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Rock the Vote / WireTap Call for Young Election 2008 Reporters!
This year's elections are without a doubt the most exciting for me, since my mom and I left the post-Soviet ethnic tensions of Eastern Europe in '94 for the promise of America. For many Millennials, this election may turn out the most important in their lifetime. For the first time in decades, the future of education, jobs, climate change, racial justice, immigration -- almost every major issue that young people care about is being debated by passionate and smart presidential candidates.
As young voters are coming out in record numbers, WireTap magazine partnered up with Rock the Vote to support the work of five emerging reporters for Rock the Trail project. These young reporters will rock their local, state and presidential campaign trails to deliver insightful and compelling blogs, articles and videos from the communities they live in, reporting on young people's top issues.
Rock the Trail reporters will help make this election relevant, fun and meaningful for new voters.
The issues and voices of Rock the Trail reporters will be posted on RocktheVote.com, WireTapMag.org, BET.com, and will also be available for viewing on AT&T mobile phones. In addition, we will be working with the WashingtonPost.com to contribute unique perspectives complementary to the site's vast coverage of the 2008 presidential campaign.
Entries will be judged by the young staff of Rock the Vote and WireTap, as well as an advisory panel of distinguished journalists including: Jeff Chang, award-winning author of Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation, Sian-Pierre Regis, producer, BET News, Peter Rothberg, associate publisher, The Nation magazine and Jose Antonio Vargas, political feature writer, The Washington Post.
Rock the Trail reporters will be paid a $500 monthly stipend and supplied with a laptop, cell phone and video camera to rock the 2008 campaign trail. Rock the Trail reporters will work approximately 10 hours a week from May 15 to November 30 interviewing candidates, elected officials, campaigners, young voters, youth organizers and Rock the Vote artists discussing everything from the Presidential race to mayoral elections and anything in between.
So, if you're a U.S. citizen between the ages of 18-29 and interested in reporting on one of the most exciting times in U.S. politics, please visit Rockthevote.com/rockthetrail to complete an application by May 7th (not a minute after 11:59pm).
Rock the Trail project is sponsored by AT&T.
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.
Read the rest of the post »
Super Tuesday Results: Youth Turn Out Increases in Most States
According to preliminary data by CIRCLE, youth turn out increased in most states that participated in the Super Tuesday primaries. In the 13 states that CIRCLE has analyzed, the turn out among 18- to 29-year-olds tripled compared with 2000 in three states -- Georgia, Missouri, Oklahoma, doubled in Massachusetts, and quadrupled in Tennessee.
Over 2 million 18- to 29-year-olds participated in the Democratic elections compared to roughly 900,000 in the Republican contests. In the Democratic contests, Obama won the largest share of the youth vote in ten Super Tuesday states. Clinton won the youth vote in MA, CA, and AR. In the Republican contests, youth support varied by state. (For more detailed, state-by-state break down of the youth turn out data, visit CIRCLE.)
Our website host had to shut down Wiretap on Super Tuesday, because it allegedly detected a hacker trying to run an attack code and alter the content of our site. Well, hackers, we are flattered that you consider our website a threatening noise machine. And I am sorry to hear that you couldn't outsmart Wiretap's genius web developers.
Shutting down Wiretap though can't cause a major blow to the youth vote or youth activism anymore. In the past five years, the field of youth organizing grew to over 600 youth-driven organizations, which means that information and resources are now de-centralized and distributed more democratically. If one of us is down in 2008, we've got a dozen of allies that can fill in.
In addition to the growing youth activism and record youth voter turn out we saw so far, 2008 will also go down in history as a year in which youth organizers collaborated more than ever. Last week, I talked to more than a dozen youth organizations that are engaged in various coalitions that convene organizers on the phone, in person, through Facebook and group emails to coordinate Get-Out-the-Vote (GOTV) efforts, share ideas about best practices and practical tools, create "Speaker Bureaus" for the media, and most importantly, build a sense of long-term community that doesn't view young voters as a one night stand.
Karlo Barrios Marcelo, one of the researchers over at the CIRCLE, breaks down the youth vote and what motivates young voters for CBS this week.
Read the rest of the post »
Iowa: Young People Just Made History
The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) just compiled the youth turnout numbers in Iowa from three sources -- CNN.com, Washington Post and The New York Times -- and they are astounding.
