I’ve been getting the same anguished question from friends and family members who feel helpless in the face of the sustained assault on everything that makes America, America. Other than participating in protests, what can one person do? What can I do? Goodness knows, I don’t have an answer to that question. But I recently received an “action plan” from a local reader that lays out steps that she has taken–steps that have “activated” her friends and neighbors–and I think it is valuable. I’m sharing it, below.
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Organizing for a Better Future
For those of us who are devasted by the re-election of Trump and are watching news reports, reading newspapers and on-line communication which indicates that America is headed down the path to authoritarianism, here is an idea that may be helpful to many who want to save our democracy, but are not sure what to do.
Find your peeps
If you belong to a book club, exercise group, play bridge, mahjong or pickle ball, have neighbors or other groups of friends, you can begin to form an affinity group based on your interests, values and available time. These are people that likely know how you think, share your frustrations and want to make a difference. It can start with just you and one other person.
Find a political activity that interests you and invite a friend or two to go with you
Find an event, a rally, a protest, a town hall, a Democratic club that interests you and make plans to attend. After attending, talk with your friend about how you felt and create a list of others who might want to join you to attend a future event. Go on-line to find webinars, meetings, activities that appeal to you. Invite your friend to do the same and decide together what you want to do. Gather all the information you need and each of you then contact others who might be interested. Organize a carpool or two if necessary.
Recap, review, recall your experience in a relaxed social setting
Make plans to meet with this small group for coffee or a drink a few days after your first event. At this first gathering let everyone talk about their feelings and how they best cope with the overload of bad news. Encourage participants to share their meditation, exercise, relaxation tips with others. Ask them to talk about their current volunteer activities such as food banks, soup kitchens, classroom volunteering, environmental cleanup, working with teens who need support, etc. Ask what they think might be the most effective thing to do next and get each to commit to researching and organizing a next step. Talk about who else could be in this group and invite each one to invite one or two others to join. Decide if you need to meet again or if you just want to “get in action.” Record what you talked about and send the notes to the group with details about the first activity this larger group will do.
Focus
While it may be difficult to affect what’s going on at the national level, you can make a huge difference by learning from and supporting your local candidates. Go to their town halls, send a donation or two to candidates (even a small donation gets you on their communication list), write a letter to your local newspaper, host a fundraiser for them. Share what you learn with others. Always be on the lookout for new people to join your efforts.
Educate
Educate yourselves and get involved as a precinct chairperson or vice chairperson, volunteer to knock on doors or work on a campaign to really learn how “the sausage is made.” Did you know that if the Marion County November, 2024 voter turnout had been 68% instead of 54%, Indiana quite likely would have had Jennifer McCormick as our governor and Destiny Wells as our Attorney General. Marion County is a huge factor in Indiana elections and we need to participate in the current structure and make it better.
Communicate
Ask each person in your group to send you (the leader of this effort and the monthly email communicator) information about activities that someone or all the group may want to participate in. Try not to overload the group with too many emails – send something about once a month unless you need to finalize details about an activity. Some folks will decide not to participate – always ask if they still want to be on the mailing list or opt out.
Keep communication simple
Encourage participants to share activities and ideas with their families and friends outside of the group. Have them forward your emails, but don’t get bogged down by adding random people that you don’t know personally to your email list.
Grow
Hopefully your group will grow – if it does, ask 3-4 of the most active people to be on the “Lead Team.” These are the ones to call on to get a read on what to do next or to help solve an issue. Plan purely fun social events to build relationships. Continue to add new people. Create mutual support among the members – people have illnesses and surgeries, jobs and travel, loved ones need their time and attention, some just get burned out. Always have a Plan B if someone doesn’t come through.
Author’s Notes
This plan is written by a retired senior and indicates how her peers might be most comfortable with emails and in-person meetings. A younger group could take some of the ideas and use social media to organize activities. Our group consists of about 20-25 neighbors in our condominium community making it easy for social events, carpooling to various venues, getting together to make rally signs, etc. We originally met in early 2017 to plan our participation in the Women’s March and kept in touch loosely as we worked on campaigns for Carey Hamilton (IN State Representative), Dee Thornton (5th District Congressional District), and Valerie McCray (U.S. Senate).
For more information or if you have questions or ideas to share, please contact Jayne Thorne at 317/694-5615 or [email protected].
Here are additional suggestions provided by ChatGPT:
Additional Ideas to Build and Expand Affinity Groups
1. Skill-Sharing Circles
Host monthly “skill nights” where members teach each other something useful—letter writing, public speaking, using Canva for activism, or calling legislators.
