MoBLOG

When Your Powers Combine...

2006-07-21T13:18:00.000-07:00

This morning Rachel and I(Nathan) had the pleasure of working with some young activists from 20/20 Vision. I was a bit nervous about teaching the seminar because this was my first presentation on The Mobilizer's Guidebook, and I was presenting to a group of accomplished and engaged peers. I was worried that they would have just as much if not more to teach me about mobilizing than I could teach them.

I was absolutely correct, and the students were an engaged and interactive audience. They were also fans of Captain Planet, much like myself. The students had a wealth of experience that they were happy to share with both Rachel and me and the rest of the class. I enjoyed working with the activists at 20/20 Vision, and I hope they found the experience as productive as I did.

Oh... and I must give a shout out to these guys too...

Mobilizer Fundraising

2006-07-18T07:50:00.000-07:00

by Kris Anderson

These past couple weeks have been exciting for the interns here at Mobilize.org as far as fundraising goes. We had organized and held an event at Rumors on 19th street that raised about $450 for MAY. We found that the best ways to raise money at an event like this are silent auctions, raffles, and guest bartending.

We have been very successful in soliciting donations from generous community businesses such as Burberry, Subway, Brooks Brothers, J Press, Barmey Liquors, the Washington Nationals, local golf courses, and more. Last week we held a fundraiser with Baja Fresh in dupont circle, and raised $175 for MAY.

We also have several upcoming events for Mobilizing America's Youth. Tomorrow, Wednesday July 19th we are having a Fundraising Happy Hour at Big Hunt in Dupont Circle from 5-7 pm with raffles, silent auctions, and hopefully stiff drinks courtesy of guest bartending. Next week, we will be holding another Baja Fresh fundraiser on Tuesday, followed by a possible fundraiser at California Pizza Kitchen on Conneticut avenue on Thursday. We hope to raise another few hundred dollars over the next two weeks. These funds will go to our current Student Debt Campaign and SOS campaign, as well as YPAC and our Mobilizer teams.

Thank you to those of you who have attended our recent fundraisers and we look forward to seeing you at our upcoming events!

Mobilize.org Continues “Guess the Debt” Campaign

2006-07-13T14:09:00.000-07:00

On July 1st, 2006, interest rates on federal student loans increased dramatically causing the average loan-burdened student to have over $5,000 more debt. Mobilize.org took action to educate students about this policy change. The “Guess the Debt” campaign helped students from across the country understand Congress’ consistently anti-youth policy by asking them just how much they thought the staggering national student debt would increase before congress took action. One lucky winner will receive his or her debt paid by Mobilize.org.

Mobilize.org has multiple components of this campaign including an informative website, a happy hour event, an advertising campaign, and a Capwiz-powered web feature that generates press release emails for interested students’ local media outlets. The initial campaign has faced some obstacles, especially during the summer months. Our goals, however, are long term. While Mobilize.org hoped the July 1st increase would be sufficient for generating student interest, the summer months have yielded low interest. The campaign will continue into the fall and intensify as back to school expenses are more salient in young people’s minds.

Nathan's Campus Progress Article

2006-07-07T08:41:00.000-07:00

Nathan Dickerson is an intern this summer at Mobilizing America's Youth in Washington DC. He is a student at the University of Kentucky and is originally from Spotsville, Kentucky.

A Higher Education in the Capital.

By Nathan Dickerson, University of Kentucky

Thursday July 6, 2006

My parents never encouraged me to keep up the family farm in Kentucky. To make up for what a small farm income couldn’t cover, my dad worked as a firefighter and an EMT while my mom worked at a day care center. They hoped for a less scattered lifestyle for me. When I was in my early teens, the plan was for me to go to ITT Technical Institute in Indiana after high school. My family realized as I got older, however, that I should aim for a college education. With respectable test scores and generous scholarships, I was fortunate enough to be able to attend the University of Kentucky as a first-generation college student. Yet I quickly discovered that to keep pace within the educational arms race, I would need a host of other expensive educational accessories. Having internalized this ethos, I find myself with the quintessential summer internship in the nation’s capital.

I’m experiencing a bit of social vertigo as I look back at my days on the farm with technical school ambitions, especially now that I’m spending my summer as an intern in Washington, D.C. During my first bewildered week inside the Beltway, I kept the classic Talking Heads song “Once in a Lifetime” on repeat. There were certainly a few times when I wondered, “Just how did I get here?” Like many American college students, I had left the sciences in search of a more satisfying exploration of the liberal arts. I made this switch knowing that I would have minimal debt from my undergraduate education and understanding that to apply liberal arts skills in the “real world,” I would either have to work assertively to join an unfamiliar class of knowledge workers or resort to serving lattes. I can certainly sympathize with the popular disdain directed at liberal arts students; because of the unclear career prospects a liberal arts education provides, it sometimes only seems financially pragmatic for those who have the social connections to be able to use it.
To build such connections, I applied for The Washington Center, a program that affiliates with multiple universities to connect their students to D.C. internships, adding some structure and academic accountability to the experience. I felt a bit sheepish for enrolling in a program that would arrange an internship for me, feeling as though it was the equivalent of an overpriced test prep course when, with the proper discipline, I could have just gone to the library and studied. Yet in the midst of a snowballing workload at the end of last semester, I realized that micromanaging applications and housing in a city I had only spent two days in last summer was outside my scope of capability. Thanks to the stipends I had saved from the Gaines Fellowship, assistance from my parents, and scholarships that removed the pressure of debt, I have been able to afford access to the “experiential learning” that is a prerequisite for a career in D.C.’s intellectual culture. (That would be an unpaid internship to the unacquainted.)

