When we tried and failed to merge the large white Episcopal Church with the smaller "black" (that's what we called African Americans in the 60s) Episcopal Mission a block away, I integrated the black church, running a youth group and serving on the board. I have helped in countless political campaigns large and small, the most rewarding being turning North Carolina blue in 2008. During my 16 years in Hawai`i, I took part in many demonstrations to curb military expansion on the fragile soil of O`ahu and in favor of gay marriage, in efforts to get the Navy to clean up unexploded ordinance on the island of Kaho`olawe and return it to the state of Hawai`i. I was involved in most of the Hawaiian issues rallies and marches, and in the commemoration of the overthrow of Queen Lili`uokalani.
What I learned from all this is that today's solutions (e.g., a sane nuclear policy) often become tomorrows problems (toxic waste), but it is not given to us to know what the future holds so we must do the best we can with the information that we have, hopefully with a lot of consideration of future consequences.
It is often sad and frustrating to work for change against prevailing winds but it is important to do so - to stand up for what you believe to be right. Even when the "powers that be" do not heed your advice, and when people in opposition to your views turn ugly, the least you have done is raise your points on the issue to the level of debate among thinking people. Sometimes we have made a difference in the fate of an issue or law.
All my life, I've been the odd woman out in my family, all of whom oppose my positions on just about everything. Some of my friends do likewise. Although I am a moderate progressive and sometimes surprise them by agreeing with them, they label me a "liberal" - a word I love, but which is no longer the a-political compliment it once was. By so indulging in the broad brush labeling, they think they know my position and therefore can dismiss my opinions without interest - no matter how cogent the points I raise. I love a good discussion because sometimes I hear some good points that expand my thinking, so I am disappointed when those of a different view retreat into party-line cliches. That is sad because the assumptions, the name-calling, and the cliches curtail learning. I sometimes wonder if they are afraid, not that I might change their minds (no chance of that), but that I might be right.
It is heartening and important that we have not deserted our love for one another and our shared history because we do not see eye to eye on how to solve the nations problems. But it can also make me sad when I hear how fervently they support social inequities and aggressive solutions. I'm sure my viewpoints are anathema to them as well. One said, "I just can't understand how you can think the way you do!" I did not say "But I can understand why you think the way you do - because I have listened to you."
I march less often now, but being retired, I write letters to legislators and now will publish opinion pieces I've written for my own relief here. I realize that that may invite more abuse, but I may have the pleasure of hearing from like minds and thoughtful opposition, so that makes exposing my ideas worth the risk. I've been labeled and bashed before and survived.
I do think it's important to stand up for and share our different worldviews. The democratic process thrives on the creative tension of opposing views threshed into balanced solutions. American politics are my soap operas, the difference being, of course, that there are very real consequences to the drama. In writing, I hope to encourage you to get involved - to vote, register voters, work at the polls, drive people to vote, campaign for the candidate of your choice, write letters to them about issues that concern you, put political thinking in your blog, express your opinion in the newspaper. The democratic processes of our great nation are a precious freedom that cannot be preserved without the informed participation of her citizens. Already our republic is on a slippery slope toward plutocracy. God has richly blessed America. Come work for her well-being.
Politics by Abby Freeborn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Comments may be addressed to randmxcentric@gmail.com
