And what is perhaps most interesting, and most dangerous about this vital choice is how emotionally loaded it is. Donald Trump has his fascistic populism. Hillary Clinton broke the glass ceiling. And Bernie Sanders took the DNC stage last week and was serenaded for three minutes before he could speak. People openly wept, as his words were cathartic to those who endured a fifteen-month grassroots campaign that awoke millions to the progressive cause.

But here’s where the spiritual victory lies. No other candidate had supporters marching in the streets in celebration–political celebration!–of an honest and trustworthy presidential candidate who vowed to fight for the poor, the disenfranchised, the oppressed. A presidential candidate who eschewed corporate money in favor of my hard-earned twenty-seven bucks. A presidential candidate who rose from humble beginnings as the son of Holocaust survivors, to his college years of getting arrested for protesting segregation, to his ascendance as a senator and as a powerful force for progressives across the nation.

All of this indicated the ferocity of his fight, the will of his supporters, the moral soundness of his policy.

A presidential candidate who inspired me to get up, every day, for months to make contact with fellow Bernie supporters through the NGP VAN Votebuilder database, where I connected with thousands of potential volunteers across Southeastern New England and helped to get them canvassing and phone banking. A presidential candidate who I began to think of as a role model, not just for me, but for the children I might have. A presidential candidate whose speeches still leave my eager heart brimming with hope, and my headstrong will primed for a battle with the status quo.

Bernie “The Bern Man” Sanders, as one internet meme suggested for his deserved prizefighter moniker. Or, “Birdie” Sanders for the peace doves. The special moments poured in–the bird on the podium in Oregon, the guy yelling “fuck off!” to billionaires in Indiana–and none of them were scripted, each essential to the emotional core of the Sanders campaign, each a bright and unique facet of an enduring movement.

That movement has won the spiritual battle. And that presidential candidate, by virtue of the empathetic victory he created in the minds and hearts of millions of dedicated supporters, should have won the Democratic nomination. Senator Sanders was the most unanimously supported candidate at the convention; Clinton supporters had already said they would support him if he won, yet many Bernie supporters will not say the same of Clinton because of her issues with public trust.

We should be facing a true no-brainer choice: an honest and decent man fighting to restore democracy and to empower the disempowered versus a loud-mouthed hawkish bully who would trample the rights of anyone who crossed him.

Instead, we’re going to have a reckoning between Clintonian business as usual and a potential form of Trumpist American hell. Neither of those candidates had supporters marching in the streets. Neither of those candidates broke fundraising records entirely by way of small, individual contributions. Neither of those candidates poll favorably, and neither of those candidates have the moral standing of Bernie Sanders.

So, we have a real battle ahead of us. The first step is to beat Trump, and the next is to keep Clinton accountable. But thanks to the spiritual fire of the Bernie revolution, I think we’re up to the fight. No matter which way we decide to go–Democrat, independent, third party–we can thank Bernie for bringing us together in the first place. Because without him, I wouldn’t be writing this article, and you wouldn’t be reading it.

Instead, we’re out in the public forum, having a debate about what to do next. It’s messy. We disagree. But we find common ground. And we move forward. That’s what democracy is, and it is my core belief that Senator Sanders has already brought us to a vital level of engagement with and awareness of the political process.

No other candidate has inspired such action. Let that be the victory you keep in your heart as we move forward.

However, I don’t blame those Sanders delegates who chose to walk out. We all know that the DNC, at the very least, “slanted” the primaries in Clinton’s favor and sought to undermine the Sanders campaign. We all know that Clinton, by way of the FBI’s statement on her email scandal, is inherently dishonest, even to her own supporters, and that collusion between her campaign and the DNC possibly occurred during the primaries. I don’t blame those Sanders delegates for protesting, or booing, or for feeling jilted.

But I do blame them for not following Bernie’s lead. Sanders, in his speech on Monday night, called for unity in the Democratic Party. And at the end of the roll call vote on Tuesday night, he graciously moved to nominate Clinton after he did not win the vote. He made a selfless gesture toward unity, and not just Democratic unity.

He made a gesture toward unifying against Donald Trump.

