Leah Greenberg is not someone who takes things sitting down quietly. When she saw the US turning to what she believed to be a dangerous form of political extremism, she decided to do something about it.
Following the election of US president Donald Trump in 2016, Greenberg, along with several other former congressional staffers, created an online publication titled “Indivisible: A Practical Guide for Resisting the Trump Agenda.” The publication offered suggestions for how to peacefully but effectively resist the move to the right by the executive branch of the government, something feared by progressive movements nationwide.
Seeing the success of the publication and feeling she had not yet done enough, Greenberg, along with her husband, Ezra Levin, founded the Indivisible movement – a progressive organization that continues to operate even now, almost two years after the end of Trump’s presidency.
Protesting Trump and Congress throughout the Trump era
Throughout the Trump era, Indivisible took part in organizing national action, protesting against both Trump and Congress and organizing in communities across the US. In 2018, the group and its volunteers donated money, gave endorsements and campaigned for Democratic candidates in the midterms, playing a key role in the Democrats’ winning back control of the House.
Today, the movement is focused on preparing for the midterm elections, endorsing progressive Democratic candidates ahead of their primaries. Outside of Congress, the group has turned its attention to the Supreme Court and its nine justices, of whom three were chosen by Trump.
“I see myself as being part of a tradition of Jews organizing for social justice, and recognizing that our own status of a minority group that has been persecuted calls on us to support others who are under attack.”
Leah Greenberg
“I see myself as being part of a tradition of Jews organizing for social justice, and recognizing that our own status of a minority group that has been persecuted calls on us to support others who are under attack,” Greenberg, a Reform Jew, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
The waves Greenberg has made in the world of US politics have not gone unrecognized. In 2017, she and her husband were ranked second on the Politico list of top visionaries and thinkers transforming American politics.
In 2018, both Greenberg and Levin were named on GQ’s list of the 50 most powerful people in Trump’s Washington; and in 2019, they were featured in Time magazine’s top 100 most influential people list.
Following the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act by President Joe Biden, something that Indivisible had long been campaigning for, Greenberg took to her own personal Twitter account, sharing her passion and motivation for the work she does.
“This is why we build power,” she tweeted, “to use it to make people’s lives better. This is a beautiful day.”