money drives decisions. And as much as some on the Hill protest that we are a Christian nation, they are loathe to fully consider the gospel narrative that reminds us of the plight of those in the margins (Matthew 25,31-46). Ironically, both the sheep and the goats ask the question: “When did we see you?” Unless we make time in our day to walk with the homeless, families dealing with food scarcity, and political or environmental refugees, numbers and statistics will have no faces, no names, no traction in our everyday decisions.

That’s why I appreciate those with the expertise to remind me of the facts, align them with sound gospel principles, and then lead by example–that is, begin to work for change. I need all the help I can get. I would be at a loss without NETWORK.

I have known of NETWORK for ages. One of the original leaders, Catherine Pinkerton, CSJ, was from these parts. Anecdotally, it has been said that whenever Teddy Kennedy looked up and saw her entering his office, he simply threw up his hands and said, “Whatever you want, Sister Catherine, I will work for it.” And former Executive Director, Sister Simone Campbell, SSS, has spoken in our worship space and NETWORK staff have come to town many times–even on a bus! I am informed by NETWORK. I am inspired by NETWORK.

Bob Kloos lives in Cleveland, Ohio and is a member of the Ohio NETWORK Advocates Team. September 19 is National Voter Registration Day, and the month of September has been designated as voter registration month by the National Association of Secretaries of State. Please register to vote, check to be sure your existing registration is accurate, set voting alerts, and find out how to help others do the same.

Just Politics Catholic Podcast Season 2

Season 2 of Just Politics Podcast is Complete – Listen Now!

Leave a reply

Season 2 of Just Politics Podcast is Complete – Listen Now!

August 24, 2023

After a successful inaugural season of the Just Politics podcast, produced in collaboration with U.S. Catholic magazine, we came back for an exciting second season!  

Our hosts Sister Eilis McCulloh, H.M., Colin Martinez Longmore, and Joan F. Neal spoke with more advocates, Catholic Sisters, scholars, faith leaders, and even a Vatican official about how we can transform our politics for the common good.  

In season 2, which wrapped up in May, our hosts covered topics ranging from Pope Francis and integral ecology to the urgent, Spirit-filled call for economic justice, health care access, and women’s leadership.  

You can find the podcast on the U.S. Catholic website, as well as on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Don’t forget to subscribe, and join the conversation about #JustPoliticsPod on social media!  

Also check out Just Politics press at www.uscatholic.org/justpolitics where you can also sign up for email updates, learn more about each episode, and find additional reading on each episode’s topics. 

COMING SOON: Season 3 of Just Politics podcast drops Monday, Sept. 11!  

Safeguard American Democracy: Oppose the American Confidence in Elections Act and Support the Freedom to Vote Act

Safeguard American Democracy: Oppose the American Confidence in Elections Act and Support the Freedom to Vote Act

Leave a reply

Safeguard American Democracy: Oppose the American Confidence in Elections Act and Support the Freedom to Vote Act

Minister Christian Watkins
July 28, 2023

Safeguard American Democracy:Oppose the American Confidence in Elections Act and Support the Freedom to Vote ActOur country is divided on how to best safeguard American Democracy and the freedom to vote. Some favor continued progress towards a more inclusive democracy with expanded voting protections that benefit all citizens of voting age. Such proponents are in conflict with others who prefer restricted voting laws that make it more difficult for voters to cast a ballot, and whose policies tend to benefit wealthy corporations and individuals. NETWORK Lobby’s Build Anew policy agenda guides our work to forge a multifaith, multi-racial democracy where we all thrive. Paramount to this transformative change is unfettered access to voting. We ask all justice-seekers to join our efforts to safeguard American Democracy and oppose H.R. 4563—the American Confidence in Elections Act and support the Freedom to Vote Act.

