Opportunities and Resources
2021-2022 School Year
Fall 2021 Opportunities
VAYD CAUCUSES
Join an issue caucus within VAYD! Use this link: https://www.vayd.org/caucuses
Issues include: Disability, Education, Environmental, Health, Housing, Labor, LGBTQ+, Minority, Rural, Veterans, Women's, and regional caucuses. So there is something for everybody!
This is an ideal opportunity to build statewide relationships and immerse yourself in teenage activism.
2020-2021 School Year
2021 - Candidate Petition Resources
You might be aware that campaigns for governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general are now able to collect e-petition signatures. The VAYD went ahead and put together a resource that has all of the Gov, LG, and AG candidates petitions, which you can find at VAYD.org/petitions.
September and October 2020 - Elections
Date Sensitive:
Elaine Luria - 09/26 - Phonebanking for Elaine - Official VAYD Event
Mark Kelly - 09/29 - Calls for Kelly with Mission for AZ - Official VAYD Event
Biden-Harris 2020 - 10/03 - Statewide Phone Bank for Virginia Victory 2020 - Official VAYD Event
Qasim Rashid - 10/04 - Phonebanking for Qasim - Official VAYD Event
Jennifer Wexton - 10/10 - Phonebanking for Jennifer - Official VAYD Event
Pennsylvania - 10/10 - Phonebanking for PA Democrats - Official VAYD Event
Cameron Webb - 10/17 - Phonebanking for Webb - Official VAYD Event
Abigail Spanberger - 10/18 - Phonebanking for Abigail - Official VAYD Event
Montana - 10/22 - Phonebanking for Steve Bullock - Official VAYD Event
Florida - 10/24 - 11 AM - Clean Energy for Biden DC/MD/VA - Phone Bank for FL w/ Kathleen Beckman (Clearwater) & VA Young Dems - Official VAYD Event
North Carolina - 10/24 - VAYD GOTV Saturdays for North Carolina - Official VAYD Event
North Carolina - 10/24 - Young Democrats of North Carolina Final Stretch Phonebank - Official VAYD Event
Pennsylvania - 10/25 - VAYD Sunday GOTV Text Banks for PA - Official VAYD Event
Virginia - 10/31 - 11/3 - Cameron Webb for Congress
Virginia - 10/31 - Elaine Luria for Congress - Halloween Phone Bank
Virginia - 10/31 - 11/3 - Abigail Spanberger for Congress - GOTV Phonebanks
North Carolina - 10/31 - VAYD GOTV Saturdays for NC - Official VAYD Event
Pennsylvania - 11/01 - VAYD Sunday GOTV Text Banks for PA - Official VAYD Event
How to Report VAYD Hours:
If you have volunteered for any official VAYD event, please fill out this form as an individual: bit.ly/2020vaydcampaigns.
We are the South Lakes HS chapter of VAYD. If you have any questions about the process, please email us at slhsyoungdemocrats@gmail.com.
You will need to have the following information:
- Date of Campaign Activity
- How many voters did you text? *
- How many voters did you register? *
- How many voters did you call? *
- Which candidate(s) were you campaigning for? *
Ongoing Events:
POWER TO THE POLLS: Virginia is in desperate need of poll workers to staff voting locations throughout the Commonwealth. Many polling places are understaffed and may even have to close leading to larger voter suppression than ever before. You can make a difference in our democracy by lending a hand during early voting or election day by working at your polling place! This is a non-partisan role but a vitally important one.
- Learn more and apply to be an officer here: https://www.elections.virginia.gov/officer-of-elections/
Qasim Rashid - Text/Phone Banking
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris - Make Calls for Joe and Kamala
Volunteer with the Virginia Coordinated Campaign
November 2020 - Support for Georgia and Voting
Here are some ways to support the campaigns and get involved:
- If you know anyone who lives in Georgia, check and ask whether they are registered to vote (and if not, remind them that the voter registration deadline is December 7 and that early voting begins December 14).
