Democracy Ctrl-Alt-Del

A powerful civic organization developed in Oregon while I was away at Harvard for graduate school starting in 2002.  I had heard bits and pieces about The Bus Project, mostly through media reports on their political rise and effectiveness at electing progressives to the Oregon House and Senate, and from activists in communities of color who were a bit skeptical of their ability to partner and be inclusive of racial justice in their “progressive” agenda.  Ctrl-Alt-Del was a key theme, the need to “reboot” democracy, even “remake” democracy, and to do so in a way that leaves no one behind, ensures our future survival, in way in which we have equity.  And unlike a computer, it takes organized people power Ctrl-Alt-Del errors in our democratic system.

THE BUS PROJECT IS AN INNOVATIVE VEHICLE for hands-on democracy. We drive votes, drive leaders, and drive change. (And yes, we have a bus.)

Founded in 2001, the Bus Project has mobilized thousands of volunteers and activists around the state of Oregon and throughout the country. We bring voters out of the woodwork. We host zany forums to learn about candidates and policy issues.

The Bus Project is a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization that implements the Bus Trips program.

They hosted their Rebooting Democracy Conference (and check out the twitter feed!) for over 300 mostly under age 30 activists from across Oregon, and a host of panels and speakers educating and firing up the attendees.  A core group of folks of color came to engage, link our issues, and advocate for racial equity.  Urban League, the Center for Intercultural Organizing, CAUSA and APANO all turned out young participants, and I spoke in 3 sessions throughout the weekend.

Rev. Lennox Yearwood, former Air Force chaplain, New Orleans native, and leader of the Hip Hop Caucus, headlined Friday with Harvard legal eagle and democracy activist Lawrence Lessig speaking Saturday.  I have to admit I’ve been out of the loop on the younger generation since I left the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Young Adult & Campus Ministry Office after 10 years, so it took a little adjusting and re-education.  It did make me think about all the intense and meaningful community building and organizing young UU’s were a part of, and how critical these were to bringing about social, economic and racial equity.  I said a prayer hoping that this intentional ministry is still being carried on by Unitarian Universalist congregations and the national association.

I took away several lessons:

• You can’t beat an event where folks are explicitly talking about progressive policy advocacy (i.e. public interest advocacy) with super engaged volunteers (who will go door-to-door hundreds of times) and a whole host of politicos including Gubernatorial candidate and former Governor John Kitzhaber, who a group of 10 POC met with to encourage his participation in our April 29 candidate forum, and probably a dozen other electeds included Rep Nick Kahl who I had a great lunch with Saturday.
• Our community building, anti-racism and community ministry are a critical step in building the world we dream about, and it must be linked directly to effective policy advocacy and civic engagement.  We need to take time to understand each other and build relationships, but we also need to put our money and time where it also matters – in elections and in legislative battles.  The Bus Project does an excellent job of doing the “math” on where people-powered door-to-door phone-banking and grassroots organizing can make a real difference in the election of progressives in key swing districts.  And they’re doing it with one of the most disenfranchised voting electorates – the 18-35 year olds.
• The struggle for equity in white progressive institutions is still very difficult and long-term.  My UUA experience taught me the need for accountability, and the value of strong anti-racism leadership development programs, both multiracial and culturally/ethnic specific.  I was particularly disappointed in the ethical and moral behavior of white progressives, so-called “allies”, who ultimately worked to undermine collective people of color leadership.  My experience today in the larger white progressive communities is that there are key white leaders committed to partnerships with people of color and a real awareness of the challenges, but a real lack of systemic training and education integrated into their leadership development programs.

This was my first experience with the Bus Project, and I would say it was overall positive.  Some of my colleagues from the community felt frustrated, tokenized, and even angry at some of their interactions, and I am sad for that.  It was a strategic decision, and there is some sacrificing that comes from putting our limited organizational resources to recruit and turnout our folks to participate.  I think we’ll benefit in the long-term, and I appreciate the efforts of Bus Project Board & Staff Helena Huang, Noah Manger, & Caitlin Baggott, as well as my colleagues from community-based organizing.