All Government Is Local: Three Ways To Direct Your Political Energy After This Presidential Election

It was not missed on me during the star studded third night of the 2016 Democratic National Convention that local government was a key theme.

I have always believed and lived my favorite truth - All government is local. From my earliest days, helping a neighbor and local single mom in Chicago Heights as she ran for our school board to my first "official" campaign work on the late Cook County Board President John Stroger's first campaign as an adult - I have invested my time, talent and energy in supporting local government. In my late 30s, I ran for and won local municipal office which led to building a profitable business transforming local government agencies throughout the Midwest and soon to be West Coast.

We heard from at least three different people the importance of local government.

Tim Kaine who started as a city councilman in Richmond, VA.

Sharon Belkofer a local school board member in part due to the encouragement of our President.

President Barack Obama urged us to vote, not just for president but for mayors, judges and other local offices.

Our current Democratic VP pick. The mourning mother of an American veteran. My favorite President.

Every four years, I see folks get energized and involved and I would urge you to find a home for that energy come November.

Want a third party movement? Look no further than what has happened the last 8 years with the Tea Party. Their power has not prevailed on a national stage but one city council, school board and state representative seat at a time. I've watched them progressively take over school and park boards across the midwest which has led to them gaining governors mansions in the last two years. It did not happen overnight. It did not happen on a grand stage. It happened in the elections no one pays attention to.

And guess what? You are way more affected by who runs your cities and counties than you EVER will be affected by who sits in the White House.

I will pick up the baton where Tim, Sharon and the POTUS left off the other night. I urge you to join me in transforming local government. There are three practical things you can do before the next presidential cycle to impact local government.

Vote

Vote in November. Educate yourself and vote next Spring. Typically, the local elections right after the presidential election year have the lowest turnout. Start in November, learn about your local races. Get to know your current local officials and the people who want your vote at the next cycle. Between this presidential race and the next one in 2020, there will be races each Spring and each November electing local, county and state offices and judicial seats .  Start now getting yourself educated so you can vote.

Volunteer

Volunteer in a campaign. The national campaigns typically are more organized than local campaigns and are excellent conduits for connection to local races in the future. Volunteer for a commission. Do you care are about parks and recreation? Join a local parks committee. Do you care about the environment? Volunteer for a county commission. Education? A school board commission or committee. My guess is any interests you may have, there is a local government committee or commission you can lend your talent to.  Introduce yourself to the local officials and make yourself available. Many times when vacancies occur - there are never enough qualified applicants for official to appoint. Volunteer your time and talent to make your community better.


Run

This a big ask and certainly worth its own post. But I'd be remiss if I did not take a moment to encourage you to put your talents to work in your local community. You'd be surprised at who's running your local government agencies. Take time to learn about the issues your town or city or school board is facing. Take stock of your talents and what you can do to add value to the team that is already there. When I ran for local office the first time in 2009, I specifically ran because had two things to offer our board  - strategic thinking and diversity. Our almost 60 year old village had 5 males and one female running its board. The combined average age at that time was close to 60 and there were no people of color.  Winning that seat and bringing the average age down almost 9 years and adding the richness of being a young family with less than 10 years living in the village was a breath of fresh air. Combined with my over 19 years in corporate marketing and strategy - I was a rock star within 18 months.  Local government agencies need new perspective. And they need people willing to contribute their talents versus running because they are mad about an issue.

Since my time as an elected, I have eagerly served on state commissions for the last two Illinois governors and recently accepted an appointment to the City of Evanston's parks and recreation board. This in addition to expanding my company's reach in transforming local government agencies across this state and Minnesota.  My public service led to my business. You never know where your public service will lead you.


Please do me a favor and  don't leave your energy for our democracy in the presidential voting booth this November. Take it to your local city, county or state government agency.

Trust me. They need you.

