california

Today at 12:30-1pm EST Gregory Cendana from the United States Student Association will be on ABC Nightline News "twittercast"
show, which will discuss the ensuing debate at the University of California (and all across the country), in their discussion topic“Is Public Higher Education Getting Too Expensive?”

If you can tweet right now:
.@USStudents live on ABC today 12:30-1pm EST Join discussion by tweet ur answer 2 "Is higher ed too expensive?" @Nightline

And then when you get a chance at 12:30 EST please start tweeting responses to @Nightline while watching online here, about your high education experience.

Student Activism provides some good context for the student activism breaking out in California this weekend.

The UC Regents, as expected, voted to impose huge fee increase on undergraduate and graduate students in the university. These new fees represent a tripling of undergraduate costs in the last decade, and a 50% jump since 2007.

After the vote students at UCLA surrounded Covel Hall, where the meeting had taken place, trapping the regents inside. When a group of regents tried to leave campus students surrounded their van, forcing them to retreat to a nearby building. It would be nearly three hours before they, and UC president Mark Yudof, were able to make their escape.

Even before the vote students had occupied two buildings in the UC system, and the afternoon saw two more takeovers.

Fifty-two students were arrested Thursday night at Mrak Hall, the UC Davis administration building, after they defied police orders to clear the building. One local media source said this morning that “dozens” of those arrested were held overnight.

Students at UC Santa Cruz had occupied Kresge Town Hall, an auditorium, on Wednesday evening, and on Thursday they expanded their action to include Kerr Hall, an administration building. Students in Kerr released a 35-point list of demands on Thursday night, and both occupations were apparently still ongoing as of early this morning.

As we continue to get more updates, I'll try to post them. I'll have something more substantive up in a bit. For now, stay tuned to Student Activism, as they're covering everything. Follow their Twitter account here.

On October 30, Gavin Newsom ended his campaign for Governor of California and the left thousands of students across the Golden State wondering what's next? Will the large student base that he successfully mobilized fizzle out or take on a new cause?

From the very beginning, the Newsom campaign recognized the importance of turning out the youth vote in California. They worked closely with student organizers to create what arguably became the largest grassroots student movement ever marshalled by a Gubernatorial campaign. By the time the campaign ended, Students for Gavin Newsom (SFGN) had active chapters at 36 colleges and 35 high schools across the state. The SFGN leaders were in constant contact with the Newsom campaign and coordinated dozens of events for the mayor on college campuses. For many students, SFGN was their first involvement in the political process. Now this powerful student engine has ground to a halt.

Last fall, Students for Barack Obama faced a similar situation. After helping win the historic Presidential campaign in November, SFBO was left without a clearly defined mission. At the time, I served as State Field Coordinator for California Students for Barack Obama. In lieu of any direction from the national SFBO team we disbanded and left the decision of what to do with our chapters up to the chapters themselves. Many of them merged with existing College Dems clubs on their campuses, some eventually went on to form SFGN chapters, and many others disbanded completely. In retrospect, I wish we had had some way of integrating our SFBO chapters with OFA to continue advocacy for Obama's agenda. OFA eventually did reach out to us in the spring, but by that point all of our chapters had moved on.

The main difference between what SFBO faced last year and what SFGN faces now is the perception that the "job is done." After electing Obama, many students felt they had accomplished their goal. The same can't be said for Newsom's decision to drop out. Many students joined SFGN because of the Newsom campaign's message of reforming California, and that goal now seems further from being attained than ever. It's precisely for this reason that it is so important that SFGN continue is some form. The ideas that Newsom advocated for (investing in higher education, changing the state constitution, repealing the 2/3rds budget rule, creating green jobs, and expanding health care) are all still major challenges facing California. Any and all of these issues are worth fighting for. I hope the students who were engaged by this campaign realize the potential they have and continue the movement to change California.

TPM has a great piece about young people this week, speaking specifically about how our turnout has caused problems in the voting systems because our transient nature apparently causes added paperwork at the county election board.

Now, it seems, some states are moving to the "universal registration" route where 16 year olds become registered the same time as the are getting their driver's license, but of course can't vote until they are 18.

