Knocking doors in Independence, MO for Amendment 3 this week, one lady asked, “are you asking me to support abortion?” I said, “no, I’m asking if you support everyone’s right to choose for themselves.” She ended the convo with, “well, that’s not very biblical.” Of course, that’s my cue to leave with a, “have a nice day.”
The next door was a disabled elderly white guy who admitted he was, “starving for a convo with a Dem,” and asked, “why do R’s hate women?”
Thank you for reminding us that everyone is different, and we have to meet everyone where they are.
Don’t give up, you never know who is behind the next door!
There are some things that are hard to figure out. How can a rich, lying carpetbagger like Tim Sheehy run ahead of a real Montana farmer like Jon Tester in “rural” Montana. Right-wing media has an oversized influence in some states, obviously. A lot of rich conservatives have moved to Montana to live their “Yellowstone” mythology and have dramatically changed the character of the state (and not in a good way). Throw in ignorance and a wacky version of “Christianity” and you’ve got a Montana dramatically different than it was 20 or 30 years ago, sadly.
As a rural Montana resident I have been watching this race closely. It saddens me that so many of Tester's ads have to be about how he supports republican talking points. I think Sheehy is really bad news for this state and Tester has served us well for a long time.
A big problem is that the Republicans and their corporate owners have been building a sprawling media environment for decades, while the Dems have relied on the traditional media to be fair. This, even though traditional media gave Trump enormous numbers of hours of FREE coverage from the beginning. Every lunatic word he uttered was on camera and reported. The Dems and their message got lost in the shuffle. The Dems need to start building a media web like the Republicans have done, if there is any chance to save our democracy. That is, if it isn't already too late.
Thank you. I always read Heather Cox Richardson first thing every morning. And I have now added you to my mandatory reading. As I prepare for the 25th annual trip with my guys at Alhonna Resort at Lake of the Ozarks (down the road from Four Seasons), I know I will be barraged by Trump flags and signs. And I think, I know these people down here. They are good folks. Trump doesn’t know them, and doesn’t want to. He doesn’t give a crap about them.
I am so thankful that Tim Walz is on the ticket and that Harris is engaging rural people. That is so encouraging.
Got back in August from Lake of the Ozarks where my brother lives. Very RED, so my relatives cannot put a Harris sign in the yard. But votes are secret, thank goodness!🗳️🤫
I live in a Catholic Church village, population about 450, in unincorporated St. Charles County. I put out two blue Harris/Walz signs and Kunce and Quade. I’m the only one. They’ve been out about a month. No one has messed with them, but I do have four cameras if they do. Side note: The church has ALWAYS provided its cafeteria as a polling place. Not this year. I’m guessing Amendment 3 is too much for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. So double check your polling place.
I nominate you as second-in-command to Matt Hildreth! I am from a rural background, and I know so many good people who grew up on farms and in small towns. You are an excellent spokesperson for our group.
I lived in rural ME for a time in the early 70s. I was a substitute teacher at schools whose students had never seen a SUBWAY or a BUS SCHEDULE or a TURNSTILE etc., yet those were words in an elementary school stext that included spelling. Trying to explain what a subway was to students who had never been off island unless they had been in a boat was challenging. they could not relate to much of what was in their texts. It had NOTHING to do with intelligence or curiosity, but with experiences. I have never forgotten that lesson. When I had children, I tried to introduce them to experiences that were broader than the those in the community in which they lived.
And not all rural spaces are the same. It is always assumed rural means “farm country”. It doesn’t. And that makes places invisible too. I grew up in the north woods of Minnesota, in a town of 6,000. It is the largest town in a 100 mile radius. It’s not farm country. It’s logging, mining, paper mills, fishing, and tourism with thick pine forests and lakes. No grain silo in site. Our country is large and varied. I am a city dweller now, but I always have a foot in the place I grew up and always hear how politicians talk of rural spaces with my ear towards that background. It’s important to talk with people where they are at. Thank you for highlighting this.
