Walk a day in my shoes: Bill Richardson/Mark Fitzgerald

Run time: 02:47 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACfV3wwMIJk   Posted on YouTube: June 08, 2007 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: June 08, 2007 By DU Member: Omaha Steve Views on DU: 880

 
As part of SEIU's program to ensure that presidential candidates experience firsthand what life is like for working people in America, Gov. Bill Richardson on June 7th walked a day in the shoes of SEIU member Mark Fitzgerald.

Their time began with an early morning breakfast at the Fitzgerald home in Las Vegas and continued at the Clark County Department of Family Services where Mark investigates and monitors injuries, deaths, and mental health issues involving very young children.

I did not expect that candidates who agreed were going to visit administrators and workers only to get their perspectives. I expected the candidates to walk in the shoes who provides direct services.

I hope Richardson learned something in the process. But I don't think it's much different from what he does now in talking to agencies (but then again, maybe not), and certainly, he wasn't up at 5:30am with the direct provider, walking with the person to work, and doing the work, as Elaine did with the elderly. Notice Bill R was wearing a suit too. If requested, I will provide a link to the Edwards video for comparisons. It appears that Richardson got advice from the Clinton camp how to get around the issue of really participating in providing direct service to people, but I am not certain. But I bet that is what Clinton will do.

Disappointing. Richardson touts unions but doesn't possess the true empathy because he did not provide direct service as the workers do.

I am glad that Richardson took part in the program, even if he didn't really spend a day in anyone's shoes. As an Edwards supporter, I was pleased that John Edwards was the first person to sign up for this, and that he rolled up his sleeves and spent the day with someone and was "hands on" in doing their job.

I didn't know a lot about the SEIU until I listened to all that Edwards has had to say about them. John Edwards has really made me think a lot more about how important this union, and others, are in this country.

In the past he had to work hard to earn his way through college. Not only the son of a mill worker, he was a mill worker.

:hi:

Here's the video of John Edwards being the first to respond to the Walk a Day in My Shoes challenge from SEIU. He really gets into it and participates in Elaine Ellis's work.

I expected more empathy from Richardson and a willingness to promote the hard work people in the service industries perform. Where is the video of him doing the difficult work of service providers?

Let me start by saying that I am 23 years old, have nothing against Edwards (I really like his wife), and I haven't decided who I'm voting for yet. But I know that the person elected in 2008 is gonna determine what my lifetime will be like, so let's put things in perspective and not compare who had the best photo opt.

First off to say he didn't walk a day in anyone's shoes is, I feel, demeaning to the man he followed. Children's' services is a hard job. I am studying child psychology myself and will probably end up in this field of service. To say because he is "administrative", that somehow makes his job less taxing, unappreciated, and grossly underpaid, makes you a hypocrite. To have to decide whether a family is healthy enough to stay together, to have to take children away from their families and put them into a BROKEN foster system is a hard job and I admire Bill Richardson for taking that on.

Secondly, what would you have like to see him do? Use a families pain as a photo opt to say "hey look guys, I'm a regular guy!" That's kinda sick to me. Truth is you don't want to see that on youtube. People don't even want to acknowledge that it exists, which is why child services is usually understaffed, the staffed underpaid, and the work never appreciated. It's easy to cheer on Edwards rubbing and old woman's feet. It's easy to cheer on that lady for getting up everyday to take care of those who can't take care of themselves. This man does the same thing! Why aren't you cheering him?

Lastly, it seems to me that this project wasn't for us to see how "normal" these guys are. They're politic ans, they have hundreds of people telling them what normal is suppose to look like(and Edwards way more then Richardson). The point was for these guys to see how hard life is outside of the Ivory towers they're all Entombed in, whether it be state or Federal, and see how hard life is for those of us who are "normal". So let's just hope that whoever they followed they took something away. That's the real measure, and we won't see that in a 5 min video clip.