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It's the Freedom, stupid! [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2023-08-28
The Biden team released a great ad about abortion rights…...
I think all Democrats need to learn a quick lesson here at the end of this ad.
Going to school as a child / young person in the early 70’s into the mid 80’s, I was indoctrinated with the idea that America was the beacon of freedom across history and around the globe. Leaders of the free world, land of the free - home of the brave and all that.
As I have aged, I realize that much of this messaging is flawed or missing great gobs of context.
Freedom for some but not all humans living within our borders since the nation’s founding until the Civil War and even then, a curtailed freedom for POC ever since. Freedom for far-flung nations across the globe as long as their governments are in lockstep with American interests (usually business interests). Corporations are people too my friend and they deserve freedom just like the rest of us. You get the idea.
Either way, Americans are enamored with the idea of “freedom,” often without really understanding what the word really means practically.
It’s partly a BS talking point we like to tell ourselves when we think of the greatness of America and our manifest destiny to spread democracy and capitalism from sea to shining sea. But at the same time, it is woven into our core mindset as a nation now, at least for many voting-age citizens.
The idea of freedom plays a HUGE part in our political discourse and it’s more often than not a big part of GOP messaging.
- “Freedom” is the underlying rallying cry against single-payer healthcare. “Death panels” were just a scare tactic about taking away your freedom to see the doctor of your choice (while completely ignoring the fact that insurance companies are actively denying that freedom daily).
- “Freedom” and “don’t tread on me” (really two sides to the same coin) are the stated reasons for the lack of gun reform.
- “Freedom” is used to defend trickle-down economics and “let the market decide” craziness.
- “Freedom” is used by climate-denying politicians and business leaders when they tout American energy independence as the America first reason to ramp up fossil fuel production. “Drill baby drill” is just a “freedom” message, which in reality is just a corporate profit message in disguise.
- Christian nationalists shout religious “freedom” at the top of their lungs while they attack (sometimes physically) our institutions, all while wishing to impose their beliefs on the rest of us.
- “Freedom” is used as an excuse to ban books because some parents should have the right to what their children are learning even when their choice takes away options from other parents.
Most of us who actually pay attention to politics beyond a superficial level understand that these shouts of “freedom” from the Right are hollow smokescreens that are often counter to real “freedom” in the first place…. but the GOP’s message does attract large portions of the public, tricking them into believing they are voting for “freedom” when they vote Republican.
We need to start using “freedom” as the centerpiece of our messaging on the left.
- The freedom to walk safely around your local community as a person of color without fear of the police or vigilantes.
- Freedom to consider joining a union without corporate reprisal if you feel it’s right for you and your family.
- Freedom to live a middle-class lifestyle by getting paid a decent wage at the end of a 40-hour work week.
- Freedom to eat good food, drink clean water and breathe fresh air without pollution and contaminants.
- Freedom to live a healthy life without fear of an insurance company turning you down for a medical procedure.
- Freedom to live where you wish without the threat of climate change-induced environmental catastrophe.
- Freedom to love who you want based on your own preferences and desires.
- Freedom to live in a just society that treats all individuals equally under the rule of law.
- Freedom to choose your religious beliefs, including the right to have none, without pressure.
- Freedom to make decisions about your body as a woman.
For good or bad, the word freedom has outsized resonance with Americans. Democrats need to capitalize on that resonance. The GOP has been using that word for so long that it’s hypnotized large swaths of the voting public. They use it as a sword and shield, saying, “Democrats are trying to take away your freedom” and “the GOP is the party of personal liberty.”
Democrats need to reclaim the word “freedom” by using it as a core component of every… single….. message. The words we choose matter and freedom is possibly the single most powerful word in politics…. follow Joe Biden’s message here and LEARN TO USE IT!
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[1] Url:
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/8/28/2190097/-It-s-the-Freedom-stupid
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