WEBVTT - National Voter Registration Day 0:00:11.800 --> 0:00:14.640 Good morning, peeps, and welcome to bok F Daily with 0:00:14.760 --> 0:00:19.320 Meet your Girl Danielle Moody, recording from the home Bunker, Folks. 0:00:20.960 --> 0:00:26.720 Over the weekend, Kristin Welker took over Meet the Press, 0:00:27.400 --> 0:00:32.360 and you know, the era of Chuck Todd is over 0:00:33.360 --> 0:00:39.400 the error that we thought of softball journalism and lack 0:00:39.520 --> 0:00:42.839 of follow up and fact checking in real time and 0:00:43.120 --> 0:00:46.559 just you know, we thought it was done and then 0:00:47.320 --> 0:00:53.640 entered the chat Kristin Welker. Now, I have seen Kristin 0:00:54.040 --> 0:01:02.800 in you know, different situations and places where she has 0:01:03.280 --> 0:01:07.039 the chops and has been able to ask the hard 0:01:07.080 --> 0:01:13.480 hitting questions and really get to that they're there in 0:01:13.520 --> 0:01:18.840 an interview. This was not fucking that at all. And 0:01:18.920 --> 0:01:22.160 from the moment that it was announced that Donald Trump 0:01:22.240 --> 0:01:24.840 was going to be her first guest on Meet the Press, 0:01:25.200 --> 0:01:28.760 I knew it was already gonna be trash because in 0:01:28.800 --> 0:01:35.160 the eight years since Donald Trump entered into the political world, 0:01:35.760 --> 0:01:40.000 no reporter, not fucking want, has been able to do 0:01:40.640 --> 0:01:43.839 what actually needs to be done, which is to fact 0:01:43.959 --> 0:01:47.120 check that motherfucker in real time because you know exactly 0:01:47.160 --> 0:01:50.240 what he's going to say, because he's a repetitive right 0:01:50.400 --> 0:01:53.160 in terms of the lies that he tells not see 0:01:53.280 --> 0:01:56.400 the fucking ground to him and your platform, so that 0:01:56.480 --> 0:01:59.360 he can continue to lie and be justified for that 0:01:59.440 --> 0:02:03.840 line because mainstream media let him in and then think 0:02:03.880 --> 0:02:07.160 that you're doing a service to the viewers by saying, oh, 0:02:07.200 --> 0:02:09.920 we'll go to nbcnews dot com afterwards, where we are 0:02:09.960 --> 0:02:12.960 doing all of the fact checking. Are you fucking kidding me? 0:02:14.240 --> 0:02:19.240 And you know, I just realize that the media, corporate 0:02:19.280 --> 0:02:23.960 media wants twenty sixteen all over again, and they are 0:02:24.000 --> 0:02:27.400 going to do their absolute damnedest to make sure that 0:02:27.520 --> 0:02:32.960 they recreate and make the same mistakes over and over 0:02:33.040 --> 0:02:37.959 again until the white evangelical Christian fascist takeover of America 0:02:38.080 --> 0:02:40.800 is complete. There is no more freedom of speech, and 0:02:40.840 --> 0:02:43.280 they're all out of the jobs because they fuck themselves 0:02:43.320 --> 0:02:46.680 from the beginning. You know, there is a way to 0:02:46.720 --> 0:02:49.280 handle the moment that we're in, and it's with truth, 0:02:49.440 --> 0:02:53.400 it's with integrity, it's with passion, none of which I 0:02:53.560 --> 0:02:58.640 see anywhere in mainstream media. And I'm fucking sick and 0:02:58.720 --> 0:03:02.720 tired of it. If I'm a person in media, right 0:03:03.240 --> 0:03:05.560 and I just think to myself, my god, if I 0:03:05.720 --> 0:03:11.080 had the millions of listeners right and viewers in the 0:03:11.080 --> 0:03:13.919 way that these shows get in. I would never blow 0:03:13.960 --> 0:03:17.480 the opportunity to tell the truth. I would never blow 0:03:17.560 --> 0:03:22.360 the opportunity to tell the American viewer what a consequential 0:03:22.400 --> 0:03:24.960 time they are living in and how much power they 0:03:25.040 --> 0:03:31.080 still have to do what's right, and that all is 0:03:31.120 --> 0:03:35.520 not lost, and that Donald Trump does not have to 0:03:35.520 --> 0:03:39.320 be your person, and that the Republican Party does not 0:03:39.440 --> 0:03:42.760 give a fuck about you or your family. They care 0:03:42.840 --> 0:03:50.160 about power, and to show them here's history. This is 0:03:50.200 --> 0:03:53.960 why they don't want