From the editor, Charles Robideau

"You don’t want to read it if you don’t want to become an activist," Patch Adams told his audience at the Dialogue for Democracy, describing a book on the global economy’s effect on the health of the poor. Even if you are an activist, Patch went on, "I want you to double your hours."

Patch’s message, reported in this New People, is only one of the items that make this issue something of a primer on activism.

This issue reports on the Merton Center’s annual "New Person Awards," given this year to 14 high school students who have been active in their schools and communities. The biographical statements of these students make for inspiring reading for anyone over age 20 who fancies himself or herself to be an activist. For those who might be despairing of the state of the world and our community, there is the assurance that a new generation of concerned and informed activists is already making its mark. For those who may fancy themselves as hot shots in the field, the depth and variety of the causes these students espouse can provide a useful dose of humility.

Elsewhere in this New People, we publish a four-page, pullout report on the May 6 public hearing before Pittsburgh’s City Council, at which a procession of citizens and representatives of social organizations testified to the damage to our community that will be inflicted by President Bush’s proposed 2002 budget. The hearing, which was organized by the TMC’s Citizens Budget Campaign led by Molly Rush, raised the issue of activism on two fronts.

On one front, the hearing showed how many dedicated activists are struggling to keep their organizations strong, and how many of them are willing and able to make informed and eloquent appeals in their behalf.

On the other front, the hearing challenged City Council, Mayor Murphy, and their colleagues in Allegheny County to demonstrate some activism. Hearing the testimony on May 6, one wondered, first, whether there is any public service that is properly funded and supported and working right. One then wondered why City Council and the Mayor, et al., needed such a hearing to remind them of the public trust they hold. Why aren’t these leaders down in Washington raising hell with Congress and the Bush Administration? Why aren’t they organizing leaders of other cities?

Thanks to Jim Ferlo and Sala Udin for setting up the hearing. But why was it even necessary?