‘Propel’ runner reports on trek through town
‘People are more complex’ than it seems
NORTH WALES » After countless turns and stops, dozens of streets, and one long day, Jessica Grinspan can call her mission a success.
“On a very chilly Halloween morning I set out on a mission, wearing my ‘Vote’ shirt and also
carrying the ‘North Wales 150’ flag pinned to it,” she said.
“The total run was about 30 miles, comprised of more than 300 turns, and I had quite a few conversations in between with fellow community members, about politics, society, and beyond,” Grinspan said.
In late October Grins
pan announced her plan to “Propel the Vote” by running up, down, and around every street in North Wales, to raise awareness of voting and build enthusiasm for the Nov. 3 election. Her results as reported to borough council: cheers, chats, over a hundred followers, and even music from new friends all around the town.
“Throughout the journey, I was joined by a few other friends, and even community members I had
never met before, who were following my progress and path on Facebook, either to run a few streets with me or come out and say ‘Hello,’ cheer me on, and introduce themselves,” she said.
“At one point in the second or third leg, there was a white van parked, and as we ran by they started blasting the ‘Rocky’ theme song, so it was really cool,” Grinspan said.
While posting updates on her “Propel the Vote” Facebook page along the way, Grinspan told council, she made sure to stop and chat or at least wave to every single spectator, taking time to encourage voting whenever possible, and exploring a few previously unknown alleys and
side streets.
“When you travel a place by foot, it’s a means of getting to know that place on a deeper, more intimate level than you can from behind your windshield, or behind the screen of a computer,” she said.
While political parties at a national level may seek to divide residents by race, class, beliefs, or whatever other category, Grinspan said, she learned that the people of North Wales have much more in common than they might realize.
“In reality, people are a lot more complex than that, which I saw a lot of firsthand during this run,” she said.
One example: while
some might think that supporting both police and the “Black Lives Matter” movement are incompatible, one local resident did exactly that, Grinspan told council.
“A lot of people think you can either support the police, or be anti-racism, but the two are not compatible. That’s obviously not true, and I did see a lady on the way who was working on her yard, and she had multiple signs including ‘Back the blue,’ we support police, but also ‘Black Lives Matter’ and a Biden-Harris sign,” she said.
“We had a nice conversation about how it’s not either-or, as a lot of people think.”
And for those who think military veterans might also only support one side or another, think again: Grinspan said she talked
to multiple veterans on her run who both expressed widely different views.
“I guess for me, this project reinforced that it can be dangerous to succumb to the dichotomous thinking, and lump people together, because that just divides us further. And we’re more similar than we are different,” she said.
Council President Jim Sando thanked Grinspan for her efforts on behalf of council, and councilwoman Wendy McClure said the run reminded her of prior meetings with people whose views ended up far different than she expected at first glance.
“I was reminded that you can’t judge a book by its cover. By reaching out, and extending a hand of kindness, or asking a question of your neighbor, or anyone, you learn so much more,” McClure said.
Sando added that Grinspan could consider joining the borough’s parks and recreation board to help with planning future running events, and Grinspan said those who follow her “Propel the Vote” page can follow there for future updates.