Organizing for America | Bay Area Black Folks for Barack

Bay Area Black Folks for Barack

This group is open to all. Its name is to indicate that Barack Obama has substantial support within the black community.

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What's Wrong With Progressives

By Wade Hudson - Apr 7th, 2009 at 9:59 am EDT

Also listed in: 4 groups

The responses to my “Series of Questions” illustrate a major problem with progressive activism. That weakness is an excessive reliance on what Ronald Heifetz calls “the old definition of leadership” – that is, “the leader has the answers, the vision, and everything else is a sales job to persuade people to sign up for it.”

My first question, which I sent to a number of progressive activists, was:

*****
Please tell me what you think about the following, which someone else wrote:

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Know what you are gathering pledges for

By Walter Heath - Mar 18th, 2009 at 4:00 pm EDT

Also listed in: 10 groups

For Immediate Release: March 18, 2009
Contact: Mark Dudzic, 201-314-2653 or mdudzic@igc.org

Labor leaders disappointed by lack of working people's voices at Vermont healthcare reform discussion

Burlington, VT -- Working people's voices were not heard at the Obama Administration's second regional Health Care Summit in Burlington, VT on March 17..

"Despite the fact that several union spokespersons attended the meeting, we were not called upon and unfortunately the voice of workers was shut out of the discussion," said Peter Knowlton, president of the Northeast Region of the United Electrical Workers Union (UE). "When it came to the financial discussion, Gov. Douglas and Gov. Patrick [the two governors moderating the session] only called on wealthy special-interests from the worlds of business and professional circles."

Sandy Eaton, a nurse who attended the forum stated that nurses' voices went unheard as well. "Nurses were well represented, but our voices were not heard -- and the term "nurse" or "hospital worker" was never mentioned in the two hour forum," said Eaton who is a member of the executive board of the Massachusetts Nurses Association.

Outside the auditorium where the summit was held, over 250 labor and community members rallied in support of HR 676 and single payer healthcare. "Our system needs fundamental reform," said Dawn Stanger, President of the Vermont Workers Center-Jobs with Justice. Stanger, a UPS employee and member of Teamsters Local 597, was joined by dozens of unionized nurses who worked next door at Fletcher Allen Health Care, the largest hospital in Vermont.

"We need to build a movement to demand change," Stanger told the crowd. The Vermont Workers Center is coordinating a major statewide "Healthcare Is a Human Right" rally on May 1 at the Vermont Statehouse, which will include U. S. Senator Bernie Sanders. The rally will oppose Vermont Governor Douglas' proposed budget cuts to healthcare programs and support state and national single-payer legislation.

"I was really hopeful that these forums would finally give voice to workers concerns," added UE leader Peter Knowlton. "There were many people there who could have reminded them about the serious problems hourly workers face with skyrocketing premiums and dealing with the horrors of co-pays, deductibles, out-of-pocket expenses and the run around all workers face with managed care. If this forum is any indication of future ones, we will need to be much more aggressive to get our voices heard."

Knowlton, Eaton and Stanger were among the several labor leaders at the forum who support HR 676, the "Expanded and Improved Medicare for All" Act. HR 676 was re-introduced this year by Congressman John Conyers. It currently has 66 congressional co-sponsors. Because it eliminates the private insurance industry from profiting from people's misfortunes and, like Medicare, establishes the federal government as the "single payer" of everyone's medical bills, HR 676 can provide healthcare for all with no co-pays or deductibles in a fiscally prudent manner. HR 676 has the endorsement of hundreds of state and local labor federations and local unions as well as many other civic and religious organizations.

The Labor Campaign for Single Payer Healthcare was formed at a meeting attended by over 150 representatives from labor organizations in 31 states that have endorsed HR 676. We believe that the struggle for universal, single-payer health care needs labor's dynamic grassroots involvement. Learn more at: www.laborforsinglepayer.org <http://www.laborforsinglepayer.org>

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Second Questionnaire for Progressive Activists

By Wade Hudson - Feb 17th, 2009 at 3:34 pm EST

Also listed in: 7 groups

This survey asks respondents to rate the degree to which characteristics identified in the responses to the first Questionnaire for Progressive Activists apply to their group.

