You (And a Few Friends) Can Save Democracy

Do you wish you could do something to lessen the danger of the almost inevitable election chaos coming in November?

Extremist tensions are building to what may likely be an ugly outcome. So, will chaos reign? Will our Capitol again be attacked by a mob unwilling to accept election results? It is astonishing to think our 220-year tradition of peaceful transitions may have ended; that domestic terrorism has overtaken foreign terrorism as the greatest threat to our nation’s security. Even our foreign adversaries are looking to leverage “the power of isolationist right-wing forces in America” to forward their own agendas. Who will save our country from this madness?  

You will. 

It is a huge responsibility, but don’t worry. You can do it! You can be an important part of the solution if you know someone at, or heading dangerously close to, the political precipice (at any end). By inspiring everyone to act – and providing them the necessary tools – we can constructively confront the political extremism that has a chokehold on America. One person at a time.

I recently spoke at the American Democracy Summit in Los Angeles on this very topic. Watch below, or follow this link to an 8-minute version of that speech, where I explain how we got here, and what we can do to help. 

Theory

I believe that a third of Americans (that’s the percentage that’s growing ever nearer to extremism) have not suddenly gone crazy or become immune to reason. During my speech, I hypothesize that those at the political extremes have likely become addicted to extremist messaging and disinformation. I support this hypothesis with findings from researchers who are now studying cultism and political extremism as addictions.

First, let’s look at the definition of addiction: 

Broadly speaking, addiction is the compulsive consumption of a substance—or a behavior—despite harm to self or others. 

One symptom used in its diagnosis is tolerance, the need for ever increasing amounts of the substance or behavior to achieve the same physiologic effect. 

You might be asking: Why am I, a social practice artist, talking about addiction?

I am passionate about decreasing the stigma that is often associated with addiction in America and I have created multiple works of art that address this issue. These art exhibitions force the viewer to confront their preconceived biases around addiction and look at the topic with a different perspective. In order to create this art, I traveled across the country interviewing hundreds of people who were suffering or recovering from drug addiction.

They taught me three crucial things:

1. Psychological trauma lies at the core of addiction. My interviewees recounted endless stories of abuse, bullying, social isolation, neglect. This pain damaged their self-worth, making them keenly vulnerable to addictions of all sorts. 

1. Sustained, healthy recovery often requires three things:

1. Therapy or counseling to address the underlying trauma.

2. A new community that will support them in sobriety, or in staying away from the drug.

3. A new self-image, a sense of themselves separate from the behavior or drug. 

2. Inadequate recovery can sometimes cause a new addiction to be substituted for the old one. Several individuals have told me about loved ones who got clean from drugs, only to become politically radicalized. 

The good news is that we can help people in addiction to recover. With the same reasoning, there has to be a solution for individuals who have become addicted to extremist messaging. 

How You Save Democracy

I invite you to take a few minutes to watch my speech on this topic, which I’ve linked here and above. Let me know if it resonates with you, and feel free to comment on this post or share the link with others you think might want to join the conversation. 

This can be an intimidating topic, but you’re not alone. A renowned addiction therapist and I are piloting a support group for families and friends of people who have been radicalized by political messaging. Throughout this process, we are creating a set of tools to help drag loved ones back from the political edge. If you are interested in this, please contact me for more information.

Let’s save our democracy, one person at a time.

Suzanne

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