Well, friends, it’s time to think about New Year’s resolutions. And I, for one, am ready for some positive activism to encourage our best natures and our best progressive populist efforts. Don’t know about you, but around here many of the best folks I know are wallowing in self-pity and reading books about Nazis and shame.
Pessimism never got nobody nowhere, folks. Not saying we should be delusional but we have a strong ability to resist the next administration’s worst efforts. Almost every news cycle brings a little hope as the next president walks back on his most stupid campaign promises. We can resist, at least on a personal level. Keep the models in our memories: Rosa Parks, Jane Addams, Upton Sinclair, Bernie Sanders, Paul Robeson, Jackie Robinson, Rachel Carson, Thurgood Marshall, Pete Seeger, Malcolm X, Betty Friedan. There are so many others that this entire column could be a hero list.
Not only do we have hundreds of role models, but our resistance is gaining traction. Many of our non-profits are thriving due to infusions of panicky year-end donations. Many of our best ideas are paying off: Please note today’s booming farmers’ markets that were launched with little fanfare and success 50 years ago. Maybe you take for granted the availability of fresh, local food and purchases that put dollars into the pockets of rural folks or maybe you haven’t caught the wave yet but, trust me, it’s amazing to those who watch it grow.
Okay. Here begins the “Resolutions for 2025” part of this column:
Think global, act local. Yeah, I know you’ve heard this before but this year it makes more sense than ever, especially since we know it pays off. On Nov. 5, 2024, in seven states, local activists were able to roll back anti-abortion laws. In three other states where pro-choice initiatives were introduced, the issue failed, which means there’s a lot of work to be done. Abortion is a crummy means of birth control, but sometimes it is the only means available, and we all must be allowed control of our own health and our bodies. Women, yes, are the obvious objects of the procedure, but all of us are affected. Men, thank you, voted to protect us and guarantee the right to end a pregnancy that affects many more folks than a specific girl or woman.
Every situation is unique and in the years of the bans we have heard of many of the causes—rape, incest or pregnancy that endangers a mother’s life. Since the abortion procedure became illegal it has been examined thoroughly with the New York Times reporting that about 14% of unwanted pregnancies occur in married women. She may be overwhelmed with other family obligations, not able to afford a newborn, involved in a career, suffering job loss, the list goes on. About a third of unwanted pregnancies occur in unmarried women with partners and half in single women without.
Continuing the “think global, act local” theme, a useful New Year resolution is to volunteer. Artificial intelligence has made it easy to find an organization that suits you. I used my search engine to find “progressive voluntary organizations” and up came a list of 500, many of which operate here in Missouri. Just reading the categories provides nudges: electoral politics, peace and U.S. foreign policy, social justice, health advocacy, environment just to mention a few.
Working for one of those organizations can put us in touch with likeminded folks, but maybe that’s not local enough. Maybe we need to build our own neighborhoods. When the Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations came into my community, many of my best friends moved away. My husband and I are now surrounded by newcomers. It turns out that some of them are the “reside in the country, work in town” types without ties to our area. We wave at each other, car to car as we negotiate the gravel roads but that’s not interaction. One of my 2025 resolutions is to promote super-local events. A community yard sale? Jam session? Ice cream social? With only a few friends left in my neighborhood, I’m at sea, but nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Every now and then, I take a deep dive into social media in the internet world. There’s a shocking lesson to be learned with this exercise: Loneliness is rampant in our society. People don’t know their neighbors any more. Maybe due to COVID, maybe due to lack of religious connections. Whatever. The important news is this: Making connections is a matter of resolution. When a neighbor puts tables of stuff out for a yard sale, or is out gardening, walking their dog, waiting for the bus...that’s a chance for us to interact.
Take the chance … Act local. Make it one of your resolutions for 2025.
Margot Ford McMillen farms near Fulton, Mo., and co-hosts “Farm and Fiddle” on sustainable ag issues on KOPN 89.5 FM in Columbia, Mo. Her latest book is “The Golden Lane: How Missouri Women Gained the Vote and Changed History.” Email: margotmcmillen@gmail.com.
From The Progressive Populist, January 1-15, 2025
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