By Jann Mirchandani, Candidate for Yorktown Town Supervisor
As we approach Independence Day, I remember a trip to Philadelphia I took about seven years ago with the Boy Scouts.
One of the highlights of the trip was our tour of Independence Hall. Our guide talked about the Declaration of Independence – the document that launched the Great Experiment we call democracy.
It was interesting to learn about the heated debates that went into forging the document – to say nothing of the Republic itself. Our founders were not of one mind but of one mission. They disagreed. They fought. As we know, they were flawed. But they worked to create something new that was better, that served more people, than what came before. I think about that as the campaign rolls on.
In talking to our neighbors while out canvassing, I hear the same thing repeatedly: “It’s time for change.” Or “It’s not right what is going on – the same people making the same decisions that benefit the few.”
It doesn’t matter what door I’m knocking on. I am just as likely to hear this from “the other side” as I am from “our side.”
In Leadership Westchester we would say “meet people where they are.” It became our shorthand for facilitating connections with others: Accepting that everyone views the world according to their lived experience.
Democracy is messy and can, at times, be unpleasant. Getting things right is not a one-election-cycle endeavor. But we need to do as our founders did; take on the responsibility of this hard work to get something done that does better for more people.
Toward that end, we need to win this election and create a more inclusive Town government. We need to meet people where they are. We need to get out there and have conversations with our neighbors, whether we agree or disagree with them, because that’s the only way this Great Experiment keeps rolling on.
I wish everyone a happy Independence Day, and I hope you’ll join me in the coming weeks as we keep working to start a new day here in Yorktown.