Take Your Power Back Weekend: Voting Rights Challenges That Keep Us Up at Night
Being a young activist can be difficult, and being a young activist of color even more so. At The Andrew Goodman Foundation’s Take Your Power Back Weekend, Evan Malbrough, a former Andrew Goodman Ambassador and founder of the Georgia Youth Poll Worker Project; Marisol Conde Hernandez Esq., New Jersey’s first undocumented Latina attorney; Usjid Hameed, a former Andrew Goodman Ambassador and Puffin Democracy Fellow working for American Muslim rights; and Park Cannon, a queer Georgia state representative, shared their advocacy stories and advice for young people. The panelists also addressed activism fatigue, the impacts this line of work can have on mental health, and highlighted the importance of rest. As Usjid stated, “laying the groundwork for a sustainable self-care routine pays dividends moving forward.”
The 2020 Presidential Election will be one of the most crucial elections in recent history. Nationally, three crises threaten America: voter suppression, COVID-19, and systemic racism. Fortunately, student voters can influence how these threats are handled. For the first time, Millennial and Gen Z voters will compose over a third of the electorate! With this in mind, The Andrew Goodman Foundation launched “Take Your Power Back Weekend,” a virtual summit featuring multiple panels of activists across all backgrounds to encourage student voters to recognize their influence, agency, and power.
To play back all of Take Your Power Back Weekend, watch our playlist.
About the Author
Rachel Sondkar is the Communications Associate at The Andrew Goodman Foundation. She recently graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, where she was previously an Andrew Goodman Ambassador.