you to know it right, because 0:03:54.000 --> 0:03:59.160 this is what these white supremacists savages have done. This 0:03:59.240 --> 0:04:03.080 is how they have the wealth that they do. It's 0:04:03.120 --> 0:04:06.440 not because of the lack of know how and wherewithal 0:04:06.600 --> 0:04:10.960 of black people. It's because of obstruction and denial and 0:04:11.080 --> 0:04:17.960 terrorism from the jump. I just I'm tired of the 0:04:18.000 --> 0:04:21.880 farce at this point, and I get to a place sometimes, folks, 0:04:22.080 --> 0:04:25.040 where I just don't bother turning on the news at all. 0:04:25.839 --> 0:04:29.440 I'm like, I'll just read because it's easier to digest 0:04:29.480 --> 0:04:34.640 that way than to listen to these people play out 0:04:34.680 --> 0:04:38.200 this horse race in our politics right now, as if 0:04:38.200 --> 0:04:41.120 this is the twentieth century and we're under no threat 0:04:41.480 --> 0:04:46.040 of the evisceration of democracy that you're going to continue 0:04:46.080 --> 0:04:48.960 to platform, and people say, well, he is the Republican 0:04:49.000 --> 0:04:51.480 front runner. Your first guest could have been Joe Biden. 0:04:52.240 --> 0:04:57.279 Your first guest could have been Kamala Harris, right, your 0:04:57.360 --> 0:05:03.960 first guests could have been, right, the younger generation of 0:05:04.279 --> 0:05:11.880 Democrats in the House of Representatives. Right, it could have 0:05:11.880 --> 0:05:14.520 been talking about the changing of the garden politics. Is 0:05:14.560 --> 0:05:17.920 it needed doing a comparison even if you wanted to, 0:05:18.400 --> 0:05:21.200 between the Marjory Taylor Green and the Lauren Boberts and 0:05:21.279 --> 0:05:24.040 I don't know, the Maxwell Frosts and the you know, 0:05:25.440 --> 0:05:31.440 King Jeffries and the AOC's one party is moving you 0:05:31.480 --> 0:05:35.960 in the direction of fascism, without rights, without a voice, 0:05:36.200 --> 0:05:40.560 without a vote, and the other is trying to expand 0:05:40.600 --> 0:05:44.520 and strengthen our democracy. America is at a crossroads. That 0:05:44.560 --> 0:05:47.000 could have been your opening, but that's not what meet 0:05:47.000 --> 0:05:53.200 the press chose. And so I'm just tired of all 0:05:53.240 --> 0:05:58.039 of it. Right, I think that twenty twenty four, just 0:05:58.200 --> 0:06:02.320 by virtue of looking at at you know, the news 0:06:02.360 --> 0:06:04.560 over the weekend, it's going to be a fucking nightmare. 0:06:06.080 --> 0:06:10.240 It's going to be a fucking nightmare one that we're 0:06:10.240 --> 0:06:13.479 going to get through together, trust and believe that, but 0:06:13.800 --> 0:06:16.520 it is going to be one that you were going 0:06:16.600 --> 0:06:24.200 to need a consistent and serious amount of grounding and 0:06:24.360 --> 0:06:29.119 centering and sense of community in order to get through, 0:06:31.320 --> 0:06:38.359 because you know, we're still coming off of a global 0:06:38.400 --> 0:06:41.360 health pandemic and all of the consequences of that that 0:06:41.400 --> 0:06:44.120 we don't talk about, that we pretend didn't happen, just 0:06:44.200 --> 0:06:46.480 kind of in the same way we pretend that slavery 0:06:46.520 --> 0:06:53.560 and the ramifications thereof don't exist. We're coming off of multiple, 0:06:54.279 --> 0:06:57.040 you know, mass shootings, We're coming off so much tragedy, 0:06:57.160 --> 0:07:04.919 so much trauma, and then just continuing on. We have 0:07:05.279 --> 0:07:14.800 a entirely you know, just road filled with thorns and minds, 0:07:14.840 --> 0:07:19.000 and I don't even know what is ahead. But what 0:07:19.120 --> 0:07:21.240 I do know is that the media is going to 0:07:21.320 --> 0:07:28.920 do the same old shit over and over again. But 0:07:29.040 --> 0:07:32.360 you have a choice, right, just like you choose to 0:07:32.440 --> 0:07:35.920 listen to and support me on wok F, on the 0:07:35.960 --> 0:07:39.400 New Abnormal, on democracy ish, you know, you have a 0:07:39.520 --> 0:07:45.200 choice right to save your sanity, to dip in and 0:07:45.240 --> 0:07:48.640 dip out because these motherfuckers have learned nothing. And I 0:07:48.760 --> 0:07:50.760 realized that a part of learning, and I said this, 0:07:51.280 --> 0:07:53.040 you know, on one of my other shows, is that 0:07:53.120 --> 0:07:56.840 a part of learning and learning from one's mistake is 0:07:56.880 --> 0:07:59.400 to first identify the fact that you made a mistake 0:07:59.440 --> 0:08:01.720 that you were trying to then learn from so you 0:08:01.760 --> 0:08:07.080 don't repeat it. That's not what corporate media has done, right. 