Young people aren't always liberals. And the majority didn't always vote for Democrats.
Surprised? No, for real, are you?
The eighties are remembered mostly for its pop culture, but the decade was also famous for Reagan and the expansion of the Republican Party. The plurality of young people in that decade, like other age groups, voted for Reagan and identified with the G.O.P. In other words, the G.O.P. attracted more young voters than the Democratic Party while Reagan was in office.
In 1988, young people helped elect George H.W. Bush into the Oval Office. That was also the last time when more young people voted for the G.O.P. than Democrats.
The next decade was then when the Democrat's began to ride on a wave of youth energy and participation, which was reinforced at the beginning of the new century. Bill Clinton's victory in 1992 was helped in part by the second highest recorded turnout of young people since 1972 -- 52 percent. (pdf)
Even though young people have favored the Democrats since 1992, it hasn't always been by an overwhelming margin; young people were split more evenly in 1998 and 2000. Gore won the plurality of the youth vote in 2000, but only by a 2 percentage-point margin. (pdf)
This was followed by a burst in youth support in 2004; the margin soared to nine percentage points in favor of Kerry. More recently, in the 2006 Congressional house races, 58 percent of young people supported a Democratic Candidate. (pdf) Moreover, the plurality of young voters identified with the Democratic Party, a 12 percentage point advantage over the G.O.P. And even more recently, in the 2008 primary contests, for which we have exit poll data for both parties, roughly three-quarters of all young voters participated in the Democratic primary.
So yes, divisive politics turns out voters -- of all stripes -- and young voters are no different. In 2004 and 2006, young voters came out in larger numbers -- by a greater margin -- than any other age group. The 2008 primary season is no different.
But what is different in this election, isn't just the energy, it's proof that the strategy of reaching out to young voters works. The growing support for Democrats, especially in this primary season, is partly the result of direct and tailored outreach to young people; the GOP is not putting as much effort into recruiting young voters.
Youth outreach matters, as in, it just might win you an election, especially when the Millennials are about to surpass the Baby Boomers generation in numbers. Democrats were the first to recognize this in the 2008 election.
Party affiliation, and more importantly, preferences are not dictated by time and age, but through the strength of the argument made in its case. Progressives have been making their case now for years, and most are not buying into any stereotypes about young voters. This is a movement that is years in the making and still growing.
HeadCount evolved from an idea that politics and music are inherently intertwined, says co-chair Andy Bernstein. The grassroots group recognized that young people are already getting together and sharing ideas. They’re already organizing around things that they care about, and one of those things is music. It just made good sense to add civic engagement into the mix.
Last week, Concerts4Charity released A Call to Action, a documentary about how the live music community and grassroots organizers came together to form HeadCount, a voter registration group focused on registering young people at concerts and music festivals. Those involved with HeadCount include Phish, Bela Fleck, the Dave Mathews Band, and Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead -- who sits on the organization’s Board of Directors.
Bernstein says when he thinks about political organizing, he hears music. “I always picture music from the 1960s. Social movements to me are often tied to music,” he said. “[We’re] fully recognizing that Woodstock is not the Martin Luther King ‘I Have a Dream’ speech -- and that Jerry Garcia and Gandhi are not to be in the same sentence. I’m not trying to put music in a place it doesn’t deserve to be. But music is an imprint. It’s something that strikes people at a very core emotional level. Something that inspires people and also inspires change.”
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Pro-Tibet Protests: Sports Lovers Meet Torture Victims
UPDATE: We've been holding the corner of Embarcadero and Washington streets since 10 a.m. this morning in San Francisco together with Tibetans, Students for a Free Tibet, Darfur activists, and then of course pro-China folks have been right here with us. Intense emotions abound as sports lovers meet torture victims.
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I'm sitting with a mix of folks from Students for a Free Tibet, Ruckus, RAN and others at the jail where the seven Tibetan rights activists who pulled off the stunning Golden Gate bridge action have been held since being whisked off the bridge yesterday.
