From the Editors: November 2024

Anna

As I sit down to write this edition of From the Editors, it is Monday, Nov. 4 and I have no earthly way of knowing which direction this election is going. The polls are deadlocked. By the time this issue publishes on Wednesday, Nov. 6 — we may or may not know the results of the election and it feels completely impossible to envision what that day will look like. Either way, it won't be easy. If Harris wins, Trump and his minions have already said on multiple occasions that they won't accept it. What will that look like? A repeat of Jan. 6, 2021? Worse? Will the judges and federal election officials act rationally to maintain our democracy like they did in 2020? Will the Supreme Court, if it eventually comes down to a decision from them? And if Trump wins? Well, we've all been through that before — the anxiety, chaos, and constant bracing, waiting to see what happens next.

Regardless of the outcome, what's left in our individual power after we vote? What can we as individuals do to improve our lives and the lives of our children and grandchildren outside of national politics and their global implications? Our power lies in strengthening our local community.

Our November issue is always our Shop Local issue and it is the first one I ever worked on at the Erie Reader when I took the position of managing editor in October of 2022. In that issue, it was a pleasure to compile a list of local makers and artisans to support as we presented the Shop Local Gift Guide: Makers Edition. In 2023, we built our gift guide around shopping in different districts within the city. This year, we're revisiting both of those themes and expanding upon them with our 2024 Shop Local Gift Guide — updating you on new businesses in the downtown shopping district, some newer artists and makers on the scene, and taking you outside the city this time — on frosty drives throughout Erie County to support the microeconomies throughout our municipalities. This kind of local support is one that helps to build a strong community — one we'll need to rely on more and more as we face the future.

Another way to support our local community is to support local journalism. This is increasingly important in the current climate of creating distrust in the media. I recently sent out an email blast to our loyal newsletter subscribers (if you're not one, you can sign up at the link) about a new program we at the Reader are launching that allows you to become a monthly subscriber and support our small paper in more ways than simply being a reader (which is, alone, appreciated). This support comes with exclusive perks (including a cool, subscriber-only monthly email that I am really looking forward to composing). The Erie Reader has always been and will always be free to read online and in print, but this offers our readers a way to help support us, if that feels right. Click the "support" link on the top of our homepage to learn more.

It is my hope that this locally-focused issue finds its way onto newsstands amidst a climate of calm and order, after a smooth, normal, democratic election and that we can all continue, from that point, to move in a direction of forward, positive momentum together. Only time will tell.