Now that I am in Washington and meeting other interns, I’m finding that The Washington Center is not an anomaly and many programs orchestrate internship placements for students who can afford this lifestyle. I had no idea summer intern employment had become so institutionalized, and even after being here for a month, I still feel embarrassingly naïve. I didn’t realize how much access interns have. For example, during the first few weeks, my internship supervisor asked me to attend the “Reverse the Raid on Student Aid” rally with Nancy Pelosi and other leading House Democrats. I arrived dressed similarly to the camera crew, not realizing the well-heeled atmosphere of the event. Everyone else wore business attire. I didn’t know rallies were so formal, and I didn’t think the HR (House of Representatives) room designation meant the rally was actually going to be inside the U.S. Capitol.
Because of my personal experiences, I’ve always been concerned about the accessibility of higher education, which led me to work for a nonprofit focused on lowering student debt through grassroots advocacy. The internship has not only helped me develop a more sophisticated understanding of student debt policy, but has been constructive in helping me understand the D.C. marketplace of ideas. Leading up to the July 1 interest rate increase for federal student loans, my first month in Washington saw me attending weekly meetings at the Campaign for America’s Future on behalf of my nonprofit. These meetings helped me appreciate the “inside the Beltway” rhetoric that is such a turn-off to many Americans. I began to notice the importance of job titles at these student debt meetings. Introductions in D.C., even socially, are a binary of name and occupation, as if the former simply cannot exist without the latter. This formality was at first counterintuitive, but I find myself using it naturally now. And my new vocabulary extends to the way I speak about politics. I’ve learned how narratives, messaging, scare tactics, and other political communication strategies can be used to disseminate information and cultivate activism. With the abundance of intricate policy ideas swirling around D.C., I can understand why advocacy organizations must employ such mechanisms to make policy accessible for those outside the Beltway.

Cities have always struck me as incubators of ideas, and this observation holds especially true for Washington, with its neoclassical architecture and plethora of think tanks. I love it here, and not just because think tanks provide the total package for knowledge-hungry interns with countless seminars and free food. Despite my efforts to soak up knowledge, I’m still not confident that I understand how this city works. Sometimes I feel as though everyone here spends their time writing political blogs for an audience of 12 friends while living off of a trust fund. But my outlook rapidly shifts when I walk into McDonald’s at 3 a.m. and realize that 24/7 knowledge workers depend on someone else to put in those same hours for minimum wage. This is especially disturbing to me because I feel that luck is significantly responsible for putting me on the other side of the counter.

Herein lies the crux of my dissatisfaction with the D.C. internship experience. I love the vantage point I have here in D.C. If I can continue to hover in this political knowledge culture, I may find a real use for the critical thinking skills I’ve gained from my liberal arts education. Yet I must approach this experience with cautious enthusiasm. I, for one, am unable to shake off feelings of a creeping disconnect between my lifestyle here and my lifestyle at home just a few years ago. This disconnect is echoed in the polarization I see between knowledge and service workers in D.C’s postindustrial economy, the disparity in wealth between neighborhoods like Georgetown and the Southeast quadrant of the city, and the distance between informed Washington elites versus average Americans. I gawk at the potency of insider knowledge and the way education stratifies people. From here, the hierarchies described by conservative thinkers such as Irving Kristol and Leo Strauss appear to be very real, indeed. Don’t get me wrong, I am glad to have a front row seat to watch how the world actually works. I just wish this sort of understanding were available to everyone.

Nathan's article can also be found at
http://campusprogress.org/features/989/interning-your-life-around

Why I Love DC

2006-07-07T07:56:00.000-07:00

I must admit, I'm a bit of a political geek. I'd rather see a politician than a movie star, but I got the best of both worlds when Al Gore was signing the companion book to An Inconvenient Truth at Olsson's Bookstore.

I was actually quite surprised at the lack of publicity surrounding Gore's visit. I have serendipity to thank for my attendance. I had been researching local bookstores online for the nonprofit I work for when I noticed that Olsson's was going to be featuring Al Gore.

Naturally I asked my supervisor if I could spend the day outreaching to D.C. bookstores to sell our guidebook, and it just so happened that my lunch hour corresponded with Gore's arrival at Olsson's.

Thus two fellow interns and myself were dutifully waiting in a very long line outside of Olsson's to meet Al Gore. It quickly became apparent, however, that the line probably extended much farther than our lunch hour. So we went inside the store to try to get a closer look.

We found sanctuary in the maps section, which we hoped would give us cover as confused tourists who just happened to be right next to the desk where the former Vice President would be sitting. This worked until Al Gore walked out and we were promptly ushered into another part of the store.

The other two interns were shuffled into the café, but I managed to slip right in front of the book-signing desk where I enthusiastically took responsibility for taking plenty of pictures for my friends and myself.

Al Gore was quite cordial, and seeing him with a loving fan base was refreshing. I still wish he had been president.

In the midst of all of this, I noticed that Ralph Nader had jumped in line as well. At this point I achieved nirvana. I quickly went over and snapped a few pics of myself with Ralph Nader, and then I hung around waiting for the meeting between the two presidential nominees.

I managed to catch a few pics of their interaction, one of which I've added below:

Below is the brief clip that I caught with my digital camera:

It was difficult to make out the exchange between them, but this Washington Post article claims the following exchange took place:

"Nice to see you! How you doing? . . . I'm really so grateful to you for coming by."

After more pleasantries, Gore scribbled a line in the book: "For my friend, Ralph Nader. With respect, Al Gore."

Nader was smitten. "He's liberated!" Nader said. "He's defining what progressive Democrats should be about."

This is why I love being in Washington, D.C.

Posted by Nathan

Fellowship Experience

2006-06-27T09:08:00.000-07:00

The following blog was written by Marcus Pope, a junior at Cesar Chavez Public Policy High School, who joined us for a 3 week fellowship program.

My Fellowship experience with Mobilizing America’s Youth was very good. I gained a lot of exposure. The little things like inputting timesheets into spreadsheets, researching, and attending staff meetings, all made me feel like I was part of the MAY staff. Working with MAY was cool because you get a feel of what an organization is really about.

While working with MAY, I helped them get organized. I helped them keep a record of all the foundations they have been in contact with. I put the contact information of those organizations in a spreadsheet. I researched Kansas City, Missouri to get some information about MAY holding a conference there. I also researched The Hip Hop Political Convention to get some information about it. I have also kept a record of assignments that some of MAY’s staff members completed. I also researched biographies of people who were involved with organization.

