WEBVTT - TURNOUT Episode 10: ‘If we raise our expectations we would have a better system’ 0:00:01.440 --> 0:00:04.560 Look for your children's eyes and you will discover the 0:00:04.559 --> 0:00:08.239 true magic of a forest. Find a forest near you 0:00:08.480 --> 0:00:11.920 and start exploring it. Discover the forest dot org brought 0:00:11.960 --> 0:00:14.080 to you by the United States Forest Service and the 0:00:14.160 --> 0:00:18.759 AD Council. What girls in the forest, our imagination and 0:00:19.239 --> 0:00:22.799 our family bonds. The forest is closer than you think. 0:00:23.160 --> 0:00:25.919 Find a forest near you and discover the fourth dot 0:00:26.000 --> 0:00:28.840 org brought to you by the United States Forest Service 0:00:28.880 --> 0:00:33.440 and the AD Council. Executive producer Paris Hilton bring us 0:00:33.440 --> 0:00:36.640 back the hit podcast How Men Think. And that's good 0:00:36.640 --> 0:00:39.360 news for anyone that is confused by men, which is 0:00:39.400 --> 0:00:43.520 basically everyone. It's real talk, straight from the source. How 0:00:43.560 --> 0:00:46.360 Men Think podcast is exactly what we need to figure 0:00:46.400 --> 0:00:49.000 them out. It's going to be fun and formative and 0:00:49.120 --> 0:00:52.720 probably a bit scary at times because we're literally going 0:00:52.760 --> 0:00:55.720 inside the minds of men. Listen to How Men Think 0:00:55.880 --> 0:00:59.000 on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever 0:00:59.080 --> 0:01:04.319 you get your podcast us. I'm Katie Curic, and this 0:01:04.600 --> 0:01:11.800 is Turnout. We started this series in the past understanding 0:01:11.880 --> 0:01:15.880 the origin and history of our ongoing fight for voter rights, 0:01:15.920 --> 0:01:18.360 and as we wrapped this series about an issue that 0:01:18.440 --> 0:01:21.280 doesn't look like it's going to be solved anytime soon. 0:01:22.000 --> 0:01:25.039 We want to consider its future. Where do we go 0:01:25.200 --> 0:01:28.000 from here, what lessons can we take with us, and 0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:32.080 what impact might this election have on our ongoing push 0:01:32.360 --> 0:01:37.000 for a more inclusive democracy, a more perfect union. Because 0:01:37.040 --> 0:01:42.279 Americans saw up close precisely how the election system works, 0:01:42.440 --> 0:01:46.560 what its flaws are, there's a real opportunity finally now 0:01:46.959 --> 0:01:51.720 to mobilize around passing laws that actually shore up our 0:01:51.760 --> 0:01:56.760 elections and protect voting rights. Leader will explore the future 0:01:56.760 --> 0:02:00.120 of voting rights with a view of our previous guests. 0:02:00.120 --> 0:02:02.640 But first, how do we start to understand what we 0:02:02.840 --> 0:02:07.080 just went through? How do we put the presidential race 0:02:07.440 --> 0:02:11.480 into context? To answer that we took a virtual trip 0:02:12.040 --> 0:02:16.880 to Appalachia. I have very little signal. I'm in a 0:02:16.960 --> 0:02:19.680 very mountainous area, and basically, if you're not in the 0:02:19.720 --> 0:02:22.919 same little holler with the power, that's that's it. Greg 0:02:23.000 --> 0:02:26.120 Cruey is a middle school social studies teacher. If you 0:02:26.240 --> 0:02:29.280 hear my new puppy bark, I've got a dog with 0:02:29.840 --> 0:02:31.959 we adopted with four or five months old, and it 0:02:32.240 --> 0:02:36.800 parks at everything. And it's his job to lay a 0:02:36.880 --> 0:02:41.040 civics foundation for our next generation of voters. To explain 0:02:41.160 --> 0:02:46.080 our system, our elections, our democracy. I work in war 0:02:46.160 --> 0:02:50.799 West Virginia in mcdell County with sixth, seventh, and ninth graders, 0:02:50.880 --> 0:02:53.760 and I'm also the president of the American Federation of 0:02:53.840 --> 0:02:59.160 Teachers in mcdell County. I'm an activist, I'm a church musician. 