Young Voter

Archive for May

Inside the League Vol. #2: Started From the Bottom, now we Here!

As the weather warms up, we have been been bringing cultural organizing to neighborhoods nationwide - from the Midwest to the Deep South to the Northeast to the West Coast. Take a look at what’s happening on the inside at the League of Young Voters this summer…


MILLENNIALS SHARE PERSONAL STORIES ABOUT GUN VIOLENCE THROUGH ART

Since launching our grassroots No Guns Allowed non-violence campaign (inspired by Snoop Lion’s “No Guns Allowed” song) Snoop Lion has joined the movement for peace. His involvement in the campaign was featured in more than 85 news outlets including the Wall Street Journal, BET, and Politico.

Check out the No Guns Allowed Tumblr page and join our community by sharing, supporting, and submitting personal stories through creative artwork pieces. 


GO GREEN OR GO HOME!

On Earth Day, The League partnered with Green For All to showcase how young people of color are changing the game by reinventing the way we talk and think about revitalizing our hoods and the green movement. We invited inspiring young entrepreneurs to join Biko Baker for an interactive discussion on YoungVoter.

One of our guests had Twitter going crazy! DJ Cavem (aka The O.G. – The Organic Gardener) doesn’t only spin records, he raps about environmentally-conscious issues too. See what all the hype is about - watch his #EarthDayLive clip, which features a snippet from his record called, “Eco Twerk.”


 

THERE’S SOMETHING FISHY: THE MYSTERIOUS CASE OF KENDRICK JOHNSON

It has been four months since 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson’s body was found rolled up in a wrestling mat at Lowndes County Highschool in Valdosta, GA. The Lowndes County sheriff and school officials are calling this an “unfortunate accident” and have reported that the student athlete fell in the mat and died after being stuck there for too long. However, local law enforcement officials have not commented on how Kendrick’s face became severely beaten from the alledged accident. Kendrick Johnson’s family is not accepting the autopsy results because they believed he was murdered. The Morning Status crew isn’t buying this story either.

Watch the full story on #MorningStatus here. Make sure you tune in to the #MorningStatus show every Tuesday at 11 a.m. EST.


JOIN THE LEAGUE’S FIRST CLASS OF MEMBERS TODAY!

Join us as we celebrate 10 years of public service through cultural organizing! This exclusive low-cost membership comes with great perks, custom giveaways, VIP access and best of all: the satisfaction of knowing your contribution makes it possible to empower and inspire youth to be active stakeholders in democracy.

Your financial support is important because is enables us to build leaders, nurture creative development, and engage youth in the political process throughout the United States.

Become one of our founding members today.

Political Quick Hits: From Marriage Equality in Minnesota to the IRS Scandal

Here’s your weekly quick look at few developing stories in the political arena:

  • Minnesota continued a recent trend by becoming the 12th state to legalize gay marriage on Tuesday when Governor Mark Dayton signed a recently passed marriage equality bill into law. “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness should certainly include the right to marry the person you love,” Dayton said. The bill passed in the senate on Monday by a 37-30 vote. Couples will be allowed to marry starting August 1,. The other states that currently allow gay marriage are: CT, DE, IA, ME, MD, MA, NH, NY, RI, VT, WA, and also the District of Columbia.
  • On Wednesday, the White House released more than 100 pages of e-mails in an attempt to quiet critics who think that President Barack Obama and his aides played politics with our national security following the deadly September 11, attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya. The White House has always denied any type of cover-up. White House spokesman Eric Schultz said, Collectively these emails make clear that the interagency process, including the White House’s interactions, were focused on providing the facts as we knew them based on the best information available at the time and protecting an ongoing investigation.”
  • President Obama on Thursday said he had no knowledge of the recent IRS scandal until the media exposed it last Friday. The IRS is under heavy scrutiny for singling out groups, particularly those with Tea Party ties, that were seeking tax-exempt status. President Obama has since repeatedly denounced the discriminatory behavior at the IRS. President Obama said, “What I’m absolutely certain of is that the actions that were described in that I.G. report are unacceptable.” On Wednesday, the Obama administration called for the resignation of acting IRS commissioner Steven Miller and the Justice Department announced that they will be investigating the matter. It is not yet known whether or not any laws were broken and if any criminal charges will be filed.
  • Finally, a bipartisan U.S house group has reached an agreement on immigration reform. The report says that the Democrats and Republicans involved will run it by their party leaders and colleagues and hopefully formal legislation will be introduced in June. “Filing a real bipartisan bill, a serious, enforceable commonsense bill is, I think, a huge step. But it’s the first step of the process, a very important step,” said Republican Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida, one of the members of the bipartisan group.

Earth Day Block Clean-Up in Milwaukee

earth day blog picIn celebration of Earth Day, the League partnered with Urban Grass Roots, I.N.C. to make a cleaner and greener Milwaukee for our residents. More than 50 volunteers, ranging from elders to young children, came out to support the community clean-up.
Those who participated during the Earth Day event received breakfast and lunch, a variety of flower seeds, pots of pansy or perennial flowers and a signed Certificate of Appreciation. Additionally, they walked away with the good feeling of helping to beautify our community and provide a healthier environment

Read more…

#NoGunsAllowed Spotify Playlist Released Today