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{1} “They say I 'mold' a fighter, but no. I help him mold himself. I bring out with him qualities he has buried deep down, that many times he does not know he has. My job is to discover and uncover, to bring them to the surface, slowly or quickly, depending on how much dirt is laying on top. When I bring them to the surface, I not only become fully and completely aware of them, but the fighter does, too.” – Cus D'Amato
There has been a lot of interesting discussions on this forum in the last couple of weeks, regarding progressive and liberal democrats feel about the Obama administration and Congress. Two of the most important issues being discussed, I believe, are health care and the war in Afghanistan (which is not, of course, limited to Afghanistan). I find the majority of the threads relating to these two issues to be of value.
Many people are outraged at the proposed health care “reform.” Others view it as a first step in a long process. Likewise, many people are strongly opposed to the administration's policies regarding Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq, while others believe that, while not ideal, that President Obama is attempting to make the “least worst” decision from the array of bad options left from the Cheney administration's policies.
A couple of other O.P.s/threads that have gotten my attention suggested that D.U.ers focus on looking at ways to organize – both at a community level and on a larger, more coordinated state-wide and national level – to empower progressive and liberal democrats who are not satisfied with the behaviors of those who were elected to represent them in Washington, DC.
I've mentioned before on this forum that I believe that all of life imitates the sport of boxing, and I say that only slightly tongue-in-cheek. I was raising in a boxing family, and the Great Sport influenced my view of and participation in society, including politics. Among the most interesting people that I had the opportunity to meet and learn from was Cus D'Amato, one of the most intelligent and fascinating figures in all of sports. Hence, my use of a few “Cus Quotes” that I hope the reader will enjoy.
{2}“A boy comes to me with a spark of interest. I feed it, and the spark becomes a flame. I feed the flame, and it becomes a fire. I feed the fire, and it becomes a roaring blaze.” – Cus D'Amato
There are numerous organizations that progressive and liberal democrats can join, that are of value in giving a voice to the political left which would not otherwise be heard in Washington. I have joined some that focus on elections, the environment, social justice, and related issues. At the same time, I know that it is essential to invest in local, community organizing.
Now, when I was born, my family lived in the largest “poor” neighborhood in a three-county section of upstate New York. My family moved when I was young, and I returned as a teenaged hoodlum, living in an apartment with my future co-defendants. Years later, when I started in social work, much of my time was spent working with families in that neighborhood.
Some of the parents spoke to me about their concerns with the way that their children were treated in school. They had spoken with teachers, administrators, and even approached the school board, but felt they were ignored. So I took this spark of interest, and I fed it with the power of an idea that they had never considered: they could elect one of their own to the school board. At some point, I'll go into detail about how the school administration attempted to stop that growing flame, and how I was able to put them in check by using the ACLU's services. We eventually elected two representatives on that school board.
That created a sense of self-confidence in the neighborhood. Parents then noted that the playground there was the only one in the entire town, where literally everything was broken. We approached the village board. The members of the board seemed convinced that poor folk liked broken things, and would indeed break any new equipment. So, we took up a neighborhood petition, and took advantage of the local media to give voice to the neighborhood's needs.
Within a year, the village board had secured a HUD grant, that they intended to use to buy the properties, evict the low-income families, and build expensive “town houses.” Their plan would have resulted in the approximately 120 families being “homeless.” We organized a neighborhood tenants' union; used the media to expose the under-handed abuses of the village board; and attracted the active support of one of the nation's top advocates for the poor, who was employed at a leading university in our state. Long story short: we won, and that HUD grant was used to improve the quality of life for the people it was intended to benefit.
I know that this is “small stuff.” But if we can't compete on the local level on these types of issues, we are not going to be able to step up to the next level, much less the state and national stage. I look at it like guiding a young boxer's career: you start out with easier fights, and build both his confidence and skills, before entering him in tougher competition.
{3}“The first lesson I teach these kids before I teach them to box is a lesson about Fear. About what Fear is, and why we have it. Fear is like a fire. If you control it, as we do when we heat our houses, it is a friend. When you don't, it consumes you, and everything you do, and everything around you.”
Cus D'Amato
In “A Tale of Two Cities,” Mario Cuomo's keynote address to the 1984 Democratic National Convention, the then governor of New York provided a brilliant response to President Reagan's delusional view of our nation's being a shining city on the hill. The truth, both at that time and a quarter of a century later, is that there are many, many neighborhoods across this country that are confronted with all the problems endured by the people living in that small, isolated neighborhood I spoke of.
