Giving Up is Unforgivable

“The right to vote is precious, almost sacred. It is the most nonviolent tool or instrument in a democratic society. We must use it.” John Lewis, former U.S. Representative and “good trouble” civil rights leader.

Wisconsin has an election on Tuesday, April 7th. As John Lewis said, voting is a necessary, essential duty of citizens in a democracy. Unfortunately too many of us don’t take this “precious…sacred” obligation seriously enough. Usually around 40% of eligible voters don’t bother to show up and the percentage is often higher in off-year or nonpartisan elections.

Too many people think that voting doesn’t really matter. Elections are rigged. There is no real choice. Both major parties are bought and controlled by big money. The only choice is between Tweedledum and Tweedledumber.

This self-defeating thinking is what the powers-that-be want people to think. Republicans and Democrats know it is easier to win elections with lower turnout. All you need is your base to show up. Republicans, conservatives and racists have historically been the most aggressive at voter suppression. But Democrats have often failed to pass campaign finance reforms, make voting easier or end gerrymandering when they had a majority.

Now we have Donald Trump and his minions, reinvigorating voter suppression with attacks on past election results, local voting officials, mail-in ballots, and absentee ballots. They falsely claim there is widespread voting fraud and are pushing state and national legislation to make registering to vote significantly more difficult for many millions of people.

Since taking office again, Trump has been aggressively, and illegally, expanding executive power. Congress and the courts are failing to stop him. The checks and balances are failing to prevent his assumption of dictatorial powers.

Into all this doom and glum comes Joyce Vance, a former U.S. Attorney (after 25 years she resigned in protest of Trump’s first election) and professor of law at the University of Alabama. Her 2025 book, “Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual For Keeping a Democracy,” has a positive message of hope and what needs to be done to save our democracy.

She puts the current crisis into historical perspective pointing out that democracy, rule of law and voting rights have been denied or undermined in the past. Our government – especially Congress and the courts – have often failed to protect and expand our democratic ideals and civil liberties. But despite these failings, progress was made over time. It took too long, and often there was backsliding, but the blessings of liberty and the rule of law were expanded to include more marginalized, demonized, and disenfranchised people.

Professor Vance writes that today people are showing with their actions that they do care about democracy. They are “fighting everyday” with protests, organizing, No Kings rallies and opposition to Trump’s policies and the defunding of important government activities. She says, “…now it is time to do the hard work – stay informed, stay engaged, and bring others along with us. We need to be fearless in talking with people…[about] why democracy matters…and what we can do to protect it…We may not see immediate results… but we can not give up.”

There is one quote in the book I find especially appropriate for today. It is from Thomas Paine in his 1776 pamphlet “Common Sense.” Speaking about the British monarch he wrote, “Men who look upon themselves born to reign, and others to obey, soon grow insolent…their minds poisoned by importance; and the world they act in differs so materially from the world at large…[that] when they succeed to the government are frequently the most ignorant and unfit of any throughout the dominions.” This describes Trump’s egotism, arrogance and lack of understanding of the real world where all the rest of us live.

Voting and working for change may seem hopeless but doing nothing always produces nothing. Giving up is not an option.