The brat of it all

Y’all, the internet has made a comeback. Pre-Biden dropout, things were bleak. I’m talking sepia toned and slow zoom into a sad internet user’s single tear, with In the Arms of the Angel playing in the background. BLEAK. 

Then Biden said bye. And the internet suddenly has color again?! That color is brat green.

I honestly don’t know which came first: the Kamala Harris campaign or the Kamala Harris memes. In some ways, it doesn’t even matter. What matters is that constituents of the internet are actually excited about engaging in our democracy ahead of a major election. We haven’t seen that since “We did it Joe” four years ago. 

What this all translates into is real power building for elections and beyond. Organizations like the Working Families Party were ready to go as soon as Biden dropped out with social media content that moved people into action – whether that was signing up, donating, or RSVP-ing for a movement call. Win with Black Women and Win with Black Men both hosted calls this past weekend with a combined attendance of over 270 thousand people and raised nearly $3 million from attendees. These calls inspired other groups too. Answer the Call 2024 gathered 200k white women and raised $11 million. 

Imagine if these organizing groups were not prepared with onramps to turn social media followers into action takers? This is not simply a case of posting something at the right time. It’s about staying ready and strategically capturing the energy and directing it into a long-term organizing structure that lives beyond memes of the moment.

On Thursday, I joined a Regional Hub call with our 2024 Fellows, all of whom are working in state powerbuilding organizations. When asked about what has changed in the last few days, they echoed much of what I have been observing: 

• “People are feeling more hopeful and I’m hearing more excitement about local elections too.” 

• “People who didn’t have the time or money or interest, all of a sudden are ready to go.” 

• “There is a lot of energy in younger spaces like TikTok.” 

• “Our faith leaders are drawn in. I have not seen this energy from faith leaders in a while.”

And when asked about how they were redirecting this energy into base building, the same Fellow who noted the uptick in political energy on TikTok also said their organization was coming up with a TikTok strategy to not only engage youth across their state, but also move them to take action on issue campaigns they are running. It can seem simple in writing, but this is the type of thinking that is going to help our movement win. Turning an observation about online content into a successful organizing strategy is not easy, but that’s why Kairos does the work we do:  skilling up organizers across the movement to be able to take moments like an extremely meme-able Kamala Harris running for President, and turn them into base building opportunities that last beyond elections. 

There’s still weeks until the presidential election and a lot remains to be seen. Will the internet energy be sustained? How will campaigns mobilize people to the polls for down ballot races as well as the presidential one? And how will campaigns meet the needs and demands of their constituents – on critical issues like abortion and Palestine. Because, no matter how funny or pointed, you can’t meme your way out of having the political positions your base demands. 

I’m fascinated by what’s happening on the internet right now. Stay tuned because I will be offering more observations and analysis over the next few weeks. And I want to know what you think. Feel free to leave a comment or reply to this email with your thoughts on internet culture and organizing.