| About the author: Jeremy Zilber |
I've been interested in politics ever since I was about 6 years old, when my parents agreed to
host a fundraiser for presidential candidate George McGovern. They never told me I should
be a Democrat or adopt a specific political ideology, but they explained why they were
supporting the Democratic candidate in that election, and I'm grateful they did. My early
exposure to partisan politics sparked a lasting interest in political issues and American
government, and by the time I entered college, I was already a political activist with very
strong political opinions.
After receiving a degree in government from Oberlin College and a Ph.D. in political science
from Ohio State University, I spent the next ten years teaching American government and
politics. Although I was teaching at some of the country's best colleges, it was apparent that
most of my students knew very little about their government or the people who ran it. Sure,
they'd all learned a few basic facts in high school, but most didn't really understand how the
political system works, or why anyone should really care about it. Even more troubling was
the fact that many of them seemed perfectly content (and often determined) to remain as
politically uninformed and uninvolved as possible.
While I never conducted any formal surveys of my students, it was clear that most of the
politically active ones had been raised by parents who weren't afraid to talk about politics
around their kids. My experiences merely confirmed what researchers have known for
decades: children raised in households in which politics is a frequent topic of discussion are
most likely to become politically active adults.
Given my strong desire to see more Americans involved in politics and my support for
progressive causes and the Democratic party, I wrote and self-published Why Mommy is a
Democrat in November of 2005. The response has been simply fantastic. With over 25,000
copies sold in the first two years, Why Mommy is a Democrat is already one of the most
successful self-published children's books of all time. Encouraged by the book's success, I self-
published Why Daddy is a Democrat in 2007 and Mama Voted for Obama in 2008.
Born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, I currently live in Madison, Wisconsin, with my partner
Julia, stepdaughter Isabella (age nine), our cat Zach, and three very cute guinea pigs.
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