Every Black family has one. A sacred digital space where jokes fly faster than good morning texts, where aunties share prayer requests alongside eyebrow-raising memes, and where someone’s always asking, “Who’s bringing the greens?” The family group chat is more than just a place to coordinate cookouts or roast each other—it's a lifeline, a virtual living room where kinship, culture, and connection thrive.

But what if these virtual gathering spaces could be used for more than laughs and logistics? As the presidential administration keeps levying damaging executive orders and legislative changes on everything from reproductive justice to education policy, and economic inequality, it's time to reimagine the family group chat as a tool for political power. By transforming everyday conversation into civic engagement, these text threads—already brimming with trust and influence—can become low-stakes, high-impact arenas for organizing, educating, and mobilizing the very people most affected by systemic inequity. 

It’s clear that for the first time in American history, we are under autocratic, authoritarian and oligarchical rule. However you slice it, it’s a chilling time and more than ever, even the most politically inept should be tapped into what’s happening because decisions being made on the Hill are quickly touching households. 

Let’s be honest: we don’t always trust the news. Between AI-driven misinformation, classic PR spin and media bias, it can be hard to know who to believe. But we do trust each other. When Grandmama says, “Baby, I think we need to pay attention to this,” we listen. When my granddaddy rants about rising rent prices, he’s not just venting—he’s sounding the alarm on housing inequity. In family chats, the messenger matters as much as the message. The power of peer-to-peer communication can’t be overstated, especially when it comes to getting people engaged who might otherwise feel overlooked or overwhelmed by politics. 

Not sure how to have these types of conversations? Start by checking out some resources like this one and this one to help fact check. 

In this rapidly evolving world, one of the true remaining bastions is community, particularly within familial spaces. Using the group chat to not only keep in touch with your loved ones, but to keep them civically engaged is a requirement now. The presidential election may have passed already, but local elections are on a rolling basis and they are critically important at this time. 

So, the next time you’re in the group chat sharing some celebrity gossip or sending a happy birthday text, consider sprinkling in a little public affairs juice. Ask who’s registered to vote, share a petition, link to a town hall, and look into the activities of your local representative and senator. Because while the revolution may not be televised, it might just be texted.

And yes—you can still bring up the collard greens discussion. Just make sure everyone knows where their polling place is, too.