Season 3, Episode 20: Public Health, Politics, and the Power of People

[INTERVIEW]

[0:00:00.5] JW: Welcome to The Public Health Joy Podcast, the safe space for real and honest conversation about what it takes to transform public health research into life-changing solutions for our communities. I’m your host Dr. Joyee, a public health researcher, Ph.D. survivor, and entrepreneur.

 

In today’s episode, we’re talking with Garrison McMurtrey, about the role of politics in public health and the power of the people in the election process. This is the joy ride you’ve been waiting for. Join us as we revolutionize public health through research done with, for, and by our communities. Together, let’s create our public health joy.

 

[INTERVIEW]

 

Ramsey Country Commissioner here in Minnesota.

 

[0:05:49.4] JW: Well, the reason that I wanted to – I know you’ve all heard this great stuff about Garrison, right? But the reason why I wanted to have Garrison on the show was because, as you all heard, Garrison is politics all day. You know, you do more than dabble, okay? You do more than dabble. You have been my go-to politics person since 2004.

 

[0:06:16.8] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:06:17.3] JW: That will – would have been what, 9th grade?

 

[0:06:19.2] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:06:19.8] JW: Something like that. 

 

[0:06:19.8] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:06:21.2] JW: So, you have always been in this political space and I have always been the opposite [crosstalk 0:06:28.3] I don’t want to talk about politics. I don’t want to. I mean, yeah I’m going to vote but I don’t want to talk about it. Like, I’m going to do my own little research, I’m going to pay attention but having conversations around politics is not really my strong suit. However, it is 2024.

 

[0:06:47.4] GM: Before you go there, let me just say this. Growing up together because our friend group, there was you who was into medicine, it was just me by myself who was dabbling into politics.

 

[0:06:58.9] JW: Yeah, you were the oddball. You were just the oddball among all of us. We were all like, “We’re going to medical school.” Obviously, I did not but you know, you were always – but the thing I appreciated was you didn’t care. Like, you didn’t care, and it was your passion. It was your love from the very beginning. Like – and we have seen that now, grow into you being a candidate for Ramsey County commissioner.

 

And so, and this is something we talk about on the podcast all the time, it’s amazing how those passions, those things that were fed into us when we were younger continue to grow with us and how we – you know, even though I didn’t go to medical school but I’m still a doctor.

 

[0:07:48.0] GM: Absolutely.

 

[0:07:48.9] JW: Like, I’m still a doctor, I’m still making impact in my community and I wouldn’t have gotten this far if I didn’t tap into that passion, and now, what we’re seeing is you making an impact and all the people around us, all them people who were in 9th grade, around the country, they are sitting in seats where you are now.

 

[0:08:16.5] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:08:17.2] JW: Right?

 

[0:08:17.9] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:08:18.7] JW: What does that song say? Children are our future, we are now the children who have become the future.

 

[0:08:23.8] GM: They have taught us well, and now, they’re letting us lead the way.

 

[0:08:26.6] JW: Exactly. We need to make sure that we’re leading people in the right way.

 

[0:08:32.1] GM: Correct.

 

[0:08:32.5] JW: That’s the part that was kind of missing in the song, and that little part, they need to lead us in the right way and that comes into play with everything that is around us, and a lot of times in public health, we talk about social determinants of health, right? So, the things that are not medical, not physical that impact our way of life, our quality of life, our health. So, housing, our neighborhood, education, employment, all those different things, but then it’s like, “What about the politics?”

 

[0:09:04.0] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:09:04.7] JW: What about the policies? How does that impact our health? And we are impacted by politics, policies, and politicians every day.

 

[0:09:15.5] GM: Correct, that’s right.

 

[0:09:16.9] JW: And so, since you are the expert, let’s start there. How do you define those three things? Politics, policies, politicians. How are they all related and how do they impact our health?

 

[0:09:29.9] GM: Well, I’ll start with the policies because that honestly the piece that’s most important to me and I’m – ultimately why, you know, I entered the world that I have is that the policies directly impact the daily lives of everybody in our community. Whether it’s housing or education or transportation or climate action, all of these things are directly tied to the policies that folks within our governments. 

