Every year, in addition to our blogsite, SafeKidsStories.com creates a few great events, like two days with iconic children’s illustrator (and native son) Jerry Pinkney, or our day-long festival with author-filmmaker MK Asante. These signature events have been citywide, intergenerational, good for kids, good for the rest of us. This fall, by popular demand, and in conjunction with The Free Library, UPenn, Temple, CCP, ThePhiladelphiaCitizen.org, WURD radio, Distort, WHYY, SEAMACC, The Attic Youth Center, Fresh Artists — the list grows everyday! — SafeKidsStories.com’s presents #VoteThatJawn: to help Philadelphia youth challenge each other to do what kids all over America are signing up to do: Vote.
Logo generously donated by Distort
Several moving parts will support the Jawn:
Content here and on SafeKidsStories.com that you’ll love to share;
Links to great voting curriculum, so that teachers can assign writing projects — and send their students’ work to us to post!
Social media for kids to connect to — polls, historical facts, links to fabulous videos, our own, created right here in Philly, and great national content, such as Yara Shahidi’s EighteenX18;
And then there’s the Jawn itself: Saturday, September 22nd, from 2–4pm, in Hamilton Commons at WHYY (on 6th Street between Race and Arch). We’ll start with a city-wide youth house band to get things moving. A local music duo will perform the new, original theme song they’ve created, and local DJs and dancers will make sure that the idea of voting is as exciting as it’s ever been since Philadelphia got the whole voting thing started! Plus food, of course. Surprise guests! And merch.
Great, experienced speakers will introduce the challenge: each team is to come up with fresh strategies to get their peers to register and then go to the polls. Advertising professionals and organizers will be on hand to act as brainstorming coaches for each team. They’ll suggest strategies for the teams to consider and riff on in their own plans. We’ll share tactics on the VoteThatJawn site for teams and others to use and improvise — because it’s not just what you think, it’s what we do that brings folks to the polls for the first time.
The idea is for each team to register — and then get to the polls — the greatest number of people. On November 6th, we’ll follow up with a #VoteThatJawn after party: and award cash prizes to three winners.
So, you’re coming, right? Email us at VoteThatJawn@gmail.com and tell us about your group, along with the name and contact information of two reps, so that we can get back to you with registration material and updates.
Don’t have a team, but you want to come help make this happen? Also perfect! Come alone or bring a friend and join our Wild Card tables to mix it up and make things happen! Email us at VoteThatJawn@gmail.com so we know you when we see you!
To view the original post and see more #VoteThatJawn content, visit SafeKidsStories.com.