The Most Diverse Convention

A note from Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman

We often talk about the diversity of the Democratic Party—the diversity that has been front and center all week here in the birthplace of our democracy. I’m proud of the beautiful umbrella of ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, and identity under which we work, and I know how much stronger it makes us in everything we do.

There’s perspective and insight that comes with diversity—and as long as Republicans see fit to alienate immigrants and people of color and so many more, they’ll be lacking it. They’ll also miss out on the vibrant diversity of ideas that come with so many different people coming together.

Those ideas feed and fuel a Democratic platform that seeks out every possible avenue to make life better for working Americans, to level the playing field for everyone, to make us stronger and move us forward.

Take criminal justice reform. The Republican platform calls for vague criminal justice reforms, but blames President Obama for “lack of respect,” and “harassment,” of law enforcement, a position that can only come from failing to understand the perspectives of those who’ve been targeted and unfairly treated by law enforcement. You can’t bridge a gap by taking one side. That’s why the Democratic platform calls for rebuilding the trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve—acknowledging that our officers have difficult jobs and deserve our respect and support, but recognizing that we need a shift in how we train our police, and what kinds of behaviors we encourage.

Where the Republican platform offers only lip service on the problems facing our criminal justice system, and hones in on “over-federalization,” as the chief problem, the diversity of experiences and backgrounds that helped to build the Democratic platform calls out the crisis of mass incarceration within the first sentence. Too many Americans, particularly Black and Latinx Americans, are in prison.

Private prisons, and the mandatory minimums that keep them busy, are a huge part of that problem. Companies will always seek to maximize their profits, that’s just the nature of business. With a business that grows by putting more bodies behind bars, a bottom line that expands by cutting back on services, and revenues that increase with policies that allow them to do both, for-profit prisons are born as bad actors in a system that already needs a lot of work.

But there’s no mention of that by Republicans. Just like they don’t talk about de-escalation training for officers, or ending racial profiling, or the school-to-prison pipeline, or “banning the box,” or re-entry programs, or any of the other initiatives that will put us on the right track.

There’s strength in diversity, and power in our ability to come together as one. It comes from the same principles that built our nation. It gives us the ability to solve our problems in a way that considers everyone’s needs. It’s what has always made America so very great. It’s what will take us forward and ensure a bright future for the next generation. It’s an engine of progress that Democrats have harnessed—and I’m proud to be onboard.

— U.S. Representative Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12)