By Anthony Cody.

Many of us are in a state of deep frustration over the strong possibility that Bernie Sanders will not be the Democratic Party’s nominee in the presidential race this fall. Circumstances may yet occur to upset the presumptions that are now being made, so I think it is legitimate to wait until the convention in Philadelphia to see who the actual nominee will be. But the feelings of frustration have some important roots, and should not be discarded lightly, because they point the way forward.

As Chris Hedges has suggested, we are living in a shadow sort of pseudo-democracy, where our political choices are constrained by what we are told is possible, and what is impossible. Hope is discouraged. Participation is futile.

In spite of the fact that the US has the wealthiest, most productive economy in the world, we have been told that there is not enough money to pay for:

• Health care for all
• Higher education for all
• Adequate funding for public schools

We are told that public schools are so broken that further investment in them is unwarranted, and money should be funneled into a parallel system of supposedly innovative, largely non-union charter schools, which intensify patterns of segregation and inequity.

We are told fracking can be made safe for the environment, even as we see groundwater polluted coast to coast.

We have been told that businesses cannot afford to pay workers a living wage, even as they swim in profits.

We have been told that public sector jobs are somehow inherently wasteful, while corporations like Walmart are subsidized by having their low wage employees enroll in government assistance to feed their families. Meanwhile our nation’s infrastructure crumbles around us.

We have been told to accept for-profit prisons, though the very idea of making money from incarcerating people should be repugnant.

We have been told that for a politician to be elected, he or she must embrace and defend every act carried out by the Israeli government, and deny any legitimacy to Palestinian concerns.

We have been told that systemic racism is on the way out when huge inequities remain stronger than ever, and little is being done to dismantle them.

We have been told that corporate-inspired trade deals like the TPP are needed to keep the US “competitive,” all the while we are kept in the dark about provisions that favor privatization and impinge on democracy all over the world.

These messages come from Democrats and Republicans alike. The Republicans are more extreme, to be sure. But look at Chicago, where Democrat Rahm Emanuel has closed down scores of schools and threatens to leave the schools there a shambles.

Look at the last eight years of federal policy under President Obama and Secretary Duncan. No Republicans were needed for our schools and students to suffer tremendous damage.

The frustration Sanders supporters feel is that through his candidacy, we got a glimpse of an alternative reality, within our grasp as a nation.

Although we were told that all politicians must pursue corporate cash because that is what it takes to get elected, Sanders proved that was not so.

Although voters were told not to bother, that Sanders had lost, they still showed up by the millions to support real change.

We have been told to “accept the math” that makes it impossible for Sanders to be the Democratic nominee. We have also been told to accept the math that says there is not enough money to pay for health care, education and jobs. But Sanders has showed this to be an illusion, and while he may not overcome the math regarding convention delegates, we must be clear that his math regarding wealth inequities is solid: there is plenty of money to support human needs and our environment. The fight for these things will continue, whether or not he is the nominee.

My knowledge of history will not allow me to be cavalier about the possibility of a Trump presidency. When he says he will create a special sort of police force to round up millions of immigrants, I have to take him at his word. When his racism unleashes the pent up fears and aggression of whites, this is a truly dangerous thing. We cannot stand by and allow Trump to be elected.

But the movement to stop Trump cannot be all about electing someone who is not actually ready to fight for the world that Sanders showed us is possible. We need to build an independent movement that not only defeats Trump, but rises beyond that minimal goal to push for genuine democracy, economic, environmental and social justice.

In 2011, education activists went to Washington, DC, by the thousands with the Save Our Schools March to protest the policies of the Obama administration. We will be back again a month from now, to once again insist that schools and students not be sold out.

The Network for Public Education is also pressing the Democratic Party to take a strong stand in their platform in support of real change in public education and against high stakes testing and privatization. Please sign on here to support this effort.

We need to continue to push for the reality Sanders has allowed us to glimpse – a reality in which not all politicians are bought off, where the vast wealth of our nation can be redirected towards people’s needs, where the future of the environment need not be sacrificed for the sake of greed. Even though I will vote for whomever the Democratic nominee will be, I will not consider that adequate as an expression of my responsibility as a citizen and an educator. The struggle continues. I will be with Bernie Sanders as long as he keeps ringing that bell.

What do you think?

Featured photo by Alex Garland.  Used with permission, all rights reserved.