Intended for members and former members of formal and informal groups that push for progressive changes in public or corporate policy, it will take about five minutes to complete and is located at:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=zvr7DGdQWc9oqbh8WcaJPQ_3d_3d

Individuals who’ve been active in more than one group can submit additional responses by asking me for an email survey.

For information about the first survey, see http://progressiveresourcecatalog.org/index.php/QPA/Home

Future questionnaires will ask respondents to suggest methods that activists could use to improve their effectiveness and rate those methods. It is our hope that activists will use this information to strengthen their projects.

We encourage you to participate in this collaborative research project and/or tell others about it.

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Organizing for America: A Proposal

By Wade Hudson - Jan 27th, 2009 at 12:33 pm EST

Also listed in: 6 groups

Barack Obama and his people have laid the foundation for Organizing for America (OFA), the post-election incarnation of their campaign operation. Not everyone is happy. Many Obama supporters are disappointed for one reason or another. But our situation is urgent and countless numbers of activists want to sustain the Obama movement. We need to accept what we have and help make OFA as effective as it can be.

With those thoughts in mind, following are some suggestions concerning how to move forward, mindful that we are in unchartered waters. No President has ever been elected with the kind of grassroots resources available to Obama. So OFA is an act of improvisation and much remains to be determined concerning how it will work. We’re creating a new kind of organization; there are no models to copy.

Based on official statements made so far, we know that Obama and/or key staff he has selected will control the OFA message. The organization is going to work closely with the Democratic Party. It will not target certain legislators for lobbying when they resist recommendations from the Administration. Rather, members of the organization will engage in public education.

Given this novel starting point, certain possibilities stand out. The primary mission of the organization can be mutual education – folks learning from each other and educating themselves. Read More »

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Obama's Movement: Three Questions

By Wade Hudson - Jan 18th, 2009 at 6:29 am EST

Also listed in: 8 groups

As we await a full report on what Barack and his team will do with the campaign organization post-election, my primary concerns can be summarized in three questions:

Empowered Teams -- Will they emphasize, encourage, and support the development of relatively small teams that stay together over time, foster supportive friendships, and decide together on what actions to take as a unit, or will they unfortunately continue the past pattern of calling for gatherings from time to time?
Authoritative Input -- Will they create a structure that enables these teams to select representatives to next-higher level groups who can deliberate together to develop recommendations for the national office, resulting in a relatively small national group of representatives that can offer authoritative input to the national office, or will theyunfortunately continue the past pattern of asking for input from tens of thousands of loosely, haphazardly connected individuals and organizations?
United National Action -- Will the national office recommend regularly (perhaps monthly) that all members of the new organization communicate the same message at roughly the same time to all members of Congress, or will they, as has been speculated in the press,unfortunately focus from time to time on only certain members of Congress?

The recommendations implied by these questions apply to both the Democratic Party and a new post-campaign organization, if it emerges. I see no good reason not to implement these methods. It seems to me that this approach is needed to build a strong, united, grassroots activist force that can sustain itself for the long haul independent of Barack's leadership, which is essential at the moment. If the more fragmented, unfortunate options included in these questions are adopted, I will continue to support efforts to implement the goals of the Obama campaign. But I will likely do so with less enthusiasm and look for other ways to devote my energy that hold more potential for the future.

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Reflections on the Obama Movement

By Wade Hudson - Jan 18th, 2009 at 6:21 am EST

Also listed in: 5 groups

December 31, 2008

by Wade Hudson

In "The Prophet," Ari Berman reports that a former Democratic National Committee (DNC) official close to the Obama campaign says, "Most of Obama's grassroots infrastructure is going to go to the DNC. That's the prevailing gossip of the past few weeks, and it's been pretty consistent."

Primarily merging with the Democratic Party makes sense on a number of levels. But for the Party to help "transform the nation," as Obama affirmed during the campaign, it would have to become much more than a vehicle for elections. It would have to become an activist organization dedicated to fighting for its platform year-round, as discussed in Transforming the Democratic Party.

