Politics with a Youthful Twist: Working for the Washington Bus

I am a young voter - there, I've admitted it. I'm on par with the unicorn in my rarity and have only been voting for nary 2 years now. However, I have worked on campaigns before. In my high school days, I registered people to vote when I was not yet allowed to touch a ballot. I cheered on President Obama's election without being able to send in my vote. And, I must admit, I became a little bit worn out.

I distanced myself from politics when I moved to NYC - there were so many more interesting things to do with my first year at college than canvassing for change, right? I also found myself in a new place, so I had no clue what the important issues were for that area. Instead, I took national and global politics as my weathervanes to gauge the state of politics and left local work behind.

I am happy this summer to return to my local roots in Washington. I have had the great fortune to be chosen as a Summer Fellow at the Washington Bus, a youth-oriented movement that wants to bring young voters out of their unicorn status and get their voices heard when the ballots drop. They have reconnected me to the local Washington landscape in a way that has surprised me: they have forced (if the word 'force' can be taken as a gentle shove) me to go to events like Seattle Pride and have taught me all about local politics. Today's post is about my first week and experiences with the Washington Bus, and what it feels like to get back into the political game.

Are you a youth voter? Let me know what you think about politics in the comments! And if you're not a youth, what are your views on youth voters/the youth population in general? Let me know!

Take Back the Night, Re-Envisioning Political Participation

I haven't gotten very involved with political activism since I've been at Barnard. I had thought that I would be more inclined to it, having been to a fair number of marches and canvassing missions in my high school years, but my interests have been so all over the map that I haven't had the same concentrated chance to get fired up and ready to go in NYC. One of my friends put it nicely when she said that it's difficult to get involved in NYC politics when you haven't lived here for the majority of your life.

And I suppose that's true: when you move to a new place, the first thing you think about is not who the state reps are, but what kind of friendships you're going to make and where you can get a good meal. It's even harder to feel like you need to participate when you are thrown into a sea of people, some of which seem so outstanding in their motivation that you feel like you can take a backseat.

But, after going to Take Back the Night, I've started to think about it, and this nonchalant attitude has gotten me worried.

Leaving Once Again

Is it odd that airports seem to be normal now?
I feel like I was literally just there, whether it was coming in, leaving, or showing someone off. I love to travel and airports and all of these things though, so it's not a foreboding feeling - more excitement. I'm just sad that the summer is coming to a close... We are traveling during the year, but it will feel more like liberation from a cage than a lifestyle.
On a completely different note, I embarked on my aid to political candidates for the first time. Hooray! I have now gone canvassing for voters [a.k.a. become an annoying door-to-door voter pamphlet girl... albeit unsuccessful because my partner and I got lost] and done phone calls [telesolicitation galore!] and played badminton behind a campaign office. I feel fulfilled. I actually really enjoyed helping out - after the early jitters of talking to old people that I don't know and the fear that I would start hysterically laughing. As well, it gave me some cool ideas for stories, which is always a plus.
...I completely lost my train of thought.
But, I have found that I am going to do picture stories and have some inspiration created from my own body of work. And watch the Olympics. And try my bestest to finish things that need to be finished eventually.
See you in a while, Seattle! Moorpark/L.A. here I come!