LRN61 - The Democratic National Convention
LRN61 - The Democratic National Convention
It's Election Season!
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Hello dear readers!
As you may have noticed, it has been almost 4 months since my last post here. That is the longest break I have taken since starting the Library Research Notes Newsletter. In that time, I’ve been pondering where to go next with this LRN journey and where I would like the newsletter to live. Although Substack has done a semi-decent job of responding to the demands of the Substackers Against Nazis request to kick the Nazis off the platform, I’m still reticent to remain here. More news to come on that in the next few months.
In the meantime though, this past week was the Democratic National Convention, so I felt the need to resurface and start writing again. Election season is in full swing and I want to be sure to keep you in the loop on what I know so far and what is to come.
So welcome back!
Before I get into the night by night of it all, I want to just say this. Democrats have been back on our heels for several decades now. We have been working from a place of ‘good’, but we haven’t been real fighters. We SAY that we fight, but then we shrink back when the GOP gets too scary. We go high when they go low. We try to be the better people. And don’t get me wrong, kindness and empathy are virtues that I believe Democrats need to maintain, but we can also push back. We can rise above the fray and scream out to the world that we are here and we are making this country what it was always meant to be, but has never quite achieved.
We won’t shrink from this fight because this time, it truly is the fight for democracy against fascism. The bullying of the right wing is not going to hold us back. Cordiality needs to be dropped and we need to continue to fight, with our heads held high. We will win this country back and we will continue to make it what it needs to be. An inclusive, diverse, progressive, safe place for EVERYONE. That is the only way forward. And to quote our future Madam President, Kamala Harris, “When we fight, we win”.
And with that, I give you my impressions of the DNC. Enjoy!
Note: If you want to cut to the chase (TL/DR) and see one of the BEST speeches from a Presidential nominee in recent years, scroll to the bottom and click play on the embedded version of VP Harris’ acceptance speech.
Night one - Democracy and Unions
The first evening of the Democratic National Convention, in Chicago, brought many current and future faces of the Democratic Party to the stage to speak on behalf of democracy and freedom. The “pro-democracy” convention, packed a punch on day one. Here are some of the highlights that I found to be uplifting and hopeful for the future of the United States.
On night one we got to hear the presumptive nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, speak. The nominee usually doesn’t speak until the final night, but it was a lovely (and needed) moment of hopefulness early in the evenings ceremonies.
Shawn Fain, the President of the United Auto Workers, gave an impassioned speech about unions, while wearing a ‘Trump is a SCAB” t-shirt (gotta get one of those!!) For those who are not up on the union lingo - a SCAB is someone who crosses a picket line to work during a strike. In his speech he stated “Donald Trump laughs about firing workers who go on strike, and Kamala Harris stands shoulder to shoulder with workers when they are on strike.” STAND UP, SPEAK UP, SHOW UP!
Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was inspiring, per usual. After saying, “Donald Trump fell asleep at his own trial. And when he woke up, he made his own kind of history — the first person to run for president with 34 felony convictions,” the crowd erupted into chants of ‘Lock Him Up!’ as she grinned from ear to ear. Clinton also highlighted what I believe to be one of the underlying themes of the convention. Showing us that Republicans don’t have the corner market on strong mothers, she not only mentioned her own mother, but gave a quick history lesson on a pretty important mother, for the suffrage movement in the United States stating,
“Tennessee became the final state to ratify the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. The state legislature was deadlocked until one lawmaker’s mother, a widow who read three newspapers a day, sent a letter—a letter to her son. “No more delays,” she wrote. “Give us the vote.” And since that day, every generation has carried the torch forward.”
Keep marching
US House Members, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jasmine Crockett brought a no nonsense attitude to their speeches. Fearless and blunt. I am in love with the current and future state of the Democratic Party.
President Biden received a rousing four minute ovation, with chants of “Thank you, Joe” as he stepped to the podium. In an almost hour long speech, where he laid out all that he and VP Harris have done to bring America back from the brink, he made it clear that we are at another crossroads for democracy. Acknowledging the fact that he has 5 more months to ‘get work done’ as President, he wholeheartedly endorsed VP Harris as the democratic candidate for POTUS.
He also acknowledged the protestors outside the convention saying, “We’re working around the clock, my Secretary of State, to prevent a wider war and reunite hostages with their families and surge humanitarian health and food assistance into Gaza now. But those protesters out in the street, they have a point. A lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides.” This wasn’t exactly the full scope of what the protestors, or anyone who is anti-genocide, would hope to hear, but it was more than he has said in the past.
