Jobs

First off, thanks to Mike Connery for allowing us to guest blog here at Future Majority. My name is Jeff Kramer and I'm part of the national staff at Swing Semester, guest-guest blogging for Anima LaVoy, our executive director.

Forgive me for a moment for asking you to spend three minutes of your life watching Fox News, but bear with me. Watch the following video (if you dare).

(if the embedded video doesn't load, click here)

What happened to patriotism? Where and when did this concept become so marginalized, so bastardized, so meaningless? How have we allowed this to happen? We have officially arrived at the lowest common denominator - blind, hysterical, raving jingoism. Is it truly the idea to say America is the "greatest, best country God has ever given Man on the face of the Earth" loud enough and often enough to make it true? Let's forget the fact that cultural imperialism does not equate a country with greatness and evaluate the message. Is America about "baseball, apple pie, and kicking your f***ing ass"? Do we ignore every fault, every misstep, every mistake?

As progressives, we must not. We must not let patriotism be defined by others who seek to use it as a weapon and as a wedge, to divide and not to unite. We must not let patriotism be reduced to propaganda as seen in the video above. It must be returned to something meaningful, something important and something true. Patriotism must be defined as Jane Addams once did, "Unless our conception of patriotism is progressive, it cannot hope to embody the real affection and the real interest of the nation."

At Swing Semester, we seek not only to reclaim and redefine patriotism but activism as well. Our mission is to create citizens and true patriots that care about their country in a tangible and real way. We offer the nation’s first political immersion program, providing a bridge from interest to action for college students, recent graduates, and other young people who care deeply about their country and want to be a part of American history. This September, over 250 passionate young people will venture out to eight cities in critical “swing” states for 10 weeks of intensive electoral work. For those taking off school, academic credit will be available. Participants will live with host families, work in field campaigns, and engage in critical thinking to better understand this country and themselves.

We are in this fight for the long term to achieve the literal definition of this website, a future majority of informed, true and progressive citizens. Join us at www.swingsemester.org (launching tomorrow!).

We'll leave you with a quote from Eric Liu and Nick Hanauer's book The True Patriot, one of the texts on our program syllabus and one of our partners:
"I confidently trust that the American people will prove themselves … too wise not to detect the false pride or the dangerous ambitions or the selfish schemes which so often hide themselves under that deceptive cry of mock patriotism: "Our country, right or wrong!" They will not fail to recognize that our dignity, our free institutions and the peace and welfare of this and coming generations of Americans will be secure only as we cling to the watchword of true patriotism: "Our country — when right to be kept right; when wrong to be put right."

The Economic Policy Institute released a snapshot today on young people in the workforce. The results were neither encouraging nor unexpected.

This month’s crop of new college graduates will confront a more inhospitable job market than their predecessors faced in 2001, the beginning of the last recession.

In particular, wage and benefit trends show that the labor market for recent college graduates (ages 23-29) was weaker in 2007 than before the last recession in 2001. Inflation-adjusted average hourly wages for young college graduates were $21.09 for men and $18.17 for women in 2007 (Figure A). While the hourly wages for both men and women have ended their steady decline, they have barely risen and are still lower by about $0.60 for women and $1.60 for men than they were six years ago.

EPI's conclusions: With persistent job losses and rising unemployment expected, there is little evidence to suggest that the job market will improve for recent college graduates in the near future.

Yikes!

The Young Democrats are hiring a new Executive Director in Ohio. It's a great opportunity to be in an influential position at ground zero during this election. Details after the jump.

There's a lot of focus right now on the upcoming election - as their should be. But it's important to remember that elections aren't ends in themselves. They are vehicles the people use to usher in policy changes.

When Rock the Vote released their poll of Millennials (ppt) a few weeks ago, topping the list of concerns was the economy. Specifically, young people were concerned about their ability to obtain jobs that would allow them to climb out of debt and begin to build a life, whether that be supporting a child or buying a house (or both). This is the number one concern of Millennials, who on average graduate with $20k of debt and may be the first American generation to not do better financially than their parents.

What are the policies that could change this situation and provide economic security to our generation? These are the questions that Demos hopes to answer at their upcoming conference: A Better Deal - Reclaiming Economic Security for a New Generation.

The conference, scheduled for May 8th and 9th in DC, will feature an impressive array of speakers including Katrina vanden Heuval of The Nation, Andy Stern, President of SEIU, Andrea Batista Schlesinger, ED of the Drum Major Institute, as well as a number of youth organizing leaders. Panels include:

User-Generated Breakout Sessions
Registrants will have a chance to submit requests for topics or proposals to host a session during online registration. At the conference, these small group discussions or training sessions will allow participants to learn from each other and connect with other activists in their region or issue area.