Most Often You Take The High Road, Sometimes...

you stick to your critics, plainly and clearly so they don't mistake your silence for weakness. President Barack Obama had one of those moments with his critics last night in front of the world and being human and all, he did not resist. I cannot blame him. Can you imagine the disrespect this guy must endure privately when consistently he is publicly dissed in forums that had, until his election in 2008, been sacred places of respect for the country's highest public office?

I cannot. But his off the cuff brilliant response to the last night's attempted diss showed me something I've always known was true.

For highly educated, successful Blacks in this country - you are still never enough for the establishment. The diss was not merely a disagreement with his politics. Yawn. Spare me. Clearly and consistently the establishment and power players of our country have intended to undermine President Obama and the legitimacy of his ascent to the highest office.

Last night's attempted diss was merely the latest iteration of the "birthers" and their failed policy to convince the American people that Barack Obama and his presidency is a fluke.

And he rightly smacked them down with his now famous "I won both of 'em." line. People can't even get it right adding the frigging "th" to what he said. He did not say "them." He said 'em, as in "I'm goin to the sto with Stacey and 'em."  He said what he meant and the translation was clear.

Clap all you want. I won. And I won, again. It's time you get over it.

As a high achieving fellow Black American, I applaud you, President Obama.

Oh, how I've imagined you unleashing your true thoughts on the constant onslaught of clear disrespect and you've held you tongue each time. You were even cool in your clear and obvious verbal backhand. I have tried, in vain, to emulate your cool head in those moments. Sometimes, I've succeeded but most often I've failed spectacularly.  I am happy to see you are human like the rest of us.

Human.

Not sub-human as many people see Blacks since the days we were brought to this country in service of others and a continued problem we fight daily.  Nor superhuman, the other equally damaging image of Blacks in our country that was recently documented, studied and analyzed in this review of the abstract.  You see, as either sub-human or superhuman, Blacks are not deemed worthy of basic respect and human treatment in the the United States. And while we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 last year, we have a long way to go.

Electing President Obama showed us in spades. All the progress and seemingly "post-racial" harmony of the 80s and 90s was turned on its ears when BHO was elected. It is OK to once again display your intolerance and downright fear of smart Black folks. Why do all politicians constantly refer to taking our "country back"? We all know damn well what they mean and until we have an honest conversation about our country's sorry relationship with race, we will continue to get what we get but I digress.

I am very glad to see our Harvard educated President remind everyone of who he is and what he's accomplished in a smug and confident manner.

Nothing stings your opponents more than your silent success. Or the occasional verbal smack down.

Thanks, President Obama for this one time of giving us a bit of both.

Epitome of Hope

My whirlwind trip to DC to attend the 57th Inauguration Ceremonies for President Obama was spectacular. I cannot tell you exactly how many precious moments I experienced. I am still walking in clouds having had the opportunity to go at the last minute.

Several people have already asked me to distill it - what was my favorite moment or memory? With so many to choose from, you'd think it would be hard but it was not. Without question, hearing from the widow of civil rights activist Medgar Evers was the best moment of the entire trip.  When I was boarding my flight back - I kept remembering her words.

"As we sing the words of belief, ‘this is my country,’ let us act upon the meaning that everyone is included. May the inherent dignity and inalienable rights of every woman, man, boy and girl be honored. May all your people, especially the least of these, flourish in our blessed nation. One hundred fifty years after the Emancipation Proclamation and 50 years after the March on Washington, we celebrate the spirit of our ancestors, which has allowed us to move from a nation of unborn hopes and a history of disenfranchised [votes] to today’s expression of a more perfect union.”

Her country. My country. Your country. Our country.

This, from a woman  who in her younger years witnessed her young husband gunned down in their carport with their 3 young children nearby. I bristled, not at the cold wind that blew after hours of standing outside, no. I bristled thinking that many people NEVER come back from what she experienced. Their lives get torn apart by something or someone beyond their own control and they never recover. Never.

Yet, before me - before the world, this woman, Myrlie Evers-Williams took an extraordinarily difficult and painful situation and converted it to her own triumph. To mine. To ours.

