Posts Written by

So, YOU want to be an organizer? Tips from a midwestern organizer

I love my job as a political organizer, and with the 2012 election approaching I have many friends that are starting their careers as organizers. Here are the top 5 pieces of advice I can give to young people starting/pursuing a career in political organizing.

Boundaries are important.

One of my organizer friends said it best: “They come for the president, and stay for you.” This is so true. Volunteers come to your organization because they connect to your cause or candidate. People end up staying because they find community. As an organizer, you then begin to develop strong relationships with your volunteers. This can cause a huge strain on an organizer’s ability to achieve any normal amount of work-life balance.

You are asking them to wake up at four in the morning and drive across the state to listen to anti-choicers read bible quotes and compare abortion to the holocaust and slavery–you feel a need to reciprocate and answer all of their phone calls. Even the middle of the night calls. Oh, all of them have your cell phone number too of course. Because you have to be so available as an organizer, it can be easy to slip into a sense of guilt in trying to fulfill all of your volunteers’ needs. At the end of the day, your goal is to reach your deliverables, not to be best friends with all of your volunteers and answer their every call. On the other hand, ...

Servicewomen Deserve Better: Abortion Access in the Military

Repost from Amplify.

It is completely unacceptable that the over 200,000 women serving in our military do not have access to basic health services. The 19,000-23,000 servicewomen who face an unintended pregnancy annually do not have access to comprehensive reproductive healthcare.

Currently, a ban is in place that denies military women access to abortion in cases of rape. Health insurance for service women only covers abortion in cases when the pregnancy threatens the life of the woman. This year, an amendment was introduced to the National Defense Authorization Act to end this ban, but the amendment did not pass.

The majority of people in the U.S. support access to abortion in cases of rape. Also, other women with publicity funded healthcare (Medicaid ...

Repost from Amplify.

It is completely unacceptable that the over 200,000 women serving in our military do not have access to basic health services. The 19,000-23,000 servicewomen who face an unintended pregnancy annually do not have access ...

ALL women – even minors – need access to abortion

At Amplify Your Voice I have been hosting a 40 Days for Life Blogathon – to counter act the negative impact of the 40 Days for Life Campaign. Here is my post for day 31 of the campaign. You can see the original post here.

In politics, (this year in particular) access to abortion is a frequently mentioned topic. Young people and sexuality is also a common topic, manifested as debates on sex education (hello Wisconsin, yes I noticed you are using your special session on jobs to roll back sex education). While abortion and young people are often the main subjects of discussions on public policy and sex, rarely is access to abortion services for young people mentioned.

Only ...

At Amplify Your Voice I have been hosting a 40 Days for Life Blogathon – to counter act the negative impact of the 40 Days for Life Campaign. Here is my post for day 31 of ...