To transform itself, the Party would need to undertake serious, year-round precinct organizing. As TiVo and other technologies enable viewers to avoid television commercials, old-fashioned, door-to-door, face-to-face outreach will become more valuable. Precinct organizers could work within their neighborhood throughout the year -- meeting, contacting, and mobilizing neighbors to strengthen and expand social connections and engage in political action (including voting) and community service. This organizing would involve establishing personal relationships with as many neighbors as possible, while listening closely to their concerns. Methods would include welcoming new arrivals to the neighborhood and encouraging eligible voters to become registered Democrats, vote in elections, and participate in joint political action, hopefully including national actions coordinated by the DNC. These goals would be accomplished by knocking on doors, making phone calls, leaving personal notes, and convening neighborhood gatherings including block parties, house meetings, discussion groups, and other activities. Organizers would recruit neighbors to become part of their team and share the work. On Election Day, teams would monitor the polls to determine who has voted and, before the polls close, contact those who have not. Pertinent information would be fed into the national database.

Whether through MyBO and/or the Democratic Party, Barack Obama needs to transition his campaign resources into a strong, independent, grassroots organization that can undertake coordinated, united action nationwide. Countless Obama supporters gave their heart and soul to the campaign because they expected as much, based on statements made by Barack and his staff during the campaign.

One such statement was "Obama: The Organizer and the Moment," a post to the official Obama section of a social networking website in early 2008. At the top, this post placed a quote by Barack from his first political campaign, "What if a politician were to see his job as that of an organizer?" The post opened with the following:

As many of you know, Barack Obama started his political journey far away from the confines of the Beltway. As a community organizer on the streets of Chicago's South Side,... That's what Barack Obama has done throughout his life, and that's what this whole campaign has been about. Barack has always been an organizer, and he still is an organizer -- that's how he's inspired millions of people, from myriad social positions, to come together and fight for change… We are training people in all of these states not only to make a difference in this election, but to make a difference in their communities, in a sustained way. Regardless of what happens today and in the days ahead, one thing is clear: Barack Obama hasn't just run a presidential campaign, he's built a genuine grassroots movement. In a single year, Barack Obama -- who started his journey organizing on the South Side -- has organized a broad swath of America.... They are empowered, active participants in the struggle for change and they are not tired. The organizing has just begun.

According to Dictionary.com, the verb "organize" means "to form...into a whole consisting of interdependent or coordinated parts, esp. for united action (emphasis added)" -- for example, "to enlist into a labor union: to organize workers."

Organizers help to build an organization, "a group of persons organized for some end or work" with "a formal...structure, esp. to coordinate...widespread activities." As Marshall Ganz has put it, the Obama movement needs "a collective entity capable of exercising agency" -- that is, exerting influence or power through action taken in the name of the organization.

In his forthcoming (Summer, 2009) book, A Community Organizer's Tale: People and Power in San Francisco, veteran organizer Mike Miller states:

We now have a new national climate with the election of Barack Obama as President. Obama, with the strategic assistance of Marshall Ganz—an old SNCC and farmworkers’ union organizer—developed very sophisticated mobilizing approaches to build a new kind of electoral machine. It was central to his election. But as he has noted many times, “change comes from below.” Obama will be responsive to the kind of agenda that was expressed in [San Francisco]. It is the responsibility of people on the ground to put that agenda front-and-center before the new administration and before countless municipalities, counties, special districts, school boards, state governments, congress, corporations and major nonprofit organizations. That will require something different from the electoral mobilization organization that played such a large role in electing Obama. And Obama understands this. Asked during the primary whether Martin Luther King would support him or Clinton, he responded, “He wouldn’t support either of us. He’d be out in the streets building an independent social justice movement.” ...Obama’s agenda is a presidential one. Community organizing’s agenda should be to push the president. There will be plenty of people pushing him from Wall Street, the auto industry and others in elite circles. If there is not a countervailing push, organized independently of Obama, hopefully with his blessing, we will be disappointed in him as a President—and will have ourselves to blame (emphasis added).

Most likely, if the bulk of the campaign's resources are merged with the Democratic Party, MyBO will remain active. The national office will continue to provide some guidance, like suggesting house meetings, and will hire paid organizers to help train local activists. This avenue would provide passionate Obama supporters who want nothing to do with the Democratic Party a way to stay engaged.

The network of local MyBO-based teams may remain largely on their own, however, without a structure that would enable elected representatives to deliberate thoughtfully and speak in a unified, authoritative voice for all the members. This loose, informal network of groups and house meetings affiliated with MyBO may be, or could become, a "movement" -- that is, "a diffusely organized or heterogeneous group of people or organizations tending toward or favoring a generalized common goal: the antislavery movement; the realistic movement in art."