 

So, it’s important to really – for folks to focus, I think, on making sure that they are electing people who reflect the policies that they want to see implemented in their communities because we know that those will have direct impacts. Those folks who implement those policies are the politicians, these are the folks who we, you know, count on, reaching out to us, and preferably not just during election season.

 

But most times than not, it’s during election seasons that they’re going to try to come out and either share with us, things that they have already done in the position that they’re in and why we should send them back because politicians, what they’re essentially doing, they’re reapplying to their job every two years, over four years, and trying to get us to rehire them. So, they’re either trying to get us to send them back or they’re coming with a new vision.

 

And saying, “Hey, I’ve not done this before.” And this is kind of similar to what I’m doing. I’ve never run for office before but I’m here to present like a vision of what I think this county could be, what our community could be, and these are the policies that I want to see implemented. Politics is what turns a lot of people off.

 

[0:11:01.1] JW: Like me.

 

[0:11:02.1] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:11:02.3] JW: Like me.

 

[0:11:03.4] GM: The politics can get very transactional, the politics can just be games with people’s lives. It’s all interconnected and it could be frustrating because we could have politicians that are maybe not in full of agreeance, but they can find some common ground on the policy that we know is going to impact the lives of people that they represent. Even if they’re coming from different sides of the political spectrum, they can find those ways where they can figure out, “All right, here’s some common ground that we can find.”

 

But oftentimes, especially in the local climate that we live in, the politics gets in the way of all that. The politics prevents folks from being able to reach that common ground, to understand the things that brings them together, then tears them apart because of the “Gamenesship” and all of the theatrics that goes into politics, and it’s unfortunate that it is. It’s a part of our everyday lives when it comes to governance. 

 

The politics can sometimes get in the way and I think, that’s the piece I am constantly trying to get ahead of, especially in the roles that I’ve played since moving to Minnesota and even before that, when I was organizing back in Mississippi, organizing in North Carolina. I was trying to showcase how people should not let the politics of all of this get in the way of the work, which is ultimately enhancing the lives of people in our community.

 

[0:12:27.3] JW: And there is another term that has come up, you know, recently, within the last few years or so. You know, when we talk about social determinants of health, we’re also talking about political determinants of health because it’s not just random things that are shaping our lives, like, it is the policies that have been enforced or implemented by the politicians, right?

 

[0:12:50.4] GM: Yup.

 

[0:12:50.4] JW: And then you get the politics mixed up in there because, and especially with your local elections. You know, it’s 2024 right now, we are in the midst of a presidential election, at the time of this recording, things are getting spicy. It’s getting spicy, and probably going to get even hotter by the time this episode is released.

 

[0:13:10.8] GM: Correct.

 

[0:13:12.7] JW: But there are some things that we have to pay attention to not just in the presidential election but also, in our local elections. All of those social determinants of health when it comes to employment, your neighborhood, your housing, your social support, think about what are the policies in place that directly impact those things that are around you. In Mississippi, if you’re from Mississippi, you already know.

 

[0:13:40.9] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:13:41.7] JW: Transportation is the issue.

 

[0:13:43.3] GM: Absolutely.

 

[0:13:44.1] JW: Right? Transpiration is a major issue, and now for me, I say the whole state of Mississippi is rural but you do have some areas in Mississippi that have more rural than others. It takes you an hour to get to the nearest hospital. What happens when everybody basically comes to Jackson because some politician decided to close a bunch of hospitals and clinics, ain’t going to name no names, but we know him.

 

[0:14:11.5] GM: We know him.

 

[0:14:12.8] JW: Yeah, [crosstalk 0:14:13.3]

 

[0:14:14.1] GM: I’m a little up here now but I still – I’m still aware of what’s happening down there, and we – yeah, we know.

 

[0:14:19.3] JW: Yeah. So, thinking about it, and even I will say especially the late – and I don’t know if you kept up with our governor election here, the last one that we had in Mississippi. Like, that was intense. It was one to watch because there are so many, especially like with the water issues in Jackson, right? That’s no secret, what’s the major problem there? It’s the policies, it’s the policy and the politics, and the politicians, it’s about power and control. That’s the thing with politics, it’s about power and control.

