My niece meeting Elizabeth Warren.
It has been a very long time since I blogged here at Dailykos or even blogged at all, life being busy and taking different turns and all that. But last night something happened that I knew I had to share. Last night my eight year old niece met Elizabeth Warren as her presidential campaign came through Memphis and I think doing so is going to have a positive impact on her for the rest of her life.
For a little background, my spouse (her other uncle) and I are both strong supporters of Senator Warren. We live in northeast Arkansas and when I found out she was coming right next door to Memphis I said “Clear the calendar, we’re going.” No problem there, but the thought hit me that my niece could really benefit from seeing a woman running for president. But I wasn’t sure if it was something she’d be interested in. I knew there’d be a lot of standing in line, a lot of things she didn’t understand, and a lot of sitting still. My niece though is one of those kids who is eight going on thirty-five so I knew there was a chance she might get something from it. I called her mother and asked her if that was something she would be interested in and my sister said she would check. As my sister said later, she asked my niece if she wanted to come with me to Memphis and when she asked why, raising a skeptical eyebrow as she usually does, and my sister explained “To meet a very nice lady who’s running for president.” Apparently she jumped right on that. Sunday morning I texted my sister to see if she was excited. They live an hour away from us and the event didn’t start until later in the afternoon so she had plenty of time to get ready. The reply was “She’s already up and dressed and ready to go.” I was still in my pajamas…
We drove down to get her and we talked about everything under the sun, particularly endangered species, her current and growing passion. She didn’t really talk much about where we were going and when I explained it and that she might get to ask the senator a question she immediately got worried that she’d be called on like in school and might not have a question ready! I reassured her on that one but she nonetheless thought up a question she wanted answered.
We got to the event way early, like a full hour early. No one was there but slowly people started to trickle in and soon we were at the front of a long line. My niece got a little impatient there but mercifully she had a pocket full of toys to entertain herself with. A very nice lady who was working as a volunteer got to talking to her and asked her if she wanted to be president some day. My niece didn’t miss a beat. She said “No, but I might be a judge.” The volunteer was tickled pink. (My niece is at that age where she wants to be a judge, a doctor, a writer, a professional horse rider and who knows what else. The important thing is no one has told her she can’t be any of those things and hopefully by the time someone might do so she’ll have been built enough by those of us who know better to tell them where to stick that idea.) When we got inside, another very nice lady in the audience decided to offer her some Elizabeth Warren buttons and let her take her pick. She picked the one she liked and was wearing it later when she met the senator.
The event itself was great-a packed room with a diverse audience of all ages and colors. We don’t get candidates for president down here a lot and everyone was excited and thankful to finally have the chance to see, much less ask questions and visit with one. Warren gave her standard stump that I’ve seen her give since I started watching the campaign unfold in January and was well received judging from the response. She answered questions on immigration, student loan debt, public education vs. charter schools, and the security of our elections-each well received it seemed. Then came the magic moment where it was time to get in line to meet her and do photos. But first, we had to do a bathroom break and I can’t say thank you enough to the really wonderful fellow Democrats who were kind enough to hold our place in line while I ran a little girl to the restroom.
Back in line the staff and volunteers (who did a really wonderful job I should add) were taking down signs and passing them out. My niece decided on her own she wanted one and walked right up to the volunteer to get it. Then, a little while later, she got to meet Senator Warren.
