By: Hannah Breckbill, Oneota Co-op Board Member
Democracy is a big and almost intimidating word these days. We are about to cast our votes for national offices and many of us feel a great deal of weight this election season. I’ve noticed my inbox filling with ever-more-frantic messages from candidates across the nation, requesting donations or my name on a petition, telling me I’m needed to help take down the opposing side. I’m told that the fate of democracy hangs in the balance.
I don’t doubt it.
But even as this swirl of tension permeates the media, I still believe, as Howard Zinn stated, that democracy is less a series of votes than a series of actions. It’s less about saying yes or no to other people’s ideas of how the world should run, and more about formulating one’s own, and then putting them into practice, on the ground, in a community.
That is precisely what makes cooperatives great: together, the membership of our food cooperative has a lot of power to generate ideas and to try them out. To start new things, to experiment, to get better. Think about our history: if it weren’t for a few committed individuals, intent on good & responsible food, working together to access it, we wouldn’t have the vibrant and thriving community-based grocery store that we have now. I’m told there have been passionate arguments along the way; but always these conflicts have been rooted in this place, with a commitment to this cooperative and its values.
Our co-op is entering a time of transition, starting a hiring process for a new General Manager. In this time, we can remember that we Co-op members are all owners: each of us has a voice, no less strong than that of any other member. The board has created a survey so that each member can share our dreams and best ideas for the Co-op – and our criticisms too. What an opportunity to engage, to really think about what could make this small, community-centered institution a better one.
As a board member, when I see the results of the member survey, I hope to read fresh ideas, challenging criticisms, impossible dreams, simple affirmations, and practical small steps. Of course, you know that not everything that every member writes can or will be implemented, but I hope to be inspired by your visions. So please do give some thought to the best things that you can imagine for our co-op!
And here is one step more: share your thoughts with a fellow Co-op member, or several. That is where democracy truly comes into action: when people engage in conversation, honing ideas to make them better. And the beauty of our cooperative is that this kind of democracy isn’t about taking down another side. It’s about building a whole, together.
Click here to give your feedback through our short survey.
