Progressives

Progressive- adj. 1 moving forward: going ahead by a series of steps [the progressive improvement of our city] 2 wanting, bringing, showing, or working for progress or improvement through social or political reform [progressive laws; a progressive senator]

—n. a person who is in favor of progress or reform, especially such a person who is involved in politics

More than ever, now is the time to teach our children the importance of this word. With all the crazy tumult, uncertain financial turmoil, fear, apprehension, anxiety; the young people around us, whether your own children, your students, your nieces, nephews, or whomever—these young people need understanding just as much as the adults do. We owe them as much. They don’t need to know the minutiae of economic collapse, of dwindling 401ks, of long lines at gas pumps, of panic stricken parents at the check out counter at your local grocery store. You want your children to feel safe—to know that things will be okay. That it isn’t something for them to worry about. But they do. And with our words of encouragement, we offer them hope. This little glimmer of something intangible that, overtime, manifests itself by the tangible things that we do . . . whether as an individual or as a community or, as we are experiencing now, as a nation.

And it is in this manifestation of hope that I am reminded of the true definition of the word progressive. What children need to understand is that this word, this idea, should not be something bad. It isn’t something to be ashamed of or scared of. It is that which nourishes hope for change, for a repairing of all the things that are terribly wrong with our society.

We should allow our children to dream of a better world for it is their world that we are ruining with our uncontrollable pollution, our deforestation, our poisoning of the air we breath and of the water that is the life source of this little bit of earth we call home.

We should allow our children to know that their ideas and their dreams may be just the thing that sustains us a little longer and that has the potential to guide us to a better world.

It is this idea of a larger dream, the potential for change that we can, and must make a choice to turn around our potential as a country and as a people and reclaim the respect and dignity we so richly deserve. We must take these steps, moving forward . . . progressing toward a common purpose of change . . . to do the right thing for not only those of us here now, but for all those who will come after us.

I had the opportunity to view pictures of a friend’s recent trip to Grand Tetons and Yellowstone Nat’l Park. There were no appropriate words to describe the beauty of some of those images. But what those images did for me was bolster my resolve, and renew my own hope that we won’t lose sight of what God or whomever or whatever higher power you might believe in has given us. I want my six month old nephew to have the opportunity to travel down a river in a canoe and see what has been wrought by nature. I want him to know what a polar bear is and not have to know this by only seeing it in a picture book. I want him to know that the sky is blue and not grey and smokey with pollution. I want him to be able to go outside and play in the sun feeling the warmth on his skin knowing that our atmosphere will still protect him from harmful UV radiation. And I want him to grow up knowing that no man or woman has the right to tell him when God or said higher power is about to destroy the world as we know.

I believe in the power of community to come together in times of adversity. I still get choked up watching “How The Grinch Stole Christmas” on television each year when the voices of the citizens of Who-ville rise up in song. I believe in hope. I believe in the potential of change . . . for the better.

In other words, I am a Progressive. I am proud of this fact. And I approve this message.

Post Script:

I encourage you to register to vote before the official deadline. Volunteer to work for your candidate of choice. Do your own homework when it comes to the facts. Please take advantage of early voting if necessary, or schedule time on November 4th to go to your local polling place. And please, be diligent about the documentation of your vote. Ask for a paper ballot when you can. Report abnormalities at your polling precinct--not only to the precinct captain, but to the press and to your local party headquarters. I stress all of this because of the outcome of the last two major elections and the proven discrepancies that occurred.

Politics, The Art of the Possible

For the last several months, I have been debating the pros and cons of voicing my opinion regarding the upcoming election for President in 2008. However, I feel that we, as a nation, have reached a tipping point. The title of this post is a nod to a lyric from Webber’s musical Evita. It resonates now, because I feel that as an advocate for children, the arts, and most importantly a well-rounded humanist and liberal arts education; I can no longer sit quietly idle while the maelstrom of the political race swirls around me threatening to spin our nation into a further spiral of doubt and despair.

The proverbial straw that broke the camels back was the announcement of Sarah Palin for Vice Presidential candidate for the Republican ticket. To say I was dismayed at John McCain’s record was a mere trifle when I heard his choice for VP and her record (if one can call it that) began to emerge. She was a diabolically clever choice by McCain and I immediately heard the voice of Princess Leia in Star Wars when she is brought before Governer Tarkin on the Death Star, “ . . . I thought I smelt your foul stench when I was brought on board.” The foul stench here could very well be that of Karl Rove, the poster child for the evil Empire of the Star Wars franchise or one for the Slytherins if you have a more literary bent. In either case, the choice stinks and we should all be concerned. Not that the Republican ticket will win on merit, but that the Democrats will lose due to complacency and the fact that the majority of Americans are stupid enough to buy into the GOP package that is cloaked in a thick fog of lies, deception and inherently insidious framing that will beguile and lead the witless masses to vote a certain way.

For those of us in the field of liberal education, the arts, or any that support and encourage the creative and intellectual freedom of children should be storming the walls of the fortress and rallying our colleagues in support of Barack Obama, the Democratic Presidential candidate. His education platform, although not perfect, lays the groundwork for a sensible re-tooling of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) which has been an utter failure during the last two administration cycles with the GOP in charge. It was doomed to failure from the start, but the Republicans mismanaged its implementation and guidance to the extent of allowing school districts all over the country to hemorrhage, not only from lack of funding, but the mandates set forth by the standardized tests required by NCLB.

Here in the Seattle area, we have a neighboring school district’s teachers on strike for the second full week of classes. At issue, more pay, and freedom to teach to their strengths rather than the dictates of NCLB and the standardized tests.

VP Candidate for the Republicans has a track record of supporting issues that go against basic civil liberties, the rights of women, gays and lesbians, marriage equality and has been proven to inculcate religion into her governance of Alaska. And most terrifying are the reports that she may have supported censorship in the libraries of Wassila, Alaska while she was Mayor. This alone should be enough to disqualify her from candidacy.

We need only look to the wise words of Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451 when he cautions, “You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. All you have to do is get people to stop reading them.”

Let us all rally in support of a ticket that will support the people, not a privileged few. Let us support a candidate that has a proven record of community engagement. Let us support a candidate that will work to provide health care for everyone (we need only look to the Europeans in how this can be done effectively.) Let us support a candidate that will fight to end our dependence on foreign oil and subsequently help to ensure the children today have a sustainable world to live in tomorrow.

I believe, that as artists, we have the ability to see the potential and be change agents for a better world that can unite us. Our art, whether it is visual, digital, musical or performative, can, and does, allow the witness to understand the world and themselves and to see the potential in everything.

Get out the word! Be vigilant! Be compassionate! Be a participant!

In the words of Barack Obama, “Yes We Can.”