Bernie Sanders showed up at exactly 4:40 p.m. His appearance was between stops in San Jose in the morning and Vallejo in the evening. He made time for the hotel workers, and in one fell swoop proved he’s the candidate he claims to be: one for the proletariat, not the well-heeled minority.

But Sanders didn’t accomplish that just by showing up. He also knew where he was and who he was speaking to. He supported the workers’ quest, saying unions are important vehicles for dignified workplace treatment. He told the crowd he was shocked by the sight of so many people living on the streets of San Francisco. His wife, Jane, stood off stage, snapping pictures of her husband during his brief remarks before greeting the audience after the senator did the same.

It was as if they were just like the rest of us, because, well, they are.

It’s easy to write off Sanders and his continued candidacy as a waste of time. With Donald Trump being the presumptive Republican nominee, some argue Sanders is damaging the Democratic Party’s chances of retaining the White House. But that ignores the fact that the people who came to the union rally in The City — the legions of folks who’ve packed venues nationwide to see the man in person, the millions more who’ve donated their money and time to get him elected — are, for the most part, doing something they’ve never done before. And particularly here in California, many Sanders supporters are engaged in a primary process that has not been this important in their lifetimes. There’s life after Bernie, many say.