The Statesman

Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison is the most intriguing political entity since Dick Gregory. Like Gregory, Ellison ran not so much as a politician, but as an activist. And, like Gregory, his being black has both everything and nothing to do with his significance. Society’s trying but isn’t yet colorblind; accordingly, the first thing anyone notices, on gazing at the good congressman, is that he’s black. Ellison, though, did not ride the race card to Capitol Hill. He stumped on humanist issues that crossed color and class lines and went Gregory one better. Dick Gregory lost. Ellison, after winning Minnesota’s 5th District congressional seat, shows signs of effecting social change from within the political system.

In his freshman term, Ellison got in front of what is now a national crisis over foreclosure scams, introducing the first predatory mortgage lending bill; put forth legislation on lead-based paint in toys; was part of the coalition to push an increase in minimum wages; and lobbied and organized forums to address issues from whether to stay in Iraq to rescuing the polluted environment.

Four times he visited the Middle East. During a trip paid for by the House Financial Services Committee (on which he sits), Ellison attended meetings at the International Peace Research Institute, the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The main lesson of Oslo is [Norway] is a nation dedicated to peace. They consistently have used government and nongovernmental organizations to promote peace around the world,” he says. They did, after all, create the Nobel Peace Prize. Ellison continues, “We can have a culture of peace in America. And have the potential to be [even] more effective than Norway. We’re bigger and have more money.” He came back in a position to give informed support to Rep. Dennis Kucinich’s (D-Ohio) bill to create a Cabinet-level Department of Peace.

Ellison looks forward to accomplishing still more. “I want to get us on the path to a high-wage economy. In the 1950s, one person could feed a family of four. We also had Jim Crow and gender discrimination. Gays were in the closet. Even being Catholic was some far-out thing to be. But if you worked 40 hours, you could make it. We had a vital, robust union movement. That’s not true today. We think the problem in Detroit is too much crime. Not that the auto companies have picked up and left. We need a high-wage strategy that says people of color and women can fully participate in society. The sad fact of the present is that while we’re seeing [discrimination] dissipate, we’ve seen our economic disparity worsen. It’s harder for everybody, no matter what color or gender, to put food on the table. To put gas in the car. I see myself as part of a movement to get single-parent health care, to get the Employee Free Choice Act passed, so workers can unionize again and protect their pay and work conditions. A movement to say, ‘We’re going to have a trade policy that does not depend upon foreign workers being exploited.’”

It was no hop, skip and a jump from his four-year tenure as state senator to Congress. At the outset of his campaign, the so-called smart money bet against him, rendering his task slightly less enviable than shoveling you-know-what uphill in a high wind. Despite receiving the Democratic nomination at the district convention, he saw his high-profile predecessor, Martin Sabo, backing his former chief of staff, Mike Erlandson. State Senator Ember Reichgott Junge and others jumped in the race. When Star Tribune columnist Katherine Kersten didn’t drag his religion (Muslim) into things, she got on his wife, Kim Ellison, about parking tickets.

Still, what he said resonated with voters. “The issues,” he recalls about his campaign platform, “peace, working-class prosperity, environmental stability and human rights, drew attention to critical issues affecting the country. Despite the conventional wisdom, people don’t vote religion or race, block voting. [They] vote issues and interests. Their hopes, what they care about.”

Concerning his religion, Ellison says that he’s not a Muslim congressman but a congressman who happens to be Muslim. “I’m just trying to push a progressive agenda. [Things like instead of America] “essentially being a military power to building better relationships with [other] nations.” Through concepts like “debt cancellation, fair trade, human rights—these are universal values. Not the province of any one faith. I don’t live my life thinking how I’m different from everybody else.

“Supporting Israel and supporting the Muslim world are not mutually exclusive. I support peace, negotiations to settle conflicts. [That’s] something good for Israelis and Palestinians. My nation, the U.S., hasn’t been an active player in the struggle for peace.”

This past Martin Luther King Day, Ellison put elbow grease where his mouth is, not just talking like a humanist, but literally rolling up his sleeves—in a jam-packed day of public appearances—to help the needy (even though, look it up, most poor people don’t vote). He was at Second Harvest Heartland, arguably Minnesota’s most vital food bank, helping prepare canned goods ready for distribution. Was it just a photo-op? “Symbols matter,” he says. “[They] inspire, provoke. If a picture goes out with me [volunteering] to help homeless people, poor people get food, that could have the effect of inspiring [other] people to volunteer too.”

Ellison’s job in Congress has, of course, impacted his family life. For good and not so good. “The downside is being away from family,” he says. “The upside: I have the chance to try and help America chart a new course … to get out of the economy of oil and smokestacks and [stop] getting bogged down in war after war. To choose a new way forward. It’s an opportunity to be part of the solution.” His wife, Kim, adds, “The family has definitely been enriched. Our daughter and her friend were inspired to start a group, Children for Change, [which] they envision will engage youth to be actively involved in shaping their futures. I’m working with the district office to begin a youth board that shows the importance of community service. [And I] had the pleasure of introducing high school seniors to Michelle Obama and Maxine Waters when they came to town.” She adds, “I [enjoy being] able to expose others to their government.”

Of the job itself, Ellison says, “One of the joys is being able to learn from individuals like Barney Frank and John Conyers. They’re my committee chairs, but they’ve also become mentors. I get to be around the most amazing people. Like Jim Oberstar from Minnesota. Nobody knows more about transportation and infrastructure. And Tim Walz from Minnesota. Nancy Pelosi, she’s one of the finest leaders I’ve had the opportunity to know. She’s putting a foundation together that will carry us into a progressive future. Being in Congress, every day is a seminar on something. You’re sitting down, you learn from your colleagues, from your constituents. It’s an unbridled joy. [And] I’m just getting started.”

As Dick Gregory once said, “It’s time for statesmen to enter the political arena instead of politicians.” Ellison shows signs of having done just that.