When you want to know how to compete in an election against an entrenched opponent the best thing you can do is find someone who knows a thing or two about persevering against an unjust and corrupt political machine. Our campaign has had the high honor and privilege of finding just such a mentor in Dr. William F. “Fergie” Reid.
Dr. Reid Has been a champion for Voting rights since 1956 When he co-founded the Richmond Crusade for Voters to resist the movement by the powerful Senator Harry S. Byrd Sr. to maintain segregation. Against unimaginable political opposition Dr. Reid continued to organize and develop grassroots strategies that led to his being the First African American since reconstruction to be elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1968. Dr. Reid has continued his crusade to register voters to this day. The voter registration initiative 90 for 90 is a tribute to a true civil rights icon and a man of true vision.
When I met with Dr. Reid earlier this year I was pleased to find him in excellent health and even better spirits. His guidance in helping me set up my campaign in Virginia Beach has been unbelievable. HE laid out for me a grassroots plan for engaging voters that is simply masterful and focused on community organizing in a way that made perfect sense to me. Reach out to 1 or 2 supporters in each precinct and then ask them to reach out to 1 or 2 more and document everything. Simple right? Well this is not the way the Virginia Democratic party likes to do things.
The Party in Virginia is working on a persuasion model of campaigning and in my view that has failed in a classic way. The major problem with getting democrats elected in the commonwealth is that they don’t show up to the polls for state elections. Many say it’s because we hold elections in off years and there is a certain amount of election fatigue. If that were the case I would think that Republicans would have the same problem. Clearly they do not. So we, as Democrats need to stop trying to convert Catholics into Baptists and start getting Baptists to come to church. (that’s a euphemism for the confused among you.)
Dr. Reid’s plan ties directly into that philosophy and when those ideas came together in his kitchen it became clear to me why so many folks admire this man.
Dr. Reid knows what resistance is and how to fight for what is right using the political process. While it may not be as fraught with danger as it was in 1956, the struggle is just as real and the stakes are still high. It was a great honor to be mentored by someone who fought valiantly for voting rights and still finds the time and energy to help candidates half his age with fundamental guidance.
If nothing else comes of my campaign, passing this knowledge along to the next generation of candidates will certainly be a part of my political activity for as long as I’m able. The resistance lives on in the actions of those of us willing to absorb and pass this knowledge on.
In Solidarity
Tom Brock
vote4tombrock.com
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