I don’t want to buy into the fear-mongering, but beating Trump at the polls in November is of the utmost importance. His narcissistic nihilism, tinged with fascism, framed by xenophobia, and fueled by racism is, in the words of the Washington Post editorial board, a “unique and present danger” that the GOP has officially presented to the general electorate. Now Trump is everyone’s problem. And, unfortunately, Hillary Clinton is now the only major party nominee that stands between Donald Trump and the presidency.

For those who aren’t willing to risk a third party vote, this choice boils down to a difficult moral dilemma. One one hand, we have a deceitful neoliberal who lacks favorability and is quite possibly corrupt, yet unarguably has a qualified history in American national politics and has the backing of prominent progressive politicians, including senators Warren and Sanders. On the other hand, we have a loud-mouthed bully with no political experience, who doesn’t know Constitutional law, who would trample on free speech rights and freedom of the press, who openly discriminates against Muslims and Mexicans, who tacitly supports racial violence, and who asked Russia to help reveal Clinton’s lost emails.

Democratic unity, today, is not about rallying behind Clinton as a nominee, nor even about rallying around what she represents. It isn’t unity within the Democratic Party per se. It isn’t even about Clinton, or Warren, or Sanders, as Bernie has pointed out numerous times in his speeches, particularly on Monday night. It’s about Donald Trump, which is exactly what Trump wants because everything in his world must be about him. In his own words during his acceptance speech, he said of America’s problems, “I alone can fix [them].”

What Trump doesn’t know is that no president alone can “fix it” (and Trump “doesn’t know what he doesn’t know and he’s uninterested in finding out“). The same rule applies to Clinton, yet she knows that. But the slight benefit of a Clinton presidency is that she has the support of progressives like Sanders and Warren and will be held accountable by them. They will influence her decisions, help frame progressive legislation, and approve Supreme Court picks that will overturn Citizens United. That’s what checks and balances are for. And Clinton, despite her massive shortcomings, is expected to defend our Constitutional rights by her progressive peers, and she would do well to repair her lack of public trust by delivering a strong progressive agenda.

Trump, however, is expected to trample on our rights by his jeering supporters and the foolish GOP politicians who endorsed him. His VP pick, Mike Pence, has signed legislation that legalized open discrimination against LGBTQ people. And the most frightening part is that the most ignorant of Trump supporters don’t even realize the danger he poses to their own liberties and freedoms as Americans. Trump would have control of the FBI, NSA, CIA, TSA, and every other executive branch agency (not to mention the military) that he could easily, under executive order, command to act out his hostilities.

And this is where I say what I’ve never wanted to say: a vote for the Democratic nominee is more important than voting my conscience, at least this time around. Of course, in terms of my personal values, I want to vote for Jill Stein, but I do not place voting for my own values above protecting what liberties and freedoms that we already have. To do so would be selfish and disrespectful to people who would face the worst treatment by a Trump presidency. While I admire Stein for tackling the two-party system, now is not the time to do so, and openly dividing Democrats under the #DemExit banner is counterproductive to the goal of keeping Trump from the presidency.

Yes, Rhode Island is deep blue and a vote for Stein may be safe here, but against the broad and insidious influence of Trump, we shouldn’t take any state for granted, especially with Clinton’s high negatives and recent drop in the polls. So, instead of voting Green or staying home on election day, we should consider following Bernie’s lead to vote Democrat in November. Bernie knows that this movement has now become about the long game. He has vowed to continue the Political Revolution, and the first step toward gaining ground is beating Donald Trump, because under a President Trump, there’s no chance to pass any progressive legislation. I have no doubt that he’d veto anything he wants without a second thought.

There’s nothing I’d love more than to see a Bernie Sanders presidency, or even Green Party viability. But second to that, I’ll take Trump getting blown out of the water on election day. To vote Democrat is not to just reject Trump as a nominee, but to reject the hateful and powerful zeitgeist he’s stirred up among a surprising number of voters in our country. That’s where our choice as voters goes beyond voting against a candidate. It’s about voting against what Trump has come to represent. Preventing the rightward march toward peril that Trump has inspired is absolutely imperative to continuing the experiment of American democracy, however flawed that experiment may be.

