Final news and reflections from the election

Here are some suggested solutions to the strategy and messaging.

Abortion rights activists won in Montana while losing a close one in Nebraska. 

That means most states voted to advance reproductive rights, while Florida, South Dakota, and Nebraska fell short. This shouldn’t be a time when we give up on advancing abortion rights in those states, but it does mean that we have to develop persuasive messaging and a new approach to campaigning. 

Allie Berry, Campaign Manager for Protect Our Rights, behind the Nebraska initiative, sent a news release afterward. She said that antiabortion politicians had spent over $13 million on spreading misleading information to confuse voters. 

“From misrepresenting their measure during the petition process to plagiarizing ads and even using government officials to spread misinformation, conservatives and anti-abortion activists debuted a dangerous new playbook to undermine reproductive access here and across the country,” Berry said in a statement. “Now, Nebraska politicians are one step closer to passing a total abortion ban, which Gov. Pillen has promised to sign.”

There is much to evaluate and break down. Here are a few of my thoughts. 

The hardest one to accept was Florida because it came so close. The 60 percent threshold is difficult to cross but not impossible. We must examine closely what could shift the final three percent in favor of a future effort. Abortion speakouts, like they had in the 1960s, would be one way. Films and plays that depict these scenarios are another. We need more books. We need a concerted effort to tell these stories in every medium available. 

I’ve seen some celebrities say that their anger has dissipated and that they will return to watching Bravo shows. That doesn’t seem to be the responsible way of using the influence they’ve been given. Famous singers and actresses must be consistently involved, invested, and interested, not just when a presidential election comes around. They should be on the ground throughout the ensuing decades. They should work alongside us by taking pictures of themselves canvassing and sharing them on their social media accounts. They should produce, star, and direct movies that deal with the topic. That is where they can make a difference. 

The rhetoric going forward has to be based on common forms of conversation and dialogue. It can’t be abstruse, and it should be informed by the messaging developed during the second wave of feminism. We should also track down older feminists and learn from their methods of building the movement. Then, we should duplicate that and adapt it to today’s approach. It has to go beyond a few social media posts. 

We also have to realize that feminism intersects with issues like environmentalism, poverty relief, racism, food insecurity, and labor concerns. Understanding the exact ways these intersect and the suggested solutions is vital to developing a comprehensive and encompassing approach that appeals to every demographic and persuades them to care about groups they don’t belong to. 

Insofar as our political parties, the operatives, and politicians need to commit to democratic values, transparency, and accessibility. Future candidates should be available to the public and reporters and prepared to deal with any question. Their staff should have read hundreds of books and spoken to hundreds of people on whatever topic they must prepare. We should also support reforming the nomination process to make the president and the vice president selected by voters instead of candidates and their advisors. 

We need to involve younger people in decision-making. They are primarily affected by abortion access. We can’t see them merely as social media influencers but as intelligent people whose input is valued and which shapes the approach and messaging. We need to debate and discuss why we agree or disagree with them, be fully prepared, and not be threatened by their skepticism and intelligence. We can’t pat them on the head. 

I’ve begun researching historically successful politicians in Texas. That’s not living in a time warp. It’s combining lessons from the past with what we know works today, like the power of social media. 

We also must localize the movement as much as possible. We must trust local activists and give them the necessary support and autonomy to succeed. They’ll know the regional problems and people to connect with. They’ll know who has actual influence in a community, which may not be reflected on social media. Sometimes, the most influential person living there isn’t on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. 

I’ll have more at a later point. After speaking to more people, I intend to publish my book in the coming few years. I also have an abortion-related play and screenplay I’m trying to get produced.