Posted Jan 17, 2009 at 6:14 PM
Sondra Myers,
Scranton,
Pennsylvania
My most poignant experience of Election 2008: canvassing with my Los
Angeles based son and his 8 year old daughter in a housing project in
Scranton, PA. Knocking on doors and seeing a lot of
children, and many women, some of whom had voted and others planning to, some not registered and some not
eligible. But in all cases more or less happy to have had a knock
on the door. We know that voting is a privilege, and citizenship is
a precious and, alas, rare privilege in the world; these people who
are seldom called upon to act as citizens remind me how important
it is to include those who are so often left behind. So in the
realm of good deeds, keep in mind that asking/bringing/helping people in
to the world of citizenship is important--for the individual and
for the society.
Tagged: PRESIDENT-ELECT Barack Obama
Posted Dec 17, 2008 at 1:16 PM
Maurice Berger, Political Director, PollTrack,
New York,
New Mexico
PollTrack has just come off a very successful campaign season, tracking the most
exciting presidential election in a generation (along with more than 20 US
Senate races). With more than 220,000 visitors in the first two-and-half months
of our launch we had visitors from every state in the union and 108 nations. One
feature of the site, VOICES ON THE GROUND, invited contributions from
artists, writers, observers, scholars, students, and others who helped us track
the election from the perspective of where it mattered the most: with voters on
the ground.
As we approach the inauguration of President-Elect Obama, VOICES launches The Obama Project--an online forum for
commentary, analysis, poetry, photographs, and YouTube content that
explores the following questions: What Does The Election of Barack Obama
Mean To You? And What Does it Mean for The Nation?
We ask you to submit texts (from a single line to 2,000 words),
photographs, or content you've posted on YouTube. We will be uploading
content on an ongoing basis through the inauguration and beyond. You are
also welcome to submit materials that relate to Election 2008 but do not fall
within the purview of The Obama Project.
To submit texts or images, go to the "Participate" tab on the yellow tool bar in the lower right of the VOICES page.
You may also send texts (and photo attachments) directly to voices@polltrack.com. However you submit materials, PLEASE: include your full
name and your city and state or location (if outside the US)
We very much look forward to hearing your voices on PollTrack.
Tagged: OBAMA PROJECT, PRESIDENT-ELECT Barack Obama
Posted Nov 28, 2008 at 3:23 PM
Derek Fields,
Caldwell,
New Jersey
I think that in order to really understand the impact of racial voting,
we need to see not only the breakdown of the vote but a normalized view
based on relative density in the population. I am not a demographer,
but my sense is that the overall non-white population has been growing
relative to the white population. If this is the case and if it is the
case the Obama has created a more permanent Democratic affiliation in
the non-white population, then this creates some basis for arguing that
the Democratic majority is sustainable over a longer term than just one
election. In other words, the more interesting racial question is
whether this election was an "Obama-effect" that won't last beyond this
election or this candidate or whether it is symptomatic of a general
realignment of electoral power from whites to non-whites and whether
that realignment favors the Democratic party.
Tagged: PRESIDENT-ELECT Barack Obama, race, Voices on the Ground