"California and Rhode Island are among the states that have introduced legislation permitting 16- and 17-year-old citizens to register to vote in advance of their 18th birthdays. Rhode Island bills, SB 85 and HB 5005 show promise to pass the legislature - a prospect that is nothing new to the state, which has passed such bills three years in a row only to have them vetoed by the governor, according to research and advocacy group, Fair Vote."

Universal registration is something that Rock the Vote has taken on as their major legislative agenda item and the Student PIRGs have taken on in the past.

Georgia10 from Kos makes a great point about the ACORN attacks this past fall:

"By so vigorously highlighting the very real problems with third-party registration model, the GOP has unwittingly provided the best argument in favor of having the government step in and facilitate a universal registration system. And so, the irony is that in trying to suppress voter turnout by calling even valid registrations into question, Republicans have opened the door to a long-overdue discussion on how best to reform our inherently flawed voter registration system in order to ensure that every American who has the right to vote may do so without redtape barriers."

TPM asserts that by creating a government structure that mandates pre-registration certainly makes things much more convienent, but it also makes it easier to do programming in high schools and at DMVs because you can access the information about young people before they escape to college and out of their parents' home.

"it also helps "boost the effectiveness of civics education by tying it directly to civic participation through the opportunity to preregister," according to a Fair Vote report. The report further notes that "uniform" preregistration laws, like those in Hawaii and Florida, help alleviate general voter registration ills by acting as a "cost-effective step toward greater standardization, which means a cleaner, more accurate data set. Pre-registration could also save money and minimize human error by allowing students to register year round at points of civic engagement and education..."

TPM also had a great piece about the diversity that occurred this election. It was a particularly youthy day over at the TPM - good for them!

It appears that Schwarzenegger and Obama see eye-to-eye on what should be done to reignite the economy. The California Governor, who publicly supported the stimulus package even when other Republican Governors did not, takes a page out of Obama's campaign promises to deliver a program that focuses on 'green' and youth.

President Obama and I share similar priorities right now when it comes to helping the economy rebound and creating a greener California and America,” said Governor Schwarzenegger. “In California we will utilize federal economic stimulus funds and public-private partnerships to help stimulate our economy while initiating actions to improve our environment. Green jobs are exactly what our economy and environment need right now – and the California Green Corps targets that need while helping at-risk young adults realize a brighter future.

The program, a 20-month pilot, is aimed at 16 to 24 year old at-risk youth. In addition to providing technical job training in the eco-industry, the program also includes a stipend, an educational requirement and community service. And since it's a public-private partnership, half of the $20 million will come from the private sector and the other half from the federal stimulus money (the private sector money is not guaranteed, however). All the details are not hammered out, but the Governor's choice of a community college as a venue for the press launch of California Green Corps means that he understands that community colleges are equipped to get local residents trained for a new economy.

A few more details. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Karen Baker will be in charge of the program. GreenBiz.com reports that the California Green Corps will be based on some of the principles of the Oakland Green Job Corps.

Some highlights from the Governor's office:

• At least 1,000 at-risk youths will be placed in green jobs through the 20-month Green Corps pilot program - building up both underserved communities and our green workforce.
• There will be at least 10 regional Green Corps, and at least one in each of state's nine economic regions, that should begin serving youth by this Summer. In order to participate, regional organizations must partner to apply for a grant from the state. A Green Corps Advisory Committee will select the winning models.
• To help ensure the success of the Green Corps, it will be housed within CaliforniaVolunteers. This agency is in a unique position to work across state agencies, regional non-profits, foundations and businesses as well as to leverage federal economic stimulus monies - because this is what CaliforniaVolunteers does every day.

If you haven't heard of it by now... where have you been?! The Harry Potter Alliance got started in 2005 on MySpace and has grown into a larger and larger alliance tackling issue after issue bringing online involvement into offline actions.

Most recently their stance on California's Anti-Equality Amendment Proposition H8

The HP Forum includes anti-discrimination topics that speak of the inspiration for the advocacy.

