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For the past 17 years, The Filipino Express has provided the Filipino American community the best news, arts and entertainment coverage from around the United States and the Philippines.
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Understanding a Greg Racelis win
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NEW YORK --- Funny how local politics works in Jersey City. Nobody seems to understand it except those who are politicians themselves. And yet understanding their own stance on social and political issues, unity and political empowerment of our community is hardly understandable.
That is because they themselves do not understand why they are in politics and what politics is all about. Instead of seeing a bigger picture, they only consider looking at a smaller one, which eventually leads to disappointments.
This is why I do not understand the absence of the more visible local politicians such as Ador Equipado, Linda Mayo, Flor Medel and Jun Tolentino from a Greg Racelis’ kick-off campaign and fund-raising event less than a month ago.
If all five of them were at that event, regardless of their political affiliation but being a Filipino first, it would have created a greater impact to Racelis’ campaign and a good occasion to showcase our sense of unity.
Imagine a campaign ad material that shows all of them – standing tall and arm-to-arm with each another on the same stage -- what message does it convey to the community at large and other politicians who try to break up our ranks time and again? It clearly demonstrates our strength of unity and purpose.
But if we have old-time local politicians like Medel who continue to be concerned only with their own stature in our community, I find it quite difficult to understand their mind-set. A politician is a leader who empowers by example and has empathy for others.
Medel was appointed to a symbolic position – an appointment that everyone understands as political. Perhaps she thought about the past when she nearly made it to the city council instead of rekindling the present and joining Racelis during the kick-off.
Or perhaps she thought it was not politically correct to attend since Mayor Jerramiah Healy is supporting somebody else. But if it is true that she no longer has any political ambition she should have attended anyway. After all, she is first, a Filipino; and second, she is not a registered voter from Ward B where Racelis is a candidate.
If she was courageous and bold enough, perhaps the mayor would understand her action and reward her with a post in his administration. But I get it. Medel may still be holding a chip on her shoulder wondering why she was not offered a role in the mayor’s office.
You see, as Tom DeGise’s (the mayor’s good friend) protégé if not a supporter, Medel might have expected an appointment. Getting none, politics worked well with Equipado who instead got the nod as mayor’s aide. I find that easy to understand.
Medel can be proud of her accomplishments but unless she humbles herself and understands the psyche of human personality, she can’t give -- much more share -- what she doesn’t have.
But we can relegate all this in the past. At the rate Racelis’ campaign has developed and is progressing, I’m amazed at how Equipado, Mayo and Tolentino have responded to a call for unity. They have all shown political maturity and even though they missed the kick-off campaign for whatever reason, they’ve come on board with Racelis in his journey to the City Council.
Now I am beginning to understand how politics is evolving in Jersey City. It is no longer a politics of the past that has hindered our cause but a politics of the future that is pregnant with renewed fervor, ready to give birth at this moment.
No matter how short his campaign has been, Racelis has learned a lot from it. He has shown a firm hold on issues which affect his constituents and emphasized his plans to address those concerns at every forum he was in. Understandably, he has shown a clear insight of where he is headed and what he wants to accomplish.
There is an estimated 5,000 registered voters which includes about 1,500 Filipino Americans in Ward B. Statistically, if we all got together and worked hard to get the word out for Racelis, our chances of winning are better. We need to remind every eligible Filipino-American voter to go out and vote on Tuesday, May 10. Remember Row 7C where Racelis’ name is listed.
By the time this paper hits the streets on Friday, we have three more days to campaign rigorously. Let every volunteer pound the streets of Ward B, hand-out campaign leaflets, knock at every door, man telephone banks and join a convoy of cars highlighting Racelis’ campaign along the streets of Ward B.
Just like what everyone in the community thinks, we must all understand that a Greg Racelis win is a dream fulfilled, an answered prayer, and a boost to our community’s political empowerment.
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