I'm a socialist organizer. Indiana Democrats need to welcome, not sabotage, outsiders.

Hoosiers have the 10th-worst voter registration and, in 2020, had the 5th-worst voter turnout in the country. In 2022, Indiana had the absolute lowest turnout in the United States — almost a 20% decline in participation from 2018. In 2023 elections, some strong Democratic precincts in Indianapolis had less than 10% turnout.

Non-voters clearly tell us why they don’t participate. Two-thirds agreed with the statement “voting in elections has little to do with the way that real decisions are made in our country.”

However, Indiana has a very high number of people who post political content online, and Hoosiers are above-average in their likelihood to discuss politics and social issues with family and neighbors.

Our neighbors around the state want to be involved in setting the direction for their cities and state. They just don’t feel that they can use their voice to impact policy or the outcomes of Statehouse races. They feel shut out and kept at bay by insiders in both political parties.

My neighbors and I are working to reverse those trends and unleash the creative energy of political outsiders. First, we publicly began organizing against the actions of state Sen. Aaron Freeman during the legislative session this year. Freeman authored Senate Bill 52, his latest attempt to destroy public transit in Indianapolis.

Next, we are hosting a series of fundraisers and training workshops free for anyone in the state who wants to learn how to more actively participate in politics to fight against the Republican supermajority rule. The most important message we lead with is, “Come as you are. All are welcome.”

When people feel they can authentically bring their real selves to knock on doors and talk about the issues that matter most to them, donate small amounts of money and teach their neighbors these same skills, they leap at the opportunity.

Beyond being a socialist organizer, I spent nearly a decade as a people manager in the private sector. At Angie’s List, our team of 14 went through a shocking two-year period prior to a buyout wherein the company went from 2,200 employees to just over 1,000. During that time, our team (which handled escalated and upset callers, ecommerce refund requests, and mediation between contractors and homeowners), had over 90% employee retention, the highest of any team at the company.

We achieved that using tried-and-true methods that Harvard Business Review recommends: Listen to direct reports, understand what they want and empower them to succeed.

Together, our team made sure that every team member saw how their work existed on a path to personal success and growth, and I made it clear that their success was my top priority as a manager. When people applied for positions in our department, I would carefully listen to their career goals and make it my business to help them achieve those. When those goals were not a match for my department, I told interviewees that, firmly but kindly, and helped make connections elsewhere for a better fit.

But, most of the time, we could find common ground between the work that needed to be done and the goals they had for themselves. When team members wanted to change departments or even to leave the company, I wrote letters of recommendation for them and backed their decisions. This supportive attitude, not an environment of fear and hierarchy, led to our retention successes.

Our team would pull up a new chair and treat new people, from day one, like their opinions and needs were vital to the success of the team — because they were.

Democrats in Indiana — especially in Marion County — have a bad reputation as very hostile to outsiders. Dee Ross, Belinda Drake, Karla Lopez Owens, Josh Peters, and others have all made the pages of this very newspaper in the last five years decrying the way outsiders with energy and enthusiasm are sabotaged, shut out and kept at bay rather than being embraced and celebrated.

As Democrats, we all inherited this messy history and we cannot change the past.

But we can, and must, change the present if we want to arrive at a different future. Our existing party infrastructure has been unable to win statewide in Indiana.

To win, Democrats need to welcome outsiders to the table warmly and gratefully rather than keeping them at arms’ length.

To win, Democrats need to give voters passionate, energetic campaigns that want and need their active participation — as co-creators, not just warm bodies.

We Democrats need to reform our party’s culture and practices. We need to advocate for an end to the two-primary rule that functionally protects insiders and slows our ability to change to meet the moment. We need to be a welcoming hand, not a cold shoulder.

The political movement my neighbors and I are building lives out these values. Anyone from any walk of life can join us, get trained on how to build political power and influence, and get to work taking back our state. We are only getting started in our campaign. But we are already achieving victory.

Jesse Brown is a Democrat representing District 13 on the City-County Council.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Jesse Brown: Indiana Democrats can't win without empowering outsiders