From the Publisher

Both the holidays and politics come to life with participation

T he hubbub of election season may be behind us as you pick up this winter’s issue of 603 Diversity, and so the selection of politics-related stories herein may give you pause. I promise, they’re perhaps even more relevant today than they would have been the week or month before the election, because we can now read them with the benefit of hindsight. And that hindsight (not that we really need it to make the following assertions) tells us, some candidates won, some lost, and wherever well-intentioned people took part in this democracy, all of us benefitted. Participation counts. And now, when the red, white and blue bunting has all come down and the “I Voted” stickers have peeled off everyone’s jackets, is a perfect time to think about how our engagement, not just for a few hours one day a year, but continuously, can help make our state the best, most just place it possibly can be.

As I’ve noted in this column in past issues, this isn’t meant to be a political publication. We’re not advocating parties or positions, just introducing people to their neighbors and highlighting the wonderful diversity of our state.

That said, I think it’s possible to cover the notion of diversity in politics without getting too political about it.

Our columnist James McKim tackles the challenge of representation in his piece on page 8. He points out that representative government is the “basis of our democratic republic.” I think most of us would agree that having representatives who know us, relate to us, understand our region, our cultures, our particular issues, is important.

And in New Hampshire right now, McKim writes, according to The National Council of State Legislators, New Hampshire has a non-white population of 11.7%, the non-white membership in the Legislature is 2%, and while the male-female population of the state is approximately 50/50, the membership in the Legislature is 66% male and 34% female. These statistics represent disparities and opportunities.

And those opportunities are being embraced by the people featured in our stories on pages 10 and 14. In the first we hear from diverse candidates (Democrat and Republican) who are currently in office or ran for office in this election cycle.

They describe some of the unique challenges they faced, including having to fight to be seen for their political ideas versus their religious or ethnic identities.

In the second, we talk to a group of Latino politicians, again representing different political views, but who all feel that in order to be heard, Latinos need to engage.

And that’s true for all of us, regardless of our cultural or ethnic background, race, creed or gender. If we want a truly representative democracy, it’s incumbent on us to be active in it, whether that means running for office yourself or getting involved in someone else’s campaign, or just staying engaged and informed, so when it comes time again to turn out and vote, you can do the job to the best of your ability.

I sincerely hope the stories, passion and faith in democracy of all the candidates in this issue will inspire folks to take that active role.