All I wanted to do was go listen to jazz while drinking the random beverage that I would smuggle into the park. But all she wanted to do was go listen to jazz while holding up a random clipboard that said "Register to Vote". She won. The catch was that our impromptu voter registration drive had to take place outside of the park - but lucky for us, the band had amplifiers.
After two hours, I walked away with a handful of completed forms to turn in. I also walked away with the realization that not all of us are optimistic about Obama. Eight out of every ten people claimed to already be registered and gave me an appreciative smile. The ninth out of those ten stopped to complete the form or ask a question. But that tenth person, oh my!
There are people who actually believe that their one vote doesn't make a difference! Others say that our future is going to suck for the mere reason that our past did. A few think that Barack doesn't have a chance of winning, so why bother? The first time I got a response like this, I was blown away. Unfortunately, I got used to it as time went on. But I'll never be alright with it.
My only hope is that my words sunk in as those folks walked away. I let them in on the big secret that our past can't be changed, but the same is not true for our future. The teacher in me came out and gave them a quick math lesson - if we added up all the people that say their one vote doesn't matter, then that would equal a whole lot of votes that did matter. Because of the high stakes, I had to do this in a way that wasn't condescending.
We're almost there - by my estimate 90% of us are on board to exercise the right that our ancestors fought for. Vote for who you want, that's not the point. But while you're making that decision, make sure others around you know that their decision is just as important.
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I see where you are coming from..as a person who has voted in every election since I turned 18. I will most definitely go out and vote for Obama, but I am also under no illusion that every vote counts. I understand that when we deal with children we should not say discouraging things such as this but, we can analyze the last two elections and see that there were many votes that were not counted. Honestly, without even going that deep, if you just look at our election process and how it is setup....the electoral college, etc., it was never intended for every vote to count. The electoral college was created to make sure that white, male, landowners were the ones making the important decisions and IMO it still exists for similar reasons. That being said I hope everyone does realize the stakes here and gets out and votes for Obama. I believe the symbolic significance of Obama's potential election is great...the effect that could have on young black male psyches around the nation, that they are not confined to the prospect of athlete or rapper...that this was actually an option. We are fighting an uphill battle though.
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