Saturday, September 17, 2005
Philadelphia's former city treasurer is sent to the slammer for 10 years. Norristown's mayor is charged with allegedly taking 10 grand in a paper bag. The governor of Connecticut resigns after it was discovered -- oops! -- that he accepted tens of thousands of dollars of gifts from state contractors and top aides.
And so far, more than 20 people have 'fessed up in a continuing probe of Chicago's city government that has even Mayor Daley answering questions from the feds.
Headlines like these make trustworthy city government seem as rare a commodity as clean water in New Orleans. Public officials caught in these probes come in all races, creeds and party affiliation, but they do have this in common: Their actions lead to the unappetizing conclusion that government is for sale, and to play, you must pay.
And that, in turn, creates a civic culture in which rewards are always expected and favors are never free.
War against corruption
Now imagine a civic culture that thrives on trust and simple goodness, where a random act of kindness is not greeted with squinty-eyed suspicion but the comfortable knowledge that THIS is what we do.
This is the challenge that Liz Dow presented this week to 100 fast-track executives from business and nonprofit organizations throughout the region at their first meeting of a yearlong program called Leadership Philadelphia.
"I'm trying to tip an epidemic of trust in Philadelphia," says Dow, Leadership's president. And as corny as that sounds, her ambitious goal raises a serious and pressing question: Can a grass-roots movement unhinge a culture of corruption?
And even if every bad guy isn't driven out of City Hall, can an epidemic of trust improve the life chances of young people who, because of economic and social circumstances, lack meaningful connections to the community?
Dow calls the program Pay It Forward, Philadelphia, based on the novel and film by the same name. The idea grew out of a desire to celebrate Leadership's 50th anniversary in 2009 with something more than a fancy party, and to take advantage of the talent and reach of this, the oldest community leadership organization in the nation. (I'm a graduate of the class of '03).
'Tipping Point'
The inspiration came from Malcolm Gladwell's book "The Tipping Point," which argues that social epidemics can be "tipped" by small numbers in the right circumstances, and that such infections are spread by those with certain knowledge and connections.
At the meeting 10 teams were asked to devise a Pay It Forward project with measurable results that they will pursue through the year. Leadership's Web site is collecting personal testimonies of small acts of kindness, while Dow is developing Pay It Forward programs for local schools.
But her aim is more concrete than retelling sweet tales of good deeds. Leadership's program is full of useful content, but it's also a beehive of professional networking, where participants make connections based on the trust they've developed through the year.
Connecting skills -- the ability to be comfortable with a range of people, to do a favor without expectation of direct reward, to create successful pairings of diverse individuals -- are often lacking in children raised in impoverished neighborhoods. Their worlds are too narrow, their social skills too weak to see that this person knows that person who may help a third person land a job.
Important connection
And yet research shows that a child's ability to escape poverty is correlated to his or her proximity to a connector. So Dow is also hoping to create a curriculum for Philadelphia school children to teach how to be a successful connector and to build the goodwill and social capital necessary for healthy communities.
Will this be enough to end the dishonest business practices of too many public officials? Maybe not -- but things do get better. American politics is actually LESS corrupt than it was 100 years ago, and further improvement is always possible.
Political reform and solid law enforcement are essential for change -- but so is attention to the expectations of ordinary citizens. Pay It Forward yourself, and see what can happen.
X Jane Eisner is a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services. Bertram de Souza's column will return here next Sunday.