The Iowa youth turnout rate has almost quadrupled since 2000. Participation of youth under 30 rose from 3 percent in 2000 to 13 percent in 2008. The turnout rate for those 30 and above was 15 percent. Among 17- to 29-year-old Democrats, 57 percent supported the winner, Barack Obama, and among 17- to 29-year-old Republicans, 40 percent supported the winner, Mike Huckabee, according to CNN's entrance poll.
Young Iowans and young activists working in Iowa made history today. National commentators have consistently ignored increases in youth voting since 2000. Like a broken record, the often repeated sentiments about youth apathy are both tiresome and woefully inaccurate. Today's vote will have profound implications on public perceptions about youth engagement.
While Iowa is just the beginning of a long race in which youth turnout will continue to be interrogated more skeptically than that of other demographics, the monumental change is that youth participation will be on the national agenda. The youth vote will no longer be dismissed and ignored -- and that's a historic victory for all youth organizers.
"Tonight showed that candidates who court young voters will win elections," said Heather Smith, executive director of Rock the Vote in a press release. "This is the first year the leading Democratic candidates all have a Youth Director and young voter outreach programs," noted Jane Fleming Kleeb, Executive Director of the Young Voter PAC. "The turnout numbers of young people prove if you target young people they vote."
Wiretap congratulates thousands of youth organizers who worked patiently for years to achieve this milestone. From youth organizers at Rock the Vote, Young Voter PAC, the League of Young Voters and PIRG's to young bloggers of Future Majority to youth researchers and pollsters like CIRCLE and youth coordinators and volunteers of presidential campaigns, thousands of youth organizers pulled their limited resources together and it paid off.
What a great way to start a new year!
(And speaking of limited resources, please consider donating to these groups today to sustain their work through the November.)
The Race Is On: Whom Are You Voting For?
[UPDATE: The Washington Post blog reports that Obama campaign is crediting youth voter turnout for their victory in Iowa!
Senior Obama advisor David Axelrod said the most surprising thing was the turnout. "These were numbers you'd expect almost in a primary," he said. "The prodigious turnout was breathtaking, and it eclipsed anything I heard predicted. It's just fabulous to see people engaged in this way."
One crucial group, he said: young voters. "Younger voters participated in far greater numbers than ever before," said Axelrod as he studied the screen of his Blackberry, still appearing somewhat stunned at the returns.
And thanks to Mike Connery over at the Future Majority, we have some preliminary analysis of the youth vote in Iowa.
"It's still early, and there's lots of data crunching to be done, but here's how things are shaping up thus far based on on-air reporting from the major cable networks, here's what we know so far:
--CNN and MSNBC entrance polling analysis says that Obama won 57% of all 17-24 year olds. (video below)
--Fox News is reporting that 60% of all caucus goers were first-time caucusers, and 39% of those votes went for Obama.
--This is more tentative and I will update later in the night, but CNN reported that young people's turnout was 25%, which means they out performed their share of the population which is 22%.
--If the last is true, then young people had an 8% increase in turnout (from 17% share of the electorate in 2004, to 25% in 2008."
Wiretap's Ally Klimkoski is crunching numbers over in Iowa, and will send us more double-checked data as it becomes avialable.]
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All eyes are on Iowa today where registered party members are voting in Caucuses. Young people (18-29) represent 22.2% of the population in Iowa and could very well decide who will lead our country out of the mess we are in. If you are registered to vote in Iowa, young people all over the country are counting on you to represent!
Why does Iowa hold so much power? Because most people want to be on the side of the winner -- and Iowa gets first shot at defining the winner. Having the privilege to shout out your opinions first is powerful, but it's just the beginning of a long race.
In this election cycle, there are more than 41 million potential young voters, 13 percent of all voters.
In the last two elections, young voters voted in record highs. What can you do to make sure young people break records, again?
1) Register to vote. In many states you have to pre-register weeks or even a month in advance of Election Day. Find out when your state votes. (Need a reminder on what a Caucus and a Primary is? Read Wiretap's primer here.)
2) Tell your friends to register to vote. Forward to your friends this easy Rock the Vote registration form.
Read the rest of the post »
Troubling News from New Orleans: Protesters Tazed and Sprayed
As Wiretap blogged last week, the City Council of New Orleans is meeting today to decide whether or not to approve the demolition that was requested by the Department of Housing and is opposed by local residents. Last week, local residents and national allies succeeded at stopping the bulldozing of their homes. Presidential candidates Barack Obama and John Edwards, and the leaders of both houses of Congress — Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi and Senator Harry Reid — have called on President Bush to issue a moratorium to stop the demolition.
