Trevor Harvey: Passing on the Legacy of Engagement, Florida

In early 2020 (just weeks before the pandemic), Smithsonian staff and their storytelling partners at the Peale, Baltimore, traveled to multiple states in the U.S. to ask residents of those states about voting experiences, the current state of American democracy, what issues brought them to the polls, how they made a difference in their communities, and what Americans' civic responsibilities were, among other complex questions.

Trevor Harvey: I think our civic responsibilities is to be engaged, civically engaged, in our communities, as well as the political process. I have a motto of that don't complain if you're going to sit on the sidelines, because complaining and sitting on the sidelines doesn't resolve anything. The best thing to do is to be engaged, to find something to be engaged and to make a difference in the communities. Because I think all of us together makes our communities more safer, makes them more enjoyable to be a part of if we're all at the table working together for the same common goal and not sitting on the sidelines and complaining.

(00:50) What motivated me as a young lad to get involved in the community is what I saw in my very own backyard, in my very own community. Because I'm a little older now, at that particular time, I saw a lack of young African American men being involved in the community. It was such a big gap from the mentors that I had and the men that I looked up to as a 20-year-old or 21-year-old, the nearest person that was involved making a difference in the community from an African American standpoint, male standpoint, they were already in their fifties and their sixties. I'm like, man, this is a huge gap. Where's this younger generation? Where are they're at? Because those are the ones that are going to actually pass the mantle down to the generation that's coming up behind us.

(01:48) Me and another friend of mine, we were both the same age, we said, you know what? Let it start with us. Since we see that gap, let us make a difference in the community. We started coaching T-ball. Just, hey, we're going to get out here and help. Didn't know anything about T-ball. Yeah, did I play T-ball when I was a little kid? But that's the furthest my T-ball went. We started off coaching T-ball to make a difference in these younger gentlemen and ladies' lives that were closely related to us because they were a little bit more relatable to us than those that were in their fifties and their sixties. Then it kind of just bent off from that. We went from T-ball to football, then basketball.

(02:34) Then we started getting intrigued in the political process and really getting engaged in the community and learning the processes of going down the city government and county government, and advocating for policy and procedures and stuff like that. That's what motivated me. It was just a gap change.

(02:52) My most interesting voting experience, I think, is when I had the opportunity to take my grandchildren along with my youngest son to be a part of the voting process. I try to take my grandkids as often as I can to the voting polls with us, to try to train them early on why it's important to be a part of the voting process and the political process. I would probably say that means a lot to me because they're starting at a young age. My oldest grandson is eight, and then my next one is five, and then three. Especially my eight year old is asking those questions, why do we do this? Because I actually sit down with him and go over our sample ballot and I talk to him about the issues and make sure that he understands the issues. I would probably say that's probably different than another answer that probably somebody has given, but I think it's probably my most interesting voting process moment.

Asset ID: 2022.36.05.a-b
Themes: Civic Duty, Voting, Participation, Civic Responsibilities, Civic Engagement, Community, Safety, Collaboration, African American history, Mentorship, Coaching, Sports, T-ball, Political Process, Government, Generations, Family History, Voting
Date recorded: January 9, 2020
Length of recording: 0:03:57
Related traveling exhibition: Voices and Votes: Democracy in America
Sponsor or affiliated organization: Betty J. Johnson North Sarasota Library, in conjunction with Florida Humanities
More information or related assets: https://sarasotanewsleader.com/smithsonian-institution-exhibit-voices-and-votes-democracy-in-america-to-be-on-display-through-oct-10-at-betty-j-johnson-north-sarasota-public-library/