 

[0:14:59.3] GM: Speaking to the political determinants of health piece, like you mentioned the social determinants using the example of housing. We want to make sure that all of our housing is safe and secure. I would say, a political determinant of that would be something like red lining of when we think of political determinants, I’m thinking of structural, systemic issues that centers around power that folks are having to dealing with, and is directly impacting the social determinants for our health and for our communities.

 

So, it’s so important, to your point, to not only absolutely focus on presidential elections. They are very important, you know, our presidential elections, not only impact you know, things that are happening domestically but I will say even more important, with the job of the President of the United States would be our commander and chief, and a lot of the foreign policy component is really, really important.

 

Local elections are crucial. When you list out all the things you just said, whether it’s water-related or potholes on your roads, or making sure that your hospitals are getting the resources that they need or ensuring that we are, you know, building more affordable housing, all of these things are directly tied to who we elect on the local level, whether it’s your city or your county, or your state.

 

And so, oftentimes, when I’m out, door knocking, especially in presidential years, folks are like, “Well, what’s the point?” I’m like, “I get that” And I want to – I’m going to give you my spiel as to why I’m voting for this person, but ultimately, you have to make the decision on your own but, also, if you’re tired of that, please do not forget to vote on your local level because those are going to be directly impacting you and you’re going to feel it, more than anything.

 

And so, I appreciate you, you mentioning the local stuff because those local races, they have direct impact, and also your local elected officials, you have more direct access to them as well. Your city council meetings, your mayor, you can go up and meet with these people. You can go and ask for a time and chat with them and kind of express, you know, what’s working and what’s not in your communities. 

 

A lot more than you do than you’re able to for a member of Congress or your senator or the President of the United States. These are folks who are right here in your community who you’ll see at the grocery store, you’ll see at church, you’ll see all of these places, and so we have more access to our local elected officials, and it’s important for us to leverage that and let them know of what we need.

 

[0:17:21.0] JW: Yeah, and I think one of the other important things is thinking about, you know, when we’re talking about communities, we’re talking about engaging them, and civic engagement, and all these types of things. You know, we talk about voting and how important it is, and I think for me, I vote, but of course, you hear the thing like, “Okay, if I vote, it ain’t going to change nothing, right?” It’s not going to make an impact, what difference is it going to make? But my thing is, voting is so powerful.

 

[0:17:55.2] GM: It is. 

 

[0:17:55.0] JW: Like, that is the way that we assert our power is by voting, right? It doesn’t mean everything’s perfect, it doesn’t mean that the candidate is perfect.

 

[0:18:06.6] GM: They won’t ever be.

 

[0:18:08.3] JW: They won’t ever be.

 

[0:18:08.2] GM: They won’t ever be perfect.

 

[0:18:10.1] JW: None of us are perfect but sometimes, it’s about keeping somebody out of office, right? Sometimes, it’s just like, let’s get the better one into office so we can make some progress, so we can get to the next step, right? And honestly, a lot of times when I think about voting, I’m like, it’s so powerful that they don’t make it mandatory because if they made it mandatory, they know that the power would truly be in the hands of the people, and that’s what we have to realize. The power is in our hands when we go to that ballot.

 

[0:18:52.3] GM: You are absolutely right and it’s funny that you bring up the mandatory piece because I think that there are a number of steps that states can take now that makes access to voting a lot easier for folks to be able to vote. I live in a state, Minnesota has been for the last few cycles, number one in the country for voter turnout. Number one, and part of that is because there is a lot of access that we have in our state to get out and vote.

 

There is automatic voter registration that we have in our state. We just restored the vote for 50,000 felons who are on parole, they now have the opportunity to vote in our state. Not to mention, early voting in the state starts well over a month before election day. So, folks have multiple opportunities to get out and vote. We didn’t have that in Mississippi, I don’t know if you all still have it in Mississippi. 

 

I remember growing up, well, you had to present a reason in the state as to why you were going to early vote versus voting on election day, and so that’s the other piece when it comes to why local races matter so much is that we elect people who reflect the needs of our community and part of the needs I think is to ensure that we have full access to democracy and to being able to vote and participate in democracy. 

