Looking for hope amid concerns for broken political system

(Editor’s Note: This column was written Monday, January 4, two days before a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol.)

I’ve often reflected on a story told about Ben Franklin leaving the Constitutional Convention. He was asked by a group of citizens what kind of government the delegates had created. “A republic, if you can keep it,” he responded.

These few words of Franklin highlight some essentials of our republic. We are founded on the consent of the governed, the informed and active participation of the people. What some of the founders feared was an out-ofcontrol mob.

I try to be a hopeful person focused on what’s possible. That’s why the 1992 anthem of Canadian poet and artist Leonard Cohen is so inspiring during these times:

Ring the bells that still can ring

Forget your perfect offering

There is a crack, a crack in everything

That’s how the light gets in. But I must admit I am not very hopeful these days if I am honest about the future of our republic.

Our political system seems unable to function effectively. It’s broken. Except when it comes to keeping the government open, the two parties seem unable or unwilling to cooperate. Money buys influence. Equal justice under the law, one of our most important founding principles, seems shredded by power politics. Fair and free elections seem out of reach with one party questioning elections and the other seeking to make voting more accessible.

We seem divided politically, socially, and regionally fed by media outlets that do not simply report news but report only the news of a particular party or point of view. Meanwhile, social media seem out of control with little check on facts or realities. Conspiracies dominate and many politicians play to partisan audiences, unwilling or unable to take principle stands against the ruling elite.

Meanwhile, our republic withdraws from its historic role as the major spokesperson for democracy around the world. We seem to side more with dictatorships than our traditional democratic partners. We then withdraw from attempts to curb pollution and stand by while those who oppose democracies hack our information systems. And we end up isolated and vulnerable to those for whom democracy is a dirty word.

It’s not a pretty picture, I know, but no good will come by not facing where we are as a republic. We cannot heed Ben Franklin’s advice and keep it without a clear assessment of where we find ourselves. We cannot see the crack in everything and let the light in without taking stock of where we are and where we want to go.

There are a few major ways we can keep the republic alive for ourselves and future generations. First, stay alert, keep informed, and active as citizens. That means focusing on a few essential democratic principles such as the rule of law, free and fair elections, holding those who claim to be our representatives true to these principles.

Second, staying informed and active in political life, which means at minimum voting.

But more than voting, it means doing what we can where we are to support democratic principles.

We can keep the republic and let the light in.