The writer represents District 8 as a member of Brattleboro’s Representative Town Meeting. She also serves on the town Planning Commission.
BRATTLEBORO-For the entire period of my life on this Earth, neoliberalism has been the dominant ideology in American society. We have watched for half a century as the politics of divide and conquer has hollowed out our nation, and our community here in Brattleboro is no exception.
It is long past time for that to change. We in Brattleboro are on the precipice of crisis, and the politics of division and dominance are the antithesis of a solution, a barrier to the future prosperity and well-being of our aging and crumbling town.
No one wants to think of their home in negative terms, but I learned through decades of professional experience advising business owners and governments as a technology and business consultant that failing to properly identify problems is the first blind step toward failure. Only when we properly recognize our current state are we able to plan our path to a better future on the horizon.
I support the candidacies of Isaac Evans-Frantz and Nell Mayo to the Brattleboro Selectboard, because they represent a politics of care and consideration for us, our neighbors, and our community. Isaac and Nell are literally the future of our town.
It has been my distinct pleasure these past two years to work with Isaac for his election and re-election, because he is willing to stand up for the values of inclusion and equity, for compassion, frugality, and forbearance. These are the guiding ethics of my life, and the record shows clearly that Isaac has been working in concert with them. He does not shy away from the difficult questions and is willing to consider new approaches.
I have personally gone door-to-door with Isaac and witnessed his desire to get to the heart of what our neighbors want and need. I have seen his undeniable dedication over the past year to affordability and equity for all the residents of Brattleboro.
I was proud to see Isaac was the sole dissenting vote against premature adoption of the highly deficient encampments removal policy without any of the changes recommended by the Vermont ACLU. We would do ourselves a disservice not to return Isaac Evans-Frantz to the Brattleboro Selectboard.
Nell Mayo immediately impressed me with their drive and interest when I began to involve myself more fully with municipal politics last year. That’s why I leapt at the chance to nominate them to represent my district at Representative Town Meeting in 2025. I wanted to go on record as the one who moved to nominate them to fill a vacant seat, when they showed up for our town, to become a part of a coalition of the willing. I consider it a feather in my cap, and I’m sure that if you know Nell, you’ll agree.
I am proud to support Nell’s candidacy. This town needs people who have clear long-term vision, especially among the younger generations, who have so much to look forward to in this town. Nell takes a very keen interest in town finances and keeps in mind the fact that our town spending should serve the public.
Politics is applied morality. Elected and appointed officials have a sacred moral duty, legal obligation, and ethical responsibility to serve the best interests of all their constituents, not merely those who voted for them or those who agree with them, and certainly not only those who own real estate or otherwise possess wealth in their jurisdictions.
Last week, Selectboard Chairperson Elizabeth McLoughlin demonstrated exactly why I want to see her retire from politics. Her vision for this town is and has always been diametrically opposed to the investments in growth and equity I believe Brattleboro desperately needs.
She has shown over the course of multiple years that she lacks the temperament I expect from a political leader, and the very idea that the person holding the highest political office in our municipal government, the one who literally wields the gavel — and far too frequently — could ever be “silenced” is bewildering at best.
I agree with Liz that public safety is indeed an important goal. I disagree that policing and punishment are the best means of achieving public safety. I disagree that a high quality of life is the result of public safety; rather, I believe the converse — that public safety, public order, and public health are the result of a high and stable quality of life that comes about by public policy which lowers the cost of living to attract immigration and investment, not by threatening people with authoritarianism.
Liz could not have possibly provided a more stark contrast between her values and those I believe will actually obtain a higher quality of life for all in this town.
As a result, I am supporting the candidacy of Amanda Ellis-Thurber for the three-year seat. I believe that Amanda is a person who is willing to listen to others and to learn from them, and I think we can all agree that she and her family have as much or more of a stake in this town as any of us.
Nothing is more clear to me right now than that Brattleboro needs positive change rather than stasis. When our times pass into the history books, I am certain that it will become clear that these next few years were critical in either our recovery or our decline.
I know on which side of the arc of history I wish to be accounted.
Gemma Seymour
Brattleboro
The writer represents District 8 as a member of Brattleboro’s Representative Town Meeting. She also serves on the town Planning Commission.
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