“The more people who express an interest in supporting only democracy-compliant businesses, the more power we collectively have to protect our democracy.” — Glenn Kirschner
Glenn Kirschner has a number of impressive titles to his name including U.S. Army JAG prosecutor, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and legal analyst for MSNBC and NBC News. Now he’s added a new one: co-founder, along with music producer Jon Cohen, of The Democracy Pledge.
The Democracy Pledge (TDP) is a grassroots, citizen initiative to fight for our democracy. Anyone paying attention sees each and every day that the Republican Party no longer cares about protecting democracy but instead cares about holding on to power. TDP has developed a tool designed to fight this anti-democratic shift by documenting and sharing information about which businesses support American democracy.
The team at TDP is contacting companies, businesses and corporations and asking them a simple question: Will you stand up to democracy?
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Companies that sign on vow to lend no support to politicians who promote the conspiracy theories surrounding the 2020 presidential election, known as the Big Lie. They know that Biden won fairly and refuse to support any candidates who claim otherwise.
The Democracy Pledge began in the aftermath of the January 6 Attacks on the U.S. Capitol. Numerous companies declared they would stop donations to politicians who participated in the delegitimization of the election results that led to the chaos and violence we witnessed that day.
TDP focuses and continues this effort, putting demands for good corporate citizenship front and center. The role of corporate social responsibility has only been growing. Environmentally conscious Americans, for example, want to know that the companies they support are safeguarding the environment. In our current political climate, doesn’t it also make sense for Americans to know which companies are safeguarding our democracy?
TDP provides a way to hold companies accountable for the donations they make.
TDP’s volunteer members are hard at work contacting companies and adding to the growing list of businesses and corporations that wear their civic responsibility on their sleeve.
Check out the TDP website for the most up-to-date list of companies that have signed. We all prefer to spend our money on those businesses that share our belief in the importance of American democratic values.
We can’t let companies can’t get away with not taking a stand when it comes to the health and continuation of our democracy. As Kirschner says: “Voters’ voices are loud, but for corporate America, consumers’ voices are louder. So folks, let’s let them hear our voice. Because, like justice, democracy matters.”
Calls to Action
- Follow The Democracy Pledge on Twitter and amplify their message to others.
- Sign up for TDP’s email list to stay informed about companies that have taken the pledge.
- Check out those companies that have already signed TDP and show them love, spending dollars or otherwise.
- Learn more about TDP on Glenn Kirschner’s Justice Matters podcast.
We can fight back with … The Democracy Pledge!
