Harry Meshel: Champion of Valley's working class

There is a reason Harry Meshel, the political icon of the Mahoning Valley, was so committed to Youngstown State University. He believed the four-year institution of higher learning was a necessary bridge to a better life for those born on the wrong side of the tracks.

Indeed, Meshel’s own experience growing up on the East Side of Youngstown defined his view of the world. He made it his life’s work to fight for the working class, the less fortunate, minorities and, yes, immigrants.

He was proud of his Greek heritage, his Youngstown roots, his military service and his Democratic Party affiliation.

Meshel, an unabashed liberal, died Monday after an illness. He was 93.

He left an indelible mark on the politics of the Valley, the state of Ohio and the nation.

His long list of accomplishments during his many decades in politics were detailed Tuesday by The Vindicator in a front-page story of his death. (His tribute appears today on Page A6).

His 22-year tenure in the Ohio Senate was marked by a legislative agenda that sought to protect the rights of workers, the elderly, the poor and even public employees.

His dramatic, eloquent speeches from the floor of the Senate during the great debates of the day enthralled the press corps.

A get-together for lunch with Harry Meshel invariably turned into a two-hour walk down memory lane of politics and the history of the region. It also was a chance for Meshel to wax poetic about his family in Greece.

He visited his ancestral home regularly and returned with cans of olive oil that were his joy because the oil is produced by his relatives.

Indeed, Meshel made it point to draw attention to the label: “Kolympari S.A. Mihelakis Family”

Harsh critic

It was this pride in his roots that made him a harsh critic of the anti-immigration policies embraced by President Donald Trump and other Republican members of Congress who want to slam the door on newcomers.

Meshel would ask with his trademark smirk: “Where do they think their forefathers came from?”

It was his sense of fairness and his commitment to racial, ethnic and religious equality that brought him national acclaim.

After his two decades in the General Assembly, Meshel spent about two years as chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party – a political misstep that was a blot on his otherwise unblemished political resume.

But he wasn’t done with public service and answered the call when former Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland asked him to serve on the board of trustees of Youngstown State University.

It was a natural progression given his deep involvement in the expansion and growth of YSU from the day he entered the General Assembly.

While in the Senate, Meshel secured about $150 million in state funds for the university. Meshel Hall, on YSU’s campus, will be a lasting memorial to him.

He also led the charge in the Legislature for the creation of the Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine in Rootstown, now Northeast Ohio Medical University.

During his nine years as a YSU trustee, Meshel was stridently opposed to tuition and fee increases, arguing that an open-access institution like YSU should be affordable to all who meet the admission standards.

He locked horns with former YSU presidents David Sweet and Cynthia Anderson over a wide array of issues, and also had disagreements with current President James Tressel.

To him, principle always trumped friendship.

Meshel followed a simple rule: Members of the YSU board of trustees are not appointed to rubber stamp decisions made by the president. He urged his colleagues to challenge the administration and to take their policy-making responsibilities seriously.

The late senator was one of a kind, a trailblazer who kept his friends close and his enemies closer.

He took into his confidence journalists he had known for a long time because he recognized the important role the press plays as society’s honest broker.

Harry Meshel was a fighter to the very end. His declining health sidelined him, but did not break his spirit.