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One of the burning questions about saving our democracy is how to jump start voter turnout, no matter whether in state, municipal or federal elections. Again, I like talking politics to near-strangers I meet. Here are some of their answers to the question above. Nothing might seem terribly new, but that’s because we’ve yet to find the political will to even experiment with change. One white knee on a black neck may prove to be one knee too many. The police-caused death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week may be the galvanizing point for real change this November. I hope so. Racism is on the ballot. Like COVID-19, racism too is a virus, an invisible pathogen passed down from generation to generation. It can hibernate from time to time, but in four centuries, it has never been dormant for long. Please help kill this virus by voting. Please study the history of the candidates. Please turn out the noise and listen to your mind and heart. My novel, Once Upon a Lie, published a few years ago, was my small contribution to insights into American racism of the Eighties and Nineties. I learned so much in writing it: The kernel of the virus is always the same. If you don’t have discussions with those who don’t agree with you what that kernel is—don’t give up. Keep talking, keep protesting without violence. Having the courage to substitute dialog for polarization may save our democracy."
With only a few days before the much-anticipated midterms, my wife and I attended a small fundraiser for a 29-year-old Latina running for a seat on the Santa Maria City Council. Gloria Soto is a political novice who, if she wins, hopes to give voice to approximately 70 percent of the population of a city sixty-five miles north of Santa Barbara, home to Vandenberg Air Force Base and lots of productive farms reliant on inexpensive labor. Most of the approximately 73,000 Hispanics in Gloria’s city perch on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. The city faces a significant deficit, underperforming public schools, lack of a plan for raising revenues, an inadequate social safety net, and a predominantly while, older city council. |
MRF BlogMichael's thoughts on writing, politics and everything in between. Archives
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Michael R. French graduated from Stanford University where he was an English major, focusing on creative writing, and studied under Wallace Stegner. He received a Master's degree in journalism from Northwestern University. He later served in the United States Army before marrying Patricia Goodkind, an educator and entrepreneur, and starting a family.
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