I know that many of us are still recovering from the news of the election. Not only have the presidential election results left us feeling angry, saddened, and scared for the future, we also faced some disappointing losses at the state level too.
Prop 5, which would have made it easier to fund affordable housing, failed and Prop 36, which will make mass incarceration worse, passed. But make no mistake, the fight for housing for all and criminal justice reform is far from over.
Every successful movement in history has faced setbacks. It doesn’t mean all progress is lost. It just means we have to learn from our losses, keep growing our movement, and move forward to secure what our communities need in the future.
With both Prop 5 and Prop 36, we were massively outspent by real estate and corporate interests. The opposition to Prop 5 raised over $30 million, with top donors like the California Association of Realtors and California Business Roundtable pouring in money to block efforts to make housing more affordable in order to protect their profits. Proponents of Prop 36, mostly giant retail corporations and again, the California Business Roundtable, threw more than $16 million at the measure to secure their bottomline while touting a misleading narrative of safety. When we are outspent to such a colossal extent, megacorporations and real estate interests get to shape how voters understand these measures. That’s why it’s so critical for us to have one on one conversations with voters to deliver them the real facts about these propositions, and how we can vote to put the needs of working people first.
If you’re feeling lost in despair, join a post-election community event to turn that despair into collective action. The time is now to build our collective power.
This Saturday, 11/16, Bay Resistance and We are CA are having a mass community gathering in Oakland, and next Wednesday, 11/20, we are holding a Post-election Debrief on Zoom to take in the local, state, and federal election results and talk about what’s next.
In times like these, being in community can not only help us heal, but also ensure that our chance of making a change isn’t lost in despair. I hope to see you at one of these upcoming events.
In solidary,
Celi Tamayo-Lee
Executive Director
SF Rising
