Let’s Dream Bigger: What Kind of World Do You Want to Live In?
What does freedom, safety, and justice look like to you?
Vision: Imagining a World Worth Fighting For
One of the biggest challenges for progressives is the lack of a unifying vision—a clear, compelling story people can understand, rally around, and believe in. During the Bush (“W”) years, one of my political science professors pointed out that Republicans excel at storytelling. Their story, whether accurate or not, is simple: Someone else is to blame for your problems. If we get rid of them, your life will be better.
The left needs a better story. One that isn’t built on fear or exclusion but on a shared vision of what we want—not just what we oppose.
I don’t have the perfect story yet. But I want to try. And I want you to help me shape it.
What If…? A Vision for the Future
What if, when we walked out our doors, we could breathe easily, knowing the air was clean?
What if the soil our food grows in was healthy, and water was abundant and safe for everyone?
What if travel was accessible and borders weren’t barriers to human connection but invitations to explore, learn, and share? What if education was about passion and curiosity, not financial burden or arbitrary gatekeeping?
What if no one had to negotiate debt to send their child to college? What if our basic needs—housing, food, healthcare—were guaranteed, not privileges rationed by wealth?
What if my special-needs nephew had all the care he needed, and my sister never had to fight exhausting battles to get him support? What if women’s pain was believed the first time they spoke it? What if women were believed, period?
What if safety meant walking anywhere, at any time, without gripping keys between our fingers as makeshift weapons?
What if children grew up with time to play, explore, and simply be—without being rushed into a world of endless productivity and pressure?
What if aging with dignity wasn’t a privilege but a given, because communities cared for their elders rather than leaving families to struggle alone?
What if a credit score wasn’t the price of having a place to live? What if going to the doctor didn’t mean going into debt?
What if bodily autonomy was non-negotiable—where decisions about pregnancy, gender, and health were made privately, between an individual and their doctor, without interference?
What if news and information were freely accessible, so we could understand our world without navigating paywalls or propaganda?
We Need a New Story—Together
In a recent post, I wrote:
I want everyone to be free. I want everyone to have autonomy over their own body—whether that means deciding to be pregnant or living fully into their identity. I want everyone to be free to roam, to visit places, to be safe. I want everyone to be free to work in a way that makes sense for them and be respected for that work.
At its core, this vision comes down to a few simple principles:
Everyone has autonomy over their own body. Your rights end where my body begins.
Everyone has access to clean resources—air, water, soil.
Everyone’s basic needs—housing, food, healthcare—are met.1
But I don’t want to do this alone. A single voice can’t shape the world we want to build. What do you value? What does your vision look like?
I invite you to share your thoughts. Let’s start telling a better story—together.
[Share your vision by clicking the button below.]
“Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs,” March 23, 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs.