Obama Corzine Rally

Last Thursday I joined a group of Atlantic and Cape May County residents on a bus trip to Holmdel, NJ to see President Obama and Governor Corzine. As we sat on the grass and baked in the hot sun, we wondered if all of the effort would be worth it. We had our answer as the President stepped onto the stage.

Amidst the roaring, jubilant crowd, I felt the pride for our country so evident in the faces around me. There were American flags waving, patriotic tunes playing—and yet, as the President started to speak, I was reminded of something his wife Michelle said at the Democratic National Convention last year: “All of us driven by a simple belief that the world as it is just won't do - that we have an obligation to fight for the world as it should be.” We love our country too much to not try to change it.

The President affirmed his support for Gov. Corzine and for the state of New Jersey, pointing out that New Jersey was the first state in the nation to have an economic recovery plan, that Gov. Corzine has reduced the size of the government while in office, and that 80,000 more children are now covered under the state children’s health insurance program.

The President also affirmed his commitment to one of social work’s greatest values: the dignity and worth of each human being. He spoke of the need for reform in healthcare, education, and financial regulation—areas that touch all of us, but especially those most vulnerable in our society. President Obama asserted, “We are at a moment where we have been given the extraordinary opportunity to remake our world; a chance to seize our future; a chance to shape our destiny. As difficult as it sometimes is there’s something about the American spirit that says we don’t have to turn to the past, we’re going to look forward to the future.”

The President invited us all to join and work with him, to call our legislators, to talk to our neighbors. He said, “We’re creating a movement for change that doesn’t begin in Washington, that begins here in New Jersey.” Social workers often are a voice for the voiceless; sometimes we also help people find their voices when they thought they had been silenced.

Let’s answer the President’s call to active citizenship; let’s help make our democracy work better by being “the people.” Make sure you, your clients, and your co-workers are registered to vote, and then be sure to vote. Make the phone calls, write the emails, engage your neighbors and community. We cannot walk alone—we must stand together.


Rebecca O'Meara, MSW