And the crowd roared because, with that statement, he empowered them. And empowerment is contagious.

I discovered this moment the other night, while watching Bernie’s speeches and ads from his campaign, some of which brought a tear to my eye by their sheer inspirational power. Yet, the speech in Santa Monica is one of the most telling moments about what will happen with The Political Revolution going forward.

Now, it’s not about Bernie Sanders as a candidate. It’s about Bernie Sanders as the leader of our revolution, and it’s about all of us working together to achieve common progressive goals at the national, state, and local levels. And for those of you who feel betrayed or abandoned by Bernie, don’t. He didn’t betray anyone, and he kept his promises to both the party (which he aims to transform) and to his supporters. Now is the time to keep believing, and keep trusting that he knows the right path forward.

Now is the time to commit to causes like Brand New Congress, which is a national organization formed by former Sanders staffers that are committed to electing new congressional candidates across the nation. Now is the time to sign up for Our Revolution, which is Bernie’s non-profit organization that will continue to fight for the goals established by his campaign. Now is the time to support progressive candidates for the Rhode Island legislature, like Jeanine Calkin, and to support your local candidates running for town and city councils and school boards, like Jeremy Rix. And now is the time to consider running for office yourself to directly implement the policies that you wish to see in government.

Forget Bernie’s endorsement. It was a smart political move by an astute politician, and it deserves no further criticism. Instead, get involved. Engage with your representatives. Ask questions. Be aware of policy and legislative actions. Sign up to help with campaigns. And act to make sure that we, the people, are justly represented.

Like Bernie has always said, change doesn’t come from the top on down. It comes from the bottom up–from us.

He never goes back on his word.

He promised, early in the campaign, that he would support the eventual Democratic nominee should he not win. He has held true to that statement by endorsing Clinton. Yet, in spite of that endorsement, he has managed to hold true to his statement that he will take the fight all the way to the convention.

In a message to his delegates last night, Bernie said, “I am still officially a candidate. We are going to Philly. I did not and will not concede. I am not suspending my campaign. I hope we can get enough votes but she will likely be the nominee. When she is, I will come out of the convention and do everything I can to beat Donald Trump and I hope you will join me.”

Beating Donald Trump has become imperative, yes, but not until the Democratic Party puts forth a truly progressive platform and recognizes the hard work and achievements of nearly 1900 Bernie Sanders delegates, 13 million Bernie Sanders voters, and hundreds of thousands of Bernie Sanders volunteers.

Now is not the time to abandon Bernie, or question his integrity. He is not acquiescing to the Democratic establishment, nor is he bowing to their demands. No, he’s becoming a towering progressive leader for the entire nation. Unlike any other incumbent politician, he has maintained his promises both to the Democratic Party and to his supporters. He has not conceded, will not concede, and will not suspend his campaign. And I know he will hold true to those words.

Now is the time to believe in Bernie Sanders and what he, and we, can accomplish together. This movement was never about one man, or one presidential candidate. It was, and is, about inspiring millions of Americans to stand up and fight back against a corrupt and unjust political process. And, as stated at the end of one of Bernie’s most inspiring ads about his volunteers, “keep fighting. The revolution has just begun.”

Remember the night of Ohio, and how badly that loss stung after a surprise victory in Michigan? Some of us, in our moment of brief peril, thought that might’ve been the death knell of Bernie’s campaign. But somehow, probably with the aid of that little bird and with an army of internet supporters and sleepless activists, Bernie has captured the hearts of voters across the nation who are eager to see a positive change in our government.

The battle is nowhere near over, and the establishment Democrats will now ramp up the attacks on Bernie going into those delegate-rich contests. They’ve very clearly and openly declaring war on the Sanders campaign. Bernie once remarked in a speech that they’d throw everything but the kitchen sink at him to beat him, and they’d throw the sink, too. Well, that’s true, and even CNN analysts claimed how the Democrats will now do anything to “disqualify him, defeat him.”

They want to run him out of the race. They want him gone before the convention begins. But with the large delegation that Sanders now commands, he isn’t going anywhere. And if he is able to win just one more pledged delegate than Clinton does, then the Sanders campaign will control the floor in Philadelphia. As Clinton’s lead shrinks, that goal is very much within grasp.

