Check out Chrissy from Rock the Vote moderating Self Magazine’s #13for13 Resolutions for a Better HOA: Get Involved. Featuring panelists from the Knight Foundation’s, Jeff Coates; Ashoka’s Lennon Flowers; Alex Smith, from the College Republican National Committee; Chris Wallas, Obama Campaign Field Organizer from Prince George’s County and and Devin Foley, from The Intellectual Takeout.
Archive for the
‘youth vote’ Category
Get Involved 2013
Friday, January 25th, 2013 |
Rock the Vote Bio: Rock the Vote was founded in 1990 to organize artists and fight against censorship of musicians. Since then we've evolved to focus on empowering young people to get involved in the political process. We use pop culture, peer-to-peer organizing, and the latest technology to raise visibility of politics and demystify the process of registering to vote. @rockthevote Email the author at: blog(at)rockthevote.com |
National Voter Registration Day
Tuesday, September 25th, 2012National Voter Registration Day
From coast to coast, Rock the Vote is blowing out the first ever National Voter Registration Day with concerts, events, videos, and new technologies, all with the goal of registering more voters than have ever been registered to vote in a single day. In Philadelphia, Rock the Vote is having a huge concert at the Community College of Philadelphia with Talib Kweli, a guest DJ set by Jeffery Tonnesen, and an appearance with Miss USA Olivia Culpo. It is also the first stop of the second leg of the Road Trip, which will be coming to a city near you soon. Make sure to keep tabs on them #RTVRoadtrip.
In New York City, Rock the Vote has teamed up with NYC Votes to put on the Youth Voter Registration Jam, which will bring DJ’s from radio station Hot97 together with stars like Rosario Dawson all together for a great time to get young people registered.
In LA Rock the Vote is doing 2 amazing events with Amoeba music. In the store there will be a live show with Murs and Fashawn celebrating both National Voter Registration Day. They have a new album coming out today called This Generation. If you can’t make the show tonight at 6pm at Amoeba Records in Hollywood, be sure to check out the live cast of the concert. Across the street at Space15twenty Band of Horses are playing an intimate show for National Voter Registration Day and to mark the release of their new album Mirage Rock.
We are also having events in places as far and wide as Austin, Boston, Detroit, and many many more. See which ones are happening near you and go out and register!
Not only that, but we have teamed up with Funny or Die for two awesome, and very funny videos with today’s biggest stars. Don’t miss them!
All of this is to bring people together, both in person and online, to register to vote and be heard. Join us, and share the the link to rockthevote.com today as much as you can to make sure everyone you know is registered to vote today! It’s easier now than ever, and you can even do it right on Facebook!
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sam@rockthevote.com Bio: Email the author at: blog(at)rockthevote.com |
What’s Wrong With the Supreme Court?
Monday, June 25th, 2012Today the Supreme Court, in another 5-4 decision, struck down Montana’s campaign finance law that prohibited all campaign contributions from corporations. The court cited the recent and controversial Citizens United decision in making their ruling.
Many of these campaign finance laws were passed to clean up corruption or the appearance of corruption in the political system. Montana’s law was passed in order to reduce influence that mining companies had in state government. Critics of these laws point out that the first amendment gives the right to free speech and that political speech, even paid political speech, is traditionally most protected from government interference.
Research shows that one of the main reasons why young people are disengaged in the political process is the influence money has in today’s elections. This decision will do nothing to assuage these fears. In the early 1900′s in Montana, a mining baron literally bought a Senate seat. While that is impossible today, House campaigns costs hundreds of thousands of dollars and Senate campaigns routinely costs millions; it already takes a fortune to run for office. This decision and the Citizens United decision before it allow for unlimited campaign spending from corporations and mega-donors. These decisions may be harmful to the political system and result in corporations calling the shots, but they also have the potential to turn young people off of politics.
This decision also shows the continued politicization of the Supreme Court. This is just one in a series of 5-4 decisions that have been decided on partisan lines rather than the law. The decision itself isn’t so much the problem – if the Montana state legislature decided to repeal this law, I might think it was bad public policy, but the political process would be fair. But the idea of the Supreme Court, with its unelected justices and lifetime appointments, is that it is immune to political influence and that it only makes its judgements based on the law. Justices shouldn’t be making calls about government programs based on their political views. I already have people to do that for me – my elected representatives, who have to answer to me every few years and who I can vote out if I disagree with them.