0:03:00.160 --> 0:03:03.200 My husband, I'm a dog owner. Uh could go on. 0:03:04.280 --> 0:03:08.079 McDowell County sits in the southernmost edge of West Virginia 0:03:08.560 --> 0:03:12.120 and the central Appalachians. While it was once a center 0:03:12.160 --> 0:03:15.760 for cold production, it's now one of the poorest areas 0:03:15.760 --> 0:03:19.440 in the country. McDow County is a place that has 0:03:19.480 --> 0:03:24.080 been robbed. Its natural resources were stripped away. Uh, and 0:03:24.120 --> 0:03:26.640 it was left with very little. And I'm talking, of 0:03:26.680 --> 0:03:30.960 course about coal. And the description I'm I'm giving probably 0:03:31.000 --> 0:03:35.240 describes most of southern West Virginia. It's a place of 0:03:35.360 --> 0:03:38.760 contrasts today. On the one hand, it's poor and on 0:03:38.800 --> 0:03:41.560 the other hand it's rich. At the same time it's 0:03:41.600 --> 0:03:45.240 it's economically depressed. It gives you kind of a rural 0:03:45.440 --> 0:03:48.960 rust belt feel. The families are torn up by drugs. 0:03:49.000 --> 0:03:52.920 The opioid epidemic here is horrible. Grandparents are raising kids 0:03:53.000 --> 0:03:56.960 because the biological parents are often so strung out or 0:03:57.000 --> 0:04:00.600 in jail or bed. The people all the weight of 0:04:00.640 --> 0:04:03.880 worrying about how they're going to scrape by next month, 0:04:04.480 --> 0:04:07.000 and wondering who's going to din next, either from drugs 0:04:07.120 --> 0:04:10.280 or just a rest of poverty in their lives. On 0:04:10.320 --> 0:04:13.120 the other hand, there's a lot of pride that people 0:04:13.200 --> 0:04:16.159 feel about just being here and having made it in 0:04:16.200 --> 0:04:19.599 this rugged part of Appalachia. This is a community filled 0:04:19.640 --> 0:04:22.359 with military veterans who served their country well. It's one 0:04:22.400 --> 0:04:25.120 of the highest rates of military service in the country. 0:04:25.440 --> 0:04:28.360 The community is salted with little churches that are far 0:04:28.400 --> 0:04:31.000 more concerned with loving and helping people than they are 0:04:31.040 --> 0:04:34.760 with politics. Uh and some of the nicest, most generous, 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:37.479 most self deprecating people that you could ever hope to 0:04:37.480 --> 0:04:41.320 make to live in the communities around my school. McDowell 0:04:41.320 --> 0:04:44.760 County is home to about eighteen thousand people, the vast 0:04:44.800 --> 0:04:49.599 majority of whom are white. I think McDow County has 0:04:50.279 --> 0:04:57.200 one of the largest black populations in West Virginia, but 0:04:57.680 --> 0:05:03.200 it's still only at ten or twelve percent. We're a 0:05:03.320 --> 0:05:07.560 very white community and in elections, this community tends to 0:05:07.640 --> 0:05:11.720 vote read. We have a very conservative community up here, 0:05:12.160 --> 0:05:16.000 and it's historically belonged to the Democratic Party, and we're 0:05:16.000 --> 0:05:18.880 in a transition at this point where it's becoming more 0:05:18.920 --> 0:05:24.400 and more acceptable to switch parties and call yourself a Republican. 0:05:25.080 --> 0:05:28.440 I tell my kids today, we think of Democrats as 0:05:28.440 --> 0:05:33.600 being liberals and Republicans as being conservatives. But it's only 0:05:33.640 --> 0:05:37.520 been that way in my lifetime. They're probably more registered 0:05:37.560 --> 0:05:41.920 Democrats than there are Republicans, but of the county voted 0:05:41.920 --> 0:05:47.760 for President Trump. I've had kids this year come in 0:05:47.920 --> 0:05:53.440 wearing face masks that have Trump on them. Uh, and 0:05:53.839 --> 0:05:57.200 you know that's that's cute. Uh, that there's nothing wrong 0:05:57.279 --> 0:06:00.080 with that. They they look at me and they know 0:06:00.200 --> 0:06:05.320 what I think, and it's it's interesting. They come in 0:06:06.279 --> 0:06:10.159 with sumper sticker sort of views of politics, with the 0:06:10.839 --> 0:06:13.120 you know, the Democrats are going to take our guns, 0:06:13.720 --> 0:06:16.560 we need to build the wall. They just they're on 0:06:16.600 --> 0:06:19.160 the Trump train, and they'll tell you, you know, they're 0:06:19.160 --> 0:06:23.359 on the Trump train, and it puzzles them if you 0:06:23.440 --> 0:06:28.359 ask why, you know, they don't they don't understand that 