Our latest news is that they're coming out any minute now -- that's been the word for two hours. I think of them through the labyrinth of halls and walls beyond the door so sleepy, sore, with perhaps no idea of just how far reaching their tremendous action has been for two days.
This isn't the first action on the Golden Gate Bridge, but a good friend pointed out that its probably the biggest action since 9/11. But the actions in this campaign so far have all been big -- Mt. Everest, the Great Wall, the Eiffel Tower. Well, almost the Eiffel Tower. Police presence in Paris was too high for the action to get going, so they defaulted to a nearby bridge over the Seine whose name escapes me now, writing this on my phone from the waiting room of this jail.
The demands -- no torch run through Tibet, an end to human rights abuses, and ultimately the liberation of Tibet -- are on the front page of newspapers worldwide.
The victory in many ways is already complete for the campaign on the torch. The Olympics were supposed to herald a new China. Thing is, the Chinese government thought it could get the symbolic stamp of approval without actually changing its behavior. As Tibet has escalated their campaign for international attention, China's government has shown its unwillingness to improve their violent history.
The activists are released one by one, first the women, then the men, swamped by journalists and then enveloped by loved ones.
They are free! Tibet is next!
Pro-Tibet Protesters Climb San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge
I write right now with the utmost pride. Three activists, including one of our beloved Ruckutistas, are climbed up the suspension cables of the Golden Gate Bridge in an action to support Tibetan independence.
San Francisco is the only city hosting the torch in the United States, and Students for a Free Tibet responded. The message is clear and visionary: FREE TIBET!
Actions in Paris and London have already shown one of the ugly truths of standing up against injustuce -- the bravery of nonviolence is met with the cowardice of violence. This is true in Tibet, where 180 people have been slaughtered since March in their attempts to send a message to the world through the layers of repression of Chinese rule.
As the climbers pulled themselves higher and higher, I meditated on what this struggle is about. It is as fundamentally a fight against inequality and tyranny as the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa...it is the old world of imperialism and inequality against a new world of sovereignty and spiritual wealth.
As the banners scooted across ropes strung between the three climbers, the news media gathered four helicopters, two vans, eight photographers. The news poured in: "traffic is stopped", "five people detained on the bridge", "two diversion teams". The story ran live on CNN, CBS, NBC, and ABC. A cameraman next to me finally said it: "They've brought the city to a stop. It’s amazing!"
And then the banner unfurled, white and black against the iconic red Golden Gate Bridge, and was gorgeous. "One World, One Dream: Free Tibet"
This was a huge, beautiful and strategic action; the people of Tibet have this brief window, when the whole world is watching China, the whole world is speaking of "One Dream," the whole world is waiting for the Olympics.
The Tibetan dream of independence is our common dream, and we're asking you to do one thing if you are moved by the strength and perseverance of the Tibetan people and Tibetan-led Students for a Free Tibet: donate to StudentsforaFreeTibet.org to support this action and the actions to come.
And check out these two links for a couple of visuals on the banner hang:
(photo: Clemson University students take action at their campus' coal plant in South Carolina)
We all know the facts, but it's worth a refresher: the world is on a crash course with climate chaos because of our addiction to cheap fossil fuels. The USA is home to the worst addicts — we represent only 4 percent of the world's population, but emit over 25 percent of the world's carbon dioxide — and many of the worst dealers, corporations like ExxonMobile, Duke Energy, General Motors, and others have been trying to keep us hooked on their products by spending millions of dollars on lobbyists, misleading advertisements, and campaign contributions to crooked politicians (check out the video at the end of this post).
On April 1, thousands of students in the U.S. and worldwide will be sending a message to the biggest climate culprits: we won't be fooled again.
Fossil Fools Day will shine a spotlight on the real fools, the corporations and politicians who want to keep us hooked on dirty energy. This year's celebration is shaping up to be one of the most international campaigns the youth climate movement has ever run, with over 100 actions planned around the world. In Canada, youth activists are planning national actions to stop oil companies and government officials working to expand tar sands exploration. Down under, in Newcastle, Australia, climate activists will visit a local multinational department store and attempt to swap bucket-loads of coal for imported consumer products. Students have even translated the Fossil Fools Day site into a number of languages, including German, Spanish and Arabic.
