Now, I know there are some who bristle at the notion that faith has a place in the public square. But the fact is, leaders in both parties have recognized the value of a partnership between the White House and faith-based groups.... Now, make no mistake, as someone who used to teach constitutional law, I believe deeply in the separation of church and state, but I don't believe this partnership will endanger that idea - so long as we follow a few basic principles. (Sen. Obama, July 2nd, 2008)

Welcome to the forth installment in my series about Discovering Young Voters where I shall describe the importance of youth policy and talking about issues that matter most to young people. (See also Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3)

As I stated before, I wanted to write this series because too often we bypass the introductory level information assuming everyone knows about these things. Therefore, today I'd like to continue the series for entry level topics to create an understanding of why young voters are important and how they impact elections, what are frequent mistakes about young voters, what are attitudes of young voters, youth policy and talking about issues, and how to begin a youth program.

I first discovered the artwork of Thomas Hart Benton from an article in Smithsonian magazine while I was in college in the 1980s.

I really didn’t know too much about the fine arts back then, and I knew even less about the great American artists from that time between the two great World Wars. I loved learning about new artists and great paintings, and Benton was a real revelation to me. He was one of the biggest influences on me as I was learning to find my own style and voice as an artist. I never get tired of looking at Benton’s paintings, and his attempts to capture the energy and rawness of the everyday American life left a deep impression on my own outlook on art.

As we approach this Independence Day, Americans' thoughts turn to liberties guaranteed by the Constitution. A glimpse of the flag waving also brings to mind acts of courage by our men and women fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

While we are at the ballpark, at the lake, or at a backyard barbecue this week, let us not forget those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to give us the security to reach our own greatest aspirations.

Dear Representative Nancy Boyda,

I had such high hopes. I was actually ridiculously head-over-heels excited to see you elected to represent me in the United States House of Representatives. After more than a decade of truly horrendous representation, I was just so, so excited to see you sworn in.

Saying I "had" high hopes isn't quite right- I still do. And, for the most part, you haven't disappointed me, a fact with which I would imagine most of your constituents would agree. Thank you for your votes on the war, thank you for investing money in domestic programs, and thank you for treating our veterans right after so many years of neglect. Your actions on those issues, and your constant trips back home and the hundreds of hours of public meetings you've held have made you the best Member of Congress this district has had in longer than I've been alive.

But, Rep. Boyda, when you have stumbled, you've stumbled badly.

The last presidential election as interesting as this one, at least in my opinion, took place in 1960 when John F. Kennedy squared off against Richard M. Nixon. The Democratic Convention that year went down to the wire. I remember watching the final vote late into the night, until my parents made me go to bed. Kennedy prevailed in a real squeaker over Lyndon Johnson who salvaged the vice-presidential nomination out of the heated, at times vitriolic contest.

The Democrats have been through a tough primary season and the nominee will be Senator Obama. The interest displayed during the primary has been astounding. The race for the White House between Senator Barack H. Obama and Senator John S. McCain will be historic and more than fun to witness. It is hard for me to imagine what it must be like running for the presidency.

This is really inspiring. We're moving into a time where it's the individual that can make a difference.

The old way of thinking, being, politically, sociologically, etc., is no longer working - that has become very clear. But it's an amazing opportunity to see and feel the power of the individual rise, not in a self righteous way but in a form that actually creates a stronger community, society and hopefully, planet.

Enjoy and pass on.

The Center for Community Change's Sally Kohn has a piece today about the passionate Millennial activism that is taking place online and the extent to which it happens off line.

We've kinda heard this complaint before with Thomas Friedman's Generation Q piece that slammed the Millennial Generation for not being disgusted enough by our contemporary world to take to the streets. In Mike's rebuttal of the piece and indeed many of us who spoke out against Friedman's uneducated assumptions, it isn't that Millennials aren't taking to the streets, indeed they are, they are just virtual streets.

Kohn is bothered by the virtual part. She agrees that young people feel "deeply connected" with causes - things going on in Darfur, Tibet, you name it.... But she fears the online activism will "erode the community values [Millennials] seek."

Is Kansas Secretary of State Ron Thornburgh playing politics with the November ballot? Ballot Access News reports:

The ballot-qualified Kansas Reform Party held its state convention back on May 31, and nominated candidates for office, including presidential electors pledged to Chuck Baldwin for president. On June 27, the party turned in the paperwork for these nominations. The Kansas Secretary of State has hinted that he won’t allow the party to do this...

But instead of giving these workers a fighting chance, the city wants to track them with GPS to make sure they aren’t slackin’ off or wasting gas. Maybe a day working on the back of a garbage truck would change their minds. -- Sam Merten, Dallas Observer

All of my life and up until just a few weeks before his death, my dad listened for the sanitation workers who served his home in Richardson, Texas. When he heard their trucks in the alley behind his house, he would spring into action. Laden with cold drinks and ice water, he would insist that they stop, take a break and enjoy some refreshment. He appreciated what they did for all of us. Not to honor their hard work was for him, well, intolerable. My father respected workers.

The third installment of my series guided at teaching folks about young voters is here! If you haven't read the previous pieces you can find Discovering Young Voters, Part 1 and Part 2.

