“Andrew Gillum: Changing the game”

By Pastor Rasheed Z Baaith

     “And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.”  (Ezekiel 2:6)

Andrew Gillum’s winning of the Democratic Primary race for Governor very much upset a lot of people.  Included in that group are establishment Democrats, Republicans, the Fox News Channel and of course President Trump with the rest of right wing America.

There are some powerful lessons for all of us here.  For the African American community, the lesson is if we vote in the number we can and should we will make a real difference.  I think the upcoming election in November, in which party affiliation will not matter, gives Gillum access to even more votes. And not just the Black vote.  His message of a political will determined to insure all of Florida’s citizens will have entree to essential needs like health care and education reaches easily across ethnic lines.

All across this country we see authentic individuals and not just politicians seeking public office.  People who are as concerned with the issues of folks they do not know as they are with people who have commonalities with them. These office seekers are determined to practice politics of inclusion, not exclusion. They are breaking traditions that should have obliterated a long time ago.

Andrew Gillum represents this new breed. We need his energy, intellect, youthfulness and courage. We need him now more than ever before.  Because here is what we need to understand: those whom Trump represents for the most part are people determined to live in the past.  They are Americans who talk of America being a country of dreams being made real and opportunities open to everyone.  But they do not believe in that America.  They have become frightened of a changing America and that fear keeps morphing into racism, xenophobia, and a particular kind of group think that grows more threatening by the hour.

I think most, if not all of us, understand the need for secure borders.  I think too that we all understand that America does not have unlimited resources. How could we not after what this country has been through in the last 15 years? Yet, securing borders should not include snatching babies and children out of the arms of their mothers and fathers. Nor should it include sending the parents back to their home country without their children. Or then keeping those children in cages where they become victims of sexual molestation and illness related to a lack of care.

It’s time for all of us to take a careful look at what this country is becoming.  And a long look at those politicians fostering this alarming metamorphosis. Time to ask what their ultimate plan is for American people.

But even more it is time to do all we can to elect Andrew Gillum and others like him to high office. Those who sat out the election that gave us President Trump because they thought there wasn’t a dime’s worth of difference between him and Hilary Clinton need to have learned an undeniable lesson.

The lesson is there is incredible distance between the two of them. President Trump proves that fact every day. He has made corruption acceptable and lies a part of policy enactment. It’s time to change that game of politics; it is time for Andrew Gillum. Do your part to elect him to the office of Governor of the State of Florida.