Politics and the American Dream?

I come from a family of Massachusetts liberals. I cried for what might have been when JFK, Jr. died. Yes, I support Ted Kennedy all the way. I am way more liberal than my parents on most issues, though, probably because I am recovering Catholic and because of the generation gap. I believe in a woman's right to choose. I believe the Death Penalty is racist and fundamentally flawed, except in the cases of child molestation or rape or incest. Fry the fuckers. I believe in the right of marriage for heterosexual as well as homosexual couples. You get the picture.

I came across this quote recently:

"I'm asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about real change in Washington . . . I'm asking you to believe in yours." --Barack Obama.

I do, in theory, believe in the idea of democracy. Call me an idealist. I don't know whether it's antithetical or not, but as a pretty liberal person, I am "patriotic" (as if it's not patriotic to be a liberal Democrat) when it comes to our right to vote. I believe all Americans should exercise that right and it is a travesty when they don't. Recently, on a Girls' weekend, we polled ourselves as to who voted for whom in the primaries of our respective states. Of the seven women present, three did not vote in the primary. Lame reasons such as "I'm not registered in this state" or "It's only the primary" were given. I believe that when citizens of other countries are persecuted or prosecuted or jailed or even executed for their beliefs, we simply cannot take that right for granted. I mean, take a stand on something, believe in something! Have some passion! I agree that, sadly, oftentimes politicians do not inspire passion.

So maybe my going over to the dookie community center in Somerville where I vote and getting my name checked off, connecting the arrows on the ballot with the thick, fat, black pen does not mean anything to most people. It really means a lot to me; I want my voice to be heard. I feel so proud when I vote.

I also happen to be an Aquarian (yes I believe there is more than a grain of truth to astrology), who are often described as "possessing strong convictions, seeking truth above all things; being honest enough to change their opinions, however firmly held, if evidence comes to light which persuades them that they have been mistaken. They have a breadth of vision that brings diverse factors into a whole, and can see both sides of an argument without shilly-shallying as to which side to take. Consequently they are unprejudiced and tolerant of other points of view. This is because they can see the validity of the argument, even if they do not accept it themselves. They are humane, frank, serious minded, sometimes idealistic, though this last quality is tempered with a sensible practicality. The Aquarian has a yearning for the universal recognition of the brotherhood of man, and to ideals of benefiting mankind."

I think my tolerance for other points of view stem directly from my parents' deafness and from feeling marginalized from the dominant society, even though my skin color and my education and middle-class-ness would suggest otherwise.

Only once in my adult life did I vote with conviction and felt like a true American in the sense that democracy worked on a grass-roots level. I was in my mid-twenties and Paul Wellstone, a professor from a small, liberal arts college in Minnesota was running against an incumbent Republcan Goliath. Wellstone won. I really felt my vote counted for something. So, yeah, I have tasted it; I do believe in my ability to bring about change with my one vote.

We've all heard the Martin Niemoeller quote: “First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists, but I was neither, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.”

So in this election season I am inspired. I believe in the grass-roots movement. I believe my vote can count for something. I want someone in office who has felt what it feels like to be marginalized, who was raised bi-racial and went to college on a scholarship, who believes in gender equality, who has young daughters and wants them to believe that they "will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character" but also that they will not be judged by their gender or social status or where their parents went to college.

I am excited to vote in November. I will go to that community center and proudly cast my vote, hoping in earnest that I can affect change, not only in Washington, but in my own life.