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Sarah-Julia Marion: Voting's Visual Storytelling Through the Lens of Change
In a constantly evolving world, and in our democracy where every voice matters, young voters stand at the forefront of change. To inspire this demographic to engage in the electoral process, it is passionate and talented activists like Sarah-Julia Marion who harness the power of visual storytelling, which acts as a catalyst for conversation and action amongst the youth. Going beyond traditional means to underscore the vital importance of voting, her work closes the gap betwee

VoteThatJawn
Jun 265 min read


Ceci Schleinitz: Beyond the Ballot: Youth Leaders Are Born
The coolest thing about Ceci Schleinitz--among many cool things--is that she gets to mentor students who are just a few years younger than she. So, she’s like the cool aunt who is also wise and strict. After the election ends, she says, it’s easy to sit back and think that the work is over. But think again. Because sometimes the greatest impact happens beyond the ballot. Sometimes, it’s those moments of quiet when young people discover the power of voting for the first time.

VoteThatJawn
Jun 265 min read


Zion Sykes: How He Turned from Loss to Leadership
Was it the loss of his grandmother, or his curiosity, that led him to become the president of the University Park Undergraduate Association, the student representative to the Borough of State College’s City Council, and the chair of the Committee on Governmental and Community Relations?
For Zion Sykes, the answer isn’t as simple as either/or—it’s both.

VoteThatJawn
Jun 263 min read


Your Voice, Your Vote
Let’s travel back in time to 2020, the year the world shut down as coronavirus spread. I was sixteen years old, a sophomore in high school. Suddenly, my friends and I no longer communicated in the cafeteria during lunchtime or on the way to class. Our lives moved online.

VoteThatJawn
Apr 302 min read


These Are The Rules I Will Live By
I may not have a vote, but I do have a voice, and I intend to use it. Encouraging others to engage in the democratic process became my way of contributing, even if indirectly, to US democracy. For every person I convinced to register or to show up at the polls, I felt like I was speaking up for those of us left out.

VoteThatJawn
Apr 302 min read


Funding SEPTA: A Matter of Justice
Every evening on my walk from Drexel’s library, I watch packed SEPTA buses pass by. Many are packed with healthcare workers from nearby hospitals and riders returning from medical appointments. Many are packed with students returning from college. Others are traveling to restaurants in Center City or a Flyers game. Over 750,000 rides are taken on public transit daily through SEPTA.

VoteThatJawn
Apr 295 min read


Too Young to Matter
I used to wish my parents had forged the date on my birth certificate. Or at the very least, I’d been born two weeks earlier.

VoteThatJawn
Apr 234 min read


Letting 18-year-olds Drive Us to the Future: Confessions of Old, Some of Us, Like, Seriously Old, Youth-Vote Advocates
Each day, another 50 or so 17-year-olds in Philadelphia turn 18, and soon it’ll be time to hand them the keys.

VoteThatJawn
Nov 12, 20243 min read


Voting Against Memory
There were many times I wasn’t allowed to leave the house because of demonstrations happening downtown.

VoteThatJawn
Jul 24, 20243 min read


Tune In, Turn Up, Turn Out: Coercing Your Friends to the Polls
Isabel Engel provides ways to get your friends out and to the polls during election season!

VoteThatJawn
Jun 29, 20242 min read


Don’t Hit Me With that “My Vote Doesn’t Matter”
By Lila Dubois My grandmother hasn’t voted in a presidential election since 1992. She’s one of the most politically opinionated people I...

VoteThatJawn
Feb 11, 20223 min read


HEAR HER VOICE! You Decide to Vote!
By Maya Hairston “Real change, enduring change, happens one step at a time.” Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court...

VoteThatJawn
Feb 6, 20222 min read


My Whiplash Year
2020 has been a year of firsts for me. My first (legal) drink, first pandemic, first apartment, first presidential election, first Zoom...

VoteThatJawn
Jan 17, 20214 min read


What I Learned on Election Day
When I stepped out of my house on Beyer Avenue on November 3rd, I took small sips of my coffee, believing I would have time to finish...

VoteThatJawn
Jan 17, 20213 min read


The Golden Ticket to Democracy: Voter Registration
“Which one is the orange guy?”
I tried not to laugh behind my mask.
“The President?” I asked.
He nodded.
“He’s Republican,” I said...

VoteThatJawn
Jan 14, 20218 min read


Voting for the First Time During a Pandemic
voted in my first election this year.
I was six years old when I went to “vote” with my mom for the first time. We approached the front...

VoteThatJawn
Jan 7, 20216 min read


Growing Up As a Citizen
6:00 a.m. is the time I was told to arrive but I got there at 6:20. The address—1124 N. 11th Street—was where I was supposed to work for...

VoteThatJawn
Jan 7, 20216 min read


Let's Say Black Lives Mattered
Someone has slit in half the 30-foot-long Black Lives Matter banner outside our St. Luke and the Epiphany. For the second time.

VoteThatJawn
Dec 20, 20204 min read


Voice That Jawn
Intergenerational stories of voter participation to inspire your vote Voice That Jawn is a six-part podcast miniseries by #VoteThatJawn...

VoteThatJawn
Nov 29, 20201 min read


America, Dude! Learn from Black Lives
For our nation to heal, we must open our ears and hearts to the messages our young people are sending us By Lorene Cary This article was...

VoteThatJawn
Nov 29, 20203 min read


Op-ed: Youth Need to Vote
By Carson Eckhard This article originally appeared in Philly Metro. You can view the original post here. In my Tampa, Florida high school...

VoteThatJawn
Oct 30, 20203 min read


A Summer of Voter Registration and Empowerment
I walked up the slight hill on Ogontz and Olney to arrive in front of what used to be my educational sanctuary. Overgrown weeds seemed to in

VoteThatJawn
Sep 25, 20202 min read
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