While we thank God that the Supreme Court’s holding in Allen v. Milligan protected voting in Alabama’s Black and Brown communities by striking down gerrymandered congressional districts – and the voting power of these communities across the nation, political extremism is still a major threat to our democracy. In 2023, legislators in at least 11 states passed 13 restrictive voting bills. These restrictive voting measures were the result of concerted efforts by dark money special interests and self-serving politicians. Money was funneled to influence policymakers’ decisions to alter voting laws to make it harder for communities of color to vote. Instead of ensuring fair and equal representation promised in our Constitution, Republicans in states across the country have drawn partisan gerrymandered district maps designed to keep political parties and dark money special interests in power.

The prophet Isaiah’s judgement of the rulers and leaders of Jerusalem during their time of seeming prosperity is especially poignant. “They say that what is right is wrong and what is wrong is right; that black is white and white is black; bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter” (Is. 5:20). Sacred reflection is prologue to the contradictory nature of two election related bills recently introduced in the House — the Republican-crafted American Confidence in Elections (ACE) Act (H.R.4563) and the Freedom to Vote Act (FTVA) (H.R.11) — which has bipartisan backing.

The ACE Act (H.R.4563) would:

  • Limit the choices that voters have when registering to vote
  • Repeal President Biden’s Executive Order instructing federal agencies to encourage voter registration
  • Restrict the ability of voters to cast a ballot by mail
  • Create strict photo ID requirements
  • Reinforce partisan gerrymandering
  • Enhance the power of wealthy special interests by increasing contribution limits and maintaining the avenues for anonymous, or dark money, donations

The Act would also restrict private funding of the administration of elections, even as Congressional Republicans refuse to adequately fund the administration of federal elections. And, Washington, D.C. voters are singled out by the legislation as District voters would become guinea pigs for the states, with the establishment of a series of repressive restrictions, including dramatic reductions in drop box access for voters and onerous new voter ID and mail-in voting rules.

Conversely, FTVA (H.R.11), introduced by Rep. John Sarbanes (MD-03) in the House on July 17, 2023, is a transformational pro-voter, anti-corruption bill that is complementary to the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. Passage of this bill would be a vital step forward to live into Build Anew’s mission.

The FTVA (H.R.11) would protect the integrity of elections, simplify voter registration, and expand access to the polls. It would:

  • Protect local election officers and poll workers from harassment and intimidation
  • Limit gerrymandering
  • Shine light on “dark money” flooding into campaign advertising

Untraceable funds allow wealthy individuals and corporations to exert undue influence over the political process and erode the democratic ideal of equal representation. The FTVA (H.R.11) would not allow money to effectively drown out the voices of everyday citizens it would enhance the aspirational principle of “we the people” from the Preamble to our Constitution.

The Catholic faith requires that we on honor human dignity. The rise of dark money and undisclosed corporate donations, coupled with restrictive voting measures, casts a shadow on the integrity of our democratic process, and results in diminished dignity for those left out of the process. We are called to recognize and respect the inherent worth and dignity of every human being, no exceptions!

Voting is not only a civic duty but also a means of upholding the dignity of every person, and allowing them to have a voice in shaping their communities, and the larger society. We must actively working towards the elimination of discrimination, prejudice, and systemic racism in all its forms, especially in our elections. NETWORK strongly opposes the House Republican American Confidence in Elections Act The ACE Act, H.R.4563) and calls for the swift passage of the Freedom to Vote Act (FTVA H.R.11).

Reflections on Solidarity and Democracy - Connection

The Edge of Solidarity

1 Reply

The Edge of Solidarity  

Renewal Comes from Expanding Our View of the Human Family 

Joan F. Neal
July 20, 2023
Joan F. Neal, Deputy Executive Director and Chief Equity Officer at NETWORK

Joan F. Neal, Deputy Executive Director and Chief Equity Officer at NETWORK  

This past spring, the Vatican issued a document repudiating the “doctrine of discovery,” which was used to justify colonialism and atrocities against Indigenous people for centuries. While this movement by the church is welcome and long overdue, it is not without its flaws. Not only does the Vatican document minimize the church’s active and supportive role in colonialism and the oppression and abuse of Indigenous people, it also makes no mention of the transatlantic slave trade. Once again, the institutional church has failed to take responsibility for its role in enslaving human beings.  

