As readers of these pages know, I’m a big admirer of Nick Melvoin, who is the son of my friends Jeff and Martha Melvoin. That's not why I admire him, thought it's a good foundation. (I've noted Jeff previously, as well, since he runs the Writers Guild Showrunner Trainee Program.) Nick, as some of you may recall if you were paying attention at the last lecture, is currently in his second term on the Los Angeles School Board. (In fact, he was the only School Board candidate in 2022 to win his race with over 50% of the vote – getting 60% -- and therefore not need a run-off). He's also running for the U.S. Congress to fill the open 30th District seat held by Adam Schiff who is a candidate for the U.S. Senate. I'll get to the reason for writing all this, but first I have to get to the obligatory bookkeeping. I'll be pithy in one paragraph, though, and get it out of the way quickly. Nick graduated from Harvard, has a Masters degree in Urban Education, and got a law degree from NYU. After that, he did some work for the ACLU, worked in the Obama White House with the Domestic Policy Council, and also clerked in the U.S. Attorney’s office in civil rights cases. And then, rather than take a high-paying job at a big mucky-muck power law firm, he jumped from all that into -- getting a job teaching in the Los Angeles inner-city in Watts, where he also coached baseball and soccer. And then helped start a school newspaper. And runs Camp Harmony, a camp for kids who are experiencing poverty, which he started working at as a counselor 21 years ago. I mention all this today because Nick has had a very good week, happily showing that I’m not alone in my admiration and just yammering in the wind. And as I like to say, I tries not to steer you wrong. Just yesterday, for instance, he received an endorsement from Rep. Colin Allred, who is running for the U.S. Senate against Ted Cruz. And earlier in the week, he was featured in a long article in the New York Times. In fact, not only was he featured in the article, but the Times used his photo at the very top to illustrate it. Pleased as I was to see Nick quoted and featured so prominently in such a high-profile venue, the only unfortunate thing was the reason for having the article, which is about the reaction of progressive Jews dealing with those they've long-considered allies in the wake of the Israeli-Hamas War.
The article sets its foundation with the opening paragraph -- "Progressive Jews who have spent years supporting racial equity, gay and transgender rights, abortion rights and other causes on the American left — including opposing Israeli policies in Gaza and the West Bank — are suddenly feeling abandoned by those who they long thought of as allies. This wartime shift represents a fundamental break within a liberal coalition that has long powered the Democratic Party." Nick's quote comes halfway through the piece. It's first lead into by a passage about conditions in the U.S. that such progressives were facing -- "But in the Hamas attacks, many saw an existential threat, evoking memories of the Holocaust and generations of antisemitism, and provoking anxiety about whether they could face attacks in the United States. And they were taken aback to discover that many of their ideological allies not only failed to perceive the same threats but also saw them as oppressors deserving of blame." Which brings the article to Nick -- “I am in such a state of despair — in my generation, we have been warned how quickly people would turn on us and we just thought no way,” said Nick Melvoin, 38, a member of the Los Angeles Unified School Board who is now running for Congress and keeps a framed picture of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel marching with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his office. “Now we see, this is how that happens: When you dehumanize the group. This indoctrination that many of us have been warned about hit us like a ton of bricks." For those interested in reading the full article, it's long and interesting, though, as I said, disturbing for what it's about, you can find it here. And for those interested in finding out more about the good fellow himself, you can find that here. It's going to be a challenging race for all the candidates, since the 30th District -- being Adam Schiff's -- is so high profile. But at least with a week like this, it provides Nick with a strong foundation for the rest of the campaign.
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AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. Feedspot Badge of Honor
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