Video Transcript
Taking its time today. Here we go. Hi everyone and welcome back. You are tuned in for turn up to turn up Tuesday is brought to you by the leadership conference on civil and human rights and our campaign all vote and vote, which is also powered by our sister campaign. All Bonnie is local. This is the space where we come together to talk about what's happening in 2020 voting. We all know there's some stuff and we get the opportunity to hear from people doing the work in states on the ground on the front to make sure that everyone. The right to vote and exercise their right to vote and speaking about what that means uh right now just wanna encourage everybody to take a look at what's happening with the United States Postal Service. Um I wanna make sure that folks are up on the latest so there is gonna be an opportunity coming to support your United States Postal Service as well as well as your postal service workers. We all of our men and women. We love the Mur. We love when we get our mail with our names on. Please let's show up and show them some love um and just search Twitter search Google to find out exactly what I'm talking about, but please uh really appreciate the opportunity to engage you and make sure that you show up for this vital service for all Americans, which actually will still and greatly impact our right to vote. so again, check out Save the United States Postal Service. Alright. So tonight I am thrilled to bring to you all at the youth vote what is happening with the youth vote? We always. Youth will save us youthful save us and I will say it is unfair to put all of that pressure on them um but what we want to make sure that we're doing is not only lifting up youth voices and being authentic and allowing space for you to have their own conversations in their own way to do this, but you gotta bring everybody to the table and make sure that the youth voice is at the planning table and it is at the forefront and so if we're gonna save the youth will save us and the youth will lead, we gotta get out of the way old people and then also means we got to dictate some resources so tonight again really proud to. Um I feel I clay you can totally correct me. please who is with our Albany local campaign in Ohio. Hi everybody. My name is Clay tour and I'm so happy to join you this evening. Thank you so much. I appreciate it. Alright. We have Tami folks who's the Andrew Goodman Foundation student Ambassador at the University of Wisconsin Madison. Hi everyone. My name is Tamiya folks as Vanessa said. I'm the victim. Intern and an ambassador for the University of Wisconsin Madison. I'm so excited to be here and we have Maxine Guerrero, who is with Puente Human rights movement. Hey guys. Thank you for having me. Hi everybody And we haven't Diane again correctly and voter engagement organizer for Planned Parenthood Association of Pennsylvania. It's a nice to meet you. I'm in Dillon and I'm so happy to be on this panel. great. Thank you so much for everyone being here really really appreciate it. I wanna kick it off first by talking about the voting in general um usually people. We're getting better at this. I fear we may not be, but typically people will say um Oh you young people don't vote and if they do they only care about like one or two issues, and we know that that is categorically on true and it also just takes away from who people are right, so we don't wanna lean into that frame, but I'm gonna throw this out for uh to me in particular. Can you tell us a little bit about how we can come back that frame a bit. You know that you don't vote that you only care about one or two issues You got any recommendations for us. us. Absolutely. One of the things that I love about our campus, which has been such a lucky thing that we have at the University of Wisconsin Madison is we've really been able to create a culture around voting where people are widely embracing it and recognize one thing that we always try to talk about among our peers, which is that voting impacts everybody and for myself included I'm on the student council so one of the things I say is you know we're talking about voting being local that goes directly to the policies that your student council representatives are voting for your state officials for your national office and we don't just pay attention during. Elections because these issues impact us on a day-to-day basis, and it determines how much we pay for tuition. what we eat to the restaurants that are in our area and zoning things like that that just you know, impact our day-to-day lives. and so that's one thing that we always try to share with students. Yes. Thank you so much you are really hitting home a point that we try to really message out to folks. voting is not just every 4 years during a presidential campaign. voting happens all the time so please make sure that you are registered. That you know where your polling place is and then, in particular in the time of that you have registered for vote by mail super important and on college campuses, I remember I was in the Student Senate and I loved it because that was the time you could practice debating a little bit. You could really get into the issues and now I'm an organizer so it can work out. Alright. I'm gonna kick it over to Ava and I just wanna hear a little bit about what are some of the barriers that you're seeing in the states that are prevent. Young people from voting and then even more so for young