Guest Post: "Elections are temporary. Our community is not."

Ed. Note: The following has been reposted, with permission, from Lindsay Bigby's Facebook post on Milton Neighbors:

One of the most striking things I’ve learned from being involved in campaigns is this: the people doing the actual work are rarely the ones creating the toxicity.

I’ve spent hours holding signs and attending events alongside people supporting “competing” candidates. We talk, laugh, wave, wish each other luck, and treat each other with genuine warmth. There’s an understanding among the people actually showing up: we may disagree on who is best for the job, but we all care enough about our community to be here. Yet some of the ugliest behavior comes from people you never see doing any of it . . . people who feel comfortable belittling, insulting, or attacking their neighbors from behind a screen simply for supporting someone different.

That needs to stop.

I’ve made an effort to meet a high percentage of the candidates, each election, who have stepped forward to serve. Some earned my vote and some didn’t, but I have yet to meet one who believes cruelty represents them or their campaign.

Passion is not an excuse for cruelty. Disagreement does not require disrespect. And supporting one person does not require tearing down another.

Elections are temporary. Our community is not.

Thank you to every person who had the courage to put their name on a ballot because you believed you could make our town or state better. Thank you for the time, energy, sacrifice, and vulnerability it takes just to make it to Election Day.

If you didn’t win, please don’t underestimate what you accomplished or how many people you inspired along the way.

Votes determine who holds the office. They do not measure the impact of the person brave enough to step forward.

Thank you

-Lindsay Bigby