YEO June 2010 Newsletter

YEO National Convening 2010-
A smashing success!

The YEO Network’s 5th Anniversary National Convening was held in Washington, DC from May 13 -16, 2010. Our biggest and most exciting National Convening to date, the weekend was filled with great events and interesting sessions. It was a mentally and physically rejuvenating event aimed at helping young electeds network with like-minded colleagues, build in-depth personal and professional skills, and share innovative policy ideas, best practices, and resources…not to mention having a little fun in the process.

Here’s a brief recap of the 2010 National Convening:

We kicked off the event with our YEO Network 5th Anniversary Gala at the National Press Club, with keynotes from Congressman John Conyers, Jr. and Michael Strautmanis, Chief of Staff to Obama’s advisor Valerie Jarrett. Additionally, Kyrsten Sinema, the inaugural winner of the YEO Network’s Barbara Jordan Leadership Award, presented this year’s award to Mayor Evan Low of Campbell, California. Congratulations, Evan!

Over the rest of the weekend, the YEOs participated in three days of workshops and plenaries ranging from discussions about health care implementation in the states, comprehensive immigration reform at the state and local level, and job creation strategies, to forums rethinking the public education system.

YEOs were also briefed on national issues by White House staff members including Ann Widger, Deputy Director of External Affairs at Health and Human Services; Brian Deese, Special Assistant to the President for Economic Policy; and Cecilia Muñoz, Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs.

And, of course, it wouldn’t be a YEO Network event if everyone didn’t gather together around a piano to sing a wonderful rendition of “Lean on Me.”

Some of what YEOs had to say about the event:

“I feel blessed that the Network exists for my personal growth. In the few days that I've had a chance to meet my fellow YEOs, I felt that I became not only a better legislator, but also a better man. It is incredibly important for us to remain in touch nationally, exchange information, and provide support on a continuous basis. Of all the networks and organizations I am a part of, the YEO has become the most dear to me given its unique nature and incredible potential.” Commissioner Igor Tregub (Berkeley, CA)

“Absolutely the best way for young elected officials to learn from our own peers in a laid back, yet professional environment.” Rep. Scott Kawasaki (Fairbanks, AK)

“Getting better every year.  I appreciated the humble tone of this year’s conference, focusing on being in public service and part of a progressive movement.  I think this conference is important to keep people grounded and connected to the bigger issues that we are fighting for in our cities and states.” City Commissioner Cara Jennings (Lake Worth, FL)

National Convening is over! What's Next?

YEO Network State Directors –Applications will open for new YEO Network State Directors within the coming month. If you are interested in applying or would like to learn more about this component of the YEO Network, please contact Ryan at rhurst@pfaw.org.

Policy Research Support – The YEO Network and People For the American Way Foundation will be working together to provide policy research assistance to individual members of the YEO Network. If you have a specific question or progressive issue for research, please contact Elisabeth at epope@pfaw.org for assistance.

Immigration Reform: A YEO Discussion
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
4:00pm (EST)

Immigration is often a controversial issue, inseparable from racial, religious, and ethnic prejudice, and America has recently seen significant anti-immigrant sentiment and legislation. However, many YEOs are speaking out against overly punitive and harmful legislation and moving forward with positive and integrative policies in their communities. This is your opportunity to hear from and discuss with fellow YEOs to get updates, ideas, and learn about the immigration reform work going on around the country.

Join us on Tuesday, June 29th at 4:00pm (EST) to discuss:

• Current immigration reform efforts at the state and local level;
• Updates on the current debate in Arizona and the immigration work of partner organizations; and
• How to collaborate with YEOs and be a progressive ally on the immigration issue.

RSVP to nsavelli@pfaw.org

Special Feature by a YEO
“The Audacity to Blog”
By City Councilwoman Jacqueline Augustine (Geneva, New York)

“To the press alone...the world is indebted for all the triumphs which have been gained by reason and humanity over error and oppression.” – James Madison

The press, serving as the external control on the government that the Founding Fathers intended and codified, fulfills its role and responsibility within a deliberative democracy only by pressing, seeking, challenging, researching, and ultimately verifying the public claims of elected officials.  As electeds, we sometimes feel put upon by the press.  Sometimes we forget that we’re always on the record, even when we say “this is off the record,” we find it difficult to clearly communicate in mere sound bites the reasons for a changed point of view.  Sometimes we have a moment like Vice President Biden when we forget or willfully ignore the presence of the microphone and cameras (though our faux pas is not likely to be such a “big f--in’ deal”).

But each of us should be offering a prayer of thanksgiving before bed each night to the men and women who’ve made it their mission in life to keep us on our toes in service to the American people.  Their service is as vital a part of the system of checks and balances as any, or at least, it should be.  But what happens, in a city large or small, when the press becomes less a source of truth telling and more of a platform for assertions meant to mislead, misconstrue and otherwise hide mistakes from the public?  Worse yet, what happens when the sole source of local information becomes the promulgator of disinformation?

That’s what happened in Geneva, New York, my small city in the heart of the Finger Lakes wine region.  When our paper, the only game in town, let its editorial bias create editorialize ‘facts,’ I got angry.  And together with fellow City Councilor Chip Capraro, I “went rogue.”  We started a blog, dedicated to presenting a fact-based point of view on critical local issues.  And to reflect our kamikaze, no-holds-barred, everything-is-fair-game policy, we named it “No Strings Attached.”

You might think, as we naively did, that two City Councilors starting a website to communicate with residents about City issues is really no big deal.  In fact, shouldn’t we all be using every available communication tool to link people into government operations, to provide conduits of information to empower an active citizenry?  But when we ‘went live’ on 15 March 2007, we incited a riot within the establishment and we believe that the ripple effect of our action has changed our city’s governance, if only a little, for the better.

Continue reading - click here>>

Jacqueline Augustine, 32, has served for eleven years on City Council in Geneva, NY.  She recently received her Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Rochester, with a specialty in Ethics.  Her blog, co-authored with Hobart College Assistant Dean and former City Councilor, Rocco “Chip” Capraro, can be found at www.nostringsgeneva.com.

Corporate Personhood? Citizen’s United and Corporate Speech Rights

The YEO National Convening gave a stage for discussions of the US Supreme Court’s recent decision in Citizens United v. FEC, which gave corporations enormous power to influence elections. Now YEOs and our partner organization, People For the American Way, are tapping into national resources to take action.

If you were unable to attend the session at Convening and are interested in joining the conversations or taking action on this issue, please email Diallo Brooks at dbrooks@pfaw.org. Diallo is beginning a list-serve just for our members, as well as connecting interested YEOs with national organizations.

Progressive Policy Corner

Ban on Purchasing of Sweatshop Products
Drum Major Institute for Public Policy
New York, NY

Milwaukee’s ban on city purchases of sweatshop products applies to all city apparel purchases, rentals, laundering, and dry cleaning contracts worth more than $5,000 and all non-apparel purchases worth more than $30,000 (see chapter 310-17). All bidders for city contracts sign sworn affidavits stating that their goods meet the following conditions:

• For goods that are manufactured in the United States, workers must be paid a wage such that if they were working full-time their income would exceed the federal poverty line for a family of three plus an additional 20 percent paid as either hourly wages or health benefits;
• For goods manufactured outside the United States, workers must be paid a comparable non-poverty wage adjusted to reflect the country’s cost of living;
• Manufacturers located outside the United States must comply with International Labor Organization conventions banning forced labor, child labor, and mandating workers’ freedom to organize unions;
• Manufacturers may not terminate employees without just cause; and
• Non-union manufacturers must nevertheless establish some mechanism for workplace disputes to be resolved.

Read more about this policy>>