0:06:28.480 --> 0:06:31.559 there's a community of people out there in other parts 0:06:31.600 --> 0:06:35.599 of America who aren't on the Trump train. I think 0:06:35.760 --> 0:06:40.280 that he is to get them thinking about issues, uh, 0:06:40.440 --> 0:06:45.320 not just people. They have to understand that it requires thought, 0:06:45.360 --> 0:06:50.080 that it's complicated. I try very hard to talk about 0:06:50.240 --> 0:06:56.039 issues and to to divorce those issues the parties or 0:06:56.080 --> 0:06:59.400 candidates and have them think about immigration, or think about 0:06:59.400 --> 0:07:04.240 gun rights, so or welfare, health care, the environment, uh, 0:07:04.279 --> 0:07:06.440 you know, and get them to see that those issues 0:07:06.480 --> 0:07:11.640 are multifaceted and complicated. My goal is is critical thinking. 0:07:12.400 --> 0:07:15.400 I'm not trying to persuade somebody to believe one thing 0:07:15.520 --> 0:07:18.240 or another. I mean, these are little kids. I just 0:07:18.360 --> 0:07:23.040 want them to develop the skills that they need two 0:07:23.720 --> 0:07:28.200 understand what's going on and decide what they think is 0:07:28.280 --> 0:07:32.880 best and take part in the decision making process. But 0:07:32.960 --> 0:07:35.880 I teach the unit every year on fact versus opinion, 0:07:36.520 --> 0:07:39.800 and I keep it completely separate from anything that has 0:07:39.840 --> 0:07:42.800 to do with politics. You know. I work very hard 0:07:42.840 --> 0:07:47.120 to get my students to be able to distinguish types 0:07:47.160 --> 0:07:49.640 of statement. Is that a statement of fact or is 0:07:49.680 --> 0:07:53.040 that a statement of opinion? And to fill an obligation. 0:07:53.160 --> 0:07:55.840 If they think it's a statement of fact, decide whether 0:07:55.960 --> 0:07:59.080 or not it's true or false a statement of fact. 0:07:59.080 --> 0:08:02.520 I tell them a thing that can be verified by 0:08:02.600 --> 0:08:08.000 sources that reasonable people can agree on, and um, it's 0:08:08.040 --> 0:08:11.640 their obligation if it's important to them to go find 0:08:11.720 --> 0:08:15.320 out whether or not the statement is true. If it's 0:08:15.360 --> 0:08:18.200 a statement of fact, they can go look that up. 0:08:18.240 --> 0:08:22.000 If it's a statement of opinion, then it's their obligation 0:08:22.080 --> 0:08:25.160 to decide whether or not they agree with the person's opinion. 0:08:26.320 --> 0:08:29.040 I teach it every year and so for my kids, 0:08:29.960 --> 0:08:32.080 repetition is the heart of learning, and they get it 0:08:32.120 --> 0:08:34.560 three times in three years, and hopefully by the time 0:08:34.600 --> 0:08:37.440 they leave here they can tell the difference between fact 0:08:37.480 --> 0:08:41.920 and opinion. Mr Creuey also teaches the importance of civic 0:08:41.920 --> 0:08:46.160 participation by example, which is why he doesn't shy away 0:08:46.160 --> 0:08:49.760 from showing how he engages in the election process. I 0:08:49.800 --> 0:08:55.320 had somebody comments that students should never know their teacher's 0:08:55.400 --> 0:09:00.280 personal political views, and I find that incredibly naive. My wife, 0:09:00.280 --> 0:09:03.040 who has a retired principle, and I are involved in 0:09:03.120 --> 0:09:06.240 mentoring kids were part of the community. We visit their churches. 0:09:06.760 --> 0:09:09.360 We work at a Christian camp in the summer that 0:09:09.480 --> 0:09:12.240 many of our students go to, and they know I 0:09:12.280 --> 0:09:14.320 have a sign in my yard and a bumper sticker 0:09:14.360 --> 0:09:17.880 on my vehicle, you know, So the idea that I 0:09:17.920 --> 0:09:21.000 can prevent them from figuring out who I support. I 0:09:21.040 --> 0:09:25.000 don't think I give up the right to participate in 0:09:25.080 --> 0:09:28.600 politics because I become a government employee and as a 0:09:28.640 --> 0:09:32.920 social studies teacher. If I did keep it from them, 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:36.160 I would model exactly the opposite of what I hope 0:09:36.240 --> 0:09:40.360 to achieve with them, which is a model participation, because 