Half of candidates endorse pledge

Sixty-two of the 124 candidates on the city, county and state level who received the pledge agreed to engage in "straightforward speech and civil behavior that extends justice and respect for others," according to Jim Murphy, an Alliance member and coordinator of the Capital Region Ecumenical Organization.

"We hope the message is going to reach the candidates, to show that people are looking for more than just negative stuff," he told The Evangelist. "This is a hope to lift the level of discourse."

Sister Alethea Connolly, CSJ, director of the Office of Housing and Social Policy for the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet's Albany Province and an Alliance member, called the candidates' response "very impressive. I'm pleased with the results."

She added that most groups who try a civility pledge also seem to average about half the candidates' signing it. One Colorado group sent its pledge to 55 candidates and had 30 "yes" responses, she said.

As for those who didn't sign, the Alliance is hoping they have simply overlooked the pledge in the piles of mail their offices receive, or that they have been busy with summer activities and overlooked it.

Mr. Murphy was glad to note that the idea of sending out a civility pledge has been adopted by other groups within New York State and even in other parts of the country. "It reflects a general feeling that people are tired of campaigns that take shots at a person, where there's no discussion of the issues," he said.

The Alliance is waiting for more candidates' responses this fall and plans to informally monitor the campaign efforts of candidates, whether or not they signed the pledge. So far, Sister Alethea said that only one Alliance member noted a candidate's "getting down to name-calling, making assumptions of the other person's character. We will be looking more closely at how people who signed the letter -- and people who didn't -- conduct themselves."

(09-10-98) [[In-content Ad]]