How We Win

This book uniquely demonstrates how a new combination of communities, progressive visions, and strategies provides a path to defeat fascist machinations and strengthens social justice movements. Taking the incredible twists and turns of elections as a given, the book takes the issues, grievances and solutions of social movements as its grounding. Would-be change agents, be they first-time voters, freshly minted activists, impacted communities, or veteran strategists, will find answers to questions of voting, organizing, and mobilization. In doing so, readers will find answers to activating their networks and communities not merely to vote, but how to build on their "Emergency Election" mobilizing and power-building efforts to win their agendas, regardless of who holds office. This theoretically and empirically informed handbook for activists, voters, their organizations, unions, and communities provides both mobilizing tools and talking points about the elections' most vital and contested issues.

Charles Derber is professor of sociology at Boston College, USA. A lifelong social justice activist, his work focuses on the crises of capitalism, globalization, corporate power, militarism, the culture of hegemony, the climate crisis, and peace and global justice movements. His recent books include Turnout!: Mobilizing Voters in an Emergency (Routledge, 2020), Dying for Capitalism: How Big Money Fuels Extinction and What We Can Do about It (Routledge, 2023), and Who Owns Democracy?: The Real Deep State and the Struggle over Class and Caste in America (Routledge, 2024). Suren Moodliar is an organizer, writer, and journal editor. He co-leads encuentro5, a Boston-based movement-building center. His most recent book is Dying for Capitalism: How Big Money Fuels Extinction and What We Can Do about It (Routledge, 2023). Matt Nelson is executive director of Presente .or g, an advocacy group that advances Latinx power and amplifies Latinx voices. Before his work at Presente .or g, he was the organizing director at Color of Change. Matt is a seasoned campaign strategist, who has won dozens of local and national campaigns, and a skilled community organizer, who has trained thousands of activists. He is the co-editor of Turnout!: Mobilizing Voters in an Emergency (Routledge, 2020) and was featured in Ferguson Is America: Roots of Rebellion (2015). Nancy Treviño is director of power at Presente.org, a community organizer, trainer, and campaign strategist. Previously, Nancy worked alongside dozens of grassroots community organizations across the US, collaborated with national and international human rights organizations, and continues to provide strategic organizing, digital, and communications support to advance social justice movements.

Introduction 1. At the Crossroads, Again: Embracing Organizing, Social Movements, and Transformational Change Part I: Voices & Visions, Communities & Key Issues 2. To Save Organized Human Society 3. Mobilizing in Times of Emergency 4. How We Win for Women 5. The Fascist Threat and the Progressive Agenda 6. Political Violence - Old and New, Neither Acceptable 7. The Dystopian Vision of Project 2025 8. Billionaires vs. Your Vote 9. The Human Right to Housing 10. Holding the Fort, Birthing a New World - or Why Labor Unions Matter 11. A Union for All Workers 12. Flow of Resistance: The Power of Border Communities Shaping America's Future 13. Saving the Dead, Making the Future: Public History Against Fascism Intermission (Take Action!) 14. Values, Villain, Vision: Messaging to Mobilize Our Base and Persuade the Conflicted 15. Letter to College Students 16. Nuts and Bolts: Registering, Voting, Mobilizing Your Community Part II: The Power of the Electorate - Working with Voters 17. Turning Out Young Voters of Color by Focusing on Their Priority Issue: The Rising Cost of Living 18. Turning Out Our Peers 19. 1964's Freedom Summer Offers a Model for the Voting Rights Work We Need to Do 20. Mobilizing with Elder Voters 21. Restoring Democracy through Our Public Schools 22. Working with Labor Movement Voters 23. All Politics is Local: Reflections from the Frontlines of a Progressive Electoral Movement 24. Protecting Voter Rights