Dear Mr. Vogel,
America is a young nation built on good people choosing to rebel against regulation. We expanded through a continued desire to chase new opportunity and challenge. I chose to continue this tradition as a soldier in our Army. As a leader, I find the true calling of service to our nation regularly challenged by regulation and bureaucracy. My country has continued to invest in me as I invest in it, demonstrated by allowing me to attend graduate school in our nation’s capital from 2013–2015. It was a great experience but what made it truly transformational was my exposure to the November Project.
Here is a group of civilians creating opportunities to interact on a human level with people from all walks of life, in shared physical challenges, with a touch of our rebellious American nature. Yes, I know running the stairs at the Lincoln Memorial is against regulation, but at 0530 or 0630 in the morning it does not negatively impact society (at 1030 or 1900, absolutely). Same for getting close to monuments across the district like Farragut Park or Roosevelt Island. Same for being loud at said locations and times, but that small rebellion creates a team and a community willing to fight for their neighbors. The only thing I’ve experienced close to this is being a part of a deployed Tank Company in Baghdad. November Project has taught me to be a more empathetic and inclusive leader and to ask why we are doing (or not doing) something. Just because we have “always done it this way” isn’t a good answer, maybe it is time to peel back the onion and modify or eliminate some policies and regulations.
NP DC also provided me important experiences as an Army officer and representative of the nation. I stood with Steve once on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial having a polite conversation with a Parks Police officer carrying an M4 in the same manner I have in Baghdad. As I knew back then that I could never connect with those across from me, it was reiterated in my own country (lose the M4s guys :)). Being two guys in workout clothes in the cold and dark, trying my damnest not to lose my temper with this cordial public servant bound by well-intentioned, but excessive and unenforceable, regulation was an important experience for my development as a leader in our government. As a leader I am responsible for demanding necessary change on behalf of my subordinates.
This tribe, like most Americans, are not litigious, sedentary threats to the Treasury. I’ve been counseled by a number of rangers at the Mall, at other times, on how to claim compensation for injury incurred in volunteer service (that made me sick to my stomach as an American). Please step away from the what could go wrong bunker and get on the what could go right stage by granting the November Project a procedural waiver allowing running on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial specifically, and access to National Park grounds across the District (maybe the Nation) on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 0530–0730. In almost three years of activity without authorization no adverse impact occurred, there is no need for remedial action, only need to sanction that which is already sanctioned by lack of action. These are people who are the strength of our nation and should be supported by our government. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Respectfully,
Joshua Grubbs
Kansas City, MO
This letter is in response to concerns about the future of the tribe in DC as described in the following link: http://november-project.com/npxnps-dca/
