Leslie Knope is a relentlessly cheerful, hardworking, and optimistic civil servant who really, really, really believes in the ideals of democracy. She uses her seemingly limitless energy to try and make the world a better place, despite the resistance of those around her. As she says “There’s nothing we can’t do if we work hard, never sleep and shirk all other responsibilities in our lives.”
Despite apathetic co-workers and a Libertarian boss who believes that government should be privatized, Leslie fights daily to make positive changes in her hometown of Pawnee, IN. Her efforts are rarely recognized, rewarded, welcomed or appreciated, but she remains undaunted in her quest to make the lives of those around her better. She welcomes their criticism. “What I hear when I’m being yelled at is people caring loudly at me.”
She believes that “winning is every girl’s dream but it’s my destiny” and that she has “the most valuable currency in America: A blind, stubborn belief that what I’m doing is 100% right.” And she’s not above soliciting input from others, saying “I took your idea and I made it better.”
Leslie Knope worked her way up from Deputy Director of the Pawnee City Department of Parks and Recreation to Governor of Indiana based on her can-do spirit. “If I seem too passionate, it’s because I care. And if I come on strong, it’s because I feel strongly. If I push too hard, it’s because things aren’t happening fast enough.” I think we can all relate.
Leslie is like women everywhere except for one small detail – she’s fictional. Played by Amy Poehler, she’s a character in the series Parks and Recreation. The fictional Pawnee stood in for small towns across America, populated with characters we can all relate to. It was a look at small town politics that also incorporated political and economic issues of the time, including government shutdowns and the financial crisis of 2007. The entire series is available to stream on HULU.
As we approach this historic election, we recall these words of wisdom from Leslie Knope:
“Let’s break out a map. Not the old out-of-date one that shows where we’ve been, but a crisp new one that shows where we might go. Let’s embark on a new journey and see where it takes us.”
When we last saw her in an April 2020 reunion special, it was hinted that Leslie’s current job might be President of the United States. Someday Leslie, someday.