Paulette Brown-HindsI was pleasantly surprised last Friday night when I arrived to the San Bernardino mayoral forum held at Ecclesia Christian Fellowship and couldn’t find a parking space. I had to, instead, park a block away because the entire lot was full of cars. The first person I saw was Marion Black standing at his post directing traffic. He immediately warned me to be prepared to stand at the back of the room and before I made it to the door I saw a diverse sea of San Bernardinians… all listening intently to the two candidates for mayor: Carey Davis and Wendy McCammack.
I was proud. As someone who has criticized the apathy of San Bernardino’s voters in the past, I was thrilled to see so many interested citizens engaged and participating in the election process. During the forum, my sister Lynn (who was standing on the other side of the room), sent me an email and my attention was briefly drawn to the signature quote by Plato which seemed appropriate for the scene: “One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.” It seemed to me at that moment, that by enthusiastically participating in the process and asking questions that are important to them as well as to transforming San Bernardino, the residents of the city are serious about selecting the best candidate. One who they believe has the appropriate experience and ability to elevate the city and move it in a positive direction.
I was also proud of the number of young people who participated. I had a chance to speak to several college students who were part of a contingent of Youth Action Project students: CSUSB’s Teresa Aguilar and UCR’s Lucia Preciado, Richard Moreno, and Diana Phan. I was impressed by the thoughtfulness of their comments and level of interest in the civic process.
After the forum, I was invited to observe a debriefing session led by a few of the event sponsors, a group of young men who work every day through their organizations to make San Bernardino a better place: Jonathan Buffong, Joseph Williams of the Youth Action Project, Terrance Stone of Young Visionaries, Sergio Luna of Inland Congregations United for Change, and Hardy Brown II of the Black Voice Foundation. When asked to critique the candidates, the 40 young people they had assembled in a small classroom near the forum venue, said that they believed that while both candidates seemed generally knowledgeable, “neither presented a clear plan for policy implementation,” and neither spoke about some of the serious problems of the city including homelessness, prostitution, as well as other public safety issues. And they would like to see a plan to invest in the city’s young people and not just in big business. They did agree that Davis, a financial services professional, seems to be better prepared to deal with the financial problems that continue to plague the city.
I left that evening, not so much impressed with the responses of the candidates. In fact, Plato’s quote kept ringing in my mind as I listened to Ms. McCammack’s casual responses to the people’s very serious questions. But I was more impressed with the empowered citizenry. It was clear to me that the group at Friday night’s mayoral forum was looking for an intelligent and thoughtful leader and someone who answered their questions with professionalism and clarity. At least both candidates have agreed to address the young people’s unanswered questions at an upcoming forum on January 24th at San Bernardino Valley College.