How you can change Faribault

This is Part 5 of a 5-part article series drawn from my March Fireside Chat. Listen to the full fireside chat at samuelftemple.com/twoeconomies

Can you convince 25 people why local issues matter?

That is not a rhetorical question. In Rice County, local elections are decided by margins that 25 organized, door-knocking neighbors can move. My own County Commissioner race in 2022 was decided by fewer than 200 votes. The 2024 referendum on how to fund the county's new jail — a $48.86 million bond that will drive up property taxes for years — was decided by around 800 county-wide. These are not abstract exercises in democracy. They are decisions with direct consequences for whether you can afford to stay in your home.

More than half of Faribault households are working families that cannot make ends meet. The Rice County housing authority is legally authorized to levy nearly two million dollars annually for housing — and has been using 12% of that authority for seventeen years while maintaining waiting lists on every program it runs. One in eight Faribault households has no car, in a city where most jobs are not reachable on foot. These conditions did not emerge from nowhere. They are the result of decisions made by people who were elected by small numbers of votes in low-turnout elections — people who, in many cases, ran unopposed.

I say this not to be discouraging. I say it because the math works in our favor if we use it.

There is a recurring pattern in Faribault: individuals who try to refocus local government on working-class people get elected in the minority, get burnt out without the public buoying their fight, and eventually give up or choose not to seek re-election. Too often, they also fail to use their time in office to build a base that could outlast their own term.

That has to change.

Support for good local governance cannot begin and end with one election. Pressure is needed before and after elections. Policy targets need to be defined. People need to keep attending meetings. Public comment needs to continue. Candidates need to know that if they run, and if they win, they will not be left alone to make change.

And if individuals are elected who do not wish to prioritize working people, they need to know what to expect when change is demanded and they deliver nothing.

This is how a base is built. This is how major political parties are forced to earn your vote by meeting your needs. They need you more than you need them — show them the power of your vote and your participation. Politicians and parties need you to access power. Not the other way around.

I know a lot of people have reasons to hesitate before speaking out. You may feel like you don't know enough. You may think it takes too much time. You may think attending meetings is boring. You may worry it will be isolating. You may wonder whether you would get anything done.

Those are all real concerns. But consider what we saw happen with the rental assistance fight this winter. That outcome did not happen because the conditions changed. It happened because people refused to accept the status quo. That is what organized persistence looks like.

Convincing people does not happen online. Social media can support organizing. It does not replace it. If you can do one thing, make it knocking on doors. Attend meetings. Make public comments. Write emails. Write letters to the editor. Write a personal post and not one buried in a Facebook community group. Social media should amplify the movement, not be confused for the movement itself.

Everyone cannot do everything. But everyone can do something. Pick one role or one issue. Don't lose focus until we get it done.

I commit to helping connect people with working groups and organizations that can make a difference. It can be daunting to get started, but my goal is to make this approachable for anyone who wants to do their part — whatever that looks like for you.

In closing, I want to remember Reverend Jesse Jackson, who passed away recently. Jackson was a contemporary and collaborator of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He ran for President twice in the 1980s, seeking to unify Americans across race, gender, religion, and lifestyle. He led with his values, said unpopular things when necessary, and showed what a courageous and fighting spirit looks like. A few lines from his speech at the 1988 Democratic National Convention:

I'm often asked, "Jesse, why do you take on these tough issues? They're not very political. We can't win that way."

If an issue is morally right, it will eventually be political. It may be political and never be right. Fanny Lou Hamer didn't have the most votes in Atlantic City, but her principles have outlasted the life of every delegate who voted to lock her out. Rosa Parks did not have the most votes, but she was morally right. Dr. King didn't have the most votes about the Vietnam War, but he was morally right. If we are principled first, our politics will fall in place.

That is the standard I hold myself to. I hope it is one you'll hold me to as well.

Sign up for organizing updates and local action alerts at samuelftemple.com — that's Samuel, F as in Fredrickson, Temple dot com. Reach out through the website if you'd like help getting involved. I want to hear from you.

Stay safe, friends. Keep hope alive.

— Sam Temple