Expanding the Table: A Stronger Democracy Starts with More People

Fresno DRIVE’s commitment to creating an economy for all includes supporting active civic engagement. Through its Civic Infrastructure Initiative, DRIVE is fostering political participation by establishing a network of neighborhood hubs that give residents a space to gather, share input and amplify their voices.

Having spent years working alongside local movements, Fresno community leader and The Big Red Church Pastor Simon Biasell has witnessed firsthand the impact of resident-led change. “Lately, I have found myself thinking about our community as a story of two tables,” Biasell said. “For generations, many of the most important decisions in the Central Valley were made around a small table tucked away in a back room. Developers, large agricultural interests, business leaders and political insiders have often had a seat at that table. They know one another; they understand the system, and most importantly, they know whose phone number to call. Meanwhile, neighborhood residents, young people, immigrants, working families and others affected by those decisions have too often found themselves outside the room. If you were not at the table, decisions were made about you, rather than with you.”

That table served some people well, but it did not serve most of the community.

Biasell feels that generations ago, people, who had been excluded from the back room, stopped waiting for an invitation and built a new table — one sizable enough to belong to everyone. At this table, there are high school and college students, parents worried about whether their children can safely walk to school, inner-city residents tired of subsidizing wealthy developers' suburban sprawl while their own neighborhoods are left behind, bus riders commuting to work, seniors trying to get across town, people with disabilities navigating broken sidewalks and rural community residents who rarely find themselves at the center of Fresno County's political conversations. “They are not policy experts, and they don't need to be,” Biasell said. “They are the people who live with the decisions being made.”

The small table protects itself. The big table adds additional seats for everyone in the community.

The past few weeks have reminded Fresnans how fragile democracy becomes when too much power is concentrated in too few hands. “The stories and scriptures that shape my faith offer another way,” Biasell said. “Repeatedly, the Bible tells of leaders who leave their thrones and seats of power to join people at their tables — to listen, learn and discover the wisdom already present in the community. They move from self-preservation toward communal prosperity. Sometimes, I see those ancient stories come alive right here in our community.”

Watching Veronica Garibay, Co-founder and Co-director of Leadership Council for Justice and Accountability, and many other community leaders convene the remarkably diverse, bipartisan Better Roads, Safe Streets coalition, Pastor Biasell felt he was witnessing the next generation take their seat at the great community table. “These leaders joined a legacy built patiently by generations of people who refused to be marginalized. Instead of fighting for the spotlight, they added another leaf to the table, uniting people who were, at times, sworn enemies around a vision for the common good,” Biasell said. As a result of this collaboration, over 32,000 signatures were gathered to place a citizen-led transportation measure on the November 2026 ballot.

Now it is our turn.

“If you've ever thought, “politics just isn't my thing,” there is still a place for you at this table,” Biasell said. He believes everyone should feel welcome walking into Fresno City Council or Fresno County Board of Supervisors’ meetings but recognizes that attending these meetings can be intimidating. Programs like Every Neighborhood Partnership's (ENP) Community Land Use Academy, Youth Leadership Institute's (yli) Youth Advocacy Leadership League and Fresno DRIVE are helping neighbors meet one another, learn together and show up together.

“You don't need to know everything, nor do you need to agree with everyone — just find your way to the table,” Biasell said. “There is a seat for you here; generations before us kept making room. Now, our responsibility is to do the same.”

To learn more or to get involved with Fresno DRIVE’s Civic Infrastructure Initiative, email ENP’s Neighborhood Development Project Manager Christian Gonzalez at Christian@everyneighborhood.org.