Is it favorable enough to close Clinton’s 300-delegate lead? We’ll see. It will be difficult for the Bernie campaign to make up that deficit, but if he can gather a few key, big-margin wins, then it is entirely possible for him to win the nomination. If not? There’s still plenty to be excited about, and there are plenty of signs that the political revolution is strong going forward, even if that future doesn’t include Bernie Sanders as President of the United States.

One such sign is the emergence of “Sanders Democrats,” or progressive Democratic candidates for congressional and state legislature seats. Zephyr Teachout and Pramila Jayapal are congressional candidates (New York and Washington, respectively) that have endorsed Bernie Sanders and, in turn, have been endorsed by Democracy for America. Debbie Medina, a Brooklyn-based Democratic Socialist, is also running for state legislature in New York. And Shawn O’Connor, a candidate for congress in New Hampshire, recently stated in a TIME magazine article that he hopes “to be a member of a class of Sanders Democrats that gets elected in the fall.”

Sanders Democrats. That’s the name of an up-and-coming progressive coalition that aims to enact Sanders-style policies in all levels of government, and particularly in Congress. If that coalition gains the votes of Bernie’s biggest supporters–young voters, the most progressive voting bloc that is quickly growing–then we are likely to see a progressive shift in government, which is exactly what Bernie’s political revolution is aiming to achieve.

That is a sign that the revolution is alive and well, and that it continues to grow. But it isn’t a sign to stop phone banking! If we keep Bernin’ up the phones to get out the vote, we could very well see a Sanders Democrat coalition in Congress and a Bernie Sanders Presidency. To have both in place together would be the best possible outcome for this revolution.

Though this almost feels like a dream, it isn’t, yet the campaign’s essence is made of dreams. This is a political and spiritual journey for a better future, built from the rising wave of populist righteousness that founded this country. Leading that journey today is Bernie Sanders; politically with his message for the restoration of American democracy from a wealthy and self-serving oligarchy; and spiritually through the unification of the diverse and empowered millions that seek a secure, fair, and bright future for all of us here and, most importantly, for our children and grandchildren, those yet to come.

We, the citizenry of this nation and this planet, cannot endure much longer under a broken and corrupt political process owned by the rich, nor can we stifle our own righteous anger and frustration with that process. Bernie Sanders knows this, knows us, and is one of us. He leads a fight for all of us, even for those who disagree with him. His ideas would benefit a vast majority of Americans that need a stronger social support system, and he plans to build that system from the need to care for each other during the difficult and anxious times that face us. He plans to build that system from our deepest sense of empathy.

I have been waiting for a leader like Bernie Sanders for my entire life. The politics of empathy that he personifies are those of an honest statesman who serves on principle and strength, rooted in a deep care for and understanding of poor and disenfranchised people, those who deserve someone who leads by virtue of an ethically and morally grounded heart and soul.

When I see those images, hear his speeches, and witness the thousands and thousands that flock to his rallies to hear his message of an honest and decent hope for the future, I am nearly driven to tears because I, for so long, did not believe that a candidacy like his was possible. After all of the corrupt and wretched politicians that I have seen and heard in my life, Bernie Sanders is an honest man who, against all odds, is determined to lead with an unbroken sense of what is right. He makes me believe that we can always do better and reach for more without losing our sense of communal empathy, our eternal sense of kindness.

Those politics of empathy are already deeply moving, and should he enact them from the most powerful position in the world, he will serve as an inspiration to all human beings.

First, as soon as Bernie won in a landslide in New Hampshire, the media began spinning his win as a loss because Clinton had the superdelegates on her side, which is irrelevant this early in the race. Clinton had the superdelegates early in 2008, but as the nomination process dragged on, Obama gradually got their votes. Bernie can do the same, but the average voter, especially the undecided voter who relies on corporate media for information, doesn’t see it that way.

