Blog
Black Youth Vote! and GOTV
By William Kellibrew on 10/23/2008 @ 06:37 PM
12 Days To Go!
It's crunch time and the election of the century and possibly of all time is nearing on 4th November. We are pressing hard here at the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation. Part of our GOTV efforts are focusing directly on what you need to know before you go to the polls. You may have heard these before, but as I was reading The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein, I could not help but notice my bookmark featuring five things you need to know before you go the polls. Well, here they are one more time.
1. VERIFY your registration status BEFORE Election Day
Make sure you are listed on the registration roll by calling your local Board of Elections.
2. VERIFY your polling location before Election Day.
Call 1-866-MYVOTE1 (1-866-698-6831).
3. Bring your I.D.
Don’t Leave Home Without It! To be safe, bring your voter registration card, driver’s license, and/or government issued photo ID. If you have problems voting call Election Protection at 1-866-OUR-VOTE.
4. VERIFY the date and location to vote early or absentee in your state at http://www.ncbcp.org then VOTE FIRST!
5. Be a part of history – VOTE FIRST!
After you cast your ballot, text “blackyouthvote” to 69302.
DON’T LEAVE YOUR POLLING PLACE WITHOUT VOTING.
VOTE NOV. 4, 2008
I cannot stress enough how absolutely difficult it will be to vote on Election Day. I am preparing my absentee ballot because I will not be able to go to the polls on that day,.I have my reasons. If you cannot get the polls, you need to either vote early or by absentee ballot. Consider it fast and check with your local Board of Elections or Secretary of State to get more information or visit our Election Center at www.ncbcp.org.
Save-The-Date
By William Kellibrew on 10/22/2008 @ 06:37 PM
Please Save-The-Date for the upcoming Black Youth Vote! Civic Leadership Training Conference in Washington, D.C., this November 13 - 15, as we deal with post-election issues and, of course, a brand new President of the United States. No matter who that is, we are going to have to hold him or her accountable -- anything can happen to John McCain and Palin could also be the next president. The conference will kick-off with a Black Youth Vote! National Press Club Symposium on November 12, 2008 from 12-3 p.m. You will need to R.S.V.P. to blackyouthvote@ncbcp.org. Registration for the conference will be primarily on-line and will be available soon. I will keep you posted.
Thanks for reading the blog and please leave a comment. Give yourself a voice on this BYV! blog.
Bow Wow Finishes Strong in Connecticut, Virginia Sees Surge in New Registrations
By William Kellibrew on 10/16/2008 @ 06:37 PM
Bow Wow in Atlanta - Election 2008
Bow Wow finished his Walk Across America Tour in Hartford, Connecticut yesterday. His 15 city tour included Washington, D.C., New York, Boston, Orangeburg, Richmond, Philly, Charlotte, and had a great launch in Atlanta at the CNN Center. Black Youth Vote! was on hand to vigorously support the launch and the overall tour. Thanks to the amazing partnership with Bow Wow, Black Youth Vote! continues to have a stake in the record registration of youth ages 18-35 in the United States.
For instance, according to the Virginia State Board of Elections, "about 60 percent of the newly registered voters are under the age of 34." There are an additional 436,000 more registered voters than the previous election. Virginia now has a record 5m people registered, mostly in democrat strongholds. This is an example of not only an agressive campaign by candidates, but by "other outside groups to register new voters" reports the Virginia State Board of Elections.
BYV! Busy in the United States
By William Kellibrew on 10/08/2008 @ 06:37 PM
Bow Wow in Atlanta - Election 2008
Black Youth Vote! is definitely busy throughout the United States. Jeff Johnson Birmingham, Alabama on October 6 and it was a great success. Jeff received a presidential welcome from the crowd there and from BYV! coordinators. Our hats are off to Sheila and LaTosha for leading the effort in Alabama.
Bow Wow will restart his campaign across America tomorrow by visiting Bennett and North Carolina A&T in North Carolina. I will be blogging from the tour as usaul. Again, for more information and some awesome videos, please check out princebow.com.
If you will be in the upcoming tour areas and want to volunteer please email blackyouthvote@ncbcp.org. Especially in Boston, Hartfor, Connecticut and New York City.
Talk to you soon.
