Rique is another superb volunteer who came to us through Vote Save America/Adopt a State. He has now phone banked with FLIP NC nine times!
A resident of a rural county in northern Virginia, he works as a business analyst in the business domain of real estate technology and lives with his wife of 42 years. They have three children, two “children in law,” and five grandkids.
Rique is passionate about politics thanks to his parents. His father worked in the Robert Kennedy campaign, served in the Carter administration, and was the first national director of the Southwest Council of La Raza (aka National Council of La Raza). His mother was editor of the “Americans for Democratic Action” flagship publication for more than a decade. Thanks to their belief in public service and progressive politics, Rique has volunteered for Howard Dean, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama.
Check out this Q&A with Rique, and then sign up to join him for an upcoming virtual phone bank!
How did you find out about FLIP NC?
I am an avid podcast listener, most especially those focused on current affairs, science, and progressive politics. I'm a huge fan of Crooked Media and came to FLIP NC by way of the Adopt A State program touted by Pod Save America, Lovett or Leave It, and What a Day.
What has surprised you most about our voter outreach?
I've knocked doors in the past, and I love doing that. One of the things that you have to be prepared for in that capacity is the expectation that folks won't be home, won't answer the door, or won't be friendly or accepting of your message. It comes with the territory and magnifies the good feeling you get from a positive contact when it happens. So when it came to phone banking, I was expecting to have to deal with a huge percentage of hang-ups, no answers, and, frankly, rudeness in order to get to a call where there is a good outcome. And while there have been stretches of time that can be discouraging, I have been pleasantly surprised and energized by those times – and there have been many – when I am blessed with a string of good calls and encounters with motivated, polite, and generous people. It is a booster shot for optimism and leads me to persist.
If you've participated in other voter outreach efforts, how are FLIP NC's different?
Due to the times we live in, FLIP NC has been all online; we're all socially distanced from one another and from the voters we contact. So that's quite different from door knocking. Yet it also is benefited by the technology we use to make the calls, to follow our scripts, to manage the conversation, and to engage. The technology is not perfect, not by any means, and glitches happen. However, the tech serves us all, unites us all, guides us all, and provides us with digital signposts along the way. So it is very different, can be challenging, and sometimes frustrating, but often rewarding in a way that goes well beyond expectations.
Have a funny story or a touching moment to share? Maybe something that happened while you were making calls?
There's not one call that stands out above others, but what does stand out is the motivation I hear in the words and tone of receptive callers. There have been older, technology-averse callers who are just not interested in getting a text or even using email, but they will wax rhapsodic about how they intend to vote early and their fierce determination to vote. There have been callers who are at work and busy and yet will stay on the call and share contact info because they recognize the importance of what we are doing and of what they can do themselves. There have been young contacts made where the caller renews my faith in our college-age voters. And there have been those callers who have stayed on the line, shared contact info and yet were not even the person named on the call sheet because that person wasn't available to talk at the time – and so they talked in their stead and were supportive and enthusiastic. All of that is energizing and keeps me going.
What's your top tip for someone who is new to voter outreach?
I've got a lot of tips, but my top tip is to keep water handy. Also, smile. Also, stick with it – your results will improve, and you will improve.
What is really motivating you to get involved? Obviously, you want to FLIP NC, but tell us a bit about the "why."
I'm in Virginia, and I've been fortunate to live here while my state has gradually moved from red to purple and – at the state and federal election level – to blue. I think the South and particularly the southern coast is the next opportunity for Democratic party outreach. Florida will always be close and is, of course, important, but Georgia, North Carolina, and even (someday sooner than folks might think) South Carolina are growth opportunities. We have done so much in Virginia, and I believe North Carolina is poised on the precipice of a meaningful – and long-lasting – "flip." It's important because it's a key state in efforts to expand Medicaid, reinforce and expand voter protection rights, nourish local eco-systems, respond to the threat of climate change, and reverse gerrymanders.
How are you feeling about the 2020 election?
Fiercely motivated. Ready to fight on every possible frontier for meaningful and historic progress. Ready to defend honored institutions and to remove autocrats from office. I am optimistic that, if I do everything that I can do, I will help to give all of us the best possible opportunity to reverse a dangerous course and to support a progressive agenda. Faith in people is what keeps me going. So if I keep my focus on others, do what I can to fight for them, then I believe we will achieve the outcome we want – and that we desperately need – for one another and for our collective future.
Who do you admire in politics? Why?
From my youth – Bobby Kennedy and Cesar Chavez. My father worked for both. I was fortunate to meet Cesar. They were emblematic for me of the fight for civil rights and workers’ rights. From my young adulthood, Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton – because they helped to pull the Democratic party out of the doldrums nationally and because they advanced the cause of health care, even though the effort fell short. And currently, and without hesitation, Elizabeth Warren. I think she represents everything that is good about the party. She has grown in her own social conscience. She is passionate about family and especially childcare. She is incredibly competent and prepared – she really does have a plan for everything. And she works for us. She is not about personal power, nor is she about political gamesmanship; she's focused on long-lasting positive change.
What would you say to someone who is feeling totally dejected by our current state of politics? And how do you stay in the fight?
I've heard two things said, one not recently and one very recently, which I think apply. The first is that the arc of history bends towards justice. The other is that history does not move in a straight line. To be a progressive is to believe in people. To be a progressive is to believe that people can bend their selves and their institutions toward justice. And to stay in the fight means that we must always be mindful of the fact that even though it might seem we veer from justice and toward authoritarianism, history is not moving in a straight line and that one person – just one person – can be the impetus to course correct. To surrender one's hope is to surrender one's power. Power (and nature) abhors a vacuum, so if we abdicate our power, then destructive forces can – and will – move in and permanently seize it from us. We cannot let that happen.
Tell us about a political moment that inspired you, whether it was a personal conversation, a speech given by a president, or a recent "blue wave" moment.
In my youth, I went to marches in Washington, D.C. – marches for civil rights and in opposition to the war in Vietnam. Social conscience was inspired and nourished by the words and deeds of Dr. King, RFK, George McGovern, Cesar Chavez. I found myself wrapped in the solidarity of the labor movement at AFL-CIO social gatherings and during a march with farm workers in California, in support of migrant workers and of a national boycott on grapes. Those moments and countless others have inspired a lifetime of simply giving a damn about others and about progressive and labor policy. They have inspired a determination to stay in the fight in ways large and small – to insist, to resist, to persist.