I’m a native of rural CNY (Central New York) who has lived in the big city and is now in comfortable suburban Buffalo. The “rural” voting patterns are a particular concern for me as my Mom and brother still live in that environment. I put rural in quotes there because I think we need a different word; I understand the hold it has in the political, demographics and sociological worlds and because of that I feel that if fails to achieve a positive outcome when leaders try to reach that population. Would it be so bad to use the word “country”? I know when I talk to Mom, she never refers to herself as being “rural”; she’s “country” through and through.
Having said all that, she’s very excited about Tim Walz and the way he doesn’t condescend to the country population. As she put it to me, “He’s like talking to your favorite uncle.”
Finally I’m excited for the outreach the Democrats have put into getting the country vote. It beats having one person in Brooklyn (of all places) organizing the “rural” vote as was done in ‘16
I too took the job of writing questions for tests. Twice, in fact. The first time was in the late 90s when we convened in Knoxville to write state competency tests for high school math subjects. There was a time factor. We only had a day and a half. I later saw some of these questions on a test from a distance, recognizing them due to the things I had written and read. Later I got a job editing written questions for a firm that was writing them to sell.
My experience taught me that testing is very close kin to the manure I grew up managing as the son of a dairy farmer, except that the manure can be used to increase the organic matter in the soil. Attempting to get the test question to align with the stated state objective, even in math, is very difficult. Being limited to multiple choice questions makes the job well-nigh impossible.
That these tests should then be used to declare public schools incompetent is the height of stupidity, and the Democrats should be hitting this hard. They should have been hitting this hard for years. Instead, from the Clinton years through the Obama years, Democrats like Arne Duncan ignored the issue or supported charters. Now Democrats are without credibility when they question vouchers, which, like all Republican tax proposals, transfers wealth to the top.
PREACH! I have been at those same conferences, my favorite Missouri 4th grade social studies question? What does the Mayor do and the answer was be a veterinarian, or where does the Mayor work, and the answer was, at the vet's office. We have to find a way to communicate who we are, what our values are and stop overlooking us. Thanks Jess.
Always appreciate hearing some good news from the Redlands. Not even trying for the votes of nearly half the population seemed like an unsustainable model for political success. I am glad to hear the Harris campaign has hired a rural person to engage with folks in the red rural areas. Can't get to where you want to go without taking that first step.
I lived in rural Appalachian westernmost Maryland for 8 years. I substituted as a teacher in Biology at the local high school. I also was “ Mrs. Public Health “ ( I have an MPH) and gave volunteer time with my MD, MPH husband - Director of the County Health Department. We chaperoned kids to go into Washington DC to ride the subway and to learn our democratic history, view the US Constitution, visit historic sites. My husband and I were raised in Kansas City suburbs, but had rural relatives. We learned a lot about rural folks living in this small small rural - resort town of about 2,000 people in the county seat and with coal miners and dairy farmers, hunters of deer, living spread out over the largest geographic area, yet least populated area in Maryland. Rural people need representation and the AM radio stations need more voices from democracy loving newscasters versus far right propaganda. People listen to that far right propaganda way too much in their trucks and tractor cabs. When presented with the truth, rural folks are willing to listen and vote for their health and good education for their families.
I was born into and raised in a rural community, but have lived in big cities, Alexandria Va, Atlanta Ga, and now Chicago Il since I was 18. I have listened to the animosity of the 2 groups my entire life with frustration. Both experiences have much to teach each other if they would just listen, When I was riding the school bus and going to rural schools I wish I had been taught about turnstiles and bus schedules, but more importantly about other opportunities and possible jobs, art, music, culture etc instead of being taught that it was somehow too foreign, “those city people don’t care about us”was a common theme, I started out in a 2 room school house. Miss Ruby taught 1st through 3rd grade in one room. and I loved her. We sat at tables divided by classes. When she taught us first graders, she would then leave us to help each other as she moved onto the next table. She was always kind and taught wonderful cooperation skills. The point was to learn, not to compete. We moved into town when I was in 2nd grade. This was still a predominately rural farming town but had 5000 people and a Texaco refinery. There, the country kids seen as a little bit more country bumpkin as if they were expected to not be as smart. Humans love to discriminate. to make themselves feel superior. We sat at desks that were shared by 2 students, During my first spelling test, I tried discussing the answers in a collaborative manner as I had been taught by Ms Ruby and was immediately called to the front by my new teacher Ms Wiggle. She had a harsh angry look on her face and I didn’t find anything kind about her. She thought public humiliation was a god teaching method and told me that I was cheating and had to face the blackboard. I was so confused. I didn’t know what the word cheating meant or what I had done wrong, but knew it was bad. I was terribly embarrassed. I learned to keep my mouth shut and to never trust Ms Wiggle. Unfortunately , it took quite a while longer before I understood what Ms Wiggle meant by cheating, I learned she was someone to be feared. It was a terrible year for me, I wish city folks could learn from rural folks the value of cooperation . Not everything has to be a completion, being rated the best is often not helpful for an actual well rounded education, If we valued our differing gifts and what we bring to the table , imagine what a better country we would be. I am glad the Democratic party has seen the error of their ways and I hope they will truly embrace and represent all citizens.
