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For about 15 years I worked with Maine students training them about civil rights. Primarily I focused on making sure that every student felt safe, valued, welcome, and respected while in school. Otherwise, those students would be deprived of their right to an education. Students often asked how they could make our country reflect their values. My response was simple: VOTE!
Many students were soon turning 18, so I encouraged them to vote every time they got the chance. I would tell them “if you do not vote, you lose your chance to have a voice in what happens in Maine’s future.” Whenever I had a student say something like my one vote doesn’t make a difference, why should I bother, I would show them pictures of voters in other countries. I always showed them pictures of black South Africans lining up to vote for the first time in their lives in April, 1994. Many of those voters waited hours, sometimes days, to exercise this important right. Nearly 87% of South Africans voted in that election which saw Nelson Mandela capture the presidency. Those voters changed a country and the world. They knew that they had both a right and an obligation to vote.
Sometimes I think we have lost that spirit in this country. We need to see voting as a fundamental obligation to maintain our democracy. If we do not, we are losing our voice. Democracy dies if we do not participate. Surely, if millions can wait hours or even days to vote, we all can find a few minutes on November 6th to do the same. When YOU vote, you thank so many men and women who died defending that right. Together we can make a real difference in our lives and our communities. It should be no surprise that I am asking you to vote for me. I am running for the House of Representatives to serve the residents of Farmingdale and Gardiner in House District 83. If you live in Farmingdale or Gardiner and would like a ride to the polls, please call me at 522-1254. I will make sure you get a ride to make sure your voice is heard during this election. I am looking forward to seeing you at the polls on Tuesday, November 6!
Thom Harnett has been Mayor in the City of Gardiner for the past six years. He is running for State Representative in House District 83, Farmingdale and Gardiner.
Authorized and paid for by Thom Harnett, 52 Marston Rd. Gardiner, ME 04345, Brenda Deprey, Treasurer.