- Phonebank:
- If you have the means and would like to donate to a campaign or initiative, please consider the following:
- Asian Americans Advancing Justice Atlanta: protects the civil and human rights of Asian Americans in Georgia and the Southeast
- Black Voters Matter Fund: advocates for policies to expand voting rights/access, helps increase voter registration and voter turnout
- Common Cause Georgia: part of a nonpartisan Election Protection Coalition, supports voter registration efforts
- Fair Fight: founded by Stacey Abrams, fights voter suppression, engages in voter education programs, helps register voters
- GALEO Latino Community Development Fund: increases civic engagement and leadership development in the Latino community
- Georgia NAACP: secure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the health and well-being of all persons
December 2020 - Black Lives Matter and Delegate Ibraheem Samirah
Black Lives Matter Resources
Organizations
Donate
Learn
- Are Prisons Obsolete? by Angela Y. Davis
- How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
- The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
- Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
- Dear Martin by Nic Stone
Documentaries/Movies on Netflix
- 13th
- I am Not Your Negro
- Becoming
- Barry
If you have other resources to share with us, email us SLHSyoungdemocrats@gmail.com or DM us on Instagram.
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Important update: at our next meeting, which is this Wednesday (12/16) at 3pm, Delegate Ibraheem Samirah (VA-11) will be joining us! Please prepare one question that you would like to ask him. We encourage you to look into his record, especially on topics that we discussed at our last meeting, such as qualified immunity. Check our IG account (@slhsyoungdemocrats) for more information!
Here are some resources to get started:
About him
Sponsored bills and voting record
Recording Link: https://youtu.be/TkxIT4Gni8U
March 2021 - Women's History Month Book List
Thank you to Sia Komba for sharing these resources!
Education:
- Teaching to Transgress - bell hooks
- Playing in the Dark - Toni Morrison
(TW) Medical + Mental Health:
- Care Work - Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha
- Medical Bondage - Deirdre Cooper Owens
- Disability Visibility - Alice Wong
- A Disability History of the United States - Kim E. Nielsen
- Fearing the Black Body - Sabrina Strings
- For Colored Girls Who Have Considered S*icide - Ntozake Shange
- The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
- In Praise of Women’s Bodies - Gloria Steinem
Stereotypes, Reimagined:
- Dragon Ladies - Sonia Shah
- Sister Citizen - Melissa V. Harris-Perry
- Bad Feminist - Roxanne Gay
- Hood Feminism - Mikki Kendall
- Pinay Power - Melinda L. De Jesus
- When They Call You a Terrorist - Patrisse Khan-Cullors
Navigating Patriarchy:
- The Will to Change - bell hooks
- Men Explain Things to Me - Rebecca Solnit
Feminist Theory From Women of Color:
- Feminism is For Everybody - bell hooks
- Invisible Women - Caroline Criado Perez
- An American Sunrise - Joy Harjo
- Thick - Tressie McMillan Cottom
- The Indignities of Being a Woman - Merrill Markoe
- White Tears/ Brown Scars - Ruby Hamad
Historical Context:
- An Indigenous Peoples’ History of The United States
- A Black Woman’s History of the United States
- Women, Race, and Class - Angela Davis
April 2021 - VAYD Convention
If you have not already done so, please register to attend this virtual event by midnight tonight (4/14)! Register using this form: https://www.vayd.org/convention/registration
Here is the tentative schedule:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1JAGs9xeW-SUQsKFMWTGpjExHfNXETqTmTH_oWRQBXDI/edit
Friday is for the convention committee meetings, opening session for convention business (which really just means calling the convention to order and a few other procedural things Robert's Rules requires), and talking about party structure basics (ex. how we relate to DPVA, YDA, etc).
Saturday morning, 10 am to 1:30 pm, is the central business of convention. This is where we'll be voting on new officers, resolution, constitution/bylaws amendments, etc. If you can make nothing else, please prioritize this event!
The caucus meetings on Saturday (regions and constituencies) are optional, but you should go if you are able! An important part of convention is getting to know new folks from other chapters!
4:30-6:30 on Saturday are helpful and skill-building trainings/workshops (optional but encouraged!).
Saturday night is a Zoom social (randomized breakout rooms with 3-5 people just to talk and get to know folks!)
Sunday will be for more caucus elections and additional time for constituencies to meet if needed/wanted.
If you are planning to run for an officer position, you must file your intent to be a candidate by 5pm on Friday (4/16).
To learn more about the convention, check out its homepage: https://www.vayd.org/convention