This is a helpful illustration of how even those who seek to be allies in the struggle for justice in our society will be confronted time and again by the limits they place on solidarity — by the people whose struggles we fail or choose not to see. Solidarity is like the edges of a canvas or picture frame. It can be extended wide to include the entire human family. Or it can be narrowed so that some individuals, or even entire communities, are left standing beyond the edges of our “family picture.”  

Solidarity can also be like the aperture that adjusts how much light is let into a camera lens. When we set the aperture of solidarity wide, the light can be dazzling, causing so many people — overcome by their role in systems and structures of injustice and oppression — to shut down and retreat to a place of defensiveness and frailty. Every time a politician or media figure decries “wokeness” in our society, I shake my head, sadly aware that this is probably a person who sees the systemic problems and injustices in our midst, but also doesn’t want to do the work to correct these problems, perhaps afraid of what they might be asked to give up in the process.  

It is essential that we persist in doing the real work of solidarity — that we let in the light and extend the frame to the whole picture. We know from Scripture and Catholic Social Teaching (such as articulated by Pope Francis in Laudato Si’) that all of us are connected. When we’re selective in our solidarity, we can make well-intentioned missteps. Recall, in the wake of the 2016 election, how reporters flocked to diners in rural Pennsylvania in an effort to understand and empathize with the “left behind” Trump voter. This attempt at solidarity with one group was admirable, of course, but failed to recognize the wave of destructive policies against Black and Brown communities and the very fabric of U.S. democracy that was unleashed by Trump’s victory. 

Today, it’s clearer than ever that we face a political movement in this country whose capacity for solidarity is completely closed off to others and only includes themselves and people who look and think like them. Christian nationalism embraces the dismantling of democratic structures and weaponization of systems of government to punish those outside of their group and to further oppress people who question this raw use of power that benefits only a white, wealthy few. 

This aggressive anti-democratic movement has been on full display as it moves through state legislatures and other government bodies. It is animated by an awareness that, ironically, feeds into the worst aspects of its own rhetoric: that white Christians represent a shrinking, dying demographic, and that their values are not shared by younger generations. Of course, full participation in society by a multitude of diverse communities is not the end of anyone’s way of life, unless that way of life is defined by racism. The fear of being replaced by one’s neighbor is the antithesis of solidarity.  

Pope Francis has distinguished between populist political movements, which destroy democracy, and movements that are truly popular — that is, of the people — which can be a source of deep renewal in their societies. During this first half of 2023, NETWORK has embraced Pope Francis’ distinction and embarked on a movement for unflinching solidarity, declaring that communities in poverty cannot be held hostage to reckless and cruel budget cuts. That migrant people cannot be left out of our calculus of who matters as we build this country anew. That Black and Brown people, women and children are also made in the image and likeness of God, and their dignity must be respected. That solidarity is our only path out of the destructive environment of our society today.  

We affirm time and again that universal solidarity cannot be separated from the long-term protection of our democracy and the transformation of our politics. In fact, it is the key to lasting freedom and equality, and to the renewal and the authenticity of our own popular movement. Leaving people neglected outside the limits of our frame is a recipe for disaster. But journeying together in true solidarity is indeed the way to the Beloved community, “one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” 

Joan F. Neal is NETWORK’s Deputy Executive Director and Chief Equity Officer.

This column was published in the Quarter 3 2023 issue of Connection. 
Allen v. Milligan is a Surprise Win for Voting Rights

Allen v. Milligan is a Surprise Win for Voting Rights

Leave a reply

A Surprise Win for Voting Rights

JoAnn Goedert, Ignatian Volunteer Corp Member
Government Relations Special Contributor
June 16, 2023

Since the 2013 Supreme Court decision, Shelby v. Holder, voting rights have eroded steadily in the U.S., especially in Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities — often in southern or red states — where suppression efforts by state legislators have created obstacles to the fundamental right to vote. Making matters worse, neither Congress nor the courts have put a stop to these dangerous threats to our democracy. That is, until a recent Supreme Court decision. Allen v. Milligan is a surprise win for voting rights and our democracy.

