Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “We need leaders not in love with money but in love with justice, not in love with publicity but in love with humanity.” The best indicators of your character are how you treat people who are not able to benefit you in any way, and how you treat people who can’t fight back.

I was appalled to watch the president publicly blame and shame someone for not reporting a sexual assault. The president then openly mocked Dr. Christine Blasey Ford during a rally in Mississippi.

Using the power of the presidency to destroy, demean and demonize a citizen and incite the crowd to do the same is unspeakably cruel and reflects leadership lacking character, integrity and a moral center.

It doesn’t matter who you are, what political party you belong to, who you voted for, where you live, what religion you are or whether you or a man or woman — ridiculing and openly mocking a person’s deep pain reveals leadership devoid of empathy.

Decency, compassion and empathy are not partisan issues. They are values that make us human and humane.

As we near midterm elections, before we decide who deserves our vote, we might seriously ask ourselves, “What is leadership?” If the public servant seeking your vote cannot honestly be described as a kind, decent, compassionate human being, you might consider withholding your support for the sake of our common life together.

Leaders exercise power in corrupt ways because leadership was never meant to be powerful. Leadership is about service. The leaders we elect are public servants intended to serve a greater good. Servant leadership is a matter of the heart and not the ego. Most of the suffering in our world is caused by people wanting to be important. Healing happens when leaders understand the heart of the matter is always a matter of the heart. Healing happens with leaders who have the courage to lead with love and not fear.

We need leaders not in love with being right but doing what’s right. We need leaders not in love with power but the power of love. We need leaders not in love with “Me” but in the possibilities of “We.” We need leaders not in love with winning but leaders who understand no one really wins until everyone wins.

We need leaders not in love with showing their might but who recognize there is strength in kindness and compassion. We need leaders not in love with their own voice but who model the grace of deep and generous listening. We need leaders not in love with building walls but in building bridges. We need leaders not in love with revenge but leaders who have the humility to seek reconciliation.

David Orr wrote, “The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people.

“But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of every kind. The planet needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to make the world habitable and humane. And these qualities have little to do with success as we have defined it.”

Yes, please vote. Also remember we are the leaders we are waiting for. The world may live like a fist. We can dig deep in our resolve and find the courage we’re not sure we have to walk with open hands extending kindness and empathy to one another. Our future depends on it.

— Rev. Steven Koski lives in Bend.