These gatherings build confidence and deepen the group’s leadership bench.
2. Affinity Pods for Action
Break your larger group into smaller “pods” based on interests (climate, education, voting rights, etc.).
Each pod meets independently and commits to one collective action a month—attending a meeting, writing op-eds, organizing phone banks, etc.
3. Storytelling Gatherings
Host small storytelling events where participants share how political decisions have affected them personally.
These emotional connections build solidarity and provide content for persuasive outreach and social media.
4. Intergenerational Exchanges
Pair retirees or older adults with younger activists for skill swaps and dialogue.
Older adults bring lived experience and institutional memory, while younger members may offer tech skills or social media fluency.
5. “Bring a Friend” Month
Designate a month when each member is encouraged to bring a new person to a meeting or event.
Offer low-barrier, friendly events like potlucks, coffee meetups, or sign-making parties to ease people in.
6. Group Texts or Chat Threads
For groups more comfortable with digital tools, use WhatsApp, Signal, or GroupMe to share updates and keep momentum between meetings.
These platforms help maintain urgency and build an informal community.
7. Create an Affinity Group Toolkit
Offer a starter pack PDF or printout with tips on forming a new group, sample invitation messages, and a calendar of upcoming events.
Empower members to become “mini organizers” in their own networks.
8. Monthly Themes
Choose a theme for each month (e.g., Voting Rights in April, Climate Justice in May, Reproductive Rights in June) and plan one activity around it.
This keeps engagement fresh and education ongoing.
9. Partner with Local Institutions
Collaborate with churches, libraries, or community centers to host public forums, movie nights, or civic teach-ins.
This helps normalize political dialogue in shared spaces.
10. Wellness and Resilience Focus
Regularly include activities for emotional well-being, such as group walks, mindfulness exercises, mental health check-ins, or laughter yoga.
Political work is exhausting—resilience practices keep people engaged long term.
I thank you for that action plan.
All I would add to it is the joy of abandoning what I would call the commercial market, which retails everything that is advertised on media, in favor of, let’s call them, local markets, farm markets, or fairs.
Our TV was off yesterday, and we protested in the village we have long been associated with. The joy of the day was connecting with local people face-to-face and soul-to-soul, and recognizing that we have so much in common with them, including the pride of making a living by working at what we are best at.
Young, old, children, dogs, and signs declaring who we are. I saw no evidence of any law enforcement. Still, I met the village’s deputy mayor, a mother of three boys who taught her the political skills she displayed. She spent the day managing a particular intersection that was uncontrolled by lights, ensuring that both pedestrian and vehicle traffic flowed safely and smoothly.
The same feelings buoyed us all. We socialized, celebrated the Constitution, petted other dogs, smiled at children and beautiful ladies, and commiserated with other seniors all morning.
We all went home with smiles on our faces and in our hearts.
My best friend and I knew no one, and “found our peeps”, as well as a fully-formed and well organized group passionate about the various societal issues we’re facing, that offers all these tools as well as the support and community- the Unitarian Universalist church that was 2 minutes from our home. All are welcome, any (or no) creed or faith, and I invite you to attend, or to investigate to see if this could be where “your peeps” are gathered, working to help others and save our democracy.
That’s a good plan. Thank you for posting it.
Excellent! It is so good to read about ideas for action. Everyone has a way to serve, and this is a wonderful list of suggestions for us all.
In Dubois County a group has started Teach-Ins. One was on immigration, one was on tariffs, the next is on racism, and then public health. These are gatherings of 40-50 people interested in learning. It is a great opportunity to ask questions in a non-threatening way.
Excellent list to get active and stimulate the mind. Group activities are a great way to dip your toes in the water. I appreciate that people want to learn about our democracy and current events. It’s a sign that the media outlets are not serving their role in our democracy. Lack of trust is keeping too many people on the sidelines.
We had hundreds of protesters along the busiest street leading to Muncie’s City Hall. It looked like the July 4th celebration. What was noticeably lacking was the leadership of Ball State University, which has already bowed to the autocrats in the White House and statehouse.