But this network is not an organization. As Micah Sifry has noted, "The more open the process for participating in and seeing how...conflicts [in the national office] are resolved, the greater the likelihood that the base will stay engaged." To sustain and build the Obama movement will require an open, participatory organization to lead that movement.

On Election Night, when Barack called on all Americans to join in the work of remaking this nation "block by block," that phrase suggested an efficient, well-organized effort that would minimize duplication. If Barack wants a grassroots support mechanism that is powerful enough to counter the special interests that will try to block meaningful change, and I assume he does, he needs to tell his people to organize a real organization.

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The Obama Movement: Will It Unify?

By Wade Hudson - Jan 18th, 2009 at 6:11 am EST

Also listed in: 7 groups

December 12, 2008

by Wade Hudson

As encouraging reports concerning plans for the post-campaign organization trickle out of Chicago, one central question remains unanswered. Will the Obama movement solidify its momentum by enabling a body of representatives duly elected by the membership to speak with a strong collective voice?

Various options are available for structuring a mechanism that would facilitate the grassroots expressing itself with authority. In my Dec. 5 “Memo to the Chicago Summit,” I presented one option that could be implemented quickly and over time modified. I argued:

The national office should establish a mechanism to enable those (local) teams who wish to do so to select representatives to relatively small councils of fellow representatives who would communicate horizontally with one another in a deliberate, thoughtful manner to share reports on their work, ask questions, provide mutual support, and develop recommendations to send upward toward the national office through a layer of such councils (e.g., town/city, intra-state regions, state, regional, national) – so that the national office would pay more attention to recommendations from the national council than they ever could to tens of thousands of recommendations from individual members.

That specific mechanism is not essential. But the key principle on which that proposal is based – the need for a national group of elected representatives that is small enough to enable thoughtful deliberation – is critical.

The proper balance between central leadership and grassroots empowerment is a delicate matter, especially if one wants the central office to make decisions that are quick and timely but also deliberate and rooted in face-to-face discussion, which strengthens the decision-making process. Internet-based instant polls alone could never achieve the reliable quality of careful, old-fashioned, real-time weighing of options.

My concern about these issues led me to propose to Nations for Change that they create the National House Meetings Network, a new MyBO group. The purpose of this group is “to help implement the goals of the Obama campaign by sharing the information obtained from house meetings in a collaborative fashion, engaging in thoughtful discussion, asking questions, providing encouragement, and identifying any trends that we believe should become formal recommendations to the Obama administration and/or the national office of the post-campaign organization.” MyBO house meetings with eight or more members that meet at least monthly are invited to join this Network. This project could serve as a model for the kind of horizontal and vertical communication that is needed to build a powerful movement.

Without a stamp of approval from the national office, and with limited ability to connect with MyBO house meetings, participation in the National House Meetings Network may prove to be minimal. But if enough house meetings select representatives to participate, we may iron out wrinkles and refine the model. And at some point, the national office could take it over and staff it, or create some new structure that would render it irrelevant.

Micah Sifry, a highly regarded analyst of technology and grassroots politics, has argued that the governing board of the new organization should be elected. Eventually, that approach will be called for. But initially, as the organization stabilizes itself and the members get to know one another, it is not necessary. A self-perpetuating board that initially fills vacancies itself would be acceptable – if a mechanism were established for the members to provide authoritative input into the decision-making process.

The most specific report from the Chicago-based planning process that I’ve seen was an email from the national office that Sifry posted. Originally sent to the few hundred participants in the early December three-day planning session, this message reports that the new organization will promote “civic engagement” and “two-way communication between the Administration and grassroots.” This language does not clarify whether there will be a commitment to the articulation of a unified voice by the membership.

Neither did Jeremy Bird from the Obama campaign clarify this matter when he spoke at a Dec. 10 public conference at Harvard that featured a public dialogue with Marshall Ganz, who affirmed the need for a “a collective entity capable of exercising agency.”

The pressure of the looming elections necessitated a certain style of operation. The situation now, however, is much different. As Bird said at the Harvard conference, “Governance is different than both campaign mobilizing and community organizing. It’s key for us to know how to set up the organization.”

Their caution is well justified. The decisions they face are no easy matter. Let’s hope they get it right. With Barack’s guidance, chances are good that they will.

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Memo to the Chicago Summit

By Wade Hudson - Jan 18th, 2009 at 6:06 am EST

Also listed in: 6 groups

December 5, 2008

by Wade Hudson

In reference to tomorrow's Chicago Summit reported on by the LA Times, following are five key principles underlying the recommendations concerning the shape of the post-campaign organization that I’ve previously presented .

   1. We need an inspiring long-term vision. Drawing upon Barack’s language, I offer a possible mission statement. It reads:To transform the nation and help implement the goals of the Obama campaign by:
         1. Reclaiming the meaning of citizenship.
         2. Mobilizing millions of voices to call for meaningful change.
         3. And restoring our sense of common purpose, based on these core moral principles:
               1. Stewardship.
               2. Service to others.
               3. Personal responsibility.
               4. Shared sacrifice.
               5. And a fair shot for all.
   2. Though methods should be established to enable others to participate in other ways, the primary foundation of the organization should be small teams that meet in one another’s homes (which enable everyone to have a full voice).
   3. The national office should encourage members of those teams to consciously nurture supportive friendships (rather than merely treat each other as instruments).
   4. The national office should establish a mechanism to enable those teams who wish to do so to select representatives to relatively small councils of fellow representatives who would communicate horizontally with one another in a deliberate, thoughtful manner to share reports on their work, ask questions, provide mutual support, and develop recommendations to send upward toward the national office through a layer of such councils (e.g., town/city, intra-state regions, state, regional, national) – so that the national office would pay more attention to recommendations from the national council than they ever could to tens of thousands of recommendations from individual members.
   5. Given that: 1) most individuals have limited time for activism; 2) efforts to persuade Congress to take action on a particular issue often need to be undertaken in a timely manner, and; 3) to be effective such efforts need to involve massive numbers of individuals acting in unison at more or less the same time, the national office needs to issue occasional, perhaps monthly, appeals to all Americans to communicate the same message at the same time to their Congresspersons, Senators, and/or the President.
   6. The national office should try to establish a national coalition that would participate in these (monthly?) actions.

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Susan Pfeifer is running in AD 12

By Mediasusan - Jan 3rd, 2009 at 3:24 pm EST

Also listed in: 8 groups

Hello, my name is Susan Pfeifer (many of you may know me as mediasusan2@gmail.com) and I am asking for your vote for the California Democratic Party Central Committee. I have been a home owner in San Francisco and California 12th Assembly District for 30 years and an active Democrat for many years.

In October, 2008 the San Francisco Democratic Party awarded me the 2008 Sue Bierman award as Grass Roots Volunteer of the Year for my activities on behalf of the Obama campaign and the San Francisco Democratic Party.

I was elected an Obama Delegate from the 12th Congressional District to the Democratic National Convention in Denver. I created over 115 volunteer events on www.my.barackobama.com, which prompted the Obama campaign to seat me in the front row at Invesco Field for Obama’s historic acceptance speech in Denver. I have made literally thousands of phone calls, registered voters, walked precincts, been a precinct captain, was the San Francisco weekend phone bank coordinator , and ran the SF Obama campaign satellite phone bank in the Western Addition.

I attended the 2008 California State Democratic Convention as a proxy. I am an active member of the West Side Democratic Club; Sunset Democratic Club, Democracy Action (Alec Bash, President) and an officer with San Francisco for Democracy. Other activities have included setting up voter registration tables all over San Francisco and Daly City where I have registered literally thousands of voters. I believe involvement in the Democratic Party is not a spectator sport so I get out there and make things happen.

I have been endorsed by State Senator Leland Yee, Melanie Nutter (SFDCCC) and Alicia Wang (Vice-Chair of the California Democratic Party). The California Democratic Party needs people with experience and commitment. If elected, I will represent Assembly District 12 with energy, honor and dignity.

The 12th Assembly District Caucus will be:

Sunday, January 11th

Westlake Park - Dolger Center (101 Westlake Blvd. - Daly City)

Sunset Blvd. becomes Westlake Blvd. Westlake Park is about 1/4 mile north of

John Daly Blvd.

Registration: 12 noon - 2 pm

Voting starts at 2 pm

Electing: 6 males + 6 females

You can register early at: www.cadem.org (upper right corner under "Get Involved"). I suggest you pre-register to save time. You may sign in and vote anytime between noon - 2pm and leave - or you may stay for candidate speeches starting after 2pm and vote then. You MUST either be signed in or in line by 2 pm in order to vote.

