We Need Us There

But the only way to actually get those people out of office is for the courageous ones to decide that they have something to say and that instead of yelling from the peanut gallery, that they will take up the call to run for office themselves. So I'm excited with this episode to welcome back to the show Ashanti Gooehler, who is the president of Emerge America and the founder of Black Girl's Guide to Politics. And I've joined a shanty show to talk about politics and talk about expressly

what is facing black women in politics. And so in this conversation we talk about the ways that essentially training candidates, particularly women, women of color, queer women, has changed and not necessarily for the better. I open up the conversation, you know, talking about this political climate and getting her thoughts. But then also it is the norm that you need to ask a woman multiple times to run for office because oftentimes women feel unqualified, even though in a lot

of cases they are overqualified. So how can we use this current media storm around the liar grifter George Santos slash guitar slash. We don't know what the fuck his name is or who he really is, and now we know that his finances are, you know, as funny as every story that he's told, and that funny ha ha. But how do we one convince women that you are more than ready and capable to run for office, but

then two train in a time of heightened political violence. Look, it is not normal to even blurt out those words and to say that, but the reality is is that violence has become part and parcel of what it means to be in politics, particularly if you are a Democrat. And so when you are a woman, we know that

the attacks on social media are absolutely disgusting. We know that if you are a woman of color and you are a queer woman, it is just astonishing the lengths that people will go to try and get you to back down, to use media as a way to terrorize, right, And so how do you train people who want to serve their community who want to be public servants to be able to deal with the energy right and the very real physical violence that could come along with running

for office. So Ashanti and I will get into so many conversations, including our shared love of astrology and what we see in the stars about our political year to come. Coming up next, my conversation with a Shanty Goler, Folks, I am very excited to welcome back to wok f Ashanti Goler, who is the founder of the Brown Girls

Guide to Politics and the president of Emerge America. It is twenty twenty three, yes, and when we change the calendar, we like to believe that we are also somehow changing, you know, everything, We started new resolutions, everything is starting fresh, except with our politics it doesn't seem that way. So I wanted to get you know, your sense of how you think that the year ended in twenty twenty two, a Shanty and then where you see that we are

but you know, almost a month into twenty twenty three. Yes, and it's so good to be talking to you again. I just always love when we can chat it up. And I know we've talked about how much I love astrology and given how this year has started off. I think I'm officially going to start my new year with

airy season, because oh mine god. Twenty twenty two. I actually ended the year very excited because it was not the red wave that people thought that it was going to be, and that had to really do with again women voters and black and brown voters yet again knowing how much was at stake. So I was really excited about everything that was going to happen, being able to keep the Senate. We know that we lost the House, but we picked up some great governorships, We were able

to create new democratic trifect us. We were going into twenty twenty three really strong. But of course Congress and their foolishness. It's just insane that this has been the first time we have seen that with the Speaker of the House. Elections in decades and online tureity years. So ten decades, ten decades, and the first thing that came to mind for me is, y'all always wanted to give Nancy Pelosi crap, but she had no problem getting elected speaker,

and you had Kevin McCarthy. Now the speaker cut deals like they were like about to fight on the House floor over things, and it's just ridiculous. It continues to show how, especially for Republicans, conservatives, the Maga crew, our democracy is just a plaything for them, where for us, we know that this is our life, this is something we need to get intact. So I'm going to start my new year with airy season because they wiled them

out here already. And you know, like, you're totally right, because we ended the year and began the year with mercury retrograde and retrograde, right, yeah, And that is the like I think it was kind of the first time that that has also happened, and or the last time that that happened. It was I want to say that it was like the early two thousands, and so it was we were with an economic meltdown and the changing of the guards and foreclosure crisis and all of these things.

