The year could have been worse. On the national level it started with a flimsy-haired bigoted oaf taking the oath of the office of the president of the United States.
The leader of the country wasted little time trying to implement a policy — though crafted in broad terms — that would bar Muslims from entering the country.
Locally, the South County’s own version of small-minded buffoon as public servant was settling into his role a as board member for the Otay Water District.
Hector Gastelum, who spent time on social media blasting Muslims and echoing POTUS’s hollow call to #MAGA (Twitterspeak for make America great again), caught the attention of the community and media with his simple-minded rhetoric and he faced public calls for his resignation.
The demands fell on deaf ears and instead prompted a clumsy, perplexingly conditional apology from Gastelum, who became more defiant and determined to stay in office, promising he would stare down any attempt to recall him.
Not surprisingly, a recall never materialized, but Gastelum’s colleagues on the water board did vote to censure him — an agency first — and other elected officials at the city and state levels spoke out against Gastelum.
And that’s where I find the comfort and symbolic victories, small as they may be.
While the year was infected and sullied by episodes of overt racism, sexual harassment and, of course, the always-to-be-expected mass shootings, the moments in which people spoke in opposition to divisive and destructive behavior instead of remaining silent or comfortably indifferent were reassuring.
Whether it was the ACLU fighting the “Muslim ban,” millions of women marching in protest of regressive attitudes and policies about women espoused by the GOP and the president, or the people sitting on local city councils taking a public stand against actions and ideas that harm innocent people, the fact that people spoke up is a sign that there is hope for a better, inclusive future.
When members of the Chula Vista City Council this year publicly discussed what, if anything, they could do about Gastelum, Councilman Mike Diaz expressed ambivalence, stating he was not sure what good would come of taking a public stand on another agency’s board member’s actions and comments. Diaz, time and again, has expressed an interest in keeping his head down and focussing only on what directly affects his city and council district.
How people respond to bigotry and ignorance matters. Obviously it reveals the character of those who espouse and practice them. It also reveals the values of those who choose to speak out against them. And of those who remain silent.
How we respond helps us decide who will make life better for everyone. Thankfully there were enough people willing to speak up to provide a little hope in the new year.
