Last Wednesday, the day after the November 2024 election, I witnessed something that strengthened my belief in Riverside and the people who care about it. It was a small gesture, a simple tap on the knee, but it spoke volumes.
Note: I tried writing a version of this story without the names of the people involved, but it just didn't work. So, I'm sharing this story as it happened without permission from the names of those whose story I'm telling.
If you've been wondering what former Ward 1 Councilmember Erin Edwards has been up to since she left office in April, she has stepped into the leadership role for the Blue Zones Riverside initiative. Edwards hosted a project launch event on Wednesday, November 6, which she invited me to attend in early October, and I RSVP'd without paying real attention to the date. After a Tuesday night bouncing back and forth between watching election results nationwide and writing The Gazette's own election results coverage for our local races, Wednesday was a day I would have preferred to stay working from home in my pajamas all day.
I felt a bit hypocritical at the launch event, watching a cooking demonstration from La Sierra University's culinary team, snacking on veggie-based finger foods, and listening to a panel discussion on what it takes to launch a community-wide health initiative. All the while, I planned to head straight from the event to The Lucky Greek for a pastrami cheeseburger, fried zucchini, and a large Coke as my reward for making it through the day.
Edwards did a fantastic job with the event and had recruited a room full of some of not just Riverside's but the region's most influential leaders across many different sectors of work. From people like Fred Stover, growing farm-fresh food for Riversiders in need at Overflow Farms, and Claire Jefferson-Glipa of Family Promise, working in the heart of our city helping families at risk of homelessness, to former State Senator Richard Roth, who currently leads in the race for the County Board of Supervisors District 1 seat by 1,331 votes, and La Sierra University's new president Dr. Christon Arthur.
After the typical mingling that happens at these kinds of events, the snacks were pulled away, the background music faded, and event staff began guiding attendants to take our seats, where I ended up sitting next to Chani Beeman.
Beeman, who announced her candidacy for the Riverside Unified School District Board's Area 3 Trustee seat back in March and, I would assume, made the decision to run several months before that.
Beeman, who at the time of the event we were attending, knew she had lost the race having secured only 45% of the early votes counted and a path back to victory was highly unlikely.
Beeman, who at 5:45 a.m. that morning announced "The outcome for this election is not what we wanted. Votes are still being counted but the spread is not good."
Beeman has been an engaged leader and champion of the Riverside community for decades.
Beeman, who I first met when she reached out to me in January 2021, less than three weeks after I began publishing The Gazette, to encourage me in the work, saying the "lack of a credible local news source is a huge obstacle to Riverside’s development. Having such a strong independent news source was a big part of Riverside’s uniqueness, and since that was lost, I think the city has stagnated."
I was sitting next to that Chani Beeman the day after her election loss in a room full of Riversiders who both knew her and certainly knew the results of her race.
On the other side of Beeman sat Jesse Tweed, the provisionally appointed Trustee for RUSD's Area 4 seat, who, the night before, had won his race against three other candidates.
Edwards kicked off the event with an exercise designed to highlight all of the different kinds of people in the room, asking us to stand and stay standing when we heard the category of community leadership role that best described our own work in Riverside. Edwards led with "Elected Officials," and as I watched the mayor, councilmembers, and other folks in the room by way of winning elections stand up, I couldn't help but imagine the sting I would feel if I were sitting in Chani's seat.
At that moment, under those circumstances, I think I would be likely to stuff my hands in my pockets as a way of trying to hide or bring myself some small, cozy comfort. More likely, I would turn to the people around me, make some silly face, and whisper some self-deprecating joke as a way of signaling how unaffected I was by the outcome while simultaneously making the moment all about myself. Not Chani.
When Edwards invited elected officials to stand, without hesitation, Chani gave Jesse Tweed a light double tap on his left knee. It was a gesture that I read as both encouraging Tweed to stand and celebrate his win and letting him know she was going to be ok staying seated. As I read the moment, it was one of love and advocacy. It was someone putting someone else ahead of themselves that, to me, is the vision of neighborliness I aspire to. It was a moment that made me proud of the real Riverside – not the blighted one you see on local television news reports or highly followed social media accounts, but the hopeful one committed to building a better future for everyone who lives or works here.
Last week, I stumbled upon a quote from musician Nick Cave (he sings the Peaky Blinders theme song), which answered the question of one of his fans who was "feeling empty and more cynical than ever." Cave responded:
"Unlike cynicism, hopefulness is hard-earned, makes demands upon us, and can often feel like the most indefensible and lonely place on Earth. Hopefulness is not a neutral position, either. It is adversarial. It is the warrior emotion that can lay waste to cynicism.”
The day after her political loss, I saw Chani Beeman choose hope when it demanded that she push through her own pain to champion another. It renewed in me my own sense of optimism and belief in Riverside.
And she isn't giving up; now that the election is over, Chani told me she is getting to work to bring a chapter of Braver Angels to Riverside to help Riversiders better listen to each other through disagreement, better learn from one another, and create a brighter, hope-filled Riverside together.
According to their website, "Braver Angels is leading the nation’s largest cross-partisan, volunteer-led movement to bridge the partisan divide for the good of our democratic republic. Coming out of the election, we’re bringing together ‘We the People’ to find a hopeful alternative to toxic politics."
If you are interested in realizing that vision here in Riverside, email me your contact information, and I will connect you to Chani's efforts.