people of color, Yeah absolutely, I also want to shout out that I too it was student government uh Miami University of Ohio uh associate student government um but the barriers to the bad that we see is a lot of people, especially if this is your first time voting, you might not know what type of what type of identification you need to show up so in Ohio, in particular, you can have your voter ID needs to have your address on it. So if you don't have a driver's. Or state ID, you can't use that you can't use it to vote or you can't you don't have anything to vote. You don't necessarily have a phone bill. you don't have a utility bill um and your passport If you have a password doesn't have your address on it, so I can't even be use a college ID doesn't have your registration address. So it's something that it's a very technical problem, but it really disenfranchises a lot of voters in actuality So how do you start to come back That part of it is just making sure that we the people know and understand Okay. This is a valid ID. This isn't uh I actually recently. Because when I was in college, we could use if it was from a public university that was considered a state ID and that change not too long after I graduated so being aware of like those little changes and knowing where you can register knowing that you can register online uh and knowing and asking your universities some universities in Ohio, we're printing out a zero some utility bills so that students had something with their address on it. so it might be something that your student government to take on uh in certain things that can just make it easier for every student to have the right to vote. Wow. Such a fantastic and creative solution and like an institution helping that's great when we talk about uh not having an idea at the polls. It's really important to remember this impacts our youth as well often times we feel like it's only seniors. There's only one in community. It also includes youth seniors, brothers and sisters in the trans community. who's may not have the opportunity to change their assigned gender on their license or on their right ID, so it automatically. It is another unnecessary barriers so I'm excited to hear about that solution cuz I think that's something that we could start pushing out and recommending so I wanna turn it to Maxima uh why should young people vote who cares and we do hear this a lot I will say, particularly in this current administration uh considering the electoral college is what it is um, Oh, it's a quote Michelle about it is what it is, but can you tell us uh why should young? Be engaged this election cycle. Yeah, so I got plugged in to the movement through being undocumented. Um I grew up in Phoenix ground zero for anti-immigration legislation. um now I have Daca and you know that Daca, along with immigration is one of the most uh what I say like most common back and forth topics when it comes to politics and it has been for a really long time. Yeah and so for young people who are able to actually come out and cast a vote where someone like me who's directly and heavily impacted by the policies. Legislation that that goes in different states, but I cannot vote so even though if I'm here engaged and aware and all of these things um at the end of the day, I don't have a valid and so it's then you know something that I would ask people you know if you are not willing or you don't care about. you know how this will impact you know that this votes impacts myself, and it impacts probably a lot of other people that you know or peers that you've been to school with that are directly impacted. and so I think it's just that and then. With the intersectionality like if you think these two candidates stand on the same thing when it comes to environmental racism or in justice, However, if they don't stand and if they are different issues when it comes to immigration, or or you know what um gun violence and things like that. so bring in bring your community when you're voting, bring your community and with you when you get that that ballot or whether it's at the poor in the mail and and vote with that in mind, yeah, Thank you. That and thank you for lifting up and the documented population. We have a lot of dreamers who are doing the work and really hustling and organizing and they don't have the ability to cast a vote. so we have to remember that our job is to also represent all those communities that come with us right and do our job because it is a privilege. It is a right sorry. It is a right to be able to go and so we need to be sure that we exercise that and speaking of how we exercise that and diet can you tell us a little bit about how you have had. You know reconstruct organizing plans and how you've started to engage folks in the digital space. Yeah, um the good thing about engaging people in the digital space is that during uh one what else is there to do um two is uh a lot of young people are extremely online. Um we have multiple social media accounts um have to be online for the new world of online classes. Figuring out this new community where people congregate digitally um having people do fun ticktock challenges around registering themselves and friends to vote, but also um finding the young people and asking them to make pitches in their classrooms about hey Will you register to vote? Will you get your friends to register to vote in other classes um and making sure that students are participating in