Besides helping MAY get organized, I also did things outside of the office. Along with some other staff members, I donated books to a local recreation center. I also attended a meeting at the Capitol. The topic of discussion was student debt. There were democratic representatives like, Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Miller Meek, and Rep. Ryan talking about how raising student loan interest rates were wrong. Besides those representatives, there were some students who were currently in college talking about the effects of the student loan interest rate increase. It was good exposure for me to see and hear a political meeting about an issue. Before going there, I never really witnessed right before my eyes, a meeting that included lots of supporters and representatives.

While working with MAY, I learned that if one wants to make change then one would have to do it his or her self, because the way the government is run right now, there’s no automatic change in the world unless you attempt to make change. I also learned that it takes a lot of constructed time, dedication, hard work and commitment in order to get your voice and opinion heard by the people that you want to hear it. It also takes all of those things in order to do something or take action against an issue or problem. I’ve really enjoyed working with Mobilizing America’s Youth for my fellowship.

The Youth Policy Action Center

2006-06-21T12:06:00.000-07:00

For the last few weeks, I have been spending a lot of time working on the Youth Policy Action Center website (http://www.youthpolicyactioncenter.org). I think the Center is really taking off, with 10 new members in the last month. Just today, I had a conference call with Maya and two representatives from Future Voters of America. I'm glad they're adding their organization to the 80+ members working with the Center already.

Right now I'm working on involving our members more with the site, helping them take advantage of our resources to better pursue their agendas. I'm especially glad to be helping those organizations who stake out strong positions on legislation, but don't have the technology that we do. I think the software will really help those organizations pursue effective campaigns to get their message to their representatives, senators, media outlets, whoever!

I have very high hopes for the future of the website. I think with time and hard work, the great ideas behind the Center will really expand the effectiveness of young Americans seeking to make a difference. I hope politicians sit up and take notice when we reveal the political potential of the youth!

Student Debt

2006-06-14T08:47:00.000-07:00

Here at Mobilize we have been doing alot of exciting work lately concerning our revamped Student Debt Campaign. We have re-done our entire Student Debt section of the website, adding an FAQ, as well as a Guess the Debt contest page, where you can go and enter your guess for how much the national student debt will increase before congress takes concrete action to restore student aid programs, and automatically be entered to have the first payment of your own student debt paid.

We have high hopes for the Guess the Debt contest in terms of participation, but with the contest we really hope to educate people on Student Debt. Our first goal is to tell people to consolidate their student debt now, because the rates will increase more than 2 points, starting July 1st. This translates into an average of about $4500 in increased student debt for the average American student with student debt. Visit our Student Debt FAQ page for links and helpful information concerning consolidating your debt.

After Students guess the debt, we also encourage them to do more to help themselves. We have a tool on the Student Debt page to contact congress, and include your own stories to tell them if you like. In addition, we have put a link to both a press release concerning our Student Debt campaign, as well as directions on how to submit a press release to your local media outlet. If either of these options sound good to you, we would love to have you participate.

If you have any questions concerning any of the Student Debt campaign, don't hesitate to contact me, at Kris@Mobilize.org. Thanks!

Campus Progress/The Nation Journalism Conference

2006-06-09T07:08:00.000-07:00

On Friday, June 2, I attended the Campus Progress/The Nation Student Journalism Conference. The event, held at the offices of the Center for American Progress, gave progressive students from across the country the opportunity to learn about journalism and participate in skill building break out sessions. I’ve always been attracted to journalism, and the conference introduced me to some basic journalism skills as well as granted me the opportunity to hear some inspirational progressive speakers.

The day began with an introduction by Katrina vanden Heuvel, editor of The Nation magazine. She emphasized the crucial role that the press plays in equipping citizens with information about the ideas driving politics. Katrina eloquently worked to construct a picture of hope for a democracy with responsible, ethics-driven journalism. Katrina also noted some disillusionment, which was an inescapable motif in the speeches at this left-learning conference. Following Katrina was a panel discussion titled “On Politics: political writing and reporting” and then a lecture by one of David Horowitz’s “101 most dangerous academics,” Victor Navasky, on the importance of opinion journalism.

After the morning’s activities came the first break out sessions. I attended Max Blumenthal's “Reporting About the Right” to learn how to better orchestrate difficult interviews. Matt shared his experiences with the more extreme factions on the Right, including a group of white supremacists. He noted that getting access, especially to ideological opponents, is often a matter of luck. He did, however, emphasize the importance honesty and ethics throughout his presentation even when his stories were unflattering.

The second breakout session I attended was “Getting and Crafting the Interview” with Laura Flanders of Air America Radio. Laura was a compelling speaker who balanced an inspiring combination of both determined idealism and grounded realism. She adhered strictly to the professional ethics of journalism frequently returning to the responsibility of a journalist to the public interest. While she acknowledged the importance of access in a journalist’s career, she regretted that so many journalists are no longer asking difficult yet crucial questions in an effort to maintain access to key Washington players. She noted that often stories can be crafted from other sources and that sound bites from big name interviewees are not a crucial pillar to a good story. She also emphasized setting up goals for each interview and incorporating a narrative arch to structure the discourse. Her most resonating suggestion, at least for me, was to invoke a 2nd level of “why” into the interview. By using this tactic, an interviewer can go beyond the talking points and into the interviewee’s more personal reflections.

Following a panel discussion on “Covering corporate America,” came a final ensemble of Katrina vanden Heuvel, Eric Alterman, and the infamous reporter Helen Thomas. Each panelist had distinct conceptions of the present, past, and the future of progressive politics. Helen Thomas began by expressing her disappointment that the audience was merely sitting in the offices of a think tank instead of protesting in the streets. Her candid and direct announcement roused the audience, but it was quickly countered by the pragmatic Eric Alterman. He emphasized the importance of realpolitik for empowering progressive policies, yet he was consistently challenged by Katrian vanden Heuvel who felt progressives needed an assertive foundation of consistent principles to recapture the public’s confidence. The sparring between both Katrina and Eric was both lively and informative. Overall, the diversity in the panel was satisfying and an appropriate end to the conference.