Second, when Trump began his rise to power, which was fueled by his overexposure in the media, Democrats became even more scared of the possibility of a Trump presidency. In their minds, Hillary is the “electable” candidate. Those Democrats seem to rally to her out of fear of Trump despite the polls that prove that Bernie is the Democrats’ best chance to defeat Trump.

Third, when Bernie took a beating in South Carolina, the media began to dismiss his candidacy. After a Super Tuesday full of conservative states that voted for Clinton (states that will not be won by a Democrat in a general election), the New York Times declared that Democrats now turn to Hillary after “flirting” with Bernie. Headlines like that declared the race to be over when, frankly, it’s just getting started.

Fourth, when Clinton took the majority of states and delegates on Super Tuesday, media coverage of the Sanders campaign quickly diminished as Trump took the main stage. Networks like MSNBC that decry Trump’s rise to power only fan the flames by giving him so much airtime. Hillary isn’t even covered as much as the GOP circus with Trump as the self-appointed ringleader. Political theater, however depraved and insubstantial, is king to ratings and profit.

For a Bernie volunteer and supporter like me, I can see through the media’s window dressing and their rosy portrayal of Clinton, and I can see through the media’s overexposure of Trump, but to the average voter who relies on TV network news for information on the candidates, that window dressing and overexposure is reality.

So, where does Bernie go from here, and how can he get momentum back on his side?

Strangely enough, Fox News may have given Bernie the chance to do just that. On Monday night, in a national primetime slot, Bernie Sanders will appear alongside Hillary Clinton in the Democratic town hall debate in Detroit. If he uses this hour of network airtime to rebuild his narrative and rewrite his message to appeal to more voters, he may have a good shot at winning Michigan and many other states to follow. He needs to immediately distinguish himself from the name-brand of Clinton and fiercely argue why he, with his clean history and his advantage in national polls, is the true front-runner that can take down Trump.

If he can do that on Monday night on national television, he’ll reignite the Bernie-mentum.

However, that assumption of the office, which is undemocratic and reeks of hubris, may very well be quashed by an impending FBI indictment. Trump could be dismantled through an arrest after IRS audits and after inciting violence against minorities at his rallies. Yet somewhere above all of that dirty campaigning, above all of that law-breaking, is Bernie Sanders and his peaceful revolution, a revolution that shows no signs of slowing or faltering.

$6 million in a day. $43 million in a month. Celebrity endorsements. Deep grassroots organizing from the bottom up. This revolution is here to stay. We are facing the dire consequences of late-stage climate change. We are facing the demoralizing effects of an unfair economic and political system. And we are facing two candidates that do not deserve to become President of the United States by virtue of their deceit and hate. Both Trump and Clinton have one thing in common: neither have the passion and power of a revolution to back them. Only Bernie does.

Meanwhile, Clinton does whatever she can to win, however illegal or unethical. Bill blocked the polls in New Bedford and campaigned within the 150 foot boundary, which could arguably have swung a tight race in Hillary’s favor. Clinton bashed Bernie’s goals as too “idealistic,” then she co-opted them because she can’t get elected without them. She even co-opted Trump’s slogan of “Make America Great Again” by saying “Make America Whole Again,” which should prompt another round of #WhichHillary? And the Hitler-esque Trump continues to use hate and racism to rally his ignorant and bigoted crowds.

There’s only one clear and clean winner here, and that is Bernie Sanders. He is the only candidate to rise above the rabble and fray, and he is the only candidate that has the power of revolution behind him. He is the sole candidate who fights for the restoration of our democracy while other candidates seek to divide up what is left of it to benefit their own camps and donors, and, unlike Trump and Clinton, he is the sole candidate across the board that has no political baggage.

And you won’t see his in the headlines: Bernie is the only Democrat who is winning multiple swing states while converting poor white moderates and libertarians–people who vote–to his side, and there are a lot of states like that left to go. That’s what it takes to win the general.

However, he must make overtures to minority communities and get their votes by making his campaign personal. He needs to talk about what it was like to be considered a “non-white” Jew in pre-1960 Brooklyn. He needs to tout his record of fighting for civil rights over five decades, both as an activist and as a legislator. He needs to contrast his record on race to Clinton’s, as his is spotless and hers is marred by her support of the “three strikes” mass incarceration law and her racist tone when calling young black kids “superpredators” who need to “heel” as if they were dogs. She is also the candidate who refused to relinquish the microphone when Black Lives Matter activists challenged her publicly, while Bernie simply stepped back, folded his hands, and allowed the young women to speak unobstructed. He even shook their hands, ready to be an ally to their cause.

