And we did a lot of work — Stacey Abrams, Latosha Brown, so many activists across the country in Arizona, Georgia, who built infrastructure — to convince people that they should give us one more shot to trust that the government will step in and do something that matters. We’ve got to deliver.
As I keep attempting to unravel the events of last week again and again, I find myself coming to it from so many different angles. Congresswoman Jayapal lends a brand new voice in a moving and stark interview with Rebecca Traister at The Cut.
She highlights some details I hadn’t previously known. They seemed to be aware of the threat, the representatives were given strict instructions and told to bring overnight bags. And there does appear to have been intentional oversights by law enforcement, the question is simply at what level and at what part of the system.
But even more so, Jayapal is rallying for hope. Not the hope of the Obama era, the boundless optimism of an egalatarian neoliberal future. Jayapal’s hope is with the people she represents. She believes that the voting public has put their faith in the government this one last time. And they better damn well do something with that chance.