Back on Track: A Conversation with Gina Ortiz Jones
I’ve seen what happens when good people don’t stand up in the face of tyranny. I had to ask myself, am I going to be part of the problem, or part of the solution?
I’ve seen what happens when good people don’t stand up in the face of tyranny. I had to ask myself, am I going to be part of the problem, or part of the solution?
The great challenge is to fully recognize the value of the other. If I don’t recognize the value of the other, I will never be part of the solution, I will always be part of the problem.
I just believe we have to invest in people directly—tangibly—so that they, we, the people, can have the tools to do what we do. We are the creators, we are the dreamers, we are the innovators, we do the work.
Running for Congress is not something for the faint of heart, I always thought that I’d never have the ego to run for Congress. But then I realized, while I don’t have that kind of self-interest, I do have the urgency of the families in my district, and that’s why I’m doing this.
My fundamental belief is that people don’t care about your party. They care about their lives. That means finding ways to work together where we can, opposing bad ideas where you should, and offering alternative ideas wherever possible.
This is our chance, in every way, to rethink the society that we want to be, the people we want to be, and what we stand for.
There are a lot of reasons that you’d be inclined to give up. But my faith and my optimism in this country and especially in young people has never been greater. They give me reason for hope.
Come November, voters will have a choice between electing an ass-kicker who will fight for them or an ass-kisser who has sold them out to the special interests and billionaires who fund his campaign.