Why is local activism important in politics
For a recent while, I’ve been arguing that politics don’t begin or end within the election season anywhere, and that small, localized and local activism can slowly make a huge impact in the political world. Joining neighborhood organizations, worker unions, LGBT organizations and the sort and collaborating with them is more valuable than throwing a vote into a ballot once every four years, and can lead to even historical moments which don’t usually need headlines. I digress, though, because today, something that happened here in Spain, more specifically, in the Vallekas district of Madrid, is worth as an example of why this is important and needs this headline here at jmaa.tv just for good measure.
A while ago, Mariano, a neighbor in Vallekas in Madrid, has been facing an eviction while severely ill, and has assisted the local neighbor assembly for help. This man had little to no resources to fight back the eviction on his own, but by the end of this year, the many local neighbor associations of Vallekas and the anti-eviction societies did help, and the photo above has showcased the sort of historical moment where an eviction has been temporarily stopped, keeping Mariano safe for a while. As you can see, everyone here rejoiced the moment as one important step in not just saving a life, but also fighting against the speculative housing market in Spain, has been made.
The most important thing to note here, as I said, is the impact smaller, ground-level organizations like these, made from the street people alone, especially worker class people, can lead to important political changes. At least, from what I could gather here, it shows that worker class people just had enough bullshit, and any victory, big or small, is still a victory. People are tired of corporations and governments leading to a speculative house market where nearly no one can afford either a house or barely rent, with ever increasing grocery price hiking, stagnant wages and the looming threat that you could just become homeless with a snap of a finger, thanks to the titanic grip of capitalism threatening all our lives. Fighting this way, with small, local organizations, against such tyranny, is a perfect way to channel that anger, and making a positive impact in our world.
I hate making this about myself as well, but even I dedicate writing articles, making videos or generating content like this to make similar impacts like these. The greater political efforts are made by worker class people, not just throwing in a piece of paper vote into a box, but also by enacting activism in more localized areas.
In a similar fashion, in the US, Nithya Raman, a woman that has been campaigning for affordable housing in local Los Angeles neighborhood associations and affordable housing associations, won a seat in the Los Angeles Council not long ago. Not because she had millions of dollars to spend, but because actual people were rooting for her in such a similar fashion in terms of affordable housing. What I’m talking about is that domino-effect situations like these, where small, localized activism creates future politicians to make a serious political impact that benefits the worker class people. I can smell from miles afar that in Madrid, someone at one of those anti-eviction neighbor societies in Vallekas is going to chase a political career and succeed because they are going to be backed by actual worker class people in mass, and that, even if it’s a small victory towards the betterment of worker class people and affordable housing, still counts as a victory.
So the important lesson to learn here is to be local: participate in your local neighborhood, LGBT organization or worker union, or similar, because outside of elections, that’s where the biggest political impact can be made. It’s in the hands of the people itself to make this change, and, as little as it might be, I’m still doing my part.
