Support The Team, Win The Game

Some of you out there are forgetting not only what’s at stake, but are also forgetting how to even play to win. I’ll be using all kinda sports metaphors in this post – most likely mixed in with my usual Words Of Wisdom and – so get your life. Buckle up, adjust your thinking caps, your reading chapeaus and get ready to take notes.

Because there WILL be a test on this come Tuesday, November 8th, 2016.

I’m not what you would call a “political person”. For example my twitter handle isn’t Democrat Diva or have my net avatar in spaces be some artistic version of the Obama Yes We Can logo. I don’t talk politics a lot. However. I AM a dyed in the wool Democrat. I’m Black. I’m a Woman. iVote. I show up every time and vote down the ENTIRE ticket, fill in the full ballot, flip that ish over and check to see if there’s stuff to vote for on the other side. What I’m saying is this:

I Participate. I show up for ALL the games. I support The Team.

I’m not going to get into too many specifics here, because really, what I’m talking about is the Big Picture. The Long Game. My Buddha Blessed FUTURE here. I ain’t got the time to squabble with people about stuff I know exactly what I’m gonna go do No Matter What anyways.

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Listen, I feel your pain. Rod of The Black Guy Who Tips Podcast (#TBGWT) felt our pain too, and conceived of this awesome concept: Meh The Vote. Basically, “… a political campaign to motivate people to vote in these 2016 party primaries. This campaign is targeted at those in the electorate who feel dispassionate about any of the candidates they have to choose. from.”

I loved this idea, heck, I even bought the T-shirt.

But I’m getting a little ahead of myself.

What I’ve been seeing out there in these political streets is people stanning for their favorite player in quite often such horrible ways. From stalking, harassing, abusing and even becoming physically violent with anyone perceived to not be backing their fave.

It’s utterly appalling and I’m not here for that at all. In particular because what gets lost in all this hate and madness is what we are actually supposed to be doing here in the first place. I see a lot of Americans out there right now swearing up and down that if their candidate doesn’t make it to the big game, they simply won’t vote at all.

Which begs the question. Well a lot LOT of questions, really, but mainly this one:

Why Are You Here?

Are you here to make sure that the Democrats solidify their hold in all areas of the government from top to bottom? Or are you here to to just go to your fave’s rallies, come home and spend hours and hours trolling, harassing and jumping in the mentions of those – usually your fellow Democrats, usually Black women – spewing all sorts of filth from death threats to racist slurs….. I mean do you even KNOW how this works?

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I knew that this election was going to be a hot mess, and like so many of us – especially Black voters – I was not enamored of who my choices were going to be – still not, By The Way, lest you believe that I’m on Team Hillary or on Team Bernie.

Guess what team I’m on.

Team Democrat that’s who.

I’ll do what my people have done for decades: Supported the party that has for the most part been able to understand what our particular wants and needs are. We come in coalition with other similarly minded People Of Color and we ROCK THE GODDAM VOTE. Turnout among Black voters in this country has only risen since 2008, with Black Women demographic racking up the highest numbers.

We are the base of the Democratic Party and we stay loyal and we keep Our Eyes On The Prize. And if you don’t know, now you know:

“First of all, the number of black women who turn out to vote is higher than any other demographic group – 70% in 2012. That number has been rising since 1996, so it is more than a response to the candidacy of Barack Obama. And no group votes more consistently Democratic than black women.”

Also, for those that never click on my blog post links even though I so handily set them to open nicely in a separate tab:

“Black women represent a significant portion of the Rising American Electorate (RAE), an estimated 115 million eligible voters – and nearly half of the electorate – composed of unmarried women, people of color, and people under 30 years old.

Black women sit at the intersection of these groups, representing just over half of the 26.9 million eligible Black voters and 19% of all eligible unmarried women voters (Lake, Ulibarri, and Treptow 2013).

They also represent the most active and dependable contingent of the RAE, contributing to its growing influence and playing an essential role in building coalitions across RAE groups to influence electoral outcomes in future races.”

And yet… consistently we get people talking down to us. Calling us politically ignorant, that we vote the plantation (racist much?), aren’t politically savvy etc etc and this is from our fellow party members! White folks who call themselves progressives! Liberals!

Oh we been knowing – quite intimately – the problems with our party of choice, Trust & Believe: We Know. I could rattle out phrases like The Lesser Of Two Evils, or somesuch, but what it always comes down to is how we can best leverage our political power to help positively shape our lives for our people, our children and for America as a whole.

The Democrats have been our best bet so far to make those things happen.

Because it goes without saying – but I HAVE to say it in these days and these times that we live in: I’m also on Team America. We are citizens of this Earth. We are part of the Global Community. What happens in the hallways of Capital Hill and in the Oval Office affects what happens out there in the world.

I’m not saying this coming off of some Murrica So Great, We’re Number Wun steeze, No Ma’am. It is a reality. So many of you have forgotten the Huge Sigh Of Relief that went bouncing around the world in the form of headlines, blog posts, articles, TV segments, radio programs from countries all over this planet on the eve of Barack Obama’s win in 2008. I’ve never forgotten it.

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I told a little lie in the 2nd paragraph of this post. I said that I show up every time. Well, for the first time in YEARS I didn’t fill in my mail-in ballot when it arrived nice and early in my mailbox. Waiting there for me to make my choice in the Arizona Presidential Preference Election (March 22nd, 2016).

For the first time in over a decade, I was simply UNABLE to cast my vote. I tried SO damn hard to put my money where my mouth was and just MEH THAT DAMN VOTE. But I failed.

I can’t say why exactly that happened. Maybe I felt the weight of years of showing up while so many of you didn’t bother. Maybe I literally couldn’t decide between the offerings at hand. Maybe I wanted to take a time out and let y’all do the work for a change. Not Sure.

Maybe because I knew then, just as I know now: That whoever ends up being the Democrat Candidate for President of the United States I’m going to Vote For Whoever That Person Is No Matter What.

So I guess I left that choice to those who DID manage to Meh themselves to the voting booths or fill in and mail back their ballots. Knowing that I know myself well. I know that I will Do My Duty as a Team Player and get it Handled.

Because I will.

It will probably be easier for me than for those that backed, and stanned for and proselytized with so much zealotry their player, who might not now be the one up there for you to vote for…..

I dunno.

But what I DO know is that you need to get over yourselves, look a the Entire Picture, know what’s at stake for your family, this country and simply Support Your TEAM. You sit this one out over some pettiness or anger that your player didn’t make it to the big game… Well I got nothin.

GROW UP.