Filed under: BU for Barack
Here’s a little recount from BU for Barack’s trip to Washington, D.C. to see the inauguration last week – via Alexis because Steph and I are studying abroad (or inbroad in Steph’s case):
As a number of you have asked about what my epic inauguration trip was
like, I have decided to try to put it all down in email.
The odyssey began at 6am Monday morning. While it was still dark, me
and the other 40 people piled onto the bus. And then we were on our way!
We arrived at Greenbelt Park in Maryland at 5pm. From there we walked 2
miles to the nearest metro stop. Although the small city of Greenbelt
appeared deserted, we quickly realized that was because everyone who
lives there was online for the Metro. It took us about 30 minutes to
get through the line (which in retrospect, was a very short amount of
time).
Because many of the metro stations were closed, we got off at
Chinatown. The streets were jammed with people and most of the
restaurants were overflowing. However, I’m going to give a little
shout-out to Chipotle, where we eventually stopped. Despite the massive
amounts of people, they got us through the line in a matter of minutes.
If only BU had the same kind of efficiency as the minimum wage-paid
workers at Chipotle…
We started to make our way down towards the mall. A few streets before
we reached Pennsylvania Ave, we encountered a set of gates to keep cars
out and let pedestrians pass. It was at that moment, walking through
those gates, that it finally hit me: where we were, what was going to
happen in a few hours, and that we were going to witness it all.
From about 7pm until 2am, my group and I went monument hopping. Along
the way we stopped at the taping of the Rachel Maddow show, where we
saw Rachel and some people in our group got to shake her hand (not me,
unfortunately). We then saw Anderson Cooper doing interviews for his
show. Apparently he works in jeans and sneakers. We tried to find Fox,
just to boo them, but they were nowhere to be found. We went to many
different memorials and monuments: the Washington, the Lincoln, the
Vietnam, the World War II, and I feel like I’m leaving some out.
At 2am, everyone started to get cranky so we met up with Steph at a
Starbucks. Getting there was difficult because the police had started
to set up barricades that in essence turned DC into a labyrinth.
Eventually, though, we made it and recuperated in Starbucks for a few
hours.
Around 4:30am, we started to make our way back towards the mall. The
previously deserted streets were starting to fill with groups of
people. My group and I edged our way into the crowd. It was amazing to
be so closely packed into the same length of lawn that had been almost
empty before. We quickly realized that although we were as close as
were going to get to the capitol that day, we really couldn’t see
anything or a even a Jumbo-tron. We managed to make our way back out of
the crowd and found a spot on the edge where we could see and not be
trampled.
The sun started to come up, but the temperature started to drop, plus
we were no longer moving around. Everyone started to become horribly
cold. The Smithsonian museums were not open, as they had said they
would be, and the “heating stations” were very poorly run. For a while,
everyone was having a miserable time.
Then, at 10:30, the musical intro started to play and we could tell it
was all going to happen soon. We watched as the cabinet members, the
Congress, and the aids all filed onto the stage. Then all of the
incoming and outgoing first and VP families started to come in. Seeing
Barack Obama walk towards the entrance of the stage was one of the most
incredible moments of the day. I realized that the Bush reign was
finally over and, yes, I started to tear up.
We watched with amazement as first Biden took the oath of office, and
then Barack (as I’m sure you know, the oath-blunder was Roberts’
fault). Then Barack’s speech. It took a while for his speech to thaw through my frozen skull but I’ve since become very impressed with it. Straight afterwards we headed towards the metro, swimmming in the most insane crowds I have ever witnessed.
All in all, we made it through. I temporarily lost my mind at the end when we were trying to get everyone together for the bus back.
Andrew’s post on the Obama train ride was absolutely amazing. To quote in full:
I cannot be alone in immediately having my mind leap to Robert Kennedy’s funeral train as I watched Obama’s Inaugural express make its way toward Washington yesterday. Forty years. The same crowds along the tracks; the same intensity of emotion – but now inverted from crippling grief to tentative hope; the connection between one human being and the millions of others who sensed and sense that he understands, like few others do, the crisis we face and the American character we now need. Here is a very affecting oral memory of that RFK train by the photographer, Robert Fusco, who helped sear it into global consciousness.
For me it feels as if history is undoing itself, as if some great, dark wound has somehow returned to be healed, before it is too late.
Another from 1968:
And yesterday:
Know hope.
(Photos by Robert Fusco in 1968 and Christopher Furlong and Chip Somodevilla 2009.)
Missing that combined with the fact that I’m missing the concert today and the Inauguration on Tuesday, makes me just wish I was home!