Day one was amazing. Now on to day two!
Night Two - Hope
The second evening of the convention kicked off with the Roll Call. As an election and data nerd, roll call is always my favourite part of the convention, but this year was even more exciting as they started out with a DJ playing hits from the States (where there were hits to be had). Lil Jon made an appearance for Georgia, performing snippets of ‘Turn Down for What’ and ‘Get Low’, while Sean Astin, Eva Longoria, and Spike Lee also made appearances for their States. But the best (and yes, I’m biased) roll call speech of the night came from our Tennessee State Representative from Memphis, Justin Pearson. I spy State Senators London Lamar (on the left) and Raumesh Akbari (on the right), also from Memphis in the frame behind Pearson, while strains of the Dolly Parton classic, 9to5, float over the crowd. Exciting and hopeful times…
Honourable mention to my home State of New York, where Governor Kathy Hochul introduced the nomination with, “As Governor of the greatest State that ever existed - hey - we’re New Yorkers, get used to it!”
Highlights from the evening, aside from the roll call, included:
Jason Carter, the grandson of Former President Jimmy Carter (still my all-time favourite President), spoke on the legacy of his grandfather and the future with Kamala Harris as Madam President. President Carter will turn 100 on 1 October and he is looking forward to 5 November when he can cast his vote for VP Harris.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama had one of the best speeches of the convention. Stirring, instructive, intense, and hopeful, the speech won the night (and I will say the whole convention up until the very last speech of the week.) By now, you have probably heard her quote asking, “Who is going to tell [Trump] that the job he is currently seeking might be on of those ‘Black jobs’”, but the lead up to that quote was even more impactful. In discussing how “Trump did everything in his power to try to make people fear [the Obamas]”, she explained a fundamental truth of the current state of our country, instigated by Maga Republicans, that we need to turn the page on, saying, “His limited and narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hardworking, highly educated, successful people who also happened to be Black.”
She continued that underlying theme of the convention, which on night 2 I could see wasn’t only about mothers, but strong women. She is, of course, a strong woman, but she also talked about her mother, “the woman who showed me the meaning of hard work and humility and decency, the woman who set my moral compass high and showed me the power of my own voice.” Love love love.
Former President Barack Obama also gave a beautiful and hopeful speech, highlighting the healing that needs to happen in the US, saying this:
“We live in a time of such confusion and rancor, with a culture that puts a premium on things that don’t last: money, fame, status, likes. We chase the approval of strangers on our phones. We build all manner of walls and fences around ourselves, and then we wonder why we feel so alone. We don’t trust each other as much because we don’t take the time to know each other. And in that space between us, politicians and algorithms teach us to caricature each other and troll each other and fear each other.
But here’s the good news, Chicago: All across America, in big cities and small towns, away from all the noise, the ties that bind us together are still there. We still coach Little League and look out for our elderly neighbors. We still feed the hungry in churches and mosques and synagogues and temples. We share the same pride when our Olympic athletes compete for the gold. Because the vast majority of us do not want to live in a country that’s bitter and divided. We want something better. We want to be better. And the joy and the excitement that we’re seeing around this campaign tells us we’re not alone.”
Night three - The Midwest (and a Little Appalachia) Shines
The third night of the DNC was packed with so many great speakers and really did the best job at highlighting “Middle-America”. Holding the convention in Chicago and scheduling around Central Time may have been a bit of a shock to the East Coast viewers, but it made sense to cater to a different part of the country for once. Highlights from the evening were numerous, but here are a few that I feel were worth sharing.
Former President Bill Clinton was one of the main speakers of the night and although he is my least favourite of the Democratic Presidents, he always draws you in with his conversational tone. Reading off of papers, rather than the teleprompter, he did a bit of ad libbing throughout his speech, which cause it to run a big long. He was self-effacing and pointed, showing us how Democrats mix common sense with empathy and character. You don’t have to be loud and obnoxious to make a point.
Maren Morris performed on of the most poignant and prescient songs of the convention, “Better Than We Found It”. The bridge says it all…
“America, America
Divided we fall
America, America
God save us all
From ourselves and the Hell
That we've built for our kids
America, America
We're better than this”
Oprah wowed the audience with her appearance at the convention. Speaking on the topic of Freedom, she gave a history lesson on America and talked about our ability to move forward only if we come together. She highlighted the fact that deep down this country is filled with people who care about one another and that the true America is a place of peace and justice, not division, saying:
“And despite what some would have you think, we are not so different from our neighbors. When a house is on fire, we don’t ask about the homeowner’s race or religion. We don’t wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too.”
