Elevating Our Collective Freedom This Independence Day
The Purpose of Yoga is to Give Us All Greater Freedom
As our yoga practice deepens our hearts open and our awareness expands to more fully feel and understand the burdens of others and awaken to the reality that we are all connected. Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. famously said "no one is free until we are all free." This idea, profound in its simplicity, finds company among famous aphorisms in the great religious and spiritual teachings throughout time. The biblical command says to "love your neighbor as yourself.” Sutra 2.25 from The Yoga Sutras says that liberation of the seer is the result of the dis-association of the seer and the seen, with the disappearance of ignorance.
The idea that freedom requires knowledge and wisdom has been further brought to light with the message of anti-racism in the Black Lives Matter movement. As citizens in a democracy we have the power to shape our country through educating ourselves about our history and the current state of the world, participating in grassroots movements and using our power to vote. To be free and to maintain our freedom requires staying engaged and self-discipline, known as Tapas in the Niyamas of the Eight-Limbed Yoga path.
“Everyone is familiar with the slogan "The personal is political" -- not only that what we experience on a personal level has profound political implications, but that our interior lives, our emotional lives are very much informed by ideology. We oftentimes do the work of the state in and through our interior lives. What we often assume belongs most intimately to ourselves and to our emotional life has been produced elsewhere and has been recruited to do the work of racism and repression.”
― Angela Y. Davis, Freedom Is a Constant Struggle
Elections have consequences — especially for civil rights, human rights, and environmental protection. The largest population of voters in America is people who are registered to vote, but don’t turnout at the polls. Challenges with transportation, childcare, work obligations, voter education and more keep people from showing up on election day. Add to that disenfranchisement, voter suppression and cynicism, and we see people staying home when their voice is needed most.
Check out these organizations, and get involved to ensure the issues you care about are represented by elected officials. Thank you to Colleen Patrick-Groudeau for putting together this list of resources.
Spread the Vote is an organization dedicated to helping people get IDs ahead of Election Day. IDs are necessary to participate in lots of areas of society, such as getting employment, opening a bank account, or finding housing. Additionally, voter ID laws in particular disproportionately affect communities of color, the elderly, and new voters. Spread the Vote helps people to navigate their state’s ID laws and assists with everything from application fees to driving you to the DMV to get your ID. You can join a local chapter (or start one!), and donate at their website.
VoteRiders.org — In addition to people who lack acceptable ID to vote, confusion and intimidation serve to prevent millions more eligible voters from voting, even if they have a valid ID in their state. Their Voter ID Helpline (844-33-VTRID) receives as many calls from people in non-voter ID states as from those in states that require or request ID at the polls! Even poll workers are confused and sometimes ask voters for ID when none is required. In addition to providing information about voter ID requirements for every voter in every state, they also partner with local organizations to find, inform and help voters with voter ID, especially those most at risk of losing their right to vote. Get involved today.
When We All Vote is a non-profit, nonpartisan organization that is on a mission to increase participation in every election and close the race and age voting gap by changing the culture around voting, harnessing grassroots energy, and through strategic partnerships to reach every American.
VoteForward.org empowers grassroots volunteers to help register voters from under-represented demographics and encourage them to vote. With just a printer and some stamps, you send a letter to registered voters encouraging them to vote — it’s one of the easiest things you can do that meaningfully increases the odds that the recipient will vote. Obviously there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the election process during Covid-19, including how people will vote this year, but one thing is certain: it’s critical that they do so. Whatever method Americans use to safely vote this year, receiving a hand-written Vote Forward letter will make them more likely to cast a ballot. Adopt your registered voters today, and start preparing letters to send!
MORE RESOURCES AND ORGANIZATIONS
Reclaim the American Dream is an informational gateway aimed at helping people who are upset about America today to get engaged in fixing our democracy and making our economy fairer at the local level, where people power still has clout.
East Bay Animal PAC — If you’re in the San Francisco Bay Area, check out our work to elect animal-friendly candidates. You can contribute from wherever you are, and as a member, you are eligible to vote in our endorsement elections. And check out other animal-related organizations to help animals during elections in particular and the political arena in general: