Diana Oboler: An Introduction

Diana Oboler is running for state representative in District 61 (Montgomery County).

Diana Chelagat Oboler has been a resident of Blue Bell in Montgomery County for sixteen years. At the age of five she walked 10 kilometers on the Freeze Walk organized by SANE/Freeze (now called Peace Action) to ban nuclear weapons. She began working on national, state and local candidates' campaigns when she was nine. Since then she has worked to raise consciousness and participate in both electoral and non-electoral political actions.

She was the co-founder of "Women of Wissahickon" (WOW), a student-organized group concerned about women's issues, at Wissahickon High School. She was editor of her high school newspaper and was censored and eventually fired for supporting [anti-homophobic actions and ideas]. During the summer of 2000 she was a volunteer for the UNITY2000 rally, an experience that she found extremely enlightening particularly concerning the lack of accurate press coverage about issues rather than arrests.

An historian, she has spoken out on behalf of historic preservation in her local district. She believes that an awareness of history is crucial to better understand the overall workings of the world. "Through a better understanding of history," she says, "we can gain a better understanding of our present time and avoid the mistakes of the past."

She is particularly concerned with educational standards and the availability of education. "There should never be a time when we stop learning. Everyone, of every age, deserves the best educational opportunites available." Her plans to improve educational quality and access include encouraging students to expand their range of extra-curricular activities to include community service and to credit hours spent in community service for special scholarships at state and community colleges. "In today's high tech world, we need more college-educated workers. Using community service as a way to earn scholarships will make higher education available to more students and directly benefit their communities at the same time."

Community is an important issue for Ms. Oboler. "Too many times we offer programs for the extremes in our society-the children and the senior citizens. While these programs have proven their importance we have yet to expand them to include others in society. This is particularly important when dealing with teenagers who, without any programs geared towards them, find themselves at loose ends and thus are more malcontent with their situation." She would like to encourage community centers where everyone would be welcome and able to bring their ideas to others.

Part of supporting the community, in her mind, is enabling everyone the ability to move about and to use the facilities that are offered. Jon, a local teenager, cannot get to the local public library. When asked why he said, "The traffic on 202 makes it too dangerous. Without someone to drive me there's no way to get there." Ms. Oboler agrees, "It is a shame that there is not enough support for programs such as the (local short bus) that allow an element of freedom to those who cannot drive or feel comfortable on today's treacherous roads." Better public transportation, she argues, would also help alleviate crowded traffic conditions.

A community is composed of many aspects, not the least of which is its history. "Historic buildings must be preserved," according to Ms. Oboler, "to allow future generations a taste of their past." In addition to the structures of past generations, Ms. Oboler stresses the importance of living history as well. "How much better could students understand modern history if they heard the stories of those who lived through it!" She would like to encourage programming bringing students together with those who lived through events in our nation such as the Great Depression, World War II, Vietnam, and the Civil Rights movement.