Democracy at Work

Regardless of your political leanings, this is America at work!
My son is 6 years old and as the protests unfolded in Madison, Wisconsin this week , I was struck that this could be an opportunity for him to learn and experience what it means to take a stand, make a difference, be heard and take action to affect change.  When I woke up on Saturday morning I felt the need to expose Max to America in its most democratic form, protest.  We discussed what was going on in Madison over a super yummy breakfast of wench toast (french toast cooked in a waffle maker) and I compared the main issue to a recent negotiation that Max and I had regarding his allowance.  "What if I said that I would give you 25 cents for the chores you do then changed my mind and without asking you only paid you a nickel?"  "That's not fair!  We had a deal."  He took this idea and ran all the way to Madison with it!
He wanted to make a sign to carry so I helped him with the spelling and making it large enough that people could read it but the verbiage was all his.  Dumbhead is pretty bad in a 6 year old's world view.
We loaded up the car and we rode off into the day with no idea exactly what to expect when we arrived at the state capital.  I heard that there were in excess of 67,000 bodies on the capital square and Max and I arrived to a crowd that even I had never experienced.  Overwhelmed but amazingly focused, Max asked if we could walk with all the other people.  After some instructions on how this was going to work, we dove into the ocean of marchers and moved with the flow of protest.  I watched him as we moved and occasionally checked in to make sure that what he was experiencing was positive.  He was stunned by the whole happening but said that he was fine and "just wanted to keep walking"  We even lined up to get into the capital building itself.  His excitement was undaunted by the din as we entered the building.  The people, the noise and the energy were all over the top but he soldiered forward and we came to the rotunda where the gathering was energetic and musical.

We wandered up and down in the state building till Max had finally had enough of the relentless cacophony.  We left the building and went back out into the cold where the sun was shining and the people marched in circles around capital square.

Max and I made one more round of the square before we would end our adventure in Madison.  He was quite the popular kid on this day.  A dozen people asked if they could take his picture with his sign and some inquired as to why he was in Madison.  Max's answer was "So that my teacher can negotiate for her allowance."  At the end of the day, as we walked the mile back to where our car was parked, Max was happy and energized as he balanced on the tops of planters ans walls and we ran across the streets laughing.  He had been brave and mindful of fairness.  He saw that even a four foot tall American can speak their mind and try to make a positive difference for everyone.  He had been selfless and ended up feeling much bigger then his four feet stature and the energy of this democratic process left its mark in a way that I hope he will remember for the rest of his life.

On the way home we talked about how it felt to be part of this protest and he revealed what sounded like a feeling of empowerment and a respect for the idea that everyone has the right to speak their truth regardless of those who would disagree.  What a wonderful thing, to be able to give a 6 year old the experience of freedom, democracy, tolerance, bravery, empowerment, humanity and thoughtful action.  All in all, I think that this was a perfect day.

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