The night of the Philly primary elections, I had the chance to attend City Council candidate (and now member) Helen Gym’s election party. It was a fun night, and even though Gym’s victory would be officially called for a few days, her strong showing (a surprise to many in attendance, despite their support) made for a festive evening. I took some video of the young volunteers and staff, mostly because I was inspired by their energy and passion. One particular moment has stuck with me in the ensuing weeks. It was these young staffers chanting “this is what democracy looks like.” 

My response was: 

Crowd chanting "this is what democracy looks like" at @HelenGym2015's election party. Hope one day to chant that same thing in Camden.

— Stephen Danley (@SteveDanley) May 20, 2015

This week’s Camden primary was not the moment for such a chant. There were few opposed races, none that saw serious challengers. Voting turnout was abysmally low (less than 1,700 voters — out of a still-small 12k pool of registered voters). My receipt was number 007 at my polling place, and I voted at 3pm. I’ve been asking my friends if they voted (and then, inevitably, why not?) and keep hearing the same answer. Why vote? There were no options even on the ballot.

The two primaries were a sharp contrast, and I couldn’t help but come out of it wondering how to promote and encourage that type of civic life and activity in Camden that would inspire young people to get involved, and families to take the time to get to the polls. It’s a frustrating conversation, because there are challenges on so many levels. Some of them are economic — is there enough money in the city to support multiple campaigns and would these campaigns be co-opted by money interests? Some of them have to do with the leadership pipeline — i.e. are young, potential civic leaders being nurtured and taught to be independent, or being taught compliance and not-rocking-the-boat are the skills needed to move forward? Some of them are socio-economic — how can Camden residents find the time and energy to engage civically when so many of them face day-to-day challenges to maintain survival? 

These challenges are ominous and overwhelming, which is why it is so valuable when a ray of light shines between them. But even last week, with a thoroughly depressing primary campaign just around the corner, Camden residents were gathering to create their own democratic spaces. Camden Churches Organized for People put together a forum to discuss economic issues, particularly strategies like community coops, community benefit agreements and others, that might help the city’s economic development strategies reach neighborhoods.

The event started with a panel discussion to introduce key ideas, then broke into small groups where residents had the opportunity to talk to folks with expertise on community development, then turn the discussion specifically to Camden and what can be done here. 

I was struck by the seriousness with which the Camden residents took the task, their eagerness to engage, and the subtle ways in which the community’s experienced activists passed along knowledge to new attendees. There was so much being passed along in these small groups, from history, to a culture of engagement, to more immediate strategies and politics.

It struck me that not all democracy need look like Helen Gym’s victory, but that maybe there was a more foundational task, that of giving young Camden residents engaging civic experiences. And that maybe, this too, is what democracy looks like.