My Resolution's Journey

When I was a college sprout in Denton, Texas, the County Party there used to pass around forms that you could fill in with any resolutions that you wanted voted on at your precinct caucus during primary years. Then the ones approved at the individual precincts would be sent on to the County Convention and so on...state, national....the ones that made it all the way would become Planks in the Democratic Party Platform. Gave me the shivers.

When I moved back to Nueces County after graduate school in Austin and a primary was approaching, I asked the County Chair for a form and he said just to write it up. I did and gave it to him, but I missed the precinct convention due to the recent birth of the Lone Star Girl and never really saw how it all worked out. At subsequent primaries, I never got my act together enough to hunt down the County Chair or anything, but I did take my little resolution with me to the caucus. I noticed that the precinct packets had some resolutions in them, though - like there were some going out to all the precincts that we voted on, too - mine was always the only one we voted on besides those.

This time I decided to try to get mine in the packet.

On my way home from work this evening, I stopped at the County Democratic HQ with resolution in hand. I wasn't sure they'd be open - it was after 6pm and local Party officials are all volunteers and I didn't know if they kept any sort of regular hours. The light was on, so I went inside. A woman was sitting amongst piles and piles of stuff, talking to a man, and I realized that they must be in a flurry of organizing so close to Election Day - eek. She looked up at me.

"I have a resolution, "I said shyly. "I didn't know if this was the place to bring it...to get it sent out to the precincts...?"

"Yes," she said. "At the very last possible moment, too. I'll take care of it." She took my paper from me and I saw that stacked in front of her on the table were the precinct packets in manila envelopes. She half turned to the copier behind her as I thanked her and I realized...she was going to make copies of my resolution and stuff them into the envelopes...just like that. Democracy....just like that.

Here is a copy of the text of the resolution that I keep submitting, with minor tweaks, year after year:

Because we value the work of caregivers and know that the nation cannot be productive without them, and…

Because we know that for too long the productivity of our nation has rested on the backs of the unpaid caregivers, mainly women, who care for children and the aging and family members with disabilities to their own considerable expense…

And because children and other vulnerable members of our society deserve high quality care that does not compromise the security or future of their caregivers…

We hereby embrace a policy of valuing caregiving as equal to other forms of work in this nation and supporting it through the following reforms:

1. Adding unpaid household labor to the Gross Domestic Product,
2. Equalizing Social Security credits for spouses,
3. Offering work-related social insurance programs for all workers, whether they work in the workforce or as unpaid caregivers,
4. Providing child allowances for all families so that children are adequately supported
5. Providing free health coverage for all children and their primary caregivers
6. Making high-quality, government subsidized daycare, available to all families.

(Democracy...just like that.)