To regulate or not to regulate

2006-05-29T08:31:00.000-07:00

When you want to stop people from doing something, there are usually two ways to go about it. You force them to stop, or you can convince them to stop. Both options have their merits. When it comes to HR 5319 and our most recent campaign to Save Our Social Networks (SOS), the debate gets pretty heated. Online predators are out there. We want novice internet users to be safe, but we also want them to use the medium to its full potential.

What do we do–stop young people from accessing parts of the internet in libraries and public schools, or simply talk to them about how they can be safe? Mobilize has been leading the debate on Essembly.com for weeks now.

I’d say most people tend to agree with the SOS stance: we don’t need to stop young people from getting on the internet, but we do need to tell young people how to protect themselves. It’s a problem that could easily be solved with a conversation or two, regulation overcompensates. Of course, there are a few people who don’t agree. Young people aren’t always supervised in libraries and public schools, and enter into situations that violate their safety without even knowing it.

When I first got my driver’s license, I stopped wearing a jacket. It was December, but I was literally outside for moments a day, and knew I didn’t need one. My parents were not happy about this, and told me they wouldn’t let me drive anymore unless I had a jacket in my hand. Needless to say, I never wore the jacket. And I never got sick, and the car never broke down, either. But I always had one.

I don’t think my parents ever entertained the notion of not letting me drive the car in winter, because that would have been impractical. They saw the bottom line a lot better than I did: sometimes you need a jacket "just in case." But that’s driving. My parents had been driving for decades before I got my license. With the internet, those tables turn.

Young people have been online almost as long as their parents have, and are more familiar with the social networking tools under debate. It’s not that we don’t need mom and dad to tell us how to keep ourselves save, but we have an opinion to share on this matter, and we know what we’re talking about it.

Social networking websites are used for good. To check out how, go to www.mobilize.org/SOS. You can write to your elected officials, tell your friends to, and help promote this campaign--all through the use of social networking websites. Should we restrict access to this type of technology in schools and libraries, when young people are most likely to take advantage? I don't think so, and I want to tell everyone I know.

Benchmarks

2006-05-18T14:11:00.000-07:00

We're all really excited about our new campaign, Save Our Social Networks (SOS). Dave says we're doing a top-notch job, Maya is on the phone all day with our partners, and I am juggling a few story ideas with reporters. The office has taken on a lively character, we all feel fulfilled. Today we got the news that 1,000 letters to Congress have been written!

This is the campaign right under your nose. Congress thinks that we didn't need social networking websites (Facebook, Friendster, MySpace, Essembly, YPAC, Yahoo 360...), and young people are saying: "yes we do!" After all, young people have grown up with the internet all our lives, Congress has only had it for the last 15 years or so.

It's integrated into our lives, and we're used to coordinating with our friends, and engaging in public and civic discourse, through this medium.

Or at least that's what I'M saying.

We have a website, www.mobilize.org/SOS, where we want people to give us their feedback about why social networking websites are important to them. Here are a few of the many great responses we have received:

“Don’t Stop Progress!”~Josh Kappel from Wildwood, MO

“I love MySpace because it allows me to keep in touch with my friends. Since college, everyone has moved all over the country, and MySpace is an affordable and quick way to keep in touch. Now that I am a mother of a six month old, I don't really have a lot of time for long telephone conversations or for lengthy emails, but in a few minutes I can send a quick message out to all of my friends.”~Nicole Berkheimer from Knoxville, TN

“I use MySpace to promote my band. If you pass this legislation you will be taking money out of our pockets.”~J. Grant Bolign from Coupeville, WA

“They are used to work on assignments for class. We message each other to find out about homeowrk or schedule a time for group projects. Many school organizations also use these websites to remind people of meetings or upcoming events.” ~Trent Armitage from Victoria, VA

“I have friends whose lives have been saved because of these very websites. Suicidal youth who look out for help (and GET IT, through these sites), the kids who get beat up each day who need to find other kids to talk to who go through the same thing, many kids who do not even have a computer at home, or do not feel safe BEING at home. Over 69 million people use MySpace.com, and of those 69 million, 12 have been prosecuted for child abuse. That's hardly a measurable fraction.”~Tevi Abrams-Slep from New York, NY

“We have 5 children and they utilize the web / email / instant messager to keep in touch with friends and family from around the world. As responsible parents we realize that the responsibility is ours and not the government's to teach our children the safe way to use the web which is as it should be.”~Barry Chalcroft from Vancouver, WA

“Thank you taking the time to read my letter and consider mine and my peers views.”~Danny Carle from Willoughby, OH

“I am in Iraq and banning networks like Myspace would greatly reduce my connections with the outside world. Its not only a place to keep in contact with friends and family but I can see PICTURES of america! The American melting pot is sort of like myspace. There is nothing more AMERICAN then myspace.”~Jennifer Adlard from Petuluma, CA

“Keep in touch with friends and family: For instance, I recently found my half brother and sister by utilizing socializing websites. It seems that many of the older generations do not understand the electronic world. They feel that meeting/chatting with people online is a horrible thing, when nothing is further from the truth. I implore you not to ban social networks.”~Traci Wilkins from Warner Robins, GA

“I am concerned that this bill would have a chilling effect on free expression by young people. When Congress passes any bill restricting youths' free expression, it gives the sense that young people should just shut up rather than get involved in public discourse and debate. HR5319 doesn't do anything about child predators; it attempts the appearance of a solution by restricting youth. In other words, it punishes the them.” ~Svend la Rose from Hayward, CA

Save Our Social Networks (SOS)

2006-05-12T17:44:00.000-07:00

I hope you’ve enjoyed our site - Congress wants this to be your last visit. Legislation was recently proposed that bans social networking. Come again? HR 5319 uses extremely broad language to define social networking sites and would even ban websites that are used for positive, professional and social experiences. Wait..what?

The Mobilize.org team wants to ensure you that we are doing everything we can to fight Congress and to Save Our Social Networks but we need your help. Don’t let the traditional political powers ban our new organizing technology. We’ve created this movement, and we’re going to fight for it.