This is a lovely post. I'm sorry it was such a hard year for you. I had the same problem when I went from an inner city school to the suburbs in 2nd grade. I'm so glad schools (at least some) have adopted more of a caring and kind atmosphere. I have always thought that those getting punished are those that need the most help.
Jess: Thank you for this thoughtful essay. BTW my Dad’s family is from Kansas City MO. I have cousins I have never met in MO. I have always felt connected to MO as a result. Keep up the good work!
Same thing for people living in poverty—politicians don’t acknowledge we exist , don’t talk to us, don’t listen to our lived experiences and solutions we have to our problems. And of course there’s a big overlap with rural and poor people. We are 40% of the population, living paycheck to paycheck.
Thank you for this example of how many ways diversity matters, and how important it is for politicians to have a basic understanding of how all constituents are affected by government policies and programs.
Knocking doors in Independence, MO for Amendment 3 this week, one lady asked, “are you asking me to support abortion?” I said, “no, I’m asking if you support everyone’s right to choose for themselves.” She ended the convo with, “well, that’s not very biblical.” Of course, that’s my cue to leave with a, “have a nice day.”
The next door was a disabled elderly white guy who admitted he was, “starving for a convo with a Dem,” and asked, “why do R’s hate women?”
Thank you for reminding us that everyone is different, and we have to meet everyone where they are.
Don’t give up, you never know who is behind the next door!
Oh, friend. Thank you for doing this work. It’s the most important work.
Also knocking this weekend for Elad Gross for AG, and Kevin Grover for MO House running against Jon Patterson.
Amendment 3 gives me hope that we can flip our down ballots.
It’s all connected, When you pull on one thread, it all unravels.
Free will is quite biblical!
A recipe for a mixture to end a pregnancy is actually found in Numbers.
There are some things that are hard to figure out. How can a rich, lying carpetbagger like Tim Sheehy run ahead of a real Montana farmer like Jon Tester in “rural” Montana. Right-wing media has an oversized influence in some states, obviously. A lot of rich conservatives have moved to Montana to live their “Yellowstone” mythology and have dramatically changed the character of the state (and not in a good way). Throw in ignorance and a wacky version of “Christianity” and you’ve got a Montana dramatically different than it was 20 or 30 years ago, sadly.
As a rural Montana resident I have been watching this race closely. It saddens me that so many of Tester's ads have to be about how he supports republican talking points. I think Sheehy is really bad news for this state and Tester has served us well for a long time.
A big problem is that the Republicans and their corporate owners have been building a sprawling media environment for decades, while the Dems have relied on the traditional media to be fair. This, even though traditional media gave Trump enormous numbers of hours of FREE coverage from the beginning. Every lunatic word he uttered was on camera and reported. The Dems and their message got lost in the shuffle. The Dems need to start building a media web like the Republicans have done, if there is any chance to save our democracy. That is, if it isn't already too late.
Thank you. I always read Heather Cox Richardson first thing every morning. And I have now added you to my mandatory reading. As I prepare for the 25th annual trip with my guys at Alhonna Resort at Lake of the Ozarks (down the road from Four Seasons), I know I will be barraged by Trump flags and signs. And I think, I know these people down here. They are good folks. Trump doesn’t know them, and doesn’t want to. He doesn’t give a crap about them.
