Getting The Attention of Political Candidates and How To Become A ONE Campus
On Friday, the second full day of ONE’s Power 100 Summit Conference, the OCC student leaders had a chance to lead four break-out sessions. I had the incredible privilege of being able to co-lead one of the break-out sessions with Steven, an OCC student leader from Iowa. Weldon asked us to lead our session on “harassing” candidates, or in politically correct terminology, on how to get the attention of political candidates focused on the ONE Campaign. We also talked about how to encourage the growth of ONE on college campuses.
With Steven being from Iowa where the Iowa caucus is of immense importance, and with me being an ROA from New Hampshire where the Primary is the first in the nation, we both had plenty of experiences to draw from for our session. The Presidential election of 2008 is going to bring about serious change in our nation, and we want to make sure that all political candidates, not just the Presidential hopefuls, are fully aware of ONE and its goals. For states that receive high political traffic, like New Hampshire and Iowa, direct contact with political candidates is a must; if they don’t acknowledge you, it doesn’t mean they don’t notice you and aren’t aware of ONE. Even if your state doesn’t see a lot of high-ranking politicians, remember: the more they see of ONE members, the better. Never give up. Write letters, call political offices, and most of all, never let those in our government forget how important we are as ONE. Make sure our political representatives understand just how important the fight to end extreme poverty really is…
After discussing politics for twenty minutes, we stumbled upon the topic of turning our college campuses into ONE campuses, going over all of our successes and failures. Our group decided that the best way to deal with gaining support for ONE on campus is to work through the college’s community service center. This helps with broadening contacts, tabling, events, etc. Venturing out to the dorms to sign people up for ONE works pretty well, too. Just make sure to get the “ok” beforehand!
ONE’s Power 100 Summit Conference was perhaps the most empowering event that I have ever attended. Our break-out session encouraged us further, as I’m sure the other sessions did for the rest of the student leaders. To be in a beautiful room bursting with students full of passion to make the world a better place by bringing an end to poverty was a truly unique experience. I know I was inspired by getting to hear their stories… keep up the fight, OCC student leaders! HUZZAH!!!!
- Rachel Leuck, ROA
