Drum Major Institute

We all have the drum major instinct. We all want to be important, to surpass others, to achieve distinction, to lead the parade. ...And the great issue of life is to harness the drum major instinct. It is a good instinct if you don't distort it and pervert it. Don't give it up. Keep feeling the need for being important. Keep feeling the need for being first. But I want you to be the first in love. I want you to be the first in moral excellence. I want you to be the first in generosity. - Martin Luther King Jr.

So I've been lax in my duties. I'm on the blog host committee for an event put on by the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy here in NYC. The benefit will present awards to Tavis Smiley, for outstanding work as a voice for social change in the news media, and Mayor Mike Bloomberg, for his PlaNYC - an effort to make NYC a model in sustainable urban development. The tix are pretty expensive, so I don't expect y'all to go rushing out and buy one (though there are discount rates for students and struggling activists), but you should go check out DMI and get a feel for what they do.

I agreed to be on the host committee for a number of reasons. The Drum Major institute is one of the premier progressive policy shops. They're pushing a lot of policy that is good for the middle class (and young folks), they've got one of the most kick-ass policy blogs around, they're innovating online, and, most importantly for Future Majority, they are working hard to fill some holes in progressive youth infrastructure through their new DMI Scholars program.

I've written before about the social justice/progressive politics divide. DMI Scholars is one of the few organizations working to bridge that divide. Structured as a summer boot camp in public policy 101, the program provides young activists with the skills and connections they need to pursue a career in public policy. The program is just getting started this summer. If successful, it will help lay the groundwork to bring fresh ideas steeped in social justice and community organizing into the progressive policy world, and help young community organizers take their activism to the next level.

If you are a young person and think policy might be your game, I'd look into snagging a spot in next summer's program. If you are a funder reading this blog, the work of DMI Scholars is a great reason to support the Institute.