 

And a lot of folks want to keep us out from doing that and we know who they want to keep out and we know why they want to keep us out because that will bring a lot of change just with the power of your one vote. There is a local elected official here, mayor of the City of Brooklyn Park, and the first time he ran, he lost by two votes. Two votes, and those two votes if he hadn’t won, who knows of the changes that could have been made? 

 

He decided to run again and this is the next, the last time he won, and he is currently the mayor but that first time and to see that lost by two it just speaks even more to the importance of votes being engaged. I’d say this as well, the other piece that I make is very important, especially with elected politics and elected officials that we need to make sure we are electing folks who reflect our community and our values. 

 

Representation matters a lot, who you elect in these positions matters because they bring a different perspective, they bring a different lived experience, bring a different mindset. That’s oftentimes not what we have seen in these halls of power. If I’m elected when I’m elected, I’m just – 

 

[0:21:19.4] JW: Yeah, yeah, when, win. 

 

[0:21:21.8] GM: When I’m elected – 

 

[0:21:22.4] JW: This is going to be on air, this is going to be on air though, we need the win. 

 

[0:21:26.3] GM: That’s right, that’s right. 

 

[0:21:27.1] JW: You are elected.

 

[0:21:28.2] GM: When I’m elected, I will be the first black man ever elected to a county board in the State of Minnesota. There has never – 

 

[0:21:34.5] JW: Oh, come on, Garrison.

 

[0:21:36.4] GM: Never, never been a black man elected to a county board. My wife, who is also an elected official, she was one of the first black women ever elected in the Minnesota State Senate. There was zero and then the year she ran, three of them got elected. So, we see what happens as a result of that. In her first two years in the legislature, they passed so many amazing things of codifying abortion access in the state. 

 

Making sure that Minnesota shows up as a trans refuge state that we provide gender-affirming care, making sure that we’re, you know, restoring the right to vote for 50,000 felons who live in our community, and want to start a new life and a part of that is being civically engaged. Like, all of these things happen because – so we’re seeing time and time again when we do elect folks who reflect who we are as a community, representation not only matters but it also provides. It also really shows a way of providing results for so many communities. 

 

[0:22:35.2] JW: And the other thing we have to realize, the tide is changing with both like us, our age group, millennials, you know? 

 

[0:22:43.1] GM: Yeah, yeah. 

 

[0:22:43.2] JW: Coming into those seats but you can’t forget them folk from the 50s. 

 

[0:22:49.0] GM: Oh, yeah. 

 

[0:22:49.7] JW: And the 60s. 

 

[0:22:51.9] GM: Yeah. 

 

[0:22:52.5] JW: They still sitting in them seats too. 

 

[0:22:54.5] GM: They are. 

 

[0:22:55.3] JW: Right? Definitely a power clash there and if we can get more of us in those seats, more of us at the ballot, at the ballot box, right? We can start asserting our power even more, especially on the local level. If you want to see change in your community, you’ve got to be engaged in this process. Like you have to be. If you make the decision not to be engaged in this process, what’s your other choice? 

 

What are you doing about it then? Like, that’s my question. Like, okay, you’re not voting, what’s your alternative? If you’ve got a good alternative, please tell me, like what is it? Because I want to know but – 

 

[0:23:39.4] GM: Well, even if you are not voting, you’re still making a statement. That lack of a vote is a statement. I think so often, like I said, we get caught up and turned off by the politics of this that we forget about the policies that are so, you know, important and play such a crucial role in our lives. The other thing I think is important for those elected officials once they get in, don’t forget the people who got you there. 

 

It’s also important for them to realize that there is no reason why should this knocking on my door just every four years, like we need to see you out in the community. We need to see you engaged because the work doesn’t start once you’re sworn in, we’re just getting started, and so I want to see the same level of organizing, the same level of engagement that you took for me to get my vote for you.

 

I want to see the same thing in those off years when you’re just doing your thing at the legislature or at city hall or at the county board, I want to see that same engagement so you know of the needs that I have for me and my family and my community and how they’re progressing, and where we have gaps and what’s working and what’s not. It has to be an ongoing effort. 

 

So, yes, we have to vote but let’s also make sure we’re holding these people accountable for what we need once we get them to those positions of power. 

