A little over a week ago I participated as a delegate in the DFL caucus for District 62 in the state of Minnesota.  It covers much of south Minneapolis and has been a stronghold for state senator Skoglund for quite a few years.  As my first caucus, I worked on behalf of Alex Eaton whom I supported because of his views on universal health care, a sustainable local economy, and because he had been knocking on doors and discussing the issues with the local constituents long before Sen. Skoglund had decided to retire.

We learned much about the realities of local politics from the organized hurly-burly that constituted the on-the-floor caucus activities.  Alex’s platform failed to distinguish him from the other seven candidates seeking the party’s endorsement.  In retrospect, it appears that at the grass root level, those candidates that can mobilize a motivated constituency dedicated to one or two issues do the best.  Patricia Torres Ray distinguished herself by emphasizing her record as an advocate for disadvantaged children and families, particularly from the minority and immigrant communities.  Though it was not an issue of primary concern to me, a middle-aged, Caucasian male, it struck a chord with many of the delegates in attendance.  The organized protests across the country on behalf of the rights of the immigrant community indicate that Ms. Ray was riding a groundswell of organized opinion few of us suspected.

In retrospect, we may not have suspected the strength of the support for candidates such as Ms. Torres-Ray because  her issues are not our issues.  Many middle-class democrats state they are against the war and many of the policies of the Bush administration, yet the vehemence of many of the people who hold this position has not translated into organized protest or positive energy of any kind.  Perhaps the current political situation both locally and nationally reflects something that many white males have not had to face up until now–we are not in power and those who are and whose skin coloration we share neither endorse our values nor act on our behalf.  We need to take a look at ourselves and learn from activist minority leaders such as Torres Ray and Illinois Senator Osama and learn to identify, vocalize, and fight for the issues that mean most to us not as a silent, entitled majority, but as another part of the bubbling stew that makes up the American body politic. 

These and related topics I plan to explore in upcoming posts and in my writing.