that in a space where they already all have to be together in an online space. And I already have to interact with somebody who can help them guide them through the voter registration process. We can make sure that students and young people continue to get registered to vote. continue to get contacted about voting. Thank you so much um quick break. If you have a question, please send it into the chat and through the beauty of technology, it will come to me uh and then I can ask our amazing panelists. So don't forget you are at turn up Tuesday with the leadership conference on civil and human rights. So I have a question for. Um folks just jumping in and answer this, there is one grouping of young people who are in college right and who are online and that might be easier to reach out to how do we get to young people who are not in college who are working Um still some of them you know on those front-lines essential workers, but that vote is so important right who we cast our vote for in the next election is vital and so what I recommendation. People who want to capture the attention and provide information to that group of young people, including folks who are young with young families, Does anybody have suggestions. It's just gonna throw it out to everyone My Parenthood in Pennsylvania has been doing a great job with providing voter registrations at food banks um that are happening in the city and any food distribution site. We also have our high school students handing out free period supplies and they also have voter registration forms so that they can make sure that. Get the resources that they need. that's great. That's great. I was thinking about also like what types of businesses do you frequent uh because if you're going to a barber shop, clearly, I haven't been to a barbershop in a little while, but if you're going to a barbershop or to a beautician that people are going in and everyone needs to barbering beautician or most people need somebody to take care of their hair or their nails. So if you're going to any of those locations asking them if they want to uh leave some voter registration form. On their desk, where the dry cleaners, whatever business that are open that you can go to somebody else is also frequently or if they would not be open um so seeing what type of information you can leave and making it available to folks and one of the things that I wanted to mention. I think it's so important. Also we always think about how can we be physically in a space with people to get them to register to vote or to you know be aware about voting, but one of the things that I hear, especially as a young person as a student on campus, is that you know, I don't know a lot of people. I don't know what to vote for. I don't you know, understand these policies. I don't know how to talk about these issues and so I think that for many people is the root of the problem and one of the things that we should be trying to do as young people with the resources we have is try to educate and be mechanisms for that type of change and education through our personal social circles. We're talking about peer-to-peer organizing being in touch with your family having those conversations at the dinner table so that the messaging can expand beyond just your personal circle. Yeah, I love that you're totally. It could be just who understands these issues and sometimes we know it's intentionally difficult and it's written in jargon so that people don't understand and so one of the things that um if you go to the leadership conference on civil and human rights.Org or Allan is local or And Still I vote, we have a lot of campaigns folks uh and you log on to there as well as any of our partners here on screen go to their website. Check out the issues we often. Told that we are one issue voters upon what kind of block you're in and that is not true. So you're sitting at home watching me um feel free to Google Things immigration um college tuition rates all of it. It's all at your fingertips right now. so thank you so much for that reminder we have the opportunity to really get in there and figure out what speaks to us. Um maximum. I wanna ask you. We know that right now. everybody is pushing vote by mail and we're coming up on some registrations, but we also know that traditionally black and brown communities. Nervous about by now and I don't have the research with me. that says that that's only a specific sector of the communities, but I think it's also speaks to just particularly if you're working in the immigration space and with Daca right the institutions themselves have done the damage and so it's an understanding that there's a lack of trust right and now we're saying and trust us to take your ballot. trust us to vote by mail. It'll all be fine. How do you get at some of those root concerns? Yeah. That it goes back, I think to the relational organizing what are the relationships that we have been building in communities long term and it is a long-term process. I don't feel like just one election is gonna be enough, but there has been a lot of efforts around creating that conversation of this is what it means to be on a Pebble because people don't know you know they're like what who is the Pebble? What is that? okay? This is your mailing ballot. Okay, Then there's a process of how soon do you have to put in the mail or it's not gonna get there on time. Okay. Can you just go and drop it off at the polling place that they have not