This troubling AP news report tells us that New Orleans' residents and activists were sprayed and tazed earlier today, as they tried to enter the office of the City Council that is deciding the fate of their housing.
Police used chemical spray and stun devices as dozens of protesters seeking to halt the demolition of public housing in New Orleans tried to force their way through an iron gate at City Hall.
Some people were arrested as officers tried to establish order and an ambulance arrived on the scene. It was unclear whether there were injuries or the ambulance was a precautionary measure.
The council chambers seat fewer than 300. Once capacity was reached, people who were not permitted into chambers marched and chanted outside and eventually violence broke out.
The clash happened at an iron gate that separates the council chambers from City Hall grounds. On the grounds, more than 50 had been chanting, calling for the council to reject plans by the Department of Housing and Urban development to demolish the housing projects.
Then, protesters tried to storm the gate with a few able to squeeze through a narrow opening before police began using the spray and stun devices.
A woman identified by bystanders as Jamie Bork Laughner, was sprayed and dragged away from the gates. She was taken away on a stretcher by emergency officials on the scene. Before that, she was seen pouring water from a bottle into her eyes and weeping.
"I was just standing, trying to get into my City Council meeting," said Kim Ellis, a woman who said she was stunned by officers and still had what appeared to be a Taser wire hanging on her shirt.
I wish we were reading stories about New Orleans poorest residents moving back into repaired housing instead, two years after Hurricane Katrina blew ashore and our government pledged to rebuild the Big Easy and provide opportunities for all residents to come back.
Not sure, if you are Registered to Vote? Need help making choices? Get lots of help here...
Register to Vote:
http://www.RocktheVote.com
Not sure if you are registered?
This site will tell you:
https://votepoke.org/
Not sure how to vote on those complicated propositions in your ballot? You can find helpful vote guides for most states here.
TheBallot.org
Can't decide which Presidential candidate represents you the best?
Take this fun quiz at GlassBooth.org and find out.
GlassBooth.org
Caucus and Primary Voter registration deadlines:
http://www.rockthevote.com/2008-presidential-primary-caucus-calendar.php#registrationdeadlines
What the heck is a caucus and a primary and how does it work?
Read WireTap's Voting 101 and Cheat Sheet by Ally Klimkoski.
Youth Attending College in Iowa Have Every Right to Vote in the Iowa Caucuses
Official statement from Rock the Vote Executive Director Heather Smith regarding the rights of college students to vote in the upcoming Iowa caucuses:
"Over the past week, several campaigns, candidates and political reporters have stated that college students who moved to Iowa to attend school should not vote in the Iowa caucuses.
These statements are a frustrating and disappointing attempt to suppress the student vote, and are also legally incorrect. According to the Iowa Secretary of State, all Iowa students have the right to vote in the town where they attend college in Iowa. From the Secretary's website:
'If you are from another state (i.e. Illinois) and are attending college in Iowa (i.e. Iowa State University), you may register to vote in: --your Iowa college town or --your home state (hometown) and vote absentee - subject to the laws of your home state.'
To tell students that they can only vote in the town that they came from, rather than in the town where they live, is a clear effort to disenfranchise student voters. Attempts on the part of campaigns to deter eligible voters from voting should be forcefully and immediately denounced.
These statements are even more disturbing given the unprecedented levels of engagement we're seeing from today's young voters - both in participating in the 2008 campaigns, organizing their peers to register and vote in the caucuses and primaries, and in their recent historic turnout levels in the 2004 and 2006 elections. Young adults' growing political participation should be encouraged, not deterred.
Rock the Vote urges every campaign and candidate to issue a statement that validates students' right to vote in Iowa and lauds young Americans for their increased engagement in the political process. We also encourage all media outlets to make clear in their reporting leading up to January 3rd that college students have rights equal to any Iowa resident to vote in the Iowa caucuses.
Students go to a college or university for 4 or 5 years and many stay on in those communities afterwards. They pay sales tax, many work full or part-time jobs and pay income tax, and they are subject to the laws of the community in which they live -- they have every right to vote in that community, legally and morally.
