Jefferson | Your Delray Boca

By now, you’ve probably read and watched countless stories and opinions about what happened over the weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Since we are a hyperlocal blog, we don’t typically comment on national news. But there is a sense that a line was crossed last weekend and that we have arrived at a cultural moment in which change may be possible. Does it wake us up? Or do we let it slide?

Positive change is never certain and if it comes it probably won’t be overnight, but positive change is possible and I hope we as a nation seize it. We’ve missed other opportunities.

Sandy Hook was a moment that many thought would forever change the debate over gun control and lead to changes–it didn’t happen.

Maybe, Charlottesville will be different. Maybe it will focus us on the dangers posed by hate groups, the evils of racism and the ugliness of anti-Semitism.

Or maybe in a few days, it will become a faint memory and we will go about our lives–until the next flashpoint. And there’s always another flashpoint.

America has been divided and subdivided into so many groups and subgroups that we are losing focus on what unifies us.

Often these groups don’t talk to each other or if they do, they talk past each other in loud voices meant to demean and diminish.

I have long felt that Washington is broken, unable to solve problems or seize opportunities. That’s not a profound conclusion.

When you think about it, it’s amazing how great a place America still is considering the dysfunction of our politics. Can you imagine how much better we could be if our government and its leaders were average instead of abysmal?

And make no mistake, they are abysmal.

Congress can’t craft a budget—which is their responsibility. They can’t address infrastructure, immigration, education, taxes or health care. Their constant brinksmanship on the debt ceiling—which they never address—will cost taxpayers $2.5 billion this year when they finally vote to increase it, once they get done bloviating on C-Span.

And it doesn’t matter if you are a Democrat or a Republican, liberal, moderate or conservative—nobody seems capable of governing which in my definition requires that you get things done and solve problems.

So this isn’t a partisan rant. I think both parties have failed this country. And I think that is what has stoked a whole lot of anger and frustration. And this week, we are reminded that for some anger and frustration turns to hatred and so they look for scapegoats. Hatred never solved anything, but it sure is dangerous and repulsive too.

So I am beginning to believe that any hope for meaningful change will start in our nation’s towns and cities.

Want better race relations? Get to work on it in your town and city.

Want to create housing and job opportunities? Elect local officials who understand how to encourage the private sector to invest, or at least those who won’t chase away jobs and development that makes sense.

Want safer streets? Invest in public safety.

And on and on it goes.

Of course, it would be great if the federal government provided some resources. After all, we do pay taxes.

So help on the opioid crisis would be nice. Check that, it’s essential.

But you get the picture.

Local is where it’s at–for most things.

Cities, counties and states can serve as laboratories for innovation, but only if ‘we the people’ get involved and stay involved and unite as Americans.

Personally, I was repulsed by the images from Charlottesville. It’s a beautiful city—the hometown of Jefferson, the architect of our Bill of Rights. I took a course many years ago at the University Of Virginia Darden School Of Business and I thought: “wow, I can live here.” You felt Jefferson in that city— so to see the images of violence and hear the stupid chants was nauseating.

Nazi’s and white supremacists walking in the streets spewing hate ought to be a wakeup call for Americans.

As Heather Heyer wrote in her final Facebook post before losing her life protesting hate: “if you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention.”

She was right…

Ten years ago, I spent the better part of a year attending Leadership Florida (LF), a statewide program designed to give participants an in-depth view of the state’s challenges and opportunities.

I know the term “life changing” has become trite and overused, but my experience in the class program left a lasting and deep impression on me. I’m not alone in that assessment and over the 34 year history of the program—considered one of the finest state leadership programs in the nation—about 1,500 men and women have come away with similar feelings.

The experience instilled in me a love of Florida and a deeper appreciation for its diversity and history. I have lived here for nearly 30 years now, a decade longer than my native New York, and so Florida has become home even though I will always feel an allegiance and a passion for the Empire State.

But my love affair was with Delray Beach. Sure, I liked Florida, but I didn’t have a love for the state until I experienced Leadership Florida. In LF, I found a community of leaders committed to the betterment of their cities, state and nation. They hail from business, the non-profit world, education and government but the common ground among this diverse group is a commitment to making a difference. We are Democrats and Republicans, conservatives, moderates and liberals and since the program is 34 years old there is a wide age range involved. In fact, my son Ben just graduated from College Leadership Florida and I have friends who have been involved in the executive program (for CEOs), Connect (for young professionals) and a new program for educators (hoping my daughter attends). You can say that LF covers a lot of ground.

Every year, LF holds an annual meeting featuring world class speakers on a variety of topics. This year the event was in Orlando which led to a lot of discussion on the mass shooting and what can be done to make our state safer.

The speakers also talked about poverty in Florida (1 in 6 live below the poverty line), the shrinking middle class and what it means for America and of course leadership.

Jon Meacham, the Pulitzer Prize winning historian and author, gave an engaging speech on this moment in history—Trump vs. Clinton—reminding everyone that while this year is extraordinary, America has had its share of interesting and tumultuous politics throughout its history.

A devout Jeffersonian, Meacham lamented that his guy was being overshadowed by rival Alexander Hamilton thanks to a popular Broadway show featuring rap music intermingled with history.

His idea is to follow “Hamilton” with a show called “TJeff” that would celebrate the life and legacy of our nation’s third president. But humor aside, the graduate of Suwanee College (which he describes as a cross between “Deliverance” and “Downton Abbey”) reminded the audience of how George Washington took pains to solve the bitter feud between the Jefferson camp and the Hamiltonians only to be swiftly rebuffed. Ahh….politics.

Meacham did say that effective leaders throughout history tended to be good writers and tended to know exactly how to reach their followers. Today, that could mean tweeting and getting your message across in 140 characters.

Meacham was fascinating, glib and helped to put this particular moment in our history in perspective.

My other favorite speaker was Ambassador James Joseph who now runs an ethics and leadership center at Duke University. Joseph was ambassador to South Africa when Nelson Mandela came to power. Throughout a long and distinguished career, he has served four U.S. Presidents and has observed leaders at all levels of government.

Joseph seemed to long for a time when “leadership was defined as someone who inspired us and appealed to our better nature.”

Today he sees a tremendous amount of anxiety, alienation and adversity but believes that all of those concerns can be addressed without the bitterness we are seeing today. He says the meanness of public life is the biggest challenge facing leaders and that we must find a way toward national reconciliation.

“A fear of difference is a fear of the future,” he said. “We have to find a way to co-exist.”

He sees four elements to leadership, three traits you need and one you need to avoid:

Emotional Intelligence—which he defines as having the ability to be the adult in the room, having compassion and self-control.
Moral Intelligence—good leaders know how to think about and talk about values without succumbing to insults or caving into politics.
Moral Imperialism—leaders need an ability to resist the urge to divide and develop skills to unite and compromise.
Social Intelligence—recognizes the many ways the world is changing.

“I want to see leaders who understand this phrase…’I want to be me without making it difficult for you to be you’,” Joseph said. “Effective leadership turns me and you into us.”

Joseph and his wife, an Emmy Award winning documentarian, spoke to the College Leadership Florida graduates at lunch. There he spoke about the importance of hope.

“Effective leaders are not just agents of reconciliation but agents of hope,” he said. “Hope sustains innovation, hope builds profits and the gift of hope is as important a gift as life itself.”

Well said.

I hope you’ll consider applying to Leadership Florida.

Prejudice Hurts

In Praise of Leadership Florida