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The New Orleans Saints won Super Bowl 44. Congratulations to the players, the organization, and, most importantly, Saints fans.
The story of the Saints is a classic rags-to-riches tale. The team had never been to the championship game. They had 2 playoff wins in 42 years. They were so bad that their fans wore paper bags over their head for years and unaffectionately called the team "The Aints."
New Orleans has also had a hell of a ride, going from "Las Vegas of the South" to the flash point of modern government incompetence, racism, and social injustice after Hurricane Katrina. The city and its football team were ripe for a comeback.
Our Progressive movement is too. Why? We took back Congress in 2006. We took back the White House in 2008. We passed health care reform We’re working on that. We need a comeback because we’re disoriented.
It’s like we just woke up. Our eyes are open, but our vision is blurred. We know our slippers are near the bed, but we have to feel around with our toes to find them.
We reorient ourselves by becoming clear in our purpose. Let’s take a page from the Saints and make that happen. Progressive organizers, activists, and politicians can learn a lot from these World Champions about how to win this year and beyond. Here are 3 key lessons.
Be who you are
The Saints have been a gutsy team all season. Their high-powered offense was planned and executed by a coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterback aligned with common purpose. They knew one another well and believed in each other. They gave each other space to be themselves.
Drew Brees doesn’t have the strongest arm in the league, but he’s the NFL’s most accurate passer. Instead of throwing long balls, they played to Brees’ strengths and ran quick, short plays that relied on timing and precision.
Progressives must do the same and play to our strengths. Let’s quit trying to act like people we’re not and pretending to hold views that we don’t. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t grow our thinking or our skills as a movement (see below), but it does mean that we must look at what makes us who we are and work with that.
Now, Discover Your Strengths by Mark Buckingham is a book we all should read. It asserts that the most effective method for motivating people is to build on their strengths rather than correcting their weaknesses. We’re a big tent with big ideas and strong convictions. Let’s remember who we are, remember what our movement is about, and use that to boldly move forward.
Be bold or go home
The Saints didn’t get to the Super Bowl by playing not to lose. They went for it on 4th downs. They kicked an onside kick to open the 2nd half. They went for the 2-point conversion. Some gambles worked, some didn’t. When they were down 10-0 after the 1st quarter, they didn’t forget the traits that made them the highest-scoring team in the NFL and NFC champions.
Progressives must do the same: Be courageous enough to be boldly progressive. Stand up for your vision of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. If something is disgusting, call it disgusting. If someone is dishonest, call them a liar. If something is possible, tell that story. Wimpy politicians finish 2nd. Wimpy organizers don’t win. Sick of losing? Get sick of being timid.
The dirty little secret is that this makes us more attractive to the debutantes everyone is courting: independents. Persuadable, undecided voters are more likely to vote for candidates/support parties that stand strongly for something. Shyness wins neither dates nor political victories.
Remember your supporters
We neither win nor lose alone. The problem is that when we win we salute ourselves, and when we lose, we focus on our opponents. This must cease. Movements, like football teams, thrive on passion. Every player, coach, and representative of the New Orleans Saints thanked their fans first during every interview they gave. They know who propelled them to the top, and they didn’t forget them.
The passion that drives us and keeps us working and organizing must never be aimed toward our opposition. To become sustainable and resilient, we must focus on and feed off of our supporters. Our fans. Our base.
Progressives [sensibly] spewed venom towards the Bush Administration for years, but now we can’t quite articulate what we’re shooting at. What if we showered our fans with hope and a coherent worldview to organize around? Investments made in supporters are like spending time with your grandparents: always a good idea.
Let’s invest in ourselves and our allies. Training. Networking. Leadership development. Technology infrastructure. You want donors of talent, time, and treasure? Invest in your fans. They’ll love you for it.
Congratulations New Orleans.
Thank you for showing me and the rest of the Progressive movement what it takes to win.
Garlin Gilchrist II is the Director of New Media at the Center for Community Change.
42 Comments
Wonderful game and truly a testament to hard work and sticktoitiveness. And we the people must follow suit.
More Sticky Fingers than sticktoitiveness.
The Colts played the exact same type game, they just dropped a few more balls.
Hard work and sticking to the game plan…Progressives wake up.
WTF I can’t get these to work…
OK one more time/
hard work and stick to the game plan and neverneverneverneverNEVER give up.
Congrats New Orleans. You deserved that one fo sho.