0:09:40.360 --> 0:09:44.240 I want them to participate. And um, I don't know 0:09:44.280 --> 0:09:46.960 how to get around that. The kids come into my 0:09:47.080 --> 0:09:49.800 room knowing that I have a Biden sticker on my vehicle, 0:09:49.840 --> 0:09:52.080 and they look at me and they say, do you 0:09:52.120 --> 0:09:56.200 really support Vice President Biden? And uh, I say, well, 0:09:56.240 --> 0:09:58.640 you know, the question is who do you support and 0:09:58.679 --> 0:10:00.520 why do you feel that way? Let's talk about it. 0:10:00.920 --> 0:10:03.040 And I try and turn the tables on them and 0:10:03.240 --> 0:10:07.840 make them develop the skills to articulate why they like somebody. 0:10:08.040 --> 0:10:11.160 And if their answer is I like President Trump because 0:10:11.200 --> 0:10:14.880 mom and did like President Trump, that's good enough, you know. 0:10:14.920 --> 0:10:17.120 And I try my best to affirm that in them. 0:10:17.160 --> 0:10:19.960 I don't I don't detigrate that at all. I try 0:10:20.000 --> 0:10:24.680 my best never to be disrespectful of the president, because 0:10:24.720 --> 0:10:27.680 I don't think that gets me anywhere, and I don't 0:10:27.720 --> 0:10:32.400 think it's professional. I'm not trying to shake personal political 0:10:32.400 --> 0:10:34.600 opinions at the moment so much as I'm working on 0:10:34.640 --> 0:10:37.040 a set of skills, and these kids are going to 0:10:37.080 --> 0:10:39.920 be in school for another five or six years and 0:10:40.200 --> 0:10:44.400 that chance to shake those skills. I'm laying a foundation 0:10:44.440 --> 0:10:46.400 that I hope somebody in high school will pick up 0:10:47.000 --> 0:10:50.080 and you know, build on. I have to keep that 0:10:50.200 --> 0:10:54.120 perspective of do these kids know what they need to 0:10:54.120 --> 0:10:56.280 know or have the skills that they need to have 0:10:56.840 --> 0:11:03.760 to participate. The kids whose situation in life is the worst, 0:11:04.440 --> 0:11:10.400 the disenfranchised, the people who the economic development policy and 0:11:11.000 --> 0:11:14.320 decisions by local government are going to help or hurt 0:11:14.360 --> 0:11:16.880 them the most, and yet they don't know how to 0:11:17.080 --> 0:11:20.520 take part to participate. Those are the people that hurt 0:11:20.559 --> 0:11:23.240 the most if we if we don't have adequate social 0:11:23.280 --> 0:11:27.880 studies instruction. But Mr Cruey says, as a middle school 0:11:27.880 --> 0:11:30.720 teacher in one of the poorest regions of the country, 0:11:31.320 --> 0:11:36.120 civics vocabulary and lessons on the importance of voting often 0:11:36.120 --> 0:11:40.040 take a back seat to more immediate concerns. I'm a 0:11:40.080 --> 0:11:44.880 first responder to poverty, so I go to school and 0:11:45.000 --> 0:11:50.920 I deal with students because they need care. If on 0:11:51.040 --> 0:11:56.440 top of that they understand academics, that's an added bonus. 0:11:56.480 --> 0:11:59.079 But without the foundation of them knowing that they're cared 0:11:59.120 --> 0:12:02.040 for and that the somebody is concerned about their welfare, 0:12:03.120 --> 0:12:06.440 you don't get any of the other stuff. And you know, 0:12:06.480 --> 0:12:12.000 we're looking for a way to shape strong adults. If 0:12:12.040 --> 0:12:13.840 they don't feel loved, if they don't have a good 0:12:13.840 --> 0:12:17.440 self image, if they don't make it to adulthood, it 0:12:17.559 --> 0:12:21.000 doesn't matter. You know that that's the goal. The goal 0:12:21.120 --> 0:12:25.559 is to produce strong, healthy adults. That was Greg Cruey, 0:12:25.720 --> 0:12:31.800 middle school social studies teacher from war West Virginia, coming 0:12:31.920 --> 0:12:36.520 up the biggest takeaways from the election and their impact 0:12:36.640 --> 0:12:46.440 on the future of voting rights. After thirty years, it's 0:12:46.440 --> 0:12:48.920 time to return to the halls of West Beverly High 0:12:49.000 --> 0:12:51.280 and hang out at the peach pit. On the podcast 0:12:51.400 --> 0:12:54.400 nine O two one OMG joined Jenny Garth and Tory 0:12:54.480 --> 0:12:57.439 Spelling for a rewatch of the hit series Beverly Hills 0:12:57.480 --> 0:12:59.800 nine O two one oh. From the very beginning, we 0:13:00.080 --> 0:13:02.960 get to tell the fans all of the behind the 0:13:03.000 --> 0:13:05.880 scenes stories to actually happen, so they know what happened 0:13:05.920 --> 0:13:08.679 on camera, obviously, but we can tell them all the 0:13:08.679 --> 0:13:11.000 good stuff that happened off camera. Get all the juicy 0:13:11.040 --> 0:13:14.440 details of every episode that you've been wondering about for decades. 