When a community of people are confronted with severe problems, they tend to look to someone from the outside, who they believe is capable of helping them. It could be a politician like Mario Cuomo, or an organization like the ACLU. Often, when they are unable to get a qualified person or organization, they turn to a more local person (or group), who they have seen fighting for a cause that is similar to their own. Hence, over the decades, when some regional groups have been unable to access the direct support of a qualified advocate, they have approached me.
One of the things that I am fully convinced of is that the resources needed to engage in struggles for social justice are found within the community of people itself. And that includes “leadership.” But the true power in any group is not found in its “leader(s),” but rather in the people standing with that leadership. This is the essence of true power, and it is equally true in the context of organizing at the grass roots level, and in understanding why so many elected “leaders” serve the interests of corporations, rather than you and I.
Many of us have been lied to, so often and for so long, that we have become convinced that we are powerless to influence the circumstances within our households and neighborhoods. We look for some “leader” to do for us what, in fact, only we can do for ourselves. It can be difficult for people to speak up at a public meeting, to write a letter-to-the editor of a local newspaper, or to call the office of a elected representative. As a rule, it is not because that person thinks that their message itself is not important; instead, it is because they not only lack the self-confidence to take action, but worse, they have been made to feel inadequate, inferior, and unintelligent. They fear making a mistake, of being ridiculed, or of being subjected to backlash for standing up for themselves.
Our job is to help them understand their fear, and to remove it as an obstacle that keeps them from reaching their potential. We find that we are often best able to do this while working with small groups of people. By encouraging them to take that first step, and to experience some pride in being part of a larger movement, we help uncover those potentials they have always had, but which have been buried by the larger society.
{4} “With fear, a man becomes emotionally tired, and when he is afraid, he has no faith in himself. But the hero and the coward feel exactly the same fear. Heroes just react differently.” – Cus D'Amato
When I was a youngster, I had but two goals in life: first, to be a champion in boxing; and second, to be a high school math teacher. Although I won quite a few amateur boxing titles, and did a bit of teaching in classrooms, somewhere along the journey my life took a different path. I ended up a social worker and community organizer/activist. Life is strange, all in all, I suppose.
In my experiences as a community activist, I've had some wonderful experiences. And some peculiar ones, as well. I've been involved in some issues where my role has been unpopular with some of the opposition. In one public meeting, an elected official who found my style of debate annoying actually threatened my job. And in one protest march, a fellow swung a stick at me – luckily, it hit me on the head, breaking the stick without causing any injury to me.
Of course, anyone who stands up for what they believe is right is going to face a certain amount of that backlash I mentioned. And that can create inner doubts. Also, the more one works for progressive political change, and for social justice, the more you find the system to be entrenched with injustice. One can become tired. Finally, even after one helps to elect a seemingly good politician, or invests a lot of energy in advocating for a good cause, there are often set-backs and failures. One becomes tired, has inner doubts, and even comes to question if it is possible to make meaningful progress.
That's the exact same self-doubt and fear that old Cus D'Amato knew that every fighter eventually confronted in the ring. Oh, yes, trust me: I have experienced this many times. I had more than my share of bouts where it would have been easier – at the moment – to say, “No mas.” But because I prepared properly, was stubborn by nature, and realized my opponent was just about as hurt and tired as me, I would keep on plugging away. And won almost every time.
Our opposition wants us to get tired. To become disillusioned. To think that it isn't worth continuing the struggle for social justice. That's when they pick up the pace in this contest. They always look for openings, for weaknesses in our defenses, and for openings to hit us. Last year, after Obama and Biden, along with many other democratic candidates won their elections, we let our guards down. We thought that we had won on a level far greater than we did. And, while our side let its guard down and let the structure of our organization at the grass roots level slide, the dark energy of the republicans and corporate interests took advantage of that opening.
We need to get back to work. Now, I know that some here have not let up, and my comments are meant in a general way. But we have to get ready for the next round. Part of it might be simply signing internet petitions and the like. But the task at hand requires a greater level of hard work than that. It demands that we get out into our own communities, and organize and prepare in such a way that we are able to identify real leadership within our own ranks. Add to this task the ability to find that strength within ourselves. To not become tired, afraid, or discouraged. To not believe the enemies' lies. And while we may not be heroes, we will find that ordinary people are fully capable of extraordinary talents.
Thank you,
H2O Man
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