So let’s see if I have this right: first-prepare and train hard; second-go in with an attitude to win; third-everyone play the same game and decide to work as a team; fourth-grab your opportunity and run 74 yards to a touchdown when the other guy makes a mistake. That’s how to win.
How to lose: first-know you’ve got the best team because you’ve got the best quarterback ever; second-score early and be careful in what you do…complete all the passes you throw; third-get really aggressive and get caught breaking the rules when the other guy tries to compete which costs you morale and yardage and finally: get down to the wire and incomplete three times in a row. You go home with your old helmet and donate all the tee shirts that say you won to kids in Haiti.
We’ve been the second one for quite a while. Isn’t it time we changed the paradigm?
First step is to recognize that progressives and the vast majority of Democrats are mutually exclusive entities. I think there’s ample evidence to bear out that the Democrats -are- “being who they are”.
Sam Seder has a critique of Air America. Sounds like the hierarchy there did not appreciate their fans/audience either. F***ing r-words, I guess. Not nice to diss your fans.
My take on why this was the most watched Super Bowl? Our nation in most people’s memories has not been so far down in the crapper as now. None of my friends want to talk about politics at all especially the Obama supporters. So we talk about movies and we watched the Super Bowl. And we desperately read in to it some kind of meaning. Will this translate into anything like a revolution? Don’t know.
Ah, a classic tale of stylized violence.
I am really enjoying your FDL contributions, Mr Gilchrist. Thank you.
Thoughtfull piece, thanks Garlin. Congrats on the Front Page!
But the problem is there are 3 teams in this game.
Republicans, Democrats and Progressives.
In the last contest, Progressives teamed up with Democrats to beat the Republicans. So now we’re ruled by non-progressive Democrats.
Nothing at present time can happen in US unless the 1% or 2% who own [and run]98% of america oks it. The two% also owning that much of congress, WH,armies [both the "private" and regular being private], judiciary, cia, fbi, police,media, education, etc.
That means that once again the ruling top wld most likely only give the rest of the pop some crumbs or s’mthing only seemingly better than what was before.
Even if only 50% of the congress wld be owned by the 98% of the americans, some changes for better might accrue from that alone.
And there is no justifiable reason why the 98% cannot obtain even 90% of congress-wh, army,cia, media, educaton, etc. tnx
One or two percent own and run 98% of America?
Put this way it almost seems generous of them to let us along for the ride.
They need us to carry the sedan chair.
lol :)
Yes it is divinely generous of “them”.
The Divine Right of Money.
We’re gonna have a heck of a ride, a fine ride, alan1tx.
And the fine is more than we can afford.
Better keep yer looks or ye’ll be selling yer organs for “change”.
Two dimes and a nickle.
Aka: “two bits”
Does you have a ticket to ride or is you freeloading?
(Why does this “conveyance” look like the proverbial “hand-basket to hell”?)
At least we are going in “exceptional” style on our Grand Tour of the late, great planet Earth.
Others are merely leaving in a Huff.
Still others, await some other-divinely “inspired” rapture and their heavenly mansions.
On the road agin …
DW
(((Bartoo!!!))
Just been lurking since last night. Whew!
Been doing that meownself, demi, lurkin’ that is, just too much “sensitivity” among some of the “participants” of late
Or else I’m just gettin’ grumpier.
Prolly both.
;~DW
I thought you said your were just a curmudgeon, not grumpy.
Hell. We’re all in this little boat together. It is what it is.
I’m currently planting flowers before the next storm comes.
And, lighting candles as opposed to cursing. (Damn! – see, I lied. *g*) You’re a good man, David. According to ME! Ha!
What kind of a storm are you anticipating demi?
This last one, here in the big Pitt (2 feet of snow) brought to mind my favorite uncle who was mayor of a small northern Pennsylvania town.
On days of large storms, when the question, “Where’s DeWitt?” was asked, it always had one answer: “Oh, he’s out helping to dig someone out or seeing that they have food and fuel.”
Now my uncle, Dewitt, didn’t find that odd or strange he just thought that it was his responsibility. He did it even when he wasn’t mayor.
I guess you could say he was a real politician.
His first question was: “Who needs help?”
His second: “What do they need?”
Then, he was out the door. No more questions asked.
DW
Just rain. I’m in Los Angeles. Wouldn’t be planting flowers in a snow storm. Right? No hurricane. I live in the pleasant land of sin. *g*
You don’t plant flowers in a snow storm?
Why not?
Hmmmm, “the pleasant land of sin.”
Well it’s a sin you’ve got no snow.