It is important to note that this is an issue larger than the Iowa caucuses. Legally, students have the right to vote where they go to school in virtually every state across the country. Despite this, we see challenges to student voters year after year. As we have in the past, Rock the Vote will make sure all students know their rights in 2008, and will work to ensure all eligible voters are allowed to register and vote in the 2008 elections.
Rock the Vote's Iowa program Rock the Caucus aims to mobilize high school and college students to caucus on January 3rd. As always, Rock the Vote will aggressively ensure young people know that if they live in Iowa, they can vote in Iowa, and let them know where candidates stand on important issues like student voting rights.
Again, Rock the Vote urges every candidate to issue a statement that clearly validates students' right to vote in Iowa and lauds young Americans for their increased engagement in the political process.
To learn more about Rock the Vote, visit: RocktheVote.com.
Learn more about Rock the Vote Iowa program, visit: RocktheVote.com/rockthecaucus.
November 30: March with Student / Farmworker Alliance to Demand Higher Wages for Burger King's Tomato Pickers
Join the Student / Farmworker Alliance and the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) in a nine-mile march, winding through the city of Miami and culminating at Burger King's headquarters.
The Student / Farmworker Alliance and CIW have been fighting for fast-food companies to agree to higher wages for tomato-pickers and to agree to a code of ethics concerning the treatment of the workers. The Student / Farmworker Alliance and CIW have already reached agreements with McDonald's Corporation and Yum! Brands (parent company of Taco Bell), but Burger King has been refusing to meet their demands so far.
The latest campaign focuses on Burger King's refusal to pay one cent more for every pound of tomatoes -- passed directly to the farmworkers -- which would nearly double their current salary of about 40 to 45 cents for each 32 pound bucket of tomatoes. This is practically the same rate that tomato pickers were paid in 1978 for each bucket of tomatoes, according to the CIW.
The Student / Farmworker Alliance and CIW are calling on students and youth from across the country to converge on Miami Nov. 30 - Dec. 1 for a weekend of action and education calling on Burger King to address sweatshop conditions in its tomato supply chain.
Caravans are being organized from cities around Florida and around the country for allies to join the CIW this November 30th in Miami. Don't let transportation concerns keep you from being part of this historic protest. Click here for caravan info., housing registration form, travel tips, and more.
For more background information on the issue and demands, read Wiretap's coverage of farmworkers' winning campaigns against McDonald's in our features Unhappy Meal and Slavery Beneath the Golden Arches?, or visit the website of CIW.
Sex Ed Digital Video Contest: Shoot, Submit and Win up to $3,500!
Why Is sex so interesting and Sex Ed so boring?
Using digital video technology, tell us what your sex ed experience was like OR tell us how you would redesign sex ed for the future!
Was sex ed at your school a total drag or did you love it? If you had your choice, would you want a personal robot tutor or an online game you could play with other teens to learn about sex and its consequences?
RH Reality Check, in partnership with a dynamic group of progressive organizations, is hosting a digital video contest with two themes to choose from:
Theme 1. Share your sex ed experience so far. Show us how and why it sucked or rocked.
Theme 2. Redesign how sex ed could be delivered. Imagine that anything is possible. First place wins a $3500 scholarship to the educational institution of your choice (or cash equivalent); second place wins $1000 cash; and third prize is your choice of a Nikon P5000, a Nintendo Wii or an iPhone! Content and creative vision will be weighed more heavily than production quality. See the official rules (PDF) for more details.
Contest Guidelines
- Contest deadline is December 31, 2007.
- Entrants/Filmmakers must be between the ages of 15-30.
- Read the Official Rules (PDF).
- Create a video up to 3 minutes long that provides an entertaining, thought-provoking or otherwise interesting look at sex education today or what you'd like to see in the future.
- Upload your video and fill out and submit one official entry form per video to our contest page on DoGooderTV.
Entries can feature humor, satire, music, discussion, dramatic portrayals, documentary style interviews, animation, information, lecture or other means of conveying the themes of the contest! Video finalists will be featured at the Sex::Tech Conference: Focus on Youth, an inaugural STD/HIV Prevention Conference about youth and technology, January 22 - 23, 2008 in San Francisco, CA at SFSU's Institute for Next Generation Internet.
For more information, please contact amie AT rhrealitycheck DOT org.
