Minority voices

Minority voices
If we can't speak loudly we must argue eloquently

Sept. 23, 2000

The November ballot will be long and complicated, mainly by initiatives and referenda that ask citizens to make choices about what will be allowable in Colorado’s future. Growth, taxes, education, medical questions such as marijuana and abortion waiting periods – these are matters that may not affect each of us directly right now but about which we may, at some stage of our lives, care very much about. When that time comes around, the choices may no longer be available. That’s one reason it’s so important to study these ballot issues carefully and make the right decision this time.

Amendment 24, the growth initiative, has come to a popular vote because the Colorado General Assembly could not pass any measures to address the rapid changes occurring in Colorado. This question, in particular, must be handled now because in another two or four years, much will have changed. The political climate will be different, but so will the landscape. Lands that have been developed are not likely to revert to open space. We’ll never have as much to save as we do right now.

That sense of urgency is propelling Amendment 24, which is not likely to fare as well on the Western Slope as it will on the Front Range and in resort communities, because it was authored with the I-25 and I-70 corridors in mind. Yet the votes are there, and much of the problem is there as well. With Colorado growing ever less rural in character, rural voters have ever less voice in making decisions for the state. Much can be foisted upon us, and we don’t have the numbers to fend it off.

We’re on the verge of being able to implement a true democracy, in which important decisions are made by popular vote. Not too many elections in the future, we may be able to vote electronically from our own homes. The Electoral College may wither. State legislatures may decide fewer and fewer of the important issues for us. We’ve already seen that pattern begin, as the Colorado legislature refers some measures to the voters and, by its failure to act decisively and representatively on other problems, propels citizen initiatives onto the ballot. We’re increasingly willing to amend the Colorado constitution, rather than allowing government by statute. In short, politics is changing. Some of the old civics lessons no longer hold true.

The basic principles, however, are more important than ever, because in this ‘one citizen, one vote’ democracy, information is power. Those who understand best what’s going on, and who are able to speak most persuasively about the issues, are the ones likely to carry the day.

We on the Western Slope must hope that reason can triumph over sheer numbers when the two cannot align, and for that to happen, we must all participate actively, convincingly, and very publicly. We must also act with logic rather than hysteria, speaking eloquently rather than shrilly.

Might alone can never make right, but it can make law. We in Montezuma County dare not cast ourselves as victims of the political process. Even when we are outnumbered (a demographic fact that won’t change in our lifetimes), we need to participate responsibly. That means starting now by educating ourselves about the amendments and candidates. It means voting on Election Day. Then it means continuing to participate in the ongoing process of making policy, because minority voices, when they are speaking the truth, will always have the power to influence the majority – maybe not to change minds or votes, but to educate others about realities beyond the metro area.