Palin Betrays McCain Message by Demeaning Community Organizers
Apology Sought from Palin
By Frank Pierson
Supervising Organizer, Arizona and New Mexico
Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF)
www.arizonainterfaith.org
In her acceptance speech as the vice presidential candidate on the Republican ticket, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin mocked
“community organizers.” She repeated word for word the same sneering lines the following day on the McCain-Palin campaign
tour of small towns. On both occasions, she was met with laughter and applause. Her words have bounced around the media
echo chamber ever since.
Mission accomplished? Not if you’re on the receiving end of the put down. Not if you care about the health of our democracy. Not
if you recognize the importance of active citizenship in communities large and small around the United States.
Governor Palin chose to ridicule the many community organizations representing ordinary Americans that have worked together
with mayors, city councils, boards of supervisors, governors and congressional leaders to initiate community improvement
projects large and small. Organizations like:
• The Jeremiah Group, a community organization that is at the center of efforts to rebuild New Orleans.
• Valley Interfaith in the Rio Grande Valley that brought water and sewer to the Texas-Mexico border communities and will
celebrate its 25th year with a gathering of 5,000 on October 12, 2008.
• East Brooklyn Congregations and the remarkable achievement of rebuilding entire Nehemiah neighborhoods out of the
rubble of burned out despair.
Senator John McCain knows better and said so in a recent interview describing community organizing as “honorable” work.
Senator McCain has experience working with community organizations on immigration reform. He held a press conference with
Pima County Interfaith Council (PCIC), the largest community organization in Southern Arizona, in Tucson opposing Proposition
200 in 2004. Through his staff, he has participated in strategy meetings supportive of grassroots efforts to advance
comprehensive immigration reform. He has met with community organizers and leaders on several occasions to discuss a
variety of topics. An organization he heads, the International Republican Institute, contracted with professional community
organizers to help rebuild civil society after the breakup of Yugoslavia. Community organizers were invited to participate in the
rebuilding of civil society in Iraq.
Currently there are four major broad based community organizations in Arizona affiliated with the national Industrial Areas
Foundation. Together they comprise the Arizona Interfaith Network. All of these organizations employ professional organizers.
All share a central tenet: “Never ever do for people what people can do for themselves”. Their work is mushrooming, especially
as the economy continues to deteriorate and pressures on families increase. In these troubled times, families are increasingly
turning to community organizations based in churches, synagogues, non-profits and labor unions for powerful, high impact
responses.
Community organizations like those in Arizona are as American as apple pie and a preeminent form of the very community
service the McCain-Palin ticket extols. In fact, community organizing epitomizes the tradition of citizen participation in public life. It
embodies the practice of democracy by creating opportunities for citizens to positively impact decisions in their cities, counties,
states and country. To ridicule such work is to belittle democracy and subvert the American ideal that all citizens matter, including
those without much wealth or power.
Governor Sarah Palin should apologize for her ridicule of other Americans working with sincere hearts through lawful means to
make life for themselves, their families and their communities better. Failing to do so mocks her campaign’s core message with
which community organizations deeply resonate: Put the Ideals of the Country First.
Frank Pierson can be reached at frankcp1@gmail.com