I enjoyed participating in a panel discussion this week in Newark about voting. It was sad but unsurprising to learn that in the last local election, only 15% of Newarkers came out to vote. Why is that unsurprising to me? Because I’ve heard the people who tell me that the candidates don’t listen to them, don’t represent them, don’t care about them. I’ve heard the people who told me they are spending so much time and energy just trying to survive that they can’t deal with all the political games and propaganda out there. I’ve heard people tell me that government is not about or for them. They’re right.
There were Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, Greens and Independents at this forum and many seemed to agree that the establishment and its duopoly are problematic. Time to return power to the people.
I was also so glad to meet some of the amazing Newarkers who are activists working to make a difference in their communities. They are the leaders we should be supporting and following, not the politicians. I’m looking forward to working with them more in future.