0:13:14.520 --> 0:13:16.960 As nine O two one oh, super fan and radio 0:13:17.000 --> 0:13:20.280 host Sissany siss In with Jenny and Tory two reminisce, 0:13:20.280 --> 0:13:23.800 reflect and relive each moment, from Brandon and Kelly's first 0:13:23.880 --> 0:13:28.000 kiss to shouting Donna Martin graduates, you have an amazing memory. 0:13:28.080 --> 0:13:31.480 You remember everything about the entire ten years that we 0:13:31.559 --> 0:13:35.440 filmed that show, and you remember absolutely nothing of the 0:13:35.480 --> 0:13:38.839 ten years that we film that show. Listen to nine 0:13:38.880 --> 0:13:41.199 O two one OMG on the I Heart Radio app, 0:13:41.240 --> 0:13:45.319 Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. When P. T. 0:13:45.440 --> 0:13:48.400 Barnum's Great American Museum burned to the ground in eighteen 0:13:48.480 --> 0:13:51.800 sixty five, what rose from its ashes would change the world? 0:13:52.520 --> 0:13:56.080 Welcome to Grim and Mild presents an ongoing journey into 0:13:56.080 --> 0:13:59.599 the strange, the unusual, and the fascinating were are in 0:14:00.040 --> 0:14:02.360 year old season will be giving you a backstage tour 0:14:02.440 --> 0:14:06.480 of the always complex and often misunderstood cultural artifact that 0:14:06.640 --> 0:14:09.760 is the American Side Show. So come along as we 0:14:09.880 --> 0:14:12.839 visit the shadowy corners of the stage and learn about 0:14:12.840 --> 0:14:14.839 the people who were at the center of it all 0:14:15.120 --> 0:14:17.920 in a place where spectacle was king. We will soon 0:14:17.960 --> 0:14:21.440 discover there's always more to the story than meets the eye. 0:14:22.080 --> 0:14:25.360 So step right up and get in line. Listen to 0:14:25.400 --> 0:14:28.120 Grim and Mile Presents now on the I Heart Radio app, 0:14:28.160 --> 0:14:32.400 Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Learn more 0:14:32.440 --> 0:14:38.920 over at Grimm and Mild dot com. Slash Presents. I'm 0:14:38.960 --> 0:14:41.640 Ev Rodsky, author of the New York Times bestseller fair 0:14:41.680 --> 0:14:44.920 Play and Find your Unicorn Space, activists on the gender 0:14:44.960 --> 0:14:48.480 division of labor, attorney and family mediator. And I'm Dr 0:14:48.560 --> 0:14:52.040 adding A Rucar, a Harvard physician and medical correspondent with 0:14:52.080 --> 0:14:55.360 an expertise and the science of stress, resilience, mental health 0:14:55.520 --> 0:14:59.160 and burnout. We're so excited to share our podcast Time Out, 0:14:59.320 --> 0:15:03.160 a production of iHeart Podcasts and Hell of Sunshine. We're 0:15:03.240 --> 0:15:06.080 uncovering why society makes it so hard for women to 0:15:06.160 --> 0:15:08.840 treat their time with the value it deserves. So take 0:15:08.920 --> 0:15:12.120 this time out with us. Listen to Time Out, a 0:15:12.240 --> 0:15:16.160 fair Play podcast on the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcasts, 0:15:16.360 --> 0:15:23.640 or wherever you get your podcasts. Now that the presidential 0:15:23.760 --> 0:15:28.440 race is behind us well almost, And with that modicum 0:15:28.480 --> 0:15:31.920 of hindsight, I wanted to get a sense of this election, 0:15:32.600 --> 0:15:36.040 of its place in our voting history, its potential impact 0:15:36.160 --> 0:15:39.760 on democracy, and what lessons we might glean from it. 0:15:40.080 --> 0:15:42.360 So we decided to check in with some of our 0:15:42.400 --> 0:15:46.240 previous guests. My name is Wendy Wiser. I am Vice 0:15:46.240 --> 0:15:49.000 President for a Democracy at the Brendan Center for Justice 0:15:49.040 --> 0:15:52.480 at n y U Law School. This election was a 0:15:52.640 --> 0:16:00.240 really unprecedented election in multivle dimensions. First, and happily, we 0:16:00.320 --> 0:16:06.240 have an unprecedented level of voter turnout. More Americans voted 0:16:06.280 --> 0:16:09.120 in this election than in any other election in American 0:16:09.240 --> 0:16:14.000 history um in the highest percentage and over a century UM. 0:16:14.080 --> 0:16:18.800 And that is great news for democracy. The more people participate, 0:16:18.960 --> 0:16:24.880 the stronger our democracy. We conducted an election during a 0:16:24.960 --> 0:16:31.680 once in a century pandemic that obviously created serious and 0:16:31.760 --> 0:16:38.160 unprecedented challenges. UM. It changed the way many Americans voted 0:16:38.240 --> 0:16:43.320 across the entire country in a really short time frame, 0:16:44.240 --> 0:16:50.720 and we successfully accomplished that election under such challenging circumstances. 0:16:51.240 --> 0:16:54.880 If we look at how we voted, we we voted 0:16:55.000 --> 0:16:59.320 in new ways and in that way, our election was unprecedented. 0:16:59.360 --> 0:17:04.200 We had a huge surge in absentee and mail voting, 0:17:04.680 --> 0:17:09.200 and a huge surge in early voting, Americans voting before 0:17:09.320 --> 0:17:13.000 election day, so we spread out the election process. Americans 0:17:13.000 --> 0:17:16.280 took advantage of all the different options available to them, 0:17:17.080 --> 0:17:20.880 and so that was really new and we were able 0:17:20.920 --> 0:17:24.399 to accomplish that and that massive change again in a 0:17:24.440 --> 0:17:29.240 short period of time. It was unprecedented in some negative 0:17:29.240 --> 0:17:34.840 ways as well. We did see a huge surge in 0:17:34.960 --> 0:17:40.040 efforts at voter suppression, targeting voters, trying to make it 0:17:40.160 --> 0:17:44.639 harder for specific groups, particularly black and brown voters, to 0:17:44.800 --> 0:17:49.000 participate in the election. We saw a surge, not as 0:17:49.119 --> 0:17:54.280 much as was feared, of people actually trying to interfere 0:17:54.320 --> 0:17:58.600 with the voting process and disenfranchise voters at the polls 0:17:58.680 --> 0:18:02.800 on election day and during the early voting period. The 0:18:02.840 --> 0:18:06.919 other thing that was really unprecedented was the push by 0:18:07.040 --> 0:18:10.159 the campaign of the President of the United States and 0:18:10.160 --> 0:18:13.600 those working with him both to undermine the integrity of 0:18:13.600 --> 0:18:17.200 the election and to try to make it harder for 0:18:17.240 --> 0:18:21.000 eligible Americans to vote, or even too after the fact, 0:18:21.359 --> 0:18:26.080 disenfranchised eligible Americans who did participate in the election. And 0:18:26.119 --> 0:18:31.800 that is not only unprecedented, but shocking and ongoing and 0:18:31.880 --> 0:18:34.680 something we've not seen anything remotely like it before in 0:18:34.720 --> 0:18:39.640 American history. I am Guilded Daniels. I'm an associate professor 0:18:39.680 --> 0:18:42.080 at the University of Baltimore School of Law. I'm also 0:18:42.160 --> 0:18:45.959 litigation director at Advancement Project National Office, and the author 0:18:46.080 --> 0:18:50.800 of Uncounted, The Crisis of Voter Suppression in America. The 0:18:50.840 --> 0:18:53.320 fact that we had more than a hundred and fifty 0:18:53.560 --> 0:18:58.639 million vote in almost eighty million people voted for one candidate, 0:18:59.359 --> 0:19:02.600 UH is a founding because we thought that the system 0:19:02.640 --> 0:19:05.199 would break under the weight of people actually doing what 0:19:05.320 --> 0:19:07.720 the what we're supposed to do, which is actually vote. 0:19:08.119 --> 0:19:12.679 We don't anticipate that people will participate at the levels 0:19:12.720 --> 0:19:15.280 that they should, right, and so that's why you have 0:19:15.440 --> 0:19:17.400 long lines, because you don't have enough machines, you don't 0:19:17.440 --> 0:19:19.840 have enough workers, you don't have enough balance, those kinds 0:19:19.840 --> 0:19:22.040 of things. So if we could, if we could raise 0:19:22.080 --> 0:19:25.000 our