I am so thankful that Tim Walz is on the ticket and that Harris is engaging rural people. That is so encouraging.
Got back in August from Lake of the Ozarks where my brother lives. Very RED, so my relatives cannot put a Harris sign in the yard. But votes are secret, thank goodness!🗳️🤫
I live in a Catholic Church village, population about 450, in unincorporated St. Charles County. I put out two blue Harris/Walz signs and Kunce and Quade. I’m the only one. They’ve been out about a month. No one has messed with them, but I do have four cameras if they do. Side note: The church has ALWAYS provided its cafeteria as a polling place. Not this year. I’m guessing Amendment 3 is too much for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. So double check your polling place.
We’re almost neighbors! Franklin County here. 👋🏻
Also check out Jay Kuo for political stuff. Heather Cox Richardson frequently quotes him also.
Yes. I like him, too.
I nominate you as second-in-command to Matt Hildreth! I am from a rural background, and I know so many good people who grew up on farms and in small towns. You are an excellent spokesperson for our group.
I lived in rural ME for a time in the early 70s. I was a substitute teacher at schools whose students had never seen a SUBWAY or a BUS SCHEDULE or a TURNSTILE etc., yet those were words in an elementary school stext that included spelling. Trying to explain what a subway was to students who had never been off island unless they had been in a boat was challenging. they could not relate to much of what was in their texts. It had NOTHING to do with intelligence or curiosity, but with experiences. I have never forgotten that lesson. When I had children, I tried to introduce them to experiences that were broader than the those in the community in which they lived.
And not all rural spaces are the same. It is always assumed rural means “farm country”. It doesn’t. And that makes places invisible too. I grew up in the north woods of Minnesota, in a town of 6,000. It is the largest town in a 100 mile radius. It’s not farm country. It’s logging, mining, paper mills, fishing, and tourism with thick pine forests and lakes. No grain silo in site. Our country is large and varied. I am a city dweller now, but I always have a foot in the place I grew up and always hear how politicians talk of rural spaces with my ear towards that background. It’s important to talk with people where they are at. Thank you for highlighting this.
I live right outside of our town. Most folks don’t farm. They are mainly just poor folks living in a small community.
I’m a native of rural CNY (Central New York) who has lived in the big city and is now in comfortable suburban Buffalo. The “rural” voting patterns are a particular concern for me as my Mom and brother still live in that environment. I put rural in quotes there because I think we need a different word; I understand the hold it has in the political, demographics and sociological worlds and because of that I feel that if fails to achieve a positive outcome when leaders try to reach that population. Would it be so bad to use the word “country”? I know when I talk to Mom, she never refers to herself as being “rural”; she’s “country” through and through.
Having said all that, she’s very excited about Tim Walz and the way he doesn’t condescend to the country population. As she put it to me, “He’s like talking to your favorite uncle.”
Finally I’m excited for the outreach the Democrats have put into getting the country vote. It beats having one person in Brooklyn (of all places) organizing the “rural” vote as was done in ‘16
I too took the job of writing questions for tests. Twice, in fact. The first time was in the late 90s when we convened in Knoxville to write state competency tests for high school math subjects. There was a time factor. We only had a day and a half. I later saw some of these questions on a test from a distance, recognizing them due to the things I had written and read. Later I got a job editing written questions for a firm that was writing them to sell.
My experience taught me that testing is very close kin to the manure I grew up managing as the son of a dairy farmer, except that the manure can be used to increase the organic matter in the soil. Attempting to get the test question to align with the stated state objective, even in math, is very difficult. Being limited to multiple choice questions makes the job well-nigh impossible.
That these tests should then be used to declare public schools incompetent is the height of stupidity, and the Democrats should be hitting this hard. They should have been hitting this hard for years. Instead, from the Clinton years through the Obama years, Democrats like Arne Duncan ignored the issue or supported charters. Now Democrats are without credibility when they question vouchers, which, like all Republican tax proposals, transfers wealth to the top.
PREACH! I have been at those same conferences, my favorite Missouri 4th grade social studies question? What does the Mayor do and the answer was be a veterinarian, or where does the Mayor work, and the answer was, at the vet's office. We have to find a way to communicate who we are, what our values are and stop overlooking us. Thanks Jess.
