LETTER: Framingham Democrats must heal divisions, focus on crucial November elections
To the Editor:
When I moved to Framingham in 2014, I looked for ways to become active in supporting political, social and economic progress in my new hometown. I became a Town Meeting member in 2015, and served on the planning and zoning and economic development boards.
In 2017, I became an associate member of the Framingham Democratic Committee and in 2019 became a full member. I volunteered to be secretary of the FDC to help influence candidates, legislation and campaigns and make Framingham, Massachusetts and America better for future generations.
I believe the Framingham Democrats offer the best way we can work locally to help protect small-d democracy in the USA, by helping local Democrats work together to advance the cause of rule of law, equality and majority rule at the local, state and national level. I feel that never before has American democracy been at such risk as in the 2024 election year, where at a national level what used to be the loyal opposition is putting forth candidates that openly talk of rejecting the results of elections and “dictatorship for a day.”
In the face of this extraordinary national challenge, I am disappointed to find that the local Framingham Democratic Party has been divided into two groups this year, with different visions for the future of our local party. A majority of local Democratic activists are aligned with Group 1, and a minority, which has not put forth a full slate of candidates for Group 2, proposes to change the direction of the local party. Because of this, a lot of energy has gone into local politicking in recent months that should have been directed at critical national issues.
For the last year, the FDC has been co-chaired by Rosamond Hooper-Hamersley and former City Councilor Cesar Stewart-Morales. Under their leadership, we are supporting progressive Democratic legislation and candidates at the state level and are working to support Democrats nationally and in swing states such as Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Arizona, where we can sway the Senate, House and Electoral College in November.
Framingham Democrats need to move beyond the division in our city party and unite to focus on these all-important national issues. Please consider filling in the oval for Group 1 — 34 current members and associate members who are a diverse group, representing all city districts, communities of color and the immigrant, disability and LGBTQ+ population. Group 1 candidates are committed to work hard: to attend meetings, invite speakers, hold forums that are open to the public and advocate for Democratic candidates on all levels. Group 1 looks forward to healing the division in our local party so we can have maximum impact on improving politics at the state and national level.
You can read more about who is in Group 1 and why to vote for them at https://Group1GetsStuffDone.org/ and https://www.facebook.com/group1getsstuffdone.
Doug Lawrence
Framingham
Editor's note: Doug Lawrence is a member and secretary of the Framingham Democratic Committee
This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Doug Lawrence says Framingham Democrats move past internal division
