by Amy Merrick
Gay has been a member of the local Together We Will chapter since November. She has been an education advocate far longer. Gay moved to Louisville in summer 2013 as her son was preparing to enter his freshman year of high school. She quickly became involved in Jefferson County Public Schools and is co-founder of both Dear JCPS and Save Our Schools Kentucky.
We sat down with Gay for some one-on-one about how things have changed - or, in her case not changed so much - since the November 2016 election. Here's what she had to say.
"I am a member of many groups that popped up during/after the election. I was an early member of Pantsuit Nation and the Together We Will. TWW seems to be the most organized and more in line with my personal political views than many of the others that have sprung up. In addition, their members have come through on taking action when it really mattered. Even at the state and local level. I enjoy sharing stories and tips with the other members of the group.
"As co-founder of two public education advocacy groups, one state and one local, I haven't been able to focus much on national politics. I feel like I've been trying to stop the world from self-destruction since long before November, so the presidential election was not a game changer. It only increased the strength of people like the Koch brothers and their ilk who continue to finance the campaigns of corrupt legislators in exchange for bringing forth harmful legislation that is all part of the playbook to destroy public schools so they can siphon off state and local tax dollars for their own gain.
"Our education groups continue to use social media and e-mail to help keep concerned citizens aware of what is happening with public education. In addition they blog about corruption that we find in our local school systems, to speak with media and appear on panels and programs to educate the public, and to work with elected officials to help them understand the challenges of the way their laws are implemented and to encourage them to write better, or correct harmful, legislation in the future. We encourage our groups to make sure that they are taking cues from first hand testimony of those impacted. The only way to do that is to make sure that our group is diverse and reflects the voices and perspectives of the community we try to serve.
“How do I plan to take a break?” These days I am feeling exhausted. On top of that I just started a full time job, maintain a few marketing clients from my consulting business, and have a house under construction. I guess I manage my stress by adding more and more projects and distractions. It is a great stress reliever when we finish a major push or see our efforts reflected in the local school board election outcome. That's what keeps us coming back for more. But I really think I should give yoga a try.
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