Minding Our Business

2009 What I’ve Learned

My resolution for 2009 was that I would attend every City Council meeting. I may have missed one when I was on vacation, but all in all I did pretty well. I promised myself that I would just watch and learn, without standing up and asking questions or making statements. I did pretty well there, too; keeping my thoughts to myself as much as possible.

So what did I learn? I learned that very few citizens attend the meetings, and even fewer attend on a regular or even semi-regular basis. In a city of nearly 25,000 I would think that there would be a bigger audience. If 1% of the population showed up that would be 200-250 in attendance. There wouldn’t be room for them all. It is sad to realize that there is a number smaller than 1%. People may say that they watch the City Council meetings on channel 4, and perhaps they do, but what happens if you’re watching and something raises a question in your mind? You can’t stand up at the end of the meeting and ask about it if you’re not there. You could go down to City Hall and ask later, or call your alderman, but will you?

People stop in our store fairly often and complain about the city and what’s “really” going on, but they don’t attend the meetings. Who does attend? The mayor, the aldermen, representatives from the police, fire, and public works departments, reporters from some newspapers, and in 2009, me and a very small handful, maybe 10-15 of other citizens.

There are organizations that are closely aligned with the city, and they do not even send a representative. How do these groups find out about what is happening? Are they briefed later? Is this where rumors of closed door meetings start? I was astounded that even political hopefuls do not attend all, or at least most of the meetings. What do they, or will they, base their campaigns on?

The only time most people attend is when they have a special interest to promote, or they are fearful of something that might happen. I understand the logic behind this, but I can’t help but wonder; would people feel this same sense of urgency or panic if they attended. I’ve raised a lot of questions here, and I have few answers. I can only urge those who read this to resolve to attend at least two meetings this year. You know, some Tuesday night when there’s nothing on but Biggest Loser and American Idol re-runs, come down and witness Blue Island’s own reality show.

This year, my resolution is to become fluent in Spanish.

Look for me at City Council,

Candace Carr
CARR home-garden-holiday
13114 S. Western Ave
708-824-9171

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that has -Margaret Mead