"When too many Americans don't vote or participate, some see apathy and despair. I see disappointment and even outrage. And I believe that out of this frustration can come hope and action"
-Paul Wellstone
When he died in a plane crash just before the 2002 election, I went over to the University of Minnesota campus for the memorial service, which was held in the hockey arena, the biggest space on campus. But I couldn't get, in, it was overflowing. I went to the giant lecture hall where they were screening the service on closed caption television. It was overflowing. The whole state was there to express their grief.
That's what the Democratic party should strive for. To be the party that is close to the ground, that people feel ownership of. Half the country doesn't vote. And I agree with Wellstone that that is a sign of outrage. And by continually setting that outrage aside and aiming for the head instead of the heart, Democrats breed apathy. When we change that, we win and win big.
1 comment:
I agree with the idea that the fact that half of the country doesn't vote is really powerful. People feel like the political process is a dead end, and instead they engage in other "hidden transcript" (political scientist James Scott's term) forms of protest. That sometimes boils over into the LA riots of 1993 and other forms of overt social protest, but mostly people remain apathetic.
I agree with Will that we need to appeal to the heart of voters, make the issues real and get people to channel their discontent productively. But it is also important to be honest with voters and let them know that everything isn't always black and white. Some headiness is definitely needed.
I believe that the fundamental problem with our politics is the culture surrounding it. People don't believe the process can work, the process is too polarized and their are special interests controlling it. What we ultimately need is to change the way people look at politics and to create more social capital (Putnam). The way to do this from a leadership perspective is to appeal to the heart as you say, but it is also important to talk policy sometimes and to be honest that things aren't always that simple.
But we also need a change in culture outside of politics. Hopefully changes in technology will help this. At the very least the new way information is disseminated will be an improvement over "lean back" media distribution such as TV and print.
Changes in technology are part of, but we need grassroots efforts of people trying to wake up and buy into the political system. In this new age, there is tremendous opportunity for people to change the way our culture works. I believe.
"Let's change the way we eat, let's change the way we live, and let's change the way we treat each other"
--Tupac Shakur
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