Allen v. Milligan is a surprise win for voting rights

The Supreme Court’s decision in Allen v. Milligan stunned legal experts and voting rights advocates. In a 5-4 decision, the Court affirmed lower court rulings that the Alabama state legislature violated the Voting Rights Act (VRA) when it brazenly redistricted the state’s congressional districts in 2021. Section 2 of the VRA bars measures that result in racial minorities having “less opportunity than other members of the electorate to participate in the political process and to elect representatives of their choice.” The Alabama legislature violated Section 2 with a redistricting scheme that ensured that only one Black representative would be elected in the state’s seven Congressional districts—despite the fact that Alabama’s electorate is approximately 27% Black.

Why were observers surprised? In the narrow Court finding, Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Kavanaugh (conservatives) joined more Justices Sotomayor, Kagan and Jackson (liberal). It was unexpected because Supreme Court decisions on the Voting Rights Act in the last decade have cut back harshly on the VRA’s effectiveness, and recent statements by various Justices suggested willingness to further, if not decisively, diminish its protections for voters of color.

The Erosion of the Voting Rights Act

In 2013, the Court dealt a severe blow to the VRA. In Shelby v. Holder, the Court struck down the preclearance requirement in Section 4 the VRA that required states with a history of voter discrimination to get the approval of the Justice Department or the federal court before making any election law changes. By ending this scrutiny, the Court eliminated that the VRA’s most effective tool for protecting voting rights in states with a history of voter suppression and intimidation. Later Supreme Court decisions in 2018 and 2021 allowed further state incursions into voting rights.

With the completion of the 2020 census seven years after the Shelby decision, redistricting efforts began in states across the nation. Some southern states–now freed from Justice Department scrutiny—reverted to Congressional district line drawing (gerrymandering) that dramatically diluted the influence of Black voters. Alabama was a prime example, where the legislature redistricted the State to reduce the number of districts with Black majorities from two to just one. In Louisiana, the legislature’s redistricting plan all but guarantees that the State will only have on Black member of Congress from its six districts—despite that fact that over a third of its electorate is Black.

Future Impact of Allen v. Milligan

Last week’s decision means that Alabama must now redraw its congressional map consistent with the Supreme Court’s reasoning and in a manner that almost surely establishes two majority-Black congressional districts. But the decision’s impact will not stop there. At a minimum, it will reverberate to other states with a history of voter discrimination where post-2020 census redistricting schemes have diluted Black representation. Litigation alleging violations of Section 2 of the VRA is already ongoing in Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, and Georgia, challenging the recent redistricting of those states’ Congressional maps, and the outcomes of these cases will now be subject to the Supreme Court’s new ruling.

As a result, political forecasters predict that Black and Brown voters will now play a substantial role in electing the next Congress member in a minimum or two, and possibly four or five, districts where their votes were marginalized by Republican-controlled redistricting schemes. With control over the House of Representatives decided by narrow margins in the last two elections, the impact of even a few seats changing hands may be decisive.

The Allen v. Milligan decision will extend beyond Congressional races to state elections as well. The VRA applies to the election of state legislatures, elected judges, and even some local races. For example, there is already active litigation challenging state legislature maps under Section 2 in Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, North Dakota, and Alabama. Similar cases have been filed challenging:

  • A redistricting plan for the Galveston County, Texas Commissioners Court
  • The Georgia Public Service Commission, and
  • The Mississippi and Louisiana State Supreme Courts.

While Allen v. Miller  signals renewed respect for minority voting rights, it may take time for its impact to be felt widely. It depends on the length of time it takes for cases to wind through federal courts (this can take months) and the time in which new cases are filed. Nonetheless, in a time when the erosion of voting rights has been a striking and tragic trend, the court’s decision in Allen v. Milligan is a rare but crucial victory for democracy.


Celebration Events
Our Timeline
Endowment Fund
-----
Become A Member
Foundress Video

-----
Colin Martinez Longmore and Sr. Eilis McCulloh, HM, of the NETWORK Grassroots Mobilization Team and co-hosts of the Just Politics podcast, stand with a cutout of Pope Francis at University of Detroit Mercy on Oct. 12, 2022, on NETWORK's Pope Francis Voter Tour.

