Bending The Arc Late November 2024

Still a Social Justice Newsletter for Educators

Photo by Hannah Domsic on Unsplash

Dear friends,

I needed some time before trying to put this newsletter together. I made a conscious decision to write after the US election rather than beforehand. I opted to wait until we knew what was what. I considered the many projections that the results would likely be too close to call right away, that it might take days before we knew the exact outcome. I was prepared for a tight contest and competing victory announcements.

The actual outcome was far less complicated than all that. I woke up in Europe on November 6th to news that after Georgia went to Trump, the deal was pretty much sealed in his favor. I briefly scanned the news and put it all away. My teen turned 17 on November 6th and that’s where I put my energy that day - making sure that he felt loved and celebrated and special. At work I taught my classes and hardly spoke of the election out loud. It was mainly through gestures in passing that colleagues and I acknowledged our disappointment.

A few email exchanges with friends allowed me to take some deep breaths. I logged out of Bluesky for what I thought would be just a few days but I still don’t have to wherewithal to process the wave of opinions there seeking an audience. To my best friend I wrote: “…for now I'm focusing on listening to Black folks, and queer and trans folks, and immigrants.” So far that position has served me well for the most part. Hence, this month’s offer: stuff to read and listen to in the wake of a disastrous electoral outcome.

The reality is that the majority of American voters decided that a wannabe authoritarian and convicted felon would be the better solution for the country going forward rather than a highly qualified Black woman. That is informative for folks who weren’t clear about the role of white supremacy and patriarchy in shaping this (still and unfortunately) historic electoral result. Sure, say it was the economy and inflation that drove voters into the arms of a strongman and his death-making cult. Yes, and for that they are all quite willing to sacrifice all the people this next administration plans to target, assuming it will never be them.

OK, I’m not here to analyze the outcome. There are experts and non-experts alike who have already spilled gallons of digital ink doing so. But I am angry and hurt and frustrated and not at all ready to just carry on.

Post-Election Voices I Found Helpful

Anyway here are some sources that have afforded me a bit of peace, offered perspective or simply allowed me to feel all my feelings as needed.

Tressie McMillan Cottom on the Daily Show makes the case in plain terms that the President-elect has a “weird gift” of knowing what people really want. Not what they say they want but what they actually desire - to feel powerful, like they’re winning and that it won’t cost them anything. Far and away, the most reasonable take I’ve spent time with.

Sam Sanders, Zach Stafford and Saeed Jones on Vibe Check gave me some ground to stand on. Their post-election episode, Democracy TBD, felt nourishing to me. Perhaps it was the fact that they opened by sharing the questions and comments from Black women on what they wanted to hear on the show. Yes, and also the hosts’ unapologetic honesty. It’s easy to show up for that.

Similarly, three Black friends who are prominent cultural and political commentators process their response to the election in the immediate aftermath: UNDISTRACTED, hosted by Brittney Packett-Cunninham. I needed to hear this conversation. It is raw and real.

Author Robert Jones shared the graphic of a voter identity breakdown in his reaction letter. To see the way the majority of not just white voters but also latino men voted for that awful man upset me anew. Listen:

“Trump’s predictable return to the presidency -…was nothing more and nothing less than the majority of white voters confirming that they want to live in a country that adheres to the standards of living as expressed in 1824 rather than 2024.”

An op-ed by a high school junior gets at the growing gulf between young women and men in their perception of the election’s outcome. “I’m 16. On Nov. 6 the Girls Cried, and the Boys Played Minecraft.”

For folks trying to figure out what to do in preparation for the dreadful policies to come, here’s a quick rundown which might be helpful to someone you know, especially if worried about access to birth control and abortion medication.

Wrapping Up

I’m sad that this newsletter is focused on a terrible electoral outcome that has implications far beyond they borders of the United States. I’m frustrated at how stuck I feel in the processing of what is and what’s ahead. I derive no real satisfaction knowing that Black women as a voting block clearly understood the assignment and did not waver. I’m sure that’s why I have postponed publishing Bending The Arc this time around. My level of depletion has taken me aback. I had dared to hope that another reality was possible. That’s hard and troubling after the fact.

Given that, I will refrain from trying to do anything else here in this moment. I’m going to allow myself that.

(Except directing you to this set of mazes illustrating the level of difficulty in accessing abortion care in the US which will blow your mind. And I need to share it before it escapes mine.)

Thank you for your understanding.

Take care, y’all,

Sherri