The message and lingering effects of the Occupy movement, in addition to long-repressed progressive contingents in the Democratic Party, should not be underestimated in considering Sanders’s appeal.

Sanders is tapping into this rich vein of “Enough-is-enough!” outrage and long-simmering alienation in ways that no prominent politician has dared in quite some time. The media emphasis on Sanders’s refreshing authenticity minimizes his deeper importance and resonance: He is not simply speaking with integrity, but speaking truth to power. His phenomenal rise, in the face of staunch (and tone-deaf) opposition from the Democratic Party mainstream, shows that a vast portion of the country is ready for far more significant change than establishment politicians—or most media—dare to admit.

As the nomination battle unfolds, whether Sanders wins or not, the key question becomes: How will progressives, change-minded Independents, and social movements transform this tremendous political energy into a movement that can demand and exact change? Because even in victory, a President Sanders will need a sturdy popular wind blowing his political sails and reform agenda toward success. Given the heavily centrist, pro-corporate core of the Democratic Party, Sanders’s rise should not be mistaken for party overhaul just yet; nor should those supporting Sanders’s agenda put too much stock in the Democratic Party as potential salvation. What’s needed, in one form or another, is an ongoing independent movement that is as truth-talking, principled, and politically brave as Sanders himself.

Sanders has seized and amplified a significant moment in American political history. His remarkable campaign, now seriously contending for the nomination against a political establishment firewall that is rapidly eroding, doesn’t threaten the Democratic Party—it threatens the elite party leadership (the Clintons, the DLC, et al.), which has spent decades distancing itself from (and therefore alienating) working people, the poor, immigrants, and many communities of color. In fact, Sanders’s success actually creates an opportunity for the Democratic Party to be of greater service to its traditional base—working people of all races—by addressing fundamental issues of corporate power and accountability, economic inequality and redistribution, and human priorities over for-profit special interests.

Ultimately, this victory is not about Sanders or even progressives—it’s about creating a shift that could have real consequences for real people. Elections, by definition, are not revolutions. But they create choices and momentum. What Sanders’s achievement signifies goes far beyond mass support for an authentic antiestablishment voice. It means that a huge and growing portion of the country (national polls consistently show Sanders beating all Republicans by significant margins) would like to see at least a goodly measure of economic justice, Wall Street accountability, and truth-to-power political courage. It’s more than the Democratic Party has dared to offer for decades.

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