I popped on X to see if there were any updates on the start of WW3, but it was all well wishes to Trump for celebrating another year on this earth, so I closed the app immediately. Watching Trump threaten Musk about using his money to support Democrats was quite fascinating to me, since Elon had given him $285 million. Without the oligarchs, Trump most certainly would have lost, but now their affiliation with Trump is costing them billions in their businesses. They are feeling the pinch of the free markets. 😉
One state-level addition to Sheila’s list, Governor Braun and IDEM are considering loosening environmental regulations on businesses. Indiana’s already loose regulations (nearly nonexistent) have contributed to the pollution of our air, land, and water. For those willing to stand up for the environment, please consider joining the Hoosier Environmental Council and reading their newsletter to stay informed. They will occasionally ask you to make statements to IDEM or your local politicians about proposed policies from the Koch puppets in Indy. Their website is: https://www.hecweb.org/enews/
Thank you.
ask questions. went to NoDaks kick the king to the curb, the attmosphere was gloomy due lawmakers killed next store. but when i discussed some topics, many were only there to be part of the rally. conversation above that was pretty much nothing. news outlets were given out,many of these people just dont read any news. just as often they just hung on one meme and blase about much of other subjects. was nice to find many came due the issue yesterday. hopefully they will keep coming and start reading the context over cheap slants..thanks all who showed up..
Todd;
wheres the tech and billionaires on all the crap goin down? dead silence..
In my neighborhood, which has become pretty transient over the years, with small starter homes that have become just a stepping stone instead of a foundation, it is hard to find like-minded folks. Most of the residents don’t even acknowledge a greeting when outside, usually because they are on their phone or have earbuds in, no eye contact or engagement of any kind. The few who are here for the future keep to themselves for the most part. It is kind of sad to see the isolation they are building for their kids.
My physical abilities make participation in many activities nearly impossible. I so wish I could be marching and singing with all these folks. Thanks to them, I get to see them act in my stead. I am grateful beyond words.
You wonder if world culture can be changed. Those that crave power, authority, and recognition, will never change. And you best believe that if one bites the dust, there are others standing in line for the accolades.
Human leadership usually thrives in fantasyland. There is no connection to the real necessities of humanity, it’s mostly about being recognized. Food, shelter, education, health care, are all necessities which are constantly threatened by those at the upper echelon of authority. The Uber wealthy, the oligarchs, whatever you want to call them, will always shift whatever burden they can on those who are least likely to be able to shoulder that burden.
And the reasoning behind it is simple. Keep the majority at the brink of failure, whether it’s financially, or medically, or educationally, or emotionally, and they are much easier to manage. They don’t have the disposable income to mount any sort of response or gain any sort of independence. And those that rely even more heavily on the state, they are just cannon fodder!
People feel hopeless, and when there is no hope, there is no faith! People already despise religion, because of what men have done to it. They’ve used it as a weapon, and a pillar of slavery. So if you don’t have faith in a superior authority, how can you have faith in men’s authority? Because what have we seen? Just take a look around the globe, and ask yourself, is this the world that man has wrought? Absolutely!
Like I said from the beginning, posting on this site, if it’s time, it’s time! No one is going to change that. What people believe about religion, or better yet, would people believe about God, has been prophesied in scripture. Also the world disorder, the conflicts, the chicanery, the blatant disrespect for human decency and human rights, there will be a penalty to pay for those who have controlled this entire fiasco from the beginning of written history, and if there is no savior, well, everyone is to be pitied. Because the outcome is going to be pitiful.
Read Matthew the 23rd and 24th chapter, and see if it sounds familiar.
Having a plan like the one proposed here ought to be useful.
John, with all due respect, to one who once called me “Bro,” there is no “time” in the manner in which you mean it. We are simply travelers on the carbohydrate trail through the universe. Many people have thought it was “time,” before, yet here we are. Interpretations, like “the war to end all wars,” are just human fantasy.
Best discussion for some time! A few lessons learned from doing this kind of work for 8+ years working to help elect folks like Conor Lamb, Elaine Luria, Elissa Slotkin, and Dean Phillips and worked for others like them who lost:
– Make sure your candidate has a chance to win
– Look at everything your candidate says and does (if they have served before, their voting record) – website, Facebook posts, videos, interviews, etc.
– Check responsiveness on issue questions – email, Messenger, etc.
– Reality check -are they running for mayor and talking about national issues or city ones? Are they vague homilies for policy or specific solutions? Etc.
Jayne Thorne has been a terrific catalyst to help our community be educated, active, and have a positive impact on our community with the current political environment !
I wish everyone could find a group like we have in our community and continue the resistance!
Reposting this on FB.
Todd, thanks for the info on HEC. Good to know.
Mitch,
“Carbohydrate trail through the universe,”
I like that!
