While grassroots may be viewed as a political affiliation, at root, it is educated activism, and street advocacy. When society comes together for voter registration events, or community service and engagement, it is at this level that politics is initiated. This advance civil participation before it is turned over to politicians, addressing the people’s needs and embodying a trickle up government.
A trickle up government is essential in promoting nonpartisanship because politics starts with the people; is turned to organizations and leaders; then is handed up to our government bureaus. Here, we promote the people’s republic and not private or ‘government’ interest.
As a progressive, I have connected with grass roots to not only advance underrepresented narratives and to advance underserved needs, but to ensure the people are involved in politics. Because all equity and inclusion programs, in essence, provide direct access to congressional rights, we can build a government that’s power rest in the people, not strictly into branches.
All political movements that were a change maker, established reform or legal precedent, all were grassroots.
Martin Luther King Jr., a pastor who utilized his faith, and congregation to establish a pipeline directly to the executive branch advancing the Civil Rights Movement; Malcolm X, a first-generation black man whom mobilized educated activism for The Nation of Islam, and Black America; Ta-Nehisi Coates and James Baldwin, both authors who spoke of the black-experience from black narration, moving society towards truth over discourse.
The Black Panther Party utilized a Ten-Point Program (symbolic of a policy proposal) to advocate self-determination for Black folks and oppressed communities; it discussed manifest destiny of the people, economic justice, equitable access to basic necessities, etc. This continues today, through three black woman organizers; Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi. These women radicals founded The Black Lives Matter movement in response to the acquittal of Trayvon Martin’s murderer, George Zimmerman.
These movements and activist, promote social justice reform, advocate for equitable politics, and inclusion of persons who have historically been subjected to discrimination and disenfranchisement.
If true democracy brings constituents together, social justice must become the duty of the government, grassroots must be redefined from woke to reforming, and civil participation must begin from these roots not the polls alone.
Acknowledgement: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the individual author, not necessarily Our National Conversation as a whole.