"Dumbledore spoke against the Wizarding World’s discrimination of Half-bloods, Muggle borns, Muggles, Centaurs, Werewolves, Giants, and House Elves. How can we fight discrimination based on race, physical and mental ability, age, sexual orientation, economic status, ethnicity, and any thing else?"

With over 12,000 friends on MySpace and 50 chapters in 7 countries across the world, the HP Alliance works against real dark forces as members of Dumbledore's Army that advocates for justice.

Their specific causes include but are not limited to:

• Genocide, Poverty, AIDS, and Global Warming are ignored by our media and governments the way Voldemort's return is ignored by the Ministry and Daily Prophet.
• People are still discriminated against based on sexuality, race, class, religion, gender, ethnicity, and religion just as the Wizarding World continues to discriminate against Centaurs, Giants, House Elves, Half-Bloods, Muggle borns, Squibs, and Muggles
• Our governments continue to respond to terror by torturing prisoners (often without trial) just as Sirius Black was tortured by dementors with no trial
• A Muggle Mindset pervades over our culture-a mindset that values being "perfectly normal, thank you very much" over being interesting, original, loving, and creative

Since the release of the first Harry Potter book in 1997 the Alliance is targeting a demographic that is 100% millennial. A generation has come of age with the HP books in their lives advocating for good against evil. Tapping into this value and applying it to policy initiatives that matter to young people and showing how they can affect change within their communities is what I believe we all strive for in the youth movement. The HP Alliance does more than advocate against Prop H8 they are working within the culture to create lasting impacts on policies that we'll see as Millennials continue their takeover.

HPA did a lot this election including a huge Wizard Rock the Vote registration drive, but I have been wanting to write about them for a while as a special thanks for their continued advocacy against Prop H8. And I hope they'll stay involved in the new campaign to overturn Prop H8 begins.

Saturday evening reading:

• As we're moving closer and closer to Election Day -- one month from today! -- make sure to go over to the website for the November Fifth Coalition. Here is an excerpt from the front page of their site that explains their objectives:
  

  The November 5th Coalition is an all-partisan alliance committed to civic partnerships that address our biggest challenges. The Coalition is named for the day after the election in 2008 when a new chapter of America's civic history begins. Wherever the people gather they should be able to ask candidates “November 5th questions” about how they plan to tap the talents of the whole society, instead of posing as superheroes who will solve our problems for us. We will also develop leadership networks and civic policies that can serve as resources for a new administration. We encourage our fellow citizens to join with us in calling on candidates to rise above excessively divisive partisanship and to promote the common good.

• The Personal Democracy Forum has the top five reasons you won't be able to vote.
• Gizmodo takes you on a tour of the new Obama iPhone application. Very impressive! You can download it here.
• More scare tactics from the Republicans, this time aimed at Montana voters. Alternet has the details.
• Young Nevadans are overwhelmingly registering as Democrats:
  

  In the 18 to 24 age group, for example, Democrats have 54,192 registered voters compared with 31,405 Republicans, or 45 percent of the total registered voters for Democrats versus 26 percent for Republicans. That's a 19 percentage point difference.

• More youth attempting to be politically engaged. More youth being told not to. This time in Texas.
• Prop 8, the evangelical-led effort to amend California's constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, has gradually grown less and less popular; this Washington Post article explains that young voters are the main reason for the decline in popularity.

I just heard from the California Young Democrats that Governor Schwarzenegger signed a bill allowing online voter registration in California, making the state one of only three in the nation to allow its citizens to fully complete the voter registration process online (Arizona and Washington are the two other states).

Congrats to the CYD's who made phone calls and wrote letters to drum up support for the bill.

Soon registering to vote in California will be as easy as a few keystrokes, thanks to Senate Bill 381 (Calderon), which Governor Schwarzenegger signed today. The measure will usher in the era of online voter registration in California.

"Californians can pay bills and file their taxes online. Being able to register to vote online is the next logical step in making it easier for Californians to participate fully in their democracy," said Secretary of State Debra Bowen, California's chief elections officer. "This measure prevents fraud by limiting online voter registration to people who confirm their identity in a secure manner."