18th Annual Bioneers Conference, San Rafael, CA (October 18-21, 2007)
The Bioneers Youth Initiative began as a grassroots effort to support and cultivate youth leadership while providing educational resources and opportunities to create positive social and environmental change. Now, in it's seventh year, the Youth Initiative represents the many young people who are committing to a just, diverse, and healthy human and taking a stand for the Earth and all its people.
The youth program is created for young people between the ages of 13-30 recognizing that there is a unique and powerful energy that emerges when young people are given a space to connect and learn ... however, we invite people of ALL ages are to participate!
WHAT'S HAPPENING AT BIONEERS THIS YEAR FOR YOUTH:
--A Youth Space: an energetic, creative, open and safe space created by youth, for youth but open to all!! Come on by and check it out!
--Full Day Orientation Gathering: The Youth Program will begin on Thursday, October 18th this year and will include a full day of activities led by youth to encourage alliance building and intention for the next three days. Note: An additional orientation will be offered Thursday evening for those that can't make the full day.
--Activities Include: Youth Oriented Workshops; Building & Bridging Youth Movements, Theater of the Oppressed - an anti-oppression training; Council Practice with the 13 Indigenous Grandmothers; Beyond Nutrition: Creating Balance in All Areas of Our Lives; Moving within the Movement with Destiny Arts; Turning Inspiration Into Action - An Open Space Workshop for Youth; Educator's Meet-Up on Saturday from 1:00-2:30 in the Youth space; Informal & hands-on "learning pods" on cool, clean technologies & hip media; A special appearance by the Destiny Arts Youth Performance Company; Networking opportunities with food & live music.
Saturday Night, the youth will host a live performance, followed by a Dance with live DJ's.
--Mentoring Program: Through a partnership with DreamNow, all youth will have an opportunity to be paired up with an advisor in the Bioneers community who will be attending the conference.
--Onsite Reporting Opportunity- sign up for a special training with the Teen Environmental Media Network and do onsite reporting at the Bioneers Conference.
Venue: Marin Center, San Rafael, California
Price: $0-$350
Discount: Scholarships available!!
Ages: 13-30
San Rafael
Contact Person: Liz Cunningham
Contact Phone: 415.643.8633
Contact Email: youth@bioneers.org
Website: youth.bioneers.org
Ending the Mass Imprisonment of Transgender People, San Francisco (Oct. 13-14)
WHAT: Transforming Justice will be the first-ever gathering of activists, advocates, former prisoners, and community members from across the country working to stop the cycles of poverty, criminalization, and imprisonment in transgender and gender non-conforming communities.
WHERE: Student Union Building of City College of San Francisco's Phelan Campus at 50 Phelan Avenue (10am Oct. 13-14)
WHY: This two-day roundtable event will work to develop shared understanding of these cycles and strategize about how we can work more effectively to end the human rights abuses and mass imprisonment of transgender and gender non-conforming people, while building safe, healthy, and strong communities.
Transforming Justice will be an opportunity to learn, connect, and envision together as we work to challenge the prison industrial complex and build a world where we all can thrive.
WHO: A range of organizations and volunteers involved in LGBTSTQ justice, anti-prison, and prisoner rights movements are helping to plan this exciting gathering. The Local Coordinating Committee includes representatives from Critical Resistance, Justice Now, the Trans/Gender Variant in Prison (TIP) Committee, and the Transgender, Gender Variant, and Intersex Justice Project (TGIJP). The National Advisory Committee consists of representatives from American Civil Liberties Union's LGBT Project, Human Rights Watch's LGBT Rights Program, Lambda Legal, National Center for Lesbian Rights, and the Sylvia Rivera Law Project. This event is open to any LGBTSTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, Two-Spirit, transgender, queer) person who has been imprisoned, detained, arrested, or directly impacted by prisons, policing, or poverty, with specific invitations to organizations, activists, attorneys, and community members from a broad spectrum of social justice movements working to: end transphobia and homophobia; challenge the prison industrial complex and defend the rights of people in prisons, jails, and detention centers; promote racial, gender, and economic justice, marriage equality, women's rights, youth leadership, non-violence, and/or immigrant rights.
info and RSVP's info@transformingjustice.org
College Cost Reduction Act Passed
Yesterday, on Sept. 27, Pres. Bush signed H.R. 2669, the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, the largest increase in student aid since the GI Bill of 1944. Here's a closer look at some key provisions of the bill, sponsored by Rep. George Miller, (D-Calif.), and Sen. Edward Kennedy, (D-Mass.):
Increasing Pell Grants:
The biggest aid increase would raise the maximum annual Pell grant, the nation's main aid program for low-income students, from $4,300 to $5,400 a year by 2012.
