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Postcards from the tour: Musicales and community radio
Sorry to be out of touch the last few days– I made a brief pit stop in Austin and was swamped in catch-up chores, from recording radio commentaries to mowing my yard (not to mention dealing with my car, which chose yesterday to go on the fritz and into the shop). My last tour stop was a benefit for WMNF Radio, the very popular and successful community station in Tampa, FL. There was a lively sold-out crowd and it was great fun being with folks who are so appreciative of having such a progressive broadcast asset in their community. The venue itself fit perfectly with the non-conformist theme of our book. Called the Friday Morning Musicale, the 400-seat hall was built by the residents of Tampa’s Hyde Park neighborhood to serve as a space for recitals, plays, lectures and, I suppose, musicales. Residents raised the money for it with door-to-door drives and ran it as a community center. It still operates as a non-profit, and it was a treat for me to be on a stage with such democratic tradition vested in it. Now I’m headed out west again— Santa Cruz, San Fran, Durango, Sandpoint (guess where that is) and Spokane in the next five days.
Postcards from the tour: Springtime and clean elections in NC
Springtime in the mountains! Red buds in bloom, forsythia and dogwoods flowering, palm trees leaping out — Mother Nature in and around Asheville is rejoicing in renewal. Downtown Asheville is alive with people of all stripes enjoying the warm afternoon, the outdoor market the wonderful Malaprops Bookstore, a plethora of independent shops, each other and life in general . Had a tasty early dinner and good conversation at the Early Girl Eatery, a downtown mainstay noted for its friendliness and locally organic food. I’m here to speak in the beautiful sanctuary of the First Congregation Church, a benefit/book event for North Carolina Common Cause. This group teamed up with others a few years ago to start getting corrupt corporate money out of their state political process. In 2003, they created the Voter-Owned Elections campaign to provide a public financing alternative for their state’s judicial races, and in 2004 and 2006 the “clean money” candidates won 9 of the 11 judgeships up for grabs. Now, the coalition is extending the public financing alternatives to other other statewide offices and working to make it available in municipal elections. DeMarco and I highlighted their success in our book, and it’s a pleasure it’s to be with such agitators.
Postcards from the tour: Green Festival success
Last weekend’s Green Festival in Seattle was a smashing success put on by Global Exchange and Co-op America, these annual events bring together activists, entrepreners, consumers, writers, and the merely curious for envisioning and organizing a greener, more democratic world. The fests are now being held in four cities each year, and the response grows more enthusiastic with each event. More than 1000 people attended my speech in Seattle, and their spirits were higher than Mt Ranier. Check out the uplifting stories at http://www.greenfestivals.org/— and go to one if you get the chance.
I’m off to Asheville and the North Carolina triangle for 2 days of benefits for the very active “clean election” advocates there. Then I go to Tampa for a celebration of WMNF, the great community radio station.
Postcards from the tour: Grapes, cows and activism
Riding from Sacramento to Sebastopol and back (about 100 miles each way) take you through a gorgeous farming region of grapes and cows, including Napa Valley, Sonoma County and the Valley of Moon. Dotting the trip are innumerable wineries with facilities ranging from modest to grandiose. Thursday night, I spoke at the Sebastopol Community Center, with some 400 folks from the area filling this great hall. Leading off was Peter Tracy and the Left Coast Troubadours, getting the crowd going with lively songs about Dick Cheney, Molly Ivins and other timely topics. The event was a benefit for Project Censored, the national media watchdog group based at Sonoma State University and it was co-sponsored by KRCB Radio, Copperfield’s Books and Students for Media Democracy. I was pleased to learn that a portion of the funds we raised will finance SSU students to attend the Media Reform Conference to be held June 6-8 in Minneapolis. I’ll be in Sacramento for a Common Cause benefit at the Coloma Community Center auditorium, and then I wing my way to Seattle and Olympia for three weekend events.
Postcards from the tour: Misery loves airlines
The joys of modern air travel. I wanted to get to Portland, OR in the worst way yesterday, so I flew American Airlines. Only American decided not to go to Portland, or anywhere where else — they grounded more than 1,000 of their jets. My office team did an amazing job of scrambling for other flights, but all were filled. Then, Melody made a breakthrough, finding one American flight out of Dallas that would get me to Portland in time for my second event of the evening. It meant rushing up Killeen (70 miles away) to catch a commuter flight to Dallas. Laura swept me up in her car and with a winning imitation of a NASCAR driver, got me to Killeen in record time. Alas, we were directed to the wrong airport but we quickly recovered and still got to the right place with minutes to spare. Unfortunately, still gasping for breath at the checkin counter, I was told that my Dallas to Portland flight had also been cancelled. So, Laura and I limped back to austin. (My apologies to the wonderful folks at the Oregon Bus Project who had pulled together a sold out event at the Bread & Ink Cafe, and to the terrific staff of the Powell’s bookstore who also had a sold out event at the Bagdad Theater and Pub. It truly was my loss miss these events.)
Today we will give the friendly skies another try, hoping to make it to Sebastopol, Sacramento, Seattle and Olympia events for the next few days.
Postcards from the tour: Indie bookstores, radio and festivals
Friday evening, DeMarco and I had a tour highlight with an appearance at the beloved Politics & Prose bookstore in Washington, DC. Started and run by three women who love books and revel in progressive politics, the store has legions of loyal customers who turn out for signings there, and we had an energetic overflow crowd for hours. To add to the fun, the event was covered by C-SPAN which will air on the popular Booknotes program. (Date and time TBA!)
Saturday and Sunday, I made 3 stops in Wisconsin, soaking up as many of that state’s wonderful local brews as I could. I did an interview in Madison with my friend Matt Rothschild on his nationwide progressive radio show (podcast coming soon), then went to the venerable Barrymore Theater for a talk and signing. It was a benefit for the fabulous Fighting Bob Festival, an annual grassroots festival of politics which will be held this year on September 6 in Baraboo, WI. Susan and I celebrate the festival in our book, suggesting that every state should have such an enlivening event — “put the party back in politics.” I’m headed home for a day before departing for the Great Northwest.
Postcards from the tour: Coffee and disco balls
Thanks to today’s downsized, jammed and service-averse airlines, getting from place to place on this crazy tour is a draining grind. However, once on terra firma, I’m able to draw great energy and inspiration from the groups hosting the book events. On Thursday afternoon, I visited the spirited, dedicated young folks who run Peace Coffee in Minneapolis. They are leaders in the fair trade organic movement, not only putting progressive values at the core of their enterprise, but also achieving such business success that they’re now expanding their operations. I also visited with some of the leaders of Wellstone Action in St. Paul, another of the groups DeMarco and I celebrate in the book. Talk about success, this nationwide campaign training organization is helping hundreds of progressives get elected to school boards, city councils, legislatures and Congress. Thursday evening, some 400 Minnesotans came from as far as 5 hours away for a book event honoring these two groups. It was held in the basketball court of a Catholic church’s gym, and I spoke with a large floral cross behind me, and a large disco ball above me. It was an odd juxtaposition but altogether, it was a spiritual evening.