Chris Cole FRSA

As I'm writing this Cross Rhythms Experience for the Plymouth Shopper, the news is just filtering through the media that Fidel Castro, the dictator who has ruled Cuba for nearly fifty years, is stepping down and being replaced by his brother. That piece of news grabbed my attention because I have been thinking a lot lately about the freedom of democracy which we enjoy in Great Britain.

This democratic freedom in our nation was founded on the values of the Christian faith, by people literally laying down their lives for the cause. For centuries we have enjoyed many benefits as a result, and prospered as individuals and as a nation.

In 1620 when the Pilgrim Fathers sailed from Plymouth, they took with them the seeds of faith and democracy that helped in the shaping of the early years of the nation of America. This democracy, in a flawed society, enabled men like Dr Martin Luther King to challenge the political injustices of their times. He was probably the most famous of the 20th century civil rights activists, and he took his Christian faith as the ideological platform to bring about change in America in the 1960s. (As a pastor of the African-American Baptist church, he preached within a political context of creating equal voting and civil rights for the black community.)

Closer to home in Plymouth, the democratic process has allowed an ordinary caring mother, Vivienne Pengelly, to work in local politics and become the leader of our local Council. I am not saying that our Western democracy is perfect, but when it is compared with the ruthlessness of dictatorships the world over, we have to be honest and say that we have been truly blessed to live in such a democracy.

So, it is baffling to see that so many people nowadays simply waste their right to vote, and effectively lose their ability to influence the direction of our society. Whatever the reasons for this, to throw away your vote is akin to having a thousand pounds to spend and throwing it away because you could not find precisely what you wanted.

In Iraq, when the first democratic elections were held in 2005, ordinary people risked their lives in the face of threats of terrorism, and queued outside voting stations, making sure they had their voices heard by casting their votes to decide on the future of their government.

In Australia, since the 1920's, it has been compulsory to vote at elections, and the result is a turnout over 90%. That means that their government really represents the wishes of the people.

Whatever your party political preference, make sure you use your vote to express your voice. The Christian faith teaches that freedom for all people is God's plan (that is demands in a tantrum!); it is a freedom to choose to do what is right and loving. When dictatorships rule nations, that basic freedom is taken away.

As someone once said "evil prospers when good men do nothing" - use your vote, don't lose it - ordinary people can make the world a better place.

This article was originally published in the Plymouth Shopper, a group of 7 localised community newspapers produced by Cornerstone Vision, reaching 62,000 homes every month in Plymouth. Each edition carries positive news stories and features, and provides local businesses, community groups and organisations with a very localised media platform to reach their own area.