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David Winegar Bio: David Winegar is the Digital Media intern for Rock the Vote. He is a sophomore at Duke University. @davidswinegar Email the author at: blog(at)rockthevote.com |
Cater to Us!
Friday, June 15th, 20122008 saw the rise of a growing, powerful and concerned voting electorate. Politicians, as well as political pundits, underestimated the engagement and ultimately the voting power of youth in America during that presidential election cycle. Yet again we’re seeing that play out again. There’s all this talk about the disengagement of my generation; but why would we be engaged – when neither of the candidates or their campaigns are addressing the issues that will directly affect us? I want to vote – because I have something at stake and my voice is important and my vote is the way to influence the world around me – but these politicians need to earn my vote.
Flashback to 2008: Millennials voted in that presidential election in record numbers because we were engaged by the political process; and it was our overwhelming engagement that led to the victory of President Obama.
The number of youth under 30 is rapidly rising and diversifying. Soon young adults under the age of 30 will make up nearly a fourth of the voting age population. If that’s not enough proof of the power young Americans could have, consider the estimated 16 million citizens that have turned 18 since the 2008 elections. These candidates can’t win without our support on November 6th, 2012 – and they should realize that.
So if Mitt Romney and President Obama want our vote, they need to engage us. Talk to us about making college more affordable and accessible or job creation, for example. Instead, the issues affecting young adults are superficially addressed, and only when it becomes a matter of convenience for candidates. I would be hard pressed to believe that either candidate would have addressed the issues around the student loan interest rate hike, which congress has yet to fully address, had their not been such an outcry by students, families & numerous organization across the country. And, recently Mitt Romney’s campaign released a graphic comparing his first 100 days in office to President Obama’s. Looking through this chart, I couldn’t help but notice one glaring omission: youth were not addressed at all. By not fully addressing youth voters, both candidates are risking a lofty portion of the electorate not being mobilized to vote. This is appalling to me and I imagine others feel similarly.
I know we are still considered by many pundits to be the apathetic and lazy section of the electorate. Statements like “youth voter turnout is predicted to drop significantly in the 2012 U.S. presidential election, due partly to the decline in political interest among young people” (Youth Votes Will Drop Significantly In 2012 Election) So lets change the Narrative!
To the young voters reading this, let’s force them to recognize the power we have and will have in the voting booths on Election Day, so they don’t continue to discount us or our votes OR worse, take them for granted. We need to communicate to the campaigns that they need to communicate to us. Make it clear that we want to hear from the candidates directly, and on the issues that matter to our generation.
And to the candidates, loop us in! I’m confident that effort will go a long way..
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Alston Neville Bio: Alston Neville is a Advocacy Intern at Rock the Vote. He is currently a junior at Duke University studying Public Policy, and African/African-American Studies. Also He is a North Carolina native hailing from Pittsboro. @Tha_Big_MAC Email the author at: blog(at)rockthevote.com |
Oh! The Voting Booth You Will Go!
Thursday, June 14th, 2012The battle for voting rights is taught in many classrooms today as yesterday’s battle. In the minds of students, it can sometimes seem like an archaic issue, a page in a history book, irrelevant to politics and policy today. Yet the battle is still raging with many new pieces of policy and legislation making it increasingly difficult for younger, more geographically mobile individuals to vote. Dr Seuss’s Oh the Places You’ll Go! is a text a lot of people are familiar with–particularly high school graduates as a graduation present. Thus, Oh, the Voting Booth You Will Go! serves as an update to the classic, providing college students with a basic overview of the voting rights issues they face and encouraging young people to get informed, get involved, and protect their right to vote.
OH! THE VOTING BOOTH YOU WILL GO!
A Mandatory Read for University Students in 2012
By Brandi Lupo
Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to University!
You’re off and away!
You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You’ll take care of yourself
and never press “snooze.”
You’re on your own. And you know what you know.
And at 18, YOU can help decide where the country will go.
You’ve looked up and down for a school. Looked ‘em over with care.
And some you will say, “I don’t choose to go there.”
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,
you can make a good choice; you can withstand the heat.
And you may not find a school
in the town near your home.
In that case, perhaps,
you’ll find a new town to roam.
You’ll dorm in College Square
And you’ll love it there.
Out there things can happen
and frequently do
to people as brainy
and footsy as you.
And when election season comes,
you’re informed and in tune.
You keep up with the issues.