There will be several candidate slates but you may vote for any 6 male and 6 female candidates you choose.

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Barack, Please Lead the Movement Too

By Wade Hudson - Nov 29th, 2008 at 9:05 pm EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

Many Obama supporters are worried about what kind of organization will emerge from the campaign. Those who are concerned have included top-level leaders from the campaign who have expressed themselves publicly.

Barack can resolve this issue quickly and easily. He can simply tell his staff to spin off an independent organization that is truly dedicated to community organizing. I encourage folks who support this direction to let Barack and/or his people know.

Then we can proceed to build a strong national movement committed to helping Barack implement the goals of his campaign. Without such a movement, we won’t be able to “transform the nation,” as Barack called for during the campaign.

Marshall Ganz, the architect of Obama's grassroots organizing program, is among the concerned. On Nov. 17, he told Micah Sifry, “It's very important what Obama decides. Whether to try to support some kind of organized effort, that's rooted in the campaign, or not." Read More »

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Tax Payers are getting taken for $700 Billion, with this Bailout.

By Progressive-Alliance.org - Nov 16th, 2008 at 11:12 am EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

Tax Payers are getting taken for $700 Billion, with this Bailout.I think the we should requiring the following for any companies that are bailed out:

Transparency
Accountability
Weekly reports posted to the web.
Investigations into Executive management

Please call your Senate and House representatives and ask them to push for the above.

I think we should hold public protests.Please let me know what you think.

Thanks for your time and support,Paul

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Why I became an Obama self-organizer!

By Prosy - Nov 14th, 2008 at 3:25 pm EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

Folks in my community have wondered why I gave up hours and hours of my time organizing for Obama in terms of creating and hosting events, blogging, participating in events, participating in many Saturdays of October and Tuesdays of October phonebanking in a union office, in someone's home, in a condo, in a real estate office, in Century City Plaza hotel, in doorknocking, in dialoguing with folks. Most of my activities were self-driven by my imagination, but mostly my zeal for the candidate. Why did I do what I did?

Creating Events. Most of my events were either done at my home or a nearby bakery. The preparations to host an event include not just cleaning my house, but also making sure that folks have something to eat. And they are eating not popcorn and coke, but something substantial. And each event is created with a them in mind. Why for goodness's sake, no one is grading me? No one is supervising me.

Ah, but my conscience is. All along I wanted my own brand of Obama events to reflect the wholesome goodness that I see in President Elect Obama, the way he respects the crowds, the way he shows his delight at receiving their handshakes and their hugs.

While he is not with me, I am very conscious that I represent him, displaying a full measure of his goodwill and enthusiasm.

Why: Because ever since I have been a citizen of the United States, born and raised in the Philippines for 18 years, my island birthplace has never left my heart. Its people, my people have always exuded their warmths, their affectionate hearts stay open to strangers, friends, and family. That is what I missed the most of my island homeplace and I try to recreate that with every event I had organized for Obama. To some that are not used to seeing that done usually and repeatedly, it left them suspicious, perhaps she herself is running for office, and even taken aback when I introduce myself as a volunteer commissioner. Their suspicion now becomes fullblown, and no longer restrained in others, they approach me and articulate their own inner suspicions " Are you running for office? " And when I say it did not cross my mind as I have no patience for it, they are just left incredulous. Why would that be? Because, we as a nation has been taught and conditioned to be cynical, to be abrupt, to show our darkest selves, to be cold as if James Bond in Quantum of Solace, coldblooded, icequeens and icekings. But, it is not our true selves. It is not who America truly is.

It is why Senator Barack Obama became a shining light for me. I saw his goodness, his goodwill and wherein he regarded folks not as " fat assed consumers of politics, who can be squeezed for every juice of a dollar ", but as smart, thoughtful citizens who he can dialogue with, who he has to earn their respect, who can be educated, who can understand complex issues, as long as all the elements of those political issues are made transparent to the citizens.

