Maritza Leal. Peninsula 360 Press.
Whenever elections are coming up, it is a challenge to reach out not only to our Hispanic community, but also to the skeptics who are already tired of so many unfulfilled promises by elected officials. But what should our reaction be to such circumstances?
Definitely not fainting. Because the right to vote is one of our rights under our Constitution; moreover, it is the way to raise our voice from our trenches and, consequently, send a message to the regime of government - whatever it may be - of our approval or disapproval, that we are watching them to bring about true democracy and the rule of law.
We only have to look at the past, at history, to realize that there were generations of women and the African-American community who dreamed of this right and who, unfortunately, never witnessed it become a reality.
Today we have that right and privilege at our fingertips.
Let us not be satisfied with a representative democracy; rather, let us make the exercise of an authentic participatory democracy a reality, where inclusion is a way of life with responsibility and respect.
Here in Redwood City, we have experienced gentrification, changes in the light industrial zone, changes in the school district, increases in homeless families and coupled with that, the catastrophic effects of the pandemic we are experiencing and heroically facing.
We will definitely not be the same in the immediate future, but it is in us - and only in us - that the definition of our future life lies. Because our future depends, in large part, on what is done or not done, for or against our community. Will we be witnesses to our dreams fading before our eyes, or will we be the protagonists of history? Setting a historical precedent and opening the way for future generations who lack a culture of voting.
If there is one thing I am convinced of, it is that we are sufficiently capable of correcting this imperfect democracy where agendas contrary to our interests have been imposed on us; people like me, who are known in the popular jargon as the ordinary citizen, as a person who does not hold a six-figure salary and who goes out every day to earn his living.
Democracy means the power of the people - "dḗmos" and "krátos". Let's stop with krátos alone and start together on the path to the inclusion of "dḗmos" and thus have the satisfaction of having contributed to the path towards a real participatory democracy, learning more about our local politics, elected officials and future candidates.
Let us honor, then, the efforts of our forefathers; that many of them fought and paid in blood for civil rights, including the right to vote. Let us continue to build the profile of our community and choose who will be in charge of our government and include in their agendas the problems that afflict us a large majority and not a select group.
Maritza Leal is a Mexican migrant and activist. She lives in Redwood City.
