All across the country tonight, people came together to listen to Bernie Sanders speak about the issues central to his campaign. It was an opportunity for those unfamiliar with Sanders to get to know what he's about, and a way for the rest of us to share our excitement for Bernie's campaign, as well as ideas and strategies for our fledgling grassroots efforts. People hosted these events in their homes, clubhouses, restaurants, pubs, coffeehouses and parks. The size of each event varied, but the excitement of the participants seemed to be a common theme. How do I know? Follow me below the Orange Squiggly to find out...
From the moment I heard about these July 29th Events, I wanted to go. Of course, it took planning. I have three kids. When my husband determined he could knock off work early, I jumped at the chance. Of course, the one event on my side of town was full. So, I signed up for an event about 20 minutes from my house, being hosted in the clubhouse of an apartment complex. I arrived at around the same time as several other people, shortly before 7:00. The young man hosting the event stepped outside to greet us... And locked himself (and us) out of the building. We visited for a bit, shared information and excitement about Bernie's candidacy. But, when it became obvious that we would not be getting in on time to see the live-stream, several of us decided to go to an event being held at a local pub instead. Upon arrival at the pub we were immediately greeted by Bernie Sanders signs. We followed them to seats on the patio. It was then that the very overwhelmed young woman hosting the party told us that, as of that morning, they'd had five people RSVP. When we got there, there were about 60 people. There were so many of us that they had to move us from the small room with the tv to the patio, without a tv. This, of course, meant that when the live-streaming began, we were all glued to our phones. And, that would be the exact time the singer/one-man-band began his act... It didn't matter to us. Someone passed around a petition to get a real progressive candidate on the ballot for governor. We had great conversations. The man sitting next to me, an African American, who identified as an independent, told me he wasn't sure at all before tonight that he'd even vote for President. But, now that he knows something about Sanders, he likes what he's hearing. Another woman shared with me the fact that her son is gay, and Bernie has been in favor of equality regardless of race, religion, sex or sexual orientation since before any of it was cool. You could literally feel the excitement in the air as people talked about what mattered most to them and how Bernie fit with that.
When I got home and recapped the evening for my husband, he commented that it didn't bode well for the Sanders campaign - people locking themselves out, not having a tv, the lounge singer butchering Van Morrison during Bernie's speech, etc. I disagreed. We may have been locked out, but we did not give up. Several of us found our way to other parties. And, maybe we didn't have a tv. But, there was something cool about seeing that many people looking at/listening to their phones at once. And, who would have thought, in Indiana of all places, that five people would RSVP, and more than ten times that would show up? That's so Bernie!
As for the lounge singer... There's no accounting for taste (or lack thereof). Besides, it was the bar that hired him, not us!