Yesterday marked the one-year anniversary of the 2008 presidential election in which President Barack Obama defeated Republican Senator John McCain to become president-elect Obama, through a campaign promising change to Americans.
Campus Progress, an organization dedicated to helping the youth get their voices heard, hosted a conference call Tuesday with leaders from several student and youth organizations around the country to weigh in on the progress Obama and Congress have made in the past 10 months.
The participants ranged from members of economic-focused groups, such as 80 Million Strong for Young American Jobs, to more social issue-based groups, such as the National Youth Advocacy Coalition, which supports social justice for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth.
As Erica Williams from Campus Progress explained, the motivation behind the conference call was to get young people to “talk about how the president and congress have delivered on the change that young Americans voted for and continue to demand.”
Williams noted that over 22 million 18-29 year olds voted for Obama in 2008, and those voters are now eager to see change on a range of issues from health care to LGBT rights.
Assessing the progress of health care reform in the U.S., Ari Matusiak from the Y.I. Want Change Coalition stated, “Well, it’s one year later and we still have a ways more to go, so I guess the grade is not yet submitted.”
Matusiak expressed how “[health care] is our crisis — our generations crisis — and what is good for young Americans on health care will be good for all Americans.”
However, not all young Americans are as enthusiastic as Matusiak when it comes to Obama’s public option plan for health care reform. Krystal Weaver, a senior majoring in pharmacy at UT, said, “I don’t think that Obama’s plan for a public option is the best solution — government getting involved [in health care] is not the right solution. You don’t want a politician or bureaucrat making medical decisions for you; you want your physician making that decision.”
Brad Davy, a senior majoring in political science, voiced support for Obama’s health care ambitions; however, he expressed some disappointment in the progress of the reform.
“I think the president could’ve acted much more aggressively when it comes to health care,” Davy said.
Obama and Congress’ progress on environmental issues was also a topic of concern during the conference call.
“We have been thrilled to see that the president has acted on energy efficiency standards, fuel efficiency standards, passed a stimulus packed full of money and resources for the green economy,” said Jesse Tolkien, speaking on behalf of the Energy Action Coalition.
Davy also said he believes Obama and Congress are taking the right measures when it comes to the environment.
“It’s the safest time to re-tool how we approach climate change,” he said.
But not all young people are buying into the environmental movement. Victoria Jarufe, a freshman majoring in political science, opposes government action on environmental issues. “I think the problem with the environment is that politicians are going off on their own agendas with unsubstantiated data, in order to shift policy in a way that can have devastating affects on the quality of life and the economy,” Jarufe said.
The federal government’s progress on issues of social justice, such as the status of the LGBT community, arose during the conference call as well. Jed Barnum from NYAC, feels that there have been many strides made for the LGBT community in the past year.
“This is really the most supportive Congress and president our movement has ever had,” Barnum said.
Barnum was satisfied with the recent passing of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Act, which includes crimes against an individual from the LBGT community under U.S. federal hate-crime laws. However, Barnum said “there are a lot of open promises from the president and from Congress that remain unfulfilled,” such as promised action on the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy in the U.S. armed forces.
Weaver said that the passing of the Shepard Act was a good measure to protect the LGBT community.
“I think people who — either physically or emotionally — hurt others based on how they express themselves should be punished … I think our rights end where others’ begin,” Weaver said.
Charles Calire, a junior majoring in paralegal studies, was not satisfied with the passing of the Shepard Bill.
“I have a problem protecting people because of their sexual orientation, because it’s a choice they make … the language of the bill is a concern,” Calire said. “If I come out and express my Christian beliefs that homosexuality is wrong, could that be a hate crime?”
Davy said the signing of the Shepard Act into legislation will make “huge strides” for the LGBT community, which he feels has been ignored at every level of government up until now.
“If this is the start of [Obama’s] journey, I think he’s headed in the right direction,” Davy said.
Jarufe said she does not believe in making special qualifications for people based solely on sexual preference or gender.
“Above all, gays and lesbians are human beings and should be given basic rights and proper treatment as human beings,” she said.
Speaking as one of the youth in opposition to Obama, Jarufe said “the day President Obama was inaugurated, we [America] stopped walking tall and carrying a big stick.”
3 comments
we dont need more big government meddling in the market.watch this video and you may begin to understand
vvvvw.youtube.com/watch?v=asY1Dup1wQY
^replaces v's with w's^