0:08:07.120 --> 0:08:09.239 They don't believe that they made any mistakes in twenty 0:08:09.280 --> 0:08:13.520 sixteen because their shareholders and their CEOs living high on 0:08:13.560 --> 0:08:18.280 the hob doesn't matter that democracy it has backslid, doesn't 0:08:18.280 --> 0:08:24.240 matter that Republicans have you know, opened up Pandora's box 0:08:24.320 --> 0:08:27.960 in terms of the shredding of our constitutions, right like, 0:08:28.040 --> 0:08:31.000 it doesn't matter to them so long as the wealth 0:08:31.360 --> 0:08:34.480 and the money keep flowing for those at the top. 0:08:35.559 --> 0:08:39.280 So you have a choice, though, as a viewer, as 0:08:39.280 --> 0:08:43.880 a cable subscriber, to fucking cut the cord and turn 0:08:43.920 --> 0:08:49.600 them off, to demand better, you know, and to put 0:08:49.679 --> 0:08:52.679 your money in places that are actually going to tell 0:08:52.720 --> 0:08:57.560 you the truth, the unvarnished truth. Because this isn't even 0:08:57.640 --> 0:09:02.840 about just like opinion versus so whatever. Any fucking historian 0:09:02.880 --> 0:09:06.480 that is following fascism, authoritarianism, that rites on tyranny, that 0:09:06.520 --> 0:09:09.720 writes on you know, falling empires can tell you where 0:09:09.760 --> 0:09:14.440 the fuck we are. We just want to believe that 0:09:14.520 --> 0:09:17.400 America is somehow better and it's not gonna happen to us. 0:09:18.520 --> 0:09:23.000 And I'm like, we're in the crumpling, just like we're 0:09:23.040 --> 0:09:26.280 in the climate crisis, just like we're in you know, 0:09:26.800 --> 0:09:34.000 racial terror. But we still have choices, and that's what 0:09:34.080 --> 0:09:36.960 I want people to understand. And one of those choices 0:09:38.440 --> 0:09:44.000 is genuinely, you know, the choice to vote, the choice 0:09:44.080 --> 0:09:48.679 to lift your voice and your vote and get as 0:09:48.679 --> 0:09:50.880 many people registered. And you know me because I say 0:09:50.880 --> 0:09:53.240 that we need both, and you know, which is why 0:09:53.280 --> 0:09:55.440 I'm proud of the strikes that are happening right now. 0:09:55.520 --> 0:10:00.760 I'm proud of workers across industries. We have more power 0:10:01.800 --> 0:10:06.560 then we give ourselves credit for, and it's time we 0:10:06.679 --> 0:10:13.360 remember that and operate in that way. Coming up next 0:10:14.400 --> 0:10:19.400 is my conversation with Claudia Joli Ferla, who is the 0:10:19.440 --> 0:10:28.000 executive director of an incredible organization, Move Texas. And today 0:10:28.160 --> 0:10:33.760 is National voter Registration Day, friends, and I urge you 0:10:34.559 --> 0:10:37.240 that if you are living in Red state, make sure 0:10:37.240 --> 0:10:39.320 that you were still registered to vote and somebody didn't 0:10:39.360 --> 0:10:43.680 kick you off the ballot. That if you have people 0:10:43.679 --> 0:10:46.520 in your lives that have never voted before, take them 0:10:46.559 --> 0:10:51.319 to a place to go and register to vote. Do 0:10:51.400 --> 0:10:54.920 what you can where you can in your part of 0:10:55.080 --> 0:10:58.839 the world and universe right and then be done with it. 0:11:00.600 --> 0:11:03.920 But this coming up, this conversation actually did provide me 0:11:04.240 --> 0:11:09.320 with a lot of hope and with a lot of 0:11:09.360 --> 0:11:14.160 faith that there are still good people doing good things 0:11:14.160 --> 0:11:19.000 in this world, and Claudia Joli Ferla is definitely one 0:11:19.040 --> 0:11:25.520 of them. That conversation is coming up next, folks. I 