Marsha Einess: We could do with more town hall meetings, Rep. Denham

The first and only town hall for California’s 10th Congressional District was in April. After watching that meeting, my biggest takeaway was that more of these open meetings are desperately needed. We’ve forgotten how to debate, how to be an advocate for our needs, how to listen and have empathy for the views of others. We’ve delegated our voices entirely to our government representatives, ending up with a top-down government where the perception of our voices, based on carefully planned surveys, are examined, categorized, rephrased and packaged into a political agenda from a lobbying think tank.

The result is a diluted and distorted version of our voice.

I urge Rep. Jeff Denham to schedule open town halls quarterly, in convenient locations, so that his constituents can peacefully gather, listen, discuss and learn about the representation of our district. This is the democratic process. Denham should support our democracy and encourage the sharing of information and ideas; it is his duty. It may be messy, but why not welcome the opportunity to improve discourse? Wouldn’t it be a good thing to promote trust rather than cower in fear from those who think differently than you?

I am awaiting a schedule of future events.

This story was originally published August 3, 2017 at 12:05 PM with the headline "Marsha Einess: We could do with more town hall meetings, Rep. Denham."