Gen Z’s Voter Vision

Leave a reply

Gen Z’s Voter Vision

Young Catholics See Connections to Their Faith When They Vote for Justice

Nora Bradbury-Haehl
April 19, 2023
Colin Martinez Longmore and Sr. Eilis McCulloh, HM, of the NETWORK Grassroots Mobilization Team and co-hosts of the Just Politics podcast, stand with a cutout of Pope Francis at University of Detroit Mercy on Oct. 12, 2022, on NETWORK's Pope Francis Voter Tour.

Colin Martinez Longmore and Sr. Eilis McCulloh, HM, of the NETWORK Grassroots Mobilization Team and co-hosts of the Just Politics podcast, stand with a cutout of Pope Francis at University of Detroit Mercy on Oct. 12, 2022, on NETWORK’s Pope Francis Voter Tour.

 

On Nov. 9, 2022, the day after the midterm elections, President Joe Biden expressed his gratitude to young voters. “I especially want to thank the young people of this nation, who voted in historic numbers,” he said, and named the issues they came out for: “They voted to continue addressing the climate crisis, gun violence, their personal rights and freedoms, and student debt relief.”

Gen Z has embraced a platform of social justice — economic, racial, climate, immigration — and they don’t just care about it, they vote about it. In 2018, young people ages 18-29 set a record for voter turnout, 28.2 percent, and again this past fall they came just short of that previous performance at 27 percent. Indeed, Gen Z voters, the largest and most diverse generation of American voters in history, are making waves — and stopping them. The much-hyped “Red Wave” of Republican victories in 2022 never came ashore. The nation’s youngest voters made sure of it.

The Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et Spes) urges that “all citizens be mindful of their simultaneous right and duty to vote freely in the interest of advancing the common good.” The Venn diagram of Catholic Social Teaching and the values of Gen Z voters has a wide region of overlap.

But do Gen Z Catholics know it?

Seeing Connection

According to Colin Martinez Longmore, they do. Martinez Longmore is the Grassroots Outreach and Education Coordinator at NETWORK, where he works on equipping young justice-seekers with faith-based advocacy skills and opportunities. A co-host of NETWORK’s “Just Politics” podcast, produced in collaboration with U.S. Catholic magazine, Martinez Longmore spent several weeks in the fall of 2022 visiting college campuses and other venues as part of NETWORK’s Pope Francis Voter Tour, making the case for multi-issue voting across generational lines.

Gen Z voters, one of the most racially and ethnically diverse generations, “are also growing up surrounded by an American popular culture that is much more accepting of diversity than before,” says Martinez Longmore. He contends that because of this, their understanding of the equity and social justice aspects of Catholic Social Teaching is more innate than previous generations.

Emely Hernandez

Emely Hernandez

Emely Hernandez, a 24-year-old studying and working in Chicago, also makes the connection between the church’s social teaching and her own vote.

“There is so much beauty and thoughtfulness in the teachings of the Catholic Church that focuses on upholding the dignity and respect for every human,” she says, naming the call to family, community, and participation as the principle that motivates both her vote and her career. She describes the latter as “focused on advocacy work against human injustices” and “working to promote the greater good for those who are poor and vulnerable.” Her current position involves supporting unhoused individuals, low-income families, immigrants, and refugees.

Ethan Carrino is a Michigan-based college student and a recent convert. He describes a “disconnect” he encounters with some older church leaders over hot-button and social issues.

Ethan Carrino

Ethan Carrino

“As a mixed-race Catholic who’s felt racism in the church, raising awareness ending bias, and having inclusion is very important.” Carrino grew up going to Catholic schools but came into the church through a campus RCIA program.

“Our church calls all cultures/ethnicities to itself,” he points out. Regarding voting, Carrino says his faith pushes him to take note of things Jesus would speak on and think about what the Gospel calls him to do.

“It’s easy sometimes to only see an issue a certain way, but being Catholic helps me to see how the issue impacts everyone, especially those in need,” he says.

