Historically the days of our deepest darkest division were often followed by the dawn of progression and restoration. Support for the Civil Rights Act was just above 50% leading up to its passage, it doesn’t get more divided than that. So is the current state of our political polarization a bad thing or are we on the precipice of progression?

The things we are fighting about in politics today are not trivial. The first payment of the new childhood tax credit in July lifted 3 million children above the poverty line. Our lakes are empty, and our skies are filled with smoke, the decisions our politicians make today will determine the world our children inherit. The prices of our homes are such that school teachers, fire fighters, and police officers can’t afford to live in the communities they serve. If we weren’t fighting for solutions to these problems progression would be futile.

While political division is necessary for progression, community division is the antithesis to it. This is why programs like Ogden’s “Neighbor Up Grant” are so important. The program works like this: Apply for the grant — Ogden City gives you money — throw a giant party that brings your community together. Last weekend our block, in downtown Ogden, was able to throw a party on the city’s dime. We had a bounce house, tacos, and live music. Boomers mingled with millennials, new Ogdenites swapped stories with multigenerational homeowners, and a true sense of community was forged.

Ballots for this year’s municipal elections have already been mailed. These races naturally bring up the issues where we differ from our neighbors in our search for solutions to complex problems. The fight surrounding these issues is worth it but we must still look for ways to unite our community, thank you Ogden for creating a program that brought our neighborhood together last weekend. Oh and make sure to turn in those ballots!

Kevin Lundell

Ogden

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