0:11:25.559 --> 0:11:29.400 am very happy to welcome to wok F Daily for 0:11:29.440 --> 0:11:33.160 the very first time, Claudia Joli Ferla, who is the 0:11:33.240 --> 0:11:38.800 executive director of Move, Mobilize, Organized Vote and Empower, which 0:11:38.840 --> 0:11:45.559 is a Texas grassroots, nonpartisan nonprofit organization building power in unrepresentative, 0:11:45.720 --> 0:11:51.120 under representative youth communities through civic education, leadership development, and 0:11:51.400 --> 0:11:56.839 issue advocacy. Claudia, welcome. First, give us give us some 0:11:56.880 --> 0:12:03.880 more in depth understanding of of why move and what 0:12:03.960 --> 0:12:07.080 is important about what you all are doing right now 0:12:07.160 --> 0:12:07.840 in Texas. 0:12:08.480 --> 0:12:11.120 Yeah, Danielle, so it's so nice to see you nice. 0:12:11.320 --> 0:12:13.360 Thank you so much for having me on your show. 0:12:13.400 --> 0:12:15.960 And hi to all the listeners. If you're a young 0:12:16.000 --> 0:12:18.720 person looking to get involved, this is the podcast for you. 0:12:19.240 --> 0:12:21.720 A little bit about Move Texas. We actually started in 0:12:21.720 --> 0:12:25.520 twenty thirteen as a student chapter organization at the University 0:12:25.600 --> 0:12:28.880 of Texas and San Antonio, when some local young people 0:12:28.920 --> 0:12:31.120 came together and said, Hey, we want to make a meaningful, 0:12:31.400 --> 0:12:34.760 meaningful change happen in our upcoming city council elections. And 0:12:34.800 --> 0:12:37.560 their theory of change was simple, if we register and 0:12:37.640 --> 0:12:41.400 talk to our peers about about the upcoming election, we 0:12:41.480 --> 0:12:45.079 can make sure that our voices, our lift experiences are 0:12:45.120 --> 0:12:48.040 represented at the ballot box and beyond. And from what 0:12:48.160 --> 0:12:52.000 started as a small student chapter organization, we've grown into 0:12:52.000 --> 0:12:55.920 now a statewide organization that's servicing many communities across Texas 0:12:56.400 --> 0:12:59.079 with a mission of building the political power of young people, 0:12:59.120 --> 0:13:01.360 and we're proud to do that through civic engagement. We 0:13:01.440 --> 0:13:04.160 are an organization that throws it down on voter registration, 0:13:04.320 --> 0:13:08.840 voter education, and turnout issue advocacy. We are an organization 0:13:08.920 --> 0:13:12.680 that advocates for voting rights, climate action, and criminal justice 0:13:13.200 --> 0:13:16.720 at local city council, local commissioner's court, and also at 0:13:16.760 --> 0:13:20.640 the state legislature. And an organization that most importantly works 0:13:20.640 --> 0:13:24.360 to build the leadership development of young people, understanding that 0:13:24.440 --> 0:13:26.679 we want to make sure that every single young person 0:13:26.720 --> 0:13:28.760 that is turning out to vote with turning out to 0:13:28.800 --> 0:13:32.439 vote with us for the first election, become lifetime organizers 0:13:32.480 --> 0:13:34.840 and the leaders of tomorrow. And so in many ways, 0:13:34.880 --> 0:13:37.440 Move Texas is a political home for many young people 0:13:37.520 --> 0:13:40.560 in our state at a time that is so crucial 0:13:40.679 --> 0:13:43.720 right where we need their voices, their leadership, their experiences 0:13:44.040 --> 0:13:47.040 at the front and center of the conversation on politics. 0:13:48.080 --> 0:13:51.520 What is the age range of the young people that 0:13:52.480 --> 0:13:56.719 you're working with and what are some of the techniques 0:13:56.800 --> 0:14:01.000 and tactics that you use in order to to get 0:14:01.120 --> 0:14:03.120 young people involved with move. 0:14:03.679 --> 0:14:06.200 Yeah, so we are really proud to be an organization 0:14:06.280 --> 0:14:09.280 that serves a base of eighteen through thirty year olds, 0:14:09.640 --> 0:14:14.240 although our leadership dement programs are specifically focused on young 0:14:14.320 --> 0:14:18.160 people between the ages of eighteen and twenty four, One 0:14:18.160 --> 0:14:20.440 of the ways, you know, the