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Iu2019m a voter of color. A Pacific Islander living on the mainland in the desert. Iu2019m gay. A Buddhist. A voter whose grown up poor and a first generation college student/graduate. #ImWithPete. And articles like these frustrate me to no end. https://twitter.com/reidepstein/status/1222121842451853312">https://twitter.com/reidepste...
As a PI, Iu2019m used to being ignored as a POC. I canu2019t count the number of times Iu2019ve been told Iu2019m the wrong shade of brown to be commenting on racism. Not black, not Hispanic, Asians and PIu2019s are often told our racial experiences are donu2019t count in the conversation.
Iu2019ve seen throughout the campaign, detractors erase Asians or light skinned minorities in photos of supporters or rallies, including them as white people and tagging any darker skinned supporters as tokens.
Being a supporter of color, I take articles like this seriously. If there are issues in a campaign, I feel they should be addressed. But thatu2019s not what this article was written for. Itu2019s baited for those who will only read the headline to believe Peteu2019s efforts are disingenuous.
So hereu2019s the rub. These problems are not unique to Peteu2019s campaign. Any minority, in any campaign, or even in literally any job held, has experienced the exact same thing. Micro aggressions. Feelings of not being heard enough.
I feel that other campaigns take this for granted. No other campaign has had this focused of a lens on race as this one. No other campaign or job Iu2019ve heard of has ever reached out to its minority employees or volunteers to ask what theyu2019ve experienced and how to address it.
When was the last time youu2019ve heard of your job intentionally trying to change its work culture by asking to identify problems that you find serious enough to have feelings on, but not serious enough to report?
There is nothing wrong with holding workshops focusing on diversity. In fact, all the campaigns should be having them. Are they? We donu2019t know, because no other candidate is criticized as much for trying to earn support from voters of color.
#ImWithPete because every single vote from a supporter of color is hard earned. It is not freely given. He has had to work to show he is serious about effecting change and itu2019s something Iu2019ve seen throughout the last year of campaigning.
Reaching out to communities for input on policy. Not just creating policy based on what he thinks will benefit minorities, but asking them directly how he can create policy that betters their lives.
Speaking about minority issues not just to minority communities, but to white, rural communities so that they can recognize those issues and care about them too.
Focusing on hiring a diverse campaign staff and working intentionally to gain their input. Addressing their concerns not just once, but multiple times to ensure there is change in the workplace.
This is why #ImWithPete. Heu2019s earned my support and heu2019s not taking his staff of color for granted. Every one of them works so hard for this campaign and deserve recognition. They are the reason he hasnu2019t lost my support. They are my proof of this campaignu2019s sincerity.