Bow Wow Takes to the Road - Charlotte and Greensboro
By William Kellibrew on 10/08/2008 @ 06:37 PM
Bow Wow in Atlanta - Election 2008
Bow Wow is in Charlotte for a radio interview and will be in Greensboro, North Carolina at 12 Noon in the Student Center on the campus of North Carolina A&T. We will then visit Bennett College for Women at 2:00 p.m. Bow Wow is kicking off his pledge phase of his Walk Across America Tour for those who already registered. Bow Wow is asking that you do several things for your pledge commitment.
- pledge to educate yourself to the best of your ability on the issues relevant to your community.
- pledge to verify with your local Board of Elections that your voter registration information is updated and your name is on the voting rolls.
- pledge to verify your poll location by calling 1.866.MYVOTE.1
- pledge to VOTE on November 4th 2008.
- pledge to diligently monitor any election irregularities which may occur at my polling location and report them to 1.866.MYVOTE.1.
Look out and ask for a Pledge Card when you see Bow today and along the Walk Across America Tour.
Folks, Election 2008 is serious and that's why Bow Wow is taking the time to visit over 13 states in order to bring awareness to the Election as well as get young people registered and pledging to vote. Let's make 2008 count.
Bow and BYV! in Mobile, Alabama's BayFest
By William Kellibrew on 10/06/2008 @ 06:37 PM
The anticipation to Bow Wow's performance at BayFest was felt even in the hotel where we stayed. What we didn't know was that there were over 10,000 screaming fans waiting for Bow just two blocks away.
When Bow took the stage his fans screamed to the top of their lungs and I hadn't seen anything like it from my direction. Bow wanted me to record his entire show while on stage. He performed for 1 hour and 15 minutes. When he got to the end, he made the most awesome speech about voter registration and awareness of the approaching election on November 4. I know he inspired those in the crowd because I was totally ready to vote at that moment. To see this amazing speech just scroll down until you reach the video screen or go to princebow.com. We are uploading videos at least three times a day.
Bow Wow and Helen in Atlanta 2008
We are taking a couple of days off so that Bow can work on special projects and pick up our tour on Thursday in Greensboro, North Carolina. Until then, please register to vote if it is not too late. How will you know if it is late or not, go to the NCBCP Election Center. The information is there for you.
I cannot wait to get back on tour to help spread Bow's message of getting out the vote. Talk to you soon.
Richmond Takes Bow Wow Down Memory Lane on Walk Across America
By William Kellibrew on 10/05/2008 @ 06:37 PM
I knew when we reached the 2nd Street Festival in Richmond it was going to be an historic walk. This festival had the remininsce of Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald. Their mark was indellibly left on 2nd Street and the city of Richmond. Bow Wow arrived at approximately 11:45 a.m. Things were just getting started. We actually made it earlier than the festival opened. Bow's mission was to get people up early and out to make a difference. We were also greeted by Black Youth Vote! Coordinator, Kemba Smith, her son Amani and a host of volunteers who were taking voter registrations.
Black Youth Vote! was able to get a few people registered on the spot. Bow's presence could not be mistaken for any other reason. He was there to bring awareness to those who would be voting in the November election that their vote counts. He spoke atop a stage that housed a jazz band that gave us a chance to make an announcement while they break. It was simply humbling.
Bow told the crowd of about 100 or so festival goers that registering to vote was important. Kemba told the audience that she could not vote because of her prior conviction, but even after receiving executive clemency from former president Bill Clinton she still could not vote. For the Kemba's story go to The Washington Post.
Our next stop was the football game between St. Paul at Virginia Union University. We arrived just in time for Bow Wow to make the coin toss, but not before honouring our troops with the singing of the National Anthem. We were quickly in and out to make the game between North Carolina Central University and North Carolina A&T in Charlotte, North Carolina. We made the halftime game within 11 minutes just before Bow Wow and me were to address the crowd on the importance of voting. His reception in North Carolina was overwhelming. His fans were so appreciative of him showing up. He actually detoured from his original trip because he was supposed to go directly to Mobile, Alabama.
Well, here we are. We just arrived in Mobile, Alabama and it's 7:03 a.m. CST. Bow is performing this afternoon at the Bayfest Festival. See you there.
Currently reading page 5 of 7.