I could tell she was star struck because she froze and got real quiet. Senator Warren could not have been more wonderful with her though. She dropped down and told her what I know is something she tells all the little girls she meets, that she’s “running for president because that’s what girls do”. When I, my spouse, and a friend of ours who’d tagged along got up there Warren asked her “are you keeping up with these guys?” or something to that effect. Granted, I’m biased here because I already liked Warren, but in person she is warm and genuine, prone to hugs, and will talk to you like she’s known you her whole life. I can tell she’s originally from Oklahoma-it’s hard to explain, but little things about how she talks and the way she tells stories and her mannerisms make clear what her roots are. It’s a little thing maybe, but it could be important in connecting with people in parts of the country like this, or at least enough to make a difference. I think my niece had forgotten she could ask her question so I asked it for her, telling Senator Warren that she wanted to know what she would do to help endangered species, that passion of hers again. Warren’s response was “Oh what a good question!” before looking down to tell her “We have to protect endangered species. It’s important because we made them endangered in the first place. You know when you break something, you have to fix it.” Pretty good answer to give to an eight year old I thought. Then, to my spouse, who was telling her that as a teacher he appreciated her positions on education, she said “Can you imagine how much of a difference a teacher in the White House will make?” She just got better and better.
Finally, as we were leaving, we saw Warren’s husband, Bruce. I know this guy hasn’t been in the spotlight much, but I have to say I was really impressed with him but probably not for a reason that would jump right to your mind. As we were leaving, he was helping the staff and volunteers clean up by picking up and putting away chairs. I always think the kind of work you’re willing to help out with speaks volumes about who you are, and so that struck a chord with me. Can you imagine Trump’s family helping to put away chairs? Just talking with him afterwards he is a super nice, very smart, and extremely charming guy.
On the way home I asked my niece if she had fun. She said she had. I told her she now had a little piece of history all to herself because a woman has never been elected president. That’s when she dropped a bombshell question on me-”But what if she loses?” That one was a hard one for me. When Hillary lost, especially considering what she had lost to, I had thought of my niece, and I knew there were no guarantees in this race as well even though I really want Warren to win and think she can. After thinking for a second I settled for telling her, “If she loses at least she gave it a shot. Sometimes in life you can do everything right and still lose. The important thing is that you try your best and do what’s right. But she could very well win and you never know unless you try.” I also told her there were more women running than ever before, a fact that seemed to peak her interest. I told her if more come through this way we could try to go see them if she wanted and she gave an enthusiastic yes to that. As we were sitting in a restaurant eating dinner, I happened across a video of Amy Klobuchar on Facebook and showed it to her to drive the point home.
After a big day my niece slept like a log on the way home but apparently got her second wind after we left and told everyone in the house all about the event and declared “I can’t wait ‘til I can vote and make a difference!” I cannot describe how happy I am about that or how grateful I am to Senator Warren for giving that little girl a moment she’ll always remember.
This is why representation matters. This is why it’s a great thing that we have such a diverse group of candidates. This is why it’s important to not give up on making history and why we have to keep shattering glass ceilings and breaking through barriers. It matters to little girls. It matters to kids of all different races and backgrounds to see this and have these moments. And it matters that we have a candidate that will make time for people and give them their full attention, including a little girl absorbing a moment she won’t fully understand the significance of for a long time to come. Because kids like my niece need to see that they matter. They need to see that this is how our country is supposed to work-for everyone. They need to see through our politics that they can do anything they set out to do. That’s why it was important for us to elect President Obama, one of many reasons I should say. That’s why I want to see us put a woman in the White House. That’s why we need to keep breaking those barriers down and don’t stop until there aren’t any left.
I don’t want to wrap this up with a pitch for donations but I’m a very grateful uncle to Senator Warren after last night. I’ve already given a little here and there to her campaign and plan to give more in the future. We have a lot of great candidates in this race but she’s my first choice and this moment solidified that for me. I already thought she had the best handle on what the country needed right now and now I’ve seen her heart up close and I’m sold. I’ll support whoever is the nominee because there’s too much on the line not to do so and I plan to take my niece to see any of the candidates that she wants to as it becomes possible to do so. But that said, moments like this matter and a perfect world they’d count for a lot more than the high dollar fundraisers with wealthy donors the senator is refusing to pander to. So if you’re so inclined, here’s Senator Warren’s fundraising page: secure.actblue.com/…
Thank you, and don’t forget Senator Warren is on CNN tonight for a town hall at 9:00 p.m. eastern.