Filed under: BU for Barack, General Election 2008, President Obama, Youth
Via FM, aka the blog that will write my thesis:
Two weeks ago the Obama Transition Team appointed Lily Rothman, a Pennsylvania youth organizer for the campaign, as Youth Liaison for the transition. I’ve spoken with Lily and my understanding is that she is on staff to consult with youth advocates in order create the job description for the eventual White House youth liaison. To the extent that she can help, we need to be working with Lily not only on ensuring that the eventual WH Youth Liaison is an effective partner and advocate for our work, but that we are properly navigating the channels in the Administration that will let us put specific policies into consideration for the first 100 Days. In particular I see the liaison helping set up meetings between youth advocates and the appropriate policy teams within the Administration and perhaps on the Hill.
BU for Barack would like to congratulate Lily- your work during PA GOTV with all of the student groups coming down (like us) was just astounding.
Now, don’t you think political connections like these are great for umm… let’s say, a BU for Barack offshoot group known as BU Student Advocates for Progressive Politics (SAPP). Yeah, me too!
Here’s what’s going on right here at BU:
Friday
- Canvassing 9-5: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=44841949856
- Poster Making 3-5: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=34312097143
- Phonebank 5-9: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=32091493961
Saturday
- Canvassing 9-5:http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=32971183762
- Phonebank 12-9: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=32589647997
Sunday
- Canvassing 9-5: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=32752486858
- Phonebank 12-9: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=33099428729
Monday
- Canvassing 9-5
- Phonebank 2-9: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=102036150256&ref=mf
- Poster Put Up: 3-9: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=36442366785&ref=mf
Tuesday- ELECTION DAY
- Canvassing 9-5: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=33038998406&ref=mf
- Phonebank 9-5: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=33927053525&ref=mf
Come help us out!
Ambers notes something that many political science majors like myself learned in PO101:
Alan Gerber and Donald Green, Yale profs who study turnout, have written that robocalls “might help you to stretch your resources in ways that allow you to contact the maximum number of people, but don’t expect to move them very much, if at all.”
Generic robocalls — those not targeted at specific constituencies — are worse.
Do you know what’s been quantitatively proven as better than robocalls. Phone banking calls where voters call fellow voters to encourage them to vote for a select candidate or issue. And do you know what else? Canvassing is even better. Out of 12 undecided voters that a canvasser talks to (that’s a out of 12 contacts, not 12 knocks, slackers!), at least one will decided to vote for your candidate.
Sound good to you? Want to help get Barack Obama elected? Need some activities to do so? Come join BU for Barack in phonebanking and canvassing activities this next week:
Phonebanking on Tuesday from 5-9: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=39672762118
Canvassing in NH on Saturday from 9-5: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=14081909945
Canvassing in NH on Sunday from 9-5: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=39804933798
Please come help us out. Just one day. Just a couple of hours. It will make a huge difference. Become a part of a great group of students here at BU. Meet some friends for life. Have fun and change the world in the process.
Please!!!
After having calmed down a bit, here are my thoughts on the events that occurred tonight.
To whom this concerns (you know who you are… yes, you!),
Do not mess with BU for Barack Obama. We control what is going on between BU and the Obama campaign. You do not. Your name will not be tied to an Obama success. You will not be able to use our contacts with the Obama campaign to network for your advantage.
Our hardwork has gone into developing our group structure, getting our contacts, and making sure that all of our events go off well. You have not done anything to help us at all.
You can find out our information but you are not allowed to do anything with it. We control what is going on, you do not.
Do not even try to take power away from us. We will hunt you down. Do not created unauthorized facebook events. Our events are not your groups, even though your group is welcome to attend. What you say has no bearing on us. If you want more information, talk to us, we will tell you. Otherwise, keep your mouth shut.
Do not contact the Obama campaign without our knowledge. Your sphere of influence does not include the Presidential Election.
Thanks!
-Amy
——-
A further vent. No one who acts the way they do, participates in the activities that they do, or makes friends with the people that they are friends with as a way for personal gain or to use towards achieving something in life will be my friend ever.
These types of people are fake and they use everyone and everything around them.
I dealt with these types throughout middle school and high school. I’m done right now.
I will be your acquaintance, but you are not going to get any help for me in the end.
Just a forewarning.
Interested in getting involved with the Barack Obama campaign? Want to make a difference in this election? Come to BU for Barack’s meeting tomorrow at 7 in the GSU BackCourt. We’ll be talking about all of our upcoming phonebanks, canvasses, BU activities, and trips.
We are the ones we have been waiting for!
We need a new design for our Fall General Election 2008 t-shirt.
Here is one design. What do you think?
I was thinking more of a white shirt. Maybe with the same front picture (colored in blue and red) with BU for Barack Obama on the back.
Comments?
