“Racial Barrier Falls in Decisive Victory”

New York Times front-page headline, November 4, 2008.

How’s that working for the 105 Black and Brown people killed by police since Obama was first elected?

“Clinton has the Edge One Day Before Election”

USA Today front-page headline, November 7, 2016.

How’s that working out for those who dreamed of crashing through the glass ceiling?

We might know who won the Presidential election this time tomorrow. We might not know for weeks or months. Regardless whether the winner is Red or Blue, my agenda for tomorrow will be the same.

Don’t get me wrong, the two Presidential candidates are very different. Joe Biden represents a return to established political norms, an atmosphere of civility, maybe even empathy. If we give Donald Trump four more years, what little democracy this country has left will be so thoroughly gutted this could well be our last Presidential election. The choice for anyone who values the messy chaos and inclusivity of democracy is clear.

Yet whoever wins, or if we embark on perilous post-election confusion, our agenda for 11/4 and beyond remains the same because neither of these candidates will take us where we need to go on sustainability, equity, and justice. These are, after all, eternal goals, never fully attained.

The outcome of today’s election will inform our tactics, but the election of one candidate or another will not permanently recast our political landscape. Any more than electing Obama ended racism. Or that Hillary Clinton’s candidacy leveled the playing field for women.

So don’t stay up all night watching returns. Get a good night’s sleep and wake refreshed, ready to carry on the November 4 Agenda:

Balance our Planet. Work to minimize the environmental destruction human activity creates on mother earth.

Balance our Humanity. Work to distribute our physical, economic, cultural and political resources equitably among all people.

Be kind. We are all imperfect, yet we are all here, and we have to learn how to get along.

Happy Election Day!