Although with that train of thought, then basically anything that you have not witnessed personally could be called into question. Any written work, any cipher, any glyphs, could be considered suspect. Was Shakespeare a real person? Was Nostradamus a real person? Was King Arthur a real person? And that’s much more recent. All of these people have been called into question! Fantasies of the time period.
Instant gratification is what everyone expects today. My personal friends, those that think like I do for the most part, didn’t start out that way. Every race, every creed, every color, every ethnicity, are represented in the people that I know.
And yes, we get together and have discussions, mostly on zoom since some of them are in other countries, but always respectful, always empathetic, and circumspect in their actions, words, and deeds!
As humans, sometimes we take science and scientists beliefs as law. I love science, I love to get deep into something I’m researching. And if you really are researching, honestly, and you find things that are questionable.
One of them is carbon-14 dating. And it does work better when whatever they are dating has been shielded from the elements. But originally, the amount of radioactive carbon in the atmosphere has fluctuated tremendously over the millennia. Also, fossils and items buried in the ground can be influenced by the amount of rainwater that washes over them, seeps into them through the soil or sand or stone. This rainwater contains radioactive carbon. Granted in small quantities, but over millennia or epochs in time, that contamination distorts the original carbon-14 mass in anything exposed to the elements. Now that is science! And yet, they use carbon-14 dating like it was the gospel!
Science said that the universe was slowing down about 30 years ago, and that it was going to start contracting. Now, the thought process is, the universe is expanding and picking up speed! How could this be? Would gravity slow the expansion? Or is there something else stronger than gravity? Some astrophysicists call it the great attractor, but what is it?
Is dark matter really a thing? The scientific community is split on that. I mean, we could go on and on about who believes what and why, and everybody is a free moral agent subject to their own beliefs. It’s not for me to tell someone what to believe, that comes from their own conscience, their own learning, their own knowledge and wisdom.
It’s amazing how we can see the blueprint of the universe in the smallest pieces of matter or antimatter, that we are aware of. The atom is like a miniature solar system. But the same rules apply to the solar system and an atom. Was that all by accident? On this planet, all of the aminos that make up proteins, thousands of proteins, we’re all happenstance? The probability of one amino acid happening by accident is almost incalculable. Now you have 20 amino acids that make up proteins in the human body depending on how they are changed together, they all happened by accident also? And the chaining together, produces tens of thousands of proteins produced by our coding genes. All of these cannot be random. None of this could be random. And yet, science can’t answer those questions, except for a primordial soup! Pretty simplistic for something so incalculable. There are trillions of proteins on this planet, all have different functions, and all represent life in their particular organisms. Each one of these would have to have been formed in an incalculable manner.
Or, we could even talk about the difference between meiosis and mitosis. Mitosis is reproduction by splitting the DNA equally into another identical cell. Meiosis is much more complicated, where advanced life uses two separate parents to combine the DNA and produce an offspring that represents both parents and maybe even further back into their lineage. Meiosis is extremely complicated, and yet, this is how most life on this planet procreates! Mitosis is seen more on me cellular level, when bulk is needed, no sex required. So how did this happen? If Mitosis is so much easier, then how did Meiosis arrive on the scene?
These things point to something other than random primordial soup, and it really It disproves the randomness of life. So what would logic say? We are all free to make our own choice, free to believe what we want to believe, unfortunately, humanity does not have the capability to search for truth, especially when they are afraid of the established way of thinking.
Thank you for the list – all excellent ideas
I used many of them when I created the now moribund Greater Indianapolis for Change just before election day in 2008.
Lester – sorry, but sometimes the fight is valuable, even when nearly impossible. My “sacrificial” campaign against the President of the City/County Council here in Indy, in 2011, was based on small donations (half of what I was told I would need) and an incredible group of newly active supporters (as well as some seasoned campaigners). I ended up “outperforming” expectations, noticed by both parties, but more importantly, brought new people into the world of political activism. Getting people involved, getting them to see that they can move the needle, can encourage more action when addressed correctly.
I do agree with you on where to donate my campaign donations, especially with limited amounts to donate.
John Sorg. “humanity does not have the capability to search for truth” Strange comment coming from someone who keeps trying to convince others that his point of view is more valid than someone else’s. Aren’t you trying to search for truth when you study scripture? Are you not human? Might you be missing something here?
Thanks, Sharon! Despite the excess verbiage, people across the country have sprung into action and are figuring out creative ways to “be up and doing”. Sheila, this piece has stirred the hearts of many. Thank you!