first way in which 0:14:20.440 --> 0:14:22.840 a young person more than likely talks to a Move 0:14:22.920 --> 0:14:26.680 Texas organizer is on their college campuses. We have amazing 0:14:26.680 --> 0:14:29.880 full time staff who essentially engage a young person in 0:14:29.880 --> 0:14:33.080 the conversation of are you registered to vote? What is 0:14:33.120 --> 0:14:35.280 the information that you need in order to you know, 0:14:35.360 --> 0:14:38.120 in order for your participation to happen, and what are 0:14:38.160 --> 0:14:40.080 the issues that you care most about, and how can 0:14:40.120 --> 0:14:43.880 we empower empower you right to become a civically engaged 0:14:43.920 --> 0:14:48.280 citizen in your community and an active organizer in the state. 0:14:48.840 --> 0:14:50.880 And so we have different tactics. Like I said, voter 0:14:50.960 --> 0:14:53.560 registration is often the first step into a young person 0:14:53.640 --> 0:14:57.520 really becoming civically engaged throughout their lifetime. But then our 0:14:57.520 --> 0:14:59.800 hope is to continue that conversation, and so we bring 0:14:59.840 --> 0:15:03.160 them up what we call a ladder of engagement. We 0:15:03.240 --> 0:15:07.040 have two amazing leadership development programs. One is our campus 0:15:07.120 --> 0:15:09.800 organizer Student Chapter program. So if you're a young person 0:15:09.840 --> 0:15:14.600 in Texas attending higher an institution of higher learning, more 0:15:14.600 --> 0:15:17.000 than likely we will have a chapter locally in your 0:15:17.000 --> 0:15:19.360 community that you can get involved in. And so many 0:15:19.440 --> 0:15:22.600 of our young advocates and young organizers learn how to 0:15:22.760 --> 0:15:26.920 organize through participation in their student chapter organizations. A lot 0:15:26.960 --> 0:15:29.360 of them run their own capstorm projects centered on some 0:15:29.400 --> 0:15:32.160 of the issues that we organize around. And then the 0:15:32.200 --> 0:15:35.720 second program that I'm really really excited to always talk 0:15:35.720 --> 0:15:38.920 about is our National Artists of Texas Fellows Program, which 0:15:39.000 --> 0:15:42.480 really hones in on building the leadership skills and the 0:15:42.520 --> 0:15:46.120 deep skills that artists need in order to become also 0:15:46.240 --> 0:15:48.520 leaders in our movement. You know, there's so many ways, 0:15:49.480 --> 0:15:52.080 and history tells us right of how art has been 0:15:52.120 --> 0:15:56.280 so important in the way that we communicate about the issues, 0:15:56.400 --> 0:15:58.560 especially with young people. Right, we don't really want to 0:15:58.600 --> 0:16:02.480 talk about all of the policy wonky things that happen 0:16:02.600 --> 0:16:05.840 sometimes that the legislature are at local city council government, 0:16:06.560 --> 0:16:08.560 but art is a really beautiful way and how we 0:16:08.640 --> 0:16:12.320 can help digest this information and also make politics fun 0:16:12.400 --> 0:16:15.440 and hopeful and exigitning for many mirror generations to come. 0:16:16.200 --> 0:16:18.720 You know, Claudia, I love all of this, and I 0:16:18.760 --> 0:16:25.320 particularly love the aspect of kind of using different cultural tools, 0:16:25.320 --> 0:16:27.960 whether it be art or music like you mentioned as 0:16:28.000 --> 0:16:34.520 a way to engage youth, because you know, oftentimes as 0:16:34.640 --> 0:16:39.600 we have a presidential election season come around is when 0:16:39.640 --> 0:16:42.560 we start to talk about this demographic in the media, 0:16:42.760 --> 0:16:45.360 and they're not spoken about in the best way, right, 0:16:45.400 --> 0:16:48.240 It's always in negative terms of they're not going to 0:16:48.240 --> 0:16:51.400 turn out to vote, they don't care. What are some 0:16:51.480 --> 0:16:55.720 of the things that you hear from young people. When 0:16:55.920 --> 0:16:58.960 your folks are out on college campuses, you know, working 0:16:59.000 --> 0:17:04.200 to get folks registered to vote about what are they 0:17:04.400 --> 0:17:08.639 feeling about the climate that they are living in? What 0:17:08.680 --> 0:17:15.439 are they feeling in this state of Texas where you 0:17:15.440 --> 0:17:20.439 know your governor is right up there with DeSantis in 0:17:20.480 --> 0:17:23.199 Florida in the ways in which he is trying to 0:17:24.200 --> 0:17:30.720 really suppress the vote, suppress the voice, suppress movement, and 0:17:30.920 --> 0:17:37.639 criminalize you know, immigrants and undocumented people in the state. 