Making It Easier to Repay Loans:
- Ensuring you don't retire in student debt. The program cancels most remaining balances (if there any left) after 25 years. This applies to anyone, who took out federal loans as an undergraduate or graduate student, whether they took them out years ago or recently. (The time period for the 10-year public service cancellation begins October 1, 2007. Project on Student Debt has more details on that.)
- Slashing interest rates on Stafford subsidized loans. The bill would reduce the interest rate on subsidized Stafford loans by half over four years. Subsidized loans go to students who demonstrate financial need. The rate cut would be phased in starting July 1. It would go from 6.8 percent today to 3.4 percent by 2011.
(The bad news is that this rate cut only applies only to new subsidized Stafford loans, not the ones that students have already taken out. It does not apply to unsubsidized Stafford loans either, which students can take out regardless of financial need.)
- Capping loan payment. Starting July 1, 2009, borrowers would not have to devote more than 15 percent of their income to repaying Stafford (federal) student loans. This applies to both subsidized and unsubsidized federal loans, regardless of when the loans were taken out. It's a sliding scale. For more use this helpful calculator by FinAid.org for determining how this would affect you.
Project on Student Debt has more helpful information on key provisions of the bill, such as percentage limits on payments depending on your income, or Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.
Kristina Rizga is an editor and publisher of WiretapMag.org. She's been sending a third of her paycheck to pay for her college debt and at this rate, she has 20 more years to go.
MOS DEF Calls to Show Support for the "Jena 6" on Sept. 20
OPEN LETTER FROM MOS DEF
Artist / Activist Mos Def is calling upon African Americans of influence and all concerned parties to join him in Jena, LA on Sept. 20th to rally and show support for the Jena 6, who are being treated very harshly by law enforcement in the State.
The Jena Six are a group of black students who are being charged with attempted murder for beating up a white student that was taunting them with racial slurs. This student also supported other white students that hung three nooses from the high schools "white tree," which sits in the front yard at their school. The charges could lead to sentences of 20 to 100 years in prison, of which civil rights advocates have decried as unfairly harsh.
Mos Def is asking African Americans of influence and concerned parties to join him in the fight against racial inequality and show solidarity for these young people, who are being treated very harshly by the law. The prosecution of these young men symbolizes a terrible miscarriage of justice, by punishing students who opposed segregation in their schools and disregarding the threatening acts of others who advocate it.
For a full story, read "Nooses Under the White Tree."
To contribute to the Defense Fund, go here: http://www.colorofchange.org/jena/main.html
For more info on the rally, visit: http://www.naacp.org/news/press/2007-07-20/index.htm
If you can't make it to LA, to sign the petition please go to http://www.petitiononline.com/aZ51CqmR/petition.html.
FREE YouthNoise Summits: Sept 1-2 (San Francisco), and 22-23 (San Jose)
Online social network, YouthNoise, will empower young people to become change makers. The two weekends are the opening of a series of Summits to be facilitated by YouthNoise. The San Francisco Summit will focus on local communities, while San Jose's "The Power of 5" Summit will be devoted to education change.
W H O
Young people and activists between 16 and 22 will join together at both Summits. The San Francisco Summit is an open forum, while "The Power of 5" San Jose Summit will include participating schools, Saratoga High School, American High School, East Palo Alto Academy, Menlo Atherton High School and Los Altos High School.
W H E N
September 1 (Saturday): 9 am - 5 pm
September 2 (Sunday): 10 am - 2 pm
San Jose Summit:
September 22 (Saturday): 9 am- 5 pm
September 23 (Sunday): 10 am - 2 pm
W H E R E
San Francisco @ SomArts Cultural Center
San Jose @ Symantec Campus in Mountain View
W H Y
The goal of the YouthNoise Summits is to bring together young activists in a creative and inspirational environment to discuss pressing issues relevant to themselves and their communities, and to consider ways in which they can address those issues.
Both Summits are FREE and open to young activists between the ages of 16 and 22.
To register for the San Francisco and San Jose events, please visit: http://www.youthnoise.com/summit.
Kristina Rizga is an editor and publisher of WireTap.