Who is the 2008 Election Really For?
As millions of people prepare to vote in this historical 2008 presidential campaign one question comes to mind – who is this election really for? In debates, advertisements, attacks, and rebuttals, one group of people have been the focus, middle-class Americans. The public has been constantly bombarded with what the candidates will do to ensure a better life for America’s middle-class. “Joe the Plummer” has taken center stage, as a hardworking, blue-collared, white man from heartland America, and has come to literally embody the image of the middle-class American. We have heard about how gas will be made affordable… for Middle America; how affordable health care will be a goal… for Middle America; how jobs will be created….for Middle America; but this begs the question: what about the millions and millions of people who do not fit into the idea of Middle America? What about the urban working-class or the urban poor, who do not make a living wage, who work two or three jobs but still struggle from paycheck to paycheck- where their main goal is keeping a roof over their head due to ridiculous rent prices, astronomical mortgage rates, and forced gentrification? What about our cities that are literally collapsing from the inside out? What about the homeless who do not have a place to sleep, and often have nothing to eat? What about minorities, women and non-heterosexuals who continue to be discriminated against by the biases built into so many of our institutions? What about immigrants who do not have enough services and resources dedicated to them? What about the rural poor, who are constantly ignored in our discourse about America?
There are just so many issues ignored that need to be thought about, but they aren’t. It is assumed by both parties that the poor will vote democrat, and the rich will vote republican, and due to those assumptions they are completely overlooked by both parties. I implore you, as you go to the polls take a second to think about those who are never thought about. Think about the problems that affect people’s livelihood, where it is not affordable gas they are worried about, but affordable food. Think about the people who work 60 hours a week and still cannot provide for their family. This election has been billed as an election of change, so take a moment to think, as you fill out your ballot, about how change can be brought about for the people who need it most.