Jim Walsh
The world changes, and change is always prepared by what comes before. In the future are always wisps of the past.
I first moved to Massachusetts in 1973. The Governor at that time was a charming, middle-of-the-road Republican by the name of Francis Sargent. I had been hired as Deputy Director of Lynn Economic Opportunity (LEO) and not long after, became its Executive Director. I knew little of Massachusetts politics. I had lived in Connecticut for 30 years, and here, in 1973, I was more of a watcher and learner than a participant.
In 1974, Massachusetts decided to modify how food stamps were to be distributed to eligible citizens. For a fee, banks were set to be the prime distributors. We at LEO thought a neighborhood-based program would be a better option, as eligible participants would be far more comfortable dealing with a local non-profit based in their neighborhood than with a downtown bank where they may have spent very little, if any, time. In addition, LEO does outreach. It was highly unlikely that banks would be so engaged.
With the support of our local legislators, we entered into negotiations with Governor Sargent’s administration. I will never forget that first meeting with state officials at the welfare offices, then located in Washington Square. The senior State government welfare officials arrived from Boston…in a limousine. They were perfectly reasonable people. We had a successful negotiation. LEO became among the first non-profits to dispense food stamps in the Commonwealth and, I might add, had a better error rate than the banks. All good. But… “Limousine Emissaries” from Boston to Lynn? I was astonished. When Michael Dukakis became Governor, the Cadillacs disappeared.
At that time, Michael Harrington was our Congressman. I first met him in the kitchen of Helen Luongo, a dedicated member of the LEO Board. He arrived driving his own Chevy. Without a bodyguard. But that’s not what was most memorable about Harrington. What I remember most was his accessibility, his forthrightness, his seriousness as he sat at that kitchen table in West Lynn. He knew what his job was…and it wasn’t all about him.
In addition to collaboration, our form of government calls for checks and balances. It is the role of a Legislator not only to create and improve the laws of the land, but, along with the Judiciary, to offset the tendency of elected or appointed leaders to see themselves as Royalty. Knowledgeable, active, and effective oversight is central to the job of a US Congressman or Senator.
In 1973, as a member of the House Foreign Relations Committee, Congressman Harrington had become suspicious of the CIA’s involvement in the overthrow and assassination of Salvador Allende, the elected President of Chile.
A dozen years earlier, President Kennedy had sought to improve our relations with our Latin American neighbors. He reached out to them and initiated the Alliance for Progress. A decade before, the CIA had begun planning the overthrow of the elected government in Guatemala. They had already done the same in Iran. Cuba had been a disaster. And, in the 1970’s Harrington suspected that, under Nixon and Kissinger, things were not getting better. They were moving backward and downhill.
As a member of Congress, Michael Harrington was not there to go to Washington parties and have a good time for himself. He used the deference and respect due a Congressman not for self-congratulation, celebrity status, or personal economic gain. He did what the Constitution demanded and enabled him to do; to work for his constituents, to work for his country, and to preserve, protect, and defend the letter and spirit of the document that defines who we are as a nation…the Constitution of the United States
Fifty years ago, as a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, our Congressman from the Massachusetts 6th District set in motion a series of events that underlined the questionable actions of the American government, specifically its foreign policy. The lessons learned then are as relevant to the present day. Michael Harrington knew there was something wrong, and he was determined to do what he could to right it.
Following the overthrow of the Allende government and his assassination, Harrington flew to Santiago, Chile. He went to the American Embassy. He asked questions. He demanded answers. He visited the big open-air prison created by General Pinochet. And nothing he learned on that trip set his mind at ease. The people of Chile had spoken. They had elected Salvador Allende. And it was pretty clear to him that the Nixon/Kissinger administration had used the Central Intelligence Agency to have him overthrown and, when he resisted, killed.
Fortunately for us, Harrington was very comfortable being a disruptor. He saw it as part of his job in Washington. In 1975, his disruption ultimately led to a complete reassessment of CIA operations in Latin America and elsewhere by Senator Frank Church’s Special Committee.
I could not help but think of this man from the Massachusetts North Shore when I saw an elected Senator, Alex Padilla, thrown to the floor and handcuffed by US Secret Service and FBI agents because…he wanted to ask a question of an appointee of the Trump Administration.
In the United States of America, in the State he represented, a United States Senator was thrown to the floor and handcuffed.
In the end, Congressman Michael Harrington made clear where he was coming from. He wrote, “After 10 years of Vietnam and the Watergate affair, the American people understand… that their leaders have lied routinely, cloaking arrogance and bullying and greed in terms of the national interest.”
In this courageous stance, Harrington was beyond partisanship. He upset both Democrats and Republicans. To which I say…
Good! We need more Michael Harringtons in public office.
Jim Walsh is a writer who lives in Nahant.