Visit www.mobilize.org/SOS to send Congress a message, tell your friends, and get mad.

And remember, Congress does NOT want you to forward this message.

No Educational Divide? Think Again.

2006-05-11T12:57:00.000-07:00

Next weekend, a high school in La Puente will send a team to the 2006 Solar Cup boat competition. Forty high schools from the greater Los Angeles area will compete for the fastest and strongest boat.

The high school, Nogales, finished third in the competition two years ago, and is hoping its “Black Rose” will snatch up a victory this year. A recent newspaper article cited the team’s experience with fixing cars and knowledge of electrical systems as factors that could deliver a win.

Their advantage–the reason they know so much about cars and electrical systems–is also their weakness. La Puente is a lower income community, and its students have a hard time facing opponents with access to more resources.

Mobilize is part of a coalition: “Reverse the Raid on Student Aid,” that is demanding Congress address the problem of higher education expenses. The fear is that, as college costs continue to rise, people from lower income communities will be boxed out of higher education. Right now, the average cost of a four year public school is $15,566/year, or one third of the annual income for the average La Puente family.

Loans, and more specifically government loans, have been a good way for families to finance college. But, with interest rates set to double in July, the option loses its appeal. “Reverse the Raid” groups want to keep interest rates where they are (around 3% for students and 4% for parents) so that more young people can share in the American dream. If the increase goes through, the average student will be forced to add $7,000 in interest alone to their educational expenses. This will only exacerbate the socio-economic divide that gives richer students more resources than poorer students.

In some cases, those “resources” are obvious–take Glendora, a town 15 miles north of La Puente. Students from Glendora High placed second in the Solar Cup boat competition two years ago. They live in more expensive homes, have richer parents, and attend better schools. There are also safer. In 2003, La Puente had 402 assaults per 100,000 residents, in Glendora the number was 85 that year. Simple as pie.

Such is not the case when putting Nogales next to Canyon High, in Anaheim (which has won the last three Solar Cups). While Anaheim has better property values and less crime, the average income for Nogales is $41,222. Anaheim’s is only marginally higher ($47,122).

The difference, the “resource,” is education. An Anaheim resident over 25 years old is 40% more likely to be a high school graduate than his counterpart in La Puente. He is 300% more likely to be a college graduate. When talking about employment, the Anaheim resident is 50% more likely to have a job.

If this doesn’t clearly delineate the educational divide in America, I’m not sure I know what does. That the high school students of La Puente can place among students with more access and privilege is comforting. What’s more, their outlook is almost heartwarming.

“We’re ghetto, but we’re smart ghetto,” one Nogales senior is quoted as saying. The article doesn’t mention if the student is going to college in the fall, but statistically he stands as great a chance of going as not, and that simply isn’t okay.

Please support “Reverse the Raid.” Our coalition wants to open up our institutions of higher learning to a wide audience of Americans, Americans who have ambition and spirit, but perhaps not the money.

To learn more, please visit www.mobilize.org/studentdebt.

DP

A Few Studies and Resources

2006-05-08T11:14:00.000-07:00

MTV RELEASES RESULTS FROM JUST CAUSE RESEARCH – STUDY PROVIDES INSIGHT ON MOTIVATING YOUNG PEOPLE TO VOLUNTEER

MTV released the results of Just Cause, a research study which deconstructs how youth perceive “activism” and explores the motivating factors and barriers in their decision to become involved in social causes. Findings deconstruct youth activism and find an “activation gap”, showing a strong disparity between interest in and involvement in social causes. Anecdotal responses from respondents also offer clues into successful strategies into closing the “activation gap”. For a copy of the full study and an appendix, log on to: http://research.mtv.com.

PEW CHARITABLE TRUSTS RELEASES POLL ABOUT OPTIMISM ABOUT OUR GENERATION'S ABILITY TO ACHIEVE GREATER THINGS THAN PAST GENERATIONS

Nearly 50% of American adults believe that we will be worse off then people right now. This definitely gives us a step backwards on the American Dream ladder. Check out the full study

DR. PETER LEVINE OF CIRCLE LISTS GREAT SITES FOR YOUTH DISCUSSION

Check out the great list of youth sites, including the Youth Policy Action Center.

Mobilizing in Ghana

2006-04-27T14:10:00.000-07:00

Marlee Furman is a member of the Board of Directors. She is currently part of a refugee aid team operating in Ghana.

Hey out there! (and if you were here, we would shake hands, pull each other's middle fingers, and snap…as is the standard greeting)

Amongst the heavy rain and deafening thunder, this week has been full of various activities and accompanying emotions. Everything is still a little jumbled in my head, and I am reaching the stage where things are starting to come together and I am grasping the concept of what it all means. I will tell you some disjointed stories I have come across.

Last week, some of the volunteers took the kids up to the "fee" (i.e. field) to kick around a soccer ball and throw some frisbees. One girl, about 5 years old, carried her little brother, 8 months old, up the hill and asked me to hold him while she played. I thought it was only fair to give her a rest from looking after her brother so she could run around. For about an hour, I held the boy while talking to the rest of the kids and tossing the frisbee. Sure enough, I went to hand the boy back to the girl, and I had one big pee stain all over the front of my shirt! It was funny at the time, but looking back, I realized I have seen very few children with diapers. Obviously little kids cannot control themselves, so it wouldn't be surprising if they often went to the bathroom on or near themselves, therefore spreading disease like wildfire. What we think of as basic hygiene just doesn't exist. The vast majority of establishments on camp do not have a toilet. A dumpster to dispose of any type of waste can be as far away as a 15-20 minute walk to areas that are dangerous at night.

