We Are the Ones We’ve Been Waiting For

When citizens deliberate on important issues and concerns, they draw strength from one another.  This is the fundamental message from Kettering Foundation President David Mathews in his closing remarks at the 2016 Public Voice forum held on May 5 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.  He explained that when we as human beings feel vulnerable and are looking for strength, rather than turning to those who come along and promise to be the strength we don’t have, we can turn to ourselves.  Referencing the phrase and song of the civil rights movement, he concluded that “we are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”  The video of his remarks is a reminder of the importance of deliberation in the current grassroots movement being led by the Ohio Public School Advocacy Network to provide local citizens with a stronger voice in shaping statewide education policy.