Letter to the Editor
First Mile Circle member Jonathan Scanlon’s letter to the editor was featured in Bellingham’s Cascadia Daily News. Click here for the original post and read the letter below. Thank you Jonathan for getting the word out about First Mile!
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Editor,
In recent years, Whatcom County elections have witnessed historic results. In 2019, Satpal Sidhu became the first person of color elected county executive. In 2021, Kristina Michele Martens and Edwin “Skip” Williams became the first Black elected officials in the history of the city’s legislative branch. In 2023 there are 115 local offices up for election across our county. Who will make history next?
In Washington state, Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) communities make up more than 36% of our state’s population, yet only 19% of all our elected leaders are from these communities. BIPOC communities are underrepresented at every level of government in our state, from school boards to the Legislature.
There’s a way to help.
First Mile, launched in 2019, is a statewide donor circle that supports progressive candidates of color in down-ballot races across Washington state who are bold, transformational and accountable to the communities they represent. First Mile members, who are small-dollar individual donors such as myself, give directly to candidate campaigns. First Mile’s community partner recommendations serve as a BIPOC-led, community-informed process for determining which candidates to support.
Since its founding in 2019, our cross-class, multi-racial donor circle has helped 43 transformational community leaders step into public office. BIPOC candidates face numerous barriers when running for office. Many First Mile-supported candidates have told us that the contributions brought them the boost of confidence they needed to carry on in the face of intimidating opposition.
I joined First Mile when a friend invited me to learn more about the initiative to help elect progressive candidates of color in our state. I invite my Whatcom County neighbors to learn more and to join by visiting firstmilecircle.org.
Jonathan Scanlon
Bellingham