0:17:38.760 --> 0:17:41.400 You mentioned the word hopefulness, and so I'm just interested 0:17:41.440 --> 0:17:44.359 to hear what are some of the reasons why some 0:17:44.600 --> 0:17:47.639 young people want to get engaged and what are some 0:17:47.680 --> 0:17:51.000 of the reasons that stop them, you think from getting engaged. 0:17:51.640 --> 0:17:54.440 Yeah, so I think Move Texas Right as a testament 0:17:54.600 --> 0:17:57.399 to the fact that young people care and care deeply 0:17:57.440 --> 0:18:01.080 about their communities and care deeply about their families and 0:18:01.119 --> 0:18:03.359 the future that we hope to leave behind for future 0:18:03.400 --> 0:18:06.880 generations to come. Organizations like Move Texas Full Stop would 0:18:06.920 --> 0:18:09.200 not exist if it weren't for really the hard work 0:18:09.240 --> 0:18:11.960 and passion of young people all across the state. So 0:18:12.000 --> 0:18:13.480 I want to start from that point. I think the 0:18:13.520 --> 0:18:16.119 second point to make is that young people are issue 0:18:16.200 --> 0:18:19.560 voters first, right, They are not necessarily in this fight 0:18:19.600 --> 0:18:22.600 because they want to see one party or another party 0:18:22.680 --> 0:18:25.400 elected over another party. They are here because they care 0:18:25.480 --> 0:18:28.080 about the freedom to vote, the freedom to decide if 0:18:28.119 --> 0:18:29.960 and when they want to choose to start a family, 0:18:30.359 --> 0:18:33.840 the freedom to leave behind a livable and a clean 0:18:33.880 --> 0:18:37.040 air and livable planet for other generations to come, and 0:18:37.080 --> 0:18:40.639 the freedom to fight back against some of these awful, 0:18:40.800 --> 0:18:45.320 awful things that we're seeing happen at the legislature. Young 0:18:45.359 --> 0:18:48.879 people are also really pissed because we've been fighting for 0:18:49.080 --> 0:18:52.399 essential human rights, especially in a state like Texas. And 0:18:52.480 --> 0:18:55.280 what we have seen with the participation of young voters 0:18:55.320 --> 0:18:59.080 increasing by almost six hundred percent since the last presidential election, 0:18:59.240 --> 0:19:02.119 is that young people are motivated more than ever. And 0:19:02.200 --> 0:19:04.080 let me just walk you through some facts and figures. 0:19:04.080 --> 0:19:07.560 Also in Texas, right, young Texans, young Texans and in 0:19:07.600 --> 0:19:10.720 our state are comprised one third of the electorate. We 0:19:10.760 --> 0:19:12.679 are one of the youngest states in the nation. And 0:19:12.720 --> 0:19:14.760 not only are we, you know, the largest part of 0:19:14.800 --> 0:19:17.480 the electorate, we're also part we're also the most diverse 0:19:17.520 --> 0:19:21.080 generat voting generation in history, and we are more progressive 0:19:21.440 --> 0:19:24.840 and more fired up than ever, and so this all 0:19:24.880 --> 0:19:27.040 means that we should be seeing the diversity right of 0:19:27.080 --> 0:19:29.040 our issue, of the issues that we care about, of 0:19:29.080 --> 0:19:33.600 the of the backgrounds that we represent, also represented in 0:19:33.359 --> 0:19:36.920 an inclusive democracy that welcomes young people, that welcomes us 0:19:36.960 --> 0:19:43.400 into the process. Young people also, right in Texas are are, 0:19:43.600 --> 0:19:46.440 like I said, are mad because we have a governor 0:19:46.480 --> 0:19:49.360 and out of touch politicians who are not actively responding 0:19:49.400 --> 0:19:51.359 to our needs. And so what we expect from our 0:19:51.359 --> 0:19:54.120 democracy is what all of us expect from our democracy, 0:19:54.520 --> 0:19:57.240 which are real issues, real leaders who take our issues 0:19:57.280 --> 0:20:01.199 seriously and actually pay attention to policy solutions that we 0:20:01.240 --> 0:20:04.399 know are best to represent and benefit our communities. 