We The People
Good morning neighbors. I hazard a guess that based on our last letter you aren’t considered “elite”, and probably don’t know anyone that fits that description. The old saying of birds of a feather flock together seems prescient here. But remember that you and I are not alone and as neighbors we should have each other’s back. But who are your neighbors?
If you simply want data 60% are white, 19% are Hispanic, 13% are black, 6% are Asian and 1% are native American or other. But do those numbers completely describe you any more than your last name does? According to our government, media, industry, and universities those numbers, in addition to your gender, sexual orientation, or your progressiveness are the only ones that matter.
Again, I paused, looked around, and realized that those labels don’t completely describe me or my neighbors. Are we not so much more complex? We are a mix of all those things along with our life experiences, religious beliefs, morals, families, culture, etc. We are mothers and fathers, daughters and sons. We are multi-racial, multi-ethnic, and multi-generational. We are tradesmen, salespersons, service professionals, and business owners. We are farmers, housekeepers, nurses, teachers, soldiers, firefighters, and police officers. We serve both public and private industry. We quite literally keep America and each other safe, fed, clothed, and housed. What we aren’t is young or old, man or woman, rich or poor, black or white. My neighbors (you) are all of these and so much more.
Our elected officials would like to divide us along any of these lines or any number of imaginary ones they have concocted. For some of our neighbors their age, financial position, gender, or race are their defining qualities. But is that you? I can assure you that any of those labels don’t completely represent me any more than the name that was given to me at birth. Do they represent you completely? There is zero chance that our government would tell you that the Smiths are better, or have an advantage, over the Joneses simply because they were born a Smith. Why? Because quite frankly it would be horseshit, in the same way that any of those labels mean that I’m better than you or vice versa. We should judge each other and all our neighbors on the quality of their character and nothing else. So, who are We?
We are American citizens that rise every day and go out to be the best man or woman, rich or poor, black or white person we can be. We go to work at thousands of different careers. We are bosses and employees, business owners and students. We are the foundation of daily life in America. Imagine if you, me and the rest our neighbors, every one of us, decided to stay home today. What would function? Absolutely nothing! Not even government.
Our representatives still need the lights on. They need food to eat, clothes to wear, cars to drive, and roofs to protect them from the elements. They need teachers for their children, soldiers on the wall, and policemen on the corner. At the end of the day do you believe that our representatives think about us like that or are we just the swing vote? None those things just appear, WE provide them. So why then should we allow our elected and unelected officials to define us using an incomplete and incorrect term or label. After all, aren’t we the foundation they build their empires on?
So if we are so necessary for society to simply function, why don’t they talk to us? They pretend to listen, then simply talk at us when they need our vote. But have they spent any time understanding your or our needs, desires, or dreams? In short they aren’t us. They don’t truly represent you, me, or our neighbors. It hasn’t always been this way.
At one point in our countries history our neighbors were the one representing us. It was a responsibility not an opportunity. They were citizen servants. We haven’t given our representatives enough of a reason to care about us beyond the ballot box. We have allowed them to divide us, and to keep us divided and fearful of each other. They attack our families, our professions, our churches, our institutions because we have allowed ourselves to become weak. We don’t know who to trust because we don’t know enough of our neighbors. We have allowed others to define our neighbors for us. There are enormous incentives in money and power to keep us divided and to divide us further. They tell us and want us to believe our neighbors are unreliable, undependable, and maybe even dangerous.
Friends and neighbors, it’s time we started taking politics and elections personal. Our representatives are scared we might just do that, so they keep piling on lies about you and I to each other. Have you believed their lies? I have come to the conclusion that the only way to reverse course is for You and I, Neighbors, who currently lack influence over the rules of the game, to become organized and unified. We must re-establish a countervailing power so that our voices are heard. If you aren’t concerned about tomorrow your children are. They are concerned about housing, employment, raising children, medicine, climate, and the continent of debt we are leaving them. We have given them a poor example to follow when it comes to civic responsibility. We must change that. Let’s show our children and our government the power of the people. You are not alone. We are neighbors
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