Image Transcription:

A tweet from the George Takei Twitter account which states:

"A Democrat was in the White House when my family was sent to the internment camps in 1941. It was an egregious violation of our human and civil rights.

It would have been understandable if people like me said they’d never vote for a Democrat again, given what had been done to us.

But being a liberal, being a progressive, means being able to look past my own grievances and concerns and think of the greater good. It means working from within the Democratic party to make it better, even when it has betrayed its values.

I went on to campaign for Adlai Stevenson when I became an adult. I marched for civil rights and had the honor of meeting Dr. Martin Luther King. I fought for redress for my community and have spent my life ensuring that America understood that we could not betray our Constitution in such a way ever again.

Bill Clinton broke my heart when he signed DOMA into law. It was a slap in the face to the LGBTQ community. And I knew that we still had much work to do. But I voted for him again in 1996 despite my misgivings, because the alternative was far worse. And my obligation as a citizen was to help choose the best leader for it, not to check out by not voting out of anger or protest.

There is no leader who will make the decision you want her or him to make 100 percent of the time. Your vote is a tool of hope for a better world. Use it wisely, for it is precious. Use it for others, for they are in need of your support, too."

End Transcription.

The last paragraph I find particularly powerful and something more people really should take into account.

  • Dagwood222
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    7 months ago

    Frederick Douglas was legally barred from voting. He still worked for politicians who wouldn’t promise to end slavery. Was he a dupe? Are you more moral than he was?

    • knightly@pawb.social
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      7 months ago

      When criticized on that point by abolitionists, Frederick Douglass is quoted, “I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong.”

      I think that rather succinctly describes my criteria for judging the candidates next year.

      • Kethal@lemmy.world
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        7 months ago

        He was saying he would unite with someone evil if he could accomplish good, and he would not unite with someone good to accomplish evil. That’s exactly the thing everyone else is saying. You have found a quote that perfectly contradicts your argument and supports everyone else, and you don’t even realize it.

        • Dagwood222
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          7 months ago

          Thanks for replying for me. I’m sure they know it; they’re just the kind of troll who wants to wrap themselves in a cloak of piety.

      • Dagwood222
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        7 months ago

        So, you’re going to unite with Trump. Kissinger always explained that he’d had to kill all those Asians in order to prevent WW3. Henry would be proud of your logic, Frederick not so much.