The future of political change rests in the hands of millennials. Their choice to engage — or not engage — in traditional civic avenues can tip the scales for the progressive movement. Recognizing this, we are participating in YVote, a network of organizations reaching out to young people of color to spark change through electoral organizing, locally and statewide. Leading the charge for YVote are Mobilize the Immigrant Vote (MIV), which ensures the safety and rights to societal services for children of immigrants and young immigrants, and Movement Strategy Center (MSC), which trains and builds capacity for nonprofits that utilize community organizing.

We’re thrilled to bring on a new member of our team, Laneisha Butler, thanks to the New Majority Fellowship we’re doing in partnership with YVote. A third-generation East Oaklander and recent graduate of UC Santa Cruz, Laneisha knows firsthand from campus organizing the power to bring about change that talking to your peers can have. She will be managing three civic engagement campaigns focused on increasing voter turnout and political engagement among low-income, underrepresented people of color. Her first campaign kicks off next month as she works with Oakland-based youth groups, high schools and colleges to register young people to vote.

In Laneisha’s words:

“I am excited about the support and insights that I am gaining through Oakland Rising and YVote so that I can advance a civic engagement agenda rooted in social justice within my Oakland community.

“Last month I attended YVote’s “My Ancestors Taught Me” bootcamp where, along with other New Majority Fellows, we examined what our ancestors have laid out for us regarding their struggles for social change, and how we can use this knowledge to create change within our community.

The four days at bootcamp provided a chance for me to connect with and learn from my peers. I am learning from many powerful and educated people who have prior experience with pushing our shared agenda, and who are willing to share their ideas and methods within the trainings. From workshops to intimate group activities, I networked with others who have similar goals as I do: to dismantle generational poverty, disenfranchisement, under-representation, and gentrification within communities of color.

“Throughout this fellowship, I will utilize my strengths and knowledge to encourage more youth of color to participate in civic engagement. I hope that our communal engagement will result in us becoming our own political representatives, lifting up our agenda.”