Amanda Gorman read one of her wonderful poems, that can only be done justice with a listen. Click here to watch.
As we moved into the Midwestern, specifically Minnesota, portion of the evening, John Legend and Sheila E performed “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince, to kick things off.
Amy Klobuchar gave the 1st nominating speech of the evening for Vice President, nominating Tim Walz. A highlight of her speech was her lovely anecdote of how we are all connected in America, saying:
“Way up north in Minnesota, out of Lake Itasca flows the Mississippi River. It starts small and it grows wider. It flows down to Wisconsin, and to Iowa. It goes down to Illinois, and to Missouri. It goes to Kentucky and Tennessee. It goes to Arkansas, and it goes way down to Mississippi, and then it goes all the way down to New Orleans, Louisiana, where the spirit of our nation's resilience abounds.”
The second nominating speech for Tim Walz was given by one of his former students, Ben Ingman, joined on stage by members of the football team who won the State title with Walz as their coach.
The final speech of the night was given by the nominee for Vice President, Tim Walz. Entering the stage to cheers of “Coach!”, looking happy and excited to be nominated, Walz gave a speech that was both forceful and tender. He exudes patriotism and authenticity and will be an excellent Vice President once elected in November. A highlight of the speech came when he was talking about all the good things that he has accomplished as Governor of Minnesota, stating:
“And we made sure that every kid in our state gets breakfast and lunch every day. So, while other states were banning books from their schools, we were banishing hunger from ours. We also protected reproductive freedom, because in Minnesota, we respect our neighbors and the personal choices they make. And even if we wouldn't make those same choices for ourselves, we've got a golden rule. Mind your own damn business.
Night four - She Can
The fourth night was all about Kamala Harris and it was wonderful. All the previous Presidents who spoke at the convention paled in comparison to VP Harris. She is ready. She is Presidential. She is going to make this shit happen and we are ready for it.
By night 4 it was clear that the power of a story about a strong mother is something that Democrats have to share. Democrats ARE the soul of this country. Republicans (read: TradWives) don’t have the corner market on family values. In fact, after the first Trump Presidency, we can clearly see that they don’t have ANY claim to morals, values, or decency. The GOP has become the party of white grievance and that is pretty much all they have to hang their hat on. The Democrats are truly the party of inclusion and empathy and they put that on full display this week.
Here are some of the highlights from this final night of the convention.
Elizabeth Warren gave her speech early in the evening, entering to roaring applause. After a full minute of cheering, the crowd quieted, Warren wiped a tear from her eye, and jumped right in. She discussed policies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Go CFPB!) and how VP Harris worked hard for California residents during the financial crisis, as Attorney General. She talked about the trust she has in Harris to do the right thing and work for the people, in contrast to the untrustworthiness of Trump and Vance.
Reverand Al Sharpton spoke on how committed Kamala Harris is to justice, while Donald Trump is only committed to his own career and power. He brought with him four of the men, known as ‘the exonerated five’, who were incarcerated for crimes they did not commit, to speak on the treatment they received from Trump when they were on trial.
At 7pm CT, The Chicks performed a beautiful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner, and Kerry Washington kicked off the primetime portion as the evenings host. Pink also performed ‘What About Us’, with her daughter and backup singers.
As we drew closer to the main event, Gretchen Witmer gave a moving speech about VP Harris and how “she’s lived a life like ours. She knows us.” She goes on to discuss how out of touch Trump is, saying:
“Donald Trump doesn't know you at all. You think he understands that when your car breaks down you can't get to work? No. His first word was probably chauffeur. You think he's ever had to take items out of the cart before checking out? Hell, you think he's ever been to a grocery store? That's what the chauffeur is for.”
Maya Harris, the sister of VP Harris, spoke about Kamala and their bond. About their mother and her story of immigration, trailblazing a path for her daughters in this wonderful country where anyone can be and do anything.
And then it was time for VP Harris to take to the stage and except the party’s nomination for President. She entered the stage to the strains of Beyonce’s “Freedom”, in a black suit, looking more Presidential than any candidate I can think of in recent times. To quote my own mother, “I knew when she came out in that black suit that she meant business” and that was definitely the case. But don’t take my word for it - watch for yourself…
YES. SHE. CAN. WHEN WE FIGHT, WE WIN!
Let’s make this happen America!