I love flowers.
Last summer when we moved, I was most excited about the flower beds in front of the house. All summer, the view of brightly colored flowers every time I came up the street made me happy. We became owners of a dog in the fall, and he destroyed those flowerbeds this winter. None of my beautiful perennials came back.
It was okay, I decided, because I would plant on the side this year and drew up some plans for a naturalized habitat in the back. I was so happy when I made the first flower purchase. I couldn’t wait to spend the next day digging in the dirt. The next day came and I unexpectedly spent it working on a water valve problem. By the time that fiasco was over I was spent and my weekend was over.
The next week was filled with end-of-the-school-year banquets. Then, rain. Then other commitments. Then an unexpected need arose that required construction and two sets of hands. Long story short, my plants are still in their pots, longing for a permanent home, almost an entire month later. Ugh.
Obstacles for single parents are plentiful, but it’s times like these that I find myself fighting bitterness. I want “these” things done but have one set of hands and “this” much free time, and I had to admit that no one here had the time to turn over dirt and dig holes with a shovel. I had given up on the idea of planting because there wasn’t enough time or manpower to get the job done.
But then my mom bought a rototiller.
Game. Changed. In the time it would have taken to walk to the shed, find the shovel, and begin to dig, the Earth was churned. I now only need an extra set of hands to move stuff out of the way. The power comes from the machine, all the blades working together at the same time, with one person managing things like steering and speed and making sure it doesn’t run out of gas. The blades work in tandem, all moving at the same time, each aware of what the job at hand is. AND everyone is willing to help because the work isn’t so daunting.
So, what if we envision organizing as a rototiller? Imagine what could be accomplished here in West Virginia if systems operated like a rototiller: turning over the old dirt, removing weeds and replacing it with new growth? Imagine a state that actually attracted people because of its new growth!
There are huge problems in this state. We’re consistently last in education, health, poverty. There are groups fighting for equality on every front. We’re going to see the political landscape changed even more when we go through redistricting.
Last week, the W.Va. State Democratic Party Executive Committee met to adopt an Affirmative Action Plan (that should have been in place in the 70s, I’m reading). The problem was that the Affirmative Action Committee hadn’t been set, meaning that the Executive Committee wrote the plan, usurping the purpose and power of the committee – in short, the people of color. The issue, as I saw it as a video viewer, was that they had already been granted an extension to get this done and were literally banging against a next-day deadline after being denied another extension. Well, that was the first obvious issue.
The one thing that I keep coming back to is the blatant racism that was displayed by not only the Chair but by a large number of the committee members. How in the world is it accepted that, with members of color speaking to the group about the hundred reasons this wasn’t right, the Chair plowed right through with a vote anyway? And how does one profess to be inclusive and working for the good of our state when they refuse to at least open their mouths and use their voices to oppose this?
The least – and I do mean the least – the majority of members could have done is make a statement against what was happening, but, instead, they opened their mouths and their white supremacy popped out, aside from a handful of members who fought to insert themselves.
This probably wasn’t the best time for the W.Va. State Democratic Executive Committee to cause such an uproar with its declining membership. I am working to rally support for The For The People Act because I absolutely believe that our democracy is at stake; what I saw the other night was confirmation of that threat and more, believe me.
The party needs new leadership with socially just values. Quit looking for the shovels and staring idly at the dirt that’s in need of being turned. Go, buy yourselves a rototiller.
Onward,
Amy Jo