I even spoke last weekend with a fellow canvasser, a middle-aged African-American woman from South Carolina, and she was the first to say that Bernie needs to make it personal. She believes that many of the black voters who went for Clinton would’ve gone for Bernie if they knew who he was and how he grew up as a minority, how he fought for civil rights since the 1960s, and how his record on race contrasts to Clinton’s.

It would not be negative campaigning for Sanders to make it personal. No, it would merely be calling out the facts and showing where his heart is in the race. Bernie needs to get personal because all of us deserve a Sanders presidency. He is the minority American underdog who fights for what is right in the face of big money and big hate, and his victory would ensure a better America, and a better planet, for all of us. In the face of such disturbing American politics with the deceit of Clinton and the hateful rise of Trump, what is more beautiful and timely than a peaceful revolution for the people?

Now that I know Bernie’s stance on the issues, I want to know his story. I want to hear what it was like to be an immigrant son from a family that escaped the Holocaust. I want to hear him speak of his history as a civil rights activist and as a legislator that consistently fought for equality. I want to hear him contrast his history with Clinton’s instead of letting the media do it, and I want to hear him speak the narrative of a good human being who fights to help others as much as he can.

I want to hear him say it because I know that when everyone with a heart hears his compelling and moving story, he’ll win in a landslide.

Today, that same justice is on the line in voting booths and caucuses across the nation. The sun has risen on Super Tuesday, a day which may historically become a referendum on the nature of American democracy. At sunrise, tireless volunteers of the Sanders campaign will distribute literature to doors across the country before commencing the final round of canvassing for the last Get Out The Vote effort. Bill Clinton will speak in New Bedford later in the day, but fortunately, we’ve already covered the whole city, which is feelin’ the Bern. I wouldn’t be surprised if the majority of those in attendance for his speech will vote for Sanders; even some of Hillary’s canvassers will.

But the race is tight in Massachusetts, and in many of the other states that Sanders has focused on winning today. It would seem that the sinister rise of Trump is beginning to intimidate voters into supporting Clinton, an establishment candidate that is widely, and falsely, believed to be the best chance at defeating him in a general election, even though Sanders has the best numbers against him. And I believe that Sanders’s campaign is still nascent, still growing, and his declared commitment to not stop running until all 50 states have voted, a declaration made after raising $6 million in a day, will build permanent momentum in his base with a clear goal in mind: to win the Democratic nomination.

However, such a win is not necessary to validate Sanders’s revolution. It has already received its validation by those who support it. His campaign is one of activists, ranging from volunteer organizers and leaders to canvassers and phone bankers to the Bernie fanatics waving signs and marching in the streets across the nation. We have been spurred into action by his candidacy and we do not plan to stop. His staffers, even though they are paid, carry the same fire and dedication that the activists and volunteers do. They, and we, all of us, are dedicated to a cause, and that is to reclaim American democracy.

Much is at stake today and in the coming weeks. The media establishment is already touting Clinton as the front-runner, that she is simply moving beyond Sanders and seeking to pad her lead. And it is quite possible that Sanders will falter today, and though we have yet to see, his voters do have a chance to make history by choosing to vote for a government that is truly representative of the people. To vote for a candidate that seeks to restore our democracy is an act of courage in the face of the hate-mongering of Trump or the unfair and unethical corporate sponsorship of the Clinton campaign.

Today, let us stand together as activist voters who will fight for economic and social justice. Let us stand together as brothers and sisters across races and religions in the face of the hate that seeks to divide us. Let us be courageous today and cast that vote for Bernie Sanders, the sole candidate who will fight for our democracy. And in the words of that candidate, “When we stand together and demand that this country work for all of us, rather than the few, we will transform America.”

Win or loss, we have already begun that transformation.

Read more from Chris Dollard on Bernie Sanders’ campaign.