During the Depression, Wagner's grandfather said remember, if you don't watch and keep that fox away from the henhouse, this will repeat itself again.
When Wagner thinks of today's economy, she says her grandfather was a wise man. What he said was true, it's what happened, and perhaps, she says, we're all guilty in not keeping our ears and eyes focused on what was happening all around us.
Wagner knows she's just one of "millions in America, who have been affected in one way or another." She's "just like the other people" and now she's angry and tired and speaking up about it because she can.
Despite hardship, she believes in the spirit of the American people and knows this nation will survive:
"America is a village of all nationalities. We're a great country and we have proved time and time again that when we get into a crisis we can work together and make life better afterwards. That's the way I look at it," says Wagner.
She has been with Citizens for Community Improvement (CCI) for fourteen years.
Wagner believes that the American people need to "create a political momentum around policy reform that will put American people first" and she supports the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency, an extension of the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, and a modernization of the Community Reinvestment Act as solutions for addressing current economic problems.
Hopefully, the presence of ordinary folks at the Showdown in Chicago will get America closer to reining in the banks, which are defrauding American taxpayers.
In this hour, Wagner "challenge[s] the media and the American people to stand up, speak out and act. We the people still have the power to do so. Why not exercise it?"
For the "Greatest Generation," let us hope the younger generations hear her message and respond with action.
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