It was a crisis, um. And so it makes sense then fast forward, you know, ten plus years that we are in this space because I like, you look, you know, people I have gotten pooh pooed on on Twitter for saying that, like I subscribe to astrology and I said, I'm sorry, Like it's you know, thousands of years old, and what is to say that, like all of these things, like I look at everything to try and understand this current, Like I am looking everywhere with like the with a

magnifying glass. So you know that being said, what we did see, like you had you had mentioned, was on the good side. We saw our first gen Z candidate get elected to office. We saw more black and brown people get elected to office. We have our first out lesbian governor. Or. I should say, I guess second um the elected to office, you have representation that looks more

like America. But I also say that then there is incredible violence that we've seen, the shootings that were happening in New Mexico at the targeted towards Democratic leaders, you know, and you know other attacks that we have seen on Nancy Pelosi, on her on her husband. So with your work with Emerge America, which is about recruiting Democratic women to run for office, which you know, when Emerge America started, it didn't seem like a dangerous prospect, right, So how

do you with this? With this work talk to people who want to be public servants, that want to serve their communities, but also address the realities of the climate that we're in. And it is very real Emerge started in two thousand and two with our first affiliate in California. The national organization was created in two thousand and five to replicate the program because it was so successful. So now we're in twenty seven states. We've trained women in

forty five states. We have over a thousand women in elected office, and this is something that we've had to add to our training program is just the reality of how unfortunately horrible it can be for a woman, for a black and brown woman writing for office during this time, but also for me. This is part of the plan to keep us out of office. This is a part of the plan the racism, the sexism, the misogyny, the threats of violence, because even though we are seeing horrible

things happening, there are good things that are happening. Change is happening, and they know when they threaten us, when they scare us from running, that change isn't going to happen and things will stay the status quo with the white male patriarchy running things. And we're just very fortunate that we still see women stepping up wanting to run because they know that they have to do it. But we talk about all the ways that they can keep themselves safe. What they can do online to deal with

the hate. What our women have to do if they're a Latina canvassing and someone says they're going to call ice on them. You're a black woman and you're at a campaign event and people will want to call the police on you, saying it's an illegal gathering. For our trans alarms, who will get mis gendered when they're doing press. These are things that we have had to add and we have had to address, and for us, this is part of the evolution of our merge, but it's also

an unfortunate part of the evolution of politics. But we still want women and to know that they do not have to face this alone, that there are groups like ours that will support them. With our training program, you're inner room of like minded women who are going to be going through the same thing, so giving them that support system. But the reality is, despite it all, we still need women, especially stepping up to run for office because if we don't, things won't change, and then they

will win. And I know none of us want for them to win, because so much better can continue to happen in our country if we have the right representation, and that is Unfortunately, a fight that we're always going to have to be in, especially as black and brown people, is not going to stop for us. You know, I think that that's right, which is the reminder that this

is just the fight, plain and simple. You know, I think that you know, with the overturning of Ruvie Wade, we saw signs and memes that's that I can't believe I still have to protest this shit right and things to that nature, which kind of gave us the feeling that, oh, these rights are one and done right and what we and what we know is that it's not and that we actually may never see full equity for women, people of color, LGBTQ folks, folks that live at the intersections

of multiple identities in our lifetime. But the fight continues with each generation. So how do you how does Emerge America talk to candidates about ashanti the emotional stamina that is required in order to run a campaign right, in order to keep going and even if you do lose, right, that that's just the beginning. You have name recognition and you keep going. So what does that what is the

training around emotional stamina? Look like, we are very real from the first day that women enter our Signature program, which is the longer program seventy hours over six months, to our boot camps, where we take the Signature program condensit down to two and a half intensive days that's for active candidates, to our Step Forward, which is the one on one for the women who are thinking about running for office. We say, you have to prepare yourself physically, mentally,

and emotionally to run for office. That is the first part of the game because it is a journey from your campaign to elected office. And the thing that really you have to center is your why why are you

doing this? Because that's what you're gonna have to go to when you're having the hard days where you had called time and no one wanted to give you money, where you're going to on doors and people slam it in your face, where your opponents putting out just all of these lies about you and you know it's not true. You have to be mentally, emotionally, and physically prepared for

it because this is the game. So we talk about what that looks like, who is your family support system, But most importantly we talk about having the kitchen cabinet. You're going to have your campaign staff. That's great, but you're paying them. We need the people in your life who are going to say, all right, yeah, maybe you shouldn't have said it that way, you should have said it this way. Well, this person is just a straight

