The recommended diaries list has been looking a little angrier than usual this past week, and for good reason - as a progressive, it is really, really difficult to find something to be excited about that is coming out of Congress. It feels like we've spent the past year on the defensive - losing battles to the Tea Party in Congress, and watching the GOP out-maneuver Democrats in state legislatures.
In my diary today, I hope I give you a reason to take a deep breath and remember what progressive politics is all about - building a better tomorrow. I want to talk today about a good friend of mine whose turning 25 years old. She's the country's youngest state legislator, and every day she is fighting for progressive values and policies, giving a voice to the next generation that will be saddled with the responsibility of governing. Vermont State Representative Kesha Ram is one of the most incredible leaders I have had the fortune of knowing, and I hope that after reading this diary, you will join me on her team.
I was a high school sophomore back in the spring of 2008. I spent my winter crossing the border into New Hampshire to canvass for the Obama campaign, and then spent the following months working hard to deliver Vermont for Obama on March 4th. It was my first experience in politics, and when the dust had settled, I wanted to find a new campaign that would be just as rewarding to work on. Around that time, I heard about a college senior at the University of Vermont who was running for the state legislature. She was the first person of color to complete a term as Student Body President, and had spoken when then-Senator Obama made the trip up to Vermont during Bernie Sander's Senate campaign. I wrote her an e-mail and told her who I was - the next week I was at her apartment, doing everything I could to help that campaign. It was a campaign full of young people, inspired by the message of change Obama carried with him, and hungry to put the people in place who would make that change possible. Kesha won that election in 2008, in no small part to the students who believed that one of their own could make a difference in our state capitol. Those students were absolutely right.
While congressional accomplishments have been hard to come by for progressives, Kesha's record is a constant reminder to me that we are still enacting important progressive legislation, even when the tide seems against us. She voted to legalize same-sex marriage back in 2009, and this past year, voted to create the nation's first single-payer heath care program here in Vermont. But what has always impressed me about Kesha is that it isn't just about the big banner items for progressives - anytime she takes up an issue in the legislature, her thought process is - how can we make government work to help these people? For decades, lawmakers had been at an impasse over creating a process for Abenaki tribes seeking recognition. When the issue came across her desk, she took up the tough fight, and managed to pass a bill that instituted a fair and standardized process so that the tribes could receive the formal recognition they had sought for so long. Without legislators like Kesha, those bills remain stuck, and Americans are stuck continuing on with their problem unsolved.
Her politics embodies everything that excites me about progressives politics today. No matter what setbacks we may face in Washington, when I see the work she is doing and the experience she is giving all the students who become involved in her campaign, I remain confident that we truly are winning the future. As grim as things may look when you turn on cable news, across the country there are young people embarking on exciting work and dedicating themselves to public service. I know first-hand the effect leaders like Kesha have on people - the experience I gained working alongside her is a large part of what took me from a small-town middle-class family to Yale University.
So for her birthday today, I wanted to do my best to give back to my friend, who gives so much of her time and energy to better the lives of regular people. I'm a college student now, so I don't have a whole lot of money to throw around for gifts, but I do have this story to share with you all. Leaders like Kesha face a lot of hurdles - as a young person, even on the progressive side, it can be tough to break through. Our college classmates aren't out controlling companies and making millions just yet, and it's enough of a hurdle to make a decent living for us - never mind spending the kind of money it takes to run successful campaigns. So I'm trying to kickstart a fundraising drive and I am telling everyone I know about her work - that starts right here with you.
I'm donating $10 to Kesha's re-election campaign today, and I want you to make the same investment in her that I am. It is not the millions of dollars that presidential campaigns are after, but I promise that you are getting more than your money's worth. If we're going to bring about progressive change, we are not going to do it yelling at the same corporate Democrats in Washington who have sold us out in the past - we are going to do it by recruiting and supporting leaders like Kesha, whose vision and energy will give this country the leadership it needs, and whose roots are planted firmly in the progressive movement.
Please donate $10 to Kesha today, and become part of her team. And when you are done, take a moment to send an e-mail to the young people you know in progressive politics - find out what they're working on, and how you can help. Encourage them to follow in Kesha's path, and run for office. All it takes is that one person supporting you to take a leap of faith and try to create real change in this country. The more people we involve, the sooner we are going to realize that dream.