Mary Baker is a political activist, speaker, author, and educator residing in Arizona.
Her book, Citizen Ninja: Stand Up to Power published in June 2016 was inspired by an activism workshop she created called How to Become a Citizen Ninja, a training on how to participate in the civic process, engage in civil political discourse, and how to neutralize bullies. Since 2014, Mary’s training has touched approximately 3,000+ citizens who have learned the art of effective and sustained activism.
Currently, Mary is the National Director of Training for Citizens for Free Speech, a 501c 3 organization founded by Patrick Wood who is an author and commentator for Technocracy News. Together they launched www.localactivist.org, the new home for Citizen Ninja on-demand activism training and networking. Mary’s virtual training includes The Citizen Ninja Way, Citizen Ninjas in Action, and Citizen Ninja Study Groups.
Since 2019, Mary has been the Human Resources Manager for her family’s business running interference on the many pressures to embrace corporate woke culture, Sustainable Development Goals, and ESG (Environmental and Social Governance).
Over the years, Mary has served on several city citizen committees and executive boards for a variety of political organizations. She has led several non-profits to promote activism in public education and property rights. In 2017, the Republican Party of San Diego County presented Mary the Louisa Akins Woman of the Year award. In the Spring 2022, she was honored when The Leadership Institute opted to offer The Citizen Ninja Way via the website’s activism training portal.
Mary is a guest speaker covering topics such as Sustainable Development, Regional Governance, and Civic Engagement. She has also been a guest on several national and regional radio programs.
Mary graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Middlebury College. She grew up in Europe and speaks French and Spanish. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking and mountain biking with her husband and friends. Mary has been married for 34 years, raised two children, and enjoys playing with her three grandchildren.
Website: www.citizensforfreespeech.org | Email: mary.baker@citizensforfreespeech.org
Personal Statement
I was born in the United States but grew up in Europe— Belgium, France, and Switzerland—and for nine years I attended French-speaking schools. At age 13, when my family moved to New York, I struggled to assimilate. I didn’t fit into American culture, and my peers showed no interest in knowing about the one I had grown up in. To fit in, I dumped my European persona and superficially embraced this new world, but in my heart I was a teenager with no identity.
It wasn’t until I was 22, in 1986, when I attended a professional baseball game, that I became an American in my heart. Tom Seaver was pitching one of his last games for the Red Sox against the New York Mets; the team he propelled to the World Series in 1969. The New York Mets fans were ecstatic because they were going to see “Tom Terrific” pitch his 300th win—he was still their hero. For the first time since moving back to the U.S., I stood up with over 60,000 American baseball fans and sang the National Anthem. Tears rolled down my cheeks as the powerful lyrics overwhelmed me. In that moment, I became not just a fan of baseball but a fan of America! I felt the surge of patriotism that would drive my devotion to this exceptional and inspiring country.
Over the years I reintegrated the European culture I had left behind and came to discover this blending of cultures was part of the U.S. immigrant experience. Though I have always been an American citizen on paper, at first I wasn’t an American patriot. Like other naturalized citizens, I made the choice to learn about the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence. I memorized the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem. I studied America’s system of government and participated in elections. Eventually, I realized I was a citizen who had a role to play not just in my community but in the society of politics.
I am still learning and understanding the covenant of liberty our Founding Fathers and Framers forged for us in the nation’s founding documents. The work I do as an activist, author, and educator is now part of my civic contribution to safeguarding the American dream of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness—for all citizens and future generations.