up prick. I need for you to ignore them. All right, you got your debate, what are you going to wear? You need the people who are going to be on your side, the good, the bad, and the ugly. I think it's the same for your friend's circle. You need to have those people who are always going to get to you. And when you're running for office, that kitchen cabinet is who you're going to rely on. So we say, get those people in your life. Get a therapist in

your life. I just think therapy is amazing. I'm going to say it, especially because we still have the stigma in the black community around therapy. No, get you a therapist, even if you're not running for elected office. Have that person you can talk it out with. Make sure you have a good doctor. Get yourself a mentor, get yourself

a coach. That is the key part of having that mental strength is before you even start having all the things in place that you can go to that you can fall back on, so you're not in the middle

of your race and just wanting to give up. So that's really what we talk about, and it's crucial why at Emerge we have the network of support, something that our alums say they love and they value because it's not just in their state, it's across the country that they're able to call and reach upon women who are going through the exact same things. So that's really when the mental part starts. Is you've got to prepare yourself before you even file that paperwork and put your name

on the ballot. You know, I just think that it's really important, just as you said in life as in politics, to build your kitchen cabinet, to build your team, your

support system that is going to help you. You know, I just did a video, a TikTok video where I'm talking about the fact that you know, we just saw the announcement about the doomsday clock, and you know the fact that we are like ninety seconds to midnight, and you know that this has been being tracked by the atomic bulletin since nineteen forty seven, and never have we been closer to what they have been tracking as just

self made human catastrophe. Then right now when they're looking at you know, the compacted crises that we're in, that wears on me like it is wearing on our country. It is wearing on the world, this feeling of helplessness and anxiety. And I think that you know, running for elected office, whether that is at the state, local, or national level, is kind of the way that one way that people channel that frustration and channel that anger into

wanting to actively do something. What recommendation do you have for people though, who are feeling this angst, this anxiety that is very real, that is very existential, who want to do something, but running for office is not the thing that they want to do. And what you said about the doomsday o'clock, where we are still dealing with the pandemic and long COVID and variants, it has to be us, y'all. No one is coming to save us. It's us. We have to be the ones to do it.

I know we're really tired, but we cannot just think that someone's going to swoop in and solve all the problems and make a planet Earth go back to what it was like. It's on us to save ourselves. So there are those candidates that are going to step up to run for office and support them. You can support them financially, especially if they're women candidates, women of color candidates. Small dollar donations are huge. It's one of the reasons why I love Act Blue. It makes it so easy

to donate. They also have a new CEO who's a black woman who I'm really looking forward to working with and seeing what she's going to do. Course of getting out and vote. How can you volunteer even if you don't live in a state but there's a super important rate going on. How can you phone bank in Do you know any people in that state that you can

be talking to? Even on social media? Talking about the importance in our training program, we tell everyone that when you're running for office, the first people you're going to go to for support is your network, either the financial, the volunteering, all of that. And people will say, oh, I don't have a network, and we all have a network.

Your network is in your phone. Your network is your Facebook list, who's on your Instagram, your Twitter, it's your colleagues, it's your church list, it's your sorrows, it's all of that. We all have a network. And for a lot of these people, they're in the same boat and they're waiting for that person who's going to come and say, all right, this is what we need to do. Be that person for your network because you really never know who's looking, who's waiting, So we all need to just be channeling

that energy. And again, I know it's exhausting. I took over a Merge right before the pandemic hit. A LOWO pandemic was not a part of my ninety eight plan. But but we have to push through it. And I'm going into my fourth year as president of a Merge. We're still strong and we're still seeing changes, and it is why I'm still in the fight because it has to be upon us, and there's just so many opportunities

for us to get involved running for office. There's also different groups that you can become a part of in channel that energy by finding your why, what is driving you to want to do it, and find that group and channel your energy that way. And when you're around other people who are hype like you, who are like, we're gonna get this done, We're going to fight back, That's what gives me the energy to keep going. This amazing network people like you we just gotta keep fighting.

You know, I'll be remiss if I don't ask you this question before we wrap today, which is, you know, women oftentimes need to be asked, right, what is it five times to run for all five seven? That woman was like people had to ask me seventy times. I was like seventy times. I was like, now, now keep

that one to yourself, right. And yet we see that men like a George Santos do you know who have these super inflated views of themselves and their ego and these things like is there a way you think Ashanti to use George Santo's just absolutely spectacularly disastrous self to say if this man, liar person can do this, like you absolutely can too. Yes, it's him. I've said the same thing about Trump. I talk about the stantist like literally he's banning black history, yes, in the state of Florida.

