“FIGHT OLIGARCHY.”
Huh? Really? Is this the best slogan they can come up with for a new political movement?
Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez both arrived in Las Vegas yesterday. Nevada is the first stop in a current five-state tour that’s raising greater awareness as to the terrible misdeeds and dangers of the Trump/Musk regime and a bonafide attempt to re-energize of the progressive wing within the Democratic Party.
No doubt, Sanders and AOC are good messengers and popular public figures among the Left, though both admittedly have limitations reaching beyond the base. But that’s another topic for later.
What concerns me isn’t the idea of political rallies, or the content of speeches, or the personalities fronting our protests. What’s ridiculous is the *name* of the tour: “Fight Oligarchy.”
That’s horrible. Who picked this name?
My guess is, half of America can’t even define the word “oligarchy.” It sounds like something buried the footnotes of an undergraduate political science term paper. It’s awful.
Power to the People! Workers of America, Unite! Eat the Rich! Trump Sucks! Something. Anything. But please–not “Fight Oligarchy.”
Why make such a big deal out of this? Why do a couple of words matter? Well, my view is this small thing reveals a much bigger problem. It’s emblematic of the biggest problem Democrats are facing right now, which is *messaging.* As a party and a potential alternative to the horrors of what’s going on, they’re woefully inadequate at communications and media outreach….and most important of all — CONNECTING with the people they’ve lost. The grass roots have died on the Democrats, and they’re not going to be won back and grow again with slogans like “Fight Oligarchy.”
The Trump campaign stole the tagline “Make America Great Again,” which was first used in 1980 by then candidate-Ronald Reagan. It wasn’t original. It wasn’t even accurate, and in many ways remains downright insulting (especially to those who were never a part of America’s former “greatness.”). Nonetheless, it’s powerful. It works. It energizes people in the middle, and even inspires citizens who aren’t political. We may argue with MAGA and what it means and even ridicule the simpleton message, but when it comes to the core basics of political activism and marketing and grass roots, that slogan is a winner.
Yeah, we do need to fight oligarchy. We must do that. America is indeed an oligarchy, and that’s a very bad thing. This is certainly something to discuss and debate, for sure.
But it’s not a slogan to attract followers and it’s not a winner.
Please, Democrats — come up with something better. Can’t all the high-paid consultants and experts in media and creative people in entertainment string together a few powerful words and lift us up and raise our hopes? Go for something more positive. And, keep it simple.
Here’s a helpful hint: A good start might be to avoid slogans that require reaching for a dictionary.
__________
Join the discussion HERE on Facebook:
