Well, as expected, our general assembly has gone into session and it’s back to Guns, Gods and Gays. The key is that there are some pretty decent bills out there but they are being drowned out in the infernal noise of the GOP throwing molotov cocktails into the media mainstream and owning the headlines. For the most part, this is frustrating. Yet, to give them credit, they do that so well.
So one question I hear quite frequently is what to do?
One bill I really like is the Influence Disclosure Bill introduced by House Minority Leader Craig Fitzhugh. This bill (HB 2031) would require all model bills filed to be identified from the source. An example would be bills which come from organizations like ALEC. An example of why Fitzhugh’s bill is important is here where a Florida legislator got caught introducing legislation that had ALEC literally written all over it.
Another way to follow what your legislator has introduced in last year’s and this second half of the 107th is just hit up their webpage. Rep. Jeanne Richardson has introduced several bills and each one’s summary can be seen here on the government site. Rep. Mike Turner and Sen. Beverly Marrero has introduced a bill that would (HB 2697/SB 3000) which would as the summary reads ”As introduced, prohibits a person bidding on or awarded a state contract from making contributions to members of the general assembly or the governor during specified periods of time.”
I spoke to some teachers this week that are just beat the hell up from the latest legislation wanting to strip them of their teaching rights if they don’t pay off their student loans. I showed them the bill and we talked about it. Basically it came down to one woman’s sentence where she said, “All I’ve ever wanted to do was be a teacher. I worked as a bartender for years to support myself going through school and now it looks like everything I’ve worked for is meaningless because of politics.” It was good to see legislators talking about the new teachers’ hit and calling shenanigans at Pith on Thursday.
So how does one keep up with the thousands of bills out there and find the ones that deserve coverage. So many stories are lost in the noise of the Internet. A word of advice and you can take it for what it is worth, follow your senator and your representative’s sponsored legislation. All politics are local. In smaller communities, and larger, it isn’t that hard to talk to your elected official on what is on your mind. And also remember that your voice makes a difference. It only doesn’t if you think it doesn’t. Write a letter to your local newspaper because that goes deep into your backyard. And realize the power of your personal keyboard. Many people share hundreds of links a week on stories that impact them, why not start your own blog that is representative of your community and the issues, be it local or state, that you feel needs personalized attention and share your thoughts.
We have seen the power of internet activism in the past two weeks with the stories on Stacey Campfield and the Susan G. Komen center. We know it works but there will always be a struggle to get stories that aren’t controversial out there. For the most part, politics isn’t sexy. It’s dry yet it’s those bills that will impact a bridge getting fixed in your community or control that your local city council without state interference might have in the future.
Just my two cents today.
And if you do start a blog, let me know so I can add it to Out of the Blue.
Excellent article Trace. I’ve wanted to continue to use my video work for social justice. Here’s hoping those opportunities happen. Meanwhile, I keep informed as to what is happening in Tennessee, in large part due to your writing, and am going to send a copy of this to a friend who once worked for NPR and wants to start writing again.