Editor’s note: The Portager publishes letters to the editor from the community. The opinions expressed are published not because they necessarily reflect those of the publication but because we feel they contribute meaningfully to the local discourse on matters of public interest.
There is a land where nobody smiles. I’ve been there. My family fled from there.
Why is there no smiling? It makes no sense, because the people there have a sense of awe as they walk through the forest, or swim in a nearby lake, or forage for mushrooms, or sit by the white-capped sea. There is a sense of connection when the people cut and bale hay together, or when they share a cup of tea with a trusted friend.
Why is there no smiling? It makes no sense, because there is community singing. There are dance festivals. People create art. But it starts to make sense when you understand that these everyday joys are overshadowed by deep fears from the recent past. Just a generation ago, they were living in Soviet occupied countries where there was always someone watching, taking notes, looking for the smallest sign of resistance to report to the KGB (secret police). Neighbor was pitted against neighbor. A petty grievance or a squabble could easily result in a false accusation. There was not a legal system with laws applied fairly. There was no due process, no day in a fair court. Those in power could show up in the dark of night or the bold light of day, and beat/exile/execute with no warning, and no redress. 30 years later, the trauma still shows in the faces of the people.
Back in November of 2022, General Wesley Clark, the former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO visited Portage County, and he confidently predicted that the people of Ukraine would never surrender to former KGB officer Putin because they knew the brutality of living under a fascist dictator. I shared a reflection based on my family’s experiences in The Portager about living under a totalitarian regime. I concluded, “In my experience, no one wants to talk about the details of the brutality, but you can still see the impact among the people. In countries where anyone might be an informant, people have learned to keep their heads down and opinions quiet. Even today, no one smiles or makes eye contact.”
I write today because I am seeing leaders running for office who are asking neighbors to spy and report on one another. I am seeing leaders who are demanding blind loyalty only to themselves, and demeaning or even threatening those who don’t fall in line. I am seeing leaders contort facts, warp the meanings of words, and undermine the very ideals and structures of democracy so that they can silence those who disagree. I am seeing propaganda and tactics that echo the KGB playbook.
Our democracy is far from perfect. It depends on a two-party system to provide checks and balances between differing visions of who we are and where we are going. It depends on us as citizens to participate by voting, so that we can help balance our system if one party starts to amass too much power and stops being accountable to the people the government is supposed to serve. It depends on sensible voting laws that don’t create nonsensical barriers to citizens registering to vote. It depends on drawing political boundaries that reflect communities of people who live, work, and play together.
There are two things each of us can do to counteract the propaganda and tactics that threaten our democracy.
The first is to vote “Yes” on Issue One to help preserve our two-party system of checks and balances. Gerrymandering has been undermining our democracy by allowing those who are in power to draw contorted boundaries for state offices that split communities, counties, and school districts, and empowers outside dark money to undermine local interests. We have passed similar state-wide issues before, and they have been ignored. This time, those in power – in an “insist-the-sky-is-green” gaslighting move — reversed the dictionary definition of “gerrymandering” to trick voters into voting against it.
The second is to pay close attention to the words and actions of the candidates. Notice if they are sharing their ideas and plans and you like what they are saying. Notice if they avoid sharing their ideas and plans. Notice if they have a weird concept of democracy, or of how neighbors should treat one another, or even “who” is our neighbor, worthy of neighborly treatment. You can find a list of your candidates on the non-partisan Vote411.org, so you can compare opposing candidates’ views (unless they declined the invitation to share them).
I am grateful that I live in a community where my neighbors and I are free to smile and wave without fear of one another, even when we may not agree with one another. I know too well what the other option looks like, and hope that we don’t have to learn that lesson the hard way.
— Rev. Renee Ruchotzke, Kent
The Portager publishes a range of opinions from the community. To submit a letter to the editor, write to [email protected].