Google her. She talks about very openly about the years she spent many years in the wake of her tragedy hopeless, bitter and vengeful. But alas she forgave. Not for Byron De la Beckwith, the white supremacist  who took her husband's life. She forgave for herself, her kids and even for me. Any other path she may have chosen would not have enabled her to have the impact she's had on our country's comeback. And the comeback is still happening. People like Myrlie are reminder of our broken and bitter past that we must face in order to truly move our country forward to the future we all say we want  - peace, justice and equality for all.

Myrlie Evers-Williams made history at the 57th Inauguration being the first woman and first layperson to deliver the inaugural invocation. I am so proud of her and humbled to have been in the same space she occupied, even for a moment. Her struggle and triumph is fuel for me and my endeavors. Her husband literally gave his life so that I can do what I am doing today,  in this great country - pursuing my dream.

Thanks Ms. Evers-Williams, I am so grateful for all you've done and continue to do. You are the epitome of hope for the United States of America

3 Reasons Gay Marriage Does Not Bother This Jesus Freak

Last week, I was traveling when the AP alert interrupted my day announcing that President Obama had come out in support of gay marriage. I have to admit that I was shocked at all the media coverage that followed on the topic. It was literally the top news story for three straight days.

After the shock wore off and I'd had a chance to really think about it - my reaction is this post - simple and pointed; 3 Reasons Gay Marriage Does Not Bother This Jesus Freak

1. I Say No to Discrimination of Any Kind

As a black, Jesus loving person - I cannot support discrimination of any kind.  I am not really sure how to elaborate on this one. It is cut and dry with me. Discrimination of any kind is wrong. When you read about the rights and protections that gays are trying to achieve through legalizing their unions, what is the reason not to grant it and move on? A culture that allows discrimination against any group operating within it means that at any time that discrimination could be thrust upon any other group. We must come to a place in our culture where we no longer tolerate any discrimination at all. Period.


2. Gay Marriage Has No Bearing On My Marriage

Whenever I hear the argument that gay marriage somehow "diminishes" or otherwise negatively affects heterosexual marriage, I get livid. What in the world kind of logic would make one come to that conclusion? Marriage is a very intimate yet public contract between me, my husband and God. As I look around me at many heterosexual marriages in distress or breaking up, it grieves me and impacts how I work to protect mine but does not really have anything to do with my marriage. Why should gays being married be any different? We are secure in our marriage and it really doesn't matter who else is married or not married- it has no bearing on my marriage.


3. Compassion Trumps Everything

This one is really a representation of my faith in action. When in doubt, I go with compassion toward others. Compassion toward their stance, their position versus fighting philosophical battles. We must stop living a zero sum game on these social issues, where someone has to lose and someone has to win. In the case of gay marriage - what do I lose if gays are granted the right to be united with their partners and have it recognized by our government? My faith does not change. My marriage does not change. I've heard church leaders say that they "love the sinner but hate the sin." That statement is not bad in and of itself - but my question is this - is not all sin equal? Are some sins more egregious than others? Are you this upset about premarital sex? What about coveting? From the reactions of the last week, it's pretty clear that in the eyes of man - not all sin is equal. Regardless, I choose compassion toward the people behind this uproar. The people who, like me, have chosen to love and honor one person for their lifetime. People who desire to make a commitment and have it recognized by society in the same way that my marriage is recognized. I believe I will be on the right side of history on this topic with this point alone.

Ultimately, this, like many other social issues, comes down to relationships and the concept of free will. I am convinced that people who are secure in their choices don't worry about the choices of others. I am radically in love with Jesus and his teachings but I would not dare impose them on others. Expose them? Absolutely but impose them, never. My relationship with myself is solid and healthy and allows me to see clearly the boundaries of my rights versus the rights of others. Finally, free will is the rule of the day. God allowed me the "free will" to follow or not follow him. Of course he could have commanded me to be a believer but alas he did not. He gave me a choice. I, like him, like to extend the choice of free will on others.

Because of this, gay marriage does not bother this Jesus Freak.