Dear Colleagues,
Recently I had the opportunity to share my League experience with a non-League
member. She listened intently as I recounted the League's 82 year history, the
battles we have waged, the victories we have won, the tremendous work that our
grassroots network does, and my own personal commitment to serve. She asked
for further clarification of the role of League members. She was surprised to
learn that we are all volunteers, juggling the responsibilities of family, career
and community activism. I indicated that the League's mission and vision fuels
our dedication and commitment. After I completed my passionate League colloquy,
she said, "You do all of this for the love of the League -- are you crazy?"
I took a moment to reflect. Am I crazy? Are we crazy? Why do we soldier on in the face of adversity to carry out the democratic principles of the League and of the country? In contemplating a response, once again, I looked to our past.
I
found the remarks of Anna Lord Strauss to Convention delegates in 1948 most
appropriate.
"Today too many people are confused and discouraged. In their discouragement some are seeking an easy answer to our perplexities, a panacea, appealing because of its simplicity. Others are returning to the patterns of the past, which is the cynicism, that is the currency of the unmoral. They illustrate two groups, those who run in too headlong a manner, and those who consider and do not run at all. We will always have in our society those who race ahead regardless of what may befall and the conservatives who hang back waiting to be shown the safe smooth path. What is needed most of all today, however, is citizens willing to build the road as they move toward their goal…"Visionaries who would right injustice, and make a difference in the world, are often thought to be crazy. Not because of any mental defect, but because they are dreamers. They have a vision of how the world can be.
Carolyn
Jefferson-Jenkins, Ph.D.
President