'Spirit of '95'

Does anybody remember the episode, "Spirit of '95"? The major storyline was an election campaign to determine whether the Newcomers would be given the right to vote. Parallel to the major storyline was a minor storyline involving the rules of the condominium where Sykes and Cathy lived.

Neo-Nazi types were successful in manipulating the issues of the election in such a way that the Newcomers were denied the right to vote. As I recall it, in the next to last scene of the episode it was announced that the Newcomers had lost by a small margin.

The last scene was simple and brief. The board of the condo association took a vote among the residents on the issue that had been vexing the residents during the episode. Several residents held up their hands. Then Sykes held up his hand, and then Cathy held up her hand.

And I burst into tears.

The whole episode had been about the monumental issue of who could vote. It was debated at a high level and the election was subverted by people who were filled with hate for the Newcomers. But the condo association knew what was right without thinking about it for a moment. Everyone should have a say. You just let everybody vote! It's really simple.

I've always loved that episode.

Geoff Sjostrom