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WireTap Writer Biko Baker Becomes the Director of the League of Young Voters
WireTap is thrilled to announce that our editorial board member and writer, Robert "Biko" Baker became the Executive Director of the League of Young Voters this week. Congratulations to Biko and the League!
As Billy Wimsatt, the founding visionary of the organization and former executive director, explained in an email, "Biko has been with the League since 2003. He came up through the ranks from Local Organizer to State Director to National Organizing Director ... . When I started the League back in 2003, my greatest dream was to build a powerful national youth organization and leave it in good hands. Today, my dream has come true. ... It's the perfect time for me to move on, and pass the torch to the next generation. ... "
I first met Biko in person at the Allied Media Conference in Detroit. Biko was on a panel with the author and activist Grace Lee Boggs and talked about the power of "collective activity of everyday Americans." He argued that the Civil Rights history is dominated by stories about strong primary leaders -- Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. -- and how while they are important, their work wouldn't have lasting impact, if their rallies weren't attended by crowds of ordinary people, and more importantly, if the unsung heroes -- like Ella Baker -- weren't organizing tirelessly behind the scenes to bring people out to these rallies and engage them in the long term.
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Differences in Political Participation Among Young Women and Men
Even when excluding elected officials, and even though women vote and volunteer at higher numbers, young men are still more active in political activities overall than young women.
Due to various legal and socioeconomic barriers, young women have historically been less engaged in politics and leadership than young men. On the other hand, they are what researchers refer to as 'civic specialists' -- citizens, who outperform their male counterparts in civic activities, such as volunteering for political issues and social causes, improving local communities, or raising money for charities.
This difference between young women and men owes a great deal to laws, institutions, and society. Often, women were dissuaded from voting, running for elected office, and participating in other meaningful political leadership activities. Civic participation, such as volunteering for causes, raising money, or community activism didn't have these same barriers, which offered a participatory outlet for young women.
The 15th, 19th, and 26th amendments knocked down the most significant barriers to women's electoral engagement. So what's happened since then? How are women getting involved?
Since 1972, young women have outdone young men in voting. But there is more. The voting gap has grown between young women and men from one point in 1972 to seven points in 2004. (pdf)
Different attitudes among the sexes to voting explain some of this annual drubbing of young men in voter turnout. Men are more likely to view voting as 'their responsibility as a citizen.' (Definitely no A+ in citizenship.) Women view voting 'as an expression of their choice.' And that's just it -- a choice. Voting is a signal in democracy of a citizen's preferences. One reason why voting isn't mandatory -- it's a choice! And by choosing to vote or not to vote, citizens send a clear signal to politicians that they must pay attention and respond to what citizens want. But voting is only one way to get involved politically.
This is where men make their preferences most known and why researchers still consider them to be more politically active than women. Young men are more engaged in persuading others to vote, donating to political candidates, and being a regular volunteer for political campaigns. (pdf) According to CIRCLE's, definition of electoral participation, which gives equal importance to all activities, young men are what researchers refer to as 'electoral specialists' -- that is, men are considered to be more engaged politically, as supposed to civically, than young women, even though young men turn out at lower numbers to the voting precincts.
There has been a surge in youth political activism in the 2008 primary season. And while we (perhaps just me) wait for all of the data to roll in about this election, we may see women close the gap in the entire spectrum of political engagement -- that is active engagement with issues and communities, as well as political candidates. And if young women become the 'electoral specialists,' then what? Maybe we'll need special programs to engage our young men.
(This post originally appeared at The Nation online. )
It's the fifth anniversary of the war and here in D.C., Students for a Democratic Society are throwing a dance party. In an event themed, appropriately, "Funk the War," about 400 youth from Oklahoma to Vermont have converged to jostle and shimmy their way down K St. to the rhythm of electronic beats and anti-war chants.
