I became part of a text messaging group a little over a year ago, and little did I know it would become a vital source of information about politics and government, a catalyst for grassroots activism, and a place to escape the noise of a national election. did. This type of organized political messaging is closer to old-fashioned citizen-driven activism than what most often occurs in today’s political environment. This is a growing phenomenon that can work anywhere and should be taken note by public officials who want to understand the thoughts and needs of their constituents.
Political group text messages are different from mass messages or the annoying text messages that many of us often receive from candidates soliciting campaign contributions. Group text messages are typically initiated by civic-minded individuals simultaneously contacting selected recipients. Recipients can respond, and everyone can see each other’s responses in real time. Text groups can be large or small, but I believe they are most effective when they are comprised of individuals who share common values.
My Atlanta-based text group consists of a few dozen people with no name, leader, or organizational structure. It is independent from political parties. This private group is made up primarily of ordinary citizens, including a current state senator, a former mayor, a former city councilman (me), a former newspaper publisher, and a road project that threatens to tear apart history. This includes activists with experience in fighting these issues. The neighborhood is torn apart. Members of the group come from a variety of stances and faiths, including Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and humanism. This is noteworthy because we often read and hear about a world rife with religious and ethnic conflicts. It was heartening to see residents working together for a common purpose, uniting in text message threads.
My anonymous group tracks and monitors voter suppression and other anti-democratic activities by local and state authorities without prompting. Above its weight, it was highly successful in achieving its purpose of informing and motivating neighbors to fight for progressive causes such as common-sense gun control and abortion rights. When President Joe Biden visited Atlanta before withdrawing from the race, some members of the group went to the front of his rally and posted green and white signs that read “Regulate Guns, Not Women.” I made sure the signboard was visible. Mr. Biden noticed, took the button from them, and read out the slogan to enthusiastic applause.
Group texts come at any time of the day or night, and sometimes they can be annoying. But there is something about this conversation that binds us as a group and inspires loyalty to each other and the causes we work for. After being part of this group for the better part of a year, I realized how utilitarian it was and how it represented the purest form of political participation.
This group was one of the first to spread news about events and issues that later became nationally known. For example, I first learned that a group of three Republican fraudsters at the Georgia State Board of Elections had committed 11 It is said that they were planning to interfere with the certification of the election results. . As soon as we heard what the Election Commission was going to do, our group organized a mass mobilization of the opposition using, among other things, text threads. “They were shocked when 859 of us showed up,” exclaimed one emailer. A high court judge recently rejected a last-minute policy change.
The group also said it was the first to discover that Georgia’s Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office had launched a flawed voter cancellation request portal with little input from citizens. I was even alone. The website exposed sensitive voter information and could have allowed anyone to fraudulently cancel another voter’s registration. Our group and others’ focus on this underlying problem ultimately led to reforms that better protect voters.
There’s always someone in our text message group who can answer almost any question. When I reviewed my sample ballot for early voting, I had questions about the three constitutional amendments listed on the ballot. One of the proposals concerned a statewide housing tax exemption, another created a state tax court, and the third concerned an increase in the tangible personal property tax exemption. Members of the text thread became suspicious of all three and began posting their opinions on potential problems. The main argument was that it would take away taxation powers from local governments. I voted against all three, but given the language of the amendments, I’m not sure I would have voted that way without the insight I gained from other texters.
You can imagine how powerful it would be if text-messaging nuclei of political groups sprouted up in neighborhoods across the country. Many public servants will see these groups as threats to their power, but they can also shine a light on political shenanigans, blow the whistle on unscrupulous public servants, and educate the public on how democracy should work. By letting you know, I believe. Those groups will be engaged in the highest and purest form of public service.
Governing opinion columns reflect the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Governing editors or management.
