Coalition politics defines the mission of Democracy for All 2021 Action, a group of liberal and progressive organizations looking to work together against a rigged political system and take advantage of the next year to make needed change.
The group, a project of left-leaning donor group the Sixteen Thirty Fund, provides a space for a number of groups across the country to come together to promote what they describe as “needed reforms” to the American system in the wake of the election.
Out of shared frustration
“Our political system has so clearly failed the people that the environment will be ripe for a big transformative package to make our government work for all of us,” the group’s campaign director and founder Deirdre Schifeling told The Guardian in September.
Schifeling also told The Guardian that she started the group in 2019 as a way to address what she described as the disconnect between politicians and those they represent—a difference in priorities that’s only worsened in recent years.
“I was talking to my colleagues in a range of organizations,” she said, “and we were sharing our frustration at not being able to make progress on our missions.”
These frustrations led to the creation of Democracy for All 2021 Action.
The coalition’s members are a who’s who of progressive political powerhouses, including Planned Parenthood, MoveOn, the SEIU, Demos, Stand Up America and more.
The mission
In a mission statement broadly decrying the current American political system and targeting its failure to help those in need, Democracy for All 2021 Action lists the myriad crises of 2020 and how the year has led to an irrepressible call to action.
“More than 215,000 deaths from COVID-19, the racist killings of Black people by the police, and the military-style crackdown against protesters are all symptoms of a democracy in crisis,” the statement reads. “Most Americans have long wanted change on issues like healthcare, policing, gun violence, reproductive rights, climate change and economic equality, but a rigged system stands in the way.”
The group’s four key pillars are:
Protecting voters and elections from COVID-19
Ensuring full participation in democratic processes
Empowering workers and civic organizations
Rooting out corruption and special interests
2021 goals
The group has lofty goals for the next year. As well as passing the House Democrats-written HEROES Act, Democracy for All 2021 Action has a slate of reforms for which the collective intends to lobby lawmakers.
Those include statehood for Washington D.C., Puerto Rican self-determination, restoration of the Voting Rights Act, fighting for workers’ rights and more.
“Years of partisan gerrymandering, restrictions to the vote, unlimited money in our elections and crackdowns on unions have made it impossible to create meaningful change,” the group’s mission statement declares. “We must build power for the people and ensure our government works for everyone, not just the rich and powerful.”