Unlike the massive protests organized by groups like ANSWER six years ago, today's actions are decentralized, more creative and cropping up all over. This morning, black-draped protesters wearing white masks that bore the names of Iraqis killed made an eerie pilgrimage down K St., while a group of veterans from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan marched from Arlington Cemetery to the National Archives, where four veterans risked arrest to jump on the ledge in front of the building and read a copy of the U.S. Constitution.
"We consider the [National Archives] our territory," says James Gilligan, 27, one of the four. Five years ago today, Gilligan arrived in Iraq -- ready, he remembers, to "defend my country." Now, after tours in Guantanamo and Afghanistan, he's returned home and is ready, he says, to fight for the constitution on his own home turf.
Here on K St., the mood is fresh and ebullient, despite the arrival of heavy rains. The crowd dances its way up past the site of Lockheed Martin, where protesters try to swarm the lobby. Along the way, they're accompanied by a fleet of 11 police cars -- whose blinking red-and-blue lights make the street look even more like a disco.
Six years ago, I remember an entirely different reception when protesters started blocking streets in San Francisco. Then, people were honking angrily and some were flipping off the crowds. But this time, the on-lookers are the cheerleaders. Outside of Bechtel, I watch some protesters hurl red paint against the building's entrance with an analyst from the U.S. Treasury at my side. "I think it's fantastic," he says. "This war is idiotic." An owner of a VW bug stuck in the middle of the street, lights feebly blinking, just smiles at the scene. One banker walking by tells me, "I wish I didn't have to go to work. More of us should be joining in."
National Day of Action Targets Fast Food Giant
First it was Taco Bell, then McDonalds, and now Burger King. We’re not talking about greasy fried things, we’re talking about poor working conditions for immigrant farmworkers.
Boycotts and protests by the Student/Farmworker Alliance got Taco Bell and McDonalds to buckle under the pressure and give back just a tiny fraction of profits to ensure decent working conditions for tomato farmworkers struggling with poverty.
Now it's Burger King's turn.
On March 31st, farmworkers, students, and activists from across the country come together to fight the good fight against the home of the whopper on the SFA National Day of Action. Farmworkers and students will hold local protests, screen films on Burger King and farmworker poverty, and collect petition signatures.
The SFA won victories with Yum Brands (in 2005) and McDonalds (in 2007), forcing the corporations to take responsibility for the poor working conditions of their tomato farmers. After years of boycotting, Taco Bell and McDonalds came to agreements with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers to nearly double workers’ sub-poverty wages, pay a penny more per pound for Florida tomatoes, and enforce codes of conduct for agricultural suppliers.
But Burger King just won’t back down. The fast food monarch even joined with the tomato industry to launch a campaign threatening the deals made by McDonalds and Taco Bell.
Fortunately, the SFA won’t back down either.
On the SFA Day of Action, Burger King will learn just what farmworkers and students think of the big bad fast food chain. If the protests and boycotts don't eventually do the trick, the bad press hopefully will.
Visit SFA to find out how to get involved with National Day of Action events in your area or to find out how to organize your own events.
What Do You Think About Youth and Violence?
It’s time for Round 2 of our monthly Youth Media Blog-a-thon.
Beginning on Wednesday, March 19th we’ll be kicking off another round of blogging. This month’s topic is violence -- from violence on our streets to the war on Iraq. Once again, we’re asking for participants.
Here’s a little blurb from our official press release:
San Francisco, CA - YO! Youth Outlook Multimedia and WireTap will host the second round of the Youth Media Blog-a-thon from Wednesday to Wednesday, March 19-26, 2008. Youth bloggers (between the ages of 15-25) – along with any bloggers dedicated to writing about youth issues and youth media – will address the topic of violence and its effects on youth and our communities.
The monthly blog-a-thons will connect the youth media community around issues that affect their lives, asking for their thoughts on hard-hitting topics. The goal of these monthly events is to foster more dialogue between youth media, which will lead to their connectivity as media makers and as activists.
We’re coming off of a tremendously successful first round of blogging where over 15 young folks debated important issues surrounding the presidential election.
If you are interested in participating, contact me at Jamilah AT wiretapmag DOT org for more information on how to participate.