 

[0:24:54.4] JW: You know, and as these, the next word that I was going to say was that accountability. Like it’s about transparency and it’s about accountability and as you were talking, I was like, “You know what? I had never really thought about it like this but researchers and politicians are a lot alike.”

 

[0:25:17.1] GM: Say more. 

 

[0:25:23.1] JW: So, you were talking about politicians coming around every four years, politicians only wanting to do things that benefit them, right? And then when they approach things that way, they do harm to the community. Well, you have researchers, they only come around when they want to do a study. They only come around when they want to ask a question when they want to get your data, and then what do they do? They get your data and leave. What do politicians do? They get your vote and then they leave. 

 

[0:25:52.3] GM: Yeah. 

 

[0:25:52.8] JW: Right? And so, how do we start addressing these things and addressing these issues and problems? In the research world, communities are asserting their power and they’re saying, “You are to put us at the table when you are doing this planning in your research. You are to put us at the table when you are making decisions. You’re going to make sure that we’re at the table when you analyze your results, and you’re going to make sure you share them back with us.” What are communities doing when it comes to these politicians?

 

[0:26:23.3] GM: That’s right. 

 

[0:26:23.9] JW: The same thing, you’re going to make sure that we’re at the table when you need our vote. We’re going to make sure that we’re at the table when you are making these decisions because your decisions directly impact us.

 

[0:26:34.9] GM: That’s right, and folks have to keep that in mind because what’s the saying? If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu, and it’s true. 

 

[0:26:43.4] JW: I haven’t heard that one. 

 

[0:26:44.8] GM: That’s right. Well, is that thought true? If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu. 

 

[0:26:48.4] JW: That’s true. 

 

[0:26:49.9] GM: It is imperative that whether you’re in research or you’re in elected office that you’re bringing to the table the perspectives of the folks who you are representing. It is so important that folks understand the process, that they understand what’s being talked about, and that they are able to incorporate their viewpoints, their lived experience, what they bring to said topic to the table because that will help impact where we go with that policy. 

 

We can’t continue to go about making policies with the same folks at the table all the time. Missed voices is a missed opportunity, so we need to make sure that we are incorporating the voices of folks who oftentimes are not left out and oftentimes left out on purpose, and we know who those folks look like and making sure that they’re finally brought into these conversations because we know that those decisions that are made at those tables are directly going to impact them. 

 

[0:27:44.7] JW: And what I heard was that intentionality. Like, any decision that politicians make is made with intention, whether that’s good intention or bad intention, right? It’s made with intentionality and so, we have to do the same thing as community members, as citizens, we have to be very intentional about knowing what’s happening, knowing our politicians knowing what’s happened, knowing what’s going on. 

 

On the local level, on the national level, your county level, your state level, whatever that is, you know you have to make sure that you are very intentional about what you are doing, how you are gaining knowledge. Let’s talk about that, okay? 

 

[0:28:27.9] GM: Oh, yes. 

 

[0:28:28.7] JW: How you are hearing about it?

 

[0:28:28.7] GM: Where, where are you getting this information from, and I mean, we’re in an age now, when we were growing up, Joyee, and I feel like I’m – 

 

[0:28:34.9] JW: Back in the day.

 

[0:28:35.3] GM: I feel old saying this. 

 

[0:28:37.0] JW: Okay, back when we was youngins. 

 

[0:28:41.7] GM: You had to be invited to join Facebook. The level of access to just with social media and to information that we have out there is so much more plentiful than we had when we were growing up but also that has presented the issue and the challenge of misinformation, of you know, in an age of AI of like, straight up deep fakes of things that look so real and yet, they’re not at all, and so it also adds, going back to the politics of all of this, added another level. 

 

Where it creates this distrust from the public of like, “Well, I don’t know what to believe” and I understand. I completely understand that, like I had the publications that I read I think are reliable that I go to but I know a lot of folks who are reading certain publications or getting all of their news from Facebook or from Twitter and it’s not factual. It’s built off of something that you know someone just pulled out of their behind. 

 

Like, it adds so much to, like I said, the distrust that we have and the information that we’re getting. 

 

[0:29:48.6] JW: And now TikTok, or as my husband called it, tik-tik. 

 

[0:29:53.2] GM: Oh, my God, it’s even tipsy, my God. Okay, not popping. 

