A Better Deal for Our Generation

There's a lot of focus right now on the upcoming election - as their should be. But it's important to remember that elections aren't ends in themselves. They are vehicles the people use to usher in policy changes.

When Rock the Vote released their poll of Millennials (ppt) a few weeks ago, topping the list of concerns was the economy. Specifically, young people were concerned about their ability to obtain jobs that would allow them to climb out of debt and begin to build a life, whether that be supporting a child or buying a house (or both). This is the number one concern of Millennials, who on average graduate with $20k of debt and may be the first American generation to not do better financially than their parents.

What are the policies that could change this situation and provide economic security to our generation? These are the questions that Demos hopes to answer at their upcoming conference: A Better Deal - Reclaiming Economic Security for a New Generation.

The conference, scheduled for May 8th and 9th in DC, will feature an impressive array of speakers including Katrina vanden Heuval of The Nation, Andy Stern, President of SEIU, Andrea Batista Schlesinger, ED of the Drum Major Institute, as well as a number of youth organizing leaders. Panels include:

User-Generated Breakout Sessions
Registrants will have a chance to submit requests for topics or proposals to host a session during online registration. At the conference, these small group discussions or training sessions will allow participants to learn from each other and connect with other activists in their region or issue area.

Paycheck Politics
This panel will focus on the quality of jobs available to young adults in the New Economy, comparing wages, job security, unionization and benefits to the jobs that sustained previous generations. Speakers will also offer strategies for improving job quality, including living wage laws, career ladder and green job programs, traditional unionization and alternative organizing strategies including worker centers.

Higher and Higher Education
This panel will focus on issues of higher education access, affordability and debt. In this generation, the college degree is what the high school diploma was in the previous generation: an entry requirement for middle-class jobs. The panel will explore the attack on affirmative action amidst the widening racial gap in higher education, the drivers behind skyrocketing tuitions and student debt, and offer policy solutions.

Getting a Life: Housing, Health Care and Child Care
This panel will focus on affordability barriers to the necessities of middle-class life: housing, health care and child care. Panelists will describe why and how costs have risen, what public policies could help young adults and families, and how activists can play a role.

Generation Debt
This panel will focus on the rise of personal debt among young adults, explaining how culture, financial pressures and new lending industry practices have played a role. Panelists will discuss strategies to combat payday lending, abusive credit card practices, predatory home loans and other high-cost credit.

Young Elected Officials
This panel will showcase a group of young elected officials who have made the economic concerns of young adults and families central to their campaigns and agendas.

Race, Ethnicity and Economic Destiny
This panel will explore the connection between the millennial generation's two claims to fame: the most diverse generation in American history and the first that is widely predicted to not surpass their parents' standards of living. Panelists will discuss the economic status of immigrants and their children; the effect of the racial wealth gap; the economic contours of mass youth incarceration, and issues of political power and the challenges of winning broad government investments in a more diverse population.

We're Broke and We Vote
This panel will focus on strategies to build a movement for a better deal for young adults. Panelists will discuss the power of young voters, the obstacles to moving a young adult economic agenda and how to mobilize young adults around these issues.

Many of the topics that will be covered at the conference were written about in a recent special report by The American Prospect: Mobilizing Millennials. I highly recommend both the conference and the report for those looking to understand the economic concerns of young voters, and the policies young people will ask the next administration to implement.

I'll be at the conference live-blogging, as well as speaking on a panel. Hope to see you there.