Eldridge
Thomas Gerry was the fifth vice-president of the United States. He served under
President James Madison. If you have never heard his name, that’s could mean
that you weren’t on your high school’s It’s Academic team. Neither was
I. But even better known than Mr. Gerry is a political practice bearing his
name that is damaging the democracy we enjoy in this country: gerrymandering.
Manipulating the boundaries of congressional districts through (too often
politically motivated disingenuous) re-apportionment in order to assure that
one political party or the other will “own” a district may have created some
majority-minority districts, but in recent years it has stifled what should be
the inherent dynamism of a democracy. In 2012, Democrats won 51% of the popular
vote for House representatives countrywide, but secured only 46% of the seats;
gerrymandering played a significant role. Take
Illinois’s famous 4th District, pictured here above. The creative people who engineered
this one had to include part of highway I-294 to make it contiguous and ensure
it would remain solidly in the hands of the Democrats. Similarly Maryland’s 3rd
District, left, meandering lazily like a river through three counties and
Baltimore City. 
Or
consider Pennsylvania’s 12th District
(below right), a Republican stronghold (below—can you tell which is the map?).
This
country is dotted with such districts: North Carolina’s 3rd, California’s 7th,
New York’s 12th, Texas’ 19th, or any of a great many congressional districts
through the country. Gerrymandered districts is the shrewd creation of
politicians who have a very different conception of leadership than you
probably do: Rather than going out and winning votes and serving their constituents,
they redraw districts so that they can choose their voters. (Check out this video for a good laugh, and Jon Stewart’s take, as well.) Who’s serving who here? Coupled
with the massive influx of special interest money into politics and the
repeated failures of campaign reform, it is not surprising that we have a largely
dysfunction political system and fewer and fewer people are choosing to
participate, as evidenced by lower voter turnout. People are feeling
increasingly disenfranchised and we are all suffering from a paucity of genuine
leadership.
The
Israelites, newly freed from slavery in Egypt, are running into leadership
problems, as well. They, too, feel disenfranchised. Moses is at wit’s end. He
has survived the desert, Pharaoh, plagues, Pharaoh’s army, the Sea of Reeds,
and even Amalek. Now Moses faces what may be his greatest challenge yet:
leading the Israelites. Fortunately, his father-in-law, Jethro, comes to meet
him and, seeing the confusion and disarray entailed in trying to adjudicate the
needs and conflicts of 600,000 people, he tells Moses:
The thing you are doing is not right! You will surely
wear yourself out—and these people, as well. The task is too heavy for you; you
cannot do it alone. Now listen to me. I will give you counsel, and God be with
you! You represent the people before God: you bring the disputes before God,
and enjoin upon them the laws and the teachings, and make known to them the way
they are to go and the practice they are to follow. (Exodus 18:17-20)
Jethro
tells Moses that his job description is to be the intermediary between the
people and God concerning God’s expectations for them. Moses, however, is
attempting to do far more: he is trying to serve as judge of their disputes
with one another. No, no, Jethro says, this is far too great a burden for one
person to shoulder, even Moses. The people are not being well served.
You shall also seek out from among all the people
capable men who fear God, trustworthy men who spurn ill-gotten gain. Set these
over them as chiefs of thousands hundreds, fifties, and tens, and let them
judge the people at all times. Have them bring every major dispute to you, but
let them decide every minor dispute themselves. Make it easier for yourself by
letting them share the burden with you. If you do this—and God so commands you—you
will be able to bear up; and all these people too will go home unwearied.
(Exodus 18:21-23)
Jethro’s response to Moses’ conundrum of leadership was not democracy, but
Torah reminds us of something that is easily forgotten in the power and money
battles that dominate the American political landscape. Jethro instructed Moses
that the criteria for choosing leaders ought to be their qualities of
character: they must be honest and trustworthy, and dedicated to serving the
people. Do these sound like criteria that would serve us well, and far better
than that of powerhouse fundraising, the #1 criterion these days?
Gerrymandering
is not illegal. The goal of creating majority-minority districts and districts
with like concerns may well be legitimate in some instances, but we see little
of that today. What is more, drawing districts is a complex issue and there is
no simple (nor even complex) mathematical algorithm for doing it. (Try out the Redistricting Game.) In June 2014 the Supreme Court uphold the constitutionality of the
independent redistricting commission of Arizona, providing hope that we could
move to a strategy for drawing congressional district lines that is not
flagrantly partisan. If we can recognize the effect of extensive gerrymandering
in corroding the democratic nature of our political system and skewing
elections even further toward the poles of power and money and away from the
pillars of character and ideas, there is hope we can move toward a system that
allows more access to the political process. Hopefully, we the voters will then
be able to give due consideration to candidates’ character and vision.
© Rabbi Amy Scheinerman
