Democracy in Action in My Living Room
by Nathan Walpow
Yesterday my wife Andrea and I hosted a campaign event for Steve Zimmer, who’s running in the March 3 election for the District 4 Los Angeles Board of Education seat. Steve’s been a teaching colleague of Andrea’s since she started at John Marshall High School fourteen-plus years ago, and has always been involved with the kids in ways that are far beyond the call of duty. So when we found out he was running we decided to put on a meet-and-greet.
The district Steve is running in is weird, running from Hollywood and West Hollywood through Westwood and environs all the way to Pacific Palisades, jogging down through Mar Vista and the beach communities and into Westchester, lurching up into Tarzana and Woodland Hills. So we tried to figure out everyone we knew who lived in these areas and invited them all, as well as some folks from here in Culver City and from other school board districts who promised that if they were impressed they’d tell their friends. Then we ordered up a nice fish platter from Roll N Rye (yes, we’re vegetarians, but we let flesh into our home for consumption by others) and Andrea baked and we got some snacks from Trader Joe’s and waited to see what would happen.
About 18 people showed up, and the whole thing was a lot of fun. The crowd was more heterogenous than most we get involved with, with others of Andrea’s teaching friends cheek-by-jowl with my in-laws’ neighbors; parents and non-parents, all interested in dealing with the mess Los Angeles public education finds itself in.
Lox was consumed, orange juice was downed, chocolate-covered orange candies disappeared. Eventually we all sat around the living room while Steve told us who he was, what he thought was wrong, and how he intended to fix it. (All of which you can see for yourself at his website.) He told us they expect only about 60,000 votes to be cast, and that the election will be very close, and that every vote would count.
I went in thinking, oh, this is a nice thing we’re doing, but is it really worthwhile? After it was over I was all, gee, wouldn’t it be weird if he actually won by ten votes or something, and we could say we made the difference?
I suppose Florida in 2000 should have taught us the value of every single vote. (And, by the way, just who is the junior senator from Minnesota?) But it took yesterday’s gathering to really bring it home to me.
You gotta vote, people. Get informed and vote, no matter how piddling the election might seem, no matter how irked you are that there’s one in March and another in April and why couldn’t it all just wait until November?
And if you don’t, I don’t want to hear you complain about anything.
Comments
No comments.
