First Tuesday Speaker Donna Brazile Urges Student Activism

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Author: Ben Dalgetty

 

On Tuesday, April 7, political consultant, commentator and author Donna Brazile spoke in Thorne Hall as part of the Remsen Bird First Tuesday Speaker Series. Brazile’s pedigree includes 58 congressional campaigns and seven presidential campaigns, most recently Vice-President Al Gore’s campaign where she became the first African-American woman to direct a presidential campaign. Additionally she serves as a superdelegate to the Democratic National Committee for her work with the Clinton administration. The Oxy bookstore was selling copies of Brazile’s book, Cooking with Grease: Stirring the Pots in America, re-released in 2005, which she signed after her talk. The book chronicles her life and campaign experiences, with insider perspectives of candidates ranging from Michael Dukakis to President Bill Clinton, and is also peppered with recipes for traditional southern food.

Brazile’s talk touched on a myriad of issues, from post-Katrina New Orleans to President Obama. Throughout her talk, however, she stuck to a theme of shared responsibility and the opportunity for progress, particularly given Obama’s election. “Early last fall when we were thinking of speakers, because of the . . . general election and Obama’s candidacy, Donna Brazile quickly came to mind. We thought her experience with electoral politics, voting rights, etc., would be interesting for the Oxy community,” Director of Student Life Tamara Rice said when asked why Brazile was chosen. “We thought her perspective on public service and vocation could encourage students to follow their vocational passions.”

Brazile, a New Orleans resident and appointed member of the Louisiana Recovery Authority, the state agency responsible for the hurricane recovery effort, frequently evoked the failures of government response to Katrina as an example of how bad things were. “FEMA stands for Federal Employees Missing in Action,” she said to an appreciative audience. “When I go home I see young people all over rebuilding our city . . . the whole country needs you to do what you did in New Orleans,” she said, continuing to advocate for greater student activism.

President Obama was unsurprisingly a recurring topic during the talk. Brazile praised Obama’s actions in office thus far, but cautioned about the difficulty of the work still ahead. Comments about Obama were frequently placed in the context of Dr. Martin Luther King. Brazile helped spearhead the campaign that made his birthday a federal holiday. “What the President is trying to do is take us to Dr. King’s promised land,” she said. Brazile’s praise of the President included both his actions and intentions. “He has hit the ground running . . . there is no hidden agenda behind this President’s initatives,” she said.

At the end of her talk Brazile made sure to emphasize the importance of individual actions in making positive progress. “If you can put a black man in the White House just imagine what you can do to build a promised land,” she said. “There is an ebb and flow to politics, sometimes you’re up and then you’re down . . . but real progress can be made.” Brazile directed her challenge at the students in the audience, “[It is] your turn to answer the call, the same call that has been forced upon other generations,” she said.

Following the talk Brazile took a number of questions from students in the audience. In response to a question on the viability of the Republican party after losing two successive elections, Brazile was quick to point out the danger of the GOP becoming solely a regional party. Speaking about her experience at the 2008 Republican National Convention Brazile said, “I could count the minorities on one hand, it was really insular.” Other questions included the role of technology and new media in democracy as well as how Brazile had reacted to Michelle Obama’s reception in Europe during their recent trip. Director of Religious and Spiritual Life Rev. Susan Young, who helped organize the event, said, “The Q and A time was the highlight of the event. She was more informal, funny, insightful and engaging. I also thought that the students connected well with her on the personal level.”

Both Young and Rice were generally happy with the event, although they were disappointed with the turnout which was shy of 100. “I would liked to have seen a large turnout, especially in a venue such as Thorne Hall. Maybe lunchtime is not a good time to have a speaker, or maybe April is such a busy month for students, faculty, and staff that they just couldn’t get away to see her talk, I don’t know,” Rice said.

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