By Sister Jan Cebula, OSF
September 19, 2014
Dubuque, Iowa. We’ve
been gathering around tables as we move from town to town, engaging one another
in conversations about what concerns us, what is important for our democracy
and how we might move forward together.
Significant things happen around the tables in our lives. We share our stories, renew
friendships, play games and are nourished. Carry on business, make decisions,
broker deals.
On Day Three, Nuns on the Bus hosted two Town Halls for the
100%: one at the Americans for Democratic Action in Waterloo and another at St.
Patrick’s Church in Dubuque. Over and over again as we travel, we hear the
concern about who is being left out, left behind in our country. Concern over
income inequality comes up time and time again. And the influence of big money
in the political process. It’s about who is not at the table.
We need to pull up some more chairs, expand the table. “We
need 100% at the table” is the recurrent refrain of Nuns on the Bus. We need
all of us at the table, not just the 1% or just the 98%. We need those without
and those who are rich. We need each other in order to figure out the way
forward. But, as Sister Simone so eloquently says, “If you have lots of money,
we ask that you leave your money bags at the door. You can’t buy the table. It
belongs to We the People.”
Polarization is a growing concern. Can we even sit around
the same table? As we travel we are hearing about the increasing isolation, the
need for interaction and conversations with those of differing opinions. And
how difficult that has become. Within the lament lies a desire for it to
happen. Where can we set this table?
When thinking about who is or is not at the table, on Day
Three, I was especially conscious of the youth and immigrants.
We heard from Logan, a young man in Waterloo, who stepped up
to share his story and said to us all, “We’ve all been waiting for someone to
step up and take over the movement but it’s up to us.” We the people. I talked with some young women who are students
from Clarke University. They eagerly pledged to vote and signed the bus. We
need their enthusiasm. Yet, at the town hall meeting we heard from a young
woman who told us that before she was old enough to vote she was so eager to
become involved she volunteered for a campaign. However, after experiencing the
tactics she doesn’t want to have anything to do with it anymore. And in Sioux
City we heard from a young woman who at age 10 wanted to become president of
the U.S., took an internship in Washington at age 19, and was turned off by
what was going on. In pained me to hear this. The youth are our future. They
need a table around which they want to sit.
We visited the Lantern Center, operated by the Sisters of
Presentation in Dubuque. They assist new immigrants in learning English and
provide other support services for them. Rosa shared her story of feeling
isolated, alone when she first came to the U.S. Being welcomed at the Lantern
Center enabled her to build her self-confidence. She proudly declared that she
is now a citizen and will be voting for the first time. The hospitality of the
people at the center is what changed her life. They welcomed her to the table.
So let’s round the table to include the 100%. Let’s welcome
one another and gather ‘round. It’s up to us. We are the people.