Paycheck Politics
This panel will focus on the quality of jobs available to young adults in the New Economy, comparing wages, job security, unionization and benefits to the jobs that sustained previous generations. Speakers will also offer strategies for improving job quality, including living wage laws, career ladder and green job programs, traditional unionization and alternative organizing strategies including worker centers.

Higher and Higher Education
This panel will focus on issues of higher education access, affordability and debt. In this generation, the college degree is what the high school diploma was in the previous generation: an entry requirement for middle-class jobs. The panel will explore the attack on affirmative action amidst the widening racial gap in higher education, the drivers behind skyrocketing tuitions and student debt, and offer policy solutions.

Getting a Life: Housing, Health Care and Child Care
This panel will focus on affordability barriers to the necessities of middle-class life: housing, health care and child care. Panelists will describe why and how costs have risen, what public policies could help young adults and families, and how activists can play a role.

Generation Debt
This panel will focus on the rise of personal debt among young adults, explaining how culture, financial pressures and new lending industry practices have played a role. Panelists will discuss strategies to combat payday lending, abusive credit card practices, predatory home loans and other high-cost credit.

Young Elected Officials
This panel will showcase a group of young elected officials who have made the economic concerns of young adults and families central to their campaigns and agendas.

Race, Ethnicity and Economic Destiny
This panel will explore the connection between the millennial generation's two claims to fame: the most diverse generation in American history and the first that is widely predicted to not surpass their parents' standards of living. Panelists will discuss the economic status of immigrants and their children; the effect of the racial wealth gap; the economic contours of mass youth incarceration, and issues of political power and the challenges of winning broad government investments in a more diverse population.

We're Broke and We Vote
This panel will focus on strategies to build a movement for a better deal for young adults. Panelists will discuss the power of young voters, the obstacles to moving a young adult economic agenda and how to mobilize young adults around these issues.

Many of the topics that will be covered at the conference were written about in a recent special report by The American Prospect: Mobilizing Millennials. I highly recommend both the conference and the report for those looking to understand the economic concerns of young voters, and the policies young people will ask the next administration to implement.

I'll be at the conference live-blogging, as well as speaking on a panel. Hope to see you there.

Over at It's Getting Hot in Here, they've put together a listing of job/volunteer/internship opportunities for those looking to work in the youth climate movement over the summer.

Opportunities include:

Mountain Justice Summer (May 17-23 & all summer, Camp Blanton, KY & Appalachia): Mountain Justice Summer is a call to action and a request for help from the people of the Appalachia mountains for help in saving our mountains, streams–and forest from greedy coal companies. With an emphasis on education, strategy, non-violence and cultural sensitivity the MJS training camp will provide participants with comprehensive workshops covering the impacts and politics behind mountain top removal mining and the hands-on tactical training to take to the mountains and do something about it. Take this opportunity to share strategies and build relationships that will create an even stronger network of allies and coalitions organizing resistance to MTR this summer and beyond! Contact: danny@seac.org

Summer of Solutions (June 1-Aug 1st, Twin Cities, MN): In the Summer of Solutions young people from around the country will work together to engage communities across the Twin Cities in cutting-edge community-based global warming solutions and to build a strong network of new climate leaders with the skills to lead their communities towards a sustainable future. With the help of youth mentors and community allies and the support of other participants like yourself, you’ll get to shape course of the Summer of Solutions through your own work. We will focus on harnessing the power of community by building the capacity of existing local and national alliances, and integrate a broad range of student-run initiatives and strategies through a systems-based approach to climate activism that unites policy change, social entrepreneurship, movement capacity building, and community organizing. Projects include working with Cooperative Energy Futures to advance residential energy efficiency, and ARISE (Alliance to Re-Industrialize for a Sustainable Economy) to help develop and use the local Ford Assembly Plant as an example of the new green industrial paradigm. Contact: summerofsolutions@gmail.com

Northwest Institute for Community Energy: ” A Think-and-Do Tank” (July 7 - August 24th, Portland, OR): The Northwest Institute for Community Energy (NICE) will be a seven-week-long, hands-on training program focusing on innovative renewable energy project development, community organizing and activism. Youth will be working in Portland to establish a cooperatively owned neighborhood geothermal heating system while receiving trainings and experience on a variety of activism, organizing and project management skills. Participants will also take part in the week-long Environmental Leadership Training Program (SPROG) run by the Sierra Student Coalition in Oregon, August 10-17th. The seven week program will conclude with a week-long backpacking adventure in the Cascade Mountain Range. Contact: jesse.d.jenkins@gmail.com

This is just a taste. Go check out the rest.