The amount of disease on camp is out of control. Just yesterday I was walking down the road and saw a kid bent over on all fours coughing up mucus. This is a common cough we have been hearing around camp, and we are afraid TB may be floating around. It's hard to diagnose anything with only 5-7 doctors on the entire 42,000 person camp. At night we often sit around reading various travel health books to help identify things that kids approach us with. Ringworm has also had a consistent presence lately. The boy that lives next to us has these awful looking flaky rings on his scalp. And the other day we had a mother bring her little boy by who had a cut on his head (from when she shaved the boy's head to, ironically, keep it clean) that got infected. Keeping in mind that most people use the same bathwater, from free wells on camp, if there is a water-born disease spreading…chances are an epidemic is about to happen. This happened a couple of months ago when a lot of people on camp came up with cholera. It's unfortunate that I have a gut feeling of hesitation when I go to hug the children or pick them up because of the fear that I may catch something. Every time I enter the house, I go to eat, before and after I go to the bathroom, I need to scrub my hands clean. Even after showers, I never feel clean. This is an issue that we deal with every minute of the day, but certain precautions are becoming second nature and you learn how to make your interactions with the kids safe, but simultaneously natural and nurturing.

Sometimes I forget the non-visible horrors that follow people when they flee their home country. People are not only striving day by day to survive, but they also must deal with traumas of their past and attempting to think about their futures. One man came to one of the volunteers asking for help the other night, showing him some sort of police report. The volunteer inquired a little more about the story, and it turns out that the man who approached him is a Liberian who hadhis entire family killed in the war and he fled here for safety. Turns out the rebel who was responsible for killing his family in Liberia also fled here. The rebel recognized the man, chased him with knives, and now the man sleeps with friends out of fear the rebel will find him at night. We are still brainstorming on if and how we can help this man. Unfortunately, sometimes the hardest part is acknowledging the fact that there is nothing you can do.

In general, there has been a constant asking problem lately that the volunteers have been discussing in our meetings. Although I was asked a lot when I first got here, I have not yet faced very difficult asks because I am still forming relationships with people. But most of the volunteers are asked by their colleagues that they work closely with for money for food, rent, medicine, etc. It is incredibly difficult to stay the course and give blanket no's. Often volunteers findthemselves giving, then word gets out that they give, and magically there are more and more asks. It is a vicious cycle and takes a united cold hearted approach to stop it.
Sometimes there are situations that cannot afford to be turned away. Last week, a girl named Beneta, came up to one of the volunteers, Liz, and told her that she had taken blue tablets and wanted to kill herself. Beneta became too weak to walk, and she was eventually wheel barrowed to the top of camp to the UNHCR clinic. Liz stayed with Beneta for hours while the drugs wore off and her family came to the clinic. This is an incredibly long and detailed story, but basicallyBeneta is 15 years old, is not in school, lives with her aunt (the rest of the family is in Liberia), prostitutes to get money, and has been starting to influence some of the other girls around the house.The next night, she came back to Liz saying she had taken three more tablets and still wanted to kill herself. Lucky for me, Beneta requested to speak to me. Through much talking and maneuvering, we got her to give us the tablets and agree that she would make it through the weekend so she could think clearly without the drugs.

That night Erin, our coordinator, found a mental hospital in Accra that would accept Beneta if she was in danger of overdosing and provide her with psychological services. Beneta agreed to go to the hospital and we took the 90 minute taxi ride there. Sure enough, we get to the hospital and the workers had gone on strike that afternoon. Yup, they locked the patients in the ward, and walked off. Exhausted and flustered in this overly exasperated situation, we calmly took the taxi back to camp and decided to seek out services on camp. As of yet, our luck has been minimal, but we are still trying to construct a program of our own to help Beneta turn her life onto the right path.

From under the mosquito net,
Marlee

The end of the beginning...

2006-04-20T17:09:00.000-07:00

Youth06. It’s a cool name, a good idea, and an awesome initiative. It suggests that we, the youngest generation of American voters, can make anyone who runs for office this year accountable to us.

We held a conference call yesterday, a few of our newest members got a chance to talk to other Mobilizers about their plans for the fall: galvanizing the youth vote, building coalitions, and getting in contact with the people who want our votes.

The ballot box is great, it’s the symbol of our democracy and of our rights, but it is only a symbol. Elections don’t happen every day, and campaigns only run for a few months. We need a movement that makes constant progress.

Youth06 is fifty teams strong, it is pockets of civically minded youths uniting under one name, once concept, and many goals. Some of us want to make college scholarships more competitive, others want to unionize workers, still more fight for tuition remission: this is truly an explosion of youth empowerment.

Many of our most active Mobilizers are actively pursuing a noble cause: the completion of another academic school year. For some, it will be for the last time–for others, the fall will bring the beginnings of a college career.

The fall will bring something to all of us, though: a chance ignite a flame, one that flared in 2004, when we saw the biggest surge of youth voters in over a decade. We have goals in 06, things we would like to see changed, and those changes are enhanced by one thing: the notion that we will actualize our desires, that we will flex our political muscle. There is a lot to be excited about, and there is so much more to do.

Visit www.mobilize.org/youth06 to read more, or contact Maya Enista (at maya@mobilize.org) if you want to DO more.

DP

Safe haven in the big city

2006-04-11T14:57:00.001-07:00

DC is a very busy place. It is spring break for most schools across the country, so there are families everywhere (not to mention the thousands of 8th graders on their annual school trips). Amid the hustle and bustle of the city, I found my way to the quiet little office with all of the people I know so well: the Mobilize.org HQ.

The office is in an impressive looking building in a bustling area of the city. Upstairs in the Common Cause office, though, it is a bit more friendly and welcoming. Only two rooms house the big ideas.

I’m in DC for a reason. I’m coming to college here next year at GW, majoring in Political Communication. Maybe I’m a bit biased, but I think that there is nothing more important to politics than communication. And it is a two-way street. Not only must the politician communicate with the people, but the people must communicate with the politician. And I mean ALL of the people, regardless of age.

Mobilize.org has just started the Youth06 Initiative, which is going to allow people our age to do just that; communicate with their politicians. The idea is that we can open up a dialogue with a politician and see where he or she stands on the issues most important to us. We can also urge the politician to get behind issues that we favor, like a new federal student aid program.

Youth06 is part of local politics, too. Maybe your town needs a better after-school program for the elementary school kids, or funding for a new library at the high school. Youth06 is bringing the people back to the politics. It is giving all of us voices so that we can tell politicians what we want to see happen in OUR country.

