Values First

At the beginning of every event, we stipulate that CEBV is "non-partisan but not neutral." Some of our audience may associate "non-partisan" with "not taking a side," but that is far from the truth. Partisanship means identifying political party first, and doing everything possible to advance the causes embraced by that party. 

As a group associated with no political party, we lead with values. Brené Brown writes in her groundbreaking book Dare to Lead, "If we do not have clarity of values, if we don't have anywhere else to look or focus, if we don't have that light up above to remind us why we're there, the cynics and the critics can bring us to our knees." She continues, "More often than not, our values are what lead us to the arena door... We need our values to remind us why we went in, especially when we are facedown, covered in dust and sweat and blood."

The political arena can feel like a bloody battle. And too many politicians forget the values that brought them into the fray (we're generously assuming that something other than power, money, and fame was the motivator).

On the campaign trail, candidates are asked about their "why," which is a window to understanding the causes they will fight for. We fail to understand an officeholder who won't go to the mat for something. We can't help thinking of former Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, whose core value seemed to be bi-partisanship, or including both sides in every project. I submit that this isn't a value but a tool that may be used to achieve a value. There is no universe where we compromise with human rights such as the right for women to control their bodies, for equal access to voting, or for the full humanity of LGBTQ people. We now know plenty about Kyrsten Sinema's values.

We must fight for our core values, but we can't fight every battle or we become ineffective. Hence the question, "Is this the hill I'll die on?" At least some of the time, the answer must be "yes," and those times should represent rock-solid conviction, a conviction that forms the identity of the organization or politician. 

After our explanation of "non-partisan but not neutral," we always stipulate that we're proudly progressive. This worldview embraces human dignity and equality, the beautiful diversity of our country, and the communities we form together. You might say diversity, equality, and inclusion. Justice, fairness, and honesty. Authenticity and humor. Perseverance. 

CEBV leads with our values, and if the policies of a candidate or elected official align with those values, we'll support them. This gives us permission to make recommendations in elections, and also to criticize our allies when they're in office. We expect officeholders to be true to their values, even if that means pushing or breaking with their party to enact positive change. 

As Indivisible is doing with U.S. Senate and House candidates, we will be looking closely at primaries, and we won't hesitate to make recommendations in contested primaries. We expect candidates who will fight, not fold. Watch this space.