Chris Williams For House District 14: Stories from the campaign trail

Utah State House District 14 Candidate Chris Williams with his twin brother Bruce

I love knocking on doors and meeting people. And it’s always amazing to me how quickly some people open up and bare their souls to you.

This past Saturday was one such instance.

I was knocking doors in Layton when I met a woman who is raising a disabled son. I quickly let her know that I was concerned about the rights of the disabled and how I’d represent those less fortunate than I on Capitol Hill.

You see, I am a twin, and my brother Bruce was born with cerebral palsy. I have no idea why I wasn’t born with CP instead of my brother. It has been a question I’ve had all my life.

As I was chatting with the woman in her front entryway, she told me about her own son and about abuse he had suffered at the hand of an aide who had been hired to provide care to him in his own home.

It quickly brought back memories of when my twin brother entered high school and was contending with a bully. The bully liked to come up from behind him and scare Bruce to see how high he would jump in his wheelchair.

One of the disabilities my twin has is that he has no peripheral vision; he sees like a racehorse whose eyes have been covered with blinders or blinkers.

So of course, when the bully would come up from behind, Bruce would have no idea that he was there. And this activity brought so much joy to the bully that it started to become a pastime.

Soon after I found out about it, I approached the bully, suggesting in no uncertain terms that the pastime end immediately and that he pick on someone who could defend himself, such as Bruce’s able-bodied twin.

The bully, come-to-find-out, didn’t realize the terror he was inflicting, apologized, and became a good friend to Bruce – which brings me to my final point.

That point is “there for the grace of God go I” and my absolute commitment to defend the defenseless.

I don’t know the exact details of the Layton case I mentioned above.

But this I do know. I will defend the defenseless. It is part of my core. It is who I am.

This is one story I learned as I walked to let people know I’m running for office. As I continue to meet people, I will share their stories and let you know how I will represent them and how I will represent you.

Chair's note:  Last Saturday we walked with Chris Williams in District14 for Organizing for America.  The above story came from that canvass.