I know I am just describing the atmosphere of an event, how did I manage to discuss my origins, my expectations of my political leaders? Because I am not unipolar, nor a unidimensional person. When you consider island folks, we are truly a complex web of intricacies, we are a network of many dimensions, we are a complex array of friendships, family and togetherness, and when we get excited about one thing, we bring in the entire community with that excitement, we talk to them daily, non-stop until they are with us. When we hold a belief, we not only consider ourselves, but each member of our family, each member of our community, where each one is a leader, where each one is a learner, where each one is a teacher, a true full circle and collection of smarts, talents and abilities.

Intellectual Content and Democratic Process. That is what I painstakingly tried to create during the campaign, as soon as I started January 2008. I have not quite stopped doing it. I also wanted the intellectual content to reflect the views of folks who took the time to attend, and more importantly that the process was inclusive and accountable, that each one was thanked for their participation, large or small as contributing to a change in the energy not just in the room, but also in our everyday lives. That we now can smile at each other in the playgrounds, in the parks, in the grocery stores, in the churches, in the movie houses and take the time to talk to our Fedex guy, to our cable guy or even offer a drink to our postman or a banana to our sweating gardener who mows our lawn and we see folks just take the time to be a role model, imitating the goodness they see in the First Family.

So my zeal in the campaign has been transferred to writing daily for a community newspaper, harvesting my fellow community folks' goodness, goodwill and generosity, hoping to immortalize and memorialize them, the unsung, everyday heroes who are rhizomes, whose roots are spread to the thickness of the soil, who stay rooted, yet grow new nodes and stalks that bloom into new flowers, some with fragrance for all of us community folks to enjoy. And my community is becoming larger, no longer just Filpinos, but also amongst my extended family: Chinese, Honduran, Japanese, Blacks and French. Yes, our family is growing since the elections.

Website Shadowed Some, But not ALL. In October, when the website no longer can track my phone banking activities in different field places in Los Angeles, while I searched for who has the best method on the ground floor, I stopped logging as much into the website. And as intense as I got into the campaign, covering even TV programs to explain why Obama, which is not covered in the website, and writing more community newspaper stories, which is also not covered in the website, the irony of all ironies, that is when my ranking of 10 on the mybarackobama.com website declined to 9, one day, and when i asked the basis of that ranking score going down, my score was again diminished to 8. As my ground activities intensified, my website score diminished, which only tells me that scoring kept in the website is no longer reliable and credible. But my conscience reminds me to keep going for my ideals.

Well, guess what folks, my motivation still stayed strong. After all, I did not organize for Obama because of my ego, I self-organized for Obama because I sensed his luminous human spirit, the shine in his character, the shine in how he delights in seeing his family, how he is a very decent person who loves people, how he treats everyone with respect. Of course, he gets testy, and the media writes up about it, particularly when suddenly the children are being included in his media interviews, when he and his wife have not quite precleared and prepared the children. To me, he and his wife are decent parents who do not commercialize their children for their own purposes and respect their privacy and right to say no to public events.

Zeal for Obama not the Democratic Party. And by the way, let it be known to the Obama HQ staff, that Obama inspired me to self-organize, not the Democratic Party who has been recruiting me to get involved for years now, who has yet to have me convinced that the Democratic Party is a genuine, service-oriented party, and it is a party that is beyond multiple selfish agendas of making a candidate win, as that will never be why I will never give up my nights, weekends, days, to simply get someone elected.

I gave up my family time so my family can have a better future, I can now enjoy our holidays this thanksgiving because I know I have installed into office, as 68,900,000 more, a decent man who will put the interests of the American people, the majority of the people first, before his pocketbooks or his future or his legacy, I gave up my precious time to elect a decent MAN OF PRINCIPLES, and let it be known, I am not going to be deceived by pundits, nor taken by decisive instructionns from the top of party leaders who want to use me like I was a piece of merchandise.

You just don't get it, my allegiance and love for this country to reach its American ideals and potentials for inclusive union, and my zeal for principles will not be for sale! For in selling it, I will betray my deepest self and my conscience, who I have to live by and exist with 24/7 all days and all years of my life.

Yes, there are many of us, in fact, perhaps a lot of the more than 68,900,000 voters who pledged them for Obama, you just have to take pause that folks will sacrifice their TIME, TALENTs and TREASUREs to attain an America that has a HEART!!

Yes, it is the heart of a Nation that we are fighting for, not the DEMOCRATIC PARTY and President Elect Barack Obama got it right the first time he ran and because he got it right, we are there for him!

