A legacy is defined in moments over time. And what guides me (and most of us), whether in public service or our private lives, is the legacy we leave behind.
Many times I have spoken out about the advantages of diversity in our community and how we are all enriched when we embrace other cultures. There is no better way to empathy than to experience the world from the vantage point of another, and I am incredibly fortunate for all the opportunities I have had to do just that.
And in that diversity, we have created a legacy of prospering as a nation by proving that differences amongst us equals strength as a country. However, our legacy as a nation now sadly appears fragile and benign silence will no longer do. For me, this means I must speak out against all these hateful acts that we have seen unfold on the nightly news recently.
Pleasanton defines itself as a community of character, and I believe we are.
Compassion and tolerance are not mere words to Pleasantonians. We take pride in honoring those traits that have shaped this community. Every year, we celebrate those who exemplify the better angels of our nature at the Mayor’s Volunteer Service Award Dinner and the Community of Character Collaborative.
Our very city itself was named after Union Calvary Gen. Alfred Pleasonton, who fought during the Civil War — and but for a typographical error on the part of U.S. Postal Service, the city’s spelling would have reflected the general’s name.
I was in the Army and was sent to Memphis, Tenn. when Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. I recall how everyone reacted in that moment; I remember the venomous racism of a few, but I also remember the kindness and compassion that outshone the rage of intolerance and demonstrated a fundamental goodness that lives within all of us.
It was a defining moment for me in my life. When we embrace diversity, we reject the rage of intolerance and a misguided belief that our nation belongs to a few, rather than all, citizens.
The foundation of this nation is that of a melting pot. We say it so often about ourselves that we take it as a given. So why, now, are we experiencing challenges to what’s made us great?
Perhaps it’s due to the inevitable ebbs and flows of our evolution as a nation. Or perhaps it grows out of too few of us saying enough is enough.
Whatever the reason, now is the time for each of us to speak up, even amongst friends and colleagues, to reaffirm our commitment to a legacy as a people and a nation that honors our success as a melting pot — that how we respond to this diversity and whether we continue to embrace it will determine whether we are on the right or the wrong side of history and humanity.
Editor’s note: Jerry Thorne is completing his third two-year term as mayor of Pleasanton after serving seven years on the City Council. A retired corporate executive with more than 40 years in the private sector, he also served for 10 years on the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission.