Here's an a list on a few of this month's participants:
- Oh Dang! (http://www.ohdangmag.com)
- Khmer Girls in Action (http://www.kgalb.org)
- Boston Progress Radio (http://www.bprlive.com)
- Vanessa Huang (http://graniterainbow.wordpress.com")
- Kameelah Rasheed (http://kameelahwrites.blogspot.com/)
- The Playground (formally known as Grits & Eggs: http://jaysplayground.blogspot.com)
Technology Can't Solve Voting Problems -- But You Can!
Last week the Bay Area hosted a symposium: "Majority/Minority State: Turning Power in Numbers into Power at the Polls in 2008," on the future of electoral politics in California. The starting point for the conference was: population numbers don't automatically lead to power, or to representation, especially in elections.
For example, although Latinos dominate California in number and in population growth, many are currently under 18, and many others are not citizens. Neither of these groups is eligible to vote, so Latinos who live here, depend on our education and health systems, and contribute in many ways (especially working and paying sales tax) are not represented. The age issue will fix itself, as time goes on, but even then, being old enough to vote is not the same as being registered to vote, which is not the same as being able to vote.
A popular controversy in voting politics right now is about voting machines -- there is a huge amount of evidence that computerized voting is unsecure (often easily able to be hacked) and possibly unreliable, and often un-checkable (since the machines are owned by private companies who use trade secret law to prevent anyone from examining how the votes get counted or from checking on errors).
However, non-technological problems are the most powerful barriers to voting, especially for the poor and people of color. A workshop on voter protection issues brought all these issues into the bright light of day. What was intense about this workshop was the time spent by the speakers on simple, undramatic ways people can be denied the right to vote. Many of these are not planned or malicious (unlike, say, the Voter ID movement), but they hit people of color and the poor, as well as other disadvantaged groups, especially hard. One story from the Berkeley polling station during the recent primaries illustrated the kinds of problems that are most common:
Despite being in the middle of a town that you might think would be pretty politically savvy, by around 3 p.m. on the day of the California primary, the Berkeley polling place was turning people away. Not because people hadn't registered, but because the polling place had simply run out of ballots. Unprepared for the higher turnout, the workers simply had to wait for more ballots to arrive, and turn people away in the meantime.
Amazingly, there were apparently no poll observers there other than the poll workers, who could have reported the issue more widely. The ballots were back at 5 p.m., but who knows how many people didn't vote that day because of such a simple mistake? In fact, 14 precincts in Alameda county alone ran out of ballots on February 5. This is a shame for everyone, but of course people who can't afford to take more time off from work are especially unlikely to get the chance to vote, since they can't wait around.
In addition, the amount of ballots and voting machines is based on past turnout -- places where not so many people have voted get fewer machines and ballots. Since low turnout can come from low registration, as well as from people's feeling they are not being represented, the current election's focus on new voters plus the presence of candidates that will likely motivate especially the Black population, means many places may be unprepared for an increase in turnout. This is what happened at the primary, but some of that newfound political energy went to waste.. we must help our polling places do better when the election comes around in November.
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High School Students Tell the Truth About Their Schools
A California teacher asks his students, "Why should I care?" as a group of boys walk out of his room to cut class.
A high school psychology teacher hands out textbooks ... and then asks her students to color gingerbread men for a grade. When some of the students ask the teacher to teach them more information, the teacher responds by challenging her students to transfer out of her psychology class if they don't think they're learning anything.
These are just two of many tough, honest stories being shared by students across the state of California through a project called Right to Learn, which is being run through the terrific youth website YouthNoise.com. As a judge for a contest they recently held to pick the five best stories submitted by students so far, I was deeply impressed by the degree to which young people care about their schools, and the degree to which they realize that our nation's leaders are all-too-often cheating them out of the high quality education they deserve.
As the co-director of an organization that has engaged over 20,000 youth in an effort to call attention to the problems in our nation's schools, I of course believe in the power of young people to effect change on the problems facing our schools. It is a simple theory of change, really. Our schools suffer from a lack of quality educators, a culture of failure, insufficient resources in many cases, and a dearth of tough, common sense policies to bring about the change we need. And the only way to fix these problems is to call for a sea change of public pressure on politicians to do better.
