Youth and promise at the DNC

By Barry Yeoman
The Independent Weekly / Sept. 3, 2008

Until his plane touched down in Denver for the Democratic National Convention, John Verdejo had never in his life reset his watch. The 29-year-old's personal history was contained entirely within the Eastern time zone: the South Bronx, where he spent his childhood in an apartment without reliable heating; Greensboro, where his mother tried to give him a healthier adolescence; Raleigh, where he works now for a state agency that collects civil penalties from polluters; and Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, where he occasionally visits the extended family his mother left behind.

When he was chosen as an Obama delegate representing North Carolina's 13th Congressional District last May, Verdejo could hardly believe his luck. Many of the candidates vying for that slot were accomplished professionals who had worked for years inside Democratic campaigns. Verdejo's recent political experience totaled three months. "Compared to them," he blogged at the time, "I have not done much of anything to warrant their attention."

But Verdejo's impromptu speech at a district-wide meeting stirred his fellow Democrats, who voted to send him to Denver as one of 134 North Carolina delegates. It's easy to understand why: Verdejo has a direct gaze and an exuberant smile, and when he speaks he combines sharp analysis with an almost wide-eyed earnestness. As a young man who was raised by a devoted single mother, then got an education while struggling with his place in society, Verdejo also has threads of Sen. Barack Obama's narrative embedded into his own.

As I covered last week's Democratic National Convention—the proceedings, the protests, the North Carolina delegation breakfasts—I didn't exactly follow Verdejo, who would have proven too swift to keep up with. But he did become my touchstone. We talked every day about what energized him and what alienated him, and I watched as good luck singled him out twice.

I chose him for several reasons. First, Verdejo represents an emerging generation of political activists who grew up under Presidents Reagan and Bush Sr. and witnessed cuts in domestic programs and widening economic disparities. Second, as a Latino, he belongs to a demographic that Obama needs to inspire in order to win this November's election. Finally, Verdejo takes to heart, in a very personal way, the community-empowerment message at the root of Obama's success—a theme the Illinois senator echoed in last Thursday's acceptance speech: "What the naysayers don't understand is that this election has never been about me. It's been about you."

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