Election Tuesday is soon.
OH!
THE VOTING BOOTH YOU WILL GO!
And come old ye’ Election Date,
you transform into Citizen-the-Great!
With ideas and opinions you wish to promote,
you’ve come to cast your all-important educated vote!
Yet horror strikes, the worst that can be.
You’re turned away because you don’t have a “valid I.D.”
You just got to college, you’re here to impress.
But, oh no! They won’t recognize your college address!
And though you are here,
your voice finds no ear.
I’m sorry to say so
but, sadly, it’s true
that some voter fraud
and polling policies
can and will affect you.
You may get all hung up,
feel embarrassed and disturbed.
And the country will fly on.
You’ll be left still perturbed.
And when you’re unperturbed
(yet still unfulfilled),
the chances are, then,
you’ll feel the need to rebuild.
And when you begin to start,
you are surely soon to find,
that the current War on Voting
puts plenty of eligible voters in a bind.
Your stomach may feel queasy for you don’t know what to say.
Wasn’t the battle for the vote a thing of yesterday?
But this is what they taught you and what you have learned!
Is this not democracy? Is that not your right?
Should you just sit and bare it? Should you put up a fight?
And IF you do fight, what should you know…
do the rules change in rain? Or, maybe, in snow?
Or maybe if a candidate’s favorite pie is key lime?
Simple to say, it’s like an organized crime.
Anti-voting legislation is expanding all the time.
For instance, did you know
that this past year in Maine
206 university students were criminally investigated in vain?
Because they pay out-of-state tuition, the Secretary of State maintained.
Yet those residency rules are different and do not pertain
to voting rights, you see: the allegations were inane!
…yet the anti-voting campaign keeps working
With a fervent yet confusing blaze,
all to stop “voter fraud” and voting day delays.
But protecting democracy should not mean a maze.
Voting should not give one’s eyes a glaze,
nor force upon the good citizen a sickening malaise.
There truly are more effective ways.
But policy horror stories continue lurking.
Just a year ago, again, the stories are vast,
Like when Wisconsin’s voter ID law passed.
Many of the state’s college students were left aghast.
Student IDs may have too long an expiration date,
or no address. Or no signature slate.
The cost of new IDs, if you face the facts,
can amount to something like a poll tax.
It’s sort of like the State saying,
NO!
That’s not for you!
Somehow you surely know
that this bureaucratic red tape
will, if you do not fight it,
only continue to take shape.
So with good policy in mind,
you set out to build
a country where voting is not killed
nor student voting intimidated or chilled.
Oh, the voting booth you’ll go! There is work to be done!
There is knowledge to be spread. There are battles to be won!
And the great things you can do with voting rights in mind
Will surely be something your friends will get behind.
Vote, you’ll say, And know your rights!
For casting a ballot helps one soar to great heights!
So here are some things, finally, to remember
For this upcoming Election November.
A school or P.O. box address may not be valid
On your registration form.
Remember to include a physical address
Like the one of your dorm.
And registering to vote
does not change or relate
to your dependency status
or your parents’ tax rate.
That being said, when it comes to financial aid,
your federal loans and grants will not change; no need to be afraid.
For state and private scholarships, check with a program admin,
Though usually your voter status will not be akin.
If you’re at a school out-of-state
and brought a car with you,
there may be, in order to vote,
a process to go through.
Depending on your new state’s rules
you may need a how-to
on changing your license or car registration:
Don’t worry, we’re here for you.
An application and some time
is all you’ll really need
to walk into the voting booth confidently, indeed.
If you want to vote in your old town
an absentee ballot is key.
Though the rules change from state to state,
online guides are free.
Things can sometimes get messy, of course,
as you already know.
Things can sometimes get messy
when the rules change from rain to snow.
So be sure to stay up-to-date.
Never falter, fear, or flee.
And remember that voting
to democracy is absolutely key.
Just never forget to know your right
no matter how many laws try to intimidate you in spite.
And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
Your opinion needs to be heard, guaranteed!
KID, YOU’LL CHANGE POLICY.
So…
be your school in one state or the next,
or you live in a dorm or an apartment complex,
You’re off to the Voting Booth!
Election Day is today!
With your help, policy will change!
So…get on your way!
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Brandi Lupo Bio: Brandi Lupo is a rising Senior at New York University studying Political Economy and Legal Theory. Email the author at: blog(at)rockthevote.com |
