Last night, watching video of the Capitol protest, which we found thrilling, my son James Lenard and I talked about how the Legislature better get the message or they will be seeing and hearing a lot more of the same. I told him Maria would be on fire this session! This IS Maria on fire, but in such a measured, calm, and persuasive voice! I talk to quite a few friends and neighbors who have soured on Maria for one reason or another. But how can one listen to this and conclude other than that she is truly dedicated to serving her district in a very troubled time--and doing so very effectively? I thought Id see her using that Facebook string about people not wanting to stay in MO! Nicely done! Good tie-in to education. Good relating Ferguson to rural white risk of similar events and other state-wide consequences. I love the image of standing in the gap. Legislators are not elected to be elites but to mediate and communicate between the people and the elites--across the gap--ultimately narrowing the gap! Sadly, the Senator who spoke before Maria seems to lack any sense that protests, including yesterdays, are a complement to the nice lets talk about legislative details and public policy approach he suggests. The demonstrated Power of the People en masse and in the streets, even willing to risk arrest, is essential to making those discussions and proposals real! I dont lack education or knowledge about laws and policies. I protest, as I write and post, with full knowledge of the process and its limitations, doing so believing that no major change in the US has come about solely because legislators discussed and negotiated. Major changes require that process being supplement by demonstrations of mass public support. The history books are full of images of protest marches, not just from the Civil Rights Era. He is correct, however, that the protests/demonstrations should support fairly clear goals if legislators are to base any action upon them. Here, I believe the first answer to his question, what do you/they want? is #blacklivesmatter. We want black lives to matter. We know white lives matter. We want black lives to matter every bit as much. From there, the answer breaks down into virtually every area touched by public policy. Why? Because black lives are still not treated as equally valuable in virtually every sphere of life. I have asked Maria to please share with the Senate, in response to I dont know what they want, the 4-Mile March survey questions (27 items I believe) and the results (still being compiled). https://surveymonkey/s/RR6JF7C They are specific to police issues. I would say there are those among the protesters who also relate Black Lives Matter to other spheres, such as education, housing, medical care, etc. If you havent taken the survey, please do so. #blacklivesmatter #blacklivesmatterLegislation #blacklivesmatterMaria
Posted on: Thu, 08 Jan 2015 22:36:54 +0000
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