Representing at the Democratic National Convention

By Courtney Ward, Jr. At-Large-Delegate

I remember 2004 as a very exciting and inspiring year. It was the first time I was really engaged in a U.S. Presidential election, and the first time I actually watched each party’s national convention from start to finish.  Like most 16 year olds, I wondered the obvious—what was the purpose of these national conventions? And how were the people in the audience selected to participate, watching history unfold? But, what I remember most was the keynote address. A state senator, named Barack Obama, from my home state of Illinois, moved the crowd with his speech. Little did I know, 2004 would not be the last time his vision for America would place him on the national stage.

Some years passed and while a student at Morehouse College in Atlanta, I interned for then-U.S. Senator Barack Obama. I later worked full time on his presidential campaign.  During the campaign, I became fully engaged in electoral politics, traveling to Athens, Georgia and Winston Salem, North Carolina along with a host of other cities.  The experience and exposure from the campaign provided me with a deep understanding of the power of grassroots movements. The one-on-one interaction with voters and volunteers increased my understanding of the political process and the power of reaching one voter at a time.

In May 2012 I took my dream of becoming a public servant to the voters. I ran and was elected to be a delegate for the 2012 Democratic National Convention (www.thednc.org). Finally, this small town kid from East Saint Louis, Illinois was going to be a delegate like “those awe-inspiring people” I had witnessed at the Convention in 2004.

During my preparation for the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, I have learned that each convention highlights a story important to our country’s history, its present, and certainly its future. In this time of partisan gridlock, we could use a good storyteller who can remind us to reflect on the social ties that bind us together.  It was former President Bill Clinton, accepting the nomination in 1992, who reminded us that “for too long politicians have told the most of us that are doing all right that what’s really wrong with America is the rest of us- them. Them, the minorities. Them, the liberals. Them, the poor. Them, the homeless. Them, the people with disabilities. Them, the gays.”  This is America. There is no them. There is only us.

On to Charlotte,
Courtney Ward.
At-Large Delegate (State of Georgia) to Democratic National Convention