Simply Amazed

The weeks have flown by and it seems crazy that we now find ourselves in week 7 of the internship.  Eastern North Carolina has surely kept us busy.  Our work week this week started with a block party on Sunday hosted by the SCLC. We set up a table to do voter registration at this event.  We were taken aback when we asked a group of 4 young attendees if they were registered to vote. Their immediate response was “vote for what”. There were multiple tables out so we assumed they were just confused as to what table they were at.  After we explained we were registering people to vote for elected officials from the president on down to their local city council members, we were taken aback when one responded “Oh no, we don’t vote”.  So we politely asked them again, “well would you like to register”. We were given a “no we don’t want to vote”.  As they walked away I (Jasmine) immediately wanted to ask them one question “why?” It amazes me how apathetic people can be towards voting, especially a right that people fought for them to have.  It amazes me how apathetic people can be towards people who make the decisions that affect their everyday life.   It also amazes me how one person said that she didn’t want to vote, and everyone else followed suit as if they would be looked at as being “lame” for registering to vote.  I know the blog spot is typically for rants; however I just could not pass up telling this experience.

Monday was just an office day for me and Shaniqua. Tuesday we went to a one on one with a community center in Greenville.  We realized that we have made our fair share of rounds in Greenville when the director that we met with begin to ask who we have met with, and we named practically everyone in his repertoire of active people in the community that we should meet with.

Wednesday we got to venture out of the area and we got the chance to head to the North Carolina General Assembly for our Respect Our Vote Rally.  There was a heat advisory on Wednesday so we didn’t know exactly how many people were going to turn out but there was over 100 so we were very excited about that.  It is amazing that in the same week we heard such apathy toward voting, that we saw a mass of people in the sweltering heat rallying for the right to vote. This week was just amazing to me. It also is great every time that we get the chance to get meet up with all of the Democracy North Carolina team.

Until next time,

Jasmine and Shaniqua