have to wait in line? There's places here a huge shift. We were before but places that are open 24 hours to just go and drop it off on the weekends and before the election day and so it's creating that information and delivering that to folks too. So you know if people are not able to go on the election day or don't trust about it or you know they don't trust the canvas at the door to give them their ballot. There's all these alternative options that didn't exist 4 years ago, but it's it's that step in progress of creating a long-term culture cycle. Not just every 4 years, but every in between like it was mentioned for the local elections, too. But the conversation and we have to just trust that that culture is building within our families. That's great. It's all relational right and we all tell stories I know in the Latino community I will speak for myself and my experience. It's all through word of mouth and did you hear So-and-so cousin right and like then you feel like okay, This could really happen. Maybe this will work. So thank you for that. It's all relational organizing if you will. a in particular, is set up and again that's all is local to help break down systemic barriers to voting in specific states. Now you're out in Ohio um and we've had some of your colleagues on who are also just fantastic and really working on the front lines. Can you tell us what is going on in Ohio and what is the work that you're doing in particular in the state to help break down? This systemic barriers what is going on in Ohio, a lot in a little at the same time, um one thing that's benefit in Ohio. We have no excuse absentee, which means that anybody for any reason can request a vote by mail ballot or to vote absentee your vote by mail They're used interchangeably, which can be a little bit confusing uh but the Legislature has not given the Secretary of State Authority to pay for prepaid postage So today that he can mail. The applications for vote-by-mail ballots to every voter in Ohio, but he cannot provide prepaid postage to know that back or for the ballot itself, which clearly imposes costs um he looks like he's investigating trying to figure out. okay. Can we actually provide post that's gonna be requesting from uh a certain committee of the Legislature to provide usage uh but also we recently had a challenge on drop boxes. Some counties want to provide more than one Secure Drop Box and initially the Secretary of state said with the laws unclear that'. Attorney general and then he decided well actually no we're gonna keep it just one Secure Drop Box County, which is a very diverse state. We have some urban counties and some very rural counties so getting to that county seat to the county Board of Elections can be a 2 hour trip round trip, depending on what part of the state and what county you're in. um, so it's provides a lot of difficulties we we are still advocating as a we're still advocating for multiple drop boxes per county because again it just increases voter access. It just makes it so much easier. To take off work to drive or catch a bus to the border to drop off your ballot. So can we explore Dropbox a little bit because I think we're hearing that word more and more um in common media and when you hear Dropbox now to be fair, people probably envision just like literally this box old school all of the student government people just like drop it in. It's got a little lock on it right, but we're continuously telling people it's secure. it's secure and they are secure but if you've never. And you've never gone to one you might really have this misconceptions about what it is. So can you please tell us why people should not be afraid to use Dropbox and what they actually are? Yes, absolutely. So so in Ohio, the secured drop boxes are located typically in the parking lot for the county Board of Elections um part of the Legislature is like ordeal the Legislature doesn't like to spend a lot of money but the drop out of their video 24/7 so. Right there a video camera saying, okay, this person is pulling up. They can see the license plate they can see this person is putting a ballot into the box um the benefit, though, is that you know that it's there, they empty that box every other day or every day uh and also if you're applying you're dropping off your application in the ballot in that uh secured Dropbox then that application is being processed like the next day. What we saw in Ohio's primary is that there was this huge lag time between somebody applying for their ballot and then actually getting it, but if you are able to go to. Drop box and drop your application there, The Board of elections can process that the next day and your balance is probably out that week. so that type of cutting that time gap, especially now when we're seeing flags and USPS mail time we need every day so making sure that you're taking advantage of that and like I said it's in the elections parking-lot um it's video surveillance nobody's reaching in and grabbing these ballots um so just being aware of all of that great. Thank you so much for that they are secure, they're giant metal boxes you it will be fine um and to. As UPS is USPS is having some delay and some drag because they are not fully funded and fully operational. at this moment, we need to be really creative and mindful about how can we make sure that our votes still gets it and we also are closing in on times to ask for a vote by mail right to turn in that vote by