Who I'm Voting for.

Politics are personal. But what if they're not?

When I started this essay, there was a 5,000 word version and there was a 1-word version.

I kept writing the unabridged one. In that one, I proudly dispense my facts and research on the presidential race. I wax on about the Left losing male voters, especially the younger ones. I call the Democratic party’s agenda into question. I have plenty of blame and shame to dish out: Kamala’s questionable nomination, how the economy feels… In the heftier essay, I feel smart, self-righteous, and validated.

But there’s no trophy in winning this debate or being above reproach. So much of politics today, when you sit back and observe it as a martian would, has little to do with policies, nation, or leadership. Instead, it sounds like people vying to be correct. At the very least, they’re fighting to be heard. They are carrying trauma that is being ignored by their government, by the media, by the system… They are bearing a wound that isn’t being addressed by their community.

This is a reductive oversimplification, but for the sake of illustration, let’s say: Women who’ve lost the right to choose, Health advocates who feel manipulated by Big Pharma, BIPOC who want to be seen as equals, Men who are searching for purpose, Comedians who fear for their livelihood, LGBTQ+ who are just trying to exist.

So, we use politics. But instead of drawing others in with the sweet scent of a flower, many of us weaponize our activism like a flamethrower. Now, you’ll listen to me. I’m burning alive. Now, you’ll feel my fire.

I am guilty of this approach too.

At the base, my personal activism and politics have centered around race issues. And those have spun out of my own negative experiences around racism in this country. I’ve voted accordingly. Who best aligns with my views on race? How best can I stick it to the racists? It’s straightforward.

When babies are born, their eyes can only see as far as their needs. As children, their world extends to the boundaries of their ego. But, as adults, we see more clearly outside of ourselves. Especially when we make the investment in other people, we learn empathy. Our awareness of the universe expands. We realize someone else’s wants and truths can be just as urgent to them as our own. Suffering and loneliness are universal…