Take a minute and check out the Youth 06 part of the site. It’s the simple idea that can make a difference. And, if you’re ever in DC, be sure you check out the Mobilize.org office. It’s a little safe haven in a big, bustling city.

For more info on Youth06, visit here: http://www.mobilize.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.viewPage&pageId=497&parentID=487&nodeID=1

HD

(Hope Ditto is a mobilizer from San Clemente, CA).

2006-04-11T14:57:00.000-07:00

Delivering the Future

2006-04-04T12:06:00.000-07:00

"Finding the future isn’t enough, you also have to deliver it"

Of all places to find that odd tidbit of inspiration, I found it while sitting on the floor of the B. Dalton book store in the Embarcadero Center in San Francisco, reading a book entitled The Apple Way: 12 Management Lessons from the World’s Most Innovative Company.
It’s raining and I’m cold, but the above quote will keep a smile on my face, passion in my heart, and purpose in my words because it embodies exactly what Dave and I are doing in California, what the Mobilize staff in DC is working on, and what Mobilizers across the country demonstrate to their peers--we’re delivering the future.

It has been a week since we’ve been gone...and it’s been an unbelievably exciting one. I spent last Saturday in Memphis, TN doing a youth organizing training for people who could be teaching me (It was a challenging, rewarding, and inspiring experience, as always). Then it was off to Los Angeles and the all too comfortable bed of the Ditto family (our OC mobilizin’ headquarters). Our time in Los Angeles was brief, but packed. We met with Christian from Arsalyn, who is always looking to do new and empowering things for our nation’s youth, and the Liberty Hill Foundation, whose commitment to Los Angeles County is to be celebrated. We also had breakfast with Michael Davidson, a young man with a sense of humor that matches his sense of duty.

Our afternoon was spent in Long Beach, driving around with Bob Cabeza of the Long Beach YMCA. Expect big things from him and every young person that has the opportunity to work with him and the rest of the amazing staff of the Youth Institute. We traveled downtown to meet with Bill Mundell and his political team to hear about the strong coalition that he is building around ensuring fair and competitive elections in California and beyond.
We left Los Angeles the same way we found it: rainy, and drove up to darn near paradise, Paso Robles, to see Dave’s mom and to again sleep in a guest bed that I’ve become very comfortable with.

We were on the road at 5 am the next morning, looking forward to spending the next 2 days with Mr. Marston, a friend and mentor. Our time with Mr. Marston , as always, was positively challenging and further ignited our excitement and enthusiasm as he encouraged us to the strive to become the "better angels of nature." We saw a clever and witty play called The Rivals at the Geary Theater and I highly recommend both the play, and the company.

ME

Tuesday's with Dennis...Kucinich

2006-03-29T13:47:00.000-08:00

This morning, I had breakfast with Representative Dennis Kucinich (D-OH). Well, more like me and about 50 other students. He spoke at a breakfast held by the Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars, and Tara (a fellow intern at Mobilize.org from TWC) invited me to go.

He is personable. He liked to move around and engage his audience with his passion for politics. Kucinich spoke avidly about on his disdain for sending American troops to Iraq and touched on other issues that members of the audience asked him about (immigration laws and federal grants for college tuition were among them). I really enjoyed having the opportunity to engage a member of congress over muffins and pastries.

I did notice that his rhetoric was polarizing. Perhaps he thought the liberal approach would play well to the audience, but I do remember him speaking the same way when he ran for president. I’m pretty sure he wasn’t playing to anyone. He talked about bad decisions in our nation’s history–we must accept our past an move on. I have noticed, especially with members of the House, that they seem to constantly be on their soap box (and showing no signs of stepping off).

What is wrong with taking a moderate approach to issues? Young voters are registered as Democrats (39%), Republicans (32%) and independents (22%); we need elected officials who will wholeheartedly listen to our generation, to the issues that affect our lives. It’s what I tell students every day when I pitch the Youth06 Initiative.

Even though our ideologies and opinions differ in places, I did like his call for action. Kucinich said "Ask yourself: ‘who am I? What am I going to do to change the world today?’" I appreciate his attitude, and his desire to improve our country and it’s people. I want more of it.

CR

Politics Now

2006-03-21T14:50:00.000-08:00

March is Youth Voter Month, or at least we are celebrating it in this month where, 35 years ago, young people ages 18-20 were first given the right to vote. It's hard to believe that, as late as 1970, young people were disenfranchised.

It took a war to build popular support for the cause; anyone old enough to fight for America in Vietnam was also old enough to fight for America in the polling booth, and had the obligation to do so. At 18, I was not ready to fight a war; I was not even ready to vote. I thought I could register on election day and be processed immediately. Sometimes I cringe at my own obliviousness.

The next time around, I didn't receive my absentee ballot. But, instead of throwing my hands up, I took a "road trip for change" to New Jersey and, with my court order in hand, told the election officials to "show me the ballot"...box. One careless approach to voting followed by an activist approach: I like to think the two elections cancel eachother out.

I've still got a score to settle with my own track record on voter activism, and I'm not the only one. For all the talk about youth apathy, young people showed the rest of America what it means to care about elections in 2004. Our participation spiked (depending on who you listen to) by between 9 and 11 points, which is a larger increase than that of any other age group. The upward trend will continue in 2008, no doubt. It's the most open presidential race in decades.

I'm not worried about '08; I'm worried about '06.

That's right, '06. The silent, nerdy election that everyone agrees is okay, but not even half as appealing as '08; the "oh man it I just had no time" election. Forecasters say 1/3 of the voting public will choose the winners, maybe.

But, then again, forecasters say we'll get we'll get rain when we get sun. They take their guesses based on the only thing they know for sure, the past. This is the future. I wasn't registered in 2000 or in 2002, but it is 2006.

I am registered, and I will decide.

Most of us, when we think about reasons young people should value their right to vote, need look no further than our own civic shortcomings. Nobody's perfect. We should look beyond that, though. We should remember the pride with which Iraqis stormed their ballot boxes, with threats of violence and death ringing in their ears, or the men and women our country has sacrificed to give them that opportunity. We should remember our own inner thoughts on these and many other issues.