And we see all of these men across the country, all levels of government, and I still get upset when women are like, oh, I just I don't think I have what it takes. Yes, I don't have the education, I don't have the background, you know, I just this is my job, and all of these people you know they've been fancy lawyers and this and that, and it's still part of the conditioning of politics and who politics is for. And I see that in women all the time.

And the reality is like politics is for all of us. As women were just not here just to vote these people into office. We are also here to put our name on the bat, to have our seats at the table. And we have to remember, if you don't run, they are going to run. That is the biggest thing. And if you don't want to run, you got to talk to the people who you think should be running. That is so important. So many women who I've talked to and I just say, hey, I just saw you speaking

on this panel. Have you consider it running for office? And just like I have it, no one's really asked me. So there's that too, the multiple times and not even asking them, and they just needed that validation. So we just gotta we already have it in us. So Cardi B. I love Cardi B. I remember she did a tweet where she was like, y'all just wait until I go to college and get my degree and I'm going to run for office and this and that. I was like, Cardie,

you already have it in you. I watch how you talk about politics that woman is smart and people have to just discount her as like the rapper and all of this. So I'm like, jeez, even Cartie B wants to run for office, but she wants to make sure she has a master's degree before she does it. I mean, have we gotten there with Santos or any of his degree is real? No, they're not. I mean I saw the stuff that came out today for the finance reports,

like everything's one hundred and ninety nine dollars. I want that one hundred and nine nine dollars Delta flight that's all I know. I was like, where you finding those that? Because I even come up when I searched Delta, so it does not So I want, and it's a fraudulent

like everything else, you know, I do. I think that it's important and that the Carti B example is a really good one because again, women in particular always feel like what it is that they have and who it is that they are is not enough, and that they

need to check every single box. Where you have woefully unqualified men who don't think twice about what it is that they're going to do, and they're like, I'm going to I'm running for president, I'm running for Congress, but without ever held any office, done any public service at all. At late Danielle, it gets even worse, y'all, there are men out there who are running for office not even

knowing what the office does. There was a man who didn't know that when he ran for the state House that he was going to have to go up to the Capitol for half the year, and then won the election, it had to resign because he said, oh, I can't do that with my job. That is the level a mediocrity that is on the ballot. They're not even paying attention to what these offices do and what these offices require.

Like we're at the PTA meetings running the PTA, run for the school board, We're always volunteering for the other candidates. We know how to run these campaigns. Put your name on the ballot, run yourself. We're at the city council meetings. We know the issues like the back of our hand, and we're in the audience yelling at them. Stop yelling. Let's move you to the dais. Yeah, we are already there.

We are already doing the work. And I feel that we continue to short change ourselves as women by not saying that we can be the one who is implementing the legislation, signing the legislation like breaking it down five her doing twenty thousand elected offices in this country, five hunding twenty thousand people who get to shape our lives with the stroke of a pen, and the majority of them don't even know what they're doing. We need us there.

We got to run shade. Tell people how one they can listen to your show, and then two how they can get involved with Emerge America. Yes, so the Brown Girls Guide to Politics you can find it wherever you listen to your podcasts. We're also at www. Dot Thebegguide dot com, and we are also on our social media Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at the BG Guide, And we also do some Instagram live conversations, you know, to keep the energy

and conversation going because something's always going on. And with our merge, we're at Emerge America dot org. You can go to the training site or the training portion of our website to find all of our trainings and the state nationally, and you find us on social media all of them because merges on all of them at Emerge America. Thank you so much for making the time for WOKA after. It's always such a pleasure to have you on. Oh. I always have so much fun with you. I feel

like I just talked to you forever and forever. And it's also the show I can come on and talk astrology and politicans, so it's like my favorite come back anytime to talk about all the things. We appreciate you. Oh, thank you, says appreciate you. That is it for me to day, dear friends, an woke app as always Power to the people and to all the people. Power, get woke and stay woke as fuck.