If you could switch lives with a famous person for a week, who would it be and why?
If I could swap lives with someone famous for a week, I would undergo a transformation that would raise a few eyebrows. I would become a woman, an American, three decades younger, and one of the most recognisable and outspoken politicians in the United States.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. AOC.
Not a Shakespearean actor, rock star, Olympic champion swimmer or skier, or Tech billionaire. Although I might be tempted by any of those for a day or two. No, I would exchange my life as a Green Party town councillor in Lewes, East Sussex, for that of a democratic socialist representing New York’s 14th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives.
From Lewes Town Hall to Capitol Hill!
From debating the rights of rivers and trees, public transport and local government priorities such as housing, to taking on the American political establishment. I’d be trading one set of political frustrations for another, admittedly on a rather grander scale.
Why AOC?
Because I admire her intelligence, resilience, humanity, common sense and determination. Because she appears capable of doing something that many politicians have forgotten how to do: connecting big ideas with the everyday concerns of ordinary people. And because, she is my first choice for a future President of the United States.
I’d like to experience politics from her perspective. Not merely to wield her influence but to discover what it takes to sustain her energy, enthusiasm and convictions in the face of relentless opposition, personal attacks and the demands of American political life.
Policies
And, naturally, I would have a few ideas of my own.
First, the Green New Deal: Climate change isn’t an optional extra, something to be addressed once the economy is sorted out. It is the context within which every economic, social and political decision must now be made. The transition to renewable energy, creating worthwhile employment, developing sustainable infrastructure and protecting the natural environment are all parts of the same undertaking. AOC understands that environmental responsibility and social justice belong together. Getting bills through on the Rights of Rivers, and the Rights of Trees! From the home of Tom Paine to Paine’s destiny.
Second, healthcare: Coming from Britain, I find the American healthcare system extraordinary. That access to medical treatment should depend on employment, insurance or personal wealth seems to me a fundamental failure of civilisation. Medicare for All? Absolutely. I’d be making the case with the conviction of someone who grew up with the NHS and has welcomed it’s open arms when needed during a medical crisis, let alone day to day. My prescriptions are free!
Third, housing: A home should be somewhere to live, an investment opportunity. Decent, affordable, energy-efficient housing is a foundation of a functioning society. Rent protections, public housing investment and green construction should be normal government business.
Then there are workers’ rights: fair minimum wages, taxation, immigration, criminal justice reform and the protection of minorities. Again, the principles are hardly revolutionary: treat people fairly, protect the vulnerable, share prosperity more equitably and recognise our common humanity.
What I particularly admire about AOC is her willingness to challenge the assumption that because something has always been done a particular way, it must continue.
I suspect the greatest revelation of my week would be discovering how exhausting her life is. Endless meetings, briefings, interviews, negotiations, and confrontations. The obligation to be informed, articulate and persuasive on demand. The necessity of remaining composed while being deliberately provoked.
As someone who has spent a lifetime occasionally responding rather too emotionally to confrontation, I would be fascinated to discover how she manages it.
I would also want to spend time in the Bronx and Queens, meeting constituents, listening to their concerns and seeing how national policies translate into people’s lives. After all, whatever the scale of government, politics should begin and end with the people it serves.
And I’d love to deliver a speech in Congress. To stand there, armed with facts, historical perspective and an argument about the future, and challenge those who continue to treat climate science as an inconvenience.
Whether AOC would appreciate returning after a week to discover that a sixty-five-year-old Englishman had been enthusiastically advancing his own interpretation of democratic socialism is another matter.
Meanwhile, what would she make of my life?
A week in Lewes, East Sussex. Council meetings, woodland conservation and environmental campaigning!
We’ve just passed the Lewes Corporate Strategy with its seven strategic purposes: to provide effective local leadership, protect and restore nature and open spaces, address the causes and impacts of climate change, support a thriving town and sustainable economy, promote a safe low-carbon integrated movement network with active travel at its heart, strengthen a healthy and inclusive community and public realm, and champion Lewes’s heritage, culture and creativity.
Would she find some resonance in that?
She could have some extraordinary trips too, exploring Tom Paine’s home, visiting the Battle of Hastings, and timing her visit for the Lewes Bonfire on 5th November!
I rather think she’d enjoy it. She might even have a few useful suggestions for Lewes Town Council!
And I would return home with something considerably more valuable than a souvenir photograph outside the Capitol: a better understanding of how political conviction survives contact with political reality.
Although, before swapping back, I might just announce my intention to run for President.
After all, the question only gives me a week.
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