susan fisher: the next step
by sandi tomlin-sutker

One dictionary definition of politics is the total complex of relations between people living in society. Or as oneof my early Poli-Sci professors defined it: “Who gets What, When, How”! Given either of these ways of looking at politics, it seems clear that women must be increasingly aware of the need for full participation in the process of determining which issues are on the political agenda.

Susan Fisher is very aware of this need. She grew up in a family of women who knew the importance of political involvement. Her grandmother and mother were both, in Susan’s words: “strong and opinionated” and always involved in local politics. Her mother was president of the Democratic Women when Susan was first married. Then there’s the fact that Susan was born on July 3rd –”there was always this theme of independence in my life.”

Susan Fisher is one of three people in the running to finish Martin Nesbitt’s term (he’s moving to Steve Metcalf’s Senate seat). If she is not appointed to his seat (which he inherited initially in about 1980 after the death of his mother, Mary Nesbitt, who had held the seat for five years), Susan will run for the Buncombe County Commission seat formerly held by Patsy Keever—that position is up for election since Keever is running for US Congress this year against Charles Taylor.

Susan and I met over coffee at Beanstreet recently to discuss her upcoming plans. I knew that Susan had served on the Buncombe County school board from 1992 until 2000, chairing it in the last four years of her term. I wanted to know more, though, about what motivates her, a wife and mother of two children, to face the challenges of public life. There were the influences of her grandmother and mother, of course. Because of them, she is “attracted to public service…always have been.” In 1982-83 she worked on popular US Congressman Jamie Clarke’s staff. She considers him a “true statesman” who taught her a lot about working for one’s constituents and about establishing trust among one’s colleagues.

She and her husband John, both from the Asheville area, moved back here when she became pregnant with her first child, Jonathan. She stayed involved with precinct politics and her community while raising her son (now a sophomore at Duke) and daughter, Alex (a rising senior at Asheville High). After being appointed to the school board, her involvement in the political process deepened. In the midst of helping plan a 1994 conference sponsored by the Western Carolina Women’s Coalition (WCWC), Susan attended a conference in Greensboro for women who wanted to run for public office. There she got to know Patsy Keever, and heard Nancy Pelosi speak about the need for women to learn to raise money in ways that were different than male politicians. At the ensuing WCWC conference, NPR’s Cokie Roberts auctioned off her travel alarm and raised enough money to pay all the bills for the conference! It may have been a light-hearted gesture, but it worked.

Always aware of the need for citizen participation in the political world, after leaving the school board position, Susan became director of Kids Voting Buncombe County. [ See kidsvotingusa.org and bcboe.org/kidsvoting ] This non-profit organization offers school curricula for students K-12, educating them about the importance and the process of voting. The program culminates with students going to the precincts with their families to vote with special ballots in their own voting booths. Given that the US, historically, has one of the lowest voter turnouts among Western democracies, this is a vitally important project.

Now that Susan’s children were mostly grown, it seemed time to deepen her involvement in politics. She and her husband and family talked it over and they all felt running for office was her next best step. I wondered what she brings to the job personally, what issues are of interest to her. “I have always been a consensus builder, a mediator. However, as I get older, my opinions and feelings get stronger. I think this is a good balance for working within the system to achieve specific goals. We have been hard hit by job loss here, we must look clearly at what our options are. We also have to handle the quality of life issues: availability of health care, pollution and crowding. The natural beauty of this region is one of our assets; we have to enhance that, not destroy it.”

I was also curious about what she thinks women bring to the political process that is unique. “I think women really know how to listen, and hear what people are saying. They may not make the best politicians because they aren’t always the ones talking! But women know how to bring people together, how to network and build consensus.”
“I think, also, that women have a wholistic view of the issues. When it comes to the economy, for example, the question is 'how’s it going to affect home?' Women are also very skilled at juggling a lot of things at once, finding ways to organize things, understanding what is really necessary.”

As we’d talked, I experienced Susan as a woman in a long line of women dedicated to bringing a better life to those around them. She named many local mentors, among them Leah Karpen, Marie Colton, Kitty Bonisky, Hazel Fobes. And toward the end of our conversation, her daughter Alex popped in. Bright, intelligent, involved in women’s issues already (she told me about a unique course in Women’s History, taught by April Spencer at Asheville High, that has helped her understand women’s struggles for basic rights and more equality). She already understands her place in the process…clearly, and happily, the lineage will continue with her.

Sandi Tomlin-Sutker is publisher and associate editor of WNC Woman. She lives in Madison County with her husband, Sam, dog, Fitzy and cat, Pesto (so named by granddaughter Lily). Her interest in the political process led her to a graduate degree in Political Science from UNC-Chapel Hill. [ sandi@wnc-woman.com]