0:20:07.520 --> 0:20:10.439 What are some of the top issues, Because you say 0:20:10.840 --> 0:20:14.520 young people are issue voters, right, They're not just blankedly 0:20:14.560 --> 0:20:16.959 putting a D or an R or you know, an 0:20:17.000 --> 0:20:19.880 I next to their name and kind of voting down 0:20:19.920 --> 0:20:22.520 the ticket. They're voting issue by issue. What are some 0:20:22.600 --> 0:20:27.120 of the top issues that young folks in Texas are 0:20:27.200 --> 0:20:31.359 saying this is the reason why I'm getting out the vote. 0:20:31.560 --> 0:20:34.080 So many different issues. I think one of the top 0:20:34.119 --> 0:20:38.280 issues for young people is addressing the ongoing climate crisis. Right, 0:20:38.320 --> 0:20:41.360 we recognize that our generation is going to bear the 0:20:41.359 --> 0:20:45.080 worst effects of climate change, and that we have a 0:20:45.119 --> 0:20:48.560 responsibility to ensure right that we're holding elected officials accountable 0:20:48.560 --> 0:20:52.000 to take action for generations to come in addressing this 0:20:52.080 --> 0:20:55.760 real cloud crisis. You know, young people also care about 0:20:55.760 --> 0:20:59.320 advancing LGBTQ equality. We know that we are a generation 0:20:59.480 --> 0:21:03.760 that is comprised of many different gender identities, different sexual orientations, 0:21:03.800 --> 0:21:06.680 and again we should be seeing the diversity reflected into 0:21:06.720 --> 0:21:09.639 the people we're electing into office and the policies that 0:21:09.640 --> 0:21:12.720 we're enacting in our communities. Young people also are really 0:21:12.760 --> 0:21:15.840 passionate about voting rights, right. You mentioned what part of 0:21:15.880 --> 0:21:18.720 your question earlier was what is it the kid keeps 0:21:18.720 --> 0:21:21.560 young people out of the process. It's not necessarily a 0:21:21.640 --> 0:21:23.480 lack of wanting to be a part of the process, 0:21:23.480 --> 0:21:25.720 but rather that we live in a state that doesn't 0:21:25.760 --> 0:21:29.320 have access to online voter registration, that has done everything 0:21:29.400 --> 0:21:32.840 it can everything has done everything it can right to 0:21:32.920 --> 0:21:35.080 keep young people out of the process, with the removal 0:21:35.080 --> 0:21:38.040 of campus polling locations, which we know is an essential 0:21:38.040 --> 0:21:40.720 place where young people are able to access the ballot box. 0:21:41.000 --> 0:21:43.919 In so many other ways in which our vote is 0:21:43.920 --> 0:21:47.320 currently being suppressed, young people also like me, you know, 0:21:47.359 --> 0:21:51.800 young immigrants like me care about fixing or broken immigration system. Right. 0:21:51.840 --> 0:21:55.119 I am a doctor recipient. I cannot vote, but I 0:21:55.200 --> 0:21:57.480 know that through organizing, right, we will get to a 0:21:57.600 --> 0:22:00.919 day where we have access to a pathway citizenship for 0:22:01.000 --> 0:22:04.359 more than eleven million undocumented immigrants in this country and 0:22:04.440 --> 0:22:08.439 so many more issues. And like I said, we're mad, right, 0:22:08.520 --> 0:22:11.159 We're mad because we are seeing firsthand the way that 0:22:11.359 --> 0:22:15.080 out of touch extremist politicians are taking our rights away 0:22:15.119 --> 0:22:18.000 and we're continuing to show up and organized to ensure 0:22:18.040 --> 0:22:21.120 that we're protecting those rights not only for our generation, 0:22:21.240 --> 0:22:22.560 but for our communities as well. 0:22:23.480 --> 0:22:25.800 Buddy, let me ask you this on a personal note, 0:22:25.840 --> 0:22:30.960 Thank you for sharing with us the fact that you're 0:22:31.000 --> 0:22:34.719 a DOCTA recipient and that you can't vote. So what 0:22:34.920 --> 0:22:39.960 has motivated you to make this your life's work? 0:22:41.200 --> 0:22:44.159 Yeah, So, Danielle, I want to take you back maybe 0:22:44.280 --> 0:22:47.840 a little over ten twelve years ago, so many years 0:22:47.840 --> 0:22:50.600 here in Texas doing this work. But for me, it 0:22:50.640 --> 0:22:53.840 really was when the first REMAC failed to pass Congress 0:22:53.880 --> 0:22:56.960 at the national level. At the time, there were no 0:22:57.119 --> 0:23:00.239 protections of the doctor program did not exist essentially, and 0:23:00.280 --> 0:23:03.320 so It was really inspiring to see other young people 0:23:03.440 --> 0:23:07.119 like me right who did not have the protections against deportation, 0:23:07.359 --> 0:23:10.560 coming out to share their stories, coming out to organize 0:23:10.600 --> 0:23:13.639 their communities, talking to voters, rit eligible voters in their 0:23:13.680 --> 0:23:16.760 communities about why their vote is so important in the 0:23:16.800 --> 0:23:20.480 context also of our futures, and really that inspired me 0:23:20.520 --> 0:23:23.639 to get involved. I started making a few phone calls 0:23:23.640 --> 0:23:26.200 for a couple of candidates that I supported, that supported 0:23:26.200 --> 0:23:28.919 my issues, and that was my way to ensure that 0:23:29.040 --> 0:23:31.359 I can bring my voice to the table despite the 0:23:31.359 --> 0:23:33.560 fact that I could not vote. I think that in 0:23:33.600 --> 0:23:37.439 many ways, organizing is the tool that saves our lives, 0:23:37.800 --> 0:23:41.520 that saves our genera saves generations to come, and it's 0:23:41.520 --> 0:23:44.320 something that we've learned from even our ancestors in previous 0:23:44.359 --> 0:23:45.760 movements across history. 0:23:46.720 --> 0:23:51.119 I mean, that's extraordinary, and I so commend you and 0:23:51.160 --> 0:23:55.200 the work that you're doing, particularly as somebody that doesn't 0:23:55.480 --> 0:23:58.960 that is trying to protect the right that you don't 0:23:59.000 --> 0:24:04.240 even have yourself, I think is really like extraordinary. And 0:24:04.560 --> 0:24:07.800 I want to talk, you know, to a little bit 0:24:07.960 --> 0:24:12.840 about the measures that your governor has taken to try 0:24:12.960 --> 0:24:18.359 and either throwout people's you know, voter registration. How do 0:24:18.560 --> 0:24:23.439 you you know, and the folks that move stay hopeful 0:24:23.960 --> 0:24:26.840 when you know that one you have a governor that 0:24:27.400 --> 0:24:31.160 you know, through the course of many climate climate crises 0:24:31.320 --> 0:24:33.880 that that state has fixed I mean that that state 0:24:33.960 --> 0:24:38.280 has seen has refused to fix like electrical grids, has 0:24:38.320 --> 0:24:42.239 refused to do anything that would deter the kinds of 0:24:42.320 --> 0:24:47.080 storms and flooding and winters that you have all been facing. 0:24:47.920 --> 0:24:51.680 How do you continue to push that? And then two again, 0:24:51.720 --> 0:24:55.800 I like I said, has literally thrown out voter registration, 0:24:56.080 --> 0:25:00.000 has you know, thrown away ballot boxes, has shut down 0:25:00.160 --> 0:25:06.560 registration in you know, particularly deep people of color areas 0:25:06.600 --> 0:25:09.960 in your state. And how do you push back against 0:25:10.440 --> 0:25:16.240 those really insidious tactics that his party has been a 0:25:16.320 --> 0:25:16.679 part of. 0:25:17.400 --> 0:25:19.960 Yeah, and so Danielle, I'd love to take a minute 0:25:19.960 --> 0:25:22.560 to talk about the fact that for many viewers right, 0:25:22.640 --> 0:25:25.520 or many people who live outside of Texas, they see 0:25:25.560 --> 0:25:27.840 Texas and they think, Oh, Texas is a lost hope 0:25:27.960 --> 0:25:29.800 or oh Texas is a red state. And I like 0:25:29.840 --> 0:25:32.520 to push back against that narrative. We unmoved Texas like 0:25:32.560 --> 0:25:35.240 to push back against that narrative because Texas is a 0:25:35.320 --> 0:25:38.000 voter suppress state. Right, Like I mentioned earlier, we don't 0:25:38.040 --> 0:25:41.200 have access to online voter registration. We have to register 0:25:41.280 --> 0:25:44.000 to vote thirty days before a deadline. I'm sorry, thirty 0:25:44.040 --> 0:25:47.439