Whether we know it or not, we are old enough to fight a war. Let's start one.

DP

Fundraising

2006-03-17T12:56:00.000-08:00

We didn't get the big grant. There it is out on the table- we breathe in dissapointment and look towards the horizon, a little more wearily this time. That's all there is to do really with news like this. It's not the first time, nor will it be the last.

Understandably, it's a big part of this non-profit business. Learning to cope with dissapointment, find more money, pay the bills, buy new paper, take lunch breaks. Today I asked Maya how much time she spent on this stuff. "Too much," she says, "I wish people would just send us checks."

Sometimes, they do.

Yesterday Dave and Maya drove up to New York to talk to representatives from the Ford Foundation. They loved our stuff. She says, "it's about convincing them that we're the most worthy ones of their money."

ZH

And the winner is....

2006-03-16T09:04:00.000-08:00

The buds of MAY

2006-03-14T10:35:00.000-08:00

The heat is on; it got all the way into the seventies on Saturday. People went into the myriad circles and parks around the district and relaxed. Dave ate some asphalt over a catch of Frisbee, and a few of us found time for a Sunday night barbeque. Green, white, and pink buds are meandering out of the trees in the neighborhood, and rejuvenating the gray-scaled metropolis.

In the office, we’re meandering out of our hibernation, too. My whiteboard has stories to pitch and emails to write, playgrounds to build and dreams to fulfill. Four of us are doing this full time. I pick whatever ideas are ripe enough and cultivate them. A group of high school students wants to make DC recreation centers more welcoming. I want to harvest their ideas, articulate their desires, and broadcast their message.

Dave is attending a networking dinner party tonight for a group called YouthBuild, which encourages inner-city youths to rebuild their communities while receiving career training. He says a few senators may show up, and there will be partnerships to forge and contacts to receive. Work doesn’t end when Dave picks up his salad fork; he has a full lid tonight.

Zac is building a website for Raise Your Civic Currency, an incentive-based approach to civic action. He’s had to learn a new computer language and uncover codes and inconsistencies in the computer software. I saw the model for the homepage yesterday and it looks great, two weeks ago he didn’t even have network access.

Maya has a Sidekick, usually stuck to her face. She is on the phone and computer communicating with foundations and endowments every day, making sure we have the capital to finance our ideas. She also manages Claire, Tara, and Greg, who are working with college campus groups to start a dialogue between young people and political candidates.

Our jobs are distinct, but they are hinged to the successes and failures of the team. We need each other to succeed at any task, and we know how to hit our stride in the conference room and in the living room. On Saturday, we celebrated four years of youth empowerment with Mobilize.org. We washed down funny videos from Election Day 2005 with Bud Light (Uma Mehta, you’re a true talent), and we fashioned our own Mystery Science Theater 3000 out of The Italian Job.

The videos made me recall the thick of our campaigning last year. It is very cool to watch the budding of our midterm programming, but it is cooler to be part of the process that makes it grow.

DP

An AARP for Youngsters?

2006-03-10T13:32:00.000-08:00

Seriously, why don't we have one of these?

Besides boundless amounts of energy, a feeling of immortality, an undecided future, lots of hair and hip clothes, youngsters have a lot going for them. Most importantly, their numbers. I haven't check the statistics but the percentage of people aged 18-25, from what I hear, is very high.

There are a lot of old people, too. In this case age seems to have trumped over youth in that they've found a way to come together. With incredible political force, these old fogies have managed to secure themselves some pretty nice benefits, and I dare say a better way of life. Couldn't we do the same? I mean, we all have debt, we all are hurting for health care, we all have concerns about the environment and education- combined with the fact that we are aged 18-25. My friend Kimmie had to go to Mexico to get a root canal... what's up with that?

ZH

Goodbye, Mr. President

2006-03-07T12:42:00.001-08:00

The wind from Marine 1's chopper blades pushes the hair from the brunnette standing in front into my face, and my borrowed tie rises up and over my shoulder as the helicopter turns and plants it's three wheels on the White House south lawn. Maya is totally freaking out. Jefferson's statue stares back at us far away across the National Mall and Washington stands tall and pointy. President Bush strides across the grass, pauses to greet his wife, waves to the crowd and a minute later lifts off.

Today was "Staff Development Day" and as a special treat courtesy of White House intern and fellow Mobilizer Jeff Daker, we were invited to watch the President board Marine 1 and fly off into the big blue skies. It was pretty sweet.

ZH

Harrison Rec Center Community Action Program

2006-03-02T15:01:00.000-08:00

D.C.’s pretty scary. “Don’t get shot!” Those were some of the last words my friends told me before I came to work out here not more than two weeks ago. On my initial ride into town, Dave pointed out a spot where he saw a dozen or so junior high kids jump another one in broad daylight. This is on the good side of town, too. And you just don’t go to the other side, at all.

Good thing Damien and Tara are more courageous than I am. They set off today with the goal of at least getting a few of these kids off the streets, and eventually found themselves at the 1330 V St. NW at the Harrison Rec. Center. With hopes of something big like new lawn, more computers, expanded space, the folks at the rec. center would be content with just a few donated books or nets on their basketball hoops. So, plans are in store for a fundraiser of sorts. With food, rappers, the mayor man, and hundreds of youngsters, it’s going to be a good time. Watch out ya’ll! ZH

Welcome to D.C.

2006-03-01T19:10:00.000-08:00

The sun shines and the birds chirp. I suspect the cherry trees will blossom soon. Though the air is brisk and the asphalt wet, there is that energy and youthful feeling abound that always comes with the approach of spring. We’ve now entered the month of March- a.k.a National Youth Civic Engagement Month, and like the farmers planting their seeds, we go to work. Voter harvest in November.

This is the first post since our website re-design, and we have since moved our offices around the corner and up the elevator to the 9th floor at 19th and M. Our boxes have all been unpacked, and our Mobilizer’s Guidebooks are stacked neatly in the shelves. Damien’s poster of the 2004 presidential and house election results, broken down by county, state, party control, and victory margin hangs triumphantly behind him. We are clearly ready to change some hearts and minds.