mail application. So please get that in right now. So we end every turn up Tuesday with a very special question. I will say that when I've asked this question to every other group of folks and partners. We've had on Turn Up Tuesday. They all say the youth the youth they give me such hope and energy, and it is absolutely true um 100% II am not exaggerating when I say everyone has said that so but now you are the youth so uh I just wanna ask and Diane what gives you hope it's still mostly the youthful because young people are really taking charge in all of the political movements and have taken charge in all of the political movements throughout history. It's always young people that. It's always young people that see the injustice in the world, and it's always young people that have the time the energy um and the necessity really placed upon their shoulders to get it done and every subsequent generation has done a fantastic job of just taking up the mantle and continuing to make sure that we have access to things like boating and to other things that are really important to us as a country and things that we need great. Thank Maxima. What gives you hope um son? um I think yeah, along with with the youth and I think along with that, just kind of like I would say right now, um the boldness and accountability from every single person that is in an elected into office from school board membership to legislature the legislation Legislature um so through all scope of work, the accountability and transparency and that boldness of requesting and demanding for it. I think it's very crucial in this time and it really inspires. A lot of ways, yeah, Thank you for that I will say as an older person as a seasoned person, um the the boldness and just the this is the we're not mincing words. No more respectability politics. It is so refreshing and I myself. I'm learning so much. so thank you for that point. uh Tamia. What gives you hope? Yeah. I think I would I would have to Echo and die, Maxine said. But I think my. The focus for youth becomes very much from the Andrew Goodman Foundation and recognizing that there are people who died and put their lives on the line like Andy Goodman, who recognized that this right should be something that we fight for and the fact that we're all sitting here on this panel and that they're young people across the country joining in this fight for rights for the right to vote and access to the vote. It's so so endlessly inspiring to me and I think you know if you haven't joined an organization in your community similar to the Andrew Goodman Foundation or I will go in. You know something like that is so important to help continue this fight just so folks know, can you tell us a little bit about who mister Goodman was he his family? He of course, Leadership conference on civil and Human rights also stands on his shoulders, but can you just let folks know? absolutely so Andrew Goodman was a freedom writer who you know was advocating for the right for black people to have the vote in the South and he was registering voters in the South when he was killed by the KU Klux Klan with Michael Scherer and James. And so for us all of the ambassadors from the Goodman Foundation who are on campuses across the country, we regularly talk about that story because you know it is so clear that you know this right is something that is worth fighting for and that people really put their lives on the line for as I said before and the work that we do at the end of the foundation is to you know to make podcast where we tell people about the issues that they care about or to register voters on our campus and to generally you know educate youth about why this is important in a non part. And I think doing things like that and recognizing what's happened in the past so that we can carry forward into the future is what's so powerful for us as an organization great. Thank you so much uh if you do not know the Andy Goodman please Google, it find it go to the foundation website and you'll see why it's so important to carry on his and his fellow freedom writers legacy. uh so I'm gonna turn it over to I am I right did I find me? yes you are. Yes, I agree um for what gives me hope I definitely would say the youth and I would say their capacity to build digital organizing um and I mentioned at the very beginning and it can be so easy if you have an iPhone or a Mac or if you have access to technology screen record, make a video. okay. How do I request my vote by mail online If I say as request online, How do I register to vote online? These are things that you can easily do and post it on Instagram TV video. post it to your Twitter post it on Facebook share it in groups uh get the word out cuz. Such an information gap, especially for folks who don't understand technology um so making sure that we can get that information out to everyone who needs it. Yeah. Absolutely. Thank you so much for that point. It's oh there's so much information and if you are willing to make a video on how you do this of course, please protect all of your personal information, then please do um again on behalf of the leadership conference on civil and Human rights are all the local team uh including in Ohio our team. Thank you so much for joining us tonight to talk about the power. The seismic shift that the youth vote and youth organizing is working towards for this election cycles. so thank you. we will see you back next Tuesday. Thank you everyone.