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The politics of hope

Ho, ho, ho, tis' the season. Not that season again. The Arizona political season.  The state political season is not something for which you can dress up or down, like the four seasons. You can't fortify your house against the political season, as in hurricane season in Florida. Optimistically, the political season can best be compared to a harvest season, a time that good ideas will bear fruit. Or pessimistically, compared to the end of harvest, in which
bad ideas will be left rotting and stinking among the orchard rows.

The political season kicks off in March with the Phoenix bond election. Then there are the party primaries and city council elections in September. Then comes the election for the Arizona governor's seat, state and county offices and mid-term Congressional seats. As usual, there will be some propositions on the ballot for voters to decipher.

We at Latino Perspectives knew the season had arrived when Latino candidates started telephoning, asking to meet with me.  In order to head off any perceived favoritism, we've created a form that allows candidates to share their backgrounds and stands on issues important to the Latino community. Both Latinos -- and non-Latinos who want to reach out to Latino voters -- are invited to  fill out the form. This form is available at  www.latinoperspectivesmagazine.com, our Web site,  The completed information will be presented in our print magazine beginning in July. The information also will be available online. We can best serve our readers this way.

POLITICAL REVIVAL

Many claim to be cynical about the political process in our democracy. You really can't blame them sometimes. Enter into evidence the Jack Abramoff influence-peddling scandal this year, in which members of Congress are accused of trading their political influence for contributions. This is an example of less than honorable actions by people we trusted enough to vote for.

Being the eternal optimist, I have hope that in the end, good will prevail. I got that hope from reading The Politics of Hope: Reviving the Dream of Democracy by Donna Zajonc. Zajonc is a political leadership coach. In Politics of Hope, the former Oregon legislator argues for a shift away from the traditional two-party system (which she calls "the two-party war"). The system breeds a "win-lose" mentality, instead of a "win-win" way of  thinking. She writes "us vs. them" mentality also leaves the elected politicians banding together in conformity, entrenching themselves into a hard line and unable to break ranks for fear of being labeled a traitor.

Unfortunately, all we have to do is look at our own state Legislature to see the proof of this. Past sessions have shown a growing mood of mean-spiritedness between state Republicans and Democrats.  The legislative system is supposed to pass laws based on a give-and-take of ideas between the two political parties. Lately, it's been Republicans against one powerful Democrat, Gov. Janet Napolitano, and her political weapon of the executive veto. 

Our salvation, writes Zajonc, is for a new breed of public elected official to step up. I would suggest that we also need Latino candidates to bolt from lockstep with a party ideology and be alliance builders. These political leaders will have a truly nonpartisan consciousness. They will challenge the status quo when needed and serve as role models for all our society. Led by innovators, our political life one day will reflect a spirit of cooperation and concern for the greater good of all. Zajonc, who also founded the Bainbridge Leadership Center in Washington, believes it will take more than our lifetime for our political system to evolve. I hope it happens sooner. And we all can hope good Latino candidates won't wait.

Editor's Note: In the interest of full disclosure, I want Latino Perspectives readers to know I have agreed to serve on the newly formed board for the campaign to create a Latino cultural center in Arizona. It was not an easy decision for me, because my serving presents a conflict of interest when covering cultural center news. However, I was working on a cultural center before I signed on as LP editor. Therefore, I have informed the LP publishers I am stepping aside as editor when it concerns cultural center news. Anita Mabante Leach, our experienced assistant editor, will direct all coverage and play of the cultural center organization. I  believe our readers are best served through this agreement.