21st Century Democrats Awards Reception

We had a great evening last night at our annual awards reception honoring US Congressman Elijah Cummings, Professor and Best-selling Author Simon Johnson, legendary musician and activist Si Kahn, and Wisconsin State Senate Majority Leader Russell Decker for their commitment to progressive Democratic ideas. Author Si Kahn was given the solidarity forever award in honor of his progressive work in organizing and writing. Kahn spoke of the importance of grassroots organizing and the power of people working together for change. He is the founder of the organization titled Grassroots Leadership and author of the book Creative Community Organizing. Kahn has devoted the majority of his life working as an organizer and a song writer. The author has written songs based on community and freedom which have been recorded by multiple artists. Throughout the evening, Si Kahn performed songs he had written for each of the award winners based on their accomplishments and lines of work.

Furthering our tradition of building a farm team and supporting people on the state and local level, we honored State Senator Russ Decker last night for his excellence in public service. State Senator Decker was first elected in 1990 and has since become the Wisconsin Senate Majority Leader. In addition to being a journeyman bricklayer, Sen. Decker has fought for healthcare and put stimulus dollars to work creating new jobs and infrastructure.

In addition to honoring people who hold an elected office or organize, we also recognized a leader in the academic arena. Professor Simon Johnson was honored for his visionary leadership regarding the financial crisis and his ideas for reform. Professor Johnson is the author of the book 13 Bankers in which he discusses the root of the financial crisis and the future that lies ahead for our country. His teaching and writing is a powerful way to spread the message of financial reform and the consequences if effective reform is not put in place. During his acceptance, Johnson referenced Teddy Roosevelt’s ideals and the need to enforce regulation and accountability in the 21^st Century.

Lastly, we recognized Congressman Elijah Cummings for his excellence in public service. Congressman Cummings has proudly served seven terms for Maryland’s 7^th District as a leading progressive voice for financial reform. Rep. Cummings spoke of the importance of young people becoming involved in the progressive movement and staying involved. In addition, he spoke of the meaning of liberal and that being liberal means doing what is right for all people.

The award ceremony concluded with Si Kahn singing Ralph Chaplin’s traditional union song Solidarity Forever. Kahn began by speaking the lyrics of the song to the crowd and then followed by having the crowd sing-along. The lyrics were very fitting as the event was hosted on the rooftop terrace at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Washington, DC headquarters. The main chorus sang solidarity forever, solidarity forever, solidarity forever, for the union makes us strong. Immediately following the awards, authors Si Kahn and Simon Johnson signed books for supporters. We would like to thank everyone for coming out to the event to celebrate these courageous leaders and all of their accomplishments!