I felt compelled to write this letter due to common responses about the Nov. 8 midterm elections that I both understand and fear: I’m over politics. Voting won’t matter. It’s too much. While I empathize, voting remains our most effective, legal right to change our representation or to support the status quo.
On Nov. 8 I am voting for Mokah Jasmine Johnson for House District 120. And I want to share why by briefly describing what I will be voting for.
I endorse Mokah because I’m done with shaking my head at the same old data. I’ve lived in Athens twice, from 1992-1995 and now since 2015. The negligible difference in poverty rates within this 30-year span—between a quarter and a third of Athenians—is unacceptable. Mokah will fight to provide a living wage and help grow those wages via tax cuts to firms that attend to their workers’ wage growth.
I endorse Mokah because too many of our K-12 schools fall below state standards. We know there is an indisputable link between a student’s family income and their ability to succeed in school. Mokah is for creating an opportunity to serve Georgia students living in poverty. I encourage voters to read her platform at mokahforgeorgia.com/platform.
I endorse Mokah because I imagine facing criminal charges in 1995 for a uterus surgery at St. Mary’s that helped save my life. I take great issue with our incumbent representative who helped architect the six-week abortion ban in Georgia.
I endorse Mokah because I have known and worked with her for five years. I know her to keep her word. Her work ethic is unparalleled. She does her research, shares credit. She listens and lifts up.
Finally, I endorse Mokah because, as a former human resources director and business professor, I know the ramifications of not putting people first. The best strategies; most valid hiring practices; the shiniest, latest technology are all useless if you don’t attend to humans’ needs and capabilities. Mokah will work hard to inclusively meet our needs and develop our capabilities.
The importance of Nov. 8 can’t be dismissed with a sigh about “just a midterm election” or an insidious sense of apathy or feeling overwhelmed. When our neighbors, friends and family members are unable to afford housing, food or have access to the educational resources of wealthier, whiter neighborhoods, we must vote for Mokah. If we skip the midterms, we are indeed voting to maintain the status quo.
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