But is you participating in the larger effort or is you merely observing?
They say sin is in the eyes of the beholder.
But I’m not certain this is any time to willfully close one’s eyes.
Sin done escaped LA and leaped right (duh pun!) over to DC. (And they are about to get another two feet of snow jobs – though some of them are bound to overwhelm the entire nation.)
(According to me, you is one of the best, demi.)
DW
Is that a political statement or song lyric?
Yes.
:~p
Uh, President Obama?
Kind of sorry I missed the event because I might have enjoyed the subliminal life messages. Well, minus all of the patriotic hoopla around a sport designed primarily to make money. Not intending to be disparaging but team sports dependent upon commercialism often seem a bit too much like war to drag me into the party spirit. Since this was the most watched Super Bowl ever, apparently even beating the ratings for the last episode of M.A.S.H. (so the headlines tell me) I doubt the advertisers missed my family’s viewership much.
The message of professional team sports, much like gambling, seems more like phrase from an old song by Morphine:
Players win when winners play. Have a lucky day.
Bring on Rollerball.
It would be nice to think progressives won Congress and the WH but the evidence seems to be that the corporations and the chicken-hearted did. (My apologies in advance to any chickens I may have offended by comparing them to the Democrats.)
Be who you are.
Gosh, that’s what I’m aiming for. Tough stuff, sometimes.
Kind of reminds me of a journalism class I took way back when. Teacher was the guy who founded the LA Free Press. First class, he leaned over his podium and did the Today is the first of the rest of your life speech. Kind of turned me off because of the Duh factor, for me. Got further yucked when he hit on me and invited me to some Hollywoodish party, which I, of course, declined.
I see the relevance, but get caught up and turned off in how I hear the message delivered.
Me and Popeye.
“…We passed health care reform…”
I must be dense. Please explain.
Of course, a pick 6 would help.
Last night at the gym, one of the members asked me how she could make a lot of money and not have to work anymore. Imagine that? Like, if I knew the answer…der?
The “Be Bold” speaks to all our needs. If Obama had been bold with the power we gave him, we wouldn’t even be having this discussion. We can be bold but so far we can’t even get the Dems to talk to us. I e-mailed the WH a few days ago and asked if Obama had the guts to talk to the Progressives. I don’t expect an answer.
What Bold did you do today? Wondering.
So far the boldest thing I’ve done is get out of bed. “g”
See what hard times we have? But, it’s so easy to question everyone else’s every comment and motivation.
Not ragging on you. Just seems this place is going through one of the downturns wherein the circling thing is happening.
Sometimes getting out of bed and facing life is bold.
Good on ya, dear. Hope is always there.
Well, Twain, you know what they say: “All great journeys begin with getting out of bed …”
You’re on your way.
(You is one of the better-prepared travelers I’ve encountered on the way, having packed adequate humor and humanity for the rugged passes and sour deserts of despair which all real life travels must pass over or through…)
;~DW
A thousand thank-you’s!
That politics is played like a football game is why the players win and the folks in the stands pay ridiculous sums of money for the privilege of watching.
Thanks for promoting the bread and circus, but no thanks.
Ah, a curmudgeon after me own heart.
I don’t think anybody missed us, marxmarv, however, at the “games”.
DW
No kidding. What pray tell do average Americans have to do with football? A game played by overpaid, less than 20 games a year “athletes” where most have no command of the english language, much less the intelligence of the ball they are throwing around…..where the team belongs to a giant corporate entity, making billions in profits, by stabbing their fans in the back…oh wait, that sounds like what the Dems did to progressives. Ok, I give.
Just the opposite is true. Progressives need a coalition with centrists to form a majority. Right wingers are dumb and misguided but they know how to stick together to exercise political power. As always, folks on the left are splintered and looking silly. If progressives compromised and focused on the big picture they would break the right’s coalition. Lawmakers on the right would defect out of self interest and to avoid being in the hip pocket of the weaker party. It would be the opposite of where things have stood for the majority of three decades.
The progressives have been compromising from day 1 but there is no interest among the so called centrist dems to compromise with us.
What these so called centrists have done is deliver mostly right wing legislation and allowed it to be call centrist since the rethugs will always claim they are left wing no matter what they do. A real “centrist” would have supported a strong public option as a compromise with progressives who want single payer. The centrists are for the most part the people like Barney Frank, who refuses to break up the banks but is willing to support some minor consumer protections and Rockefeller who will propose a public option but will not stand up for it.