According to Tuft University’s Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), a non-partisan, independent research organization focused on youth civic engagement in the United States, “Youth are increasing their electoral participation, leading movements, and making their voices heard on key issues that affect their communities.” The first Gen Z member of Congress, 25-year-old Maxwell Frost, got his start organizing with the anti-gun-violence group March for Our Lives. Voters of Tomorrow, a pro-democracy research and advocacy organization, was founded in 2019 by then 17-year-old Santiago Mayer.

What is Meant by Catholic?

Do Gen Z Catholics see a connection between the church’s teachings and their vote? Christian Soenen, projects manager of the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University and one of NETWORK’s 2022 Social Poets, says perhaps.

Christian Soenen

Christian Soenen

“I think this largely depends on which circles of Gen Z Catholics I am in,” Soenen says. He observes that very devout Catholics on both the left and the right connect their Catholic identity with their vote but that different aspects of religiosity inform their different conclusions on politics.

“Among my friends on the right, ritual, symbol, and personal discipline are components of their practice of faith that then create a cultural lens through which to understand politics” Soenen says, which in his observations translates to conservatism. On the left, “the social message of the Gospels and the prophets form the core of their understanding of their faith.”

Among left-leaning young Catholics, this understanding manifests as a desire for a more inclusive and equitable society that prioritizes issues like poverty and healthcare.

Audrey Carroll

Audrey Carroll

Audrey Carroll, 24, is a political communications professional and former NETWORK staff member. She says her faith provides a framework for the values she cares about and votes for, “by encouraging me to always be in pursuit of justice and the common good.” Carroll says being Catholic teaches her to avoid supporting “policies and legislation that only protect and benefit people with power and privilege” and to reject policies that “intentionally marginalize underserved communities and individuals.”

Nick Cook, 24, works in Rochester, New York at a refugee outreach center. He has worked with homeless veterans and, during college, volunteered with a Catholic organization that serves the people living in poverty in rural Pennsylvania. Cook says he votes the way he does because of his Catholic faith and Catholic Social Teaching. The issues that he identifies as a part of that influence also have wide appeal among his peers: “Respect for all God’s creation — environment, option for the poor and dignity of the human person — higher minimum wage, more expansive public benefits, care for refugees, the homeless, anti-death penalty, anti-gun.”

But he also identifies two big sticking points: “I disagree with a narrative I hear that Catholic voting should lead to voting for anti-abortion candidates without regard for any other issues, especially because I believe conservative candidates have more opinions opposing Catholic social teaching than more liberal candidates.”

His other concern is also common among Gen Z voters: “Thinking about the term ‘Catholicism’ sparks ideas of a lack of openness to issues of sexual orientation and gender identity, even though I and many Catholics I know are open to that. I also believe respect for the gay and transgender community should be included in respecting the dignity of the human person too.”

Where We’re Rooted

Gen Z Catholics, depending on where they worship and what movements or media they are connected to, may or may not hear their own views and values supported by church leaders. Nonetheless, those who are committed to Catholic Social Teaching seem to be firmly rooted.

Martinez Longmore describes his own sense of it: “My Catholic faith instilled instilled in me a deep sense of reverence for the inherent dignity of every person, and an awareness of God’s unique preference for marginalized and shunned communities. So I see issues like creating a just immigration process, or reforming the criminal legal system, or addressing the root causes of poverty through public policy as a very Catholic thing — even if I don’t hear those issues talked about at my local parish or by faith leaders.”

Soenen at Georgetown offers a caveat on the importance of formation: “A Catholic whose faith formation hasn’t included any significant focus on the social dimension of the Gospel will have very little reason to reject the present destructive forces in politics: populist nationalism, nativism, and romanticized notions of the efficacy of capitalism, to name a few. In this case, faith might actually become an obstacle to social justice, especially if it is understood to place morals in a dimension that is somehow separate from the public square.”

But Soenen’s thinking on young Catholics whose faith causes them to care about social justice is that they will have “an extraordinarily impactful dedication to social justice and will carry with them a moral that is more consistent, coherent, and focused on the common good than another system of social values.”