Often times we bypass the introductory level information assuming everyone knows about these things. Therefore, today I'd like to continue the series for entry level topics to create an understanding of why young voters are important and how they impact elections, what are frequent mistakes about young voters, what are attitudes of young voters, youth policy and talking about issues, and how to begin a youth program.

By now we have all heard about Obama supporting the FISA renewal. He has really gone against the beliefs of his party, and I believe himself as well.

This really seems like a politics as usual move. I know campaigns can be crazy but I certainly hope that Obama sees how he is straying. The Republicans are going to beat on him as weak on terror no matter how he votes. I only hope he realizes this and goes with his "gut" because I believe that will lead him to vote against this bill.

After all, this bill is only going to give the Bush Administration permission to walk all over the Constitution. They have done that, are doing that, and will continue to do that regardless. The other disgusting attribute of this bill is what is effectively a blanket Presidential Pardon, delivered via the Congress, to protect the telecom giants from being held accountable for their own lack of ethics.

"Politics can be chaotic and messy, but that is the nature of inclusive politics.... Political systems and the politicians who operate in them — along with the electorate — take time to mature.... We’ve seen that some minority politicians are as flawed as any of their white predecessors, but we’ve also seen that there are many who are equally, if not more, talented and committed.... In 2008, we’re debating whether we can entrust the leadership of our country to an African-American. One hundred and forty-five years after the Emancipation Proclamation...."(Rev. Gerald Britt Jr.)

Gerald has been making a difference in Dallas for a long, long time, and he is still a young man!

If you want to read an informed, brief summary of the history of the advancement of civil rights and participatory democracy in Dallas, Texas, you must read the Op-Ed piece that my dear friend and partner, Rev. Gerald Britt wrote...

The Jerusalem Gay Pride Parade was held just the other day, on June 26, which would have been right smack dab in the middle of the GAFCON Conference.

Let me explain. GAFCON stands for the Global Anglican Future Conference which was held, in Jerusalem, June 22 - 29. It was called by conservative African bishops who are still in a snit because the Episcopalians of New Hampshire, in a free election, chose Gene Robinson, a gay man, to be their bishop five years ago.

I'll bet these gay-bashing bishops loved that parade! (/snark)

Join me for the Live Blog of Obama's Patriotism Speech!

UPDATE: Now with video
Late this morning Barack Obama is appearing in Independence, Missouri where he will speak about patriotism in the lead up to the 4th of July holiday.

Obama's speech will detail what he fells patriotism requires of all Americans who loves this country and how he wants to see it do better according to the release. Free tickets for the speech were gone within two hours and large crowds are packed in the Truman Memorial Auditorium

10:30am: Crowds are packed in, fired up, and ready to go. Lots of chanting of OBAMA OBAMA!

11:12am The introduction of Obama begins, the building is beautiful if you haven't been here I highly suggest it...

Yesterday I wrote part 1 of my Discovering Young Voters series designed to help those unaccustomed to the youth movement learn more about how Millennials can impact the upcoming election.

Often times we bypass the introductory level information assuming everyone knows about these things. Therefore, today I'd like to continue the series for entry level topics to create an understanding of why young voters are important and how they impact elections, what are frequent mistakes about young voters, what are attitudes of young voters, youth policy and talking about issues, and how to begin a youth program.

Obama's suggestion to host a Unite for Change event triggered my community organizing imagination. Though I'm not big on hosting an event like that for a bunch of people who are already sold on Obama, I am interested in encouraging more people to register and actually vote. I decided I would host the event for the young adults I know... many of whom will be first-time voters this election. I called on one of the college students who said she'd be interested to learn more about the process to help me organize.

To prepare for the event, I began looking up statistics.

As in many inner city communities across the nation, our wealthier and whiter northern part of the city votes at a higher percentage than our lower-income, highly minority southern sector. This is what I found:

• In northern Dallas, 31.61% (166,848) of all eligible voters show up to vote at the last presidential election
• In southern Dallas, only 18.77% (63,816) of all eligible voters showed up

What was even more sobering... and disturbing... was to find that my neighborhood, zipcode 75223, the turnout was much lower... only 8.51%. (source: www.analyzedallas.com) So, instead of creating a Unite for Change / Obama event, I contacted the Dallas County Elections Department to see if they would agree to educate and deputize everyone...

Hi all - I'm new to Everyday Citizen (EDC) but am a longtime blogger and activist for many causes, but particularly understanding more about young voters and working to increase awareness about their impact on the electorate.

Compared to the circle of friends I roll with, I'm a newbie. Many of them have been working to increase turnout among young voters since 2004 or even 2000, and I didn't come into the game until 2006. But boy when I figured it out did I begin bringing it on home. I've also been responsible for feeding research and information to Ally here on EDC encouraging more blogging about these topics.

Often times we bypass the introductory level information assuming everyone knows about these things. Therefore, today, I'd like to begin a series for an entry level topics to create an understanding of why young voters are important and how they impact elections, what are frequent mistakes about young voters, what are attitudes of young voters, youth policy and talking about issues, and how to begin a youth program.