Paid for by Lee Whitnum 2008
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1. Back in 1996 I fought to prevent an off-track racing facility from moving into my neighborhood. We planned and
orchestrated two protests, stormed the Richmond City Council, and filed two lawsuits against Colonial Downs. We
did not win that fight but it was worth the battle. When I look back at television clips of myself I can scarcely believe
I had such passion! Read about it:
http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/VA-Pilot/issues/1996/vp960718/07180383.htm2
Is there anything more important than the fight to:
1. Keep gambling and other vices out of our neighborhoods.
2. Protect our residential neighborhoods and property values.
3. Protect our environment and clamp down on corporations that do not adhere to the law.
4. Teach our children to respect the environment and to recycle.
5. Ensure that our public servants and paid administrators do what they are supposed to do and to set a good
example for our children.
4. In 2007 I fought hard to convince a Greenwich Public School principal do the right thing and provide a recycle
bin in the cafeteria. I sent this letter to the superintendent. Not long after, I received an email from a trusted teacher
over there, Mr. Ellerin, who said, "... lo and behold the waters parted and a recycle bin appeared in the cafeteria."
Alleluia! Read the letter that I sent to the superintendent that finally made that principal do the right thing.
2. I successfully fought NJ Electric to stop the cutting down of trees in my neighborhood as a "preventative measure
against winter power outages." I made the cover of the metro section of the Daily Record. I saved the trees in my
neighborhood including a 300+-year-old tree on my street. I recently visited the old neighborhood and I was
thrilled to discover that the trees were still alive!
3. I've lived in places where I literally had to get in my car and drive away from the area in order to breathe fresh
air. An example of such a place was Huntsville, Alabama. While on contract at the Redstone Arsenal I lived in a
neighborhood near a company that made computer monitors. Apparently cyanide was used in the manufacturing
process. One evening, when I was washing my dishes, I nearly passed out and I had to go to the emergency room.
I talked with my neighbors and they all agreed the air quality was terrible and that it had been going on for years. I
decided to do something about it. I called up the Environmental Protection Agency in my region. A few days later I
complained to the CEO of the company. He responded, "We adhere to all environmental standards" I informed
him that I had already notified the EPA and that he was being monitored. As of the next day, and for the remaining
four months until my contract ended, I never again had a problem with the air quality. It wasn't much of a fight but it
taught me, never underestimate the power of one concerned citizen.