 

[0:29:59.3] JW: There we go, we hang some background feed they would but that tik-tik, oh yeah, we’re relying too much on that tik-tik now. 

 

[0:30:06.8] GM: Yeah, and I’ll say this, like you know, platforms like TikTok, of course, they have you know, the issues like national security issues and concerns but they also play an important role in being used as a platform for folks’ businesses, in getting information out there. I’m sure that there are folks in the public health realm who use TikTok to communicate and engage folks on certain topics that if just, you know, put in a study, folks’ eyes would be all glazed over. 

 

But if you have it in a TikTok video, and it’s coming straight from experts, it could be more engaging and folks wanting to learn more about it. So, I hear what you’re saying about tik-tik and think that there is such a balance that we have to play in, and that’s a role that the government can play in ensuring that we have regulations in placed so the information that we’re getting aren’t going to be – or the platforms that we use aren’t going to be riddled with all these misinformation and flies.

 

[0:31:00.8] JW: Yeah, tik-tik ain’t all that bad, [crosstalk 0:31:03.2] It’s just you just got to be able to decipher –

 

[0:31:03.2] GM: Absolutely.

 

[0:31:08.7] JW: What’s what, like, what’s right, what’s wrong, you can’t believe everything you see or hear, and so it’s up to you to question it.

 

[0:31:18.2] GM: Correct.

 

[0:31:18.9] JW: Like, “Okay, I’m hearing it but let me go to another source, let me cross-check this.”

 

[0:31:23.0] GM: Exactly, exactly.

 

[0:31:23.4] JW: Another article, let me see what else, and we’re having to do that more and more, and that speaks to critical thinking. Now, I can do a whole another episode on critical thinking but I’m not going to do that here. I’m just saying, we all see stuff on these internets, okay? We see stuff on these internets when you’re watching the tik-tik and the book face and the twatter.

 

[0:31:48.6] GM: And the X.

 

[0:31:49.7] JW: Oh, it’s X now. [crosstalk 0:31:53.3]. It’s not a bluebird no more, what is it?

 

[0:31:57.1] GM: It’s an X.

 

[0:31:57.4] JW: Oh yeah, it’s an actual X, that’s where I see, I’m old.

 

[0:32:01.5] GM: My goodness.

 

[0:32:05.2] JW: I ain’t been on Twitter since I – 

 

[0:32:06.9] GM: We’re the same age, Joyee.

 

[0:32:10.1] JW: Okay, look, I have told you all this a billion times. I may be in my 30s biologically, spiritually, I’m 80 plus, okay? You have known this, I have been 80 plus all my life. All my life.

 

[0:32:27.0] GM: This is true.

 

[0:32:28.8] JW: With all these tik-tik, ain’t nothing new to me, calling it tik-tik and calling it whatever. It ain’t nothing new to me.

 

[0:32:36.4] GM: I’m actually happy to hear this because I’m usually the old soul in my friend group up here. So, hearing this from you, it makes me feel just a little bit younger, which I appreciate.

 

[0:32:46.8] JW: No, well, I need to meet some of your little friends then. Let me come up and meet some of your little friends.

 

[0:32:54.0] GM: Well, you’re welcome.

 

[0:32:55.1] JW: Take me out for supper.

 

[0:32:56.0] GM: Please, please do. There are a lot of supper clubs here that we definitely love.

 

[0:32:59.9] JW: [crosstalk 0:32:59.9] Chat a little bit but the other thing I was going to mention about the tik-tik is that it is a good communication piece for Gen Z though.

 

[0:33:09.5] GM: Oh, yeah.

 

[0:33:10.5] JW: Gen Z is really you know, pushing it, that method of communication. Well, I think that if it works for certain populations, that’s great. You just still got to be careful.

 

[0:33:21.6] GM: Absolutely.

 

[0:33:22.3] JW: Right? You just still got to be careful. So, it has its pluses and it’s not full pluses but you know, it is what it is. So, we’re going to start wrapping up this conversation because if we go any longer, we’re going to start getting into the after-party, you all. We all know what my – 

 

[0:33:38.1] GM: Oh, it’s been a minute. So, there’s a lot of things that we have not covered.