Make no mistake: the victories that the American people have won to change the direction of our society in the past century have all benefitted from youth leadership. The Civil Rights Movement, Vietnam War protests, women's movement and more have all had critical youth elements. Student sit-ins and protests have won victories from East Los Angeles to St. Louis to Boston, on a wide range of issues. I've embedded a video below of a student sit-in that took place in St. Louis just last year.
The challenge facing youth activists who aim to attract public and political will to improve our schools is that there has yet to be a smoking gun image that pushes the movement over the top. For instance, when video footage of Bull Connor sending attack dogs and fire hoses against peaceful protestors in Birmingham made it to TV sets across the country, the Civil Rights Movement took flight. But what is the parallel image in our schools? Crumbling buildings and inept teachers are the norm, but they do not appear to be enough to spark mass action. It may not be until such an image is created and disseminated when youth and other advocates experience the progress they seek.
Join the Youth Media Blog-a-thon!
On Wednesday, February 20th, WireTap and Youth Outlook will be teaming up to host the first Youth Media Blog-a-thon! Young bloggers from around the nation will come together to discuss the hot topic of the day: Election 2008. This will be the first in what we hope to make a monthly event of youth sharing ideas and building stronger alliances.
What's a Youth Media Blog-a-thon?
Stated pretty loosely, a blog-a-thon is an online event where bloggers discuss and react to a chosen topic. In our case, young bloggers will be giving their opinions and critiques of this year's presidential election. Again, we're planning to make this a monthly event, so be on the look out for future topics.
Why?
It's simple: We think it's crucial to build an alliance of young, progressive voices who not only put forth solid ideas, but who also want to share those ideas and build together.
Who's Involved?
We've rounded up a solid group of young artists, organizers, poets, activists, bloggers and everyday folks to join in. So far, we've confirmed young voices from:
YO! Youth Outlook Multimedia (http://www.youthoutlook.org)
WireTap Mag (http://www.wiretapmag.org)
Grits and Eggs (http://jaysplayground.blogspot.com/)
Youth Radio (http://youthradioflows.wordpress.com)
Ill-literacy (http://www.ill-literacy.com/blog/)
The Cheddar Box (http://thecheddarbox.wordpress.com/)
Youth Ministry Exchange (http://www.ymexchange.com)
Vanessa Van Petten (http://vanessavanpetten.com/)
OH DANG! (http://www.ohdangmag.com)
Boston Progress Radio (http://www.bprlive.org)
Now It's Your Turn!
We're always looking for fresh voices. You don't have to be a professional to have your ideas heard -- or read. If you have a personal blog or if you work as part of an organization, we want want to hear from you. To participate, please contact me at jamilah AT wireapmag DOT org or Neela, from Youth Outlook, at nbanerjee AT newamericamedia DOT org.
On October 16, 2007 New Jersey's Eyeball Records released Eyeball Awareness Volume 1, an indie rock music compilation that donated part of its proceeds toward To Write Love On Her Arms, a non-profit group that offers hope and help to young people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. The comp featured tight melodic tracks from Baumer, New Atlantic, Sleep Station, Jettie and others. While Awareness was by no means the only benefit collection released in '07, it capped off a renewed period of aural artist activism.
From Al Gore's Live Earth concerts to smaller events happening at local community and all-ages spaces around the country, to the myriad consciousness-raising albums and comps, bands and musicians are once again on the frontlines of social change making noise and being heard.
In that spirit comes The Green Owl Comp: A Benefit for the Energy Action Coalition, dropping April 8, with proceeds going to a collective that comprises more than 40 organizations from across the U.S. and Canada, founded and led by youth to help support and strengthen the student and youth clean energy movement in North America. New York-based Green Owl is run by musicians Ben Brewer (The Exit, The Appletrees), Ellenike Abreu (The Appletrees) and Stephen Glicken who aim to find ways to present art in a sustainable way. Yeah, it's for a good cause, but is the music hot?
