Dan describes himself as a “progressive-leaning liberal” voter.
This post is part of a Q&A series with voters who have volunteered
to share their perspectives leading up to the November 2024 election.
Political Perspective
Dan grew up during the George W. Bush administration and then the Barack Obama administration through his teenage and college years. The political satire of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report were his first introduction into politics beyond his parents’ kitchen-table conversations, but as he got older he delved into the works of Noam Chomsky, Christopher Hitchens, Howard Zinn, and the journalism of organizations such as Democracy Now to better understand the functions of politics in our world
While Dan was politically aware and educated, he was also very cynical and did not actively engage in politics at all. It wasn’t until he became more deeply engrossed in historical study, especially on the subjects of early 20th century fascism, the American Revolution, and the American Civil War that he began to fully appreciate how politics shapes the course of the world and the lives of all who are subject to it. That, combined with his assertion that we are in one of those critical chapters of history right now, is what turned him from cynic to activist.
In short, Dan’s ideological-left politics have been informed by his study of left-wing intellectuals, but his political activism has been motivated by his sense of history.
Background
Dan grew up in a working class household that lived a very tightly budgeted lifestyle. His family never wanted more than what they had, which was more than some, but less than most in his neighborhood. Dan never felt anything other than lucky, and feels incredibly fortunate to have a loving family that includes his mother, father, brother, step-father, step-brother, and step-sister who are behind him and beside him every day.
Dan is the first member of the Mariano family to complete high school, so education has always been important to him. His mother’s family motto, which she would echo to him as she read to him every night as a child, is “an education is a light load to carry.” So in living by that principle, he reads books often and widely, ranging from classic fictional literature to beach-books, from political science and historical analysis, to scientific journalism and philosophy.
Professionally Dan is a relatively successful producer in marketing, with his career primarily centered on entertainment brands, film post-production, sporting events, and television shows with some of the most recognizable brands in the world. However his personal passion is first and foremost writing, specifically screenplays and stage plays (he also holds a degree in playwriting and screenwriting).
When Dan’s not at his day job, he spends most of his free time working with grassroots organizations such as The Union, Field Team 6 (as a phone bank co-czar), NextGen America (as a voter registration volunteer), Indivisible Philadelphia (as a postcard writer), and Swing Left Philadelphia (as a canvasser) in order to drive voter registrations, candidate awareness and the speak to the achievements of House and Senate candidates in Pennsylvania. On the weekends, he also dedicates his time to canvassing for the Biden re-election campaign. Dan moved from Brooklyn to Philadelphia last year specifically to maximize the amount of activities he can take part in and to broaden his reach to many critical voters in this election.
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Note: The views and opinions expressed by volunteer contributors are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the positions of The Union, a single-issue organization that welcomes all and is dedicated to protecting democracy.
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Thank you for sharing this info, Dan. We look forward to learning more about your thoughts as the election nears.