expectations. One of things I've learned my children is 0:19:25.000 --> 0:19:28.000 that they rise to the level of my expectations. So 0:19:28.040 --> 0:19:30.280 I think if we raise our expectations, I think we 0:19:30.320 --> 0:19:32.840 will have a we would have a better system. I'm 0:19:32.880 --> 0:19:37.200 Tyler Okaykave goot At sixteen, you the organizer with Power California, 0:19:37.359 --> 0:19:39.600 and a second year student at the University of Chicago 0:19:39.720 --> 0:19:44.000 studying public policy. In this election, we saw that it 0:19:44.040 --> 0:19:47.080 seemed like across the board there was this pushing enthusiasm 0:19:47.160 --> 0:19:50.520 behind getting more people to vote. We saw it from corporations, 0:19:50.720 --> 0:19:54.320 we saw it from non governmental agencies, grass freet organizations 0:19:54.359 --> 0:19:58.200 like ours. But my fear moving forward is that will 0:19:58.240 --> 0:20:00.760 we continue to keep this emphasis and access to the 0:20:00.800 --> 0:20:04.400 ballot and um the provision of the right to vote 0:20:04.400 --> 0:20:07.280 to everyone. Will we keep this energy up when maybe 0:20:07.320 --> 0:20:10.159 the states aren't in the favor of the corporations that 0:20:10.200 --> 0:20:13.359 are invested or the organizations that are invested in the 0:20:13.400 --> 0:20:17.480 elections somewhere another. However, when it comes to the policies 0:20:17.520 --> 0:20:20.840 that states like California and other progressive states adopted on voting, 0:20:21.160 --> 0:20:23.720 I think they will continue to be major pushes around 0:20:24.000 --> 0:20:26.600 how we make the ballot more accessible. I think that 0:20:26.680 --> 0:20:29.239 mail in ballot will continue to be a constant. I 0:20:29.280 --> 0:20:31.680 think that ballot drop off boxes will continue to be 0:20:31.720 --> 0:20:34.840 a constant. I think even we'll be having more conversations 0:20:34.880 --> 0:20:37.800 about how we digitize and make more of these themes accessible, 0:20:38.200 --> 0:20:40.840 and I think the coronavirus pandemic has allowed us a 0:20:40.880 --> 0:20:43.639 testing ground for many of these avenues to the ballot 0:20:43.640 --> 0:20:47.359 that weren't explored before. And I'm hopeful to see how 0:20:47.359 --> 0:20:50.600 how well we can expand how we allow people access 0:20:50.640 --> 0:20:52.920 to the ballot box, but also how we have conversations 0:20:52.960 --> 0:20:56.000 about how to vote in the procedure around voting. I 0:20:56.040 --> 0:20:59.159 think this election has really created a culture around voting 0:20:59.200 --> 0:21:02.240 and civic particip patient that I that I know will continue. 0:21:02.359 --> 0:21:04.960 But like I said, my anxieties are around um the 0:21:05.040 --> 0:21:08.439 buying that corporations have, which we've seen is usually in 0:21:08.480 --> 0:21:12.760 alignment with their economic interests at all times. One of 0:21:12.800 --> 0:21:16.320 the takeaways from this election is that it took way 0:21:16.359 --> 0:21:21.719 too much mobilization outside of government just to shore up 0:21:22.119 --> 0:21:27.520 the basic right to vote. We did not invest sufficiently 0:21:27.800 --> 0:21:31.960 in our election, and we came very perilously close to 0:21:32.520 --> 0:21:36.960 not being able to provide an opportunity for everybody to 0:21:37.040 --> 0:21:40.840 vote safely, and to a situation where there could have 0:21:40.880 --> 0:21:46.199 been widespread election meltdowns. If we didn't have that mobilization 0:21:46.440 --> 0:21:50.280 of resources and support from outside of government, we could 0:21:50.320 --> 0:21:54.800 have had a real disaster on our hands. And it 0:21:54.880 --> 0:22:00.000 also took way too much just to ensure that america 0:22:00.040 --> 0:22:04.000 kins knew their voting rights and had those voting rights protected. 0:22:04.520 --> 0:22:10.800 And we're not thwarted by unfair obstacles that are still 0:22:10.840 --> 0:22:14.160 there in our election laws, um and that can still 0:22:14.160 --> 0:22:18.480 be taken advantage of by those who want to thwart 0:22:18.560 --> 0:22:22.520 voter participation. Coming out of this election, we need to 0:22:22.560 --> 0:22:26.080 invest more in our elections because we cannot count on 0:22:26.240 --> 0:22:30.600 this level of mobilization and public propping up of the 0:22:30.600 --> 0:22:34.520 election system that we saw this year in our future elections. 