"This victory alone is not the change that we seek—it is only the chance for us to make that change." — Barack Obama, Nov. 4, 2008
Dear Friend,
This is an exciting time to be a progressive. Our country elected Barack Obama as its first African-American president. Democrats expanded their majorities in Congress. American voters decisively rejected the Republican Party and its noxious ideology. Not since the days of FDR has there been a more auspicious time to enact a progressive economic agenda.
Sustaining progressive voices like In These Times and InTheseTimes.com will be critical to making the most of the political moment. You can be sure that Republicans and many center-right Democrats will be opposing the structural reforms needed to turn our country around.
For In These Times to continue advocating for meaningful change, we need your help. Donations have fallen sharply in recent months as many of our readers have retrenched during the recession. This worries me because contributions from members of the In These Times make up 70 percent of our income.
For more than 32 years, In These Times has confronted a political system where corporate lobbyists have called the shots in Washington. Whether progressive reforms will prevail—as they did in the 1930s—depends on how fiercely we oppose the right's agenda and how vigorously we articulate our own. With your support, In These Times will help ensure that this precious window of opportunity is not squandered.
In the coming year, our reporters will continue to cover the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the fight for workers' rights, the movement for universal healthcare, the search for a climate-friendly energy policy, and the aftermath of California's Proposition 8. Perhaps most urgently, In These Times will regularly audit Obama's economic recovery program. We will credit the new president where he is bold, and we will challenge him where he is timid.
Because we operate on a very lean budget, even a small percentage decrease in donations has a large effect on our ability to publish. Our survival depends on the generosity of readers like you—and never more so than during these hard times.
Your financial contribution will help In These Times reach and influence a large, politically active audience. Each month, about 20,000 people read our print magazine, and more than 250,000 visit InTheseTimes.com. Your support allows In These Times to provide a forum for debate, a space for dissent and a voice for change.
We've waited a long time for meaningful change. But it won't be handed to us. Change we can believe in is change we must fight for. With your help, In These Times will be there with you.
Please give as generously as your means allow.
Thank you for your vital contribution.
In solidarity,
Joel Bleifuss, Editor and Publisher
P.S. In These Times is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Your contribution is tax-deductible.