election

Bumped. Eric Greenberg is the Chairman and CEO of Beautifull! Food, as well as the author of Generation We: How Millennial Youth Are Taking Over America and Changing Our World Forever. -Craig

Well, today is election day and there are several important races destined to be determined. I have read several articles in various blogs and newspapers, raising the question of "where are the Millennials and will they vote?" I fear "disengaged" youth will be to blamed for election day turnout (or lack there of). But what people have yet to learn is how to engage the youth in a empowering and meaningful way, Obama did it successfully, but others have not yet gotten the message.

Paradoxically, members of Generation We are not quick to claim for themselves the mantle of being particularly active or politically engaged, even though they are, in fact, among the most involved young people in history. In our focus groups, many Millennials criticized their own generation as being “apathetic” or “materialistic.”
There are a number of possible explanations for this paradox.

One is that the Millennials are measuring their and their generation’s activism—actually high relative to earlier generations of young people—against the seriousness of the planetary problems they face and finding it wanting. They are worried that their generation has not yet launched the kind of social and political movement they see as necessary to address the major issues of our time. This attitude is a reflection of their strong sense of responsibility—and also a measure of their readiness to step forward when conditions are right and a clear agenda emerges for Millennials to rally around.

Negative media coverage of youth probably also plays a role. It is intriguing to note that although Millennials in the June 2007 Democracy Corps survey were overwhelmingly convinced (87 percent) that the word “materialistic” well-described people their own age, only 35 percent felt that term well-described themselves. Generation We as a group strongly condemns materialism even as they believe (or fear) it is rampant among their peers.

The fact is Generation We is ready to work for large-scale change and to support the kind of collective movement they consider necessary for such change to occur. Perhaps only such a movement—one that empowers individuals to become, in Gandhi’s words, “the change they wish to see in the world”—can overcome the barriers Millennials see as holding them and their generation back.

We’d argue that a movement aimed at engaging and mobilizing Generation We must build on the distinctive aspects of the Millennial personality: a view that overcoming tradition and innovating to create a better future is both necessary and a central strength of their generation; a wish to embody in their lives and actions the kind of change they are seeking to make; an unabashed willingness to use their economic power as consumers; a deep embeddedness in social networks; a clear-eyed assessment of the difficulties of change, which leads them to seek not just action but plans for successful action; and of course, an appreciation of the potential of the new technologies that have done so much to shape this generation.

In short, Generation We is becoming more active and increasingly ready to support a collective social movement that embraces both government and entrepreneurship focused on the greater good. Based on their numbers and their sense of urgency, once such a movement emerges it is certain to be large, powerful, and lasting.

• NY Times on the absurdities of corporate student lending.
• Honolulu's all digital election sees shockingly low turnout. What does this mean for voting reform?
• Campaign for America Future has a new report: America is a Center-Left Nation.
• The Prospect profiles the youngest House Democrat and Republican.
• Check out Ari Melber's take on Clinton's Pot, Obama's Cocaine and the job prospects of millennials.
• Nancy Lublin of The Huffington Post takes on the issue of lowering the voting age to 17.

Here's a dispatch from Williamsburg, Virginia, by Ben Thacker-Gwaltney, an organizer with the Virginia Organizing Project:

A perfect fall day set the scene for a group of fifty-five volunteers from the a service fraternity at the College of William & Mary this past Saturday. The pledge class from Alpha Phi Omega partnered with the Virginia Organizing Project to deliver door-hangers to over 4500 doors in the Williamsburg area in just three hours. Focusing on neighborhoods of color and low to moderate income communities, the door-hanger encouraged voters to come out on Tuesday and reminded them of poll hours and locations. It also provided the number of the local NAACP office--which is coordinating rides to the polls for the day--plus the election protection number 1-800-OUR-VOTE.

The City of Williamsburg set records this year with new voter registration levels topping 12%, a record for the state of Virginia. Many of those registrations came through the work of students who registered their fellow young people as well as other members of the city community. Working for the Virginia Organizing Project, W&M student Cherie Seise and her three co-interns knocked on almost 10,000 doors over the summer.

African-American neighborhoods all across the region mobilized to get their neighbors to the polls to vote today. VOP partners in the Grove neighborhood recruited a local church to serve as a clearing house for election questions and rides to the polls. Young people from the community distributed over 1,000 door-hangers this past Saturday from the VOP to help crowd the polling places today. Ms. Angela Dennis from Ironbound Square activated their phone tree yesterday. "Yes, we will meet down at the park for a little tea and then all go over to the Recreation Center together," she said.

Check out more stories at http://www.communitychange.org/vote

Check out this incredible, powerful video featuring Reynalda, a youth volunteer with New Labor in New Jersey. It reminds us what voting is all about:

And check out more up-to-the-minute news on Election Day from community organizers at our Blog:

http://www.communitychange.org/vote.

An unbelievable report out of Toledo, Ohio, of police officers ordered to wear riot gear to deal with possible unrest during and after today's election. We're still looking for more eyewitness accounts of this from the ground. Let me know if you know anything or have pictures to share.

Check out the story here:
http://communityvaluesvote.blogspot.com/2008/11/ohio-police-ordered-to-have-riot-gear.html

What the hell??!!

Small business owner Kevin and plumber Mari give you loads of options for election day. Vote early, avoid the wait and check out declareyourself.com/whywait.

Comedian Whitney Cummings warns voters of the PERILS OF NOT VOTING EARLY! Find out how to cast your ballot early at declareyourself.com/whywait!

America's Top Pop Group tells you why it's important to vote early... PLUS, you get to "Sleep in!" on Election Day. Visit www.declareyourself.com/whywait to find out how!

Legendary DJ Peanut Butter Wolf tells you why early voting is important to him. Visit www.declareyourself.com/whywait to find out how!

MTV VJ Quddus explains why it's your duty, as a "citizen of the world" to vote early! Check out www.declareyourself.com/whywait to find out how!