Jess, you are so insightful with this uphill battle. I appreciate what you have done in the past and are doing now. All the best as you forge ahead!
Always appreciate hearing some good news from the Redlands. Not even trying for the votes of nearly half the population seemed like an unsustainable model for political success. I am glad to hear the Harris campaign has hired a rural person to engage with folks in the red rural areas. Can't get to where you want to go without taking that first step.
I lived in rural Appalachian westernmost Maryland for 8 years. I substituted as a teacher in Biology at the local high school. I also was “ Mrs. Public Health “ ( I have an MPH) and gave volunteer time with my MD, MPH husband - Director of the County Health Department. We chaperoned kids to go into Washington DC to ride the subway and to learn our democratic history, view the US Constitution, visit historic sites. My husband and I were raised in Kansas City suburbs, but had rural relatives. We learned a lot about rural folks living in this small small rural - resort town of about 2,000 people in the county seat and with coal miners and dairy farmers, hunters of deer, living spread out over the largest geographic area, yet least populated area in Maryland. Rural people need representation and the AM radio stations need more voices from democracy loving newscasters versus far right propaganda. People listen to that far right propaganda way too much in their trucks and tractor cabs. When presented with the truth, rural folks are willing to listen and vote for their health and good education for their families.
I was born into and raised in a rural community, but have lived in big cities, Alexandria Va, Atlanta Ga, and now Chicago Il since I was 18. I have listened to the animosity of the 2 groups my entire life with frustration. Both experiences have much to teach each other if they would just listen, When I was riding the school bus and going to rural schools I wish I had been taught about turnstiles and bus schedules, but more importantly about other opportunities and possible jobs, art, music, culture etc instead of being taught that it was somehow too foreign, “those city people don’t care about us”was a common theme, I started out in a 2 room school house. Miss Ruby taught 1st through 3rd grade in one room. and I loved her. We sat at tables divided by classes. When she taught us first graders, she would then leave us to help each other as she moved onto the next table. She was always kind and taught wonderful cooperation skills. The point was to learn, not to compete. We moved into town when I was in 2nd grade. This was still a predominately rural farming town but had 5000 people and a Texaco refinery. There, the country kids seen as a little bit more country bumpkin as if they were expected to not be as smart. Humans love to discriminate. to make themselves feel superior. We sat at desks that were shared by 2 students, During my first spelling test, I tried discussing the answers in a collaborative manner as I had been taught by Ms Ruby and was immediately called to the front by my new teacher Ms Wiggle. She had a harsh angry look on her face and I didn’t find anything kind about her. She thought public humiliation was a god teaching method and told me that I was cheating and had to face the blackboard. I was so confused. I didn’t know what the word cheating meant or what I had done wrong, but knew it was bad. I was terribly embarrassed. I learned to keep my mouth shut and to never trust Ms Wiggle. Unfortunately , it took quite a while longer before I understood what Ms Wiggle meant by cheating, I learned she was someone to be feared. It was a terrible year for me, I wish city folks could learn from rural folks the value of cooperation . Not everything has to be a completion, being rated the best is often not helpful for an actual well rounded education, If we valued our differing gifts and what we bring to the table , imagine what a better country we would be. I am glad the Democratic party has seen the error of their ways and I hope they will truly embrace and represent all citizens.
This is a lovely post. I'm sorry it was such a hard year for you. I had the same problem when I went from an inner city school to the suburbs in 2nd grade. I'm so glad schools (at least some) have adopted more of a caring and kind atmosphere. I have always thought that those getting punished are those that need the most help.
Jess: Thank you for this thoughtful essay. BTW my Dad’s family is from Kansas City MO. I have cousins I have never met in MO. I have always felt connected to MO as a result. Keep up the good work!
Same thing for people living in poverty—politicians don’t acknowledge we exist , don’t talk to us, don’t listen to our lived experiences and solutions we have to our problems. And of course there’s a big overlap with rural and poor people. We are 40% of the population, living paycheck to paycheck.
This!
Thank you for this example of how many ways diversity matters, and how important it is for politicians to have a basic understanding of how all constituents are affected by government policies and programs.