Maybe we should stop thinking of them as Trump voters, or MAGA voters, and think about them as our fellow Americans who have a shared set of problems to solve.
Finding those problems ("common ground") might be considered part of the "work."
I had created a pdf about this many years ago, uploaded it to the files section in the FB group, but it looks like someone took it upon themselves to prune the many useful files that had been in the FB group, including that one, but not that one alone.
Here's some common problems... and right now, I'm starting a #DOTDHarmsRedStates hashtag on my timeline. I include in those posts how we (those of us in blue states) do not wish red states harm. (I guess I could amplify that to, harm to them is harm to our Great country, and we're in this together! )
Not to mention the Buddhist (I think) idea -- that we are all connected.
Absolutely! I fully agree with you on the "fellow Americans" (or even "fellow human beings" approach -- I'm sure I or Karin will be writing more about that in coming days! Thank you for underscoring that important and useful framing!
And yes, Karin has always recommended thinking of them, and speaking with them as "partners" or "allies" in doing the work together to solve the problems we all share. That can take some talking and listening to find that common ground, the values or even policy points we share and can work together on, but it can be done. (A good example is gun control -- we may feel we have different opinions about it and the Second Amendment, but if we talk with folks who may have voted differently, but when we talk with them, we often find we have not only shared values and goals -- less gun violence in America, especially involving children -- but also shared specific actions, like improved background checks around things like mental health and past actions, restrictions on certain types of ammo or guns, etc.)
As for referring to them as "Trump voters" in these Substack pieces and other Smart Politics content, that part can be tricky from a messaging POV. In the past, I'd use phrases like "people we disagree with" or "people who voted differently" but those can be a mouthful. The tricky balance with writing these pieces is between being nuanced and having an impact. I myself have tried to personally stop using "MAGA" as much as possible (though I'm sure I still do at times) because it's become something of a slur. But I do still use "Trump voters" because right now, in this moment, that's the most succinct and effective way to get folks focused on who they need to talk to. But it is something I constantly think about and keep finessing as a writer.
And as for the FB files -- I'm probably not much help on that. I'm sorry those files are missing, but I have no idea if they were intentionally removed (doubtful) or a FB glitch. I started working with Karin in 2020, so there were a lot of FB materials before that I never saw. As it stands now, we are not using the updating the FB group page for a number of reasons, and shifting our focus here to Substack, so please feel free to repost any relevant materials here or in the Smart Politics Substack chat https://karintamerius.substack.com/publish/chat. In the meantime, I can venture back into the FB group and poke around to see what might have happened to older files there, but I honestly doubt I'll be able to find or do much at this point, sorry!
Maybe we should stop thinking of them as Trump voters, or MAGA voters, and think about them as our fellow Americans who have a shared set of problems to solve.
Finding those problems ("common ground") might be considered part of the "work."
I had created a pdf about this many years ago, uploaded it to the files section in the FB group, but it looks like someone took it upon themselves to prune the many useful files that had been in the FB group, including that one, but not that one alone.
Here's some common problems... and right now, I'm starting a #DOTDHarmsRedStates hashtag on my timeline. I include in those posts how we (those of us in blue states) do not wish red states harm. (I guess I could amplify that to, harm to them is harm to our Great country, and we're in this together! )
Not to mention the Buddhist (I think) idea -- that we are all connected.
Absolutely! I fully agree with you on the "fellow Americans" (or even "fellow human beings" approach -- I'm sure I or Karin will be writing more about that in coming days! Thank you for underscoring that important and useful framing!
And yes, Karin has always recommended thinking of them, and speaking with them as "partners" or "allies" in doing the work together to solve the problems we all share. That can take some talking and listening to find that common ground, the values or even policy points we share and can work together on, but it can be done. (A good example is gun control -- we may feel we have different opinions about it and the Second Amendment, but if we talk with folks who may have voted differently, but when we talk with them, we often find we have not only shared values and goals -- less gun violence in America, especially involving children -- but also shared specific actions, like improved background checks around things like mental health and past actions, restrictions on certain types of ammo or guns, etc.)
As for referring to them as "Trump voters" in these Substack pieces and other Smart Politics content, that part can be tricky from a messaging POV. In the past, I'd use phrases like "people we disagree with" or "people who voted differently" but those can be a mouthful. The tricky balance with writing these pieces is between being nuanced and having an impact. I myself have tried to personally stop using "MAGA" as much as possible (though I'm sure I still do at times) because it's become something of a slur. But I do still use "Trump voters" because right now, in this moment, that's the most succinct and effective way to get folks focused on who they need to talk to. But it is something I constantly think about and keep finessing as a writer.
And as for the FB files -- I'm probably not much help on that. I'm sorry those files are missing, but I have no idea if they were intentionally removed (doubtful) or a FB glitch. I started working with Karin in 2020, so there were a lot of FB materials before that I never saw. As it stands now, we are not using the updating the FB group page for a number of reasons, and shifting our focus here to Substack, so please feel free to repost any relevant materials here or in the Smart Politics Substack chat https://karintamerius.substack.com/publish/chat. In the meantime, I can venture back into the FB group and poke around to see what might have happened to older files there, but I honestly doubt I'll be able to find or do much at this point, sorry!
Thanks so much for your comment!
Locke
Thank you for addressing these issues. I look forward to more help and tips.
Glad you find it useful, Dolores! Are there any areas or ideas you're especially struggling with when either contemplating or doing this kind of work?