There must be a reason that they use the same name for “beaver families” and for “newly-forming democratic enclaves combining a sense of individual agency and collective responsibility”.
Ever since that dramatic November meeting I’ve been particularly interested in the role our beaver family has played in involving Martinez residents more actively in local politics. How many of us had even attended a city council meeting, (let alone spoke up at one), before that night? Turns out I’m not the only one intrigued.
Last week at the Farmer’s Market I met Dr. Trevor Stack, Anthropologist and Professor of Hispanic Studies at Aberdeen University in Scotland. Interested in the how different communities come to understand their role as citizens, he is doing a summer project on how Martinez residents view citizenship. We struck up a conversation about the beavers and their success at getting ordinary people to gather and disseminate facts, campaign and persuade their neighbors, learn more about their natural surroundings, and challenge their leaders into new ways of thinking.
Let’s call it “beaver democracy 101”
Dr. Stack met me at the dam this week to talk about the process of awakening that happened for the town, as residents became more and more aware of the challenges and solutions. We talked about how it was initially an organic movement, with no web page or non-profit to focus it. One of the things that struck me at that meeting was how it elegantly it represented a cross-section of Martinez; the cynical folk who no longer believe the city represents their interests, and the more trusting ones who expected them to do the right thing. It is probably fair to say that a third of the people there that night felt certain that their speaking up would make no difference at all, and a third were sure the city would try and listen.
In a way, we were both wrong.
Forming a subcommitee to study the issues, (and selecting members that could really help solve them), was far more responsive to the concerns of Martinez residents than many ever expected. By the same token, delaying a vote and misrepresenting the on-going threat of flooding was far less responsible than the trusting voters expected. None of us got what we anticipated. We have all learned new things about the city:
(Some of us learned that they can listen. And some of us learned that they can lie.)
In the mean time, there has been a lot more attention paid to the way decisions are made and financed in this town. Our own Linda Meza started the campaign to organize a fourth of July parade for next year, and started “The Spirit of Martinez” blog and column for the gazette. I became involved with a group of citizens who were interested in fleshing out issues for the council candidates this year and will be working to make their individual differences clearer with a “Seeking Council” column and a debate. Along the way I’ve spoken to teachers, parents, refinery workers, shop keepers, environmentalists and Kiwanis club members and I can’t be the only one who has noticed beavers broadening my social circle.
Beavers change things: It’s what they do. Thanks Dr. Stack for noticing and asking the right questions. Now that beavers are being reintroduced to Scotland, maybe you can document their civic impact in your own frontyard.
