Rural Democracy Co-Authors Op-Ed for America’s 250th

Rural Democracy Initiative’s Policy and Communications Director, Michael Chameides co-authored an op-ed with a simple premise: in America, the people are supposed to be in charge.

The article was the latest in our collaboration with Topos Partnership and Think Big Alliance to highlight meaningful ways to honor the US 250th anniversary. The piece lifts up rural communities driving practical solutions. We share success stories led by Rural Democracy grantees, including San Marcos residents who stopped a harmful data center, Western Wisconsin communities that won safeguards on factory farms, and Iowa farmers who blocked a pesticide immunity bill that put corporate profits over people’s health. Together, their stories show what’s possible when everyday people organize so local voices guide local decisions — and how rural communities are breathing life into the promise of “We the People.”

OtherWords syndicated the op-ed to newspapers nationwide, and rural-serving outlets republished it, including The Wilson Times in eastern North Carolina, the Newton Daily News in central Iowa, and The Facts on the Texas Gulf Coast.