The Inter-generational Party

Blog | Elizabeth May
August 25, 2010

When people ask me the ways in which the Greens are different from the old line parties, I usually point out that we are consistently concerned with the long term issues — that we think about the seventh generation in our decision-making. Our policies and our message are inter-generational.

It occurred to me the other day when I was out canvasing in neighbourhoods around the Saanich Peninsula that we are also inter-generational in our membership. We did a canvass blitz with about a dozen volunteers. The youngest, a fabulous canvasser and dedicated volunteer I had always pegged at about 18 or 19. It turned out she is 15. (I was led to think she was older more due to her strong sense of confidence and high level of articulate communication than appearance.) Another canvasser who is a reliable volunteer was our oldest volunteer that night. I thought he was in his 70′s. When he told me he was 87, you could have knocked me over with a feather. (John attributes his robust health and energy to his wife, who is a nurse. Still, he said that with a wink.)

I saw further evidence of this at our national BGM. The youth component of the weekend was substantial. There were a dozen or so amazingly well behaved children from 6 to 12, a handful of totally adorable infants, and a teenage and early twenties crowd of enormous potential and enthusiasm. Our kickoff keynote speaker was Ilona Dougherty, founder of Apathy is Boring, a non-partisan NGO dedicated to getting out the youth vote. Saturday the Young Greens held their own conference to end apathy.

Meanwhile, a large number of the participants were seniors — octogenarians and older. The space in our lives for inter-generational contact is quite small. Segregation of young people to young peoples’ space and old people to their designated areas allows the middle aged group to work constantly without running into either the very young or the very old in the work place. It is quite unnatural, and yet we allow it unexamined to determine who we get to know.

It is a real tribute to any political party that it can attract people from across a fairly wide spectrum of our society.