must include the strong and vibrant participation of Latinos as stakeholders in the party at the highest positions of leadership, including the White House and our Governors mansions and the Congress.
I attended the well-attended Latino Caucus at the CA State Democratic party convention in San Jose and that was clear.
Luis Valdes made an empassioned speech in support of Obama but praising Clinton as well. His point was that we have to rally together behind a winner.
There are pragmatic reasons for Latino activists to rally behind Barack Obama, and many in Calfornia already have, especially in our State Legislative caucus. There are also very real pragmatic reasons for the Obama campaign to reach out to Latino voters and not simply "symbolically" but as stakeholders in our party and as power brokers in the campaign.
The core thing I'd like to convey to Obama supporters and Democrats reading MyDD is that Democratic issues are Latino issues and black issues and white issues.
They are the things we all care about. To talk simply about immigration or ICE raids, though these are important,is to miss the point that we all care about issues like health care and access to education and solving the huge environmental and energy challenges we face. Not to mention the war in Iraq, where Latinos are over-represented in our armed forces.
However, the most important thing is that Latino leaders be true stakeholders and partners at the very highest level of our national and state party. Pandering and vote getting is not enough. People want to see true power-sharing...and a fully vested seat at the table at the BEGINNING of the process.
There is a chance, as the Obama campaign begins its drive to seal the nomination of our party to work to bring together the support that some Latino leaders gave to Clinton around our nominee...that should be done with an offer of power sharing and outreach.
Coalitions only work insofar as the leaders of the members of the coalitions are stakeholders with a real say in things.
This is an opportunity, right now.
Feel free to email me at kidoakland"at"comcast"dot"net