The online registration system will require registrants to provide their birth dates, the last four digits of their Social Security numbers, and the numbers from either a valid California driver's license or identification card. The Secretary of State may require additional information if it's necessary to establish a registrant's identity.

Registrants will be able to complete voter registration online using their digitized signatures that are already on file with the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

So I'm sure you heard. The good state of California is now performing same-sex marriages, after the state's Supreme Court struck down a state ban in May.

Well, I'm happy to report back to those around the world who might have been concerned about us here in California: So far as i can tell -- contrary to the dire predictions we may have heard -- the earth has not yet opened up and swallowed the whole state into a pit of eternal hellfire. Which is great, because honestly I'm not that into hellfire. Hellfire seems totally uncool.

In fact, as I look around, what strikes me the most is that the whole thing seems so.... so..... so normal.

Here's what appears to have been happening, and hold onto your hats while I say this.... It appears that couples who love each other -- people who have shared lives, families, and homes for years -- are now officially getting married.

Wild, I know.

I'm not sure exactly what I would have expected. Some sort of crazed marriage bonanza? A massive gay marriage stampede through the streets? Something else with the word bonanza in it?

Nope, not really. Pretty much it's just people who are happy to get the chance to say 'they do' to the one they love, and be recognized just like everyone else for it, with peace and dignity.

It makes me proud to be a Californian.

Maybe what gay marriage opponents have been missing for the last several years was a strong dose of who-the-hell-cares. You know what I mean? Relax, friends. Unclench. Look around. The world is still standing. More people who love each other are married. Sounds pretty good if you ask me.

Sure, it's possible that some coalition of concerned party poopers will stir up enough fear and ugliness to pass this constitutional amendment in November and shut down the festivities. (And certainly, we all need to step up and work against that. Definitely not into party poopers. Party poopers are way uncool.)

But I'll tell you what gives me a sense of peace about this issue.

It's inevitable. Like it or not, our country's attitudes are changing. It's unstoppable, and it's happening. And everyone, on all sides of the debate, knows it.

Just take a look at this. Right after the Supreme Court decision, a new Field Poll showed that for the first time since they started measuring back in the 70's, a majority of Californians now agree that "gay people have the right to marry" (51 to 42 percent.) And for voters under 30, the percent in support jumps to 68%. That's a blowout. Go us.

So yes, they might pass an amendment in california to outlaw same-sex marriage for a while. Sure, other states might go all reactionary and furrow their brows and bristle out their mustaches (yes, states can have mustaches, why not.) True, we could be in for a battery of reactionary laws and amendments and hyperventilating hand-wringing from the lock-your-doors brigade.

But progress will continue to steadily, inevitably, irreversibly march on. Those amendments will be overturned, laws will be fixed, and bristled mustaches will be soothed. And a few decades from now, we'll look back and wonder... what took us so damn long? And our kids will incredulously ask us how anyone thought such overt discrimination against our friends and neighbors was ever acceptable.

And one day, we will get to look back and tell our own stories about this time -- this time right now -- when we were truly proud to live in the state of California.

--------------------
Sam Dorman is the Managing Director of the League of Young Voters

Sergio Bendixen and New America Media released a poll yesterday of 600 California youth. It's a pretty remarkable poll. It was conducted entirely via cell phone and focused on 16-22 year olds: young people who will occupy the 18-24 voting bracket come November 2008. The poll was also incredibly diverse - perhaps a reflection of California's demographics. 59 percent of respondents were youth of color and 49 percent were immigrants or the children of immigrants.

Bendixen's overall takeaway seems to be that young Californians represent a "post-racial" America that is keyed into the American Dream. Racial identity isn't a big factor in the lives of this generation, most of whom have interracial friendships or personal relationships, and most respondents believe they will do better than their parents, despite current events and economic pressures.

The poll didn't ask as many overtly political questions as I'd hoped, so there's a lot that's not interesting from a political perspective (information about health and the University of California system, etc.). Nevertheless, there's valuable information to be gleaned from the results that should affect how Democratic campaigns and progressive organizations approach young voters.