The following is the text of the civic homily I delivered to open Town Meeting yesterday. “Irene” refers to Tropical Storm Irene, which flooded our three villages on August 28, 2011, destroying bridges, roads and homes.
Even though we may be divided in our opinions, that does not necessarily make us a divided community. We know that when Irene washed through town, we pulled together, regardless of our differences. We helped one another, and for a few years following Irene, we celebrated our community spirit.
Ironically, we humans seem better at recognizing our essential goodness, our commonality, and our human kindness, in the face of disaster. When life resumes normalcy, we allow difference of opinion to damage our social fabric the way Irene’s floodwaters eroded our riverbanks.
It doesn’t have to be that way.
We can disagree with one another and still be respectful. We can listen to one another carefully. We can compromise. We can even change our minds.
Democracy and community take willingness on each of our parts.
Tone of Voice
When we speak, let’s speak in a tone of voice that allows people to hear what we say.
In my early years at VPR, I once started a recording session by scolding listeners who might disagree.
My producer stopped me. “Half your listeners just turned the radio off,” she said. “You can’t change minds if you’re not heard.”
One of the ways to be heard by those who disagree is to find common ground. At Town Meeting, we already have that common ground. The thirty-six square miles of our town are – quite literally – our common ground.
The people sitting around you are your neighbors. They may hold different opinions about how we can best achieve our common goals, and they also may hold the jumper cables that will spark your car battery back into life.
Stand Up and Speak Up.
Speaking up at Town Meeting can be scary, but you deserve to be heard. When recognized by the chair, please stand up, speak up and make your point with clarity and kindness. While someone else is speaking, please listen.
Maybe you will hear a new way of thinking about a problem. Maybe you will hear information and opinions that reinforce what you already believe, and maybe you will hear something that will change your mind.
This forum – direct democracy – our Town Meeting – is a gift we have inherited from those who have lived in Newfane before we were born, and it’s our responsibility to pass it on after we die. You can find a list of the townspeople who died in the last year on page 146 of your Town Report, and the list of those who were born last year and who will inherit the consequences of our decisions today on page 144.
Let’s be passionate about self-governance, and let us also be polite with one another.
Deborah Lee Luskin is Town & School Moderator in Newfane, Vermont.
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