0:22:34.520 --> 0:22:38.000 I mean, that is unusual. That was it was a 0:22:38.080 --> 0:22:43.399 great show of patriotism and support for our democracy. But 0:22:43.520 --> 0:22:48.480 we cannot demand that from Americans every election just to 0:22:48.520 --> 0:22:51.320 be able to have free and fair elections and to 0:22:51.480 --> 0:22:56.320 continue as a functioning democracy. And we need to shore 0:22:56.440 --> 0:22:59.360 up our voting rights laws and our voting rights protections 0:22:59.560 --> 0:23:03.040 because if we don't restore the critical protections of the 0:23:03.119 --> 0:23:06.000 Voting Rights Act, which are there to prevent discrimination in 0:23:06.000 --> 0:23:11.160 the voting system, if we don't actually create a baseline 0:23:11.320 --> 0:23:15.760 set of voting rules and voting protections for every American 0:23:15.880 --> 0:23:19.440 so that people can conveniently access the voting system, there 0:23:19.480 --> 0:23:23.720 will be continued manipulation of the system to target voters 0:23:23.760 --> 0:23:29.720 for disenfranchisement unless we clear these are not targeted at 0:23:29.800 --> 0:23:34.720 every voter. In this election, we saw extreme and blatant 0:23:34.840 --> 0:23:43.119 targeting of African American and other voters of color for disenfranchisement, 0:23:43.200 --> 0:23:47.560 both before the election and in the post election disputes. 0:23:48.280 --> 0:23:53.040 This cannot be acceptable in our voting system going forward. 0:23:53.560 --> 0:23:56.560 The biggest takeaway that I think we can take from 0:23:56.800 --> 0:24:01.919 this election is that it's more than one day. That 0:24:02.080 --> 0:24:05.119 it's the work that has to be done months before, 0:24:05.280 --> 0:24:08.800 even years before, that enabled us to have this large 0:24:09.320 --> 0:24:13.639 voter turnout, and that the fight continues. It's about giving 0:24:13.680 --> 0:24:17.480 people the ability to vote early, to vote by mail, 0:24:17.680 --> 0:24:22.000 to vote curbside too, you know, for persons who are 0:24:22.119 --> 0:24:26.720 returning citizens, are formally incarcerated persons um to to vote. 0:24:26.720 --> 0:24:31.800 It's it's it was about laying that groundwork months before, 0:24:31.920 --> 0:24:35.280 years before, to try to make sure that access was 0:24:35.320 --> 0:24:39.120 a possibility and that people could utilize the right. And 0:24:39.119 --> 0:24:42.240 it's the work that happens after election day, work that 0:24:42.280 --> 0:24:46.240 we have to do as citizens and ensuring that the 0:24:46.480 --> 0:24:50.080 folks are representing us right. And it's like we still 0:24:50.119 --> 0:24:53.879 need to be contacting congress persons even though this is 0:24:53.920 --> 0:24:58.160 a lame duck session. So what I'm hopeful that we've 0:24:58.200 --> 0:25:01.200 got out of this election season that that is indeed 0:25:01.240 --> 0:25:03.199 a season and not just an election day, that the 0:25:03.240 --> 0:25:07.240 work goes on, you know, before, during, and afterwards to 0:25:07.280 --> 0:25:10.080 make sure that this democracy works to its fullest potential. 0:25:10.640 --> 0:25:13.760 We should be under no illusions that all as well 0:25:13.800 --> 0:25:16.000 in the country right now, and there's so much work 0:25:16.040 --> 0:25:20.320 to be done. So as long as we continue to 0:25:20.359 --> 0:25:22.480 say that we care for our communities and that we're 0:25:22.520 --> 0:25:25.439 invested in political change, it means that we're involved in 0:25:25.480 --> 0:25:29.000 this work all the time, and even beyond voting. Right 0:25:29.400 --> 0:25:31.840 So if you can't vote, if the next opportunity to 0:25:31.920 --> 0:25:34.040 vote will be in two years, there are things that 0:25:34.119 --> 0:25:36.480 you can do to build power and to continue to 0:25:36.600 --> 0:25:39.119 educate people around you so that they're prepared to make 0:25:39.119 --> 0:25:41.639