 

[0:33:42.7] JW: Yeah, yeah, we might just have a fun little bonus episode where it’s going to be like –

 

[0:33:46.0] GM: Yeah.

 

[0:33:46.7] JW: Ask Garrison and Dr. Joyee about whatever.

 

[0:33:50.5] GM: I’m willing to share it all, let’s go.

 

[0:33:53.3] JW: Oh Lord, but before we go, I got to ask you this one last question. What brings you joy in your work?

 

[0:34:04.8] GM: Boy, oh, boy. I mean, there’s a lot that still brings me a lot of joy in my work. At the end of all of it, I would say, the fact that I get to play a role in enhancing people’s lives for the better is what brings me joy. I’ve spent most of my career working, you know, either on campaigns or on the official side for like, the officials. At the end of all of it, I come back to the fact that I’m getting a chance to connect two worlds that I love, community engagement and policy. 

 

And I think it is so important that we are including the voices of our community as we are making our public policy and so, for me, knowing that I get to do that every day, you know, in the congresswoman’s office, whether it’s building a relationship with a certain community partner, or it’s our casework team that helps people get a work visa, or make sure that they’re getting their social security checked on time, or the IRS, or helping veterans.

 

Like, we are making a difference in people’s lives directly, that’s the kind of stuff that is the perspective that I have every time I, you know, get burnt out or something in the world of politics makes me a little bit jaded or upset, I come back to this. To, “Here are the people who I’m impacting, I am making a difference on my community.” And that’s what keeps me going.

 

[0:35:28.2] JW: I absolutely love that, and if people want to get in touch, if they want to let’s say, maybe they live in Ramsey County, maybe they want to vote for you, maybe they –

 

[0:35:39.1] GM: Maybe they want to donate? Maybe they want to volunteer.

 

[0:35:41.5] JW: Maybe they want to donate or volunteer or just learn, learn more about this kid from Mississippi who has grown up to be this amazing person who is running for commissioner, how do they get in touch? Where do they go?

 

[0:35:56.1] GM: Well, yes. Well, they can go to ElectGarrison.com, that is my campaign’s website. You can follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ElectGarrison. I’m not on X because it’s just a cesspool of – so, I am on Instagram, I am on Facebook. But yeah, ElectGarrison.com, check me out. If you live in Ramsey County, it’s specifically in District Three, I for sure want to get your support. 

 

So, for my race, our current county commissioner is stepping down. So, it’s going to be a special election. So, my special primary is on November 5th, which is the same day as the general election. So, for folks in Ramsey County, in my district, you’re going to have the presidential race on one side and then my special primary on the other side, and then I have a special general election that’s coming up in February of next year. 

 

So, you know, when I’m elected, I will finish out the term of my predecessor and then I’ll run for my own four-year term in 2026.

 

[0:36:59.6] JW: Okay, and for people who do not live in Ramsey County, please make sure you check your local elections. Don’t just look at the front of the ballot. Do like you had to do in school, check both sides of the paper.

 

[0:37:10.6] GM: That’s right, that’s right. You got city council, you got county commissioners, you got state ledge folks, you have judges. Judges is another really overlooked local position that some states vote on. So, make sure you’re looking at all of that, doing your research beforehand, so you know before you even get to the polls who aligns with what I believe and where I want to see my community go.

 

[0:37:33.1] JW: So, this is going to wrap up another episode of The Public Health Joy Podcast, and thank you, Garrison, for hanging out with me all these years.

 

[0:37:41.3] GM: I know.

 

[0:37:41.5] JW: And all these decades and –

 

[0:37:44.4] GM: I know.

 

[0:37:44.9] JW: On this episode. Oh, and one fun fact, I left this all the way to the end, if you all ever see Garrison in person, ask him to do an impression of your favorite politician, it’ll be gold, okay? That’s it. That’s it, I’m going to let you all go. We’ll see you on the next episode. 

 

[END OF INTERVIEW]

 

[0:38:03.6] JW: I am so grateful for this time we got to spend together. If you enjoyed this episode, I need you to subscribe, rate, and leave a review. For more information on transforming public health research into positive community impact, visit www.joyeewashington.com. This is where research meets relationship and I’ll see you next time on The Public Health Joy Podcast. 

 

[END]

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