Philosophy Now-Aug-Sept 2019

26 Philosophy Now ●August/September 2019

Whatever one might think about such a dim view of politics

(and it is a problematic view in the context of constitutional democ-

racy), the challenge from a teaching perspective is to prepare politi-

cians to make wise judgments in morally ambiguous circumstances.

There are times in the life of every politician when their con-

science will conflict with the demands of the job, and handling

these situations well requires preparation. At the very least, it is

worth exploring the possibility that a little preparation could enable

politicians to deal with these dilemmas more ethically.

A Visit to a School for Politicians

A pilot program to test the idea of a school for politicians has

been developed at the University of British Columbia. The Insti-

tute for Future Legislators is designed to provide practically-

oriented learning and opportunities for experimentation in the

practice of politics. Participants attend weekend bootcamps in

which they hone their political skills and knowledge with coach-

ing from former statespersons. Aspiring politicos are placed in

situations in which they have to choose between loyalty to their

party, the views of their constituents, and their own consciences.

They learn to balance these goods. They are given opportuni-

ties to collectively deliberate about such topics as whether to

enter the political arena at all. I have been authorized by one

participant to describe her experience. I will call her Jasmine.

On day one of the bootcamp, participants were asked why they

wanted to enter politics. Many said they wanted to make the world

a better place. To get beyond platitudes, they were asked to share

personal stories. Jasmine talked about her family, her community,

and the years she’d spent in advocacy, working with people strug-

gling with mental health, addiction, homelessness, violence, and

poverty. Through this she had come to realize that “we can lobby

government as much as we want; that’s not going to get us results.”

Having a seat at the table would provide “an opportunity to shift

things.” Yet she recognized that she needed to develop her politi-

cal skills, specifically with respect to when to offer solutions, and

when to step back and let others take the lead.

Two weeks later, participants were in the Council Cham-

bers in Vancouver City Hall. A former Mayor was acting as

Mayor, and a sitting councillor was acting as City Manager.

Participants were debating whether to raise property taxes to

generate funds to fill gaps in the response to Vancouver’s opioid

crisis. Jasmine was role-playing as a councillor and did a superb

job. Later, one of her colleagues nominated her as party leader.

She accepted the nomination. When two others were nomi-

nated, both males and both more experienced in electoral poli-

tics (one was an elected leader of a major union; the other a vice

president of a riding association), Jasmine abruptly withdrew.

She was asked why by a facilitator. Did she not say she wanted

to sit at the table? Did she not think she would be good?

She allowed her name to stand, and was elected.

In the reflective discussion held at the end of the day, Jasmine

was encouraged to think about her experience:

Facilitator: You had a moment where you had to decide whether to step

up or pull back... Go through the process of thinking about that.

Jasmine: I have this tendency to second guess myself on how much I talk,

and how much space I take up... I just thought ‘Oh, there are other people

interested in doing this; that’s okay, I’ll just pull back’, not recognizing at

the moment that there are other people interested in me doing this [laughs].

Another participant:I’m a strong advocate for you.

Jasmine:I thank you for that. Because I didn’t ever think about it that

way. It’s not just me doing something that I want to do, but it’s other peo-

ple who want me to do it. Right?

The councillor who had acted as City Manager offered the

following advice.

Councillor: To this question of ‘Am I taking up too much space?’ You

may or may not be, and its going to be contextual, and I cannot really pass

judgment on that... You only really then have two options. You either step

forward or support some one else to step forward. If what you’re doing is

just stepping back, that’s a different thing from saying ‘I’m going to help

this other person who has no experience gain experience.’ That’s an active

decision as opposed to just pulling back.

The councillor and the other participants reframed the deci-

sion so that it was less about ‘Should Istep up or pull back? Am

Ithe right person to lead?’ It was rather a decision about how

‘we as a group’ address a need. How to proceed depends on the

context, the particulars of the situation, and the aims of the

group. Jasmine needed to focus on a shared goal, and then find

a path forward. That might involve her stepping up, but it could

also involve supporting someone else.

The next day Jasmine spoke with a participant who had a ten-

dency to dominatediscussions. She asked him to help her find ways

of bringing more voices into the discussions. By guiding him in a

direction that would benefit the whole discussion, Jasmine demon-

strated that she was acquiring what political practitioners need:

Odysseus Between Scylla and Charybdis byHenry Fuseli, 1794 practical wisdom. That’s the secret ingredient of good politics.