He adds, “When faith and politics are understood together, the faith adds a sense of transcendent importance to the politics, while knowing that that importance is fully expressed in human terms. My Catholicism, for me, means that a political injustice offends both God and humans, and because of that, it has a much stronger hold over my conscience than it would have if the religious component were absent.”

Nora Bradbury-Haehl is the author of “The Twentysomething Handbook” and “The Freshman Survival Guide.”

This story was originally published in the 2nd Quarter issue of Connection. Download the full issue here.

We Have Power to Use

Leave a reply

We Have Power to Use

Positive Change is Not Inevitable; Nor is it Beyond Our Grasp

Min. Christian Watkins
April 4, 2023

In a world that is moving and changing seemingly at an uneasy pace, feelings of hopelessness and helplessness are quite pervasive. With social media hyperstimulation, news cycle fatigue, and electronics exhaustion, it can be paralyzing to do anything other than what is necessary just to exist. When billionaires can financially influence elections, nominations to the Supreme Court, and entire media platforms in hopes of steering events according to their will, the power of the individual can be easily neglected. But regardless, one thing the sacred texts and my mother constantly remind me of is that we have more power than we think.

The system of democracy has been credited to the ancient Greeks. Demos kratos literally translates to “people power.” I constantly see the power that one person’s voice can have in the halls of power. Every time I engage Congress and the Administration, whether through meetings or direct public actions, when people show up, when people use their presence and voice for good, good things happen. This greatly informs how NETWORK approaches all of our key policy areas like criminal legal reform, voting rights, and reparatory justice. It’s all about what we decide to do with the power of the voice and the presence we possess.

April 4 marks the 55th anniversary of the martyrdom of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. An assassin’s bullet may have killed the man, but it couldn’t kill the dreams, prayers, and work of righteous people. One aspect of his legacy that still resonates is how a young Baptist minister from meager beginnings was able to be such a catalyzing force in the movement for good in U.S. politics. The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and ‘60s culminated in the passage of civil rights, voting rights, and fair housing for Black and impoverished people all throughout our country. Dr. King knew how to build power, through and with people, on and for purpose.

Gains made back then are still active struggles today. As my mother says, it’s an unbearable reality that the rights she marched and voted for in the ‘60s are still in question today. But it is soul-settling to know that Dr. King’s advocacy and pastoral legacy through Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church is alive and well through the life and witness of Rev. Senator Raphael G. Warnock.

It is a blessing that Senator Warnock does not stand alone as a high-profile person of faith engaging with U.S. politics. Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis, Rep. Emmanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO), Jeanné Lewis of Faith in Public Life, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, Rev. Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner, and Rev. Dr. Frederick D. Haynes, III are just a few examples of people I believe embody Dr. King’s legacy of faithful public witness and leadership.

Their witness matters especially because we see today too many bad examples that confine Christian political belief to be represented by a small but extremist segment. Most of them fall under the heading of Christian nationalism — the belief that the U.S. is meant to be ruled by white Christians to serve white Christians. That belief system is contrary to the lofty principles and unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness enshrined in our country’s founding documents.

A tragic consequence of this – in addition to the exclusion, oppression, and loss of life that are the natural consequences of nationalist policy — is that religious faith in the public square becomes synonymous with intolerance and hatred, hostile to other belief systems expressed throughout the nation’s citizenry. It is unfortunate that the faith-filled justice-seeker is a strange, unknown construction to many people in the U.S., especially among younger generations.

As a Black man from the South and minister of the Gospel, I find hope and strength in the model of Dr. King. He reminds us: “Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle.” It is a sin — a deadly one — to assume the cause is lost and not take any action at all. It is a virtue to keep showing up. It is a virtue to honor your God-given gifts through presence and witness. This is how we ultimately push past hopelessness and helplessness in our lives. May your power compel you to keep on showing up for justice, peace, and equity.

Min. Christian Watkins is a NETWORK Government Relations Advocate and minister of The United Methodist Church.

This column will be published in our upcoming Quarter 2 2023 issue of Connection.

“Every time I engage Congress and the Administration, whether through meetings or direct public actions, when people show up, when people use their presence and voice for good, good things happen.”