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Yes We Can :: From Barack Obama, President-Elect

By Sarah Gallagher - Nov 4th, 2008 at 10:20 pm EST

Also listed in: 72 groups

I'm about to head to Grant Park to talk to everyone gathered there, but I wanted to write to you first.

We just made history.

And I don't want you to forget how we did it.

You made history every single day during this campaign -- every day you knocked on doors, made a donation, or talked to your family, friends, and neighbors about why you believe it's time for change.

I want to thank all of you who gave your time, talent, and passion to this campaign.

We have a lot of work to do to get our country back on track, and I'll be in touch soon about what comes next.

But I want to be very clear about one thing...

All of this happened because of you.

Thank you,

Barack

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Our Time is Now: Vote Today

By Sarah Gallagher - Nov 4th, 2008 at 8:15 am EST

Also listed in: 72 groups

Make sure you know your polling place and get out to vote today. Take a friend and cast your votes.

Change is within our reach. We're counting on you to get us there today.
www.voteforchange.com

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Obama Wins In Dixville Notch, NH

By Earlean - Nov 4th, 2008 at 1:30 am EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

The votes are in from Dixville Notch, NH, all 21 of them. 6 for McCain and 15 for Barack Obama!

They haven't elected a Democratic President since 1968!

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Obama Supporters Rally for Change in California

By Sarah Gallagher - Nov 3rd, 2008 at 9:01 pm EST

Also listed in: 72 groups

Obama supporters held rallies in San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles and Sacramento today. Hundreds of Obama supporters and local elected officials came together to show their support for Obama and rally to get everyone fired up to vote.

After the rallies, the supporters hit area phone banks to make phone calls to swing state voters, encouraging them to get to their polling places and cast their ballots for Obama.

Find a polling place near you at Last Call for Change.

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Last Minute Song To Fire You Up!!!

By Dr. Barbara Palmer - Nov 3rd, 2008 at 2:06 pm EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

By the end of this, you'll be singing: Elect Obama! Go for it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83lum1XcOug

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California Phone Bankers Don't Quit

By Sarah Gallagher - Nov 3rd, 2008 at 10:47 am EST

Also listed in: 72 groups

Californians made a record number of phone calls to Obama supporters across the country, encouraging them to get to the polls and cast their votes.
Joined by celebrities like Orlando Bloom and Eliza Dushku, volunteers overflowed offices across California, sitting on file cabinets, in garages, in alleyways, on yards so that they could call for change all day.Check out the slideshow for more, then join us at a phone bank near you to make history!

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Adrian Grenier Gets to Work at Barack TV

By Sarah Gallagher - Oct 30th, 2008 at 5:09 pm EDT

Also listed in: 68 groups

Adrian Grenier, from HBO's hit show Entourage, joined volunteers at California Obama HQ to work for change, making phone calls to battleground states.

Adrian made calls to swing state voters, encouraging them to get to the polls to cast their votes for Barack Obama.

The volunteers took a break to watch Barack's 30 minute address to America on TV, then were fired by a quick speech from Mary Jane Stevenson, our Field Director. Everyone then got back on the phones, the office was quickly buzzing again with the voices of volunteers working to Get Out the Vote! Join volunteers at a phone bank near you to help Barack Get Out the Vote in the final days of this election!: ca.barackobama.com/LastCallCA

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Make History for Barack, Alameda! Call Voters in Battleground States This Weekend!

By V, aka VCubed/Virginia V - Oct 30th, 2008 at 5:07 pm EDT

Also listed in: 10 groups

VCubed to alamedaforobama show details 2:02 PM

As our candidate said in his 'closing argument':

"In one week, at this defining moment in history, you can give this country the change we need.... We can't afford to slow down, sit back, or let up for one day, one minute, or one second in this last week. Not now. Not when so much is at stake." For more, select link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDw5_d0M-wc&NR=1

Sign up now, to put Alameda on the map as history-makers, when we break yet another record phone banking battleground states for Barack! If you hate to call, come tally or enter data when lists are done, or bring snacks for hardworking callers. Pass on this email to every friend you have in Alameda!

Saturday, pick a 2-hr shift or two, or three!
http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/gprtf3

Sunday, pick a 2-hr shift or two, or three!
http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/gprtzl

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