Juan González: sitting out these elections would be a mistake, just like in 1968

AMJ GOODMAN: So Juan, this is Election Day. It’s the last day of voting in the United States.

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Yes Amy, it is. And you know, at times like these, everyone has to take stock, even though a vote is clearly not the most important determinant of social change in the country. And I know that many progressive voters and first-time voters face an excruciating dilemma this year, a choice between two unsatisfactory candidates, especially for those Americans outraged by our government’s continued support for Israel’s years-long genocidal assault on Gaza and all the bombings and murders committed by Israel throughout the Middle East. So I think it is understandable that many have refused to vote for any of the candidates, or have chosen third-party candidates instead, or simply postponed.

But this isn’t the first time Americans have faced such dire choices. I remember 1968, when I was in my early twenties and the country was faced with a choice between Republican Richard Nixon and Democrat Hubert Humphrey. A terrible war raged again in Vietnam, which would ultimately cost the lives of 2 million Vietnamese. And there were war crimes committed directly by the United States at the time, the use of napalm and Agent Orange and massive bombings of civilian areas in Vietnam. And at home, Nixon used racist rhetoric about law and order, clearly aimed at protests, mass protests of black Americans, just as Trump today uses racist imagery against immigrants from Latin America, Africa and the Caribbean. And Nixon promised to end the Vietnam War if elected. And so many of us refused to vote in that election. And of course Nixon prevailed, paving the way for the modern rightward shift in American domestic and foreign policy. Instead of ending the war, Nixon expanded it. He invaded Cambodia and Laos, and the killing continued in Southeast Asia for another six years.

And it would be many years before some of us realized that we had made a big mistake by postponing those elections. And I do not claim to judge what people are doing now, but I would like to advise those who still have not made a decision that making these decisions at the time of the elections may be difficult, but sometimes necessary to ensure the openness of the world to enlarge. towards possible changes in the future.

AMJ GOODMAN: Well, today we’re going to look at elections across the country, from races in the House of Representatives to the Senate, to mis- and disinformation campaigns across the country and the possibility of challenges to the entire certification process. This evening, Democracy now! we’re going to do one four o’clock special on democracynow.org and on radio and television stations nationwide from 8 a.m. Eastern Time to midnight. We’ll pick it up again from 8:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time until 10:00 a.m., an extended two-hour show tomorrow. But right now, as we come back, Donald Trump is laying the groundwork to challenge the results again if he loses to Kamala Harris. We’ll talk to New York Times reporter Jim Rutenberg. Stay with us.