A number of job openings I've been meaning to post about.

Rock the Vote is hiring for a number of positions. Full descriptions are also available at http://www.rockthevote.com/rtv_jobs.php Interested applicants should check out the job descriptions and, if interested, email jobs@rockthevote.com by March 28th.

Mobile Program Manager
Rock the Vote is seeking a Mobile Program Manager to oversee RTV’s mobile outreach program. Qualified candidates will have a proven track record developing and managing successful mobile and/or new media programs. She/he will have exceptional project management and communication skills and will be passionate about using new technologies to organize and turn-out young voters.

Online Organizer
Rock the Vote is seeking an Online Organizing Manager to oversee all online organizing activities. Qualified candidates will have a proven track record developing and managing successful online organizing campaigns. She/he will have exceptional written communication skills and will be passionate about using new technologies to organize and turn-out young voters.

Digital Associate
Rock the Vote is seeking a Digital Associate to support and assist the Digital Media Department. The successful candidate should be passionate about using new technologies to organize and turn-out young voters.

Media Relations Associate
Rock the Vote is seeking a Media Relations Associate to support and assist the Communications Department. The successful candidate should have experience working with the press and strong research and writing skills.

The Center for Progressive Leadership is looking to place a number of Fellows in entry-level jobs in the progressive movement. Job openings are available in Colorado, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and D.C. There are also paid internships (10 weeks in length) available in D.C.

More information here. Get the application here.

US PIRG is also hiring a campus organizer and for a number of fellowship positions all over the country.

Finally, the Young Democrats are looking to hire Executive Directors in California, Utah, and Virginia. They are also looking for a new Director of Development. More details here. Deadlines are March 21st.

Two opportunities in the youth movement are available:

First, check out the 2nd Annual College Blogging Scholarship. The contest awards $2,000 to a college student who blogs about politics. Applications will be accepted from February 11th through the 24th, and you can nominate yourself or submit an application on behalf of a friend or a young blogger you admire.

Second, the Center for Progressive Leadership is now accepting applications for their 2008 New Leaders Program. The deadline to submit your application is March 15th.

About the program:

10-Week Paid Internship: Once you’ve been accepted into the program, we help match you with a paid internship in Washington, DC. The program will take place from June 6 – August 15, 2008. We’re focused on putting you in a position where you’ll find the work rewarding and the cause personally meaningful.

Leadership Development: As a New Leader, you will have a variety of opportunities to grow as a leader, network with members of the progressive community, and build the skills and connections you need to deepen your involvement in progressive causes:

Training and Workshops: During your internship, you attend a variety of sessions led by leaders in the progressive movement designed to provide you with the tools and techniques you need to become an effective political leader.

Networking Events: You’ll regularly have the chance to meet leaders in the progressive movement and create lasting relationships with mentors and advisors throughout Washington.

Mentoring/Career Coaching: You’ll be personally matched to a leader in the progressive community who will provide ongoing support and coaching during your internship and beyond.

CPL is also offering a New Leaders Fellowship program this year that is 5 months long and links diverse, young leaders to full-time, entry-level positions with progressive organizations and is happening both in D.C. and in select states across the country.

Looking to get involved in progressive youth organizing?

I got a lot of emails from folks looking for job candidates, pimping conferences, and scouring or interns. It seemed to make sense for me to put out a call and compile as much as I could into on place. So here's a fairly comprehensive listing of all the jobs, internships, and conferences that can help you do it.

I hope folks find this valuable. Also, I'm pretty appalled that there is no central repository for stuff like this. There are places to go, sure - NOI's job boards, Idealist.org, Democratic GAIN, etc. but all of those seem somewhat incomplete and are hard to navigate. Building a real "youth movement job board" isn't at all a bad idea and it could probably be done super cheap if it was all done wiki style.

Job listings in the extended entry. Please spread widely.

Two opportunities to get some cash money for your blogging:

The Daniel Kovach foundation is offering a $10,000 scholarship for college bloggers. Previous winners include Stephen Yellin (aka Mr. Liberal for blogosphere denizens). Details here.

Think Progress has a new fellowship program that will pay you to blog. Details after the jump.

MoveOn is hiring a for a number of 5-month fellowships. Details after the jump.